This mode was not a gift from the system, but a form researched and developed by Alucard himself. For the current Alucard, it was extremely dangerous; that was precisely why he had deactivated it halfway through his battle against the Gorosei.

However, against Yako and his ilk, he had activated this move of his own volition.

The reason was simple: when facing the Gorosei, opponents of that caliber required absolute caution and foolproof strategies, even three minor mistakes could lead to total defeat.

But against Yako and these men, he had plenty of room to maneuver. Alucard could afford to make mistakes; he could even take risks intentionally, simply because the enemy’s "level" was too low.

To put it in common parlance: Yako and his troops were nothing more than "trash mobs" used for practicing his skills.

If Alucard were to speak this truth aloud, Yako and the others would likely die of pure rage.

Staring at Alucard, whose body had transformed into a composite entity of a blood pool and crimson pupils, Yako, his Air Force subordinates, and the ten thousand Government soldiers dispatched from Enies Lobby all felt a chill run down their spines. An unknown opponent is always the most terrifying.

"Don’t get close! Test him with long-range attacks first!"

A Government commander raised his hand. Behind him, a row of soldiers armed with rocket launchers stepped forward, kneeling to aim their muzzles at Alucard.

With a downward sweep of the commander’s hand, pitch-black shells whistled through the air. Mid-flight, a third of the shells burst open, transforming into massive nets that blanketed the air toward Alucard.

Seastone nets!

"I’ll start with this as an appetizer."

Alucard raised his right arm, which could no longer be called a hand. Suddenly, lightning flickered. As his blood-pool arm swung, the electricity trailed a half-moon arc through the air before collapsing inward, rapidly coalescing into a dancing dragon of lightning!

Enel’s technique!

60 Million Volts: Lightning Dragon!

While Seastone can nullify a user’s power, it is useless against an ability that has already been manifested. In a single move, both the nets and the shells were blasted away. Simultaneously, the lightning dragon continued to expand outward.

"The Rumble-Rumble Fruit?!"

Yako was stunned. As a top-tier Logia fruit highly coveted by the Navy, the Rumble-Rumble Fruit had been the subject of countless searches by both the Marines and the Government, yet its whereabouts remained unknown. He never expected to see it used by Alucard.

"Scatter!"

Yako charged forward, crossing his two blades in an "X" formation. He slammed them against the lightning dragon, holding the stalemate for several seconds before giving a violent swing. He unleashed a green sword-light that sliced the lightning dragon in half!

"Not bad for a Vice Admiral. You actually have some real substance."

Alucard watched the X-shaped sword-light rush toward him; even after cutting the lightning dragon, it still retained enough power to strike.

Alucard raised his right hand, which faintly shimmered with three layers of a teal hue.

As Alucard’s right hand struck the earth, the ground began to roar. Countless stone walls erupted, forming a barrier in front of him.

CRACK-BOOM!!

The sword-light was powerful, but having spent most of its energy on the lightning dragon, it managed to pierce through two stone walls before finally being halted by the third.

"A terrain-based ability?"

Everyone was shocked again. Hadn’t he just used lightning? How had it switched to earth manipulation so quickly?

"Ugh... you insolent wretch... to treat a God like me..."

Suddenly, one of the eyes on Shadow Alucard twitched. The pupil radiated an intense, burning hatred as Enel’s defiant and resentful screams echoed in Alucard’s mind.

"Shut up, third-rate God."

Alucard’s own pupils narrowed. Within the River of Death, he subjected Enel’s soul to severe punishment.

The dead should act like the dead, stop getting in the way.

From another angle, some Government soldiers spotted a slight opening in Alucard’s defense, a chance "created" for them by Enel’s struggle within the River of Death.

A commander roared, "Quick! Quick! Attack now!"

At his command, countless Government soldiers pulled their triggers. Bullets rained down like a storm, interspersed with various Devil Fruit powers from the ability-users among them.

In his shadow state, Alucard temporarily lacked the life-stock of the River of Death. If his heart were destroyed, he would die. He had to strike back.

"More-More: Fifty-Fold Speed!"

Alucard vanished like a ghost. Before the Government troops could even process his disappearance, he had already manifested in the center of the sniper unit.

"Too fast!"

Only Yako and a few others using Observation Haki managed to pinpoint Alucard’s location instantly. But even though they sensed him, their bodies couldn’t keep up with his speed.

Standing in their midst, Shadow Alucard erupted with magma. The scorching lava on both arms gradually coalesced into the silhouettes of two snarling, bared-teeth hounds.

"Even when I show a weakness, you still can’t catch me."

The magma on Alucard’s hands exploded outward. The two lava hounds on his arms opened their maws wide, lunging at the surrounding Government agents in black suits.

Hell Hound!!

"Aaaagh!!!"

"It’s too hot! Help me!"

"Save me! Save me! Where’s the water?!"

Most of those hit died instantly, their bodies scorched down to the bone. The "luckier" ones were only partially caught by the Hell Hound strike, but the affected areas were incinerated, leaving them screaming in agonizing pain.

"This time it’s Vice Admiral Sakazuki’s magma!"

Yako and the others looked pale with horror.

Dual Devil Fruit abilities were something both the Government and the Marines had always hungered for. Research into this field had never ceased, yet there had never been a single successful result.

And now, here was a man who didn’t just have two, but three.

"Damn you... a mere... a mere pirate..."

An eye on Shadow Alucard’s body trembled violently as a voice of protest echoed in his mind.

"Shut up and stay silent, Sakazuki," Alucard whispered coldly in his mind. Because of this momentary internal dialogue with Sakazuki, another opening appeared.

The experts among the Government forces zeroed in on it, but once again, none of them were fast enough to seize Alucard’s fleeting moment of vulnerability.

It was exactly as he had imagined. Due to the massive gap in power, even when he exposed a weakness, they couldn’t grasp it. If he were facing the Gorosei atop Mariejois, however, the outcome would be entirely different.