Pirates: Your emperor has returned!

That day.

The World Government staff in charge of the dam's elevators witnessed this scene.

Four Alabasta ships slowly rose and sailed down an artificial river toward the North Sea on the other side of the Red Earth.

All sorts of people stood on the deck of the ship.

On one of the ships, you can see a group of tall fishmen.

Fish-men are not uncommon for the World Government, as they are the most favored slave race among the Celestial Dragons.

But these people from the World Government had never seen such "fishmen" before.

They looked down upon this red land.

There was no anger that should have been there, nor any fear stemming from the past, in his eyes.

There was only tranquility.

It's like an ordinary person looking at an ordinary piece of land.

There's only one difference—

They straightened their bodies and puffed out their chests.

Oh, perhaps there's a little more.

A few drops of water, like ripples, vaguely appeared in the eyes of those fishmen.

Purple Pen Literature

[Chapter 88: The Kingdom of Aden]

The process of crossing the red earth continent went smoothly, just a little slow.

But this is understandable, since it is just one of many dam elevators on the Red Earth Continent, with fewer than 100 permanent staff.

Being responsible for four large ships at once is quite a challenge for these people.

However, that was only due to a lack of manpower. The World Government's top leadership tacitly approved the Four Seas Alliance's actions, so the procedures were almost entirely smooth.

……

"Hehehe, this is really interesting."

Crocodile leaned against the mast and said with a gloomy smile, "A blatant 'excuse,' and the World Government is powerless to refute it."

Rowan fiddled with the sand between his fingers, smiled and nodded. "So, you can't lie, can you?"

"what ever."

Crocodile took a drag of his cigarette. "Speaking of which, such ostentation, making everyone aware of your movements, could lead to trouble."

Rowan raised an eyebrow. "What could happen?"

Crocodile said grimly, "What can you do if the World Government sets up an ambush on the Red Line and blows your ship to smithereens?"

"No, no."

Rowan shook his head, pointed to the World Government staff member beside him, and whispered, "He should thank us!"

Crocodile: "?"

……

"Thank you, Mr. Rowan!"

About half a day later, the handover was completed, and the World Government staff handed the documents back to Rowan with both hands.

"On behalf of the World Government, I thank you for your efforts in helping patients with platinum lead poisoning!"

The two shook hands.

A reporter nearby took a photo of the moment.

Crocodile: "..."

……

Four ships entered the sea via elevators on the other side of the dam.

……

Whoosh!

The ship's hull submerged back into the sea, and the familiar feeling of floating came from beneath my feet.

Hoka twitched his nose and chuckled, "The sea tastes... different now."

"Hahahaha, of course, this is Beihai!"

The one speaking was Hiruluk, the "quack doctor" from Drum Island.

Despite Kureha's strong opposition, he, a resident of Drum Island, resolutely boarded the ship with the Drum Island medical unit.

Kureha opposes Hiruluk's companionship, ostensibly because Hiruluk is a quack doctor who knows nothing about medicine and is only interested in his own naive dreams.

But in reality, only a few people know the real reason.

Hiluluk was already terminally ill, and even though he had been briefly cured by the "miracle cherry blossoms," the root of the disease could not be eradicated.

It was only a matter of time before they were all killed in the outbreak.

Therefore, Hiruluk's body was no longer suitable for long-distance voyages.

But he himself didn't care about it.

When Rowan and Kureha approached him, the former notorious thief simply laughed and said:

"No problem! Treating the sick and saving lives is a doctor's duty. And let me tell you, my recent research has made great progress. The panacea is almost complete!"

The implication was that he had already made up his mind.

Rowan and Kureha then stopped interfering.

It was Hiluluk's carefree personality that made the fish-men, sky islanders, and drum islanders, who were not familiar with each other before, much more acquainted.

Even the War Demon Wipa gave Hiluluk a small wind shell for self-defense.

According to Wipa, the Shandian people respect doctors and also cherish their friends.

……

Another week has passed.

The fleet's primary destination was a small island nation called "Aden".

Non-member states of the World Government.

Its size is about four times that of the Drum Kingdom, and the residents mainly make a living through agriculture, with few merchant ships coming and going.

This location was decided after discussions among Rowan, Rosinante, and others.

According to Rosinandi, the trading location for the Surgery Fruit is called "Minion Island," an island outside the territory of any member state.

However, the non-member states to which Minion Island belongs have been plagued by war for years, and the various forces within their borders are complex and intertwined, making them unsuitable as a docking point for the fleet.

Therefore, the group chose the neighboring country, the Kingdom of Aden.

Although it is a non-member state of the world government, its relative poverty and unfavorable geographical location have prevented various forces from getting involved, allowing its residents to live a relatively peaceful life.

"According to the original plan, the day for trading the Operation Fruit is in a week."

Rosinante thought for a moment and said to Rowan, "But judging from the current situation, Doflamingo will not act according to the plan, and we don't even know if those pirates are willing to continue trading with the World Government."

After a pause, Rosinandi added, "Have we... alerted them?"

In fact, Rosinandi was holding back his words, because Rowan's series of actions were not "making a fuss," but rather blatantly telling the World Government that he had other purposes!

What is the purpose?

Those who know the inside story will surely be able to guess that it is undoubtedly the result of the surgery!

However, Rowan offered a different perspective.

"The World Government will continue the deal, or rather... it would be best for us if they could change their original plan—unfortunately, they won't."

He pointed to the map in front of him.

"The world government has been preparing for this deal for a long time."

"If they have to change their plans because of us, they will be in a 'passive' position, and we will have many more opportunities."

"Therefore, the world government will not."

“They will choose to continue trading as usual and then deal with us as we go, which will put us in a ‘passive’ position.”

Upon hearing this, Rosinante frowned; he had indeed never considered such a viewpoint.

"In short, let's get ashore first and land at the port of the Kingdom of Aden."

Rosinandi couldn't help but sigh, "Rosinand's health is getting worse and worse."

……

Aden Kingdom, port.

Ships from the Four Seas Alliance docked at the shore.

Unlike the winter island scenery of the Drum Kingdom, the Kingdom of Aden has a very peaceful pastoral landscape.

Looking out, all you can see in the distance is a vast expanse of green wheat fields, interspersed with a few bungalows.

Nearby is a port town, much larger than Yaruja, but not as beautiful as the rapeseed flowers.

Bell directed, "We'll rest on the ship tonight. Everyone can take turns coming down to relax, and the ship leaders can go and resupply."

Everyone got to work in an orderly fashion.

Just then, news came from the lookout.

"There are people coming this way, they seem to be residents of the Kingdom of Aden, about a few dozen!"

"Ok?"

Luo Wen narrowed his eyes.

Although the Kingdom of Aden was a peaceful little country, it occasionally received travelers, so visitors like them, though rare, were not worth making a fuss about.