"So, where are we now?"
Luffy turned his confused head towards Liam's projection and asked.
They were sitting on Going Merry, but the Going Merry was floating in a dark space. There were several stars that they could see from far away.
But aside from that, the ship was coated with a bubble that sustained them even in space.
"Luffy, we are leaving our world. This is outside our planet. Look! That's our planet!"
She pointed at a large rock full of water. It was surrounded by several asteroids that were revolving around it.
Among them, seven asteroids were much bigger than the others, and one of them wasn't just an asteroid but also a moon.
Luffy immediately got distracted, watching his planet, not even bothering to listen to Robin's next sentence.
Seeing this, Robin let out a sigh and shook her head.
She looked at Liam, asking.
"So, how do we leave our universe?"
Liam's projection nodded his head and said.
"I am getting there. But there are still some small things that I would like to mention. After this, you will follow a pattern that you can't break out of."
"And, I will not be there to help you if something happens. So, I should explain everything here, to clear some of your remaining doubts."
Hearing that, others walked closer to him, clearly interested in his words. Even Luffy, who was distracted, got pulled in.
"Luffy, do you remember that dream where you visited another world?"
Luffy nodded his head.
"Yeah! Did you send me there?"
"Of course, he did." Sanji speechlessly replied for Luffy.
"Now, I am going to tell you the reason why I sent you there. First of all, because of Liam, you didn't go through a painful experience that your other counterpart went through."
When he mentioned that, Luffy went silent.
Because he deeply remembered those scars. They were mental scars, haunting his other self for being too weak.
That was the moment Luffy truly got serious in that world and even acted maturely.
With Liam, he would've gone through the same experience.
He would rather spend hours training than watch his friends disappear one after another.
Seeing this, nobody spoke.
They had learned a lot about Liam. They knew that without his existence, they would've been defeated by the Admiral and separated by Kuma.
At first, it was just a secret Robin knew, but later, everyone learned about it.
After a moment of silence, Luffy released a deep breath and asked.
"So, what about the second reason?"
Seeing him come to his senses, Liam's projection continued.
"The second reason is to strengthen you. That experience and your desire to overcome all obstacles, even if you were alone, gave you a Haki boost."
"Unlike Armament and Observation Haki, Conqueror Haki can't be trained. It grows with a person's spirit."
"But that didn't mean recklessness or nature to not admit defeat. If that's the case, there would've been a lot of Conqueror Haki users."
"Conqueror Haki refers to the spirit that can be backed by one's strength. That's why when someone awakens it, they can't control it."
"Because they are not strong enough to back up that Haki of theirs. They have ambition but not strength."
"In that world, your Haki was overwhelmingly strong and using that method Liam created through me, your body began to grow alongside it."
"At this moment, your Conqueror Haki is the strongest in the world. Your Armament Haki and Observation Haki need more training to reach that top tier."
"But, you don't have time. Without my help, you would be even weaker. I am not saying this to break your spirit."
When he said that, Luffy interrupted.
"We are not backing down. So, don't worry about our spirits!"
Hearing that, Zoro smirked, Sanji smiled, and others nodded together.
So what if their enemies were stronger than they?
Wasn't that always the case? Didn't they overcome every obstacle together?
Liam's projection paused and shook his head.
"You do not understand. But it's okay. You will understand it soon. Normally, to break the barriers between the universe, there wouldn't be any problem."
"As long as you are strong enough, the strongest in your world, you can open the barrier to another universe."
"But you are entering the real world. The people from the upper world of the Real World have placed obstacles in those barriers."
"To help you, I have changed it a little. Normally, all enemies would've been equal in terms of strength."
"But…."
He didn't need to say.
Everyone understood this situation.
Their strength wasn't uniform. Luffy was in a league of his own. Zoro and Sanji were strong, but they weren't even as strong as an Admiral.
Robin, Usopp, and Chopper were weaker than they were. Nami, Brook, and Franky were even weaker than they were.
This hierarchy of strength didn't matter in the Pirate World since this was the situation of almost every single pirate group.
At this moment, they felt despair for the first time.
Not for themselves but for Luffy.
Liam's projection continued.
"It's hard to divide their strength. So, six of them possess the strength of Vice Admirals."
"Before, they all possessed the strength of an Emperor."
"Emperor!"
Usopp's jaw dropped to the ground. Chopper opened his mouth wide. Nami closed her mouth with tears in her eyes.
Robin couldn't help but stare at Luffy with a worried look. Everyone wanted to get back Liam, but she didn't want to lose Luffy in the process.
Franky and Brook were also stunned. On the other hand, Sanji and Zoro felt frustrated.
If only they had the strength of an Admiral, things wouldn't have been this grave.
If these six opponents were going to be Vice Admiral Level, their opponents would definitely be Admiral Level.
Were they worried?
Absolutely not!
They felt horrible because if they had the strength of an Admiral, they could challenge the Emperor Level, bringing down Luffy's burden.
Even if that was a small part, it was something they would've done if they had such strength.
Compared to them, Luffy wasn't worried a bit.
He wasn't unaware of the difference in strength. He had gone through the experiences of the other Luffy.
He knew in the face of absolute strength, nothing would matter.
But so what?
He couldn't give up on Liam just because his opponent was impossible to defeat.
If he were, what's the point of continuing this journey?
But he still felt stressed for others.
He was sure his crew would clear the way but the last opponent, could he defeat it?
At this moment, a small doubt came to his mind.
If he couldn't defeat his enemy, wouldn't that put his crew in danger?
Should he go alone?
At least, if he went alone, he would die alone.
After that experience and losing Liam, the most hated thing in Luffy's heart was losing another crew member.
But he took a deep breath and settled himself.
'I can win. I will win for my crew.'
Seeing their expressions, Liam's projection felt pity for them, but he continued.
"Two of them will have the strength of an Admiral. And the final one would be at least a hundred times more difficult than an Emperor."
"How are you going to win this battle? I have no idea."
When he said that, a look of surprise appeared on his face as he watched Luffy in self-doubt.
He knew this was similar to Luffy.
Because the Luffy from another world during Sabody was a hundred times weaker than Luffy from this world during Sabody.
This kind of difference was something Luffy had felt within himself.
So, he was curious what kind of choice Luffy would make.
"So, I am asking you for one last time. Do you still want to bring back Liam?"
"Remember, if he doesn't want to come back, all of this will be wasted. The moment you break the barrier, you will appear in front of Liam."
"He needs to grab your hand, willingly. If he doesn't, that means he is not ready to return."
"Unfortunately for you, this will be your last chance. So, do what you need to do with a decision you can hold."
Hearing that, Luffy hesitated for a second before strengthening his beliefs.
On the other hand, everyone else patted their hands on his shoulder with a smile.
Only Robin looked a bit forced.
But they were absolutely ready for this. Even if they had to sacrifice their lives for this.
Feeling the approval of his partners, Luffy looked at Liam's projection and said.
"We are ready. We will bring back Liam because this is where he belongs."
Liam's projection chuckled and said.
"Then, I will send you on your journey."
Suddenly, the space around them changed into a long river, and their ship sped up towards the boundaries of the universe.
Liam's projection went closer to Luffy and said.
"I have something for you."
As he patted Luffy's head, the projection disappeared, and so did the object.