Chapter 373: The Celestial Dragon
Chapter 373: The Celestial Dragon
Despite the World Government's efforts to conceal the news about the Marine Headquarters, claiming it was a natural disaster in the Grand Line that destroyed the island instead of a human act, many rumors still circulated.
Rayleigh and Shakky, as near-eyewitnesses to the incident, were almost certain that Feng Ye was responsible for what happened to the Marine Headquarters!
Although it was unclear what ability Feng Ye used to summon the meteor, there was no doubt that the Marine Headquarters' destruction was caused by him. This piece of intelligence was undoubtedly accurate.
After piecing together the sequence of events, Rayleigh finally smiled bitterly and spoke up.
"To have provoked him...
What terrible luck."
...
Time flew by, and another ten days passed.
Inside Shakky's bar:
"So, we bid farewell here. This is for the room I occupied during this time, and the extra can be considered a hard work fee for Mr. Rayleigh."
Feng Ye stood at the counter, took out thirty million berries, and placed them on the table. He smiled at Shakky, who was behind the counter.
For him and Rayleigh, a few tens of millions or even a few hundred million berries weren't very significant. It all depended on whether they wanted to make money or not.
For someone like Rayleigh, who stood at the pinnacle of the seas, if he was willing, there were a hundred ways to easily obtain tens of billions or even hundreds of billions of berries.
"That's quite a lot you're giving here," Shakky said, glancing at the money on the counter and taking a puff from her cigarette. "Is this for hiring Old Ray to coat your ship?"
Feng Ye shook his head. "No, that's not necessary. I don't plan on going to Fishman Island for now. I'll just pass over the Red Line continent."
After all, the Mermaid Princess, Shirahoshi, wasn't even born yet.
If he went to Fishman Island, he could only enjoy the scenery and wouldn't be able to admire Shirahoshi, the only one whose beauty and charm could rival that of the Pirate Empress.
Although Feng Ye had vague memories of the Empress and Shirahoshi, those memories were blurry and didn't compare to seeing them in person.
He was indeed interested in the Empress and the Mermaid Princess.
After all,
No man could match his looks and charm.
So, it was only natural that he would be curious about the Empress and the Mermaid Princess, who had reached the pinnacle of beauty and charm among women.
Shakky nodded slightly. She knew that it wouldn't be difficult for Feng Ye to cross the Red Line continent, even without coating his ship or taking the underwater route.
"Won't you say goodbye to Old Ray?"
"No need. We already said our goodbyes before, and he's meeting with a junior now. I won't disturb them."
Feng Ye smiled.
Shanks had arrived at the Shankhot Islands and met with Rayleigh. Feng Ye didn't feel like seeing Shanks again, and he had already stayed here long enough.
After bidding farewell to Robin, Feng Ye left Shakky's bar with her and headed toward the 63rd Peninsula where they had docked their ship.
As they walked through the streets, someone noticed them.
"That person is... Nico Robin, the Demon Child!"
"Bounty of 79 million berries!"
A pirate hunter's eyes lit up with excitement as he raised his flintlock.
But at that moment, his companion slapped the firearm out of his hand, his face pale with fear. He hissed,
"Stop! Are you crazy?! Don't you see the man next to her?!"
"Huh?"
The man followed his companion's gaze and looked at Feng Ye, his expression changing drastically. His eyes widened as he stammered, "I-Is that the... the traveler with a bounty of 3,248,200,000 berries?! But he was supposed to be in the New World, destroying half a country two days ago, according to the newspapers!"
"How should I know?!"
His companion's forehead was covered in cold sweat. "You almost got me killed! A bounty of over 100 million... This is the first time I've seen someone with a bounty that high in my life! Just how terrifying is that man? I heard that the incident at the Marine Headquarters was also related to him."
Similar conversations were taking place all over.
Feng Ye, of course, was aware of the prying eyes on him from every corner, but he couldn't be bothered to pay these pirate hunters any mind. He chuckled and said to Robin beside him, "There's a downside to being too famous. You can't even go for a normal stroll like an ordinary person anymore."
Not everyone could recognize him at a glance, but when he didn't intentionally lower his presence, many people could identify him quite quickly.
"That's because the things you do are too terrifying, Mr. Feng."
Robin tilted her head.
Just as she was looking around, intending to say something else, her eyes suddenly froze, gazing toward the end of the street.
There, the walking crowd suddenly scattered to either side of the road, prostrating themselves and kneeling one after another.
Having lived in the Shabondy Archipelago for a while, Robin was familiar with this scene.
"World Nobles, huh..."
Robin glanced at Feng Ye, seeing him standing there calmly, without any reaction. She quietly stood by his side.
World Nobles, also known as Celestial Dragons, were the descendants of the 'Creator' who established the World Government. They were the most influential and powerful group in this world, including the Five Elders, who held the highest authority in the World Government and were the top-ranked among the Celestial Dragons!
A moment later, a man wearing a bubble helmet and dressed in what looked like a spacesuit appeared on the street ahead. Instead of sitting on a bubble car, there was a human under his feet, with a collar around his neck, crawling on the ground, covered in wounds.
The crawling route wasn't towards the street where Feng Ye and Robin were, but from about a dozen meters in front of the two of them, crossing from east to west.
"How disgusting," Feng Ye said flatly, watching the Celestial Dragon sitting on a slave, slowly making his way down the street.
He had been in the Shabondy Archipelago for so long, and this was the first time he had encountered a Celestial Dragon. Logically, after he destroyed the Marine Headquarters, the Celestial Dragons should have been more low-key, but it seemed like nothing had changed, and they continued to act as they always had.
"Indeed," Robin agreed, standing slightly behind Feng Ye and nodding.
In fact, having lived in the underground world for nearly three years, and having experienced even more darkness by the time she met Feng Ye at eleven years old, what she had witnessed still paled in comparison to the cruelty of the Celestial Dragons.
Just look at the scene before them: the Celestial Dragon, riding on a slave, held a dagger in his hand, occasionally showing dissatisfaction and stabbing it into the slave's body, causing blood to splatter. He shouted,
"Faster, you useless piece of trash!"
The slave's body trembled, too afraid to resist, and continued to crawl slowly.
Feng Ye had witnessed far more darkness in the world of ninjas than Robin, but even that didn't compare to the cruelty of the Celestial Dragons.
As descendants of the twenty royal families who created the World Government eight hundred years ago, each Celestial Dragon considered themselves gods, looking down on ordinary humans as if they were livestock.
And the reason why everyone feared them and dared not rebel was that they had the privilege to command the Marines at will, even the Marine Admirals!
Karp refused to obey the Celestial Dragons' commands, which was why he repeatedly turned down promotions to Admiral.
"Those who do not know pain..."
"...are not qualified to stand at the pinnacle of the world, overlooking all beneath them," Feng Ye finished, his eyes fixed on the Celestial Dragon riding the slave, making his way down the street.
(End of Chapter)
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