Chapter 361: This World Is About to Stir Up a Wind

Boom!

The wine bottle in Whitebeard's hand slammed heavily onto the deck, causing the entire Moby Dick to tremble.

An invisible aura began to spread outward from him as the center, a pressure as heavy as the abyssal ocean that made it difficult for everyone around to breathe, making the entire ship seem to sink several feet at this moment!

Even just the unintentionally leaked Conqueror's Haki caused many Neo Marines to be unable to withstand it, their eyes rolling back as they collapsed.

He knew exactly how strong he had been at his peak.

If, given his current physical condition, saving Ace from Marine Headquarters under the gaze of the entire world required gambling everything in a desperate struggle just to see that sliver of a faint chance,

then once he regained the power of his peak, that certainty would rise to over fifty percent!

Whether in the previous era or this one, no one will be able to defeat me!

So what if it is Marine Headquarters?!

If Shi Ji, with both legs severed, could fight his way in, then I can fight my way in even more so!

No one can stop me!

Thoughts churned in his mind; Whitebeard gripped the Murakumogiri tighter and tighter, his tiger-like eyes staring fiercely at Zephyr, yet his heart gradually calmed down:

"What do you want?!"

Whitebeard did not doubt the truth of Zephyr's words; he was merely curious about what Zephyr actually intended to do.

As one of the rivals active in the same era, Whitebeard knew the three major representatives of the Marines at that time better than anyone else.

Sengoku excelled in grand strategy; every move he made would stir the seas, making him the ideal successor to the Fleet Admiral, and indeed, after the previous Fleet Admiral Kong stepped down, it was Sengoku who filled the position.

Garp possessed a pure character; his combat strength ranked first among the three, making him the most valiant machine of violence and also the spiritual banner of the Marines.

Zephyr was the one with the lowest presence among the three, yet he had the greatest influence on the new generation of Marines in later years, having trained and influenced nearly all Marine officers.

Even now, the title of "The One Who Does Not Kill Great Generals" still circulated throughout regions across the world.

But at this very moment, in Zephyr's eyes, Whitebeard could no longer see the naivety of once wishing to save everything, nor that benevolence capable of embracing all.

All that remained was madness hidden beneath calm eyes!

Tsk—!

After swallowing a mouthful of wine, Zephyr turned his head to look at the undulating sea in the distance and murmured:

"This world has been in turmoil for eight hundred years; beneath the surface of the sea, how many innocent souls have been buried?!"

"There was a man in the East Blue who once said:"

"No matter how terrible this world is, everyone should have the chance to live; if they do not, then it must be this world that has a problem!"

"Heh~"

Whitebeard likewise turned to look at the sea and let out a light laugh:

"As a former Great General of the Marines, shouldn't you know better than I where exactly the problem lies?!"

"Ah."

Zephyr nodded:

"Now I increasingly understand why that fellow Luo Jie took such extreme actions back then, wanting to add another torch to this world that was already Xiong Xiong ablaze."

"Place oneself in a position of certain death and then seek life."

"Only standing upon the ashes of the old world can a new order be established!"

"Luo Jie's choice was to let everyone in this world set sail to search for the One Piece, gambling that among the thousands of seekers, there would emerge an existence destined to change the world."

Whitebeard turned his head, and within his gaze looking at Zephyr lay an indescribable surprise.

If these words had been spoken by Garp, or by Sengoku, or even by the Golden Lion, he would not have been surprised in the slightest.

But the person speaking happened to be Zephyr, the man who had lost everything multiple times due to pirates and deeply detested them.

He had anticipated that Zephyr might become depressed due to successive blows, or fall into an extreme madness wishing to destroy everything, but he had never anticipated Zephyr's current state.

It was solely because Zephyr was attempting to understand his former enemy.

"You..."

Before Whitebeard's question could leave his lips, Zephyr interrupted him and continued:

"The Marines' dominance over the seas is weakening; the kings of the sea have fallen, new monsters have risen, and the old order is about to collapse; perhaps the world can welcome liberation."

"Originally, everything was within that fellow Luo Jie's expectations, until the appearance of the Ancient Weapons, which wiped half of Britannias off the map in a single strike, returning everything to square one."

"This has become the ballast stone guaranteeing the World Government's transcendent status; as long as the Ancient Weapons exist for one more day, no one will dare to pluck the World Government's tiger whiskers."

"Only Ancient Weapons can counter Ancient Weapons."

"Within one year, this realization has already become an unspoken rule among the various forces on the seas; to achieve Luo Jie's goal, the intensity of the war will rise by more than one level."

"And a war between Ancient Weapons will cause the entire world to be swallowed by the sea, and countless people will lose their lives because of it."

"So~"

Whitebeard lowered his eyes, his gaze carrying a Solemn expression.

One year after the Britannias incident, the sea levels across the entire world had indeed risen; although it was only a few centimeters, it was enough to prove that Zephyr's words were not false.

"What do you intend to do?!"

"To go and see what difference exists between the blood flowing within the existence high above in the heavens and our own!"

"Therefore, I need you to hold on a bit longer, the longer the better."

The corner of Zephyr's mouth curled up as he opened the energy chamber of the crusher, exposing a piece of purple glowing mineral contained within a transparent vessel to the air.

A scorching aura drifted through the air!

The Whitebeard Pirates members surrounding this scene acted as if facing a great enemy; even Whitebeard's eyes suddenly became Solemn:

"Such a dangerous thing... you fellow!"

Realizing exactly what Zephyr intended to do, Whitebeard abruptly raised his head, feeling that the Zephyr before him was utterly unfamiliar:

"Have you gone mad?!"

"It is this world that is about to stir up a storm!"

Zephyr casually closed the energy chamber of the crusher, looked back at the distant sea, and grinned broadly:

"Hahahahaha—!"

The laughter was heroic, resounding through the clouds.

The waves on the sea surface became restless in this very moment!

The surging waves ran wild, and the wind howled!

Something invisible, yet sharp enough to prick everyone's skin, was flowing!

Whitebeard knew what that was.

Madness!

Madness sufficient to set the world ablaze!

Such an aura should not appear on Zephyr; had consecutive blows driven this man completely insane?!

Whitebeard did not know the reason, but one thing he knew clearly was that if Mary Geoise were to burn, it would surely be beautiful.

He only felt that Zephyr was utterly unfamiliar:

"What exactly did you encounter, you bastard, to undergo such a tremendous transformation?!"

Zephyr said lightly:

"I met an interesting pirate in the East Blue, the most interesting pirate since that fellow Luo Jie; perhaps he is the man Luo Jie was waiting for."

"No!"

"He is the spark nurtured by the Great Pirate Era."

Whitebeard was stunned, and a name floated up in his mind:

"Knight Gao Wen?!"

"Knight Gao Wen!"

Zephyr nodded:

"It is said he has already replaced you to become the strongest in the world~"

"Hmph~"

Whitebeard remained completely unmoved, with nothing in his eyes but confidence in himself and in the long blade in his hand:

"I will never be defeated by anyone!"

The next day.

A marine warship sailed out of the Whitebeard Pirates' fleet and disappeared beyond the horizon.

Whitebeard still stood on the deck of the Moby Dick, yet his figure seemed several sizes taller, the sickly pallor on his face swept away entirely, leaving only the confidence and heroism of the World's Strongest Man!

The Conqueror's Haki dissipating in the air appeared even denser, like a solid substance, leaving streaks of cracks on the deck of the Moby Dick!

"This feeling..."

Marco, standing beside Whitebeard, was deeply moved; he even felt as though he had returned to twenty years ago, that magnificent era when Whitebeard roamed the seas, campaigned alongside Luo Jie, and clashed with the Marines!

"Pops, your power has returned!"

"Is the ability of that fruit truly so powerful?!"

Whitebeard raised his hand and made a grasping motion in the air, his gaze falling upon nothing but a flat expanse of sea:

"Isn't that simply how Paramecia types are?!"