Pirates: Your emperor has returned!

Rowan continued, "Besides the difference in temperature, they flow equally rapidly, and there is no way for ordinary people to avoid them."

The avalanche before him reminded Rowan of his last battle.

Although the avalanche in front of him was undoubtedly child's play in terms of the scale of war, it did remind Rowan of the past.

"Well..."

Rowan pondered.

“I have never regretted what happened ‘before’, but I am still a little upset about what happened ‘after’.”

What happened after Rowan's death.

—About what Nefertari and his companions experienced.

"Speaking of which, you're finally getting serious?"

Rowan looked at the CP0 in front of him, saw through the other party's killing intent, and slowly said, "If you are going to break the rules, I suppose you are prepared for the consequences."

The ground began to tremble as the avalanche approached.

Only twenty seconds left!

Then, Rowan turned his head and looked at another CP0 behind him, a guy wearing a black mask, who was clearly the leader of the team.

"If you want to talk to me about rules next time, remember to send someone who can keep a calm demeanor."

After saying this, Luo Wen turned his head, gripped the gun barrel, pulled the long gun back, and pointed the tip behind him.

A sense of foreboding immediately rose in the black-masked man's heart.

But the CP0 member, caught up in the moment, didn't notice anything amiss. Instead, he carefully adjusted his stance and walked towards Rowan step by step.

He's going to decide the outcome with his next strike!

"If it's about 'deterrence,' then it should make the other party feel wary or afraid, right?"

Rowan's calm voice continued.

"Nefertari said that this move is too terrifying, both the enemy and our side would think so, so she told me to try not to use it."

"But if the world government wants to see it, then you can take a look for them."

Rowan pulled the spear back to its limit, but his body remained perfectly straight, with the spear parallel to the ground and the tip pointing behind him.

That's not a throwing motion.

The black mask is certain, which makes it even more perplexing.

What exactly is he trying to do?

Suddenly, the eyes behind the black mask seemed to see something.

I was very close to him.

what is that?

A single thread.

A very thin, very long, very long strand made of gravel—

line.

[Chapter 45. A Line]

Wire?

The face behind the black mask frowned slightly.

Although he was in the path of the avalanche, the speed at which he was "shaved" was enough for him to survive the avalanche, so he was not in a hurry to retreat.

And as Rowan said, they are the eyes of the world government and must see everything with their own eyes.

But now, Black Mask couldn't quite understand what was in front of him.

A line?

Is it spider silk?

No, it's impossible.

The intelligence never mentioned that there were spiders on Drum Island that could produce such fine silk.

Besides, even if they did exist, they would have been scared away long ago by the aftershocks of the battle and the tremors of the avalanche.

So, what exactly is that line?

Logically, a line of this thickness should be swaying wildly in the strong winds at the foot of the mountain, but at this moment, the line is swaying slowly in a stable manner and at a fixed angle.

This violates common sense in physics, therefore that wire could not possibly be a product of nature.

Is it a Devil Fruit ability?

The man in the black mask squinted and took a half-step closer.

He dared not reach out and touch it easily, and could only try to observe it from a distance.

With his dynamic vision honed through years of training, Black Mask quickly discerned the material of the wire, and the fact that caught his eye caused his pupils to shrink sharply.

"How is this possible?"

It was a thin thread made of sand and gravel.

Very fine.

If you don't look closely, you might not even notice its existence.

Because that line was made up of one grain of sand strung together!

These grains of sand were artificially connected together, one after another, until, after countless connections, they finally formed a thin line of sand with no end in sight.

As for the front end, it was located on the tip of the gun in Rowan's hand.

The next second, Black Mask saw something even more shocking about it.

The gravel wasn't simply arranged in a line; each grain was perfectly joined together, with no gaps visible to the naked eye!

Gravel – mostly formed from the weathering and decomposition of rocks.

Today, those gravel grains have been rearranged and combined by humans to form a "complete" thin line of rock!

But if that's all there is to it, it's just a super long and super thin cylinder. How can it be made to sway in the wind like a thread?

The answer lies in the medium that connects these grains of sand.

The man in black recognized what it was.

Conqueror's Haki.

The Conqueror's Haki is so refined that it takes into account a vast array of characteristics!

Of all those present, only one person could do that.

The eyes behind the black mask looked at Ryan Rowan, revealing a slightly uneasy light.

Something seems wrong.

Based on what Rowan just said—

"If it's about 'deterrence,' then it should make the other party feel wary or afraid, right?"

This is a battle of mutual deterrence, not a life-or-death struggle.

Although that impulsive idiot almost ruined the situation, judging from Rowan's words, the other party clearly had no intention of breaking off relations.

But not wanting to escalate the conflict doesn't mean they won't take real action.

The World Government uses the latest weapon developed by Vegapunk, which can infuse the abilities of Logia-type Devil Fruits into it, turning them into "ammunition".

Once activated, that terrifying power would be absolutely devastating to the ordinary people of a country!

This is the power the World Government has shown Rowan, meaning we have the capability to destroy your country militarily.

So, how does the Golden Dawn plan to retaliate? And what does it intend to tell the World Government?

The man in the black mask's eyes flickered slightly.

Which wire should we use?

The black mask is incomprehensible.

What can that thread, which is no thicker than a grain of sand and is formed from Conqueror's Haki, possibly do?

Rowan noticed the confused look in Black Mask's eyes and slowly said:

Have you ever used a knife?

Black Mask didn't understand why Rowan asked that, but he nodded nonetheless.

Luo Wen continued, "The first time I used a knife, a strange question suddenly popped into my head—what do you use to kill someone with a knife?"

Black Mask thought the question was a bit idiotic and subconsciously answered, "With the blade."

Rowan pressed on, "How do you use it?"

Black Mask thought the question was even more idiotic: "A sharp blade can cut through a person's skin, and that thin layer is enough to be fatal!"

Rowan nodded. "In that case, don't the blade, hilt, guard, and back of the blade seem a bit redundant?"

The man in black immediately laughed, "Without those parts, how could there be a blade?"

A part that has lost the whole is no longer a part.

But Rowan's answer froze his smile.

"No, it is possible."

The thin line originating from the tip of the spear slowly fell to the ground and disappeared into the snow.

Enveloped in Conqueror's Haki, they will not be soaked by the snowflakes for the time being.

That line stretched for a very, very long distance, so long that its end could not be seen.

Rowan said slowly, "I don't know how to use a knife, but one day it suddenly occurred to me that I could actually use only the 'blade'."

"Huh?" The man in black mask was taken aback.

A grain of sand floated up to his eyes, and Rowan's voice reached his ears.