"Teacher, what's going on with Captain Roger? He's looked a bit off ever since we landed on this island."
While walking through the jungle, Fang Yi cautiously asked Yamon, who was walking beside him.
Yamon simply shook her head and didn't reply. Instead, she reached out to play with Wangzai, who was lying lazily on Fang Yi's shoulder.
After several days of sailing, they had arrived at this uninhabited island around noon. However, from the moment they set foot on the island, Captain Roger had been acting strangely. Without saying much, he gathered everyone and led the crew straight in one direction, as if he had visited this island before.
But as they continued walking, Fang Yi started to feel that something wasn't right. It felt as if some voice was calling out to him—and strangely enough, the direction they were heading was exactly where that call was coming from.
"What's going on here?"
Fang Yi tried to stop himself from moving forward, but the faint call remained, growing stronger and clearer the closer they got.
"Xiao Yi, what's wrong?"
The first to notice Fang Yi's strange behavior was Yamon, who was walking right beside him.
"Teacher… I…" Fang Yi wasn't sure if he should tell her. But thinking about how strange this situation was—and fearing it might bring danger to everyone, he decided to explain everything honestly after some hesitation.
"You're hearing some kind of voice calling to you?"
Yamon was stunned for a moment, then her expression turned serious. "Where exactly is it coming from? Point it out for me."
"It's right ahead of us!" Fang Yi pointed firmly toward their direction of travel.
Yamon nodded, then immediately walked up to Roger and whispered something to him, occasionally glancing back at Fang Yi.
"Xiao Yi, Yamon told me… you're hearing something calling out to you?"
Roger approached with Rayleigh and the others, asking him directly.
"Yes! I don't know what it is, but I'm worried there's danger ahead."
Fang Yi nodded, speaking seriously.
What he feared most was that Roger and the others wouldn't believe him. If something really dangerous lay ahead, they'd be walking straight into it.
"Can you describe it in more detail?"
Roger and Rayleigh exchanged glances before Roger asked again.
"It's hard to describe… It's like someone is softly whispering in my ear, but I can't make out the words. Still, I can sense that the source of it is right ahead!"
Fang Yi grew a bit anxious, afraid Roger wouldn't believe him. "Captain Roger, I swear I'm telling the truth!"
"Relax, I believe you!" Roger waved his hand and grinned.
"Because… I'm hearing it too."
"…What?"
Fang Yi was truly shocked this time. He thought he was the only one experiencing this strange sensation, but Roger said he could feel it too.
Seeing Roger's calm smile, Fang Yi quickly settled down. He already knew Roger possessed the ability to hear the voice of all things. He began to wonder if maybe he had awakened the same power.
"Then, Captain, do you know what exactly is calling us?"
With his anxiety gone, Fang Yi's curiosity grew.
Roger shook his head and replied, "No idea. I discovered this ability during my past adventures. If I focus, I can hear the voices of all things. But unlike you, I've never been actively called like this before."
Fang Yi nodded thoughtfully. He couldn't fully hear the voice of all things yet—maybe because his ability had only just awakened. But since Roger said this kind of active calling had never happened to him, that meant Roger likely used his ability as soon as they arrived on the island and already sensed something here.
Before long, the group arrived at the entrance of a huge cave under Roger's lead.
"Xiao Yi, is the voice calling you from inside this cave?" Roger asked, glancing at Fang Yi.
"Yes! It's very close—inside!" Fang Yi confirmed without hesitation.
Roger smiled knowingly, clearly not surprised. As he continued leading them in, he remarked,
"I felt it as soon as we landed—the presence of a heavy, ancient voice here, almost like it's trying to recount some lost history to me."
Hearing this, Fang Yi's heart skipped a beat. Could it be…
To confirm his hunch, Fang Yi hurried after Roger into the cave.
Inside, the cave wasn't very large. At its center stood a massive, moss-covered stone block, overgrown with vines and plants.
"It is… a Poneglyph!"
The moment Fang Yi saw the stone, he knew exactly what it was—the voice calling to him was coming from the Poneglyph.
"So it's this thing again, huh?" Roger chuckled upon seeing the stone.
This wasn't his first time encountering a Poneglyph.
"I still have no idea what these things are for. They seem to be scattered all over the world," Rayleigh said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
Roger grinned and glanced at the wide-eyed Fang Yi.
"Maybe… Xiao Yi here can finally give us some answers."
However, Fang Yi wasn't paying any attention to Roger's teasing. He couldn't tear his eyes away from the Poneglyph. For some reason, he felt an overwhelming urge to touch it, as though the voice inside his heart was urging him repeatedly to lay his hands on it.
Without hesitation, Fang Yi walked forward and placed his hand on the Poneglyph.
The instant he touched it, an ancient script seemed to rush straight into his mind. Though he couldn't understand the meaning, the system's prompt suddenly rang out in his head:
"Detecting incomplete Poneglyph… Scanning in progress…"
"Scan complete! Congratulations, Host, for finding a lost Poneglyph. You have gained 1,000 points!"
"Points obtained for the first time—Shop interface unlocked…"
When the system's notifications ended, Fang Yi noticed that the three icons originally displayed in the corner of his vision had now become four—the new one being the Shop that the system just mentioned.
But before he could even check the new Shop function, Roger and the others, seeing Fang Yi standing still after touching the stone, gathered around him.
"Xiao Yi, did you feel anything?" Roger asked with anticipation.
"Captain… do you know what this thing is?"
Hearing Roger's question, Fang Yi didn't even bother checking the Shop yet. Instead, he asked Roger directly.
"I'm not sure," Roger shook his head. "But I can sense a deep, heavy feeling of history emanating from it… and also… the presence of a fierce war."
Fang Yi fell into brief thought before explaining,
"That's right. What you're feeling comes from the words carved on this stone. These are ancient writings. They record the history of the Void Century, which is why this stone is called… the Poneglyph."
"The Poneglyph?"
Everyone, including Roger, looked at Fang Yi in surprise.
After all, they were pirates, not scholars. Such things normally wouldn't interest them.
"Then… can you read what's written on it?" Rayleigh asked Fang Yi.
Fang Yi shook his head.
"No, I can't. Just like the captain, all I can feel is the emotion these words are conveying."
"So it's like that after all…"
Roger let out a sigh.
"Ever since we reached Water Seven, we've been unable to find a clear path forward. I had hoped that these stones might hold some clue—but it turns out they're just history records."
Fang Yi blinked, finally understanding why Roger had sought out the Poneglyph. The Roger Pirates had lost their direction, but Roger wasn't ready to give up. Having encountered such stones during his past adventures, he likely wanted to see if they contained any clues for their journey.
"Captain, why do you feel these stones might contain clues?" Fang Yi asked, feigning curiosity.
Roger shook his head again.
"I can't explain it. It's just a feeling."
"…Strangely enough, I feel it too," Fang Yi said after a brief pause. "It's like these stones… are guiding us somewhere."
He said this deliberately, hoping to leverage the Roger Pirates' power to search for more Poneglyphs.
After all, when he touched the Poneglyph just now, he gained 1,000 points. Though he didn't yet know what the points were for, it was clear that the system wanted him to seek out more of these stones to gain additional rewards.
Coincidentally, Roger needed the Poneglyphs to reach the final island. This was a win-win situation. Fang Yi knew this was the perfect opportunity to earn their trust.
"See? I knew it! There's something special about these stones!" Roger instantly perked up, clearly excited.
"Though it does sound a bit far-fetched, we don't have any better leads right now. Let's follow the captain's plan—search for more of these strange stones," Rayleigh agreed with a nod.
"But none of us can read these ancient writings! Even if they describe a path to the final island, we won't be able to understand it," Jaba said with a frown.
"In that case… why don't we make rubbings of these texts?"
Fang Yi suggested thinking it over.
"We can keep looking for more Poneglyphs while also seeking someone who can read the ancient language. Once we find them, we can simply show them the rubbings to get them translated."
"That's a great idea! Xiao Yi's right—we'll do just that!"
Roger laughed heartily, clearly pleased with the plan.
With a new goal in mind, Roger decided they would rest on the island for the night and set out again at dawn to search for more Poneglyphs—while also gathering information on scholars who could read the ancient language.
That evening, the excited crew threw another lively banquet.
Meanwhile, Fang Yi finally had some peace—and was eager to check out the newly unlocked Shop function in his system.