Chapter 571

You can be like Lu En.

At only five years old, he has already drawn exceptional attention from the Marines!

Even,

He is held in the highest regard by the entire Marine high command!

After a brief pause,

she continued speaking.

"Sending you alone to face Doflamingo still feels unwise to me. That's why I led troops to secretly observe your battle with him."

"But in the end…"

"You've brought great honor to the Marines! You held your own against Doflamingo!"

"I will report this mission truthfully to Admiral Kong—your merit is yours alone, and no one can take it from you."

Hei, an elder of the old-era Marine high command, has no need to covet even a fraction of Lu En's merit.

She watched Lu En's battle with Doflamingo.

After watching,

she could only describe Lu En in four words.

Unmatched combat power!

Extraordinary talent!

Unparalleled in ten thousand ages!

In her entire life, she had never seen a young generation as outstanding as Lu En.

Not even the young Captain Kapu could compare.

The two were nearly incomparable!

This made Hei sigh.

This kid Lu En…

Truly surpasses his master and outshines him!

Far stronger than Captain Kapu was in his youth.

"Are your injuries alright? Do you need someone to treat you?"

Hei shifted her tone, gazing at Lu En's battered upper body, and asked again.

"Thank you for your concern, Vice Admiral, but it's nothing serious."

"These minor wounds…"

"Will scab over in about half a day. By tomorrow, I'll be fully recovered."

Lu En waved his hand, shaking his head in refusal.

Treatment?

With his formidable physique, these superficial injuries certainly didn't require special treatment.

It would be a waste of manpower and resources.

"Looks like you've inherited Captain Kapu's old bastard's formidable physique."

"Back in the day…"

"Captain Kapu was just like you."

Mentioning this, Hei's eyes grew distant, as if reminiscing about the past.

"Vice Admiral, if there's nothing else, I'll go rest now. This battle left me utterly drained—you didn't even come to help me."

"You dumped all the pressure onto this young kid."

Lu En spread his hands.

"Help? You don't need to help me."

"Your current strength is so great that even I have no guarantee of defeating you."

"If I went to help you? These old bones of mine can't take the strain."

"As the saying goes, those with ability should bear more responsibility. Since you're so capable, you should take on even greater duties."

"Besides…"

"I watched nearly the entire battle. Honestly, I saw no sign of you struggling. On the contrary, Sky Demon Doflamingo was crushed under your pressure from the start."

Hei teased.

She didn't press further about inviting Doflamingo to join the Seven Warlords.

In her view…

As long as Doflamingo isn't foolish,

he would never refuse the Marine offer to become a Warlord!

Dubbed the Marine's strategist, from the moment she sent that invitation,

she had already seen Doflamingo's choice.

No need to ask,

she already knew the outcome.

"Alright, go rest. I won't disturb you further."

Hei waved her hand.

Soon after,

Lu En, dragging a heavy and exhausted body, returned to his room and collapsed into deep sleep.

His battle with Doflamingo had drained him immensely—he was utterly spent.

If not for his resilient physique supporting him...

He would have collapsed long ago.

This clash with Doflamingo, he truly gave it his all.

Unfortunately,

he failed to completely defeat Doflamingo.

But, to have held Doflamingo to a draw in this battle, he was already thoroughly satisfied.

He was confident.

In a little while...

he would completely outpace Doflamingo!

At that time,

if he encountered Doflamingo again, he would no longer struggle as he had today.

Instead...

he would crush Doflamingo with absolute, overwhelming superiority!

As Lu En left the deck, Hei gazed deeply toward Devil's Town.

Her eyes flickered, as if seeing countless pirates lurking in the dim alleys of Devil's Town, observing every move of the warship.

Seeing this,

she made no effort to deal with these pirates.

They were merely a group of minor pirates.

Not worth the effort of mobilizing forces against them.

Not worth wasting her time on these minor pirates.

Moments later,

Hei calmly withdrew her gaze.

Then,

she instructed her subordinates nearby: "Transmit my order: raise sail! Head for the next target!"

With the command given,

the massive warship began to unfurl its sails.

Weigh anchor,

set sail!

The warship began to move, parting the previously calm sea.

Splash splash!