Chapter 28: Krieg's Defeat, Lu Xi Ya's Determination

If her departure could trade for temporary peace, she had nothing to say; the days ahead were not even within the scope of her consideration. The moment she made the decision, she had already embraced a determination to die.

Following A Jin's death, the remaining members of the Krieg Pirates were suddenly filled with inexplicable terror. That "Ghost Man" A Jin, who usually dominated the East Blue, had actually died just like that—it was unbelievable.

"Go," Luo Di said softly.

"Kill!" His subordinates rushed out one after another, quickly engulfing the group of pirates opposite them.

"Hahahaha..." Krieg laughed wildly, saying to Lu Xi Ya, "Alright, hurry up, come with me to the royal palace. I promised you I wouldn't kill civilians, but the royal palace must be looted; I am a pirate, after all."

"As you wish," Lu Xi Ya said coldly.

"A Jin hasn't returned yet?" Krieg frowned.

"Yes, the other side might have more people," a subordinate replied.

"What a piece of trash. I'll go myself." Krieg was already too impatient to get to the royal palace; he didn't want to drag this out until the Navy arrived, as his injuries hadn't fully healed yet.

"Stop right there. Your path ends here."

As the voice arrived, Luo Di appeared with the Blood Calamity Pirates. Krieg was stunned for a moment, then squinted his eyes and said, "You actually came here. Where is A Jin?"

"Waiting for you."

As Luo Di spoke, he walked toward Krieg with his hands in his pockets. Krieg, who had already suffered two defeats, felt his inner rage erupt upon seeing this demeanor.

"Who do you think I am!" Krieg roared. The golden shoulder guards on his shoulders suddenly opened, and the muzzles of two Gatling guns aimed at Luo Di, firing with a *rat-tat-tat* sound.

"Shave!" Luo Di's figure suddenly vanished.

Krieg was still searching for his position when an impact struck his neck, sending him flying in a parabolic arc before he crashed down. Just as he was about to hit the ground, another explosion sounded in the air.

"And who do you think I am!" Luo Di roared as well.

"Ora ora ora ora!"

Star Platinum unleashed a continuous barrage of punches. Krieg, suspended in the air, twitched incessantly as dents appeared one after another on his golden armor. When he landed on the ground, he was already drawing his last breath.

The battle ended quickly and lopsidedly. Looking at the unrecognizable corpse of Krieg on the ground, their subordinates stood frozen in place; the desire for plunder in their eyes had completely dissipated, leaving only endless fear.

"Ah! Captain Krieg, how is this possible?!" The "Iron Wall" Pa Lu, covered in shields, said in disbelief. He looked at Luo Di with a terrified expression: "You..."

Luo Di said, "Your captain has been killed by me. There is no need for us to keep fighting. Before a full-scale conflict breaks out, I can give you a chance; you only need to submit to me."

The sea was inherently a world for the strong. As long as one had strength, there would be no shortage of followers. But if you failed, it was perfectly normal for crew members to want to leave the ship. Having experienced two defeats in the Grand Line and at the Baratie, quite a few crew members already wanted to leave, but those who tried to run were all killed by Krieg as a warning to others.

Although the Krieg Pirates' strength was average in Luo Di's eyes, their numbers were not small. A thousand-mile embankment could collapse from an ant hole; these people added up to a force as well.

"I am willing to follow you!"

A crew member shouted, "When I first joined Krieg's ship, I thought I could roam the sea freely like in the newspapers, that I could go find the Great Treasure spoken of by Gol D. Roger. But later I discovered that Krieg wasn't just ruthless to enemies, he would kill his own people at will. But it was too late to regret it; those companions who ran away were all cruelly murdered by him."

Hearing someone take the lead, the other crew members responded one after another, expressing that they had endured Krieg for a long time and were willing to follow Luo Di.

"I, the invincible Pa Lu, am also willing to follow you!" Pa Lu said, holding up his shield.

Although he was an officer of the Krieg Pirates, unlike A Jin, he didn't have much emotional attachment to Krieg. He only wanted to follow the strong and usually only acted according to Krieg's orders.

Regarding A Jin's death, although Luo Di felt it was a pity, A Jin had been intent on killing him at the time. That he could offer recruitment was already his limit; if A Jin didn't want it, he could only stay there forever.

After all, he was recruiting pirates, not adopting sons.

The pirates who had previously gone to loot had already received orders to return. With Star Platinum's pupils focused for precise observation, Luo Di discovered that the emotions displayed by this group were indeed genuine. Krieg was truly unpopular and could only rely on brutality to rule. There were also some who showed awe toward Luo Di; this was the psychology of the weak toward the strong.

"Put back what you've looted. What's the point of robbing civilians?" Luo Di laughed. "You should come with me to loot the royal palace! Strip those high-and-mighty nobles clean!"

"Roar!"

"Lord Luo Di!"

Hearing Luo Di's words, both sides were incredibly excited. The original Krieg Pirates crew naturally dared not defy Luo Di, and at the thought of being able to loot the royal palace, their pace in returning the treasures began to quicken.

Luo Di had already noticed Lu Xi Ya on the side. He used "Shave" to teleport in front of her and said with a smile, "Are you the doctor here?"

"Yes," Lu Xi Ya nodded. "Thank you for making them return the civilians' meager belongings. You are different from Krieg."

"There's no difference. I'm a pirate too, and I also burn, kill, and loot," Luo Di laughed. "I just think it's pointless to rob them."

"Please do not harm those civilians," Lu Xi Ya pleaded softly. "You can state any conditions you have."

"Do you think you can negotiate conditions with me?" Luo Di countered.

Lu Xi Ya remained silent.

"Oh no!" At this moment, an old woman ran over in a panic and threw herself down in front of Lu Xi Ya.

Lu Xi Ya hurriedly crouched down to help her up, asking with concern, "What happened?"

"His Majesty Owen, he, he..." The old woman's face was full of grief.

Soon, Luo Di gathered all the pirates and, according to the original plan, marched triumphantly toward the royal palace. Lu Xi Ya and a group of townspeople followed them. When they reached the palace gate, they saw over a dozen heads hanging from long poles at the entrance.

The townspeople fell to their knees in grief one after another. Lu Xi Ya stumbled and fell to the ground, tears streaming from her bright eyes.

She was very familiar with the faces of these people. They often suffered injuries from high-intensity labor or punishments for working for the nobles, and she would treat them for free. From the old woman, she learned that they had seen the hospital occupied by Krieg and had secretly run to the royal city, kneeling before the gate to beg for the King's help.

As a result, their heads were hung here.

"Too cruel." Ka Li Na couldn't help but look away. Even though she had seen many of Luo Di's battles, she felt her stomach churning at this moment.

Lu Xi Ya knelt on the ground, her golden hair swaying in the wind. Her slender fingers gripped the ground tightly. The high heel on her left foot flew to one side, while her right foot slipped out of its shoe, hooked by her toes. Her glossy, ultra-thin silk stockings were also torn with scratches.

Time seemed to stand still for a moment.

Before long, Lu Xi Ya looked at Luo Di and asked, "You don't have a ship's doctor on your ship, do you?"

Luo Di shook his head: "No."

Lu Xi Ya turned her head again to look at the heads hanging on the wooden poles, her expression devoid of joy or sorrow, her gaze indifferent:

"Please help me kill them, Captain."