https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-660-Yearning-for-More-Yearning-for-Power/13464632/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-662-Even-Akainu-Thinks-It-s-Radical/13464634/
Chapter 661: A Warning to the World
Chapter 661: A Warning to the World
Sainte Peace.
The name implies tranquility and peace.
It’s a small island located in the latter half of the New World. The island has no towns, only a few small villages, with a total population of just over a thousand.
A long time ago, they had over two thousand people, protected by Whitebeard.
The man, who was feared as a terrifying pirate by the outside world, was like a father to them, offering protection for many, many years.
Until the day the Old Man died, and the sea plunged into chaos. Many pirates came to raid them, burning, killing, and plundering.
In just half a year, the population was halved.
It was only when Blackbeard re-established his flag here that there was a brief period of peace.
But it was nothing like the stable days of old. Blackbeard’s crew was not known for order; when they came to collect protection money, they often took more than their share, and sometimes even killed a few people if they were angered.
But life was still bearable, and they could endure it.
However, things changed a few months ago. They started seeing pirates that even Blackbeard’s crew couldn’t handle. These pirates would come to "visit", causing destruction in multiple villages.
After each raid, nothing was done. Blackbeard’s crew couldn’t deal with the situation, but they still demanded protection money. They would wait for the pirates to leave, then follow up to collect their dues, regardless of whether they could defeat the raiders or not.
If they couldn’t win, it was none of their concern; they were there to collect protection money, not to fight. If they did win, the loot was theirs, and the island still had to pay.
Life went on, and they could endure it.
What else could they do?
They couldn’t provoke Blackbeard’s crew, and they couldn’t provoke those other pirates either. When the pirates came, they would run to uninhabited areas, waiting until the raiders left before returning.
They had been doing this for a while.
But recently, things seemed different. It had been a long time since any pirates had come to raid.
In the morning, the young fisherman Lex dragged his net to the beach, walking to a rocky outcrop and placing the net on the sand below, waiting for the tide to rise.
At this time, once the tide came in, he could expect to catch at least half a net of fish.
The sea’s resources were abundant. No matter how many pirates came, feeding a population of a couple thousand wasn’t a problem, especially without the burden of protection money.
In fact, they didn’t eat all the fish they caught. Most of it was stored in the fish tanks that every household had, waiting for the occasional merchant ship to come and buy goods or exchange for berries.
The money and some hard currency from the sea were stored or hidden away, to be used when Blackbeard’s crew came to collect protection money.
Of course, if the merchant ships were robbed, they would have to use the fish and stored food to pay the debt, unless the pirates didn’t take it all.
As for when this would end...
Who knew?
Lex sighed, sitting on the rock and staring blankly at the sea, waiting for the tide to come in.
His spot used to be contested, and Lex had to swear and grumble, preparing a small wooden boat to fish in the shallows.
After all, why go to the trouble of sailing when you could catch fish easily?
Now, no one contested his spot, but he couldn’t bring himself to be happy about it.
"Screech!"
As Lex was lost in his melancholy, an eagle let out a sharp cry and entered his field of vision. The eagle swooped down, and as it passed overhead, Lex noticed a strange small box tied to its leg, within reach of its claws.
The eagle’s claws touched the box, and sheets of paper floated down, drifting along the coast and into the village behind him, and likely to other villages as well.
Lex watched the eagle disappear, and the paper landed in front of him. He reached out and caught the large sheet that looked like a newspaper, along with a smaller piece of paper, about a third its size.
The large sheet was covered in text he couldn’t understand, like black stripes pieced together.
As for the smaller piece...
Lex glanced at the heading, and his pupils constricted. He forgot about his net, jumped off the rock, and rushed toward the village in a panic.
"Bad news! No, good news!"
He shouted as he ran, his panic making it unclear whether it was good or bad. To be safe, he mentioned both, just to grab people's attention.
Lex's village was situated on a hill not far from the coast, with a population of only about a hundred people. If you ignored the partially destroyed building at the village entrance, still covered in soot and not yet repaired, it was a peaceful place.
"Bad news! Good news! Chief, it's good news!!"
His cries quickly drew the attention of the villagers. Even without his explanation, those who came out to see what was happening noticed the scattered papers on the ground. Curious, they picked them up and saw the same expression on their faces as Lex, then joined the chaotic crowd, shouting along with him.
By the time they reached the chief’s house, the elderly chief had already come out. Before he could speak, Lex, with excitement, blurted out:
"Chief, it's Worldslider!"
"What?!"
Seeing the panicked looks on everyone's faces, the chief was immediately alarmed. "Heavens, is Worldslider attacking? That means destruction! We’re doomed!"
Although the collaboration between Worldslider and Blackbeard was not a secret, few people truly understood it. The only time their paths crossed was during the 'Final Battle,' and otherwise, they had been peaceful. Many thought it was a temporary alliance to divide Whitebeard's territory, as pirates rarely had lasting alliances. Even short-term collaborations often ended in betrayal, as seen with the recent destruction of Honeycomb Island.
The Navy had made this known, and Morgans' newspaper had widely publicized this rare piece of news, informing the world that two of the Four Emperors had begun to clash. Being under Blackbeard's protection, they were well aware of this, and of Worldslider's fearsome reputation at sea.
Other pirates might just rob and kill a few people, but Worldslider brought destruction!
"Run! We need to find a place to hide. Wait, what?"
The chief was about to organize an evacuation when he paused, confused. "Why would Worldslider come here? We have no money."
Sainte-Peace wasn't exactly destitute, but it was poor enough that sharks could show their teeth without fear. Worldslider didn't target the poor.
"Chief, look!"
Lex handed the paper to the chief, his excitement palpable. "Good times are coming! It's Worldslider! The places he rules are like heaven. He's not here to destroy, he's here to rule us!"
The chief glanced at the paper, his eyes widening.
...
"To all the people of the world and all who receive this message in the New World",
In the palace, in Sagel’s bedroom.
Lily was reading the message they had just distributed.
...
"Regardless of location, size, or status, any place discovered will be destroyed. If you remove the flag, we will bypass you. If you raise our flag, you will be under our rule."
"Furthermore, to all the people of the world, this is what Blackbeard and Red Hair seek: the information to find the great treasure, One Piece. Decode it, search for it, fight for it, and chase your dreams."
"From Worldslider, Norton Sagel."
Lily finished reading the message and glanced at the ancient text that had been copied and resized to fit on a newspaper page. This was their current strategy.
The attack on Ohara was to obtain the Poneglyph, right?
Since more than one person had it, there was no point in keeping it secret. What was the point of only a few people having it? Let the whole world see and have some fun.
Sagel was now sharing this information freely. After all, most people set sail for One Piece. Now it was so much simpler; find the Burned Man, and you would have all four Poneglyphs, leading you to the ultimate treasure.
"Do we still need to rule?"
Lily said, "Our territory is already stretched to the limit. We haven’t even fully integrated it yet, and we’re short on manpower. Ohara alone has lost half a million people, all sent to other islands."
They were truly short on people. Although the islands had not been fully conquered or counted, they had a rough estimate.
With five main routes, each route had four or five Magnetic Islands by the time they reached Ohara. If you went to the front lines, the '5-3 Center' where the five routes and three routes intersected, each route had at least six and as many as eight islands.
The length of the routes is the same, but the magnetic islands are different.
This doesn't even include the islands encountered along the way, with the Magnetic Island at the center, spreading out to the surrounding areas.
A route is a route, a line, but it's divided based on navigation, not just a few lines. It's a vast waterway, all water!
Now, they have already counted over two to three hundred islands. Of course, this isn't a selective search for places with towns, but rather including every island they discover.
This is different from other forces, which aim to rule places with people, at least somewhat prosperous ones, with a few hundred people on the island.
No people, and pirates would be drinking the wind on deserted islands?
The territory of the pirates is generally based on places with people, even large populations, so it may seem small, but in terms of islands, there are many.
But they are different.
They are pirates, yes, but Sagel is also a landowner. As long as it's land, he wants it, whether it has people or not. Even the harshest islands can have resources; it just depends on the development methods.
Based on this estimate, the first half alone could conservatively have five hundred to a thousand islands.
Perhaps even more.
A route with the most chaotic magnetic fields can't be just a fraction of the ocean.
With the constant trade and information gathering from their many subordinates, and Lily's extensive knowledge of the sea, there are at least ten million islands in the world.
As for the exact number, no one knows.
The World Government claims to have half of the world's kingdoms, but whether this is true is unclear.
Moreover, a kingdom is not the same as an island.
The sea is vast.
Even now, they are struggling to manage, and Sagel still wants to conquer along the way. They don't have enough people to distribute to those places to foster growth and vitality.
"First, we secure the territory, and we'll deal with the rest later, just like before."
Sagel doesn't mind. He's not a perfectionist who has to completely develop and transform every island.
Large territories have their own ways of handling things.
If it's not feasible, just plant a flag and deal with it gradually.
First, claim the name; having a claim is the foundation for the future.
"Since we've sent out the orders, let them start moving. One route, one unit. Weber will provide support where needed. Push them down, and we'll eventually force both Blackbeard and Red Hair out."
Sagel grinned, "They're both Emperors. Tee might not care about his reputation, but I don't believe Red Hair doesn't. He's the King of Faces, right? I'll see if his authority is damaged and if he comes after me!"
It doesn't matter who they fight!
Even if both come at once, it's no big deal.
Even if they return to Ohara, he can abandon the place and start over somewhere else, but those two must be dealt with!
...
Paradise, Sabaody Archipelago.
In Shakky's extortion bar, the former empress of Nine Snake Island, Shakky, was reading the distributed information and looking at Rayleigh, who was focused on another large sheet of paper filled with ancient text.
After finishing, she sighed, put down the paper, and picked up the one covered in ancient text. "The world is going to be in chaos again."
"I didn't expect it either."
Rayleigh took a sip of his drink and shook his head with a wry smile. "That Worldslider kid really has the guts."
"It also shows he's not interested in the One Piece."
Shakky said, "Whether this is foolish or crazy, one thing is clear: Worldslider is probably the most difficult pirate to deal with, even more so than Rocks."
She and Charlotte Lorelisa are around the same age, and she retired a bit earlier. She was chased by Garp forty-two years ago, and the Valley of the Gods Incident happened thirty-eight years ago.
She lived through the Rocks era.
Even Rocks, the most powerful pirate of his time, was interested in the One Piece.
But Worldslider has completely released the information.
The impact is no less than the last words of Rozairogy and Whitebeard.
After all, this indirectly confirms what those two said, releasing the evidence.
But it will also plunge the sea into new chaos.
Even if the World Government takes action, they can't block Worldslider.
He is too strong.
It's proven that when someone is powerful enough, they can do as they please.
(End of Chapter)
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