Chapter 279: Lionheart Knight! The Man Closest to the Four Emperors!

Several days later.

With the World Government fanning the flames, the events that transpired in Water Seven spread across the entire world alongside the newspapers of the World Economic Journal.

At this moment, the curtain fell on this war that had nearly driven the entire Grand Line into madness.

"Plumage of the Pluton blueprints leaked, Battle of Water Seven concludes with the death of the legendary pirate Jin Shizi!"

"Two Navy Admirals battled Jin Shizi for days and nights, finally slaying him!"

"Lionheart Knight Gao Wen responded to the Navy's call; in the name of a Navy Vice Admiral, he fought countless pirates in Water Seven, demonstrating the combat power of the supreme strong!"

"Lionheart Knight Gao Wen! The man closest to the Four Emperors!"

Sabaody Archipelago.

Inside the Bartering Bar, the crowd discussed the great battle that had occurred in Water Seven.

Among the crowd, spittle flew everywhere.

Those who had not personally experienced that great battle spoke with such conviction, as if they had been standing at the center of the conflict themselves, witnessing the entire course of the fight.

Only Lei Li remained as usual, sitting in the corner.

The wine flask in his hand paused at his lips, unmoving for a long while; his gaze fixed solely on that golden-haired figure, already dead yet still standing proudly in the center of the battlefield.

"Even you, that most arrogant of fellows, have passed away?"

Lei Li murmured.

Decades had flown by; those old grudges meant nothing to him anymore, yet witnessing the end of this most unruly man, he could not help but feel a touch of sorrow in his heart.

But when Lei Li noticed the smile on Jin Shizi's face, he immediately understood that this time, Jin Shizi must have died without any regrets.

"This does not look like an expression one would wear after losing to the Navy."

Lei Li's gaze shifted downward, noticing the ferocious sword wound on Jin Shizi's chest, and a man who had also been mentioned in the news instantly appeared in Lei Li's mind.

"If I remember correctly, that fellow is also from the East Blue?!"

"Lionheart Knight, the one who took the lion's heart... I see now? At such a young age, he has already surpassed us old fellows?!"

"Pity you are not the one Roger was waiting for."

"However, in an era like this, to see such outstanding young people rise up, indeed..."

"Have I grown old?!"

"Hahahahahaha..."

Resonant laughter echoed through the entire bar.

The crowd of half-drunk, half-sober patrons glanced at Lei Li, dismissing him as just a drunk old man, then ignored him and turned back to discussing the events in Water Seven.

Only Xia Qi, sitting in the corner, looked toward Lei Li, her eyes filled with indescribable complexity.

Through the World Government's little tricks, Lei Li was naturally not the only one who saw the truth.

At this moment.

The New World.

Whitebeard, disregarding the warnings of the leopard-print nurse beside him, tilted his head back and drained the cup of strong liquor.

His entire body seemed to relax at that moment; he slowly closed his eyes, leaned back against the sofa, and let the sea breeze blow over him.

"Gurarararara~"

"Got him!"

Amidst Whitebeard's light laughter, a figure wrapped in flames darted out from the corner, throwing a heavy punch at Whitebeard.

"Fire Fist!"

Intense flames exploded across the ship.

On the face of the youth, Ace, the triumphant smile had not yet fully formed when an arm broke through the sky-filling flames and reached in.

Whitebeard dismantled Ace's attack with just a single finger.

Ace was sent flying entirely, smashing through the pirate ship's railing and plunging into the seawater.

Splash!

After a distinct sound of falling water, a burst of laughter spread across the deck.

"Hahahaha~"

"That idiot, how many times is this now?!"

"Old Dad is an invincible existence; how could you possibly succeed in ambushing him so easily?!"

"Such excessive persistence is truly foolishly cute!"

In the corner.

Blackbeard, tall and muscular yet clearly missing several teeth, wearing the expression of a consummate nice guy, waved his hand to stop the others' joking:

"Don't say that~ Ace's strength is still very great~"

"Teach, you fellow, stop playing the nice guy."

Thatch sat nearby, a relaxed smile on the corners of his mouth:

"With that fellow's personality, I'm afraid he'll make a scene for a long while before realizing the gap between himself and Old Dad."

"Zehahahahaha~"

Blackbeard chuckled foolishly, showing none of the ambitious demeanor he would display years later, stepping over Whitebeard's corpse to ascend to the position of an Emperor.

His expression suddenly changed:

"Oh no, Devil Fruit users can't swim!"

Without a moment's hesitation, Blackbeard leaped directly into the sea, and moments later returned to the deck dragging the unconscious Ace.

Even soaked to the bone, Blackbeard checked on Ace's condition first.

He hesitated for a moment, as if making some resolution, licked his lips, and bent down to prepare artificial respiration for Ace.

"Wait—!"

Ace jolted awake, spewing a large mouthful of seawater, yet he did not look at Whitebeard first; instead, he turned his head to gaze at Blackbeard with lingering fear, hurriedly saying:

"Absolutely unnecessary! No big problem! No need at all!"

This panicked posture drew a burst of laughter from the crowd.

Sitting on the deck, Ace's expression showed some annoyance, yet inside he felt an unprecedented sense of relief.

Even if he was unwilling to admit it, Whitebeard's ship had given him a feeling he had never experienced before.

It was just like the feeling he had when he was with Luffy and Sabo.

"Hey~"

"Ace~"

Whitebeard tilted his head, propping his chin with one hand as he looked at Ace:

"Knight, no, Lionheart Knight Gao Wen—what kind of existence is he exactly?!"

"Knight Gao Wen?!"

Ace froze; just as he was about to open his mouth to answer, he remembered his current status as a captive, so he turned his head and said with a face full of displeasure:

"Why should I answer your question?!"

Whitebeard did not feel the slightest bit offended; a faint smile played on the corners of his mouth as he looked at Ace and said:

"Just consider it the fee for your time on my ship."

"Hmph~"

Ace pursed his lips:

"That guy was bounty-listed at the same time as me initially, later invited by the World Government in the East Blue to become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea."

"According to rumors, he was once a knight of a certain kingdom, and because of certain matters..."

"Oh, right!"

Ace's eyes lit up; he turned to look at his companion Deuce, who was now also a captive of Whitebeard, and said:

"Deuce!"

"Do you remember? That movie you mentioned last time for gathering novel material, what was it called again..."

Deuce's old face flushed red:

"I... I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Stop pretending!"

Ace showed no mercy whatsoever, directly piercing the latter's pitiful disguise:

"That one, 'The Alluring Wang Fei Falls in Love with the Loyal Dog Knight'—don't think I didn't know you were secretly watching it every day during that period!"

"Would any decent person watch that kind of thing?! I read the Spring and Autumn Annals!"

"Cut the act! Hand it over quickly!"

Two hours later.

On the deck of the Moby Dick, the crew of the Whitebeard Pirates sat gathered around, watching intently as Deuce played 'The Alluring Wang Fei Falls in Love with the Loyal Dog Knight'.

Many people were even moved to tears, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Woo-oh~~~~~"

"My knight, you must survive; only by surviving is there hope~~~~"

"So moving, truly so moving!"

"No, I have to go make that bastard who executed the Wang Fei!"

Blamenco, user of the Bag-Bag Fruit, was moved to a complete mess; he hugged the fish-man Namur tightly, completely failing to notice the latter turning bright red from holding his breath, nearly unable to breathe.

The Ice Witch Whitey Bay sat nearby wiping away tears, secretly vowing in her heart that if she ever got the chance to go to the East Blue, she would definitely vent her pent-up rage on behalf of the Wang Fei from the movie.

"Gurarararara~"

Whitebeard chuckled lightly:

"Is that guy's past experience really exactly as described in this movie?"

Ace nodded:

"There are elements of adaptation, but as far as I know, it's mostly accurate."

"How so?"

"Has that guy made waves again recently?!"

"Ah."

Whitebeard nodded, recalling the scenes where he had once fought Shiki, feeling somewhat emotional for a moment:

"Even that guy Shiki was defeated by him."

"However."

"This time Shiki should have no regrets; after all, until the moment he fought to his death, a smile remained on his face."

"Gurarararara~"

As the sound landed.

Marco and others sitting nearby trembled, their eyes filled with indescribable shock.

As the earliest batch to follow Whitebeard, they had naturally witnessed Whitebeard's numerous battles with Shiki.

More than twenty years ago, the two were nearly evenly matched.

One is heavy and powerful; the other is agile and ethereal.

Once the battle begins, it takes days and nights to determine a winner; most of the time, they fight until utterly exhausted, unable to harm each other.

Everyone believed that after the Jin Shizi severed his own legs and escaped Impel Down, his strength must have plummeted.

But only those who had seen the Jin Shizi knew that the impact of severing his legs was far less than others imagined.

That man still possessed the combat power of an Emperor.

And the fact that Knight Gao Wen could directly kill the Jin Shizi proved he already possessed power comparable to an Emperor!

"Is another monster of the new era calling the wind and rain?!"

"Hmph!"

"My era..."

In a corner.

Hearing Whitebeard's words, Blackbeard's eyes flashed with a hint of unwillingness, but it vanished in the next instant, returning to his usual kindly face.

He knew clearly that he was merely lying low on the ship of the world's strongest man, waiting for the world's strongest Devil Fruit!

Here, he would surely wait for that fruit.

Blackbeard had this premonition, and as time passed, this premonition grew stronger and stronger.

That ability, known in the history of Devil Fruits as the most ferocious and most evil, would surely appear on this ship.

By then, what Seven Warlords, what Emperors, what Lionheart Knights, would all be nothing but stepping stones for me to conquer the world!

With this thought.

Blackbeard's heart grew increasingly restless; to avoid exposure, he stood up, using the excuse of changing clothes, returned to the cabin, and sat quietly in his room.

In his hand was a Devil Fruit encyclopedia that had long been worn out; on the open page was a Devil Fruit that was entirely dark purple.

Its name was...

Yami Yami no Mi!

The Grand Line.

Splash—!

Waves crashed, striking a small boat, but in the next instant were shattered by a slash.

Mihawk sat on his bed, lowering his gaze to the newspaper in his hand, looking at the Jin Shizi's chest, at that familiar-shaped sword wound, his eyes filled only with indescribable admiration.

"This kind of wound... there's no mistake!"

"It is the blade named Guanshi Zhengzong!"

"In less than two years, has Gao Wen already reached this stage?!"

Only at this moment did Mihawk realize that he had once thought Gao Wen's choice of a Devil Fruit was impetuous and would affect his future growth potential.

And he, as the one who planted the seed, should have gone to remove the weeds and help the seed sprout and grow strong.

But the seed he planted on a whim has already grown into a towering tree, even cutting down legends of the old era.

Gao Wen is no longer just a seed of decent talent; he is now a powerhouse capable of fighting him!

Reaching this stage in just two years, such talent can no longer be described in words!

"I am truly looking forward to it!"

"To fight that guy!"

Buzz—!

A piercing hum came from the blade of the black sword Yoru.

Mihawk knew.

This blade was excited, unusually, almost crazily excited.

And the last time it produced such an emotion was for that man who lost an arm in the East Blue!

"I know."

Mihawk murmured, slowly raising his head.

A Sea King that had just leaped out of the water, preparing to swallow the man before it along with the small boat beneath his feet, suddenly froze, its beast eyes filled with unmasked fear.

It instinctively wanted to dive into the water and escape, but it was ultimately a step too late.

A blade of light swept across the sea in an instant, cutting down both the creature and the surging waves behind it!

Boom!

The sea churned, the massive slash mark extending to the end of the horizon.

Mihawk's battle spirit could no longer be suppressed.

He did not know where Gao Wen was now, but he knew that to enter the New World from the Grand Line, one must pass through the Sabaody Archipelago!

"I will wait for you there!"

"Gao Wen!"

The New World.

The Huang Jincheng.

Neon lights flickered.

Gold, desire, beauty, gambling tables...

Countless people flock to the world's greatest sink of gold, squandering everything they have until they possess nothing, only to be swallowed by this massive city.

Yet this still cannot stop more people from coming here, becoming the next batch of lambs awaiting slaughter.

For here, as long as you have money, you can enjoy everything you can imagine, and even things you cannot imagine.

Even some World Nobles residing in Mary Geoise are high-level members here.

The countless treasures sent to Mary Geoise every year are also the pillars that keep the Huang Jincheng standing.

And the man who created all this was once a slave—

Gild Tesoro.

At this moment.

Tesoro stood at the highest point of the Huang Jincheng, looking down upon everything in the city.

A ferocious smile curled his lips, just like the World Noble who had taken away his beloved back then.

Arrogant, presumptuous, and supreme.

Now he believed he had earned such qualification, at least the qualification to never lose everything again.

Whether relying on the money in his hands, his vast network of connections, or the power brought by the massive reserves of gold stored within the city.

"Boss~"

Bacala, wearing a tight-fitting short skirt, stood gracefully beside Tesoro and said:

"The plan to seize the Martial Arts Tournament project encountered some obstacles earlier."

"Hmm?!"

"According to the intelligence we obtained, it was not two Marine Admirals who defeated the Jin Shizi in Water Seven, but a Knight—no, it was Lionheart Knight Gao Wen!"

(End of this chapter)