The Great Voyage Begins with the Celestial Dragons

In the past two years, the World Government has completely unified the four seas and the first half of the Grand Line.

It is no exaggeration to say that every inhabited island is marked by the World Government’s flag and has a military presence.

Member states sprang up like mushrooms after rain, and within two years the number of member states of the World Government expanded to 421, including 82 superior member states.

As the World Government united the four seas, the new world order underwent significant changes.

Under Shanks's leadership, all the forces in the New World except those from foreign countries united and joined the Pirate Alliance.

These forces include Moria, Katakuri, and Teach, three absolute kings among pirates, as well as Dragon, the Giant Kingdom, and Vegapunk, which still have a huge influence.

They don't even know how Shanks persuaded Fishman Island to let Neptune break away from the World Government and become an informant for the pirate alliance.

Given the fish-men's aquatic abilities, they are perfectly suited to be eyeliner.

The pirate alliance's forces were not concentrated, but rather scattered across various islands in the New World.

Ensure that powerful individuals in the vicinity can gather in a short time, but do not assemble together.

The combination of these two factors essentially eliminates the possibility of a large-scale invasion by the World Government's army; the only options left are to send powerful forces to confront them or launch airstrikes.

To be honest, Shanks and the others were worried that Luffy would launch a surprise attack before Luffy grew up, but to their surprise, he didn't.

Even setting aside the fact that he wanted to wait for Luffy to grow, Luther's focus was the right thing for everyone else.

After Whitebeard's death, pirates ceased to exist in the first half of the Grand Line and the four seas, leaving only the New World as a place where pirate forces still existed.

However, the New World is not very large, and to put it bluntly, even the inhabited islands often have harsh climates and extremely low productivity.

From a global perspective, the value that the new world can offer is far too little.

In comparison, the first half of the Grand Line and the four seas are the foundation.

Controlling these places is tantamount to controlling the future.

Even if the World Government doesn't intervene to solve the problems of the New World, in a few years or decades, pirates will become fewer and weaker.

Furthermore, no one believed that the coalition could maintain this high-pressure situation for long.

As long as the World Government doesn't intervene, it will continue to put pressure on the coalition and keep them on edge.

After all, they are all pirates. If it weren't for self-preservation, who would choose to join forces?

If anyone can't stand it and starts attacking others in the coalition, the coalition will fall apart.

Not only the World Government knew this, but Shanks and others also knew it.

Even though the major pirate forces are relatively stable now, there are already signs of discontent in the Giant Kingdom and other New World kingdoms.

"Shanks, it's time for a war, or we'll collapse from within."

On the Red-Haired Pirates' new ship, Beckman offered his suggestions.

"I know that, but Luffy's growth rate is too slow."

Shanks scratched his head bitterly, never imagining that even with Dragon's tutelage, Luffy was only slightly stronger than a vice admiral.

That is, they understand both the two types of Haki and Conqueror's Haki, but they can't learn any advanced techniques.

No matter how much Dragon taught or tried to cover it up, Luffy just couldn't learn it at all, and couldn't even remember it.

He's starting to doubt whether Luffy is truly the chosen one.

"It's too late. Let Luffy grow stronger in the war. Otherwise, we'll have no chance at all," Beckman sighed.

"That's the only way."

Shanks gave a wry smile and finally made his decision:

"Notify the others to hold a coalition meeting to discuss the issue of the World Government."

Chapter 393 Guidance

Shortly after, in a high-tech room at the Red-Haired Pirates' base.

Shanks and Beckman gathered here, looking at the screens on the wall.

These devices are all creations of Vegapunk. Being in this room completely avoids the observation of Observation Haki and isolates you from any sound.

This means that as long as there are no traitors among them, the plan will not be exposed.

Shanks believed that anyone who could attend the meeting must understand the principle of mutual dependence, and therefore there was no need for them to consider defecting to the enemy.

Even the most likely candidate, Moria, was given some information from the Holy Land through Shanks' investigation.

With the Five Elders, who were cooperating with the World Government, dead, Moria was left with only two choices: either join the World Government under Luther's command or stand on their side.

However, since Wano Country is the source of Seastone, Luther could no longer allow Moria to continue being the local tyrant of Wano Country, and he would definitely have to recall him to the Holy Land to feel at ease.

This is an irreconcilable conflict; surrendering will only lead to being slaughtered.

Therefore, he had no doubts about Moria's stance.

On the contrary...

Shanks glanced worriedly at a screen in front of him, which was filled with Teach's grumpy, smiling face.

Shanks has mixed feelings about Teach.

Intuition and experience told him that this was a person who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals.

He wasn't worried that the other side would side with Luther; on the contrary, he was worried that the other side would give up fighting Luther and instead go to the four seas and the first half of the Grand Line to cause trouble while they were fighting.

If they actually did that, it would be even more difficult for them to destroy the World Government.

"Shanks, you've gathered us all here, what's the meaning of not saying anything?"

Teach chuckled, a hint of mockery in his eyes.

Although they decided to take revenge on the World Government with their lives, it would take time for everyone to get involved.

If he takes the initiative to attack, it won't be the final chapter of the pirates' story, but rather the comical pirates' suicide mission.

"The main reason for this summons is to ask if there has been any new progress in the search for the historical text of the Roadmarks," Shanks said calmly.

Although they are forced to initiate the war, he would never voluntarily suggest attacking the World Government.

It's obvious that saying something like that will result in rejection.

"Hehehe, as usual, I only have the same two pieces as before. I've already given you the rubbings."

Moria said unhurriedly, while the others were scheming against each other, he was the most relaxed one.

"I've also given you the rubbings of the Poneglyphs from Whole Cake Island, Shanks!"

Katakuri frowned, his tone less than friendly.

Even without joining Luther, he had absolutely no opinion of the Allied forces.

With the World Government facing a formidable enemy, the Allied Forces not only have major internal problems, but Shanks, as the unifier, is also acting like he's playing house.

At this point, what's the point of finding Roger's great treasure?

Could it be that the One Piece contains a weapon capable of overthrowing the World Government? It seems impossible. If such a thing truly existed, how could Roger have been executed by the Navy?

As for the possibility of obtaining the so-called title of Pirate King, that's even more ridiculous.

Now, only these few forces remain as pirates in the entire world. There are no pirates outside the New World, and the pirates within the New World have all been absorbed by these major forces, all in preparation for the final battle.

In other words, there are now only 5 pirate crews left in the entire ocean.

The Blackbeard Pirates led by Teach, the Big Mom Pirates led by him, the Moria Pirates led by Moria, the Red-Haired Pirates led by Shanks, and the Straw Hat Pirates led by Dragon.

As for Luffy, the original leader of the Straw Hat Pirates, Katakuri didn't take him seriously at all.

The child Shanks called hope had only just learned Armament Haki and Observation Haki when they met six months ago; it's laughable to think about it now.

Even if the other party truly possesses that potential, given the current extremely tight timeframe, there is absolutely no room for growth.

On the contrary, the destruction of the Revolutionary Army and the death of his father did not completely discourage him; in fact, his strength seemed to have improved even further.

In the past two years, with this leader and several crew members of decent strength, the Straw Hat Pirates have defeated many pirates entrenched in the New World, and the strength of the pirate crew has grown considerably.

Therefore, whether in Katakuri's eyes or in the eyes of others, Dragon is the true representative of the Straw Hat Pirates.

"I do have some news on my end."

Having discussed it privately beforehand, Dragon, amidst everyone's surprised expressions, took the initiative to mention:

"According to my information, the fourth Roadmark historical text should be in the hands of the World Government."

"Tch! Since it's with the World Government, there's no point in looking for it anymore."

Tezog, the former Shichibukai and now the Golden Emperor of the Golden Nation, scoffed.

He doesn't care about any treasure. If it weren't for his feud with Luther, he wouldn't have joined forces with Doflamingo to build the current power.

"We absolutely must obtain the Road Poneglyphs. Only by reaching Raluluf can we possibly defeat the World Government." Shanks took a deep breath.

"What exactly is there?" Katakuri's sharp eyes stared directly at Shanks.

Shanks was an apprentice in Roger's pirate crew and is currently the only living member of Roger's crew besides Bullet.

What exactly did Roger hide back then?

"Things have come to this point, so I'll say it. There's a treasure left behind by a great kingdom in Laugh Tale, a contingency plan he left for future generations to rebuild the kingdom," Shanks said solemnly.

"Oh? The Great Kingdom, the force that was overthrown by the World Government back then?"

Teach laughed twice, his eyes filled with intense ambition.

He wasn't actually that concerned about the grand scheme of things that the great kingdom might have up its sleeve.

Even the Great Kingdom was a loser back then.

They failed back then, and the contingency plans they have now are unlikely to be of much use against a world government that will inevitably be more powerful 800 years from now.

On the contrary, the title of Pirate King has always held considerable appeal for him.

It might be a good ending for him to take the title while others receive the tangible items.

"Fufufufu, if it's just a backup plan from a giant kingdom, it's not enough to shake the World Government."

Doflamingo appeared in the same frame as Tezog, and the group maintained a certain level of friendliness towards this Celestial Dragon who had been expelled from the Donquixote List.

"If you know the World Government's trump card, then tell us. There's no need to be so sarcastic."