The day was drawing to a close.
When Sphinx's three great pirate crews had assembled their imposing fleets and appeared at the harbor, the evening twilight stained the sky like flowing amber. The usual bustling sounds of the harbor gradually disappeared, and the air carried an unmistakable hint of killing intent.
"It seems those guys occupying Sphinx do not plan to give up their territory easily."
Looking at the impressive formation of the three great pirate crews, Ripley hefted her massive club carved from Adam Tree heartwood and said with obvious interest.
"Are you afraid?"
"Do we not still have you, Captain?"
Ripley grinned confidently. If Silas was not backing down, how could the crew members possibly retreat?
"Just a bunch of worthless rabble."
Having just comprehended Haki, Rocks was at the absolute height of his fighting spirit. He had not forgotten what Silas said about Haki only growing stronger through battle.
After an afternoon of rest, although the wounds from his fight with the Red Heart Pirates had not completely healed, his stamina had mostly recovered.
"Haha, regardless, let us first see what those kids on the other side have to say. I am a senior, so I cannot just bully the weak randomly."
Silas's lips curved into a predatory smile.
With the help of Observation Haki, he had roughly brought the entire harbor situation into his perception and had gained a clear understanding of the three great pirate crews' strength.
The strongest were still the three captains, three great pirates with bounties exceeding 100 million. In the future, they would probably be at the level of Disasters, Flying Six, or Star Commanders under the Yonko.
And they were not even among the top performers in those categories, just middle-tier at best.
They were somewhat inferior even to the Blood Skull Pirates captain he had encountered when he first awakened the system a year ago.
Below the three great pirates were several capable fighters, but none reached the Disasters and Flying Six standard. Their strength was roughly equivalent to Ripley's current level.
"How terrifying," Silas sighed with mock concern.
Three great pirates with bounties over 100 million, six or seven capable combatants, plus nearly five thousand pirates. Anyone below Admiral level might actually be overwhelmed by such sheer numbers.
"White Wolf Silas!"
From one of the three great pirate ships, a man's vigorous voice carried clearly over the water.
"You have not managed this island for over ten years. Now this island has been incorporated under our Black Gold Pirate Alliance. You trespassed on our territory and injured my subordinates. Do you want to declare war on us?"
As soon as the man spoke, Silas immediately knew who he was.
Immortal Jason.
The self-proclaimed immortal who ate the Zombie-Zombie Fruit. No matter what injuries he sustained, as long as the missing parts were filled in, he would not die.
Even opponents of the same level would not dare engage in brutal exchanges against Immortal Jason's reckless, injury-trading fighting style.
Silas had previously severed one of his subordinate's arms with a single effortless strike.
"White Wolf Silas, this is no longer your era. Sphinx does not belong to you anymore. If you do not want to face simultaneous siege from our three great pirate crews, I suggest you leave Sphinx immediately!"
From another pirate ship, Black Merchant Duke Gate declared loudly with obvious authority.
If it was not absolutely necessary, he really did not want to fight Silas to the death. As a businessman, what he hated most was making losing deals.
Though the lion was old, his remaining power still existed.
No one knew exactly how much of his peak strength White Wolf Silas still retained.
Then he heard Monster Moz beside him let out a thunderous roar.
"White Wolf Silas, do you dare fight me?"
On the Monster Pirates' ship, Monster Moz leaped to the bow, and a terrifying aura suddenly erupted, sweeping violently across the entire scene.
"Damn it, this complete idiot!"
Both Black Merchant Duke Gate and Immortal Jason wanted to win without fighting, but they had not expected Monster Moz to release Conqueror's Haki right from the start.
How did this fool even manage to awaken Conqueror's Haki?
Whooom!
Monster Moz's Conqueror's Haki ignored friend and foe alike, directly covering half the harbor. Many weak pirates rolled their eyes back and fainted immediately.
But Newgate and the others on the Black Pearl felt absolutely nothing at all.
They only saw Silas step confidently onto the bow, spread his arms wide, and laugh heartily.
"Haha! Conqueror's Haki? It seems among you three, there is still one with some actual courage!"
"But this pathetic level is not nearly enough!"
Monster Moz's Conqueror's Haki was at most at the level of someone who had just barely mastered it. He could not even distinguish between friend and foe or control direction properly.
But Silas was completely different. After consecutive battles with Crimson Snake Rona and Giant King Harald, plus the system enhancements, Silas's Conqueror's Haki had made substantial progress.
"Let me show you what true Conqueror's Haki looks like!"
Silas laughed loudly, releasing his Conqueror's Haki without any reservation at this moment.
The clash of opposing Conqueror's Haki made black-red lightning flash dramatically in the sky, bringing a terrifying oppressive feeling as if the sky were collapsing and the earth were tearing apart.
But what no one expected was that Monster Moz's Conqueror's Haki lasted only an instant before being completely crushed by Silas's overwhelming spiritual pressure.
Even across a considerable distance, this terrifying oppressive feeling still made the pirates at the harbor who wanted to watch the excitement struggle desperately to breathe. The air seemed to solidify around them, and many weak pirates simply collapsed helplessly to the ground.
Hiding on a tall rooftop to watch the battle, Stussy was certain she was positioned far enough from the Black Pearl. But when Silas stood on the Black Pearl's bow and released his Haki, her breathing still became uncontrollably rapid.
"This is the strongest pirate on these seas?"
Stussy breathed heavily. Just standing there, he seemed to be the focus of the entire world, an incomparable king among men.
Could such an existence really be something she could possibly touch?
Facing Silas's overwhelming Haki, the three great pirates at the forefront felt even more suffocated. They had never imagined that Silas, a seventy-year-old man, could still release such a terrifying presence.
"C-Captain, many people cannot withstand it and have collapsed!"
A pirate said with obvious trembling in his voice.
"How many do we still have standing?"
Black Merchant Duke Gate gritted his teeth. Looking at Silas's aggressive stance, there probably would not be a peaceful resolution between them and the White Wolf Pirates. The only consolation was that they had more people, while the White Wolf Pirates currently had only three people in total!
"Still... still a hundred people!"
"What!?"
Black Merchant Duke Gate's eyes widened as he almost roared at this pirate.
"I brought a full three thousand people for this operation!"
Black Merchant Duke Gate was already drenched in cold sweat.
His pirate crew's strength was already considered the strongest among the three great pirate crews. If his crew had become like this, the other two crews were in even worse shape.
But things had reached this critical point. They no longer had room to retreat.
"Prepare for bombardment!"
Black Merchant Duke Gate roared desperately.
"No matter how strong White Wolf Silas is, he is still just one person! As long as we sink his ship, no matter how strong he is, he will have to fight us directly!"
One hundred versus three. Advantage is mine!
[Chapter Complete]
***
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