The pinnacle of pirates begins with deceiving fate!

John gritted his teeth, his anger blatant and undisguised.

This action was both deliberate and a genuine expression of emotion.

He did it intentionally because he was Xia Qi's suitor and should be angry about Xia Qi being kidnapped.

The reason for this outpouring of emotion is that Shakky's kidnapping was one of the triggers for the "God Valley Campaign," signifying that her death was imminent.

"Why are you so sure Lox will go?" Pete frowned, puzzled.

He admitted that Rocks was stronger than a monster, but who on the high seas could silently kill a member of the Rocks Pirates and kidnap Shakky...?

There is only one answer, and that is the World Government!

Rocks does want to overthrow the World Government, that's true, but it's still in the planning stages and far from being implemented.

Even though Rocks usually shows affection for Shakky, Peter believes that he would never rashly start a war with the World Government because of it.

That man isn't a fool who acts impulsively on a whim!

Moreover, despite Shakky's beauty, Pete felt it wasn't worth the risk to save her.

"Lox had a reason to go."

John shook his head helplessly and turned to head towards the giant skull-shaped mountain carved by human hands.

The Valley of the Gods is Rox's hometown, where his wife, children, and people live. How could he not go there!

As John ran, a thought flashed through his mind.

"If Rocks had survived the God Valley incident, would that have meant his fate had been changed?"

"Would my fate of dying also be directly altered?"

The more John thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.

As long as Rocks was alive, his traitorous underlings wouldn't dare betray him, and he wouldn't have been assassinated.

After all, he carried countless treasures and was the "Captain John" that Bucky still thought about and longed for decades later!

"A common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime." Without sufficient power to suppress it, it will inevitably attract the covetous eyes of countless people.

Some self-righteous people might think that as long as they leave the stronghold of the "Rocks Pirates" and hide in other small places, even if they are attacked, the enemies will be weak and there is nothing to worry about.

That's so naive, so incredibly naive!

The anxiety of food and water being handled by someone else and then being poisoned, the torment of not daring to sleep soundly for fear of being attacked in one's dreams.

They don't even dare to open up to new acquaintances, suspecting that the other person is deliberately setting up a scam to get close to them...

The bounties that the world government sets for criminals are not for them to show off or compete with each other; they are real, hidden traps that bring countless dangers!

Captain John, on the other hand, was even more extravagant, carrying a vast amount of treasure exceeding the amount of his bounty!

It's much more dangerous!

Therefore, there is a direct causal relationship between his survival and that of Rocks!

Inside the skull-shaped mountain, in the left eye socket room.

A domineering man with blue and white hair sat on a skull throne covered with animal skins, surrounded by figures sitting or standing.

Edward Newgate, Charlotte Linlin, Shiki, Wang Zhi, Silver Axe...

These notorious pirates, both now and in the future, all had their eyes fixed on the man sitting on the Skull Throne.

Lox D. Giebeck!

The heavy wooden door was pushed open, and the bearings made a screeching, grating sound, drawing everyone's attention.

John stepped into the room, raised his hand, and the wide-open wooden door closed by itself.

"Hey, how could you keep everyone waiting?"

With a cigar dangling from his lips and his chin slightly raised, Shiki exuded an arrogance like a lion.

Wang Zhi opened his mouth as if to join in the mockery, but then remembered the "shady dealings" he had done in secret, and ultimately chose to remain silent.

Now, he needs to minimize his presence.

John ignored Shiki, his gaze sweeping over the serious-looking Lockes, Newgate, Lingling, and the others, before shrugging at them.

"Sorry I'm late."

Then, he walked to a corner, crossed his arms, leaned against the wall, and waited to see how things would develop.

It's impossible to persuade Rocks not to go to God Valley; he doesn't have the power to forcefully influence Rocks' fate.

Therefore, we can only take it one step at a time.

"Just as everyone predicted..."

At this moment, Lockes took out a stack of newspapers, his voice low and suppressed, like a storm about to break.

"According to reports, the Celestial Dragons are going to hold a hunting game on an island in the West Blue called 'God Valley,' and the prizes, in addition to Devil Fruits and treasures, include... Shakky."

Upon hearing this, Shiki flicked his finger, releasing the power of the Float-Float Fruit to make the newspapers float and distribute them to everyone present.

John took the newspaper, and all he saw was a huge headline: "'Peony' Shakky has been kidnapped by the World Government!", followed by a bunch of random, inconsistencies in tiny print.

No photos of Xia Qi were taken.

Wang Zhi clutched the newspaper, his expression revealing his panic. He was worried about being exposed and tried to mislead everyone.

"This sounds suspicious. Is the information reliable?"

“A small number of people within the Navy have begun to question ‘justice,’ and it’s quite possible that information has leaked out.”

Stussy sat cross-legged on Newgate's left shoulder, her alluring face revealing calmness and rationality.

She is in a love triangle with Shaki and Newgate, but at this moment she has completely put aside her feelings about "the reappearance of a love rival" and is focusing on analyzing how this event will affect the future.

"So, the ones who kidnapped Shakky were those Celestial Dragons, those immature wild monkeys!" John exclaimed indignantly.

As a newcomer, he felt nothing for Xia Qi, but this "human battle royale" game deeply touched his nerves.

"The Celestial Dragons' 'human hunting'? I thought it was just a rumor from pirates about the World Government demonizing itself, but it turns out it's true."

Newgate was much calmer, unlike Shakky's mindless suitor.

Charlotte Lingling stroked her smooth chin, raising her eyebrows with interest:

"And Devil Fruits too!"

As she spoke, she glanced at the dazed teenager with two horns growing on his head beside her.

"Kaido...you want him, right?"

"What are the abilities of these Devil Fruits?" Kaido leaned closer to the newspaper Linlin was holding, his eyes filled with a thirst for power.

That wretched Shiki! He didn't even give him a newspaper. Does he look down on him, a trainee sailor?

Power! Power!

"This might be a trap," the long bread thought, its eyes darting around, clearly unwilling to get involved in this dangerous situation.

Upon hearing this, John turned his gaze to the greasy face of the long bread roll and curled his lip in disdain.

This guy tricked the once naive little girl Lingling into a "raising" scheme...

They are the worst of the worst!

Did Chapter 3 decide to share the treasure?

"Shut up!"

Lox abruptly stood up from the skull throne, his eyes fixed intently on the long loaf of bread.

"Cowards, stay on this island!"

"The rest of you will follow the same rules: divide the treasure equally. Our target is the Valley of the Western Sea God!"

"Oh!"

"Tch ha ha ha, if I rescue Xia Qi, will she marry me?"

"Kill all those swine-like Celestial Dragons!"

With Rocks making the decision, the executives made boastful pronouncements, showing no concern whatsoever about their impending confrontation with the World Government.

In the corner, John watched Rocks intently, his eyes darting around.

There was no talk of camaraderie, nor was it revealed that the real target they wanted to save was their wife and children. They simply used the promise of "equal distribution of treasure" to motivate the pirates.

This man is truly clear-headed and has never been deceived by the illusion of harmony.

Even knowing that his wife, children, and clansmen were in grave danger, he calmly knew that he needed to enlist the help of a powerful group of pirates for cover, rather than losing his mind and rushing headlong into danger.

Compared to future Luffy and Kid, this man is simply too outstanding and dazzling.

Alas, fate...

"In that case, I can only try to prevent Lox and Satan from meeting."

John had an idea.

The reason Lox died was because Im possessed Satan and used "Dark Domination" to control him.

Therefore, as long as he doesn't encounter the "Five Elders" Satan, Lox will not fall victim to the "Black to Domination" spell.

"Or we could prepare for both possibilities and come up with a way to break the 'Black Domination'."

John recalls the familiar fate lines, stating that "Black Turn Domination" has absolutely no effect on Luffy and Loki.

As for why it was ineffective...

John speculated that the principle might be the same as the Paramecia-type Love-Love Fruit, where not being lecherous would prevent one from being turned to stone.

Therefore, "Black to Domination" is likely ineffective against simple-minded people who are "idiots"!

Is Krox an idiot?

Obviously not!

Direct immunity is out of the question; the only option is to quickly remove the "black-to-dominance" effect after being infected.

If someone who has been "dominated by the Dark Ones" suffers a fatal injury, the domination will be lifted, and they will return to their uninjured state.