"Captain—this damage is wrong!"
Feeling the terrifying heat contained within Ace's flames, Lafayette stood beside Xiao and shouted hoarsely.
The raging fire was devouring oxygen at an alarming rate.
The air itself seemed to be burning.
Every breath felt like inhaling molten lava. Several of them were already gasping, their chests tightening as suffocation crept in.
"I know!"
Xiao raised his hand sharply.
A layer of freezing frost instantly wrapped around the group, isolating them from the inferno and barely preventing them from being roasted alive.
His gaze never left Ace.
At this moment, Ace was radiating an overwhelming aura of strong luck—
a brilliance so intense it was almost tangible.
The light symbolizing destiny intertwined with his blazing flames, illuminating the entire coastline.
It was exactly like Crocodile abandoning his Logia advantage to fight Luffy head-on back then.
Everything felt arranged.
Ace's fortune was lifting him to absurd heights—
allowing him to naturally wield Conqueror's Haki infusion without guidance,
boosting his combat abilities across the board,
and making him nearly invincible.
"Captain, what do we do now?!"
Burgess shouted anxiously.
He had never felt death this close before. Just moments ago, he'd genuinely felt like a roast pig, his entire body permeated with the smell of barbecue.
"Strong luck is backing Ace," Xiao said calmly.
"He doesn't even care about appearances anymore. A vice-emperor with Conqueror's infusion—what a joke."
Then he waved his hand decisively.
"You give it to Luda."
(Run.)
In an instant, tyrannical dark power surged out of Xiao's body, condensing into something almost tangible—like a massive black cloak unfurling.
The darkness swallowed the entire sea of flames, devouring the blazing purgatory and extinguishing every trace of light.
When the shadows finally dissipated—
Xiao and the Blackbeard Pirates were gone.
"Escaped…?"
Ace exhaled slowly, his body re-forming from the raging flames.
He pressed down on the brim of his hat.
At once, the inferno that had scorched the coastline was drawn back into him, as if seized by an invisible giant hand.
Turning his gaze in one direction, Ace's Observation Haki clearly locked onto the fleeing raft—
Blackbeard's crew was escaping at full speed.
"You can't run."
Ace's voice was low, trembling with rage.
He kicked off violently.
The flame-powered one-man craft beneath him shot forward like an arrow released from a bow, tearing across the sea in pursuit.
But just as he was about to close the distance—
A colossal wave surged skyward without warning.
The overwhelming force smashed into Ace and his craft, hurling them backward.
Before he could stabilize himself, a gigantic Sea King erupted from the depths, blocking his path entirely.
Just moments ago, fate had favored Ace, allowing him to crush Xiao effortlessly.
Now—
As Xiao returned to Blackbeard's destined trajectory,
that overwhelming luck vanished from Ace and shifted back.
"Damn it… Blackbeard!"
Ace roared in fury, staring at the massive beast before him.
"One day—I'll catch you and burn you to ashes!"
He knew it was impossible now.
With this monster in the way and the tide against him, pursuit was hopeless.
All he could do was watch as Blackbeard's crew disappeared into the distance.
"Hahahahaha!"
Far away, Xiao burst into wild laughter as he watched Ace get entangled by the suddenly appearing Sea King.
"To be honest, this feels amazing."
After a full month of being toyed with by fate, experiencing its favor firsthand was nothing short of intoxicating.
Wish fulfillment, plain and simple.
After being driven out of Alabasta once again, Doc Q lay limp across Lafayette's back like a sack of mud, his face pale as paper.
His eyes were filled with despair as he muttered weakly:
"Hehe… fate really exists in this world… How many times has it been now? We never seem able to truly get close to that Straw Hat kid…"
As the only one among them who didn't know Xiao's true identity or strength, this month-long ordeal had almost convinced Poison Q completely.
"Why do you keep yapping about fate, fate, fate?!"
Burgess roared angrily while carrying the sick horse Stronger on his back.
"That crap doesn't exist! The captain just hasn't gotten serious yet!"
After days of Doc Q's gloomy fatalism, even Burgess—normally unshakable—had started feeling uneasy.
"In my eyes, fate is bullshit," he continued angrily.
"If fate really mattered, how could Teach be replaced by the captain?!"
To Burgess, Xiao wasn't restrained by fate—
he simply hadn't bothered unleashing the power that crushed everything.
What puzzled him was only one thing:
If Xiao was so strong, why tolerate fate's interference at all?
"Ignorant… reckless… cough, cough…"
Doc Q rolled his eyes and coughed violently, looking half-dead.
"You'll never understand…"
"That's nonsense! You're the ignorant one!"
Burgess was about to explode when Xiao raised a hand to stop them.
"Enough."
Xiao spoke calmly.
"Fate does exist. But if it isn't on our side—why should we believe in it?"
"Are you willing to credit all the results of your life's hard work to fate?"
"Then why not just lie down and wait for God to feed you?"
His tone was casual, almost mocking.
For Xiao, the attitude toward fate was simple:
If fate favored him—he'd use it.
If fate opposed him—
Then it could go fuck itself.
Burgess immediately burst into laughter.
"Hahahaha! Captain—you really are clear-headed!"
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