"You..."
Meanwhile, Lancelot had already entered the bathroom, where steam was swirling around.
Miss Valentine stood inside, her form partially visible through the steam, creating an aura of mystery.
And often, this kind of half-visible mystery is more tempting than complete exposure.
Lancelot's eyes immediately lit up.
"Swish..."
Miss Valentine, sensing someone's presence, suddenly turned her head with a vigilant expression.
But when she saw it was Lancelot, her face immediately flushed crimson.
She lowered her head, shyly.
She understood what was about to happen...
...
Time passed quickly, and three hours had gone by in the blink of an eye.
Lancelot still hadn't come up to the deck.
Lina, standing watch, looked somewhat concerned and muttered quietly, "Master's stamina is getting better and better. I wonder if Miss Valentine can endure his... continuous output."
Nami, standing at her post in the crow's nest, suddenly shouted, "Look! There's heavy fog ahead!"
"Heavy fog?"
Zoro, Gin, Lina, Vivi, and Igaram all looked surprised.
They looked up ahead at the wall of mist, then turned to look behind them.
It was still blazing sunshine, cloudless for miles.
The waves lapped gently against the ship's hull.
But the dense fog ahead had appeared abruptly, a solid, unnatural wall.
Even though the weather in the Grand Line was highly unpredictable, this still seemed to defy all patterns.
At that moment, Lancelot slowly emerged from the ship's cabin, looking refreshed.
He asked with a hint of curiosity, "What fog?"
And the next second, he saw the strange phenomenon ahead.
He froze in place for a moment, then couldn't help but beam with joy.
"Ah, it seems we've reached the Florian Triangle, the Devil's Triangle."
"The Devil's Triangle?!" Igaram and Vivi exclaimed in pure shock.
Unlike the others, they were born and raised in the Grand Line.
Therefore, their understanding of its dangers far surpassed that of the four East Blue natives.
"Huh?" Zoro, Gin, Lina, and Nami turned their gazes toward Igaram and Vivi.
Seeing their stares, the two hurriedly explained, "The Devil's Triangle is one of the most mysterious and terrifying places in the Grand Line! Every year, hundreds of ships disappear in this fog. The ones found are all empty vessels with no crew. There have even been sightings of ghost ships carrying the dead, just... floating."
Gulp.
At this point, even the core crew couldn't help but swallow nervously.
Igaram and Vivi urgently urged Gin, who was at the helm, "Quick, change our course, or we're doomed!"
"Uh, this..." Gin hesitated. Judging by their reactions, it seemed to be true.
But was it really that terrifying? He, Zoro, Lina, and Nami all turned their eyes to Lancelot.
Lancelot waved his hand dismissively. "The Devil's Triangle isn't that scary. The only trouble is that once you enter the fog, you lose your sense of direction and can easily get lost. Eventually, you'd run out of food and starve to death."
Zoro and Gin: "..."
Lina and Nami: "..."
Suddenly, they felt that Vivi and Igaram were right.
They should change course immediately.
After all, losing one's direction at sea was the most dreaded scenario.
No matter how strong a person was, if they lost their way, it would be a near-certain death.
Seeing everyone's expressions, Lancelot couldn't help but laugh.
"Don't worry! This fog only affects the surface of the sea, not what's beneath it."
With his fishman bloodline, navigating by sensing the ocean currents was as easy as breathing.
So, he found a long rope, tied one end securely around his waist and the other to the Merry's main mast.
Then, he leaped into the sea.
"Uh, this..." Igaram and Vivi stared in stunned disbelief. Lancelot's unconventional move had truly shocked them.
They turned to Gin, Zoro, Lina, and Nami with pleading eyes, as if begging.
'Please talk some sense into your leader—he's gone mad!'
What human could possibly discern directions in the middle of the deep ocean?
Gin, Zoro, Lina, and Nami merely exchanged glances.
They trusted Lancelot.
So now, all they had to do was follow the rope.
The four of them immediately coordinated, with Gin at the helm and Zoro handling the sails, steering the ship to follow the pull of the rope.
Their trust in Lancelot had reached the point of being "blind."
An hour later, Lancelot and his crew finally glimpsed a massive, dark shadow through the thick fog.
"Is that... an island?" Igaram and Vivi looked puzzled.
Was there an island in the Devil's Triangle? How had they never heard of such a thing?
Whoosh!
Lancelot, who had been underwater, suddenly shot through the surface and landed lightly on the deck, water streaming from his uniform.
He was grinning with excitement.
"That's no island—it's a pirate ship. It's called Thriller Bark!"
"A... pirate ship?"
This time, not only Igaram and Vivi, but even Zoro, Gin, Lina, and Nami—who held "blind" trust in him—were all left utterly dumbfounded.
After snapping back to reality, they gaped at the enormous dark shadow, which now looked like a gothic, floating island.
They found themselves at a loss for words.
This... this had already surpassed their understanding.
Lancelot curled his lips slightly and turned to Zoro, Gin, Lina and said.
"This time, you can have another good fight."
At these words, the eyes of Zoro, Gin, and Lina lit up.
Their hearts swelled with battle-lust.
Exactly!
If this were truly a pirate ship, the person who owned such a massive vessel would surely be extraordinary.
Nami looked curious, though still nervous.
"Is this really a pirate ship?" Even though she already believed him, she couldn't help but ask.
Lancelot nodded. "Do you remember Jinbei, who stopped us earlier?"
Zoro, Gin, Lina, and Nami all nodded.
Their impression of Jinbe was still vivid; in that battle, the strength he displayed was utterly terrifying.
Even if they joined forces, they likely wouldn't be his match.
'Could it be?!'
None of the four were fools; Lancelot wouldn't bring up Jinbe, a Warlord, for no reason.
All four of them turned their intense gazes toward Lancelot.
Seeing this, Lancelot couldn't help but laugh.
"Just as you thought. This Thriller Bark belongs to Gecko Moria, another one of the Shichibukai. He has some capable subordinates under him, perfect for you all to practice against."
"First Jinbe, now Moria?!" Igaram and Vivi's mouths slowly fell open.
Because of Crocodile, they had some understanding of the terrifying power of the Shichibukai.
And these were two more Warlords, just like Crocodile.
They never expected that these people before them had already encountered one Shichibukai.
And now, it seemed like they were about to willingly take on another, which sent shivers of pure terror down their spines.
The might of Crocodile had left an indelible mark on their hearts.
Thus, their fear of the Shichibukai was deeply engraved in their souls.
After all, they were beings capable of wrecking havoc on a catastrophic scale.
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