After hanging up the call, Wang Jue frowned in opposition.
"Us going to find them? Hmph, even though they've formed a four-crew Pirate Crew Alliance, their combined strength might not surpass ours. They should be the ones coming to us."
Yang Luo sighed helplessly. "There's no choice. If even you barely believe what I'm saying, how can we expect them to?"
Ba Ye looked serious as he asked, "Are we really going to seek them out? The journey is quite long—it'll waste a lot of time."
Yang Luo exhaled deeply. "Even if it slows our progress, we must unite. This is our chance. If we wait any longer, it'll only get harder."
Wang Jue scowled. "You're being overly paranoid."
"I'm just considering the possibilities. Put yourself in their shoes—what if I'm right? How will you deal with Ye Yu later?"
This left Wang Jue momentarily speechless. With the current power gap—and the likelihood of it persisting—it would indeed be difficult to handle.
In the end, they had no choice but to seek out Lin Muxue and the others.
Meanwhile, Ye Yu remained unaware of these developments, though he had his suspicions—and his guesses turned out to be correct.
The voyage continued. In this world, conflicts between Pirate Crews were rare, though skirmishes over Treasure Drop Points had become more frequent than before.
With the Ranking Realm approaching, everyone sought to improve as much as possible to secure a higher position.
Lin Muxue kept a close watch on the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew, observing whether Ye Yu remained as formidable as before. Deep down, she was certain he was only growing weaker.
Unbeknownst to her, fourteen days passed. The Arena Duel was now only half a day away, while the two Ranking Realms would begin in a day.
Lin Muxue grinned in excitement. "Finally, the time has come. The Arena Duel is about to begin. Ye Yu, I've already surpassed you. This time, I'll defeat you, gain the most experience, and claim the top spot on the Bounty List."
However, she realized she still couldn't defeat Wang Quanshi. But she believed that after defeating Ye Yu, the significant boost she'd gain would be enough to overcome him.
For now, Wang Quanshi remained the strongest among the four of them.
Lin Muxue turned to her scout. "What have you found? Has the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew shown any signs of decline? Has Ye Yu's strength weakened?"
Over ten days ago, she had ordered scouts and informants to observe them closely. Given that their four Pirate Crews controlled numerous territories, each with its own people, they could monitor the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew's movements whenever they passed through.
If a powerful Sea Beast appeared, a battle would inevitably ensue. If they landed on an island and encountered treasure chests, conflict would arise—and through these fights, their current state could be assessed.
The scout's expression darkened as he shook his head. "It's unclear. After your orders, we intensified our surveillance, but it's been difficult. Whenever the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew engages in battle, they drive away nearby Pirate Crews. If they're close to an island, they use Conqueror's Haki to make observation impossible. Or Zhao Yan'er engulfs the sea in flames, creating steam to obscure visibility. It's nearly impossible to observe them."
Jin Mo frowned. "It seems they're deliberately preventing others from seeing their progress during this time."
Wang Quanshi's voice was grave. "In that case, we have no way of knowing their current state."
Lin Muxue, however, remained unconcerned. She scoffed dismissively.
"Hmph, he's definitely not in his prime anymore. Fourteen days is quite a long time—we've already reached level 39, improved our strength significantly, and developed our Devil Fruit abilities further. Ye Yu is no match for us now. His refusal to let others observe him is just a cover to hide his weakening state, but it's useless. No matter how he tries to conceal it, he can't change the fact that he's growing weaker."
Jin Mo agreed: "Even if Ye Yu is also level 39, in a one-on-one fight, he probably wouldn't be my opponent anymore."
However, Wang Quanshi felt uneasy and worried.
"As my level increased, my strength improved greatly, but I think Kaido's inherent power is formidable. If Ye Yu's seven companions are all that strong... then perhaps what Yang Luo said might be true."
Wang Quanshi was well aware of his own strength—his current power wasn't solely due to his Devil Fruit. The inheritance of Kaido's innate abilities played a significant role.
Song Ling felt the same way. She had initially thought her own strength wasn't a major factor, but she soon realized Charlotte Linlin's inherent power was extraordinary, especially her physique, which had greatly enhanced Song Ling's own defense and strength.
Thus, she too grew concerned and solemn.
"Could Yang Luo's words actually be true?"
Lin Muxue frowned, unwilling to accept this possibility. If it were true, she would undoubtedly lose to Ye Yu.
Jin Mo corrected her: "It's not the same. The power we inherited undoubtedly surpasses Ye Yu's. The top-tier Ability Users in the Pirate King's world were inherently the strongest. Even if Ye Yu has seven companions, they can't compare to a single Golden Lion."
Wang Quanshi considered this plausible—when it came to innate strength, the top-tier Ability Users were indeed superior.
Jin Mo asked, "Where are Yang Luo and the others now?"
Wang Quanshi sighed. "They won't arrive for another two days. They won't make it in time to eliminate Ye Yu before the Ranking Realm."
Jin Mo was furious. "The main issue is that he didn't prioritize speeding up their journey. Instead, he kept stopping to search for treasure and deal with Sea Beasts. If they had abandoned those distractions, they'd be here by now."
Yang Luo had justified his actions by arguing that neglecting these opportunities would weaken their alliance's chances of defeating Ye Yu with certainty. But now, he regretted his decision. Though he hadn't wanted to slow their progress, they still couldn't make it in time.
Originally, he had believed they would arrive on schedule, but he had underestimated the dangers of the sea—unexpected incidents and harsh weather had delayed them.
Ba Ye asked, "What do we do now?"
Yang Luo sighed. "We'll have to deal with it after the Ranking Realm. And we should warn Lin Muxue and the others—the four Pirate Crews must enter as an alliance. We can't let the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew become the One King Pirates. At most, they can be one of the Four Emperors."
Wang Jue nodded. "Agreed. With our four crews united, we're confident we can claim the title of One King Pirates, leaving them in second place."
Meanwhile, Lin Muxue received Yang Luo's message and scoffed.
"Hmph, so worried? The Dominant Feather Pirate Crew will never become the One King."
Yang Jin voiced his concern. "What if Ye Yu isn't as weak as we think and remains formidable? Then it's possible. That's why our four Pirate Crews should form an alliance. Even if the rewards are split more ways due to our numbers, it's better than letting the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew take first place."
Lin Muxue sneered. "Hmph, so you're worried too? Where's your confidence?"
Song Ling crossed her arms, brimming with assurance. "I'm not concerned at all."
Wang Quanshi said arrogantly, "I'm not worried either. I feel my strength has grown significantly—not because Non-Ability Users have great potential, but definitely because Kaido is special. Since Kaido is the strongest in one-on-one combat, his personal strength is also the greatest. That's why my own power has improved so much. It absolutely isn't because Non-Ability Users have high potential."
At first, he thought inheriting Kaido's personal strength felt like a massive boost. He worried that if the top-tier Non-Ability User powerhouses in the pirate world had strength comparable to Kaido's, then Ye Yu, who had contracted seven of them, would be an absolutely terrifying existence.
But now, he was convinced it was simply because Kaido was monstrously strong. Even if the seven contracted by Ye Yu joined forces, they still wouldn't be a match for Kaido.
Jin Mo said, "Here's what we'll do—let's see the outcome of Lin Muxue's Arena Duel. If she wins before the Ranking Realm, then there's no need to worry or form an alliance. But if she loses, it means the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew is still quite formidable, and the four of us should ally for the Mystic Realm."
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