Chapter 390: The Shock of the Nine Snake Pirates
Chapter 390: The Shock of the Nine Snake Pirates
The emperors of Nine Snake Island didn't usually rule for very long, and most of them were young women. It was rare for someone to hold the position beyond the age of forty.
The reason was simple. Being an emperor meant not only having to lead expeditions and hunt sea kings but also tending to a multitude of other matters.
Childbearing was not an option under such circumstances.
Every woman on Nine Snake Island was expected to bear at least one child, a tradition meant to maintain a stable population on the island.
Even the emperor, being a woman herself, would eventually yearn for a child of her own as she aged and witnessed others giving birth to adorable daughters. Thus, it was customary for the emperors of Nine Snake Island to abdicate before reaching a certain age.
As for the succession of the emperor, it was not a matter of inheritance but rather a time-honored tradition of selection through combat. The strongest female warrior who emerged victorious in these battles would become the new emperor.
In other words...
If Hancock wanted to become the emperor of Nine Snake Island, she would have to surpass countless other contenders and become the strongest within a few years. For Hancock, who was only twelve years old this year, this was undoubtedly a formidable challenge.
However, as a possessor of the Conqueror's Haki, Hancock had always harbored the ambition to become the strongest on Nine Snake Island. Hearing Feng Ye's words only strengthened her resolve.
She would definitely become the emperor of Nine Snake Island!
"... "
The emperor of Nine Snake Island glanced back and forth between Hancock and Feng Ye, then leaped back onto the grand ship of Nine Snake Island. "Set sail," she commanded.
She noticed that Hancock was still looking at Feng Ye's ship and couldn't help but shake her head. "You really shouldn't have been exposed to a man at such a young age..."
There was a natural attraction between men and women, an intrinsic part of life itself.
Men had always been forbidden from setting foot on Nine Snake Island—it was a longstanding taboo. Consequently, only when a woman reached a certain age and desired to bear children would they be informed about men and procreation.
The intention behind this tradition was to ensure that men were viewed solely as reproductive tools, preventing the development of emotional attachments.
Following this tradition, the female warriors of Nine Snake Island would capture robust and powerful men through raids, using them for procreation and then discarding them. Due to the brief nature of these encounters, emotional entanglements rarely formed.
However, it was evident that Hancock had developed romantic feelings for the man on that ship, having spent an extended period with him.
This was not a positive development for a woman of Nine Snake Island.
There had been female warriors in the past who had fallen in love, and some had even betrayed Nine Snake Island because of it—the emperor before the last one had been such a case.
Recognizing Hancock's exceptional talent, the current emperor didn't want to see her end up like her predecessor. After a brief moment of contemplation, she said, "Don't be too grateful to him, Hancock. While he rescued you, he also put you in danger."
"We are in the Calm Belt, and it was mere luck that we encountered us here. That small boat of yours would have eventually been destroyed by a sea king if we hadn't come along."
Some of the other women, who had also discerned the strong affection Hancock held for Feng Ye, chimed in:
"Your Majesty is right, Hancock. While it was a kind gesture to bring you back, that man who recklessly ventured into the Calm Belt is not someone to be trusted."
"Men are nothing more than tools and prey."
The surrounding crowd murmured in agreement.
Sondsonia and Mary Geoulude felt much the same, and for a while, they didn't know how to explain to the crowd either.
In the midst of the noise.
The ship Feng Ye was on slowly sailed into the distance.
And suddenly, just at that moment, the emperor of Nine Snake Island, who had been sensing something, had a slight change in her expression, and her eyes narrowed as she said, "They're here!"
Almost as soon as her voice fell, a towering wave rose hundreds of meters away on the sea.
In the midst of the waves, an enormous Sea King, nearly a thousand meters in length, poked its head out.
The ship Feng Ye was on was but a tiny speck compared to this giant Sea King; it was no bigger than a tooth in its massive maw!
"It's... a giant Sea King!"
Some of the female warriors of Nine Snake Island, seeing this scene in the distance, had their faces drained of color.
There were varying sizes of Sea Kings, and those that were hundreds of meters in length were their hunting targets. Hunting one would bring back a large amount of meat to distribute among the people on the island.
But those nearly a thousand meters in length were not within their hunting range!
They were too big!
This size had exceeded the scale they could hunt!
The Sea Kings feared the deadly poison of the snakes on their ships and would usually retreat, but when they were being hunted, they wouldn't care about any poison. In their frenzy, a single sweep of their tails could easily crush their ships into pieces!
In such a situation, even if they managed to kill the Sea King, they would suffer unbearable losses, a definite case of the gains not being worth the sacrifice.
"Look, Hancock."
The emperor of Nine Snake Island looked calmly at the distant sea and said, "Luck won't always be on your side. If you hadn't encountered us, you would have perished in the sea with that man by now. So that man is not worth..."
Her voice trailed off.
On the ships of the entire Nine Snake Pirate crew, all the female warriors who were looking at the distant sea froze.
Everyone's eyes widened in shock, as if they were witnessing an unbelievable scene.
Behold!
The giant Sea King, nearly a thousand meters in length, opened its massive jaws, like a small mountain, and descended upon the ship where Feng Ye was. It was about to swallow the entire ship in one bite.
But just at that moment, Feng Ye, standing on the deck, moved.
He clenched his left fist,
and with a simple upward swing.
Boom!!!
The entire lower and upper jaws of the nearly thousand-meter-long Sea King were blown apart by this punch, and the upper half of its head disappeared into thin air, leaving only the lower half of its torso frozen in the sea.
"I've heard that the meat of Sea Kings is quite delicious. I wonder how this one tastes."
Feng Ye slowly lowered his fist and said to Robin beside him.
Robin looked at the giant Sea King, whose head had disappeared, leaving only its huge torso, and tilted her head, "I've never tasted it either, but the books say it tastes pretty good. Let's give it a try."
"Okay, then I'll look forward to it."
Feng Ye smiled and then waved his hand, cutting off a large portion of the tenderest meat from the giant torso, freezing it, and storing it in the ship's cabin. Then he walked into the cabin with Robin, disappearing from the deck.
(End of Chapter)
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