In the end, Whitebeard was still Whitebeard. After confirming the authenticity of the information, he burst into hearty laughter.
"Gurararara! Marco, looks like a crazy little brat is about to enter the New World!
"Keep an eye on that brat's movements at all times. When he gets to the New World, I'm going to meet him myself!
"For now, we sail for Kulom Island. You lot can't keep that woman Linlin suppressed!"
"Got it, Pops," Marco replied.
In the former territory of the Flying Pirates, the Beasts Pirates, the Big Mom Pirates, and the World Pirates—three major pirate crews—were currently going wild plundering the Flying Pirates' domain.
The outcome of the Edd War Sea Battle had caused a subtle shift in the balance of the New World. The Flying Pirates, Roger Pirates, Whitebeard Pirates, and Wang Zhi's Rocks Pirates remnants had long been the kings among New World pirates. Their forces occasionally clashed and rubbed against one another, and bold pirates would sometimes pick fights, but overall the situation had remained relatively stable.
If nothing had changed, then at the rate the Flying Pirates were rising, they would have vaguely surpassed the other three great pirate crews, and in some respects could have rivaled the Rocks Pirates.
Unfortunately, the natural disaster at the Edd War Sea Battle had left the Flying Pirates in name only. To say nothing of the fact that Admiral of the Flying Pirates, Golden Lion Shiki, had given up on rebuilding his crew and instead turned his base island into a guild, going into business.
That outcome was something no one had expected. Rather than expanding outward, he had only publicly announced he was recruiting people.
The other pirates who had long been eyeing the Golden Lion's territory had intended to seize it from the start. Once the Golden Lion kept only his own base island and ignored the other islands, they became even more frenzied in their plunder.
Battle broke out at the slightest spark. At first it was only the Beasts Pirates under Kaido, but as others saw how profitable it was, the World Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates joined in. Today you occupy one island, tomorrow I snatch it back. The day after tomorrow you take another island, and then someone else takes one more. After a period of back-and-forth assaults and clashes, the fighting spread, and even the Whitebeard Pirates were dragged into it. The four sides began continuously carving up that territory.
Because the territory Shiki had once seized was simply too large, a winner could not be decided in a short time. The great pirate crews were fighting almost every day. Naturally, it was not only these four crews contesting the territory.
There were also other big-name pirates who, during the war, had no intention of holding territory but quietly slipped in to plunder treasure instead, playing at fishing in troubled waters with great skill.
Leading them were the Happo Navy under Chinjao and the Danger Pirates under Marlans, who would swoop in while the battles raged, grab the treasure, and run.
It was not that the Whitebeard Pirates, Beasts Pirates, Big Mom Pirates, and World Pirates were unaware. It was just that they were already exhausted from defending and assaulting, and had no spare energy to deal with those little rats.
However, once a victor was decided among the four great crews, if those pirate groups still dared to be that bold, then the cat that stole the fish would eventually be caught.
It was precisely because the New World was so busy fighting over territory that no one had much attention to spare for new pirates. The incident Doflamingo had caused did not have much impact in the New World.
Time rewinds to when the Flamingo slipped beneath the sea.
Endless darkness, all sorts of dazzling deep-sea creatures: octopi so large they seemed bottomless, bigheaded fish with bizarre skull-like heads, eels with an extra wing. Unlike the Sky Island, the world beneath the sea was filled with a dreamlike quality. After all, the deep sea was not as unreachable as the sky.
As they continued their descent, everyone aboard the Flamingo was captivated by the new sights of the deep. Among them, the Divine Guard showed it the most.
Born on Skypiea, they had already considered simply reaching the Blue Sea as a blessing from the gods. And now they stood under the ocean itself. In their own words, even if they died for their god right now, they would have no regrets—their lives were complete.
Doflamingo was no exception; he too was drawn in by the scenery of the deep sea. It was hard to imagine that despite such immense pressure, Fish-Men and merfolk could survive here.
The coating around the ship was also truly strange. It allowed a vessel to move safely on the seafloor without worrying about oxygen. Just from that alone, Doflamingo could see enormous room for exploitation in the future. Of course, that was something to consider later.
After descending for some time, the Flamingo finally saw the silhouette of Fish-Man Island.
Ten thousand meters below the surface, Fish-Man Island resembled a colossal crystal palace sunk into the abyss. Its main body sat under a dome formed from semi-transparent coral reefs and glowing jellyfish, casting dreamlike blue-violet halos through the dim deep-sea waters.
The island's surface was covered in flowing luminescent patterns, as if countless schools of glowing fish swam across the rock walls. The massive bubble barrier encircling the outside resembled a dynamic protective membrane that separated the seawater from the island, forming a unique suspended ecosystem.
At the entrance, an archway made from inlaid mother-of-pearl stood tall. The doors bore relief carvings of merfolk and Fish-Men dancing together. In the currents, they flickered in and out of sight, looking both like guardians and like an invitation.
Under the guidance of the coating craftsman, the Flamingo came to rest at the main entrance of Fish-Man Island. After a round of inspection by the Neptune Army, Doflamingo and his group formally set foot on Fish-Man Island.
The coating craftsman parted ways with Doflamingo, finding a ship on his own to leave. It was obvious this was not his first time doing this job.
"Waaah, Young Master, you can see the sun even down here under the sea, it's amazing!"
Even the usually composed Vergo revealed his boyish side in the face of the fantastical undersea scenery. The corn kernels stuck to his cheek seemed to glow strangely as they followed his gaze.
Pica was the same. Beneath that towering exterior he was, in the end, still just a teenager. He chimed in,
"Not just that, there's a sky and clouds too. So cool!"
Even though Pica was still wrapped in bandages, the recovery ability of bodies in the One Piece world was indeed extraordinary. It had not been long at all, yet Pica was already full of energy, looking like nothing had happened.
"Fufufufufufu. Brats, what are you waiting for? Let's head out and find the most prosperous town," Doflamingo said, unable to wait any longer to see this miraculous world with his own eyes.
At the same time, in Ryugu Palace—
In an extremely vast and luxurious palace banquet hall, the most distinguished guests of Fish-Man Island were being entertained. The host was Prince Neptune. As for why the king of Fish-Man Island himself was not present, the official statement from the royal family was that the current king had suddenly fallen gravely ill and could only rely on IV drips and medicine to stay alive, making him unable to receive guests.
Whether that was true or not, no one cared to dig into it. Under Prince Neptune's regency, life was far better than before.
At the center of the banquet hall, on a massive shell-shaped stage, the girls from Mermaid Café were dancing an enthusiastic welcome dance. The atmosphere had clearly infected the musicians as well, who were pounding away at their instruments with all their might.
On the left-hand side, at a seat shaped like a giant flounder, a bald man over six meters tall with a ferocious, villainous face was swaying left and right with a wine cup in hand. Every so often, he would cast a sideways glance in Prince Neptune's direction, saying nothing and showing no attitude either way.
(End of Chapter)
[Get +20 Extra Chapters On — P@tr3on "Zaelum"]
[Every 500 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter Drop]
[Thanks for Reading!]