Following the Chris Pirates' defeat of the Big Mom Pirates and the slaying of the Yonko Big Mom, the open seas churned like boiling water, unleashing towering waves of chaos.
The tranquil 36 Islands of Totto Land immediately became targets for countless hostile factions. One pirate crew after another surged into Totto Land's waters, locked in a frenzied scramble for the islands left without Big Mom's protection.
Even the Big Mom Pirates' flag flying over Fish-Man Island was torn down and trampled ruthlessly into the dirt.
Of course, it wasn't just ordinary pirate crews; underground syndicates, assassin groups, and other outlaw organizations all dispatched operatives to join in this territorial frenzy.
In the underworld, weapon prices surged by a full thirty percent. As for healing medicines, performance-enhancing stimulants and other contraband, along with warships, seastone, and essential supplies, they skyrocketed by even more.
The various weapons and SS drugs produced by the Chris Pirates sold like wildfire. Telephone orders poured in endlessly, utterly impossible to keep up with the demand.
The undamaged Micity Port was jammed to capacity with ships, and even the ruined Unzan Port saw countless vessels arriving daily for trade.
At times, a few ordinary staff members were handling tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of Berries in arms deals. Even when dealing with infamous pirates carrying bounties in the hundreds of millions, everyone dutifully brought cash or gold, completing transactions cash-on-delivery without a single incident of unrest.
Although the Chris Pirates had suffered heavy casualties in their battle against the Big Mom Pirates, the ensuing prestige, commercial boom, and various other benefits heavily offset Aeridar's losses.
Naturally, aside from the Big Mom Pirates who took the hardest fall, Germa 66 was left practically bankrupted by this conflict.
Judge paid a heavy price; dozens of their snail warships had been virtually wiped out in the preceding naval battle, leaving behind a pathetic seven hulls that were towed away and moored at Micity Port.
On top of that, lineage factor cloning, clone soldier modifications, miniature energy cannons, shape-memory armor, electromagnetic rifles... Judge practically handed over every piece of technology owned by the entire Germa Kingdom to Aeridar.
He even went as far as integrating the Germa Kingdom into the Chris Pirates, making it a vassal state of the Clifford Kingdom.
There was no other choice. Judge had picked the wrong side in this war, but compared to losing everything in death, paying any price was worth it. If you died, everything turned to nothingness.
After all, if they hadn't surrendered, the ancient Germa Kingdom would likely have been completely obliterated at the hands of the new Yonko!
…
Pirate Island, Hachinosu.
Base of the Blackbeard Pirates.
"Failed, huh? I understand. Good work, I'll have Shiryu go pick you up!"
Teach sat on a sofa, a Den Den Mushi gripped in his hand while various fine foods and vintage wines filled the table before him.
Click.
The Den Den Mushi hung up, and Teach fell into deep contemplation.
"Captain Teach, did Devon fail?" Laffitte walked over, taking a seat opposite Teach.
"Ah, it's you, Laffitte!"
Teach raised his head, flashing a wide, carefree grin as he laughed, "Zehahaha~ That's right, Devon failed!"
"Oh? That is quite surprising. Was the force sent by the World Government too weak, or was the defense simply too strong? With that woman's stealthy, elusive abilities, failure shouldn't have been on the table," Laffitte murmured, his brow furrowing in confusion.
"Too weak? Take a look at this!" Teach grinned, tossing a newspaper across the table to Laffitte.
Laffitte caught it and looked down. The photograph on the front page captured two colossal beasts engaged in a fierce brawl right through the heart of a city.
"Hiss... Is that a giant dragon?! And Malha, the Roamer of the underworld? This, this..."
Laffitte couldn't help drawing in a sharp breath.
"That's right. One is a red dragon, the World Government CP0's 'strongest shield of the Celestial Dragons,' and the other is an ancient beast raised by the Chris Pirates!" Teach grabbed a piece of cherry pie, took a bite, and mumbled with his mouth full, "Malha made a move too, but the defenders were stronger than expected: Gorbo, Otto, Mina, Gin, alongside a swarm of troublesome animated creatures. Heh, as expected of that man's subordinates!"
Laffitte's expression grew heavy. He spoke in a grave voice, "Golden Ring Aeridar has already announced his secession from the Seven Warlords, declaring himself a new Yonko. Captain Teach, Devon's identity has been exposed. Next, we're bound to draw the Chris Pirates' attention!"
"Zehahaha—!"
Teach laughed heartily, declaring, "Let him come if he's got the guts! The Blackbeard Pirates of today aren't the Blackbeard Pirates of two years ago, and I'm not the same man I was either! Zehahaha—!"
Rumble rumble—rumble rumble—
The very next moment, the earth violently shuddered.
Or rather, the entire island began to violently quake.
"Wah?!"
"An earthquake!"
"It's Admiral Teach's earthquake!"
"..."
The pirates across the island cried out in panic.
…
Alvis Island, floating above the Clifford Kingdom.
"Incredible!"
"Truly incredible!"
"The body of the Yonko Big Mom is this powerful! She really is a monster among monsters!"
Inside a spacious laboratory, Dalt and Jason stared with glowing eyes at the colossal corpse of Big Mom resting on the operating table.
Even though she had been dead for some time, her physical resilience alone remained completely impervious to bullets and blades.
"Captain, may I dissect her corpse?" Chief Doctor Jason turned his head with fanatical intensity, calling out to Aeridar standing near the back.
"No."
Aeridar, anticipating this exact request, flatly rejected it, stating, "The corpses of powerhouses are not meant for you to desecrate. Besides, three days from now, I don't want to hand a pile of fragmented body parts over to Kaido."
Hearing this, Dalt and Jason's excitement dimmed slightly. Dalt reached out, grabbed a lock of Big Mom's hair, and asked, "Can we collect some hair and blood samples, then?"
"That's fine. Hair, nails, blood, skin tissue, you can gather those yourselves, but you are strictly forbidden from damaging Big Mom's body!" Aeridar nodded, his tone stern.
Granted this alternative permission, Dalt and Jason lit up with excitement once more.
The corpse of a Yonko! What an incredible research subject!
Watching the two men and their swarm of assistants plunge right back into fanatical research, Aeridar shook his head, pushed open the laboratory door, and stepped outside.
Just outside, Sriya stepped forward, speaking softly, "Captain, the World Government has already placed dozens of calls. High-ranking World Government officials at the palace are also requesting an audience."
"Who do they think they are? I'm a Yonko now, not one of the Seven Warlords!" Aeridar waved his hand dismissively, radiating overbearing dominance as he said, "Tell them to hand over all those bastards who launched the attack for me to deal with first, then we can talk. Otherwise, don't bother bringing up any nonsense!"
Sriya nodded expressionlessly. "Understood."
Suddenly recalling something, Aeridar asked, "Oh, and what about the Straw Hat Pirates?"
"The Straw Hats are all locked up in the seastone prison here. We just threw Vinsmoke Sanji in there as well," Sriya replied.
"Is that so... Those troublesome brats. I suppose I should go take a look," Aeridar muttered, narrowing his eyes as hidden thoughts crossed his mind.
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