"Beg me? You insect, do you know who you're talking to?"
Boa Hancock's cold almond eyes narrowed slightly.
Luo Chen smiled. "The Pirate Empress, a Warlord of the Sea. I know who you are. But today, since you attacked me without reason, an apology is necessary."
Boa Hancock's expression grew even colder, her eyes flashing with killing intent and anger.
No one had ever dared to threaten her before.
The bound Sandersonia shouted angrily, "Sister, don't worry about me! Kill this man! How dare he offend you like this!"
Luo Chen controlled the wooden vines, lifting Sandersonia and dangling her over the side of the ship.
"I'll count to five. If you don't apologize, I'm throwing your sister into the sea."
"She's a Devil Fruit user, and so are you."
"Once she falls into the sea, I'm afraid she'll never be able to get back up."
Luo Chen said slowly.
The killing intent in Boa Hancock's eyes was almost tangible.
She said in a cold voice, "Let her go. Don't make me say it a third time."
Luo Chen was unmoved.
He was precisely the type who didn't respond to threats.
Although he couldn't beat Boa Hancock at the moment, if he wanted to escape, she couldn't stop him.
Even Admiral Aokiji couldn't catch him; Hancock was a far cry from that level.
"Three... four..."
Luo Chen was about to reach five.
Boa Hancock's figure suddenly shot forward, her fair legs flashing between the high slits of her skirt.
In an instant, she was in front of Luo Chen, her red high-heeled shoe kicking at his face.
Luo Chen coated his arm in Armament Haki and tried to block it head-on.
An immense force and a sharp pain instantly shot through his arm.
A glint flashed in his eyes. He activated the Flying Thunder God and appeared several meters away.
Luo Chen sized up the Empress and thought to himself, 'Boa Hancock's strength among the Seven Warlords should be second only to Mihawk. She's at least at the level of a Yonko Commander.'
He estimated he would need to raise his taijutsu by another two levels to deal with her.
Boa Hancock's beautiful face darkened. At the same time, she was a little puzzled.
Why had she never heard of this person before?
With his ability to control trees and his teleportation, it was likely that even an ordinary Marine Vice Admiral would be no match for him.
Just then, one of the Kuja pirates shouted, "Lady Hancock, he's a wanted criminal by the Marines! His name is Luo Chen, a user of the Logia-type Woods-Woods Fruit, and he also has the ability to teleport! His bounty is over two hundred million Berries!"
The Kuja Pirates, while sailing the seas, would occasionally buy newspapers.
It was just that Boa Hancock rarely paid attention to them.
Her arrogant personality made her disdain paying attention to the boring pirates on the sea.
"It seems you won't be apologizing," Luo Chen said.
He did indeed know that the Empress was cold and arrogant.
She didn't even care about the life and death of her sisters. It was likely that even if she herself were facing a death threat, she would never apologize.
Boa Hancock looked over coldly, seemingly thinking about how to rescue Sandersonia.
Luo Chen smiled. "The secret on your three sisters' backs... I know all about it."
As his words fell, the expressions of Boa Hancock, Sandersonia in her cage, and the orange-haired Marigold all changed drastically.
They stared intently at Luo Chen.
"It's not just the Gorgon's curse," Luo Chen added.
He believed the three sisters understood what he was talking about.
There was no Gorgon's curse on the sisters' backs at all.
It was the mark of a Celestial Dragon's slave.
What they tried so hard to hide was that slave mark.
This was a dark experience from their past that they could never reveal to anyone.
Hancock's hands, hanging by her sides, began to tremble, her deep blue pupils shaking violently.
Luo Chen smiled. "Let's make a deal. You saw my teleportation ability, didn't you?"
"You pay me at least four billion Berries, and I can take out a Celestial Dragon for you."
"It's hard to say which one specifically. After all, I can't just kill my way into the Holy Land, Mary Geoise."
"After one transaction is complete, I'll throw in an apology as a bonus, spoken by you, Boa Hancock, personally."
Luo Chen could see that it was impossible to make Hancock apologize.
At least not now, since he couldn't beat her.
Rather than fighting to a bitter end, it was better to make money amicably.
If Boa Hancock agreed, it would kill two birds with one stone.
He would not only get several billion Berries but also get to see the proud Hancock lower her head and apologize.
As for whether Hancock could produce such a sum of money, Luo Chen had no doubt.
Besides being the captain of the Kuja Pirates, Boa Hancock was also the current empress of the Amazon Lily kingdom on Kuja Island.
Ruling a country, even if all the citizens of that country were women, the wealth was bound to be astonishing.
The Amazon Lily kingdom had a history of at least several hundred years.
The wealth accumulated over such a long time was probably an astronomical figure.
Boa Hancock was staring blankly at Luo Chen.
It was as if she had never expected him to propose such a deal.
She said in a grave tone, "The Celestial Dragons are the privileged class that controls the World Government. Once attacked, it will lead to the dispatch of a Marine Admiral. Do you know what you're saying?"
Luo Chen smiled. "I've already had a run-in with a Marine Admiral. He couldn't catch me."
Seeing the ridicule in Boa Hancock's eyes, he shrugged. "If you don't believe me, you can wait and see the news later."
"Right now, you have a golden opportunity. Besides me, it's very hard to find someone willing to take money to get revenge for you."
Boa Hancock pursed her lips, seemingly weighing her options.
She said slowly, "Forty billion for one Celestial Dragon, with an apology as a bonus. I agree."
Boa Hancock's beautiful almond eyes looked over coldly.
"Whether it's in a news report or you bring me the body of a Celestial Dragon, I will fulfill my promise."
"At that time, you can come to Kuja Island to see me."
With that, Boa Hancock threw out a Log Pose.
"This is an Eternal Pose that records the location of Kuja Island. Although it's located in the Calm Belt, if you can really kill a Celestial Dragon, it shouldn't be too difficult for you."
The Calm Belt, as its name implied, was unaffected by any storms or weather. It was the nesting ground for many large Sea Kings and was extremely dangerous.
Luo Chen caught the Eternal Pose, observed it for a moment, and put it away.
Then, he controlled the wooden vines to release Sandersonia back onto the deck.
He looked at the unfriendly female crew members of the Kuja Pirates. "Could you tell me where we are now?"
Boa Hancock said coldly, "Near Kuja Island, at the edge of the Calm Belt."
Luo Chen's expression changed slightly. 'We've flown this far?'
Alabasta wasn't far from the entrance of the Grand Line. Kuja Island, however, was near the end of the first half of the Grand Line.
The Sea King's swimming plus the undersea tornado had actually brought him and Robin almost to the end of the first half of the Grand Line.
"This is troublesome. There's no way to let them know we're safe..." Luo Chen muttered to himself.
To get back to Alabasta, even flying on the Wood Dragon, would take four or five days, maybe even longer.
His Wood Clone had now been "captured" by Aokiji. Since it hadn't returned to his main body, in the eyes of the outside world, he had been captured by Aokiji.
If Nami were to worry and do something rash, putting herself in danger, it would be a big problem.
"I have to find a way to tell them I'm okay," Luo Chen said, looking around at the vast blue sea.
A Den Den Mushi couldn't reach Nami and the others.
The fastest and most effective way was to create a major news event. The bigger the news, the faster the media would report and publish it.
Using the power of the media to let Nami and the others know he was safe was definitely faster than flying back.
If he did it right, he could be on the news by tomorrow.
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]