One Piece: Nobody knows Devil Fruits better than me.

Chapter 168 When did you develop the illusion that I wasn't using my abilities?

Cake Island, Cake Castle.

The top of this enormous castle, symbolizing the highest power in Tottoland, is the venue for BIGMOM's most valued 'tea party'.

But at this moment, a small banquet is being held here ahead of schedule.

"Ma ma ma ma".

A unique laugh emanated from BIGMOM's enormous mouth: "It's been so many years, I never expected you to become an esper too, Wang Zhi—didn't you used to hate espers the most? You didn't even go to God Valley."

As she spoke, her gaze fell upon the man in front of her.

He was a man with a sinister and ugly face, long hair, wrinkles on his neck, and a forked tongue.

He was wearing very large clothes, which covered almost his entire body except for his neck and head.

"Lingling, you remember such trivial things very clearly?"

At this moment, listening to BIGMOM's inquiry, he also spoke in a hoarse voice.

"Well, I was just curious. It surprised me quite a while that the guy who was known as a 'martial artist' and founded a sect back then suddenly became an ability user."

In her words, she was referring to old stories that had long been forgotten by this era.

Yes—decades ago, Wang Zhi, a high-ranking officer of the Rocks Pirates and known as the "Pirate Godfather," was a great pirate from the Land of Flowers, renowned for his martial arts skills.

He was renowned for his powerful physique and outstanding martial arts skills. It is said that he mastered almost all the fighting techniques of the Flower Country with incredible talent, and established the 'Martial Arts Cult' to teach martial arts. He recruited a large number of pirates who were eager to become stronger as his subordinates, which is why he was known as the 'Pirate Godfather'.

He and his followers originally believed in the creed that 'ability is merely an obstacle'.

But this same guy suddenly became a Devil Fruit user after the Rocks Pirates disbanded.

"Glug glug. Ha."

Upon hearing this, Wang Zhi gulped down a cup of sweet wine.

Then, he took a deep breath and looked at Big Mom: "That kind of thing isn't important, is it? What's wrong with pirates pursuing power?"

"Am I destined to become a 'stepping stone' for some young Marine's rise, just like that guy Shiki?"

He said so.

"Well, well, well, that's true—nobody would have expected that Shiki would be defeated by Zephyr's disciple."

BIGMOM nodded and put a Homie cake that kept groaning, "Oh no, Mom's going to eat it! I have to hurry and spill the filling out!" into his mouth. "But I heard that after you became an Ability User, you were assassinated by a powerful member of your sect because of it?"

"Just a bunch of clowns who can't see the bigger picture."

Upon hearing this, Wang Zhi sneered.

But his hands unconsciously clenched tighter.

He then immediately changed the subject: "More importantly, Lingling—let's confirm one more time about the 'Alliance'."

"Totland and Pirate Island form a pirate alliance to hunt the 'Twelve Constellations' and seize Dream Island."

"After that, all the rare beasts on Dream Island and the other members of the Twelve Zodiacs will be yours. I only want half of the Fountain of Youth and the Goat."

When he said this, a burning glint was clearly visible in his eyes.

"what"

Upon hearing the names 'Twelve Constellations' and 'Neverland', the older woman grinned.

"Click it."

She chewed the cake in her mouth and swallowed it: "Originally, I didn't intend to give up the Twelve Constellations and anything from Neverland, but the information you brought, Wang Zhi, is indeed very valuable—no wonder it's Pirate Island."

"Unfortunately, your subordinates are really useless; they couldn't even catch that little guy called 'Tail Fire Tiger'."

Her words, however, revealed the crucial intelligence that Wang Zhi had brought this time.

The pirate island 'Beehive' ruled by Wang Zhi is a very special island in the sea.

Since the time of Rocks, this island has been a symbol of 'pirates'.

The rules on this island are simple—might makes right. There are no basic laws; it's a chaotic pirate paradise.

Any pirate can land on the island, any pirate can drink and feast at will, and theoretically any pirate can even challenge Wang Zhi and take over the island.

This unique order attracts a large number of pirates to come and go from the island, and many people from all walks of life mingle on it.

This makes the island a rare 'information hub' on the sea—in terms of intelligence gathering, especially illegal intelligence gathering, the pirate island's advantage is almost unique, even surpassing that of the 'World Economic News Agency'.

The news Wang Zhi brought to Whole Cake Island was that, not long ago, a notorious pirate's lawless operation on his own territory had been raided.

The other party was originally just a gambler who came there for fun, but after discovering the organ trafficking and slave trade hidden beneath the casino, he decisively took action, using his ability to pull down a meteorite that wiped out the casino along with the great pirate.

"Old... cough cough, I am a member of the Wei branch under the Twelve Zodiac Signs 'Sheep', Tail Fire Tiger."

When asked about their identity, this is how they answered.

And that's the key point.

Wang Zhi's intelligence network instantly connected the codename "Tailfire Tiger" with the world-shaking "meteorite shower" from the recent Dream Island incident.

Thus, he became completely certain of what had previously been merely a guess.

The so-called Neverland was also created by the twelve constellations—in fact, Neverland itself is related to the 'Goat' constellation, one of the twelve constellations.

This is also why he made up his mind to come and form an alliance with the older women.

Of course, he disagreed with what the older woman said.

"According to the intelligence I've received, that guy named Tailfire Tiger is extremely strong."

He said so.

"They're not even top-ranking officials, so how strong can they be?"

The older woman, however, scoffed at this: "Besides, Piekro has already taken care of even the highest-ranking official's 'son of the rat,' and he'll send me the body tomorrow."

Wang Zhi: "."

He stood up somewhat irritated: "In short, that's the situation—the alliance has been formed, we've had our fill of drinks, so I won't stay any longer."

He stood up, turned around, and was about to leave.

But
"."

At that moment, however, he seemed to suddenly remember something, and his steps faltered slightly.

"Oh, right, Lingling—I'll ask you one last question."

"Ok?"

The middle-aged woman, who was enjoying her dessert, looked up with some confusion.

"Regarding the 'Star Lord' of the Twelve Zodiacs—have you seen him in God Valley?"

Wang Zhi said in a deep voice.

"Oh, that one."

Upon hearing this question, the woman's expression also turned serious.

The God Valley incident was something she could never forget—after all, she had witnessed the 'world' firsthand there.

But without a doubt
"Star Lord. I've never seen that guy in the Valley of the Gods."

The older woman looked at Wang Zhi: "I don't know why the government says he's the mastermind behind God Valley—maybe he's the one who kidnapped Shakky from 'Pirate Island' back then?"

Yes, everyone in the Rocks Pirates knows the origin of God Valley.

It sounds ridiculous, but in fact, the kidnapping of Shakky, the 'high-class beauty of the pirates,' from the pirate island and her eventual capture by the government was the source of that major incident.

To this day, the old woman still doesn't know who kidnapped Xia Qi.

"That's not right either—the Star Lord seems to be at odds with the World Government now, unlike when he was their ally."

She grinned: "But that doesn't matter. As long as we catch those guys and interrogate them, everything will be clear, right?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Zhi fell silent: "That's true."

Having said that, he silently swallowed his last remaining question, turned and left the top of the cake island, heading towards his room.

"Welcome back, Lord Wang Zhi."

As the highest-ranking guest at this tea party, his room was one of the most luxurious rooms on the entire Cake Island.

There was even a 'service homitz' inside and outside the room, who was enthusiastically opening the door for him.

"Lingling was almost one of the last people to fight in God Valley, but she never saw the 'Star Lord' either."

But clearly, Wang Zhi did not feel honored by this at this moment.

On the contrary, he was very agitated at that moment.

Yes.

He knew, of course, that the old woman's guess was wrong—the person who kidnapped Xia Qi for the government was not the 'Star Lord'.

Because the person who planned that kidnapping was none other than Wang Zhi himself.

His question just now wasn't about that.

What he really wanted to be certain of was that possibility that made him extremely uneasy.

"That guy won't pay... huh?"

He muttered this to himself uneasily, then stepped into his room.

But just as he entered the room, his brows suddenly furrowed.

"Lord Wang Zhi, would you like something to eat?"

The next moment, Wang Zhi turned around without hesitation and threw a punch at the Homitz behind him.

"Eight-Strike Fist - Nail!"

"boom!"

The powerful punch instantly blasted a huge hole in the ground in front of Wang Zhi.

The body that served Homies also shattered and disintegrated in an instant.

But
"Ok?"

The next moment, Wang Zhi frowned.

Because at that moment, he saw the service homitz reappear in the air not far away.

But at the same time...
"really weird."

Wang Zhi, however, noticed that the appearance of the Homie was constantly changing.

However, a moment later, the service Homie had already transformed into a figure wearing a light gold robe and a dog-head mask.

He rested his chin on two fingers, tilted his head as he looked at Wang Zhi, and said, "I shouldn't have given anything away."

Upon hearing this, Wang Zhi sneered: "Hiding one's identity in front of a top martial artist is itself a flaw."

"Although you have concealed your killing intent very well, even ordinary Observation Haki might not be able to detect it—but as a martial artist, my instincts can detect danger."

As he spoke, his gaze remained fixed on the sea monster mask on the other man's head: "But... that mask, you wouldn't happen to be..."

As he said this, the sharp light in his eyes was almost scorching.

"I see."

At this moment, Inugami nodded thoughtfully: "Katakuri seems to have a similar reaction, a subtle killing intent, I've learned something."

As he spoke, he smiled and pointed to himself: "As a way of repaying your guidance, I'll answer your question—I am the 'Dog' in the twelve zodiac signs."

As he finished speaking, Wang Zhi had already made his move.

"sieve!"

Accompanied by a sharp, piercing sound of wind being cut.

His figure appeared above the dog's head almost instantly.

"A fellow member of the Twelve Zodiacs dares to show his face right in front of me!"

His words were tinged with obvious excitement.

"Truly, heaven is on my side!"

His fists were clenched tightly, and Armament Haki gathered on them.

"Earthen Tea Fist - Continuous Strike!"

Accompanied by intense Conqueror's Haki and Armament Haki, his fist slammed out once more.

But this time, he used a completely different martial art—his fists were swung so frequently that they almost created a huge 'rain of fists'.

The place where those countless fists rained down was precisely the 'limbs' of the Dog.

"First, break your limbs and capture you, then you'll naturally find out where Wei Yang and Neverland are!"

This is Wang Zhi's plan at this moment.

And in fact
"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"

Each of his attacks did indeed hit the dog's body.

"It's done!"

At this moment, the excitement in Wang Zhi's eyes became even more pronounced.

As a martial artist, he was certain that his attack had indeed struck a human body—the feeling of life fading, the sound of muscles and bones breaking, and the faint scent of blood all convinced him of this.

"No matter what your abilities are, you'll never have a chance to use them!"

He laughed so menacingly.

But, the next moment...
"Ah!"

But he heard a soft laugh.

"Ha!" "Ha!" "Ha!"

Immediately afterward, he heard countless soft laughs ring out in succession.

Then, he saw something incredible.

Before him, the figure of the 'Dog' that had been there seemed to slowly dissipate like a wisp of air.

Instead
Before him, in his own room.

One after another, figures that had been hidden in the air began to emerge.

"Your guidance is very helpful—I do need to learn to perfect the details, however..."

The sounds came one after another.

The next moment, Wang Zhi sensed the killing intent.

“I was ordered to kill you, so it’s understandable that I would have murderous intent.”

Yes.

As he said, as a top martial artist, he could detect the most subtle killing intent. This killing intent perception was even stronger than Observation Haki, and was purely an instinct accumulated from countless battles.

But things are different now.

Because at this moment, the figures that kept appearing in his room, each one in his perception, brought him immense killing intent.

Meanwhile, the repeated sounds of the Dog continued to reach his ears.

"And when did you develop the illusion that I wasn't using my abilities?"

(End of this chapter)