"Ahhh! My head hurts so much!"
Inside the famous auction house, Rozward Saint, who had been acting perfectly normal, suddenly let out a pained scream in front of his numerous guards. He collapsed to the ground, shattering the bubble helmet on his head.
His aged face hit the ground with a dull thud.
"Lord… Lord Rozward Saint!"
This unexpected turn of events left all the guards in utter panic.
The CP agents rushed forward, attempting to stop Rozward from harming himself further.
Thud!
Suddenly, another heavier sound echoed from behind.
Charlia Palace, clutching her head, smashed her face onto the armrest of her chair, causing blood to spill from her face.
Her once delicate and beautiful features now had a collapsed nose bridge, demonstrating how hard she had struck herself.
"No! Charlia Palace! Stop!"
The guards, pale-faced, scrambled to restrain her.
Thud!
Yet another sound rang out. Stunned for a moment, Charlos Saint, seemingly affected by the same "pain" in his head, screamed and headbutted a guard's armor in front of him.
Charlos struck with even more force, as if trying to end his own life in one blow.
His grotesque, swollen face was instantly slashed by the guard's armor, covered in blood.
The three of them began violently smashing their heads against whatever was nearby, their actions erratic and aggressive.
"Lord Rozward Saint, Charlos Saint, Charlia Palace! What's happening to you? Please stop!"
The guards, now in utter chaos, desperately tried to hold the three back, preventing further self-harm.
But in the brief chaos, all three noble Celestial Dragons were left bleeding profusely from their heads and faces.
"Why is this happening? Could it be the work of Dark King Rayleigh?"
The CP leader voiced his frustration and confusion.
However, no one could provide him an answer.
All that was visible was Rozward Saint and his family rolling their eyes back and fainting simultaneously.
"Hurry! Get the three of them back to Mary Geoise immediately!"
Seeing this scene, the guards panicked completely, cautiously lifting the three fallen Celestial Dragons and rushing out of the auction house.
...
Several hundred meters away from Auction Hall No. 1, atop the massive red tree marked "No. 1," three figures—Rosha, Law, and Hibari—suddenly opened their eyes and sat upright.
"If you hadn't told me not to make them actually kill themselves because it would mess with the ability, I swear I'd have smashed Rozward's head right into the floor of Doflamingo's auction house. It would've been great to pin the blame for the deaths of the Rozward family on him."
Rosha shook his slightly drained head, glancing at the visibly more exhausted Law and Hibari.
"You two okay? Why are you so quiet?"
Law's face was pale as a sheet, his chest heaving as if even speaking required too much effort.
After taking a few deep breaths, he weakly shook his head. "In the Chaos Space ability, if anyone dies, their mind immediately returns to their original body. At that point, the original body already has a mind in it. I don't know what happens when two separate minds coexist in the same body."
"Two minds in one body?"
Rosha scratched his head.
"Maybe they'd go insane."
"Or maybe…" He paused, grinning slyly. "They'd get to eat a second Devil Fruit."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
Law's forehead creased with a giant question mark.
"Nothing, just messing around." Rosha waved his hand dismissively, standing up and grabbing the weary Hibari and Law.
At the same time, an air current swirled around him, wrapping up the three other captured pirates nearby, propelling them toward the No. 40 Tree District at increasing speed.
"What happens next doesn't involve you. Hibari, Law, listen to me carefully. Once we get to the No. 40 Tree District, stay by the shore. Don't go anywhere. Wait for Tashigi to arrive."
While flying swiftly through the air, Rosha gave instructions in a calm but firm voice.
Hearing this, Hibari and Law, initially worn out, were struck with a jolt of realization.
Law shouted, his tone trembling slightly, "Rosha! What are you planning? Don't do anything reckless!"
"Big Brother Rosha, are you thinking of…? No! If anything happens to the Celestial Dragons, the World Government will explode with rage!"
Hibari spoke in an anxious voice.
"Don't try to stop me. I've thought through all the consequences." Rosha's eyes glimmered with resolve. "Only by doing this will the Grand Line, centered around the Sabaody Archipelago, experience a complete transformation. The almighty Celestial Dragons need to bleed before they relinquish more power to us in the Navy."
"Don't be foolish! Killing off a few of those disgusting bastards won't change anything. It'll only cost you your life!"
Law's voice trembled with emotion.
"Are you an idiot? Didn't I tell you before? This world won't change just because you kill off a few spoiled brats! Rosha, get a grip! You have a greater future ahead of you—there's no need to throw it all away because of some fleeting impulse!"
"This isn't a fleeting impulse!"
Rosha's expression grew unusually serious as he looked at his two friends, whom he held tightly.
"It's not a spur-of-the-moment decision, Law, Hibari. Tell me this: after experiencing the Celestial Dragons' lives firsthand, what do you think of them as a group?"
"This isn't the time for questions! You're staying with us in the No. 40 Tree District and not going anywhere!" Law's voice grew stern.
"Answer me! I want to know your thoughts on the Celestial Dragons. I asked the same thing of Rayleigh before."
Rosha adjusted his grip, using a gust of air to toss the captured pirates into a nearby inland river, letting them sink into the water one by one.
Hibari, still in Rosha's left arm, stared at his resolute side profile. Her lips quivered as tears welled up in her eyes.
"I think… I think the Celestial Dragons as a group are rotten to the core. They need to be uprooted completely."
"Good. What else?" Rosha encouraged her to continue.
"Big Brother Rosha, Law, I think you both saw it too—on our way here, the guards, the commoners, the nobles, the merchants, even the slave traders—how they all treated us."
"There was fear, envy, desire, flattery…"
"But not a shred of respect, admiration, trust, or joy."
As she spoke, Hibari thought back to the red-haired girl who had died before her very eyes.
That girl had chosen death rather than be saved by Charlos.
Her unyielding resolve had left a deep impression on Hibari's young heart.
"Such rulers have no right to exist. Under their rule, no one can ever be happy. In the eyes of the Celestial Dragons, we're nothing but pigs, ants, trash… slaves."
"Well said, Hibari! You've seen through it clearly. Great job."
Rosha nodded approvingly.
He then turned to Law. "And you? Do you see it differently?"
"The Celestial Dragons are indeed disgusting," Law said solemnly. "But even as repulsive, useless creatures, no one dares to stand up to them. That's the real issue here."
"The incompetent guards would rather kneel and wait to die than attempt to run."
"The kneeling people from all walks of life didn't utter a single word of complaint, even when you insulted them to their faces."
"That so-called legendary pirate, Dark King Rayleigh, knelt when forced and didn't dare to kill you."
"It can be seen that no matter how arrogant or incompetent the Celestial Dragons are, the vast majority of people in this world will always harbor fear in their hearts towards them."
"This fear has been deeply engraved in their bones and has become instinct."
"Perhaps only a child who has never experienced the world, like that Nisha, or a complete fool, would dare to resist them."
"This is the fundamental reason why this world has never been able to change."
After listening to Luo's words, Luo Xia fell into deep thought for a long time and then nodded in agreement.
"Luo, you've got a deep insight. You've all seen the essence of the problem, haha, I have a question…"
"Do you know when the last great bloodshed incident involving the Celestial Dragons occurred?"
Luo raised an eyebrow, "Are you talking about the time when Doflamingo killed his father?"
"Of course not. Why are you still thinking about that guy Doflamingo? Didn't you enjoy hearing him call me 'godfather' just now?"
Luo Xia couldn't help but smile.
Luo smiled as well, "It was indeed quite satisfying, but it's a shame we couldn't let him know the truth. Otherwise, I'd love to see what expression he'd have."
"Enough with that. I played a little trick too, making him send people to solve the problem. Hehe, by then, he'll probably lose another capable subordinate. He wouldn't want to know what will happen in the next few days in this beautiful place, Sabaody."
A cold smile appeared on Luo Xia's face. "Don't talk about sending the highest-ranking officials. Even if he comes in person, he'll still be skinned alive!"
"Big Brother Luo Xia, I might know the answer to the question you asked."
Suddenly, a soft voice came from behind.
"Oh? You know, Yunke?" Luo Xia looked at her with a smile.
Seeing that both Luo Xia and Luo were looking at her, Yunke blushed slightly.
"You must be referring to the God Valley Incident that happened 32 years ago."
"God Valley Incident? What's that?" Luo asked, curious.
"It's normal that you don't know about that major event," Yunke said, hugging Luo Xia's left arm, and continued, "After all, the matter involved so much that any part of it being exposed could cause a huge uproar."
"About 32 years ago, before the end of the old era, a super criminal named Rocks D. Xebec brazenly attacked the Végalan family, one of the nineteen Celestial Dragon families, triggering the most brutal God's Bloodshed incident in history."
"Although it's unclear how many Celestial Dragons died in that attack…"
"Just from the forces that participated in the battle, one can get an idea of how serious the situation was."
"The forces involved included the Navy, led by Grandpa Garp, Pirate King Roger, and the God Knights, known as the Shield of the Celestial Dragons. Together, they fought against the most powerful and violent pirate group in history, the Rocks Pirates."
"After that battle, the island where God Valley was located was completely destroyed and disappeared from the map."
Luo's face showed a strong sense of shock, but there was also some confusion.
"Even Hero Garp and Pirate King Roger participated in the battle? And what exactly is this Rocks Pirate Group? How could they be so powerful?"
"In fact, Grandpa Garp is called a hero because he successfully blocked the attack of the Rocks Pirates during that battle."
"As for the Rocks Pirates…"
Yunke took a deep breath. "Before Pirate King Roger, they were the most powerful pirate group on the seas. I don't know exactly how powerful they were, but many of the famous big pirates who later made their names all came from the collapse of the Rocks Pirates."
"Like the Four Emperors Whitebeard, Edward Newgate."
"Flying Pirate Crew Captain, Gold Lion Shiki."
"Beasts Pirates Captain, Kaido."
"Big Mom, Charlotte Linlin."
"Great Pirate King Shiki."
"And many more, big pirates who could scare anyone just by mentioning their names."
Luo was completely stunned by Yunke's words.
So many powerful pirates, any one of them could easily defeat Doflamingo, whom he considered his lifelong enemy.
If the Rocks Pirates hadn't disbanded, what would have happened to Roger?
"Alright, back to the point." Luo Xia cleared his throat, pulling their attention back.
"Yunke is right. The incident 32 years ago gave the high and mighty Celestial Dragons a painful lesson and triggered a world-changing transformation."
"The massive Rocks Pirates were struck, reshuffled, and disbanded."
"As a result, the Navy rose, training batch after batch of elite sailors."
"More than thirty years later, Pirate King Roger triggered the Great Pirate Era, causing pirates to go rampant again."
"Meanwhile, the Navy has made almost no significant progress over the past two decades. In the fight against pirates, we even had to establish something like the Seven Warlords of the Sea, a legalized pirate system, to strengthen the opposition and counterbalance other pirate forces."
"This is just ridiculous."
Luo Xia shook his head. "If pirates were united, they could have turned the tables on us. After using us to strengthen themselves, they would have rejoined the big pirates of the New World, and all our actions would have simply aided the enemy."
"Over the years, pirate forces have grown stronger, the Revolutionary Army is lighting fires in all four seas, and only our Navy is living off the past, relying on the old generation of strong men to uphold the banner of justice."
His eyes gleamed with a sharp light.
"It's time for a change, to put an emergency stop to this increasingly flourishing Great Pirate Era!"
"To give the high and mighty gods, who have forgotten the pain after healing their scars, a lesson they'll never forget. Let them know that only a strong Navy can provide them with a sense of security."
"Let those pirates see…"
"Who!"
"Is the true master of this era!"
(End of Chapter)
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