Chapter 54: Picking the Peaches

"You—!"

Ah Long's pupils shrank instantly, and he felt a chill at his waist.

Gao Wen drew the Guanshi Zhengzong, a blade over 1.2 meters long, and without mercy slashed at Ah Long's lower body!

Sss!

A silver light swept past.

A leg separated from Ah Long's body; his spine injured, he felt no pain, only endless cold.

And this was merely the beginning; with Gao Wen's blade falling again and again, first the limbs, then the chest and abdomen, he truly cut the flesh and blood from Ah Long's body bit by bit, just like gutting a fish.

Scaling, removing bones, opening the chest and splitting the belly.

Gao Wen did as he said.

Ah Long's wails echoed to the clouds; villagers lying on the ground in the distance heard such sounds and wore expressions of gratified smiles on their faces.

"So that Ah Long can make such sounds too, just like... just like my child!"

"Cocoaxi, and that child's nightmare is finally over~"

At the entrance to the Paradise.

When Nami came to her senses, the screams within the Paradise had already ended.

She struggled to her feet and found a tall figure blocking her path.

"I killed a fish; the scene is rather bloody, so you'd better not go in."

Saying this, Gao Wen shook the blood from the blade, slowly sheathed the Guanshi Zhengzong, and looked up to see Nami with her lips pressed tightly together:

"It's fine; I like eating sashimi."

"Is that so..."

Gao Wen stepped aside to make room.

Nami walked into the Paradise step by step.

When she saw the flesh and blood on the ground, her face turned deathly pale, yet she forced herself not to vomit and said without turning back:

"Captain, forget it; I won't eat sashimi anymore."

Nami's voice grew quieter and quieter, gradually turning into a sob.

The resentment he had suppressed for many years was released at this moment.

"Bellemere..."

Sobbing gradually grew louder within the Paradise; Gao Wen turned his back and stood at the entrance, blocking the view of those at the gate.

In the distance.

Two bloodstained figures walked side by side; Arlong and Xiang Keluo, having ended the battle, breathed steadily with calm expressions, as if they had done something trivial.

Gao Wen asked:

"Is it all settled?"

Arlong spat out a mouthful of blood foam and twisted his somewhat sore neck:

"The bodies of these fish-men are excessively sturdy; fortunately, not a single one escaped."

Xiang Keluo slowly retracted his claw knife and said indifferently:

"I had a slight accident on my end; that octopus was rescued by a sea beast that darted up from the water, but the other fish-men are all dead."

"An octopus fish-man?"

Gao Wen paused, then immediately realized whom Xiang Keluo was talking about; he nodded and said:

"No big problem."

"Now we just wait for our navigator to finish venting."

"Besides..."

Gao Wen glanced around.

The villagers on the ground in the distance gradually regained their strength and struggled to sit up.

But the injuries left by the fish-men were still too severe; most of them had already lost the ability to move, and if they did not receive timely treatment, continuing on would lead only to death.

"Arlong, have the ship's doctor come over to save people."

"These are all beings Nami cares about; we cannot just watch them die."

"Yes!"

Arlong nodded, took a Den Den Mushi from his pocket, dialed, and conveyed Gao Wen's orders.

A few minutes later.

Several pirates walked over from the distance and, under the ship doctor's guidance, began treating everyone's wounds.

They slowly took Ah Jian down from the door; after examining him carefully, they all involuntarily drew in a sharp breath.

The injuries on this man were the heaviest among those present; that spear had nearly pierced through his lungs, yet he stubbornly remained alive.

Something he could not easily give up had kept him going until now, even allowing him to witness everything that had just happened.

It was only now that Ah Jian had the chance to speak; he raised his head to look at Gao Wen and gritted his teeth, saying:

"If... if you make Nami cry, even if I die, I will bite a piece of flesh from your body!"

Gao Wen glanced at him, his tone indifferent:

"Only people like Ah Long should be the ones crying!"

With that said.

Gao Wen led Xiang Keluo toward the building in the center of Ah Long's Paradise.

After a thorough search.

He finally discovered the treasure Arlong had looted and stored over the years in the basement.

Creak~!

Gao Wen pushed open the basement door.

Before his eyes lay a mountain of paper money and countless gold, filling almost half the basement.

Gao Wen instinctively asked:

"How much is here?"

Xiang Keluo took a careful look and gave a number that shocked even himself:

"The cash is probably close to one billion Berries; as for the gold, converted, it's at least two billion!"

"With this money, not only can we build a ship, but we could even buy several warships."

After pondering for a moment, Gao Wen spoke:

"Return Nami's share to her, take some to repay the villagers of Cocoyasi, and use the rest to build a ship!"

"After all, our next target is the Grand Line; a voyage of tens of thousands of miles means our pirate ship is our foundation."

Xiang Keluo replied:

"Yes, Captain!"

Immediately, Xiang Keluo brought up another matter:

"Speaking of which, there are still traces of the Marines here."

Gao Wen paused slightly, and a familiar face appeared in his mind:

"I roughly know who it is, but that group lacks the courage to draw a blade against me."

"However, to prevent that guy from doing anything unnecessary after we leave, I've decided to leave him something."

Xiang Keluo looked at Gao Wen suspiciously, then saw a faint smile playing on the latter's lips.

At the same time.

Marine Branch 16.

Rat gripped the Den Den Mushi in his hand with a grim expression:

"What did you say? That guy Arlong is dead? Are you joking?"

"Arlong is a fish-man from the Grand Line; how could he be so easily..."

On the other end of the phone.

The Marine messenger's voice trembled:

"The ones who struck were Gao Wen, with a bounty of eighty-five million, and Xiang Keluo and Phantom Gin, who have now confirmed joining Gao Wen's ranks..."

Rat froze on the spot, cold sweat pouring down his back.

When the matter connected to Knight Gao Wen, everything made sense.

Not only did he consecutively break the East Blue bounty ceiling twice, but even that monster dispatched by Headquarters was powerless against him; that was a monster trained by former Marine Headquarters Admiral Zephyr!

Yet such a monster was completely suppressed by Gao Wen in the battle at Raven Port beforehand, with no power to counterattack.

With such power, not only in the East Blue, but even in the Grand Line, he is a powerful force!

Damn it!

Moreover, what's more critical is that once evidence of his contact with Arlong is exposed, forget about keeping this base commander position; his life won't be safe either.

But similarly.

If this matter is handled well, it will become Rat's greatest opportunity in his life; as long as he claims the credit for crushing the Arlong Pirates, rising three ranks is not a dream.

Besides, just how much wealth did Arlong accumulate over the years?

Thinking of that number, Rat trembled with excitement; he struggled to control his emotions, yet his tone still couldn't help but shake:

"Continue monitoring; after they leave, immediately take control of Cocoyasi, especially Arlong Park; no one is allowed to enter, and nothing is allowed to be taken away."

"No!"

A trace of ferocity flashed in Rat's eyes:

"After they leave, we... we will directly massacre the village!"

(End of this chapter)