Three warships sailed swiftly across the sea. The largest among them was an admiral-class advanced battleship, towering over the two frigates escorting it.
At the bow stood Admiral Coss Davo, his expression dark with frustration.
According to reports, the Hell Pirates had entered the Diger Pirates' territory—only to vanish without a trace.
As a Navy Admiral, it wasn't wise for him to charge blindly into the dominion of an Overlord Pirate Crew, even if the Navy Headquarters had a covert working relationship with the intelligence networks under Diger.
"The old man Diger is as strong as me, but if we provoke him on his own turf, we'd be swarmed by pirates in no time. My three warships wouldn't even be enough to fill the gaps!"
His fleet wasn't suited for a direct assault against an Overlord. Even with a Vice Admiral and three Rear Admirals, they lacked the strength to take on Diger's officers in a full-scale battle.
Helpless, Admiral Coss Davo had no choice but to report back to Navy Headquarters, requesting further orders.
The reply was simple:
Withdraw to the garrison base in the New World and wait for further instructions.
Surprisingly, the World Government and the Celestial Dragons—despite their initial fury—did not press the Navy to continue the chase. It was as if they had already anticipated this outcome.
After all, once most pirates entered the New World, the Navy's success rate in eliminating them dropped below 40%.
That's precisely why the Celestial Dragons had dispatched their specially trained spies so quickly. They had long since lost faith in the Navy's efficiency.
--
"Whoa! I actually won?! This is real?!"
A communications officer shouted in excitement.
At first, he thought the World Economic News' prize giveaway was just a scam. Yesterday, aside from purchasing the official White Dove Peace Newspaper, he had also picked up a copy of the Vulture Dark News and the World Economic News Agency.
As an intelligence agent, collecting multiple newspapers was standard practice. However, when he saw the World Economic Newspaper hosting a lucky draw for a Den Den Mushi, he dismissed it as a gimmick.
Yet, when he bought another newspaper today and casually checked the winning numbers, he actually won.
Excited, he immediately cut out yesterday's winning ticket and sent it to the World Economic News claim his prize.
Half a day later, a seagull courier arrived, delivering a brand-new Den Den Mushi worth 100,000 berries.
It was a huge win—a single newspaper costing only a few berries had netted him a prize worth thousands!
At first, he considered keeping it for himself, but since he had redeemed the prize in front of so many Marines, it was impossible to hide it.
Instead, he decided to share—offering fellow officers a chance to call home using his prize Den Den Mushi.
"This was bought with public funds, right? So, it's not too much to use it for official purposes, yeah?"
Unfortunately, the commotion caught the attention of the Vice Admiral, who immediately confiscated the Den Den Mushi.
As the Vice Admiral walked away, the communications officer felt his heart shatter. From that day forward, the ship had one more miserable soul aboard.
His only solace was venting his bitterness on his fellow Marines.
---
Inside the Admiral's Office
In the admiral's office, Coss Davo reviewed the latest reports on the Hell Pirates, casually asking:
"What's all the noise about?"
"Ah, nothing major," the Vice Admiral chuckled. "Just a small Den Den Mushi causing a stir. These young ones all wanted a piece of it."
He wasn't wrong.
Compact Den Den Mushi were only issued to officers of colonel rank and above. Lower-ranking Marines—especially below lieutenant colonel—rarely had access to one unless assigned to critical missions.
Even the communications team mainly relied on large, landline Den Den Mushi, which were as big as footballs.
A small, portable Den Den Mushi that fit neatly in the palm? That was a rare luxury for them.
"You wanted it too, didn't you?"
Admiral Coss Davo smirked knowingly.
The Vice Admiral shrugged. "Nah. I just didn't want the young ones making a ruckus over it. I'll leave it here with you for now. Just remember to feed it."
As the Den Den Mushi slowly emerged from its shell, it stared directly at Admiral Gauss Davo with eerie intelligence.
"...Are you hungry?"
The admiral casually grabbed some Den Den Mushi feed, tossing it over.
The small snail studied him for a moment before reluctantly eating.
But deep down, it had only one thought—
This food is nowhere near as good as Antonio's.
Unfortunately, it had lost a bet and was now stuck doing spy work.
Hopefully, one day, it could return to its real family… alive.
---
On the Golden Ship Erebus
"Captain Brook! The multifunctional Den Den Mushi successfully infiltrated the admiral's warship! It's now inside Admiral Coss Davo's office!"
Antonio's excitement was evident.
Originally, he had only planned to get the Den Den Mushi into the hands of a communications officer. That alone would've allowed them to track the ship's location.
But now?
Not only had their spy-snail entered the ship—it had gone straight to the admiral himself!
"Yohohoho! That's perfect! This Coss Davo is no longer a threat to us!"
Brook let out a relieved chuckle.
With an admiral on their heels, things had been tense.
But now, they had direct surveillance inside the admiral's own quarters!
"The next step is to make sure other Overlord Crews—like the Rocks Pirates—win similar 'prizes.' We don't need to steal their secrets—just track their fixed locations."
--
A cold-blooded blonde girl wiped the blood from her hands, her expression instantly shifting to one of innocence.
"Lost them again? This mission is such a hassle..."
She had been chasing the Hell Pirates all the way from the Red Line, passing through the Magara Kingdom and Broccoli Island. Now, she was at Marseille Island—and still hadn't caught up.
"It seems I need a new strategy…"
Her glistening blue eyes flickered with thought.
"Maybe I should become a famous pirate first! That way, they'll recruit me themselves!"
She pondered her pirate persona—
A victim of tragedy?
A dreamer chasing freedom?
A survivor persecuted by the underworld?
Or perhaps… someone who worships the pirate who killed a Celestial Dragon?
Meanwhile, the CP organization had caught wind of the Hell Pirates' interest in Sky Islands and began devising an ambush strategy.
This information soon reached Admiral Coss Davo—but thanks to the spy Den Den Mushi, it also made its way back to Brook.
"Hmm… so both the Navy and CP already know about our Sky Island search?"
Brook frowned.
"Looks like we'll have to step up our counter-surveillance tactics…"
------
Somewhere on the island.
The atmosphere on the island was tense and oppressive. Both ports were packed with pirate ships, their flags fluttering fiercely in the wind.
"Wang Zhi! Have you Rocks Pirates gotten too full of yourselves? You've only ruled the seas for a few years, and now you dare to expand into our territory?!"
Xiaofeng glared at the enemy before him, his bald head gleaming under the scorching sun. The tattoo on his face seemed to writhe like a living thing.
Today, Xiao Feng of the Diger Pirates formally challenged Wang Zhi of the Rocks Pirates to a duel.
Neither side's captains intended to intervene.
Emperor Diger trusted in Xiao Feng Zhou's strength—after all, he had been fighting in the New World much longer than his opponent.
(TL: Diger treat himself As an Emperor and his crew like a Empire)
Wang Zhi, though a overlord candidate in the past year or two, had grown rapidly under Rocks D. Xebec's brutal training. Now, he was not only a Great Swordsman but had also mastered both Armament and Observation Haki.
His bounty had skyrocketed to 700 million berries—though still below Xiao Feng 800 million bounty.
But Rocks wasn't concerned.
He knew Wang Zhi's madness and his unique Killing Sword Intent.
His actual combat strength was only slightly lower than Xiao Feng, and as a member of the Rocks Pirates, wasn't he supposed to get stronger in the face of powerful enemies? Wasn't that the essence of Rocks' crew—to constantly push beyond their limits?
"Wang Zhi has the potential to become the world's greatest swordsman!"
---
"A new king will always surpass the old!" Wang Zhi sneered, drawing his twin blades. "You Diger Pirates are aging! You can't handle all this territory anymore. You should hand over half of it to Captain Rocks!"
Wang Zhi wielded dual swords with unmatched attack power. His Killing Sword Intent was overwhelming, and he had no fear of death.
"Ptui!"
A spit landed on the ground beside him.
The culprit—Jevaler—stepped forward, brandishing his rapier, his gaze locked onto Silver Axe X, who stood covered in armor.
"In my eyes," Jevaler scoffed, "how could the so-called new overlord of the Rocks Pirates have the guts to challenge the true overlord, the Diger Pirates?!"
Silver Axe X, clad in silver armor and wielding a massive double-handed axe, let out a cruel laugh.
"Captain Rocks already spoke with your old man, Diger. This battle decides the fate of four islands in the Changshui region. Whoever wins—gets the land!"
None of the Rocks Pirates' officers were good people. They were all ruthless, bloodthirsty warriors.
"Hahaha! Then let's fight! Men—kill them all!!"
Xiao Feng waved his hand.
In an instant, pirates from dozens of Diger Pirate ships surged forward.
As an old overlord, the Diger Pirates had a vast crew, twice the number of Wang Zhi's forces.
But pirate wars were never fair.
The Rocks Pirates had fewer men, but they were raised through bloodshed and survival of the fittest—like insects devouring each other until only the strongest remained.
Though they were outnumbered, their fighting spirit was not inferior.
---
However, Rocks had underestimated one thing—
The wealth of Diger, the Richest Pirate.
The Diger Pirates' forces were equipped with overwhelming firepower. The moment Wang Zhi's men charged, they were met with a devastating barrage of cannon fire and bullets.
Explosions lit up the battlefield.
Even the most hardened bandits under Rocks couldn't charge through a storm of iron and lead with just steel blades alone.
"Hahaha! Wang Zhi, do you understand now?!" Xiao Feng mocked as the battlefield turned into chaos.
"Do you know what foundation means?! Do you know what it means to be a veteran overlord?! Do you understand firepower supremacy?! You backwater fools! War isn't just about duels—WAR IS ABOUT MONEY!! You broke bastards!!"
He laughed viciously as Rocks' pirates were cut down in waves.
"Damned…!!"
Wang Zhi roared in rage. He crossed his twin swords, releasing two massive slashes of crimson sword energy, slicing directly toward the Diger Pirates' artillery units.
"You think I'd let you do that?!"
"Wind Control—Endless Wind Sword!"
Xiao Feng pointed a finger.
Instantly, the swords of the pirates around him flew into the air, shooting toward Wang Zhi like a storm of blades.
As for the gunmen and artillery crew targeted by Wang Zhi?
Xiao Feng didn't even bother to defend them.
He could replace them as easily as buying new weapons.
But Wang Zhi's opening? That was an opportunity he wouldn't waste.
---
For masters, battles could be decided in a fraction of a second.
Wang Zhi reacted instantly, blocking most of the incoming swords with his twin blades—but one blade, infused with Armament Haki, pierced his waist.
Blood gushed out.
Yet, even as pain wracked his body, Wang Zhi's expression didn't waver.
If anything, his fighting spirit burned even hotter.
"Hahaha!" Xiao Feng laughed cruelly. "Don't you Rocks Pirates believe in survival of the fittest? Putting strength above all else? Then why did you just risk your life to save your men?"
He didn't care about the hundreds of gunmen that Wang Zhi's sword energy had obliterated.
What mattered was that he had wounded his enemy.
Wang Zhi wiped the blood from his waist with his fingers—then licked it.
His eyes turned bloodshot, his twin swords beginning to glow red.
"So that's how your Wind Control Fruit works…" Wang Zhi muttered.
"You can control wind speed and direction, allowing you to manipulate weapons—but you can only control one direction at a time."
Xiao Feng smirked.
"Hahaha! So what?! And even if you're right—why would I tell you my weaknesses?!"
He was well aware of his Wind Control Fruit's limitations. If he could freely control wind direction, he would've created a flying ship by now.
But his powers only allowed him to propel objects in one direction at a time. If he wanted his pirate ship to fly, he could create an updraft—but he wouldn't be able to change its direction midair, making it useless.
Still, even with this drawback, his ship was the fastest on the sea!
Though if Brook had taught him aerodynamics, he might've realized he could still adjust direction indirectly…
But no matter. His abilities were already enough.
He raised his sword, and dozens of floating blades formed around him again.
Wang Zhi's lips curled into a grin.
"Because of that weakness—your flying weapons can only attack once per launch."
He gripped his twin swords tightly.
Then—with explosive speed—he lunged at Xiao Feng, shattering the ground beneath him.
"Hahaha! Do you think my Wind Control only applies to swords?!"
Xiao Feng charged forward, his wind-enhanced movement making him even faster.
The battlefield erupted into chaos as two future legends clashed!
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