If it were Vander Decken IX's ancestor, the great pirate Vander Decken I, whose strength was comparable to the Seven Warlords of the Sea, here, Damon might have paid more attention to him. But he was just a petty person who only did dirty tricks behind people's backs, and a weakling who bullied the old, weak and sick. He was not worth Damon's sympathy or mercy.
Damon casually tossed the body aside, letting the ocean current carry it away, before looking at the system notification.
"Ding!"
"Congratulations, host, for reciting a classic line from Naruto. You have been awarded one chance to draw a prize. Would you like to activate the prize wheel?"
Damon's attention was drawn to the lottery wheel that was out of sight of others.
Summoned characters: Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, Kakashi...
Ninjutsu/Taijutsu: Great Fireball Technique, Water Dragon Technique, Dark Travel Technique...
Limitations of Blood Succession: Ice Escape, Magnetic Escape, Melt Escape, Explosion Escape...
[Shadow Imitation Technique]: As long as your shadow overlaps with your opponent's, you can force them to do the same thing as you.
Once Damon unleashed the Sea of Shadows, anyone who fell within its range would not only be affected by the sticky nature of the Sticky Fruit, but would also be forcibly controlled by the Shadow Imitation Technique. If Damon were to activate the Mysterious Calamity to unleash a black hole that devoured everything, the scene would be truly breathtaking.
"So, even dogs would reject the Dark-Dark Fruit, right?"
Damon had no idea what kind of expression Blackbeard Marshall D. Teach would have when he encountered him one day in the future and saw that he possessed an ability similar to, but stronger than, the Dark-Dark Fruit.
Damon's permanent pointer and log pointer, which he carried with him, were accidentally struck by a laser during his fierce battle with Admiral Borsalino, and both were reduced to fragments.
He was worried about how to get to Fishman Island, and now that a guide had come to his doorstep, it couldn't be better.
"Hey!"
Hearing an unfamiliar call from behind, the giant sea monster turned around abruptly, only to be met with a pair of scarlet eyes. The windmill-shaped pupils in its vision gradually enlarged, as if they had become the only thing in the world.
The giant sea monster, being simple-minded, instantly fell under the control of the illusion.
"Take me to Fishman Island."
After giving this order to the giant sea monster, Damon immediately sat down cross-legged and continued his unfinished training.
If he stopped training in this deep sea, his internal organs would be the first to suffer, and if this continued for too long, it would put a lot of pressure on his body.
But fortune and misfortune were intertwined. It was precisely because of the pressure at the bottom of the sea, which was beyond what ordinary people could bear, that Damon's training progressed by leaps and bounds every day.
A hazy, windmill-shaped phantom appeared in the giant sea monster's pupils. It nodded dazedly, then turned around and headed towards Fishman Island.
The deep sea was vast and boundless. Even large sea monsters were nothing more than food in this sea. Giant sea monsters with a body length of over a thousand meters were commonplace, and there were even terrifying creatures with a length of over ten thousand meters lying dormant on the seabed. Any creature that dared to provoke these monsters would pay a heavy price with its own life.
Fishman Island was located 10,000 meters below the Holy Land of Mary Geoise, and was a necessary stop on the way to the New World.
In the currently known racial genealogy, most fishmen and mermaids were born on Fishman Island, which had earned this deep-sea island the reputation of being an underwater paradise, a dreamlike haven.
The giant sea monster was full of energy and dragged the sunken ship day and night. After three days of continuous travel, a warm light finally appeared in the originally dark seabed.
In the frigid depths of the ocean, this was nothing short of a miracle.
Damon slowly opened his eyes, and what came into view was a colossal tree with roots deep in the seabed. Its massive trunk stood on the earth like a pillar supporting the sky. The crown of the tree could not be seen at a glance, but warm light was cast down from above, dispelling the pitch-black darkness and bringing light to the fish-men and mermaids.
This giant tree was the Sun Tree Eve.
The Sun Tree Eve absorbed sunlight from its top and transmitted it to its roots, causing its roots in the deep sea to emit a strong light like sunlight. It was said that this was planted by humans eight hundred years ago, and was not formed naturally.
It was thanks to the existence of the Sun Tree Eve that Fishman Island experienced day and night cycles, which the local residents described as the blessing of the sun.
The enormous double-layered semi-circular bubble membrane, resembling a giant bowl inverted on the seabed, formed a protective shield with a diameter of over five kilometers surrounding Fishman Island. This not only kept giant sea king creatures out but also made it difficult for foreign pirate ships to sneak in.
Generally speaking, pirate ships that came to Fishman Island needed to be coated in the Sabaody Archipelago. If these pirates attempted to sneak into Fishman Island without the permission of the Ryugu Kingdom, they would be ambushed by the hidden traps within the protective shield.
Between the two protective layers was an air layer. Pirate ships that intruded without authorization would have their bubble membrane forcibly removed and be integrated into the protective layer. Once the bubble membrane was lost, the ship would fall from the sky. Even if it managed to pass through the protective layer, it would be hit by a large amount of seawater, resulting in the destruction of the ship and the loss of life.
If you didn't want to end up like that, you could only follow the rules and enter through the main gate of Fishman Island.
At the main entrance of Fishman Island, a group of Sea Kings from the Dragon Palace Kingdom were stationed. Any ship that entered Fishman Island had to pay a hefty toll in order to pass through without hindrance.
Damon came to Fishman Island simply to let the world know that the pirate Dragon Ash had come for a visit, so naturally he would not take the usual route.
Sunlight streamed down onto the foam protective cover, creating a dazzling display of colorful rays, a truly beautiful sight, like a fairyland.
A figure departed from the sunken ship, passing directly through the bubble wrap shield.
The air inside was murky, and the surrounding pressure did not decrease. As Damon passed through the bubble membrane shield, alarms suddenly sounded nearby.
Beneath a tree trunk bearing the flag of the Whitebeard Pirates, a group of fully armed Sea King soldiers were gathering.
Upon hearing the piercing alarm bells blaring from somewhere above Fishman Island, a stern-faced, robust shark-merman frowned.
The Great Shark Prince had long, azure hair like seaweed, a red heart on his forehead, and distinctive features such as sharp teeth and gill slits. He leaned on a ten-thousand-pound Poseidon trident in his right hand, a hint of murderous intent flashing in his eyes, and said:
"My mother is currently planning an important speech, which concerns the future of our fish-people and mermaid race for the next hundred years. We absolutely cannot allow any mishaps!"
The eldest shark prince looked around and instructed the second and third princes:
"I need to stay here to personally protect my mother's safety and cannot leave this place."
"Second brother, I would like to trouble you to lead a contingent of the Sea King Army to patrol the streets of Fishman Island and prevent those scoundrels from causing trouble."
"Third brother, you will lead another branch of the Sea King Army to investigate the area where the alarm is coming from. If any pirate crew dares to sneak in, do not rush into battle. Show them the Whitebeard Pirates' flag and state that we are protected by Whitebeard. If they are willing to pay a sum of money, we will turn a blind eye. If they are not cooperative, then it is not too late to fight them."
The two princes nodded emphatically, each mustered their troops, and immediately set off.
With his feet firmly planted on solid ground, Damon gazed ahead.
Where there was intelligent life, individuals would be divided into different classes.
In a special place like Fishman Island, the closer you were to the Sun Tree Eve, the more sunshine you received, and luxurious apartments abounded. The further you were from the Sun Tree Eve's dwelling, the more gloomy and dark the environment became, and the houses you saw were all built from cheap coral and seashells.
Although mermaids and fish-men lived in the same ocean, they had completely different social statuses.
Mermaids and fish-men could not live in the same neighborhood. Mermaids were considered superior to humans and most of them lived near the Sun Tree Eve. No matter how rich fish-men were, they could not buy houses in this area.
"Jie Jie Jie Jie Jie!"
Just as Damon was casually strolling down the street, a group of fishmen suddenly blocked his way.
A pale-skinned, fierce-looking great white shark-man stood at the front, holding a weapon in his hand, his mouth slightly smirking to reveal a row of sharp teeth.
"Let me see who's here?"
"Isn't this the most evil rookie pirate, Dragon Ash?"
Hody Jones extended a muscular arm, gesturing to shake hands with Damon, and said:
"You weak human, I'll give you a chance. Submit to me and join me in doing great things!"
Damon paused, tilted his head slightly, and a mocking smile appeared on his lips.
"Who are you?"
Looking down from the air, the entire Fishman Island had a different terrain from the mainland, with a towering center and gentle slopes around it.
The luxurious and grand Dragon Palace was located in the center of Fishman Island, at the top of a towering terrain. It was constructed from a mixture of countless coral reefs, shells and building materials from the human kingdom, resembling a giant dragon with a treasure mountain coiled on the mountaintop. From the Dragon Palace, one could easily overlook the entire Fishman Island.
The areas radiating outwards from Dragon Palace City were, in order, the Mermaid residential area and the Fishman residential area.
The wealthy mermaids lived in Mermaid Bay, enjoying the blue skies, white clouds, and sunshine. Exquisite shell-shaped buildings stood side by side, and the mermaid residents strolled with their families around Mermaid Cafe, Mermaid Culture Center, Marlene Shopping Center, and Mermaid Foley Manor, enjoying an enviable and wonderful life.
Impoverished mermaids and fish-people lived in crowded coral apartments or fish-people streets. The sunlight of the Sun Tree Eve rarely reached these remote and isolated places, leaving these areas shrouded in darkness and cold year-round.
The impoverished mermaids and fish-men had to work hard to earn money every morning as soon as they opened their eyes, and they couldn't rest for a single day of the year.
Whether they worked as maids in the Mermaid Cafe or as sales clerks in the Marlene Shopping Center, although their daily wages were meager, they could barely make ends meet and afford the monthly rent for the Coral Apartments. If they couldn't pay, they were forced to sleep on the floor in Mermaid Street.
Fishman Street was originally a large place that sheltered orphans, but today it had become a no-man's-land.
Unemployed fishmen formed gangs here, and it was common for fishman gangs to fight each other. Only a few old and weak fishmen would go to the nearby Sea Forest to scavenge for treasures that might be found in shipwrecks, or pick corals here to barely make ends meet.
When the Third Prince of the Overturned Star was ordered to lead a Sea King army to the scene, he saw Hody Jones and his crew from Fishman Street in the distance, as well as that rookie criminal pirate who had recently risen to fame.
Seeing that Hody Jones intended to invite the Lord of the Night, the Third Prince of the Overturned Star's pupils contracted, and he knew in his heart that something was wrong.
"If he succeeds..."
Before he could think any further, he saw a large shadow spread out beneath Damon's feet, and the fishman thugs led by Hody Jones suddenly fell into the sea of shadow.
"What is this?"
"It's so sticky! I can't lift my legs!"
"Mine too!"
Hody Jones also tried to move, but found himself as if he were under a spell, unable to move an inch no matter what he tried.
Hody Jones's eyes flashed with a fierce light, clearly realizing that he had kicked a hornet's nest.
However, he couldn't understand why humans, who were all lowly and inferior creatures, would possess such terrifying abilities.
This thought ultimately became Hody Jones's last regret before his death.
A black hole opened in the Sea of Shadows, and the clockwise rotating vortex was filled with an irresistible attraction, swallowing up the fishmen's figures amidst their terrified cries.
"Gulp!"
Upon witnessing such a horrific scene, the Third Prince of the Overturned Star swallowed hard.
At this moment, not only was he shocked by Damon's one-hit kill of the fishman thug, but even the Sea King Army soldiers he led behind him were trembling uncontrollably. Nine-tenths of their morale had been lost, and only their sense of responsibility kept them from mutiny on the spot.
Ignoring the nearby Sea King Army, Damon walked on the gravel road and took out a black pill.
ES Drug.
This was a type of high-energy cholesterol drug. Once taken, it could increase strength in a short period of time. As long as the body could withstand it, it could be taken continuously, thus continuously expanding one's strength. However, it came at the cost of life. Taking too much would deplete one's vitality, leading to premature aging and death.
These spoils were left behind after Hody Jones and the others died.
A death knight emerged from the shadows beneath Damon's feet, caught the ES drug Damon threw to him, and swallowed it in one gulp.
With a swing of his sword, the Death Knight easily cleaved a three-meter-long gash in the ground.
"It seemed that the ES drug was also helpful to the Death Knight. Moreover, Death Knights were the dead, so they were not afraid of the side effects of the ES drug."
The Third Prince of the Overturned Star finally mustered up the courage to lead the Sea King Army to intercept Damon. But looking at the Death Knight who suddenly emerged from the shadows, and the destructive power of his casual strike, the Third Prince secretly calculated in his mind that if they rushed up, their entire group would be wiped out in the blink of an eye.