On the massive warship, looking at the current Admiral lying in his chair complaining, Kong felt helpless but had to admit the old man was right.
White Wolf Silas was not weak, but he had heard Admiral Rona say that White Wolf Silas and Admiral Rona were at most evenly matched. If Admiral Rona had not been concerned about Giant King Harald's presence at the time and had continued fighting, it would have been hard to say who would have won.
And he, as an Admiral candidate, was already prepared to replace Admiral Crimson Horse as the new Marine Admiral when the current Admiral retired.
In other words, his strength had undoubtedly reached Admiral level.
Even if Admiral Crimson Horse's strength was not as strong as in his youth due to his age, he could still burst out Admiral-level strength for short periods without problem.
Two against one. Kong could not see how they could lose.
The only problem was they simply could not find the White Wolf Pirates!
Since robbing the Heavenly Tribute, the White Wolf Pirates had vanished as if they had disappeared from the face of the earth. They had been drifting at sea for over a month without finding any clues.
Until the Den Den Mushi on the warship suddenly rang with urgent communication.
"What, Sphinx!?"
Receiving communication from Marine Headquarters, Kong immediately became serious.
"Admiral Crimson Horse, we have discovered traces of the White Wolf Pirates! One day ago, White Wolf Silas appeared in the non-affiliated nation Sphinx, defeating three great pirates with bounties over 100 million in a one-against-three battle!"
"Headquarters now suspects the White Wolf Pirates plan to take Sphinx into their fold and develop this country into their own territory!"
Sphinx was a place where pirates fenced stolen goods. The Marines had known this for a long time. But even knowing this, capturing Sphinx was not easy.
Because pirates would run.
Pirates had no sense of belonging to Sphinx. As soon as Marines arrived, they would flee, leaving behind only a small island with ordinary, non-affiliated nation residents, which had no value to the Marines.
So when Kong was still a Marine Rear Admiral, he had proposed a suggestion: since pirates could not be completely eliminated, let Sphinx become the pirates' fixed trading post while Marines dispatched numerous intelligence personnel to infiltrate and gather pirate intelligence.
Facts proved this approach was extremely effective. They used pirates' careless psychology to set ambushes along pirates' action routes, eliminating several great pirates who had previously gone to Sphinx to fence goods in one fell swoop.
It was through this achievement that Kong rose from Marine Rear Admiral all the way to Marine Admiral candidate.
Moreover, to avoid overfishing, Marines only targeted those pirate crews that posed great threats and were extremely vicious.
Small fry were temporarily spared.
So until today, countless pirates still came and went from Sphinx. After developing to this point, convenience had long replaced early risks.
Even though pirates had become more vigilant, there were always more solutions than difficulties.
Ever heard of Devil Fruit abilities?
But after hearing that Silas had defeated the three great pirate crews originally occupying Sphinx and taken Sphinx into his fold, Kong felt something was terribly wrong.
Who was it that originally suggested he should not bother with Sphinx?
"Hmph, just a rabble of pirates. That Silas guy has really fallen to think he would try to use these pirates against us."
Crimson Horse snorted coldly. After so many days, he finally was not lying in his chair or leaning against female slaves' gentle embraces.
For the first time, he took initiative to give orders.
"All forces, listen up! Head to the non-affiliated nation Sphinx, and order surrounding Marine branches to dispatch warships for support!"
Although Crimson Horse was old and lecherous, his brain was not broken. Strategically he could despise enemies, but tactically he would not underestimate Silas.
If Silas were really that weak, he would have thrown him into Impel Down long ago.
How could he still be living freely until now?
Moreover, if Silas truly had Admiral-level strength, combined with his old crew members, their small force might actually let Silas escape.
So he wanted multiple layers of insurance.
From beginning to end, Crimson Horse never thought Silas would do anything other than run away.
Face them head-on?
Do not be ridiculous.
They had the equivalent of two Marine Admirals here!
Time came to March.
News of White Wolf Silas appearing in Sphinx gradually fermented throughout the New World.
If initially the pirates in Sphinx had cheered for Silas's bold robbery of Heavenly Tribute, then after the hot blood in their heads cooled, they finally began to realize something was wrong.
Why were the White Wolf Pirates not leaving yet!
Pirates had never imagined the White Wolf Pirates would stay in Sphinx permanently. After all, the White Wolf Pirates had always operated this way. Even when planting their flag somewhere, they never stayed long.
Not to mention, the White Wolf Pirates had robbed the Celestial Dragons' Heavenly Tribute and were now thorns in the World Government's side, hated to the point they wanted them eliminated immediately.
Under these circumstances, the White Wolf Pirates staying too long in one place would definitely attract massive Marine encirclement.
What was the point?
These days, Silas was also asking himself, what exactly was he after?
If he wanted to develop influence, then once Rocks and Newgate grew up, with three Emperor-level fighters on one ship, even the World Government could not handle them.
But how much longer would that take?
Ten years or twenty years?
For him as captain to rely on crew members' strength before daring to face the Marines and World Government, what difference was there between him and future Buggy the Clown?
The strength of Conqueror's Haki reflected the strength of its wielder's spirit.
Did he, who could only reign supreme by relying on crew members, truly have the qualifications to become a king?
"You do not want to retreat either, do you?"
Listening to his increasingly vital heartbeat over this past year, Silas smiled with growing anticipation.
Whether he could win or not, he would only know after fighting!
"Who will come this time? Elephant Yama definitely will not come. Rona? Have her injuries healed? Tsk, it will not be Crimson Horse, will it? If that old bastard really comes, I guarantee I will hack him to death in a few strikes. Kong? That brat should have Admiral-level strength by now..."
Silas murmured quietly. As he spoke each name, his aura grew increasingly intense, until even the entire villa that Black Merchant Duke Gate had given them for temporary residence began shaking.
"Hahahaha! Although the future emperors of this era have not grown up yet, it seems no era lacks for strong opponents!"
Originally, Silas had regretted that waiting for Rocks, Newgate, and the others to grow up would take a very long time, not to mention the future Marine Admirals.
But while the future Emperor-level fighters had not grown up, the current Marine Admirals were all still at their peak.
Soon, he would know who the Marines had sent this time.
Sea Calendar 1481, March. On the lawless island Sphinx, you have encountered current Marine Admiral "Cyborg" Kong leading a large Marine force. As an ordinary pirate, your only task is to escape from this major Marine operation with your life.
After this operation, you will receive a pirate bounty. The higher your pirate bounty, the richer the rewards after this operation ends.
May your pirate journey not end here!
[Chapter Complete]
***
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