At the critical mont, a faint yet incomparably sharp energy suddenly burst forth from the major general's severed wrist!
It was the trace of blade energy left behind by Squard's strike just monts ago.
The strange silken filants were instantly blown apart into tatters by this erupting blade aura, unable to sustain the weight of the severed hand any longer.
That stabbing strike from the severed hand naturally ca to a halt.
However—the tip of the triangular blade had already touched Lucci's skin.
The dark green substance coating the blade transferred entirely onto Lucci's flesh in that instant, so brief it was nearly imasurable!
"Damn it!"
Feeling the bizarre itching and searing burn at his ribs, Lucci's heart sank. Yet his fingers did not falter—he exerted force and crushed the major general's skull on the spot.
Squard flicked his hand, black light flashing. The patch of dark-green-tainted flesh beneath Lucci's ribs was neatly sliced away.
Not a sliver more, not a shred less—he cut off exactly the entire infected portion.
And in that fleeting span of ti, the contaminated flesh had already expanded from the size of a blade's tip to the size and depth of a large bowl!
Several of Lucci's ribs were even shaved thin in the process!
The severed hunk of green-tainted flesh hit the ground, instantly liquefied, and evaporated into a sickly green mist that vanished within the blink of an eye.
This alone was proof of the terrifying corrosive effect this unknown toxin had on human flesh and blood!
Lucci raised his arm, frowned at the wound beneath his ribs, and only after confirming there was no trace of dark green left did he breathe a sigh of relief.
He gave Squard a nod. "My thanks."
But at that mont—the corpse of the fallen marine major general suddenly exploded!
More precisely, the filants within his body, finally freed of restraint, erupted into rampant proliferation!
Brilliant yet chaotic and violent threads tore the major general's body to pieces, forming a grotesque, futuristic-looking sculpture that lood before the two n.
From the statue's every crack and surface, clouds of multicolored spore-dust spewed forth, dispersing into the air.
With their skills, Squard and Lucci naturally evaded the spore blast with ease, leaping beyond its range.
Yet only now did Lucci finally realize why he had never been able to uncover the hidden hand's arrangents within Mary Geoise.
The enemy's setup—was this kind of spore-creature lurking inside human hosts!
Just seeing the rainbow-colored filants coursing through the major general's veins was enough to know—these threads had long since seized control over his mind and body!
Heaven only knew how many within Mary Geoise had already been infected by these spores!
Worse still—you couldn't even deal with such people by killing them outright. To kill them was to create an even more horrifying spore source at the very spot!
If that were the case, then Mary Geoise's fall was beyond the power of n to prevent!
Lucci's expression turned grim. He forced the words out: "Quick—take General Hiyori and the others, and withdraw!"
Squard did not hesitate for even a heartbeat, imdiately sprinting full speed toward the Hall of Authority.
…
Aboard the Pluton, two marines—both major generals missing arms and legs—leaned on one another as they staggered toward Sengoku's position.
Sengoku drew his gaze back from the battlefield, regarding the two with slight puzzlent.
"You two should be resting in the cabin. What are you doing up here?"
The wounded n gave no reply. Instead, the arms they had draped around each other suddenly tensed.
The more burly one swung his remaining arm, hefting the one-legged officer as though he were a weapon, and brought him crashing down toward Sengoku's head!
Startled, Sengoku slid sideways with a quick step, dodging the strike.
"What are you doing?!" he barked.
But before the airborne officer even hit the deck, his body ruptured completely—
A cloud of iridescent spore-mist exploded outward, carried by the air currents trailing Sengoku's rapid movent, clinging to him like a bone-deep plague.
By now Sengoku was calm. With a cold snort, he threw a punch.
The force of his fist blasted both the spore cloud and its originator far away.
Yet at once, he realized—there was no way the traitor had only arranged for these two wounded n to launch an ambush!
And sure enough, within the ranks of the marines still fighting shoulder to shoulder, several sudden disturbances broke out.
Over a dozen elite officers abruptly turned their blades against their comrades at their sides.
Catching them completely off guard, the traitors struck down a wave of allies. Then—before anyone could rally to subdue them—they chose to self-detonate!
Spore-clouds erupted within the marine ranks on all sides!
Even in this, the elite officers proved themselves worthy of the justice cloaks on their backs. In an instant, those who remained unscathed instinctively retreated beyond the range of the spores' spread.
But the two or three who had already been cut down by their "comrades" had no chance to escape the spore-cloud's reach.
Worse still—their agonized struggles and screams tugged rcilessly at the hearts of the marines who had managed to get clear.
Several, without thinking, were about to rush back into what seed like harmless spore-mist in order to save their rely wounded comrades.
"Everyone—fall back from the spore zone!"
Sengoku arrived just in ti. His thunderous command halted these suicidal impulses.
Though they didn't understand, the elite officers obeyed Sengoku's "cold-blooded and wrong" order to abandon their comrades.
In unison, tens of thousands of marines withdrew from the battle against the colossal beasts.
Only Kizaru and Aokiji remained, supported by Fujitora and Momousagi, barely managing to restrain the four remaining rampaging titans.
Sengoku landed at the front lines, giving his second command in a booming voice:
"All who have co into contact—or even suspect they have co into contact—with the spores, step forward!"
Imdiately, more than a hundred marines broke ranks, distancing themselves from the main force.
None of these elites were fools. Seeing Sengoku's deadly seriousness, they needed no further explanation. The spores clearly had extre lethality and infectiousness—they dared not take them lightly.
Only then did Sengoku allow himself a faint breath of relief.
Unleashing his Devil Fruit's full power, his mind raced to compile every shred of information. Before long, the traitor's sches and thods lay clear in his thoughts.
With lingering dread, he realized:
"It seems this bastard's position or prestige within the navy wasn't very high, which is why his infiltration of the elite ranks was so limited—he only managed to plant a dozen or so agents among them."
"But among the ordinary marines… the number of spore-infected must be…"
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