Three days later.
On a nearby deserted island.
Shamrock was drenched in blood, his one arm hanging limp and his Cerberus-shaped sword slowly sheathed.
His gaze lingered on the unconscious Big Mom lying before him.
"Formidable Haki, a top-tier Paramecia Devil Fruit, plus an almost inhuman physique..."
"Truly worthy of the title emperor of the sea, but it seems that I am better after all."
As he spoke, several figures landed beside Shamrock, with a bit of unwillingness on their faces.
"Those two escaped."
"It's not a big deal."
Shamrock waved his hand, lowered his eyes, looked at the unconscious Big Mom, and said: "Now the power of the Soul-Soul Fruit has been acquired, so the only thing we lack is the bones and the heart."
"According to the information sent back by the CP organization, the heart is still in the hand of a woman from the Britannia."
"Britannia?!"
A tall member of the God's Knights showed a lingering fear: "The people in that place are a bit weird, the existence of the crusaders, each of them is a fearless lunatic. If it weren't for that certain guy, we would have..."
"In short, don't go to that place if you can avoid it."
Halfway through, he couldn't help turning his head to look at Shamrock: "It's just that I don't understand why the commander is pursuing that legend so hard. Even if his life is about to end and he longs for eternal life, the Op-Op Fruit is a better choice."
"Even if it's the worst choice..."
After speaking, the tall member of the God's Knights noticed Shamrock's cold eyes and his complaints were swallowed back directly.
The God's Knights are the most mysterious and powerful force in Mary Geoise.
However, few people know that nearly half of the members of the God's Knights are not descendants of the nineteen royal families.
Rather, they were absorbed by Mary Geoise and obtained the identity of Celestial Dragons because of their outstanding talents or special abilities.
Unlike the 19 royal families in Mary Geoise today, they have no power to rely on. They are tools that completely obey Imu and are the butcher's sword hanging over the heads of other Celestial Dragons.
This identity not only gives them privileges beyond ordinary Celestial Dragons but also makes them have many enemies within Mary Geoise, and they are more loyal to Imu because that is their only support.
But Shamrock is different. He is one of the 19 royal families and even the heir of the Figarland family, who is second only to the family behind the Five Elders at present.
At the same time, he is also the deputy commander of the God's Knights, and his combat power is so strong that he can defeat Big Mom.
With the addition of two identities, ordinary Celestial Dragons have to bow or even kneel to salute him when they see him.
However, he is not overly harsh with his low-born subordinates and says slowly: "The Op-Op Fruit is still in the wild. Even if we find it, we must wait for the next user to awaken its power. Performing the Perennial Youth Operation could take years or even decades."
"Keith, you should know that the captain does not have that much time. What the captain wants is not just ordinary immortality."
"In any case..."
"As long as this mission is completed, everything you desire will be answered."
"I understand."
The tall member of the god knight, that is, Keith, nodded subconsciously.
There was a trace of barely perceptible excitement in his eyes, but his face darkened the next moment: "The woman from Britannia can be the final target. The real trouble right now is White Knight Gawain."
"He even defeated Golden Lion. The red dragon fruit that was supposed to be allocated has now been eaten by White Knight Gawain."
"With the combination of the two, if we want to snatch people from him, it may not be enough to rely on our strength alone."
Shamrock nodded, but his face did not change at all. Obviously, he had expected such a situation. "Keith has already performed divination before."
"Very soon, Britannia's legend will resurface, and Gawain and his crew will surely appear there."
"We only need to get there early and wait."
"Besides..."
Shamrock raised his hand to wipe the blood off his face, and his expression was a little playful for a while: "Hasn't that idiot in the Holy Church always wanted to enter Mary Geoise and become a Celestial Dragon?!"
"Then we might as well give him this opportunity."
Keith was stunned: "But we don't have such authority!"
"Who knows?!"
"Heh…"
The sarcastic chuckle echoed on the sea, and even the seagulls flying over the water seemed to be frightened. They flew high and were swallowed by a Sea King who jumped out of the water.
… … ...
Half a month later.
Alabasta, Nanohana city.
This city, which was completely destroyed by the battle between Gawain and Golden Lion, has restored some of its original appearance.
Countless workers shuttled back and forth at the docks, cooperating with each other to rebuild or repair the buildings in the harbor. The shadow left by the battle seemed to have completely passed.
But the two criss-crossing rivers in the harbor still reminded people of the battle that took place here from time to time.
"It is said that these two canals were left by a battle that took place here. That person just raised his hand and could make the earth roll and the sea flow back..."
A thin but energetic old man sat in the corner, puffing smoke from his mouth.
He vividly told the people around him about the outrageous rumors, which unsurprisingly caused a burst of laughter.
"You're just bragging. How could a human being really do such a thing? You must have heard this legend from somewhere!"
"That's right, that's right. Don't bully us outsiders who don't know what's going on here."
"Hahaha!"
"Who says it's not true!"
The old man grew anxious seeing their disbelief: "I saw it with my own eyes!"
"Just months ago in Alubarna, sandstorms occurred almost every day. Normal sandstorms don't come that regularly!"
"Rumors said it was because two great figures were training and fighting there!"
His face flushed as he stood up, gesturing wildly and arguing passionately.
This only brought more ridicule from the crowd.
Suddenly, the surrounding noise fell completely silent.
The old man was confused about what happened, and he looked up.
What he saw was a familiar skull flag with a round shield as the base and the figure standing on the deck who made him tremble with excitement.
"That's him!"
"One of the parties involved in that battle was that man, and the other was said to be a certain admiral in the Marines!"
There was silence all around.
Only eyes full of awe looked at Gawain and his group in the distance.
They didn't know whether the old man was bragging or something else.
But what they knew was.
If that man was one of the fighters, then altering the skies with the shockwaves from battle alone was easy for him.
"That's White Knight Gawain! One of the Warlords authorized by the World Government!"
"And... the hero who defeated Crocodile and saved Alabasta!"
Bang!
The freighter stopped.
Gawain led his crew down the gangway, joining Robin, who had come to meet them and headed toward the central manor.
Lucci left alone after the banquet half a month ago; he was going to return to the World Government and become the eyes of the White Knight Pirate.
Kuro and Gin had expected this, so they did not ask any more questions.
On the contrary, Zoro and Law were somewhat unwilling.
After all, the number 3 coin was still in Lucci's hands, and that was their goal.
Now that Lucci had left, the two did not show any intention of stopping; instead, they became even more competitive.
This also led to the obvious growth of the two's strength in just half a month.
Gawain was naturally happy to hear about this.
Now that his combat strength had reached the level of the four emperors, the sense of urgency in him had lessened, but his swordsmanship and fighting spirit had not declined in the slightest. Instead, they had become even purer.