Starting with two Kamui, they raised the flag of rebellion in One Piece.

Ten days is neither a long nor a short time.

If the goal is treasure hunting, it's perfectly normal to find nothing in just ten days. However, if you have a treasure map, the situation immediately becomes strange.

This is the situation that Edrag is currently facing.

At this very moment, in front of the castle on the island, Edrag arrived following the treasure map. Over the past ten days, they had explored the entire place, leaving no stone unturned.

However, no matter how hard they searched, they couldn't find any gold, not even a single bird feather.

This situation is definitely not normal.

Surrounded by a group of pirate subordinates, Edrag remained calm, having already made up his mind about what to do next.

"If we can't even find this, then..."

next second.

He suddenly opened his mouth, and a bright light burst forth from it.

"If we blast this mere castle to smithereens, we should be able to see the gold!"

roar--!!

With a roar from Edrag, a terrifying bluish-white laser cannon burst forth from his mouth.

In an instant, the entire castle was pierced through by this sonic cannon!

Immediately following, a massive impact shook the entire ground. Not only did the castle begin to gradually collapse, but the power of the Sound Wave Fruit even caused drastic changes in the surrounding terrain.

The terrifying sound of explosions echoed throughout the entire island.

Just when Edrag finally couldn't resist and chose the simplest and most direct way to find gold.

Not far from the dense forest, on a cliff overlooking the entire castle, a man who had been resting there for an unknown amount of time opened his eyes.

"He's finally made his move. Cheer up, get ready!"

The man said in a deep voice, "If you want to live, seize the opportunity that comes next."

Behind the man, besides him, there were two other men with tattoos on their faces standing nervously.

The three are Zoro and Joseph Johnny.

"Are you going to make your move? Right now??"

"Don't panic, Joseph. They're just pirates. Even if it's just us, we're not afraid! Not to mention we have Zoro with us now. This is a piece of cake!"

Looking down at the castle from the cliff, especially after seeing the enormous castle shattered into pieces by the roar, Joseph and Johnny tried to pull themselves together, but their trembling legs betrayed their current state of mind.

There was no other way; Zoro's next move was something that made them tremble with fear.

When they say they're going to fight tooth and nail, they really mean it!

Zoro's plan with them was actually quite simple: after Lionhead had been searching for the gold for a while, whether he succeeded or failed, Zoro would strike decisively when Lionhead's emotions were at their most volatile. Zoro hoped that while he was fighting Lionhead, Joseph and Johnny could help hold off the remaining pirates for a while, especially the swordsman named Golas.

"We only have one chance. If we fail, this island may become our burial ground."

Joseph shuddered, gritting his teeth. "I'm not going to die because of these pirates' greed! That's too stupid of me!"

"If that's the case, then let's do it!"

"We all have the same head anyway, so cutting it off just leaves the same wound. Who's afraid of who?"

Joseph and Johnny encouraged each other, and soon, both of them, full of fighting spirit, gripped their broadswords and stared intently at the scene below the cliff, their eyes bloodshot and panting heavily, like bulls locked in a fight.

Seeing that his two helpers had entered a state of combat readiness, Zoro also turned his gaze away and continued to look at the lion's head below.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, a sharp glint in his gaze.

He realized after the last battle that while he wouldn't necessarily lose out in a two-on-one fight against both the Devil Fruit user and the swordsman, winning would be extremely difficult. He needed to focus on eliminating one of them as quickly as possible before taking down the other to maximize his chances of victory.

If he can't kill Lionhead quickly, or if Joseph and Johnny can't stop the other pirates around them, then the plan will collapse instantly. This is a real gamble with their lives on the line.

"If I die here, then it just proves I'm nothing more than this kind of man."

Zoro's lips curled up in a smile.

How it will end remains to be seen.

Golden Island coastline.

It has been a month since I left Cocoyasi Village.

Looking at the golden island before him, and feeling the familiar touch of land beneath his feet, Li Mingyuan felt as if he had been transported to another world.

Meanwhile, behind Li Mingyuan, aside from Karina and Nami, all the crew members of the Spade Pirates, except for the vice-captain Deuce who stayed behind, had disembarked and were wandering on the beach with Ace.

"I mean, are you sure you don't need to leave someone on the ship to stay behind?"

Nami frowned slightly and whispered in Li Mingyuan's ear, "I know we only have three people on our side and we're short-handed, but the pirates have people guarding the island. If someone takes our ship away while we're on the island, we're doomed."

Hearing the voice in his ear, Li Mingyuan came back to his senses.

He glanced at Nami's somewhat wary expression beside him, thought for a moment, and then leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Indeed, given the situation in this sea area, it wouldn't be surprising if pirates came at any time. So I just talked to Ace in the captain's cabin, and he said he'd have Deuce keep an eye on the ship for us while he's on board."

"No, no, no, no! So, I was talking about these pirates!"

Nami gritted her teeth, her eyes wide, and whispered through gritted teeth at Li Mingyuan, "Are you doing this on purpose? Trying to make me angry?"

"Although I don't know why you can trust these people to this extent, the truth is, they are the ones we really need to be wary of on this island! Pirates are a bunch of despicable and shameless guys. Even if they may seem a little special, they are still pirates. Once they really find the gold, it wouldn't be surprising if they stabbed us in the back at any time."

"Even if they just set a fire, we'll be stuck on this island forever, unable to leave. And you actually dare to ask them to watch the ship? Do you even understand the gravity of the situation?!"

Nami felt like she was about to breathe fire.

She didn't know what kind of antics the man in front of her was still playing at a time like this.

The situation is different from when Ace and the others boarded the ship. Back then, at least Li Mingyuan was always on the ship and could control the situation. But now, they have to entrust their entire trust to the other party's decision. Their ship is completely undefended.

It's hard to imagine that Li Mingyuan, the mysterious man who has always been known for his meticulous thinking and seemingly ambitious goals, would make such a blunder.

Li Mingyuan naturally understood Nami's anxiety.

After all, under normal circumstances, even if he were out of his mind, he would never entrust his life and fortune to someone else's kindness, even if he really trusted the other person very much. To put it bluntly, even if he asked Nami or Karina to watch the ship now, he would still be wary of the two of them and make some preparations before leaving.

However, although Li Mingyuan was perfectly clear-headed and completely agreed with what Nami said.

But at this moment, he still pretended not to care much and shook his head slightly, saying, "If you use someone, don't doubt them; if you don't trust them, don't use them. I trust my judgment, just like I trust you now. I think Ace is also worthy of this trust, so there is not much difference between letting his people stay and letting my people stay."

"Also, don't forget, there are only three of us now. I have to come with Karina, but if we really have to leave someone on the ship, and what you said is true, then you'll be in danger, Nami. Although you're quite skilled, you can't take on pirates alone. Even for your safety, you'll have to stay with me for now."

"ah."

Upon hearing this, Nami belatedly opened her mouth in surprise.

"I see, so that's how it is..."

Nami rubbed her forehead in frustration and sighed, "Maybe it's because there are only three of us. I kept thinking that we had to guard the ship, and I completely forgot that if we can't guard the ship at all and instead encounter danger, then there's no point in guarding it."

"Honestly, instead of leaving it there to be taken away, why not just openly show your sincerity and voluntarily hand the ship over to them for safekeeping? You really think too much."

Although Li Mingyuan is deliberately demonstrating his level of trust in Ace, to him, even if a mere ship were to burn down, it would be insignificant compared to what he was about to acquire.

However, Nami, who was convinced by Li Mingyuan's reasoning, was unaware of his true intentions and expressed her agreement with him.

"Fine, since you already know what's going on, I won't say anything more."

Nami took a few steps back, her voice returning to normal, and continued, "By the way, Captain, although we've landed on this golden island, we don't have a treasure map. Searching randomly won't lead us anywhere. What should we do next?"

The sound echoed on the beach, and not only Li Mingyuan heard it, but the Spade Pirates not far away also heard it clearly.

Seeing this, Ace, who had just been explaining the situation to the crew, turned to look in Li Mingyuan's direction. He was also curious about Li Mingyuan's next move, and by the way, he thought it would be even better if the two groups could travel together.

Li Mingyuan was about to speak when Nami asked him a question.

But at this moment—

boom!!!

Suddenly, a huge roar came from the distant dense forest of the island.

"Um?"

Li Mingyuan raised an eyebrow and looked toward the source of the sound.

Ace's expression also hardened, his face turned serious, and he stared sharply into the distance.

It was Edrag and his gang on Gold Island.

The commotion from the bombing of the castle has now reached the coastal areas.

"An explosion? Are there other people on this island?"

Ace murmured to himself.

Immediately afterward, Ace looked at Li Mingyuan again.

"It seems that in addition to the usual treasure hunting routes, some new routes have emerged."

Ace chuckled and said to Li Mingyuan, "What should we do? Want to come with me to take a look?"

"If you're lucky, you might even see mountains of gold."

Li Mingyuan was also somewhat surprised by this unexpected situation, and he pondered for a moment.

But soon.

Recalling the "secret" of Golden Island, he quickly shifted his attention away from the sudden event. He even secretly glanced to his side and saw Karina, whose expression was a mixture of surprise and anticipation as she secretly watched him.

"No, let's forget about it. I still have things to do on this island."

Finally, Li Mingyuan replied, "I will come to see you again after I have dealt with the situation on my end."

Seeing that Li Mingyuan refused to participate in the next joint operation, Ace was somewhat disappointed and couldn't help but put his hat on his head.

"So, you mean we have to split up?"

Ace said with relief, "But since something has happened, there's nothing we can do. It seems that this excitement can only be enjoyed by our Spade Pirates alone."

"Did you hear that, everyone!"

Ace turned his head to look at his crew again, raising his voice, "This means there's one less person to divide the gold among!"

"As pirates, you all understand this situation, right?"

Ace grinned and said, "First come, first served! Whoever gets the gold first gets to keep it!"

"oh!!"

In an instant, the passionate response from the Spade Pirates echoed across the beach.

At Ace's command, the excited crew members rushed into the dense forest.

soon.

The large group of people who were just on the beach have now been reduced to just Li Mingyuan, his crew, and Ace.

"So, that's the situation."

Finally, Ace smiled slightly at Li Mingyuan and said, "See you later."

With that, Ace, carrying a package, stepped out into the dense forest.

Li Mingyuan looked at Ace's back and the location on the distant island where the rumbling explosions and smoke were still going off.

Although he was also curious about what was happening on Golden Island, whose plot had been completely altered in this theatrical version, it didn't really matter to him.

"Now that Ace has left, it's about time we got going too."

Li Mingyuan said this.

For the first time since arriving on the island, they have focused their attention on Karina.

Looking at the other person's face, which turned deathly pale in an instant, filled with disbelief, and their legs trembling involuntarily.

Li Mingyuan is about to put a final stop to the Karina theft case.

"Kalina."

Li Mingyuan said, "This is your hideout. Where do you hide your money?"

"..."

Pale-faced, Karina couldn't utter a single word.

She never dreamed that the situation, which had seemed so promising just moments before, where she appeared poised to escape at any moment, would turn out this way.

Li Mingyuan not only decided to split up with Ace's group, but also seemed completely unconcerned about the unexpected events that were unfolding on Golden Island.

At this critical juncture, he actually ignored such a huge treasure.

Still eyeing that money!