Om was leading his men as they cleaned up the battlefield when he suddenly looked out over the sea.
At the edge of the horizon, a ship was slowly approaching.
A very large ship.
As it drew closer, Om frowned.
Who were these people?
There was no pirate flag flying, but that ship practically radiated pirate energy.
If White Ghost heard that, he'd probably kick him. Which eye of yours says we look like pirates?
"Captain, this group doesn't look simple. Could they be pirates who took down their flag and disguised themselves?" one of the soldiers beside him asked with a grave expression as he stared at the ship.
"Yeah, that's possible." Om nodded. Pirates were always full of tricks.
"Everyone, stay alert. Don't lower your guard."
"Yes, sir!"
The other soldiers immediately entered combat readiness.
They couldn't help it—there were too many precedents. Pirates often disguised themselves as merchant groups and the like.
If it had looked like an ordinary ship, they wouldn't have been this tense.
But pirate ships always looked overbearing and flashy.
And the Dragon Emperor fit that image perfectly.
After all, with Franky's constant upgrades, the entire Dragon Emperor was now covered in memory alloy.
The ship's firepower system was even more outrageous. It already had electromagnetic cannons installed. If not for limited power supply, Franky would've wanted to add several more.
And many of the firearm blueprints White Ghost had given him had already been turned into reality.
The most ridiculous of them all was the grenade launcher.
If everyone on the ship had one and opened fire all at once, could you imagine the scene?
Ordinary pirates simply wouldn't stand a chance.
As the Dragon Emperor neared the harbor, a wave of pressure descended at once.
Om and the others turned red in the face, gritting their teeth as they stared at the ship.
"Quick! Go get that unit! This ship isn't something we can handle!" Om hurriedly grabbed a soldier and shouted.
"Yes, sir! I-I'm going right now!"
The soldier stumbled away, legs weak and hands trembling as he ran.
The ordinary civilians, though they knew something serious was happening, didn't flee.
Instead, they all stayed at a distance to watch the excitement.
"Heh heh heh." A middle-aged man in the crowd looked ahead and said, "No matter how strong they are, once the Iron Armor Unit arrives, they'll all behave."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
In their hearts, the Iron Armor Unit was an undefeated divine army.
They had never once suffered defeat.
The soldier staggered all the way to the elven garrison. Before he could get close, two bows were aimed directly at him.
"Stop. You are not permitted to approach this place."
The soldier hurriedly raised both hands.
"I-It was Captain Om who sent me to notify you. A group has arrived at the harbor. Very strong people."
The elf guard at the entrance looked at him with open disdain.
"Humans are useless. They come running to us over every little thing."
The elf lowered his weapon.
"I'll head over immediately. You can leave."
"Yes! Yes, of course!"
The soldier turned and ran at once.
At the harbor, he had only felt fear. His life might still not be in immediate danger.
But here?
Here, death could come at any moment.
He had no interest in dying young. He still had a beautiful wife waiting for him at home.
Before long, Leonardo set out with his unit.
As they walked, Arya kept muttering under her breath, "A bunch of trash. They call for us over the tiniest thing."
Leonardo shot his little sister a glare, and only then did Arya stop complaining and follow the unit properly.
Only after that did Leonardo retract his gaze in satisfaction.
The elves placed great importance on promises.
Unlike humans, who excelled at saying one thing and doing another.
As the elven unit arrived, the civilians who had been waiting around began cheering.
"My lord, defeat those bad people!" a rather pretty young woman shouted at Leonardo, who led the unit.
Even though she couldn't see his face, that didn't stop her imagination.
More and more people started cheering.
But beneath his mask, Leonardo's expression had become extremely ugly.
The moment he got close, he sensed that oppressive pressure.
Then, when he swept the ship with Observation Haki, his heart immediately sank halfway.
The auras on that ship were one stronger than the next.
Several of them were even stronger than his own.
And then there was one particular person…
The moment Leonardo's Observation Haki touched that individual, he felt an overwhelmingly powerful force.
That terrifying pressure was clearly coming from him.
Leonardo walked over to Om.
"What's going on?"
His tone was unpleasant, because nothing had actually happened here yet.
Officer Om's face was pale as he stammered, "I-I'm not sure either. It's just… this group is obviously here with bad intentions."
Leonardo's face blackened under the mask.
You don't even know what's happening, and you called us here?
It's just a ship carrying powerful people!
Leonardo couldn't be bothered with this idiot anymore. He turned to look at the golden dragon ship as it slowly docked and dropped anchor. A staircase extended from its side automatically and connected to the shore.
Looking at the design of the ship, Leonardo felt it was strangely familiar.
Especially that dragon head on the bow.
He was sure he had seen it somewhere before.
He just couldn't remember where.
The elves all readied their weapons.
Their natural senses were extremely sharp, and every one of them could tell that the people on this ship were no ordinary group.
Buzz—
Suddenly, the pressure vanished.
Everyone's breathing became much easier all at once.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Footsteps rang out.
A moment later, the people below saw a man appear at the side of the ship.
That man wore a smile—a smile that practically said I'm a good person.
He had handsome features, thick brows, and a smile that somehow made him seem even more dangerous.
White Ghost looked at the crowd below, who were all standing on guard, and said with a faint smile, "So this is how the Kingdom of Spirit Wings welcomes its guests?"
Leonardo stared at the familiar-faced man and frowned before answering, "The Kingdom of Spirit Wings naturally welcomes guests from afar. The only question is whether this guest is good or evil."
White Ghost shook his head with a bitter smile and turned to Ilena.
"Do I really not look like a good person?"
Ilena covered her mouth and laughed.
"If you were a good person, then how did I end up on your ship?"
Hahaha!
White Ghost burst into laughter.
Thinking back on all the things he'd done in the past, he really didn't seem like a good person after all.
He waved a hand.
"Whether I'm good or evil, you can decide that yourselves.
"I came here for one reason only—to purchase supplies.
"I've heard this country is a major grain producer. Don't disappoint me."
Arya glanced at the newspaper in her hand, then back at White Ghost on the ship. Cautiously, she passed it to her brother.
Leonardo had been somewhat irritated—at a time like this, what was the point of looking at a newspaper?
But Arya's finger pointed at one of the photos.
Leonardo looked down—
Then abruptly looked up at White Ghost.
He slowly said, "The strongest creature… Dragon Emperor… Golden Dragon Emperor White Ghost!"
The corners of White Ghost's lips rose.
"You recognize me now? So… are you still planning to block our way?"
Leonardo gestured for his people to stand down.
After all, there had never been any news of this man rampaging through random countries without reason.
The people behind him saw the signal, lowered their weapons, and moved aside.
Om let out a long breath of relief, inwardly thanking the heavens that these weren't enemies.
But then—
Hadn't he just heard the title strongest creature, Dragon Emperor?
That was a world-famous big shot!
And hadn't he heard that Soul King Brook and the Soul Diva Uta were both on this man's ship?
"Wait!"
Something suddenly clicked in Om's mind.
He looked again at the man's face, and it slowly matched the one from the newspaper he had seen some time ago.
Om's eyes bulged.
"Y-y-y-y-you… You're the strongest creature of sea, land, and air—Dragon Emperor White Ghost?!"
[Note: all the chapters in P@treon will be updated shortly]
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