While the World Government and the Navy try to paint 'The Traveler' as a villain, those smarter who saw the news in the WENP newspaper knew that things were not as simple as they seemed.
For those who knew about the situation of the people of Wano, it was easy to deduce that with Kaido's downfall, the people of Wano would probably be free—if 'The Traveler' didn't want to take Kaido's place and rule the Land of Wano.
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In Amazon Lily, in the Calm Belt.
Boa Sandersonia sighed with a completely surprised look, saying: "Unbelievable... He just saved us and is already in the news again, and this time, it's even more impressive."
"A man like that is destined for great things," Boa Marigold said. "We saw firsthand how powerful he was. But maybe we didn't even see the tip of the iceberg. Right, sister?"
Boa Hancock didn't even hear them. At that moment, she was gripping the newspaper tightly while staring intently at the front-page photo, ignoring everything around her.
'The Traveler...'
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South Blue, Sorbet Kingdom.
Ginny extended the newspaper in her hand in front of Kuma, who was holding little Bonny: "Look, Kuma-chii, it's him!"
With a gentle smile, Kuma said: "The people of Wano are lucky."
His words were easily interpreted by Ginny: "Yes, with this, they will be free~"
Both she and Kuma didn't believe that he would want to take the Land of Wano for himself in Kaido's place.
Call it intuition or even a foolish thought. But that's truly how they felt.
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Somewhere in the world, Monkey D. Dragon, leader of the Revolutionary Army, lowered the newspaper and looked at Ivankov.
Ivankov cracked his knuckles, smiling from ear to ear: "Dragon, didn't I tell you? He not only rescued our dear Ginny but also healed her. And he freed the people of Wano from Kaido's clutches! What a legendary guy. Heh-hee-haw!"
Dragon let out a deep sound—remained silent for a moment, his dark eyes focused. Then he spoke: "I would like to meet him personally."
Ivankov clapped his hands, excited: "Ah, it's going to be amazing! Maybe you two will align your ideals… Who knows, maybe even invite this 'The Traveler' to join forces with us!"
Dragon remained silent, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.
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In Mary Geoise.
The World Nobles were furious and felt humiliated.
The news about the 'villain' who made them feel this way only increased their frustration.
"What the hell are they doing letting this demon run free!?"
"Yes, yes!"
"He must die!! I want him dead!"
"No, I want him as my slave. I'll torture him to death!"
"That's a good idea!"
"Yes, let's turn him into an obedient slave!"
"Yes, yes!"
"Silence!" Unable to stand the shouting any longer, Jaygarcia Saturn silenced them.
He had a notebook in his hand while studying the slave seal on the forehead of one of the World Nobles.
The screams of these blessed Nobles only made him lose his patience with them.
'I hate to admit it, but 'he' is a genius for having managed to create something like this...' Saturn thought.
Even just at the beginning of his study of this mark, Saturn could already understand how complex it was.
'I want him!' he thought, sighing. 'But Imu-sama wants him dead.'
Somewhat regrettable, but he couldn't go against Imu.
Now, he deeply regretted not acting faster and capturing 'The Traveler' while he was in Mary Geoise.
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A week later…
The news about 'The Traveler' had already spread and left many astonished.
What everyone shared in common was the following question: What would be 'The Traveler's' next steps?
And the answer to that question was: To create an artificial island.
On one side was the Kingdom of Dressrosa and on the other, West Blue. In the Calm Belt, Zaydas created a barrier large enough to surround Japan.
This entire area now had an ice floor.
It was a gigantic, flat platform that made anyone who saw it doubt what they were seeing.
No matter which direction you looked, it seemed like an endless ice road.
At the center of this platform, Zaydas had piled up various things.
Some weighed tons, yet the ice beneath his feet was still able to support the weight.
His project, Little Garden, was underway.
Initially, he intended to make his mansion in the Underworld, in his own dimension, the central point of all the dimensions he had been to.
However, the Great Sage warned him that the chances—and even the estimated cost—for making this work would be lower in One Piece.
This dimension was actually a white dimension, in the words of the Great Sage.
A white dimension was nothing more than a free dimension. In other words, there was no greater force governing it.
Precisely because of this, making this universe the central point that connects the other dimensions was a more viable option.
In Zaydas's hand, a hoe appeared.
Lifting it, Zaydas struck it against what seemed to be a mountain of treasure.
It was nothing more than hundreds of Devil Fruits, as well as all the treasure of the World Nobles that Zaydas had previously stolen.
The instant the hoe touched the mountain of treasure, all of it transformed into a seed.
Through his Ultimate Skill, [Demeter, God of Agriculture], the seed—shining like a mini sun—hit the ice, piercing it and starting to create roots at an incredible speed, visible to the naked eye.
The roots were thick and snaked through the ground, extending into the water, growing longer and longer.
Zaydas made the hoe disappear as he moved further away.
Before his eyes, he saw the golden seed create its roots, spreading within seconds for kilometers and continuing to expand.
The sound of the growing roots continued while the stem hadn't even formed yet.
His future tree of golden fruits, Little Garden, would soon appear before everyone.
An existence impossible to ignore.
In the sea, all nearby marine creatures fled in panic upon sensing the presence of the snaking roots, growing more and more without any sign of stopping.
Even when a Sea King was reached, all that happened was the Sea King withering as it turned into nutrients for the tree's root, accelerating its growth even further.
There was even a Sea King foolish enough to try biting one of the roots, only to have its entire vitality sucked out, leaving it mummified.
The entire process didn't escape Zaydas's eyes, who could see through everything.
He was ready to act if necessary, but it seemed it wouldn't be needed.
When it reached 200,000 km² of expansion, covering more than half of the ice area he had created, Zaydas saw that the stem had finally started to grow.
Its growth was also massive, rapidly increasing in size, easily reaching hundreds of meters in height.
The whole situation somewhat resembled the fairy tale Jack and the Beanstalk, but clearly on an even more gigantic scale.
The dimensions of the growing tree's stem were beyond comparison.
Even worse, the trunk began to swell while branches started appearing at the top with budding flowers, expanding more and more.
As it grew, Zaydas had to move even further away.
The situation was so exaggerated that even the global sea level dropped by 10 meters.
All the water absorbed served as nutrients for Little Garden.
The stem of Little Garden reached the mark of 300,000 km².
As it grew, Little Garden began to show signs of stopping its horizontal expansion once it reached about 3,000 km from north to south.
However, it continued growing upward, reaching the clouds.
When it surpassed the clouds themselves, Little Garden started creating branches at the top, soon covered with golden leaves.
But even the clouds, when touched or hit by Little Garden, were absorbed and transformed into nutrients for it.
"Wow!"
Zaydas could swear he had never seen such an incredible and majestic tree.
He trembled slightly, like a father witnessing, with pride, the birth and growth of his child.
"So beautiful..." he murmured.
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