Sky Island, Gate of Heaven.
Above the boundless White Sea, Seven was bidding farewell to his only crew member: vice-captain Dracule Mihawk.
"Mihawk, take this gold for your travel expenses."
The least scarce resource on Sky Island, or rather, the Gold Country, was gold; otherwise, Seven wouldn't have used gold to pave the way for cooperation with Kizaru.
Mihawk accepted the package: "Captain, when are you planning to set sail?"
Having witnessed the legends of Sky Island and the Gold Country, it was time to continue his training. His defeat by Kizaru only solidified Mihawk's resolve to train.
Yet, for some unknown reason, he felt a strange sense of melancholy.
After only two months together, Mihawk belatedly realized that he truly respected Seven.
Seven pondered for a moment: "In two years."
"I am fifteen now. When I turn seventeen, I will return to the sea to find you. At that time, we will ride the waves and search for our remaining comrades."
Although Seven alone could form a crew.
But if they wanted to gain a foothold on this sea, relying only on him and Mihawk... the difficulty was too great.
They must seek out more like-minded crew members.
People like Bartholomew Kuma, Jinbe, and the future Admiral Fujitora Issho, among others, must all be recruited.
"Mihawk, during your training, if you encounter anyone you like, don't forget to invite them on behalf of your Captain. I will handle the ship problem."
Mihawk nodded: "See you in two years."
The reason Mihawk was willing to join the Morning Star Pirates was simply to save effort. Having Seven, a nearly omnipotent Captain, truly meant avoiding trouble.
With that, Mihawk turned without looking back and leaped straight down from ten thousand meters in the air.
Seven seized the moment, pulled out his Picture Shell, and frantically snapped pictures of Mihawk's heroic figure.
"What a pity, Mihawk is always wearing his hat, covering the bamboo copter..."
Since meeting Mihawk at Twin Capes, traveling together to Loguetown to see Captain Roger off for the last time, and then rushing to Sky Island to evade capture and purchase musou isshin, Seven had been non-stop.
This journey had been too rushed.
He hadn't properly enjoyed the scenery along the way.
Now, the pace had finally slowed down.
Seven strolled along the land of Sky Island with his hands in his pockets, occasionally greeting the citizens he met along the way.
"Lord Thunder God."
If it weren't for the fact that the Shandians and Shandians all had small wings on their backs, which looked slightly incongruous, Seven would genuinely want to rename Sky Island to Inazuma.
Why insist on this?
Because it's interesting.
In the entire Pirate World, the country most suitable for the name Inazuma was undoubtedly Wano Country.
Unfortunately, Wano Country was being targeted by Kaido.
Given Seven's current strength, even with Mihawk, they still couldn't defeat the Kaido Pirates. The gap was reflected not only in individual strength but also in crew numbers.
Fourteen years had passed since the dissolution of the Rocks Pirates after the Battle of God Valley. Kaido, at thirty-five, was in his prime.
Seven, however, was only fifteen and not yet fully developed, so it was truly inappropriate to clash with Kaido.
This was how Seven operated: looking two steps ahead while planning three. Having just occupied Sky Island, he already wanted to incorporate Wano Country under his command.
This was because, geographically speaking—
Sky Island was located ten thousand meters high, and only ability users like Seven and Kizaru could travel back and forth without hindrance.
It was suitable as an early-stage base, but not as the main headquarters for the entire pirate crew.
Unless Seven had so many points that he couldn't spend them all, equipping every crew member with a bamboo copter and a flying cloak.
And what about Wano Country?
Located in the New World, access was only possible through Treacherous Waterfalls. It was easy to defend and difficult to attack, effectively blocking external invasion.
It was also the sole source and processing site for Sea Stone, controlling strategic resources and technology.
It was more suitable to become the main headquarters of the Morning Star Pirates.
The only difficulty: How to defeat Kaido?
"I'll wait a few more years."
As soon as Seven returned to the Thunder God Palace and sat down, the Former Sky Island Faction led by Gan Fall and the Former Skypieans Faction led by Kalpa flocked in to pay their respects.
"Lord Thunder God..."
Seven waved his hand, signaling everyone to sit down first.
"I already know why you have come."
The fundamental conflict between the Shandians and the Shandians lay in the lack of land resources.
And, of course, a lack of mutual respect.
The Skypieans viewed the Skypieans as barbaric invaders, while the Skypieans viewed the Skypieans as shameless plunderers.
"The matter of land resource distribution will be handled by the Sky Island Committee, composed of elders from both sides, allocating residential and agricultural land based on population."
"The two tribes will reside and cultivate land in alternating areas."
"The Shandians will provide Dials and Cloud Sea Technology, and the Shandians will provide cultivation knowledge. A Cooperative will be established to jointly develop Efficient Agriculture."
"The former War Zone land is fertile but was isolated by conflict, making effective use impossible. Now, it must be utilized properly, allowing it to grow food that can sustain everyone."
"In addition, the former 'God's Guard' and the Skypiean Warriors will be reorganized into the Thunder Cloud Guards, responsible for overall security, law enforcement, and suppressing rebellion."
"Peace Day will be established as a Statutory Holiday."
"I have only one requirement: fairness, fairness, and damn fairness."
Seven was mid-sentence when the continuous Notification Sounds made his head buzz.
"Ding, your consigned item: denden mushi, was purchased by the Brother Warhammer user, gaining 9000 points. Current point balance: 11916."
"Ding, your consigned item: Vent Sea Slug, was purchased by the Brother Warhammer user, gaining 900 points. Current point balance: 12816."
..."Ding, your consigned item: Octopus Balloon, was purchased by the Brother Warhammer user, gaining 900 points. Current point balance: 15966."
Seven looked astonished: Truly worthy of being a divine person traversing the Warhammer World; they bought out all the items he had consigned on the Trading Platform.
Truly the Number One Patron.
Brother Warhammer, going through fire and water for this!
Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Seven solemnly instructed: "Old Gan, Old Kalpa, please put in more effort."
"Yes, Lord Thunder God."
After everyone dispersed, Seven began to ponder how to maximize the improvement of his own strength with this huge sum of 15966 points.
The safest method would be to purchase Armament Haki and Observation Haki, totaling ten thousand points.
With the amplification of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, awakening Observation Haki would give him more confidence against enemies.
Armament Haki not only compensates for Seven's greatest lack of defense but is also the foundation for the higher level of Armament Haki, Ryuo.
Besides this, there was another option.
Iron Balloon, the physique identical to that of Four Emperors Big Mom, cost twenty thousand points.
Seven rubbed his temples, having already decided on a strategy: Armament Haki and Observation Haki could be obtained through training, but Iron Balloon could not.
Iron Balloon is an innate physique, independent of Armament Haki, and the defenses of both can be stacked.
This is an inherent, extremely powerful innate physical defense ability; ordinary swords, guns, and bullets cannot harm it in the slightest.
It is the cornerstone of Big Mom as a Natural Destroyer, and it perfectly matches Seven's Innate Divine Strength.
Which one to buy was obvious.
Although he didn't have enough points right now, there were only three days until the monthly listing refresh.
Brother Warhammer bought six types of items this time, including four Dials that were previously bought by the Apocalypse User and the Naruto User.
Judging by Brother Warhammer's wealth, the other four Dials: Water Dial, flame sea slug, laser sea slug, and Flash Dial, were also highly likely to be purchased.
Each costs 1000 points, plus six other items, which should be enough to buy Iron Balloon.
"I'll wait a little longer."