"This will be troubling for you, Uncle King."
In the forest of Kuri, a temporary clearing had been made. It was a vast open space, surrounded by a fence, with pirates from the Beast Pirates patrolling outside.
A massive pillar stood tall in the middle of the clearing.
It was about twenty meters high, with a diameter of more than ten meters. Just standing there, it was as towering as a skyscraper, so large that one could only look up in awe.
Ian stood next to this giant pillar, lightly touching its surface. The specially made metal had a cold, icy feel that he thoroughly enjoyed.
This was the machine for creating seeds.
Judge was directing the members of the Beast Pirates that Ian had called over to build a factory to house this machine.
Afterward, seeds would be manufactured inside this factory.
Then, the Tontatta tribe would plant the seeds in the nearby farm for cultivation.
Building the farm was crucial, but Ian had something else to take care of, so he had to call in the most reliable man from the entire Beast Pirates, the respected Uncle King.
Actually, Uncle Queen would have been more suited for this task. Though not skilled in the research of Lineage Factors, he was still an outstanding scientist.
However, everyone knew that Uncle Queen and Judge had a huge personal feud, so it was impossible for them to work together. Otherwise, who knows when Uncle Queen might just kill Judge.
"Leave it to me."
King, who had quickly arrived upon Ian's summon, gave a slight nod. "I won't let anyone near here. Anyone who dares to cause trouble will only have one end, and that is death."
King's voice was calm.
But Ian could hear the resolve in his tone.
Ian knew well that, with this man's loyalty to Kaido-sensei, he would treat this task with the utmost seriousness. After all, he knew how important this farm was to the entire Beast Pirates.
It should be noted that King had just returned.
Previously, he had gone to the G-14 base, then waited for the pirate fleet to come and take over the entire base.
Afterward, he led the fleet to those two countries, which had been de-listed by the government, and without much effort, secured the loyalty of both nations.
After all, they had already lost the protection of the World Government and the Marines. If they refused the Beast Pirates' offer, the only thing awaiting them would be destruction.
Once all these matters were settled, King finally returned to Onigashima.
But before he could even rest, he was called over by Ian.
This is King the Wildfire! The conscience of the Beast Pirates!
"It's you," King glanced at Ian. "Do you really not need more support?"
"No need," Ian smiled. "Anyway, the worst case scenario is that Ochoku himself is hiding within the fleet, planning to surprise me."
He paused slightly and said indifferently, "And if it's just Ochoku, then I shouldn't need support."
Just Ochoku?
King looked at Ian with a complicated expression.
Ochoku, once a high-ranking officer of the Rocks Pirates, now one of the few pirates in the New World who could be considered a legend.
He ranked fourth among all living pirates in terms of bounty, with a bounty exceeding 2 billion. He was, without a doubt, a true monster.
Yet, Ian referred to Ochoku as "just Ochoku."
King couldn't help but feel moved inside.
The growth of this kid Ian truly exceeded everyone's expectations.
"Then go ahead."
King said, "No matter who the enemy is, you have us behind you."
Ian raised the corner of his mouth. "Of course."
The Beast Pirates are all about unity.
So, the Golden Dragon ship set sail again.
When they departed from Onigashima, Ulti cried and begged Ian to take them out to sea. Ian used his old trick, tapping her forehead and saying, "Next time, I promise."
The Golden Dragon ship sailed away from Onigashima.
However, it didn't head toward the dock; the massive lift at the dock couldn't support a giant ship like the Golden Dragon.
But that wasn't a problem. Bringing it back to the Blue Sea was actually quite easy.
As they neared the cliffs at the edge of Wano Country, Ian shot into the sky, and in the next moment, brilliant golden light burst forth into the sky.
The massive Golden Dragon stretched across the sky.
After more than two years, Ian's form as the Golden Dragon had grown again, with a length from head to tail now exceeding a hundred meters—truly a colossal creature.
Ian flapped his wings downward, grabbed the sides of the ship, and coated it with Armament Haki, immediately turning the entire ship pitch black and hardening it.
Then, he gently lifted the ship.
"How much strength does this guy have!?"
On the deck, Law didn't even feel a single shake. He tilted his head, staring up at Ian, who was holding the massive ship, and couldn't help but marvel.
The Golden Dragon ship was enormous, several times longer than Ian himself.
Its weight was naturally astronomical.
But when Ian grabbed it, it felt as light as a small cotton ball.
Law even felt that Ian didn't seem to feel any weight at all.
He could probably even lift a mountain with his raw strength.
"This is Big Brother Ian!"
Jack laughed proudly.
"Ian! Even in this form, you're still so handsome!"
Hancock's eyes sparkled with heart-shaped stars, looking completely entranced.
"Ian!"
Yamato, being a person of action, jumped directly onto Ian's back. "Let's keep the momentum and go find Ochoku!"
"Stop saying foolish things."
Ian rolled his eyes. Did they think of him as a means of transportation?
After gently placing the ship on the sea, Ian didn't immediately set sail. Instead, he stayed in place, waiting for the Fishman army and sea beast corps to gather and join him before officially setting out.
The target was the Ochoku Pirate Crew's large fleet.
"Cloud Sorcerer Claude," On the deck of the Golden Dragon, Ian pulled out all the wanted posters for the major members of Ochoku's pirate crew and laid them out on the table. "Bounty of 680 million Berries, Ochoku's right-hand man, a user of the Cloud-Cloud Fruit, a Logia-type Devil Fruit."
"Logia type?"
Drake murmured, "That could be tricky."
While Logia types may not sync well with Haki, these Devil Fruits have a major advantage: the ability to launch large-scale attacks akin to natural disasters with just a wave of their hands.
This was a huge advantage in war.
"If it's cloud-based," Ian smiled as he looked at Yamato. "Yamato, it's up to you."
Yamato pounded her chest confidently. "Simple! I'll turn him into an ice block!"
Clouds are ultimately just condensed droplets of water or crystallized ice particles.
That Yamato was quite the professional.
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