Who told him to become the Pirate King!

Chapter 170 The Soul King's Surrender! (First update, please subscribe!)

Silver Trophy: Absalom

[Tournament Star Rating: ★★★]

The clay-like earth rippled with layers of white waves, like an ocean.

It was just a small white wave that crashed down.

Absalom, the user of the Clear-Clear Fruit who had just tried to rescue Gecko Moria, collapsed and was unable to get up again.

Storm merely glanced at the silver trophy before putting it away.

For him now, the three-star trophy is only good for filling his inventory.

If the user loses consciousness, their ability will naturally cease to be maintained.

The invisibility ability attached to the [Clear-Clear Fruit] was removed, and a monster with a human body and a lion's face appeared next to Gecko Moria.

He is Absalom, one of the "Three Eccentrics" of the Thriller Bark.

Even Storm had to admit it.

Gecko Moria was very kind to his "partners".

Meanwhile, his "three oddballs"—Perona, Absalom, and Hogback—are also extremely loyal to Gecko Moria.

Both are examples of people who would risk their own lives to save the other.

Storm remembers it very clearly.

After the Marineford War, Gecko Moria was supposed to be secretly executed by the World Government and the Marine Headquarters.

It was thanks to the combined efforts of Absalom and Hogback that they were able to rescue the severely injured Gecko Moria from Donquixote Doflamingo.

Subsequently, Gecko Moria also single-handedly stormed the Yonko's stronghold—Hive Island—to rescue Absalom, who had been captured by the Blackbeard Pirates, but unfortunately, he was killed...

But later, Perona also rushed to Beehive Island and rescued Gecko Moria, who was imprisoned there...

The group of people on the Thriller Bark were actually quite interesting.

At least in terms of "human touch".

Gecko Moria's pirate crew is absolutely top-notch!

Storm temporarily suppressed his distracting thoughts and manipulated the clay around him. The clay was compressed and transformed into more solid porcelain clay, and the porcelain clay chains firmly bound Moonlight Moria and Absalom.

Let's lock these two up for now!

"Hohoho! It's an invisible man!"

Brooke looked at Absalom, who had suddenly appeared, and let out a strange laugh.

"I really didn't see him just now... even though I don't have eyes!"

"This lion-headed creature is a high-ranking officer under Gecko Moria."

Looking at the unconscious Absalom, Donli explained in a deep voice.

"He is the 'invisible man' who ate the 'invisible fruit'. If one doesn't master Observation Haki, he would be a very difficult opponent."

An enemy that is completely invisible is indeed very troublesome.

But it would have been better if Dongli hadn't explained.

As soon as he explained, Storm couldn't help but cast a strange look at him.

"Dongli, Brogy, you two were captains of the Giant Warrior Pirates a hundred years ago."

Storm looked at the two tall, imposing giants and asked in bewilderment.

"With your strength, dealing with Gecko Moria shouldn't be difficult, right?"

Upon hearing Storm's question, Brocky and Dorry exchanged a glance.

"Crack! Crack! Crack!"

"Eek ga ga ga!"

The two giants chuckled simultaneously, neither of them seeming willing to speak.

Finally, it was Oimo, who seemed more honest, who spoke up.

"Lord Storm, actually we didn't even fight Gecko Moria before; we were completely defeated by that girl..."

Upon hearing this, Cassie nodded in agreement, clearly having a very deep impression of the "girl's" abilities.

"A girl? That Princess Mononoke from earlier?"

Storm twitched the corner of his mouth, probably understanding what was going on.

"You were defeated by that 'Negative Specter' the moment you boarded the Thriller Bark?"

The four giants immediately nodded in shame.

Storm sighed in exasperation.

Perona's Ghost-Ghost Fruit is indeed difficult to defend against.

This is an extremely powerful "first impression kill" ability.

Except in very rare special cases.

When a normal person encounters Perona's "Negative Ghost," they will instantly lose their will to fight and become completely at her mercy.

Even giants like the Red Oni Brogy and the Blue Oni Dorry, when they encountered the oversized "Negative Specter," could not escape unscathed.

This can be seen from the way the giants were forced to kneel on the ground, repenting and apologizing, after being tormented by Perona.

[Haki] can indeed resist the power of Devil Fruits.

But people need to have the opportunity to actively use their [Overbearing Aura]!

Once someone is affected by Perona's "negative ghost," they immediately become utterly despondent.

If there was no suicide, then it was a success.

Do you really expect them to have enough willpower to use [Overpower]?

【Domineering】is not some kind of passive skill...

"Let's borrow Gecko Moria's lair for a bit of cleaning and tidying up!"

Storm looked at the four giants and a skeleton, and waved to them.

"I imagine you must be hungry by now?"

Storm had barely finished speaking.

The four giants' stomachs rumbled in perfect unison.

Brooke, standing nearby, touched his spine and, displaying her musical talent, employed a technique known as "ventriloquism."

"Gurgle—even though I don't have a stomach, it's already hungry! Yohohoho!"

Brooke laughed for a while, then suddenly fell silent.

He looked at Storm and knelt down on one knee.

"Mr. Vongola, does your pirate crew need a musician?"

Brooke has been wandering alone in the Devil's Triangle for far too long.

Every time he woke up in the middle of the night, he fantasized about leaving this misty sea.

Unfortunately, fate did not grant his wish.

Brooke spent decades wandering in the Devil's Triangle.

It wasn't until last year that he encountered the terrifying three-masted ship and the "creatures" with whom he could communicate and chat.

Unfortunately, that's the case.

On Thriller Bark, Brook encountered no companions, only enemies, and even his shadow was taken away by them.

Now that Brook has regained his shadow, he naturally longs to leave Thriller Bark and the Devil's Triangle.

Storm is Brook's salvation!

Brook had previously refused Storm's offer to recruit him because he believed he would only be a burden to Storm.

Brook is now actively applying to join Storm's ranks; being a musician for Lord White Dragon would be quite nice!

"Of course, welcome to the team, Brooke."

Storm smiled and nodded at Brooke.

There are dedicated combatants responsible for each battle.

Others include archaeologists, navigators, and so on.

The Storm Pirates have a diverse cast of members, each with their own role, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

With a thought, Storm released clay, creating two lifelike nine-tailed foxes.

The giants traveled on their own.

Storm and Brook rode on two nine-tailed foxes, heading towards Moonlight Moria's castle.

As for Gecko Moria and Absalom, the two unconscious losers...

He was dragged behind the nine-tailed fox and taken along to the towering "Mast Castle".

"Brook, I think you need this good news."

Storm pondered for a moment, then revealed it to Brook on the other nine-tailed fox.

"At the entrance to the Grand Line, below Reverse Mountain and Twin Capes, there is an island whale named 'Laboon'."

"It's still there, waiting for your return."

Brooke was startled and wanted to ask a few more questions, but Storm was no longer looking at him.

"Labu..."

The terrifying three-masted ship, at the entrance to the mast castle.

When Storm and his party arrived here.

Two figures were already standing there.

One of them was Perona, the Ghost Princess, whom I had just met.

The other person, with a round figure, pointed ears and nose, was the last "weirdo"—Hogback.

Upon seeing the arrival of Storm and his group.

Hogback immediately stepped forward, bowing deeply in greeting.

"Lord White Dragon! Thriller Bark welcomes you!"

As he bowed, Hogback tugged at Perona's sleeve.

Princess Mononoke nodded reluctantly, which could be considered a reluctant expression of welcome.

The sudden arrival of the white dragon disrupted the original order of the Thriller Bark.

Gecko Moria was defeated.

Absalom, who went to the rescue, was also dealt with directly by the White Dragon.

Hogback had originally intended to take Perona with him when he left the Thriller Bark.

But when he saw the blue-eyed white dragon in the sky, his idea of ​​leaving was instantly abandoned.

They were facing a giant white dragon that could fly in the sky.

Even if Hogback swung his oars until they were smoking, he still couldn't outrun the opponent's wings!

They couldn't win a fight, and they couldn't escape either.

Hogback could only resort to the worst possible strategy—a delaying tactic.

First, stall the White Dragon and his group, then look for an opportunity to rescue Lord Gecko Moria.

As long as Gecko Moria is still alive, then at least he can escape from the White Dragon's clutches... right?

Two red lights flashed in Storm's eyes.

In his daily life, he rarely uses his Observation Haki, which allows him to "read people's minds."

Using mind-reading abilities indiscriminately is simply asking for trouble.

However, Storm never hesitates to use "mind reading" against enemies!

Hogback's inner thoughts were as clear as a candle flame in the dark to Storm.

Do you want to rescue Gecko Moria...?

What a loyal subordinate...

Hogback, without waiting for Storm's response, took a few steps forward.

He took out a famous sword that exuded an ancient aura from behind him.

"Lord White Dragon! This is a small token of our apologies for our previous inappropriate behavior. Please accept it."

Hogback glanced at the [Iron Ore Saber] at Storm's waist, then picked up the famous sword with both hands.

"This is one of the twenty-one Great Grade Swords, the [Black Sword - Autumn Water]!"

(End of this chapter)