"Who do you think you are? Ordering us to kill each other?"
"You little brat—when I was ruling the seas, you were still in diapers!"
"If I hadn't been locked in Impel Down for years, I'd crush you with one finger!"
Several Level 6 prisoners continued shouting.
Before their insults could finish, black tendrils coiled around their bodies.
They screamed.
The darkness tightened.
In seconds, their flesh withered. Their vitality was stripped away completely, leaving only dry bones that collapsed onto the floor.
Silence followed.
Xiao flicked his wrist casually. The drained life force was cast into the soil of the Dimension Farm.
Moments later, brilliant Sun Sails bloomed across the field.
From each flower, a crystal formed—clear at first, then slowly glowing.
Xiao plucked one and held it up.
The moment it left the branch, it began absorbing ambient stellar energy. Its color shifted from transparent to radiant gold, like a miniature sun captured in crystal.
He weighed it in his palm.
The naturally grown Arcturus crystal was leagues beyond the artificial versions produced elsewhere. The energy density was overwhelming.
"A good harvest," he said calmly.
He closed his hand around it and looked back at the remaining prisoners.
"Anyone else have objections?"
The answer came not in words—but in action.
They turned on each other.
Blades rose. Blood splattered.
The dark tendrils around them tightened into a cage, absorbing the energy released as they fought. Strangely, the surrounding carpets and walls remained untouched, as if the violence existed in a sealed space.
Hours passed.
By evening, only three remained standing.
Catarina Devon.
Avalo Pizarro.
Vasco Shot.
They were battered and exhausted—but alive.
Xiao gestured to the chairs prepared for them.
They sat without hesitation and began devouring the feast set before them. The food was exquisite—rare Sea King meat, fine wine, dishes prepared by the best chefs Xiao had gathered.
Xiao cut into his steak slowly.
"Your next task," he said evenly, "is to conquer Amazon Lily."
The three froze briefly.
"Complete it, and you'll become official members."
They understood the rest without being told.
Failure meant death.
"Yes, sir."
Xiao then turned to Laffitte and the others.
"You will take Shiryu and move against the territory of the Whitebeard Pirates."
He paused.
"And teach him something useful. Slaughtering the weak isn't strength."
Laffitte smiled faintly. "Understood."
The feast resumed.
Wine flowed freely. The pirates indulged themselves, laughing and shouting until late into the night.
When the hall finally emptied, drunken bodies were left wherever they had fallen. With physiques like theirs, a hangover would be the least of their problems.
Later, Xiao returned to his chambers.
After washing away the smell of blood and wine, he resumed his original appearance.
He knew very well that this marriage alliance would never have succeeded if he looked like a brute.
Roxxane valued beauty far more than she admitted.
He pushed open her bedroom door.
She immediately looked up, irritation flashing across her golden eyes.
"Inferior human! Who allowed you in?"
"You male pig, can't you rest for one night?"
"What did I do wrong? I did nothing wrong!"
"You should be the one apologizing!"
Her stubborn voice echoed through the room.
The maids outside exchanged glances and quietly stepped further away.
Xiao walked in calmly and closed the door behind him.
"You spoke quite boldly today," he said.
She lifted her chin defiantly.
"And?"
He stepped closer.
She didn't retreat—but her breathing changed slightly.
"I'll kill you—help! Someone—"
Her protest dissolved into half-finished words.
Outside, the maids sighed softly.
Roxxane was intelligent, proud, and strong-willed.
But she never quite learned when to stop provoking him.
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