Chapter 63

Even in allied nations with a navy stationed, you can’t guarantee safety,

because you never know when a Celestial Dragon might suddenly show up.

Tianlong Zhang Jie remarked sarcastically.

It’s not just “not guaranteed safe”—it’s actually the most dangerous scenario.

Because within World Government allied nations, no matter what a Celestial Dragon does, there are never any consequences,

and only the most outwardly arrogant Celestial Dragons appear—like Charlos and his kind.

Celestial Dragons who’ve grown so cold they’ve lost all interest in commoners

are actually somewhat safer.

If you encounter pirates raiding a non-allied nation, there’s a chance you won’t be killed—or even find protection,

like Koby at the start, who, aside from being a menial servant, wasn’t badly treated by the pirates.

But if you encounter a Celestial Dragon accompanied by CP agents, there’s no other possibility:

either you lose everything, or you’re shot dead because he finds you disagreeable,

no one will help you, no one will stand up for you, because not every bystander is Luffy.

The kneeling bystanders are the norm for pirates.

Tianlong Zhang Jie pointed out that Celestial Dragons are even more dangerous than Big Mom.

“In almost every arc of One Piece, the masses are oppressed or suffer terribly,

then Luffy and his crew appear as the masses’ only hope, and finally defeat the boss.

But in the Whole Cake Island arc, this trope never appears—and yet Luffy and his crew still failed.

To some extent, this indirectly proves the residents of Cake Island really do live well,

making the old methods unsuitable.” Water Margin Zhang Jie stroked his chin.

“But isn’t there a lifespan tax in Big Mom’s territory?”

Tianlong Zhang Jie still looked puzzled.

Love is precious, freedom is more valuable; for the sake of life, both can be abandoned.

Throughout history, countless people have gone mad to live longer:

Qin Shi Huang made multiple eastern tours seeking Penglai Island for immortality,

and sent Fangshi like Xu Fu to search the four corners of the earth for the elixir of life.

Ming’s Jiajing Emperor began cultivating Dao from youth, consuming countless pills.

To obtain medicinal ingredients like the female Red Dragon, he forced women to take drugs causing hemorrhagic collapse,

nearly getting strangled by a coalition of abused palace maids.

Countless others pursued immortality through pill-taking, alchemy, cultivation,

celibacy, withdrawal from the world, and secluded mountain retreats.

“You still don’t understand the true value of Whole Cake Island—I’ll translate it for you:

work one day, rest five, food and lodging provided, work hours skipped.”

Water Margin Zhang Jie patted the puzzled Tianlong Zhang Jie on the shoulder.

“Tom, I get it!”

Tianlong Zhang Jie slapped his thigh in sudden enlightenment,

finally understanding: Whole Cake Island was truly invincible:

“At this rate, at least a third of your life is drained away every day for eight hours of work.”

“Not just that—the time you’re occupied could’ve been used for other possibilities and opportunities,

the ideal life you once hoped for, the life you envisioned for yourself.

It seems like eight hours, but after sleep, your mornings, evenings, and entire daytime are gone.

In reality, eight hours consumes over half your waking hours.

Not to mention the education costs, commuting time, sub-health, and occupational diseases you’ve already invested,

the inevitable overtime and late nights.” Tianlong Zhang Jie added.

“Worse still—you can’t skip it; you must endure eight hours of mental torture, stuck there.

Having eight hours of lifespan drained at once is like instantly skipping ahead.”

Pirate Zhang Jie, who had already entered the workforce before his transmigration and seen stupid bosses and coworkers, nodded grimly.

Tianlong Zhang Jie: “Compared to that,

Big Mom seems far more conscience-driven than those slave-owner bosses.

Water Margin Zhang Jie corrected: “Big Mom isn’t different from slave owners—

both treat their subordinates as personal property, with absolute power over life and death.

But unlike slave owners in a non-magic world who can only exploit slaves,

Big Mom actually possesses supernatural power. She doesn’t need to brutally exploit her slaves.

Many of her children possess ‘food’-related abilities,

and her Soul-Soul Fruit lets her create Homies from partial souls,

achieving extremely high productivity, fully capable of building a terrestrial paradise.

For Big Mom, as long as she has food, you can do whatever you want.”

“So Whole Cake Island is somewhat like the Garden of Eden in Western Christianity:

the omnipotent God is the sole ruler and exploiter,

holding absolute power over life and death of all within,

yet he is also the provider, supplying everything needed for life.”

Tianlong Zhang Jie mused.

“The only question now: is the lifespan tax a deduction from your maximum lifespan, or does it directly age you?”

Tianlong Zhang Jie asked; the taste of premature aging was unpleasant.

Water Margin Zhang Jie and Tianlong Zhang Jie both turned their gazes to Pirate Zhang Jie.

“Probably a deduction from the maximum—I’ve only fully regained my memories in the past few months,

but I lived in Whole Cake Island for eighteen years, losing roughly three years of lifespan.

Yet my physical condition remains that of an eighteen- or nineteen-year-old, not twenty-one.”

Pirate Zhang Jie, who had experienced the lifespan tax, spoke from personal experience.

Zhang Jie, who had experienced paying the lifespan tax, spoke from personal experience.

Water Margin Zhang Jie nodded in agreement.

This matched his memory from watching the anime:

when Pedro lost eighty years, he nearly died,

yet his appearance remained youthful, his physical strength unchanged.

Meaning the Soul-Soul Fruit only drains the lifespan you’d lose to old age—you still retain your prime years.

“Work one day, rest six—the skipped work hours still count toward your retirement.

Others spend their entire lives healing childhood wounds; Whole Cake Island uses old age to compensate for a lifetime of carefree bliss.

Water Margin Zhang Jie sighed.

Even compared to the 21st century, Whole Cake Island was incredibly happy.

Trade your frail, sickly old-age lifespan for a youth of food, shelter, and powerful protection,

and you only sacrifice one-sixth of your lifespan.

Even a 9-to-5 job with commuting takes ten hours daily—nearly half your day.

Joining Big Mom is more advantageous than working for the most benevolent capitalist.

And don’t forget: you only forfeit one-sixth of your lifespan without actually spending time working.

You still possess nearly 100% free time and freedom.

“Deducting from the maximum means you live to sixty, then die—

in exchange, you gain over forty years of idle, carefree life.”

Tianlong Zhang Jie analyzed.

According to 21st-century calculations: twenty years raised, forty years working, twenty years elderly,

even if you worked eight hours daily, the time you pay seems greater than this system.

“Then what about Brogy’s sister, Brea? Why is she aged like an old witch despite her youth?”

Tianlong Zhang Jie thought of Brea, who looked ancient despite her young age.

“Brea always looked like that—she was born that way, not aged by lifespan drain.

This seems related to her father’s special race.”

Pirate Zhang Jie explained.

“But the anime seemed to explain that people in Big Mom’s territory age faster than elsewhere.

After losing eighty years, Pedro clearly weakened and became emaciated.

If he hadn’t lost those eighty years, he could’ve easily beaten that Egg Knight,

and wouldn’t have triggered the greatest tragedy in One Piece: Luffy getting blown up.”

And it also triggered the greatest fool scenario: the Pirate King being blown up by a bomb.

After all, even a massive time bomb in Alabasta failed to kill the bird man.

Zhang Jie from Yitian still didn’t understand.

“I don’t know.”

Zhang Jie from the Pirates shrugged.

“A world this vast can’t possibly be fully described by just one manga.”

In the Pirate World, Devil Fruits are practically embodiments of the rules—there are secrets we simply don’t know.”

Zhang Jie from Water Margin simply gave up.

“True.”

The Zhang Jie from Yitian, who had just been pressing for answers, nodded.

He wasn’t being argumentative—world settings were far too important to Zhang Jies.

Chu Xuan, Senior Colonel, put it well: “The greatest advantage of a transmigrator is knowing the plot.”

If Zhang Jies acted on uncertain intelligence, they’d likely die horribly.

Outdated intelligence kills!

But since digging deeper won’t yield answers now, there’s no need to obsess over it.

Regardless, life must go on.

“The task of exploring the Pirate World is yours.”

The Zhang Jie from Yitian looked at the Zhang Jie from the Pirates.

“Mission accomplished!”

The Zhang Jie from the Pirates gave a comical military salute.

“Even if Big Mom drains your lifespan outright,

you don’t need to worry about losing the corresponding number of years.

Because it’s paid in installments—each month, she collects one-sixth of your lifespan,

so you age gradually.” Zhang Jie from Heaven spoke cheerfully.

In this ridiculous world of One Piece, mountains, rivers, bandits, and sea pirates abound.

In any slightly wealthy region, the Celestial Dragons demand tribute.

In any slightly lively place, the Celestial Dragons’ visit becomes a disaster.

Not to mention the Devil Fruit users with supernatural abilities.

Just being caught in the crossfire of war means you die randomly.

Ordinary people live in constant peril—survival isn’t due to your utmost effort, but merely because you were luckier today.

Compared to this, Big Mom’s Mera Mera no Mi, whether it deducts your lifespan cap

or directly ages you, is already a terrestrial paradise.

After all, oppressive rule is fiercer than tigers.

Moreover, some jobs are extremely destructive to the body,

like mining—ten years of labor can shave off at least ten to twenty years of life.

In that case, Big Mom’s one-sixth deduction becomes negligible.

“In peacetime, some might hesitate—but during wartime, the World is a true utopia.

Even if we calculate our pre-transmigration average lifespan at roughly 72 years,

it’s equivalent to living only 60, yet in exchange you never worry about food or drink, and needn’t work (production is handled by the lifespan-made mochi;

you only need to eat and drink). The ministers are all quite responsible,

and Ministers Kuma, Owen, and Ice Cream are even quite kind to ordinary citizens.

Moreover, lifespan isn’t fixed—if you live a relaxed, joyful life, you reach 100;

if you work daily, you only reach 90—paying off a decade of lifespan in such cases is pure profit.”

Zhang Jie from Water Margin summed up the livability of the World.