"Zehahaha!"
Almost at the same time Sage was laughing, over in the New World's Red Earth Continent, a ship made from giant logs was docked beside the seemingly endless expanse of red rock. The logs were braced against the rocky surface, resisting the waves and currents.
With only a captain's cloak draped over his bare upper body, exposing dense black chest hair, Teach reached out to touch the rock wall, letting out a hearty laugh.
"The Karma Fire Serpent, it's talking about this thing, right? I didn't realize before, but seeing it now, it's truly massive. This is what divides the world!"
"Mulu huhuhu, now's not the time for sighs of awe, Teach. We've fallen to the pitiful state of using logs as our ship like the old days, without even new clothes to wear. Now, we're at the end. There's barely any ships passing by, and if this continues, we'll only have these red rocks for company."
Devon, fanning his dirty collar around his neck, spoke with a tone of disdain, but a crooked smile adorned his face.
"There are still ships."
Van Augur, putting down his sniper rifle with its attached telescope, spoke calmly, "But they bear the Flag of Disaster. If we encounter them, Sage will know our whereabouts."
"Zehahaha, that's not a good idea. Hang in there, Devon," Teach laughed a few times.
"Oh ho ho, we've come this far, I'm sure we'll have some results soon. Just like during the Summit War, Fleet Commodore Teach," Laffitte twirled his cane.
From the back, Shiryu exhaled a puff of smoke and said to Kuzan beside him, "Hey, Kuzan, will they really come? The World Government, they're never so easygoing."
Kuzan didn't respond but instead glanced at Garp, who was bound to the ship's central mast with perforations through his limbs and clavicle, frozen in ice. Then he looked up, staring above.
Ever since their ragged escape after Sage's purge of Hive Island, they were left without a ship.
They knew their own situation, yet Sage still treated them as a singular force, as if dealing with remnants of the Red Hair.
But in reality, as a loosely allied Pirate Alliance, once the 'leader' has issues, it would scatter like sand, flying away completely.
Teach not only failed, he lost the symbolic Hive Island. Those pirates who gathered under Blackbeard due to power and symbol naturally fell apart.
Apart from a few who genuinely benefited and needed the flag to maintain pirate bases and towns, others had long switched back to their original flags, continuing their pirate lives as if Blackbeard never existed.
If Teach doesn't defeat Sage, then the Blackbeard Pirates will find it very difficult to regain their momentum on the seas.
This is one of the reasons why they are here now.
Now, the Blackbeard Pirates were down to just a few of them.
In theory, Kuzan could even save Garp, then continue wandering.
But some things could only be clarified from Teach...
Soon, a white cloud suddenly descended from the horizon. Beneath the rolling clouds, it continued down to the log ship, transforming gradually like marshmallow into stair-like white clouds.
"Going up? It's too far."
Despite saying this, Teach grinned, revealing a few missing teeth, and stepped onto the cloud staircase.
In the next moment, the cloud staircase moved forward on its own, dragging him upward without him needing to lift a foot.
The others followed suit, stepping onto the cloud staircase.
"Is it automated? Hopefully, there's no slaves involved," Shiryu sneered.
He was aware of Mary Geoise's infamous 'automatic walkway.'
After all, it was once under the government's jurisdiction.
Kuzan created something like a sled out of ice, pulling Garp with it and boarding the cloud staircase with Shiryu.
"No..."
After stepping on, Kuzan said, "There's a sensation, but once on it feels somewhat illusionary. This strange feeling... it's Killingham."
"Killingham?" Shiryu questioned, "Never heard the name before."
"Divine Knight Order."
Kuzan uttered words that caused Shiryu's pupils to abruptly contract.
"Oh..."
He let out a long breath, "I've heard that name, the strongest sword of the Heavenly Celestial Dragon... Does it have such power? To release abilities from such a high altitude, I always thought the Heavenly Celestial Dragon ruled the world primarily through massive institutions like ours."
The Navy, Impel Down, Enies Lobby, plus the World Government's 'Army' and 'Air Force', formed the largest institution, which should be the World Government's greatest reliance.
"Then you're underestimating them."
Kuzan said, "The World Government's reign for such a long time couldn't possibly be upheld solely by those means. Their profound foundation means that no matter what kind of strong individuals appear, it wouldn't be surprising."
"Divine Valley... it's not too far from us either. Except for one instance, their 'hunts' became sporadic, but before then, hunting had always continued. The descendants of the Twenty Kings, nineteen families at the pinnacle, maintaining the Knight Order for eight hundred years."
"You can't say such a long foundation wouldn't produce a single astonishing figure."
Kuzan gazed at the rapidly moving cloud staircase and said, "Coincidentally, I know a few things. For example, this Killingham, whose ability is to materialize entities from others' dreams, regardless of what they are, however exaggerated... or illusory."