Pirate: My Piltover technology is far ahead!

Chapter 412 The "Strong" Without Dignity

Nami's part-time chef career didn't last long, but the Straw Hat crew's refrigerator was filled with a lot of pre-made dishes. They'll probably continue like this until they find a real chef.

However, the Straw Hat crew's voyage was not so smooth. At Reverse Mountain, they did not encounter Crocus, who had already taken up a job in Piltover, nor Vivi, who had infiltrated Baroque Works.

Crocodile is quite docile these days. To be precise, he wants to do something, but he doesn't dare to. Piltover and Alabasta are too closely connected, and Crocodile doesn't want to make enemies of Piltover because of his plans.

Vivi is still living her life as a princess, Alabasta remains the same, Crocodile grinds reputation daily, and then secretly searches for what he wants in the desert.

However, on Whiskey Peak, the Straw Hat crew clashed with Crocodile's subordinates, confronting Crocodile in a different way, and also encountered Ace, who had come all the way there in pursuit of Blackbeard.

After years of settling down, Crocodile became known as a "50/50" player, but still lost after a bloody battle with the Straw Hat crew.

However, this incident did not send him directly to Impel Down. After all, since the plot to seize power was not exposed, according to convention, a failed Shichibukai would be removed from the list. But now the seas are in the most active phase of pirate activity, and the position left after Hanafza's removal has not yet been filled. This makes the World Government hesitate about whether to remove him directly.

Crocodile has been relentlessly building up his reputation over the years, and this reputation has had some effect, as the World Government has temporarily given him a reprieve, intending to deal with the matter later.

The Straw Hat crew thus acquired a substantial bounty. However, along the way, they discovered a problem: wherever they went, they always encountered things related to Piltover.

According to the Straw Hat crew's route, the log pointer should not normally point to Piltover, but many things are closely related to Piltover.

Food, hospitals, and even the weapons used on the floating islands are all inextricably linked to them.

Meanwhile, as the Straw Hat crew sailed, Ace and Blackbeard finally met.

After killing Thatch, Blackbeard immediately went on the run. He knew very well that if he stayed in the New World, Whitebeard would definitely not ignore him.

Blackbeard would be no match for Whitebeard himself, even a weakened Whitebeard.

Blackbeard barely won; he almost lost his life.

Therefore, Blackbeard did not linger for long before escaping the new world.

There is more than one Emperor of the Sea in the New World. If Whitebeard were to leave the New World in a grand manner for his sake, his territory would inevitably be encroached upon by Kaido and Charlotte Linlin.

To protect the territory, Whitebeard himself had no choice but to remain there.

Even if they send people to hunt him down, as long as it's not Whitebeard himself, it won't be a big problem.

After escaping the New World, Blackbeard began to build his own pirate crew and search for crew members who met his expectations.

Blackbeard was an ambitious man through and through, and a very patient one at that.

He gambled his youth and life, spending decades gaining the Whitebeard Pirates' trust. If he hadn't encountered the Dark-Dark Fruit, he probably would have continued living a mundane life.

Over this long period of time, Blackbeard had envisioned what he would do in the future more than once, and now he had his own team.

The champion of the underground fighting arena - Gizas Bages.

Sniper Van Oka.

Lafayette, the devilish sheriff of the West Sea.

A strange doctor, Doc Q, and his horse, Strongman, along with a group of people, built the Blackbeard Pirates' first ship using a raft.

Lafitte, Van Oka, and Doc Q were the initial members of his team that he recruited along the way.

"Captain, it seems we've gotten ourselves into some serious trouble."

Banaro Island, the first half of the Grand Line.

Many townspeople were lying around Blackbeard and his crew. If judged by pirate standards, Blackbeard was a very pure pirate.

These pirates are known for their volatile temper, and it's common for them to resort to violence at the slightest provocation. The townspeople lying on the ground are a direct result of the Blackbeard Pirates' actions.

But after doing all that, they discovered something unusual on the island.

"This appears to be a mining island in Piltover. If word gets back, we'll be hunted down, won't we?"

Lafayette looked at the name tags scattered on the ground and discovered some rather crucial information.

"Hahaha, this does sound like a big problem. I didn't expect this island to be connected to them... I don't want to get into a fight with those people right now. Let's get going and finish the deal with the World Government first."

When Crocodile was defeated, Laffitte went to Mary Geoise alone. While a group of people were meeting to discuss the situation of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, she nominated Blackbeard.

The position left by Hanafza has remained vacant to this day, and the fact that Blackbeard killed Hundredbeard's subordinate captain is now common knowledge.

Therefore, the World Government agreed to Blackbeard's suggestion that he would be given the position of Shichibukai if he could accomplish certain tasks.

"Piltworth isn't too far from here. The captain's right. Let's hurry up and get ready to set sail... *cough cough* Poison Q quickly lay down on the horse's back, looking like he might die at any moment."

"Hmm, let's hurry up and get the position of Shichibukai. That should make it harder for them to make a move."

The official reports have always attributed Doflamingo's death to Rosinante, but the pirates have no information to find out who actually carried out the Dressrosa incident.

"Not necessarily, but let's secure the location first. As for the island... a few people were injured, and once the compensation is paid, there shouldn't be any problems..."

"Hey! Wait a minute, Teach, I've been looking for you for ages..."

From the rooftop nearby, a playful voice rang out. Ace had also arrived on the island at some point.

"Oh! Captain Ace?!"

Upon seeing Ace chasing after them, Blackbeard showed no fear, but rather appeared quite excited. The word "captain" coming from his mouth clearly carried a different meaning.

"Shut up. I'm not a captain anymore. That's just something to say when you're being respectful."

"Marshall D. Teach, captain of the Blackbeard Pirates, you've lived so many more years than others, you couldn't possibly be unaware of what's going on here, could you?"

"Ah, of course I know, but Captain Ace, join me and let's conquer the world together! The era of Whitebeard is over. This era doesn't belong to those old guys; it's our turn!"

Blackbeard showed no fear or curses; the two even chatted casually as if nothing had happened.

Ace's words implied that he wanted to take Blackbeard back to hold him accountable, but Blackbeard directly recruited Ace.

He had witnessed the entire process of Ace being conquered by Whitebeard, and this indomitable young man intrigued Blackbeard.

"First, we need to take down Straw Hat Luffy. This rookie defeated Crocodile, and if we use him to make a deal with the World Government..."

"I'm increasingly determined to get rid of you, Teach. That's...my brother!"

Blackbeard revealed his plan to Ace without reservation, which intensified Ace's murderous intent towards him.

Hearing Ace's words, Blackbeard knew very well that there was no possibility of reconciliation between the two of them. No,

It should be said that from the moment he killed Thatch, Ace would never compromise with him.

The members of Blackbeard's gang made the first move, but they were helpless against Ace's fiery body. However, Ace was no match for Blackbeard in the end, and after a battle, he was finally defeated and captured alive.

The clash between darkness and fire left the island in ruins. Fortunately, there were only a few workers on the island, and they had also experienced the crisis drill in Piltover.

They were able to move to the nearby sea immediately after the incident.

"Captain, this guy's really tough to deal with..."

"Of course, this is the man who can take over as the second division captain of the Whitebeard Pirates. There's a reason why this position has been vacant for so many years."

You have no idea who the former captain of the Second Division was; he was an absolute monster...

Recalling the past, the image of Kozuki Oden reappeared in Blackbeard's mind. This member of the Whitebeard Pirates, the only one whom Whitebeard called his younger brother, was undoubtedly special.

You can call Oden stupid, but you can't call him incompetent. Back then on the ship, Kozuki Oden was undoubtedly the number one man after Whitebeard, the man who could leave an indelible scar on Kaido.

Today, Blackbeard met another person.

"Wait, where are you guys going?"

Just as Blackbeard was about to leave the island with Ace, another shout came from behind, only this time the voice was a woman instead of a man.

Blackbeard was startled. When he turned around, a tall figure with long pink hair appeared there at some point, staring at Blackbeard and his companions with an unfriendly expression.

The person who came was none other than Leliana. Banaro Island now belongs to Piltover; it is a mining site that Piltover bought back from other countries.

There is a special kind of stone here, which is of little use to ordinary people, but it is a component of Blitzcrank's synthesis formula. While Blackbeard and his crew were looting supplies on the island in preparation for setting sail, the news had already reached Piltover.

Later, news of Blackbeard's battle with Ace also reached back.

Then, using the eye points Oran had left behind—that is, the locations of the books—Lyriana used a speed-up portal within Oran's book world, greatly reducing the time required for her journey and intercepting Blackbeard, who was trying to leave.

"Hahaha, isn't this the second princess of Piltover? I can explain what happened here."

I apologize for what happened on the island, and I will provide sufficient compensation.

Blackbeard kept a low profile, as if he didn't want to cause any trouble.

Because he had been by Whitebeard's side since childhood, Blackbeard knew how terrifying Whitebeard was. He dared to disobey Whitebeard's orders because of his own ambition, not because he was not afraid of Whitebeard.

Now, having encountered Lyliana, who fought Whitebeard to a draw years ago, his heart is far from at peace.

He just seemed calm.

"Compensation? What do you think this place is? This isn't something that can be solved with money, you pirate."

If making a scene can be resolved simply by paying compensation, then the power of such an incident is lost. Once word gets out, it means that if someone wants something on the island, they can just steal it without a second thought, since paying compensation afterwards will settle the matter.

Sizzle...sizzle.

Lyliana's right hand is covered in dragon scales, indicating that she has completed her dragon transformation, but the rest of her body still retains her human appearance.

This is something new she has developed over the years: localized ability transformation. This is a rare phenomenon among Zoan-type Devil Fruit users, and very few humans can achieve it. However, Lyliana has already found that special frequency band.

The sky was cloudless, yet the islands echoed with terrifying thunder.

"Get out of the way!"

As Lyliana waved her hand, terrifying lightning swept towards them, its power clearly intended to kill them all.

"Ah!! It hurts...it hurts so much...it hurts so much!!"

Blackbeard seemingly bravely pushed Burgess aside and then stood in front of the others, but what happened afterward was hard to connect with his current actions.

Blackbeard did not completely negate the attack; he merely took the blow with his body before rolling on the ground and letting out a pitiful scream.

This rare occurrence completely stunned Lyliana. Over the years, she had fought the strong and bullied the weak.

I've seen people who are resilient and unyielding, and I've seen people who are timid and weak, but I've never seen anyone like this.

After a long while, the black-bearded man stood up again, having neutralized the lightning in this way. "Ah ha...ha...does that seem strange?"

There's no way around it; power comes at a price, and this is my price.

I am a user of the Dark-Dark Fruit. Although the Dark-Dark Fruit is a Logia-type Devil Fruit, it is different from other Logia-type Devil Fruits.

It doesn't have the elemental transformation ability of other Logia-type Devil Fruits; it can only absorb damage.

All damage from attacks is absorbed by me; in return, I suffer twice the pain of others.

Blackbeard began explaining his abilities like a science communicator, not because he was talkative, but simply to stall for time.

After capturing Ace, Blackbeard changed his plans and initiated a new round of communication with the World Government. According to the World Government, there were people of their kind nearby, and soon someone would arrive with an appointment letter.

Blackbeard hoped that the World Government could resolve the current crisis. His battle with Ace had also exhausted him, and he really didn't want to fight this monster again.

However, things didn't seem to go as smoothly as Blackbeard had hoped.