One Piece: Space-Space Fruit, Joining the Rocks Crew

Meanwhile, at the heart of the battlefield, the "battle" between Lox and Harald had reached a fever pitch.

The two engaged in a frenzied battle in mid-air, their swords flashing and their clashes creating a deafening roar with each collision.

The dark red, domineering thunderstorm continued to explode, sending towering columns of water shooting into the sky from the surrounding sea.

The battle looked incredibly intense, but if a powerful Observation Haki expert were present, they would be able to discern the underlying reasons.

Their attacks appeared fierce, but they both skillfully avoided each other's vital points.

The energy generated by the clash of their powerful auras mainly spreads outwards rather than penetrating into each other's bodies.

This is acting.

But it was all an act for the surveillance ship.

Finally, after a violent collision, an unprecedented light erupted from Rocks' black blade.

"The final blow—!!"

He roared and slashed down with his black blade!

Harald raised his sword to parry, but at the instant the blades clashed, he skillfully dissipated some of the force, and then—

boom--!!!

With a huge explosion, Harald's massive body was "slammed away" by Lockes, shooting back towards the distant sea like a cannonball!

Thump—!!!

The giant king crashed into the sea, creating waves hundreds of meters high.

Locusts hovered in mid-air, panting heavily—but that was an act.

He raised his black sword and shouted to the fleet behind him:

"Men—charge!!"

"Charge—!!"

"Long live Captain Rocks!!"

The fleet erupted in deafening cheers as the thirty warships sped forward, passing the giant warships and breaking through the blockade.

Meanwhile, on the surveillance ship, CP agents were frantically taking notes:

"Harald the Giant fought fiercely with Rocks, but was defeated and forced to retreat!"

"The Rocks Pirates have broken through the blockade and continue their advance towards the West Blue!"

……

Every three years, the Celestial Dragons select a resource-rich island from among the non-member states of the World Government and then conduct a game called "Human Hunting" there.

They slaughtered all the island's native inhabitants, plundered all resources, and turned the island into scorched earth.

This is the Celestial Dragons' "entertainment".

This time, it was God Valley that was chosen.

At this very moment, in the Valley of the Gods.

The residents were driven to the central square, where they knelt on the ground and cried out in despair:

"Please save us! This tragedy must not be allowed to happen!"

"What did we do wrong? Why are they treating us like this?!"

But their cries were meaningless.

On the high platform in the center of the town square.

A Celestial Dragon is holding a microphone; he is the host of this hunt.

Below the stage was a wide plaza, where 250 Celestial Dragons were gathered.

They were dressed in colorful costumes, wore transparent bubble masks, and wore excited yet cruel smiles on their faces.

The host cleared his throat and began his introduction in an exaggerated tone:

"Welcome to the triennial 'Human Hunting' competition!"

Cheers erupted from the audience.

"After introducing the nine rare Devil Fruit prizes—" the host drawled:

"Now, I'm going to reveal the ultimate prize for this competition!"

A spotlight shone on one side of the platform.

There, an iron cage was slowly pushed up.

There was a woman locked in a cage.

She looked to be in her late twenties, with flowing black hair and a delicate face.

Even in rough slave clothing, her breathtaking beauty could not be concealed.

Her eyes were calm, without fear or pleading, only an unfathomable indifference.

It was Xia Qi.

"The former Empress from Amazon Lily on the Grand Line, hailed as the world's most beautiful woman, her name is Shakky!"

The host excitedly shouted:

"Make her your wife, or make her your slave—it's entirely up to you!"

The Celestial Dragons in the audience immediately erupted in cheers:

"Wow! It's so beautiful! I want it!"

"This is mine! Nobody can take it from me!"

"Name your price! I'll pay whatever it takes!"

The host maintains order:

"Quiet! Quiet! This is a first-class treasure, carefully preserved immediately after the harvest, and has never been defiled!"

Beside the platform, several members of the Knights of God were also watching.

One member looked at Shakky in the cage and exclaimed in amazement:

"She's stunning, so beautiful, Somaz. Make sure to present her to Lord Shepard's family."

Somaz grinned: "Dream on. If I win, I'll make her my slave."

Garin stood to the side, arms crossed, and said calmly:

"Don't dream about it, that's my wife, Somaz."

………………

On the other side, in some corner of the town.

Dragon—or rather, Monkey D. Dragon.

He was moving quickly along a narrow alley.

Just now, he disobeyed orders and entered the island without permission, intending to do something.

But everything he saw drastically shook his belief in "justice".

In a corner, following the trail of blood, he found a seriously injured woman.

The woman leaned against the corner of the wall, with a gruesome wound on her abdomen from which blood was gushing out.

Her face was as pale as paper, and her breath was weak, but when she saw Dorrag, a glimmer of hope ignited in her eyes.

"Please..." she said with her last breath, "Take my children and leave this island."

"Don't let him... get those two children."

After saying this, her hand fell limply to her side, her eyes slowly closed, and she stopped breathing.

Dorag clenched his fists as he saw two red-haired babies sleeping peacefully in the woman's arms.

They looked only a few months old, their little faces still wet with tears, but they were fast asleep from exhaustion.

Dorag carefully picked them up.

The babies were startled, opened their eyes, looked at the strange man, and then... smiled.

That innocent smile seemed so glaring in this hellish environment.

An indescribable emotion welled up in Dorrag's heart.

He looked down at the baby in his arms, then at the dead woman, and finally gazed toward the square in the distance where cheers were coming from.

"I want to save you..." he whispered, "and also those children I don't know."

Otherwise, I wouldn't deserve to stand here.

……

Meanwhile, in the slave pen.

Dozens of iron cages were lined up in a row, each holding several slaves.

They included men and women, young and old, but they all had numb eyes and wore heavy shackles.

In one of the cages, a mother and her child were kept.

"Come here, Teach," her mother said softly, extending her hands. "It's alright, come to Mommy."

Little Teach obediently crawled over and snuggled into her mother's arms.

His mother hugged him tightly and whispered in his ear:

"No matter what, you have to live. No matter what happens, you have to live, Teach."

Little Teach nodded, seemingly understanding.

……