The existence of a king within the World Government has caused dissatisfaction among many allied nations. Kings are the pinnacle of power, and these nations only joined the World Government to seek security in numbers.
Now that they discovered there is a king above them, their discontentment naturally grew. Several hot-headed kings immediately expressed their desire to withdraw from the World Government.
Upon learning about the king within the World Government, as well as the queen who has lived for eight hundred years, conspiracy theories started to emerge in their minds like wildfire.
Just think about it.
The World Government was established eight hundred years ago, and this king was the one who founded it.
After the establishment of the World Government, this king retreated behind the scenes and used the guise of allied nations to attract other kingdoms to join the World Government.
They claimed it was for mutual assistance and equality.
They even established the Marines to provide protection for the allied nations. By now, the World Government's Marines have expanded to cover almost the entire world, and their strength surpasses that of all other kingdoms combined.
Originally, the kings of the allied nations believed that the Marines were a collective force that anyone could utilize as needed.
But now, the World Government suddenly brings forth a king, a king who has existed for eight hundred years. This naturally gives rise to suspicions.
The World Government and the allied nations are nothing more than a conspiracy orchestrated by this king eight hundred years ago. The purpose was to build an incredibly powerful navy through the formation of allied nations.
During this process, the allied nations spent an enormous amount of money and had no more funds to maintain their own armies. Coupled with their trust in the Marines, their own military forces weakened, and talents within their countries gradually flowed toward the Marines.
In the end, the king of the World Government would possess an invincible army, while the forces under these kings would vary in quality.
If this king behind the scenes were to step forward, proclaiming himself as the sole king and incorporating all the allied nations under his rule, they would have no means to resist and would have to obediently relinquish their power.
In other words, this conspiracy that has lasted for eight hundred years has been assimilated into Imu's kingdom without the kings of the allied nations even realizing it. When they finally react, it will be too late.
Just the thought of it makes these kings restless.
They previously trusted the World Government because it only collected money without interfering in their domestic affairs.
They were still kings, possessing supreme authority in their own countries.
However, now they suddenly realize that their own countries may become part of someone else's kingdom in the future. What significance does being a king hold then? Whoever Imu decides will become the king.
And as for Imu, why would they voluntarily retire into the shadows? It's clearly a sign of a conspiracy.
Imu has truly played a grand game. This conspiracy has spanned eight hundred years. This fellow is probably aiming to become the king of the world.
Perhaps only an immortal like Imu could come up with such a conspiracy.
If it weren't for Luo Ke revealing Imu's identity during the live broadcast, they would still have been completely in the dark.
They had vaguely sensed that the World Government had become too massive. They, the kings, could no longer stand on equal ground with the Five Elders and the Celestial Dragons. They could only follow their arrangements and be inferior to them.
But since the Five Elders hadn't shown any interference in their domestic affairs, they hadn't thought much about it. Now it seems that they didn't refrain from meddling; instead, they were preparing to crush them all once they did intervene.
When the time is ripe, that fellow called Imu will step out from behind the scenes and proclaim themselves as the king of the world.
These kings couldn't sit idly by when their power was under threat.
Even if they didn't directly propose to withdraw from the World Government, they started secretly contacting other allied nation kings to discuss countermeasures.
They couldn't passively wait for Imu to assimilate their countries.
The flames of rebellion were burning in the midst of the allied nations.
...
Not only were the kings of the allied nations in turmoil, even the commoners and the Marines were filled with various thoughts.
Originally, they joined the Marines because there were no nobles within the organization, and they believed in the lofty ideals of justice. This allowed them to find a way to survive while also discovering their life's purpose.
However, once this matter was brought to light, they suddenly realized that they had merely jumped from one kingdom to another, albeit a slightly larger one.
They were still pawns in the hands of Imu, the king.
The so-called justice still couldn't escape the so-called law of nobility.
The Celestial Dragons acted recklessly, and the Marines couldn't control them, nor could they do anything about it.
From beginning to end, justice only applied to ordinary people.
This was a tremendous blow to them; justice had been tarnished.
The issue of the world nobles that they had been unwilling to consider before now had to be taken seriously.
Now, not only does the World Government have world nobles, but it also has a king. This essentially makes it a kingdom, and they, the Marines, are merely the king's army. No matter how they proclaim justice, in reality, they are the king's army. Does that mean the king's army can't fight pirates and protect the civilians?
They can do everything the king's army can do, but they can't do anything that the king's army can't.
The king is still the king, the nobles are still the nobles, and the commoners remain the commoners.
They couldn't help but recall the images they saw yesterday regarding the Goa Kingdom. Looking back now, what is the actual difference between the actions of the Celestial Dragons and the royal nobility of the Goa Kingdom?
What could they, the Marines, achieve here?
This realization dealt a severe blow to these idealistic Marines. They had carried a fervent passion, leaving behind their decaying and feudal countries for the sake of justice, sacrificing their lives for their ideals.
In the end, it seemed no different from staying in their decaying kingdoms.
Where could true justice be found?!
When the veil of justice was torn away, they abruptly realized that being in the Marines was nothing more than a means of making a living.
...
Across the world, a series of reactions were triggered by Imu's existence.
At this time, the Five Elders immediately went to meet Imu after the quiz.
They discussed the matter concerning Luo Ke.
They received orders to find this person and eliminate him. His existence posed a significant threat to the world.
Thus, while warning the Cipher Pol to be wary of the kings of the allied nations causing trouble, the Five Elders also worked to quell the disturbance caused by the quiz. Simultaneously, they intensified the search for Luo Ke.
Shortly after this live broadcast, the World Government received numerous inquiries from the kings of the allied nations, questioning whether what Luo Ke said in the broadcast was true and whether there really was a king who had lived for eight hundred years.
The Five Elders categorically denied these claims, stating that everything Luo Ke said was a lie and a conspiracy on his part.
This man is undoubtedly associated with the Revolutionary Army, aiming to sow discord between the allied nations and the World Government, ultimately seeking to overthrow the World Government.
Therefore, they shouldn't fall for the enemy's plot.
Obviously, this answer couldn't completely put the minds of the kings of the allied nations at ease.
But the Five Elders had no other explanation to appease them. Besides, they hadn't admitted to this matter in the live broadcast. So far, everything was merely Luo Ke's unilateral statement.
They only needed to push this towards a conspiracy and lies.
They didn't need everyone to believe it; they just needed an answer. Once things settled down and passed, people would gradually forget about this matter with time.
Eight hundred years were enough to erase all traces. And Imu-sama's lifespan was far more than just eight hundred years.
Currently, the most crucial task was to deal with this guy, Luo Ke. They couldn't allow him to reveal any more information; otherwise, it would be challenging to clean up the aftermath.
...
The morale of the Marines was low, the royal nobles were angry at having been deceived, and the commoners were lamenting that the world was the same everywhere.
Meanwhile, the pirates were ecstatic about the exposure of this incident.
Nothing made them happier than seeing the World Government and the Marines suffer a blow.
And it seemed that the Five Elders had gotten themselves involved with Luo Ke.
This exposure of the people behind the Five Elders was just the beginning. The enmity between the two sides had only just started, and more incriminating evidence against the World Government would be uncovered in the future.
If it could make the World Government and the Marines suffer, then it would bring them joy.
Seeing the Five Elders' unpleasant expression in front of Luo Ke, they couldn't help but feel elated.
Celestial Dragons?
Admirals of the Marines?
So what? It didn't matter; they were still helpless.
Luo Ke had done what they had been thinking about for many years but didn't dare to do.
Just based on this matter, they were deeply impressed.
At the same time, they eagerly anticipated the revelation of more secrets about the World Government.
They were extremely curious about what secrets the World Government had been concealing all this time.
What plans had the Celestial Dragons been scheming for the past eight hundred years?
There was even a daring idea among the pirates: Should they go to Mariejois and cause a commotion like Luo Ke did? Not for anything else but for that secret of immortality. However, at the thought of the Marine Admirals, many people got cold feet.
...
Several days later, the turmoil caused by Luo Ke's revelations had still not subsided.
Meanwhile, in the New World, the Whitebeard Pirates encountered a group of pirates and seized a batch of spoils from them.
Among the loot, they discovered a Devil Fruit inside one of the boxes.
Devil Fruits were not uncommon in the New World, especially for pirate crews at the level of the Four Emperors.
According to their rules, whoever found a Devil Fruit was entitled to claim it for themselves. In this case, the fortunate individual who stumbled upon it was a crew member named Thatch.
As the crew celebrated Thatch's good fortune, they remained unaware of the intense gaze fixed upon the fruit in his hands. It was Blackbeard, whose eyes widened with a mixture of astonishment, longing, and avarice, ultimately transforming into a brewing malevolence.
However, Blackbeard quickly concealed his expression, joining the crew's jubilant atmosphere as he raised his drink and toasted to Thatch's luck.
The entire Whitebeard Pirates crew became engrossed in the joy and excitement brought about by their recent acquisition.
At this moment, none of the members of the Whitebeard Pirates realized that a significant event would unfold tonight, one that would change the fate of their crew.
After a few rounds of drinking, it was evening.
As the intoxicated crew members began to retire to their rooms, Thatch, with a flushed face and a drunken look in his eyes from Blackbeard's generous pouring of alcohol, greeted everyone before heading back to his room. He had the Devil Fruit he acquired draped around his waist.
Blackbeard stood up and offered to assist Thatch, stating that his brother had consumed quite a bit of alcohol and needed help getting some rest.
Blackbeard's action garnered praise from their fellow crewmates.
Blackbeard walked over to support Thatch and even volunteered to carry the box containing the Devil Fruit. However, Thatch declined with a smile, saying he was still too tipsy to handle it properly.
Observing this, Blackbeard's eyes revealed a glimmer of both desire and murderous intent. The closer he got to his target, the more excited he became.
He had been waiting for over twenty years on Whitebeard's ship, all for the sake of this Devil Fruit, and today it finally appeared.
Despite being turned down by Thatch, Blackbeard didn't insist and simply supported him back to the room.
Unaware of his brother's growing animosity, Thatch sat down on the bed, placing the box containing the Darkness Fruit on his lap. He opened the box and smiled at Blackbeard, saying, "Hey, Blackbeard, I've heard that Devil Fruits taste terrible, like eating feces. I wonder if it's really that bad. I also don't know what ability this Devil Fruit possesses. If it turns out to be a worthless power, it would be troublesome. Haha... Blackbeard, after I eat it, help me test it. If it's a good ability, I'll protect you as my brother, and in the future, I'll help you get one too."
With that, Thatch took the Darkness Fruit out of the box and absentmindedly wiped it on his clothes, preparing to take a bite.
However, he failed to notice that Blackbeard had silently approached him and had a dagger concealed in his sleeve.
Blackbeard watched as Thatch prepared to consume the Darkness Fruit, a glint of ruthlessness flickering in his eyes. He raised his hand, ready to kill and seize the fruit.
But what neither of them noticed was that at that moment, a barrier swiftly unfolded in the sky, enveloping the Moby Dick ship.
In these past few days, Luo Ke had been seeking an opportunity to conduct a quiz livestream, but he hadn't found the right moment.
Of course, he wasn't in a hurry because the influence of the previous quiz livestream was still ongoing. He could let the impact play out to its fullest.
However, the appearance of the Darkness Fruit immediately alerted him to the perfect opportunity.
And in the next second, whether it was the members of the Whitebeard Pirates inside the rooms or elsewhere on the ship, they were all transported to the deck.
In the mid-air above the Moby Dick, a bright rift slowly opened, forming a massive screen.
The sight of this scene made all the members of the Whitebeard Pirates realize what was happening.
The quiz livestream had started again!
This excited everyone, even sobering them up from their alcohol-induced haze.
Thatch halted his action of consuming the Devil Fruit and placed it back into the box. Blackbeard, who saw this, swiftly retracted the dagger hidden in his sleeve. He knew it was impossible to commit murder in front of so many people, let alone with Whitebeard, their father figure, present.
Blackbeard glanced at the box in Thatch's hands and concealed his eager gaze, patiently waiting for the quiz livestream to conclude.
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=> The day of studying in Hogwarts.
=> Marvel: All the famous scenes were exposed by me.
.....
(End of this chapter)