Chapter 593: The Pirate King

Lu En silently watched the burly man with crimson skin.

The man was roughly in his twenties…

He was in his peak period.

That ferocious aura of pressure, even from afar, still allowed Lu En to clearly sense it.

So strong!

Extremely strong!

This was an incredibly terrifying powerhouse.

Even Doflamingo…

Did not radiate a more terrifying sense of oppression than this man.

This was an astonishing conclusion.

Keep in mind.

Doflamingo, as the heir of the Donquixote Family and a pirate with a bounty of 340 million Berries, his strength was unquestionable.

Doflamingo, with his Devil Fruit awakened, had reached the pinnacle of the Grand Line's strength.

It was hard to imagine.

A being more terrifying than Doflamingo would appear in the Alabasta Kingdom.

Even Lu En felt a wave of suspicion for a moment.

"Who is this man?"

"Why does he give me a sense of familiarity?"

He furrowed his brows, sinking into thought.

A man who could radiate an aura more terrifying than Doflamingo's was certainly no ordinary person.

He could not possibly be unknown.

This must be a legendary Grand Line top-tier powerhouse.

He simply could not guess the man's identity right away.

"Why would a powerhouse of this level come to the Alabasta Kingdom?"

"To seek the ancient weapon Pluton?"

"Or to seek Crocodile?"

Lu En pondered.

These were the only two possibilities he could think of.

Aside from that,

A poor place like the Alabasta Kingdom should not attract a powerhouse of this caliber to come in person.

Across the entire Grand Line,

Those whose strength surpassed Doflamingo were practically few and far between.

You could count them on one hand.

Those who truly surpassed Doflamingo were nearly on par with Marine Admirals, just below the Four Emperors' level.

Clearly,

From this red-skinned man before him, Lu En felt that same oppressive aura.

"His target…"

"Seems to be also the capital of Alabasta, Alubarna?"

"If so, his target is most likely Crocodile."

"Why would a powerhouse like this seek out Crocodile? To spar? Or to form an alliance?"

Lu En's eyes narrowed slightly.

Seeing a powerhouse of this level appear, he suppressed his urge to seek out Crocodile.

His focus,

Shifted entirely to the man before him.

Powerhouses of this level were rare to encounter!

Having finally come across one…

He naturally wanted to observe him closely.

Faintly,

Lu En's blood began to boil, his eyes glinting with piercing brilliance, his violent instincts surging uncontrollably, eager to rush forward and clash with the powerhouse.

Huh!

He exhaled softly, suppressing all his boiling blood and violent instincts.

Now,

Was not the time to act!

He needed to uncover the man's identity…

Then decide whether to strike.

Thus,

Watching the red-skinned man stride toward Alubarna, Lu En followed behind, ensuring the man never left his line of sight.

In no time,

Lu En's figure vanished from his original spot.

This sent chills down the backs of some hidden, scheming individuals.

At this moment,

Seeing Lu En vanish into thin air, they finally snapped to awareness and began to realize.

The brat they had just regarded as easy prey...

Apparently,

Was an utterly terrifying presence!

A taboo they could never provoke!

Thinking of this, they instantly grew frantic, faces pale with dread, trembling uncontrollably.

They were immensely relieved...

That they had not actively provoked him.

Otherwise,

They feared they would be utterly finished!

"These days, even a brat who looks no older than five shouldn't be underestimated!"

"The times have changed."

"Who would have thought such a childish brat was a monster?!"

"Indeed..."

"Good thing we didn't go out of our way to provoke him. Otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable."

"For such a monster to appear in the Alabasta Kingdom, I wonder whether it's a blessing or a curse."

"..."

Meanwhile,

As Lu En followed the red-skinned man,

The man seemed to sense Lu En's presence but paid it no mind, treating him merely as a trailing lackey, utterly dismissive.

"I seem to have been underestimated."

Lu En, sensing this, wore a wry expression.

Yet,

He did not care.

Following the red-skinned man, this path led straight toward Alabasta's capital, Alubarna.

Gradually,

They drew closer to Alubarna.

Lu En's anticipation grew stronger.

Now, he was nearly certain of one thing.

That was...

This red-skinned man, with his terrifying power, must be after Crocodile!

"Is he Crocodile's enemy?"

"Or his ally?"

"But I've never heard Crocodile had any allies."

Lu En pondered.

According to the intelligence gathered by the Marines,

Crocodile was a seasoned lone wolf.

He had no partners whatsoever.

Thus,

It could be ruled out that this man sought Crocodile for cooperation.

Since he was not an ally...

Then most likely,

He was an enemy!

At the very least,