Dimensional Chat Group: Speed-o'-Light

Once the ultra-compressed air cube touched the ground, the explosion it unleashed created a massive shockwave, powerful enough to sweep through an entire city in an instant—eradicating hundreds of thousands of people in the blink of an eye.

The heroes on the ground suddenly felt a fierce wind erupt all around them—that was the vacuum caused by Geryuganshoop's compressed air.

Even the side effects from Geryuganshoop simply preparing the "ammunition" were enough to blow so violently that many heroes couldn't even keep their eyes open.

"Bastard!"

Only psychics like Tatsumaki and Fubuki could actually see what was happening.

Even someone as proud as Tatsumaki couldn't help but have her expression change dramatically upon witnessing it.

There wasn't time to properly dismantle Geryuganshoop's technique—she could only hastily mimic the move by using telekinesis to freeze a massive volume of air and push it upward from below.

"Hah! I didn't expect to find such a powerful telekinetic on this planet. But before me, the number one telekinetic in the universe, you're just rushing toward your own death!"

Geryuganshoop cackled as he detonated the compressed air cube midair. The air, compressed tens of thousands of times over, exploded in an instant. The resulting pressure cannon tore right through Tatsumaki's hastily constructed barrier.

Just as it looked like the entire City A would be wiped out by the destructive shockwave, Kizaru calmly spread his arms.

A flood of Armament Haki surged outward, forming an invisible wall in midair in an instant.

The shockwave struck the wall of Armament Haki with a deafening boom—the entire City A trembled from the impact.

But even after the storm had passed, Kizaru's Haki wall remained completely unmoved, as if it had only been brushed by a feather.

With only that thin barrier between them, the air above looked like it had been ravaged by a category-18 hurricane—while below, everything remained utterly still and untouched.

Had it not been for the overwhelming sound and the visible shaking of the atmosphere and the city itself, no one would've even noticed what just happened above.

"Hahaha—Guh? What just happened?! What the hell was that?! There shouldn't be anyone in the universe with stronger telekinesis than me… Wait! That wasn't telekinesis!"

Geryuganshoop's laughter stopped abruptly. He hadn't even seen what blocked his guaranteed strike.

"That telekinetic bastard is mine!"

Floating beside Kizaru, Tatsumaki grit her teeth and spoke. If she hadn't been caught off guard, there wouldn't have been much of a gap between her and Geryuganshoop in terms of strength.

Tatsumaki's pride couldn't handle the fact that she had to rely on someone else to protect her.

Even if that someone was Kizaru—especially if it was him—she couldn't accept it.

"Alright then. Just be careful."

Kizaru patted her head, which was nearly bristling in frustration. He understood how she felt.

Aside from being caught off guard, she was clearly a bit excited by the challenge.

After all, this was a telekinetic user who wasn't weaker than her—she probably wanted to see for herself who was stronger.

"W-What just happened?"

Tank-Top Master stared up in shock at the massive alien spaceship overhead and the storm-swept sky now completely devoid of clouds. In that moment, he suddenly felt like a fake S-Class hero.

"…They're definitely not here for friendly reasons."

Bang let out a long breath. He wasn't the type to lose confidence so easily—but just realizing that this devastating strike was only a test from the enemy made him feel uneasy.

If Geryuganshoop was already the strongest among the aliens, then fine. But if there were even stronger ones yet to act… then things were going to get rough.

"No need to worry too much. We've got our trump card too. As long as KING makes a move—everything will be fine!"

Seeing morale sink among the heroes, Zombieman tried to lift everyone's spirits by bringing out what he considered his trump card.

Even without the Vaccine Man incident, KING already had four confirmed kills of Dragon-level monsters under his belt—he was widely revered as "The Strongest Man on Earth."

'Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump…'

Just as Zombieman finished speaking, an intense rumble echoed through the room—a sound like an engine revving up.

"It's already starting? The legendary King Engine!"

Superalloy Darkshine turned slightly, intrigued. It was his first time seeing KING in action.

"I wonder who's stronger—Sensei or KING…"

Genos muttered under his breath. It was a shame Saitama hadn't come along. Otherwise, he could finally settle the debate in his mind between these two titans.

And then there was Swift Flash—clearly a formidable opponent, if Sensei himself saw potential in him. If he had that level of power back then, he could've destroyed the frenzied cyborg that wiped out his hometown!

"Oh? Looks like we can count on him after all…"

Atomic Samurai adjusted his straw hat, finally able to relax a bit. His main worry had been for his three disciples.

But now that KING was stepping in, there was nothing to fear.

"Ha! My blood's boiling! Let's have a contest later, KING! See who can take down more aliens!"

Metal Bat shouted with excitement, and as if in response, the revving of the "King Engine" roared even louder in the air.

Off to the side, Kizaru nearly burst out laughing. The fact that KING could still keep a straight face in a situation like this was impressive—anyone else, even the most stoic, would've peed themselves by now.

To be honest, Kizaru had long suspected the Hero Association's S-Class was full of entertainers, otherwise there was no way they'd all uncritically believe KING was invincible.

Still, Kizaru had no intention of exposing KING.

Not because he wanted to watch the joke play out—but because KING's presence did genuinely boost morale. It also made monsters wary if they knew of him.

"Look out! Something's falling from the sky!"

Drive Knight looked up. Before his words were fully out, a massive shadow dropped from above and slammed into the plaza in front of Hero Association HQ, leaving a crater over ten meters deep.

"What just happened?"

"Looks like… a person?"

"Did they die on impact?"

…

As the heroes exchanged confused glances, a towering, muscle-bound humanoid figure crawled out of the pit.

Despite being warped from the thousand-meter fall, its body snapped back to normal within seconds.

"That damn Geryuganshoop just tossed me down here… I'm Melzargard, elite warrior of the Dark Matter Thieves! Among you Earthlings… who's the strongest? Which one of you is the prophesied warrior?!"

Melzargard cursed while twisting his neck in frustration. But his eyes soon scanned the crowd of heroes before him.

The heroes all turned to KING instinctively—as far as they were concerned, he was definitely the strongest warrior present.

And now, the sound of the King Engine shook the air so violently it was like something was about to explode.

Melzargard followed their gaze and locked eyes on KING. So this was the one prophesied to rival Lord Boros?

"Don't get cocky! Earth isn't your playground! Spirit of Hot-Blooded Slam Dunk!"

Enraged that the alien hadn't even glanced at him, Metal Bat charged forward and smashed his bat down with such force that he cleaved Melzargard clean in two.

The surrounding heroes froze—this alien had survived a thousand-meter fall without a scratch… and yet had been taken down just like that?

"Huh? That's it? I thought he'd be tougher than that. Guess that means I'm stronger!"

Metal Bat stared at his weapon in disbelief, then turned around proudly to show off to the other S-Class heroes.

But nearly all of them were staring wide-eyed—not at him, but at something behind him.

Seeing their expressions, Metal Bat grew even smugger… until he heard a voice behind him.

No—two voices.

"That really hurt!" ×2

The grin froze on Metal Bat's face.

When he turned around, he saw the two halves of Melzargard… had become two Melzargards.

'Boom!'

Both Melzargards punched simultaneously, sending Metal Bat flying back over a hundred meters. He crashed straight through the thick outer wall of HQ and vanished inside.

"How dare you hurt Bat Boy! Angel Rush!"

Furious, Puri-Puri Prisoner dashed in and launched a furious combo on both aliens. But even after he finished, the two Melzargards stood unmoved.

Then they looked down at him—literally and figuratively.

"If you're done… then it's our turn now."

The two Melzargard clones struck simultaneously, mimicking Puri-Puri Prisoner's fighting style blow for blow, and within seconds, had pummeled him beyond recognition.

But just as one of the Melzargards moved in to deliver the final blow, Atomic Samurai appeared behind them—without anyone noticing—and was calmly sheathing his sword.

Clang!

At the precise moment the blade clicked against the scabbard, both Melzargards were sliced clean in half at the waist.

"Atomic—Ichimonji Slash!"

Atomic Samurai didn't let his guard down just because he "one-shotted" the two Melzargards. Even after resheathing his sword, his full focus remained locked on this alien enemy.

And rightly so. The next second, the two bisected Melzargards began rapidly regenerating. The top halves grew new lower bodies, and the bottom halves sprouted new torsos.

In an instant, the two became four!

"Are you kidding me?!"

Child Emperor couldn't help shouting. Split them in two, and they doubled; cut them into four, and they multiplied again. And each one was still dangerously strong—how were they supposed to beat something like that?

"What a terrifying ability…"

Bang frowned deeply. Against an opponent with such extreme regeneration, even if he pushed his Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist to the limit, it'd be hard to deal any lasting damage.

Only Kizaru was calmly stroking his chin, quietly mulling things over: Was a "treasure" like Melzargard even considered human?

With regeneration like that, if he brought one of these things back to the One Piece world, Dr. Vegapunk might just faint from excitement.

And Orochimaru would definitely want one too. Even ignoring its combat ability, just the immortality and free-splitting traits made it an ideal test subject for those mad scientists.

Need more samples? Just slice a few pieces off. Done with an experiment? Toss it. Or keep it around for next time. Absolutely perfect.

Before the newly-formed four Melzargards could even start talking tough, a sudden chill ran down their spines.

It was the same kind of instinctive fear they'd once felt when they accidentally pissed off Lord Boros. If they hadn't had such absurd regeneration, they'd have been dead ten times over before his fury cooled.

Boom!

Just then, another figure dropped from the sky, crashing into the Hero Association's plaza and leaving a crater almost identical to Melzargard's earlier landing.

But this time, the one who climbed out—Genryuganshoop—hadn't suffered even the slightest injury.

Falling from over a thousand meters without a scratch—that kind of physical toughness was absolutely monstrous.

"You're too slow, Melzargard. This isn't the time for games..."

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