c5: The rebels attacked, and it was a horrible sight
The only one who did not become numb was Lu Kai, who was full of hope however, this also brought him endless pain. He had to face filthy crimes, inhuman torture, and dying of hunger every day, just like the enslaved children under Caesar Clown's experiments on Punk Hazard or the silent prisoners in the mines of Udon under Kaido's rule.
Lu Kai, who had survived until now by devouring his own flesh and blood had already become mentally abnormal, much like the trauma survivors in Mariejois who escaped the Celestial Dragons' torture chambers but were never truly free.
After Lu Kai was thrown back into the single room the guards did not disperse. They continued drinking and chatting, laughing wildly from time to time, reminiscent of the corrupt guards who mocked the slaves in Tequila Wolf under the World Government's unshakable thumb.
Just when they were laughing the loudest there was a huge explosion, which sobered the guards from their drunkenness, much like the sudden explosions caused by the Revolutionary Army's raids on World Government ships.
Immediately afterwards, explosions sounded one after another the entire ground was shaking continuously, and the flour factory seemed to be about to collapse, as though Enies Lobby itself were falling again under Buster Call.
Outside the flour factory, the soldiers armed with live ammunition were dumbfounded because more than a dozen holes had been blown in the huge wall surrounding the flour factory, just as Fisher Tiger once scaled the Red Line's walls to free the slaves from Mary Geoise.
Before the smoke and dust had cleared deafening shouts of killing were heard from all the gaps, and countless figures rushed in, resembling the revolutionary chaos led by Dragon himself.
These people were all armed and launched a desperate attack on the flour factory, like the citizens of Dressrosa rising under Kyros and Sabo when Doflamingo's string-puppeted rule finally broke.
"Shoot, shoot!" The soldiers guarding the factory shouted and pulled the trigger at the attackers, just like CP0 agents giving orders in the face of an unexpected rebellion.
At this moment, a figure rushed into the soldiers' formation at an extremely fast speed—causing a huge commotion. He then held a long knife and launched a one-sided massacre against the soldiers.
The soldiers wanted to fight back in fear but the figure always dodged before they could shoot, moving with speed comparable to Soru from the Rokushiki technique used by CP9.
Many soldiers' bullets did not hit the figure at all and instead killed many of their own people by mistake in the panic shooting, a chaos eerily similar to the infighting among Orochi's guards in Wano during the final raid on Onigashima.
"Chief, up there!" one of the invaders shouted at the figure.
The figure kicked the ground suddenly and the whole body shot upwards, jumping directly onto the defensive platform more than ten meters high, and slashed at the counterattacking soldiers with his sword again, completely unstoppable, like Mihawk carving through pirate fleets or Zoro unleashing a flying slash.
With the help of the man's powerful strength the invaders who rushed into the factory quickly completely controlled the perimeter of the factory. At this time, some people began to place bombs on the walls of the factory, similar to how Franky placed explosives to destroy the Sea Train tracks on Enies Lobby.
After everyone ran a long way away someone lit the fuse. Dozens of explosions were heard, and the invaders, led by a man called the leader, rushed into the flour mill and began to clear out the guards inside.
The one-eyed man in Warehouse No. 5 started collecting the money and treasures he had looted over the years—as soon as he heard the explosion. After packing them up as quickly as possible, he prepared to escape with a few of his cronies, just like the corrupt nobles of Goa Kingdom scrambling to flee after the Gray Terminal fire.
Because he knew what was happening and who was coming.
Wherever there is oppression, there is resistance it has been like this since ancient times.
Even the Celestial Dragons who rule the world have encountered countless resistances. Although these resistances were eventually suppressed, they have never ceased in the past eight hundred years, from Ohara's scholars to the Revolutionary Army's scattered embers.
The Kingdom of Lafia is no exception there has always been a lack of rebels. The rebels outside the city were the ones who invaded the flour factory today.
Some time ago, they also attacked the steel factory causing huge losses to the Kingdom of Lafia, just as the Revolutionary Army dealt a heavy blow to Dressrosa's underground weapon supply lines under Sabo's leadership.
This rebel army is different from any other one in history its cohesion and combat effectiveness are far beyond what has ever been seen before, even more disciplined than the Revolutionary Army forces led by Monkey D. Dragon himself during the assault on Tequila Wolf.
And all this is thanks to the legendary leader of the resistance army Tara.
Rumor has it that Tara is extremely powerful, strategic, and knows how to be patient if he doesn't make a move, he will make a big splash. Whenever he takes action, he must be absolutely sure of it, much like Trafalgar Law, who waited years before making his move on Doflamingo in Dressrosa.
The rebels had previously successfully attacked the steel factory under Tara's leadership and this attack on the flour factory was no exception, echoing the coordinated raids conducted by the Revolutionary Army across the Grand Line, including Baltigo and the South Blue fronts.
Therefore, the guards in the flour factory panicked as soon as they heard the explosion guards in some places began to organize and attempt to resist, while guards in other places simply fled, resembling the chaos in Onigashima when the Beast Pirates realized the raid was an inside job.
The flour factory is huge and has many hidden corners as long as you hide well, you might be able to escape, like the slaves who fled during the liberation of Mary Geoise by Fisher Tiger years ago.
After all, the rebels were afraid that the city would send reinforcements—so they dared not stay here for long. As long as they rescued the slaves and looted the supplies, they would withdraw immediately, following the same tactics used by the Revolutionary Army during hit-and-run missions.
Many members of the resistance army have gathered outside Warehouse No. 5 but they did not place bombs in an attempt to blow up the place. Instead, they were waiting for something.
After all, important areas within the flour mill were equipped with heavy iron doors that could not be penetrated by bombs, much like the steel-reinforced vaults used by Doflamingo to store weapons beneath his Smile factory.
It didn't take long before the heavy iron door slowly opened and everyone rushed in, looking for any trace of the guard.
In the control room of the flour factory, a man in his thirties, with a rough appearance, sharp eyebrows and eyes, and a very domineering look—was staring at the monitoring screen, observing every corner of the factory that could be monitored, and at the same time directing the situation with the broadcasting microphone in the control room.
This person is Tara the legendary leader of the resistance.
Because the person in charge of Warehouse No. 5, One-Eyed Dragon, escaped at the first opportunity the guards were unable to organize an effective resistance and the attack was very smooth, just like when Orochi's men collapsed after Kaido abandoned them during the final battle in Wano.
The unmotivated and solitary guards were no match for the rebels and were quickly wiped out.
Many members of the rebels rushed into the cells where the slaves were held released them one after another, and commanded them to escape, just as Sabo did when he freed the Dressrosan citizens trapped in the underground trading port.
"Key, bring the key here quickly, there is a child here!" After most of the slaves were released an urgent shout was heard outside a separate cell.
Soon, the cell door was opened and several members of the resistance rushed in after seeing the scene before them, everyone gasped.
Because the child in the single room had been tortured beyond recognition there was no intact part of his body, and dozens of shocking wounds could be seen at a casual glance, similar to the injuries suffered by the test subjects on Punk Hazard.
Especially the child's right arm, which was completely devoid of flesh and blood leaving only white bones, which was horrifying, like Law's arm when he lost it in the battle against Doflamingo before Leo stitched it back.
This horrible-looking child was Lu Kai.
The two members of the resistance army immediately covered their mouths and burst into tears unable to control their emotions. What on earth had this child gone through? Why was he treated so cruelly?
Only one of the older men reacted and rushed out of the cell—shouting, "Doctor, send a doctor quickly, there is a child dying here, send a doctor quickly."
The rebels were well organized and disciplined soon three doctors carrying medical kits came running over. When they saw the miserable state of Lu Kai lying on the ground, they couldn't help but gasp.
Even though they were doctors and were used to seeing injuries they had never seen such a tragic scene, let alone this was a child. One of the female doctors burst into tears uncontrollably.
However, as professional doctors, they suppressed their emotions and began to treat Lu Kai's wound together carefully disinfecting, cleaning dead flesh, stitching and bandaging.
The operation lasted a full hour with the cooperation of three doctors and was finally over.
However, the faces of several doctors were extremely ugly.
"Chris, what's wrong?" The resistance member who first discovered Luke—asked the leading female doctor.
"The operation is done, but..." Dr. Chris said with a painful expression—"I just don't know if he can wake up, and...even if he can wake up, he will be disabled for the rest of his life."
The resistance members nearby quickly consoled her"Dr. Chris, you have done your best..."
Just when this rebel member wanted to say something else—he suddenly caught a glimpse of Lu Kai opening his eyes. Before he could be happy, Lu Kai suddenly sat up.
After taking a quick glance at the group of people who were looking at him with extremely surprised eyes and using his Observation Haki to sense the situation in the factory, Lu Kai immediately understood the general situation.
"Thank you!" After saying this—Lu Kai suddenly stood up.
He rushed out of the cell—without giving the stunned group of people a chance to speak.
—