Chapter 232: Golden Reward, Demon-Locking Tower!

"Mihawk, what an arrogant statement."

Shanks was stunned at first, then wore a bitter smile.

He knew very well,

that Hawkeye was not the type to boast; if he could say this, he truly had the confidence to suppress his own strength and defeat him.

"I never expected that in just a few short months, this ocean would be turned upside down."

Shanks looked up at the giant disc, brilliant as the scorching sun, and the figure that appeared like a god.

Although he had obtained the Contract Fruit long ago and become a player,

he had never involved himself too deeply in the Samsara Game, and he had used his willpower to restrain himself from purchasing those highly tempting items.

Because he did not want to destroy the existing order of the ocean,

after all, Caomao Lufei had already set sail, and the new era, in which he had placed all his hopes, was gradually baring its fangs.

At a time like this, as long as he followed the guidance of fate step by step, everything should have a good outcome... or so it should be.

He had always kept in mind that remark, or rather, prophecy, from Captain Roger:

"Someone who has not yet been born will surpass us in the future!"

This prophetic statement was Captain Roger's final word after witnessing Lafute Lu with his own eyes.

Kozuki Oden believed it, which is why that hero died so wretchedly in Wano Country.

First Mate Rayleigh believed this statement, so he hid at the crossroads where new stars gathered, waiting for that chosen child.

Whitebeard believed it as well, which is why he found Ace, wanting to cultivate him into the next Pirate King.

Among them,

Shanks was the one who believed in this prophecy the most.

Even though he possessed both the straw hat symbolizing Joyboy and the Rubber Fruit, he had treated himself as a successor of the will rather than someone capable of opening a new era, all because he was convinced by this prophecy.

Therefore, until he accidentally heard Luffy's bold words and the fated choice of the Rubber Fruit,

Shanks had bet his arm on the new era without hesitation.

But now,

the fate-filled prophecy that gave him such confidence had been altered by the arrival of one existence, leaving Shanks lost in confusion once again.

Although he was unsure of what to do, he had come to the East Blue on a muddled instinct, and upon seeing the Navy Headquarters dominating, he united everyone to oppose the Navy, solely to maintain the path of fate as it once was.

Hawkeye suddenly spoke up: "Shanks, if this continues, you will be abandoned by the era!"

He had no friends,

but Hongfa Xiangkesi was one of the few opponents and friends he could talk to and who shared a mutual understanding with him.

Thus, he did not want to watch Hongfa Xiangkesi continue to hesitate until he was thoroughly crushed by the wheels of history, becoming nothing more than an ant indistinguishable from the masses.

"Don't say such heavy things!"

Shanks laughed heartily, then said: "Let's look at the Navy's prize first; we are Pirates, after all. If we're interested, we'll just snatch it!"

His smile infected his crew, and everyone began to laugh.

Only Hawkeye looked deeply at Shanks, sensing the lingering confusion that the other man could not shake off.

On the deck of the Moby Dick,

all the crew members were filled with indignation, waiting for the Navy's lottery to end so they could wipe them out in one fell swoop.

"Pops, the ability of a first-level Alabasta Family badge is already shocking enough. I wonder how strong the second-level family, the Navy Headquarters, will be?"

Watching his crew members eager for a fight, Marco was full of worry.

The Pirate World is not like the Ninja World; there are no battlefields with tens of thousands of people at every turn.

Most are battles between pirate crews and Navy bases.

Although the Whitebeard Pirates have a total of forty-three pirate crews under their banner, they are all scattered across the ocean and do not easily gather together.

The core members total 1,600, with 16 powerful commanders.

However,

the improvement from the Family System is too terrifying; it does not target individual players but provides an overall boost. A single Family Badge can directly create two hundred existences similar to ability users.

Although their combat power is inferior to the commander-level of his own pirate crew, they are still superior to ordinary crew members.

Based on this alone,

they transformed from a guard force toyed with by the Sand Crocodile into a large-scale pirate crew that is terrifying even in the second half of the Grand Line.

What kind of massive improvement should the second-level family, the Navy Headquarters, have?

"Don't worry. With the Red Hair Pirates and those other covetous pirates, the Navy Headquarters will have a hard time getting any benefit, no matter how strong they are."

Whitebeard gripped his Murakumogiri.

Although he knew the Navy Headquarters was not easy to deal with, he shared the same opinion as Hongfa Xiangkesi: if they continued to let the other side snowball and grow, they would definitely become a major threat.

Of course, the most critical factor was the innate ability of the Scarlet Troll,

where all injuries would be healed; as long as the flag of his Whitebeard Pirates did not fall, his sons would not be harmed.

This was the reason he had the confidence to wage a great war!

"Justice will prevail!"

"The Navy will prevail!"

The roars echoed throughout the East Blue, captured by a Den Den Mushi and transmitted to the Five Elders' palace in Mary Geoise.

Nusjuro adjusted his glasses and said expressionlessly: "The Navy has betrayed us."

"Purge them?"

Saturn leaned on his cane and said coldly, "To be able to create such a grand formation, that brat Sengoku is truly impressive; he must have sold off the entire Navy's assets, right?"

"Wait a little longer and see how the situation develops."

"Set up the Teleportation Array first; everything is still in time!"

"Oh right, Nusjuro, trouble yourself to make a trip to the Golden City and kill Tesoro; it is time to take back that gold."

"Didn't that gentleman say that excessive exchange would lead to disaster in the Si Hai?"

"Isn't that just perfect? It will clear out some ants who have betrayed the God Clan."

……

A dazzling golden light finally converged on the pointer.

【Congratulations to the player for drawing the Golden Quality prize: Tier 1 Shushan Demon Locking Tower!】

The light did not dissipate for a long time, reflecting onto the faces of all the players in gold.

Silence. Stillness.

"Gold... Golden Quality?"

"The Magic Fortress drawn by the Leader of the Revolutionary Army was only Silver Quality; the Navy actually had the dumb luck to draw a Golden prize!"

"It's not dumb luck; combining five draws into one makes it reasonable for a Golden Quality item to appear..."

The gazes of the players shifted from dullness to shock, and then to intense jealousy.

The Samsara Game has appeared for several months,

and even a Pirate like the Heavenly Yaksha, who exchanged an entire country, is at most decked out in Purple Equipment.

For most ordinary players who diligently hunt Pollution Monsters, being able to scrape together a full set of Blue Equipment is considered incredibly lucky.

One does not worry about scarcity, but about inequality.

The Leader of the Revolutionary Army drawing a Silver prize was already enough to make people green with envy, but no one expected the Navy to be even more excessive, bursting with golden light directly.

"Demon Locking Tower?"

Sengoku at Marineford was already blooming with joy, his entire body also emitting Buddha Light as if to celebrate.

Although the abilities of the Golden prize are not yet clear,

could the effects of a product produced by the Samsara Game, especially one of Golden Quality, be poor?

"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, the latest intelligence from the East Blue."

"Read it quickly!"

The golden-shining Sengoku spoke with a proud tone, as if he were only able to draw a Golden prize because his whole body was emitting golden light.

"The Shushan Demon Locking Tower is a structure that possesses very powerful sealing and suppression powers against evil."

The Deputy Minister of the Information Department held the returned data and handed it to the dancing Sengoku.

【Shushan Demon Locking Tower (Tier 1)】

Type: Building

Function: Demon Locking Chain Lv. 1, Purifying Evil Spirit Pool Lv. 1

Note: The Demon Locking Tower is a holy object for resisting Yoma and protecting human safety.

(End of chapter)