Stop! Who are you people?
As the Dragon Wolf approached Upper Yard (Apayado), a squad of God's guards appeared, blocking their way.
"Heso~" Fang Yi raised his right hand to his head in a strange gesture, then smiled.
"We're from the Blue Sea. We're friends of Gan Fall. We've come here specifically to seek his help. Please deliver the message for us!"
"Heso!" The captain of the guards immediately returned the salute, then said,
"So you're friends of God. Please wait here—we will announce your arrival."
"Alright, thanks for the trouble!" Fang Yi replied with a grin.
"Captain, what was that just now? Some kind of secret code?" Tiffany finally stepped forward, curiosity written all over her face.
"Haha, no secret code. 'Heso' is just how Sky Islanders greet each other. The gesture I made is sort of like a salute." Fang Yi explained.
"I see… though it does look pretty weird," Tiffany nodded thoughtfully.
Not long after, Gan Fall himself appeared, riding his strange bird—the one that had eaten the Horse-Horse Fruit.
"Yo~ Lord Gan Fall, long time no see!" Fang Yi greeted warmly.
"So it's you! For a moment, I thought Roger had come back to Skypiea!" Gan Fall laughed heartily upon seeing them.
"No, this time I've come as the captain." Fang Yi said with a smile.
"What? You've become a captain already? That's wonderful!" Gan Fall laughed as he led them toward his divine palace.
"Yeah…" Fang Yi nodded, briefly recounting what had happened to the Roger Pirates.
"What? You mean… Roger… he's dead?" Gan Fall's expression froze in shock when he heard that Roger had surrendered and been executed by the Marines.
"Mm. The Captain used his life to open a new era." Fang Yi's tone was firm, his gaze steady. "I believe this was his will."
"I see… Roger truly was a great man." Gan Fall sighed in admiration. "So, you've come here… is it to take away the Poneglyph?"
"No. I came mainly to ask about a place—Birka. Have you heard of it? I've heard there's a sky island by that name." Fang Yi shook his head.
"Birka?" Gan Fall's eyes widened slightly. "How do you know that name?"
"Oh? Is it strange for me to know?" Fang Yi asked with a small smile.
Gan Fall was silent for a moment before replying. "Yes, I know Birka. But I'd like to know—why are you looking for it?"
"Relax, I'm not planning to plunder it. I just heard there's a powerful man there, so I want to meet him." Fang Yi answered with a smile.
"A powerful man?" Gan Fall thought carefully, then shook his head. "I know Birka's 'God,' and he's not exactly strong in battle."
"Eh? Really? Could my intel be wrong? But they clearly said Birka… someone named Enel!" Fang Yi furrowed his brow deliberately.
"Enel? Who's that?" Gan Fall was stunned.
"I don't know either. I just heard he's in Birka." Fang Yi shrugged.
Gan Fall not knowing Enel was natural. After all, Enel would only destroy his home, Birka, sixteen years into the Great Pirate Era—long after this moment.
"In that case, I'll write you a letter. Take it to Birka's God—he'll help you search for this Enel." Gan Fall said after some thought.
Since Birka was some distance away, news didn't travel fast between the two islands. It was possible that recently, a man named Enel had appeared and made waves in the Blue Sea.
After receiving both the directions to Birka and Gan Fall's recommendation letter, Fang Yi smiled.
"By the way, would it be alright if I took some of Apayado's gold? As an exchange, I'll leave you some food from the Blue Sea."
"Those things aren't important. If you like, take as much as you want." Gan Fall waved it off casually.
"Right… is your war with the Shandians still going on?" Fang Yi asked as he was about to leave.
"Ah, yes. They've never given up on reclaiming this land. But we can't give it up either. So the only way left is war." Gan Fall admitted.
He hadn't yet reached the kind of resolve he would one day have. As the God of Skypiea, he had to put his people first. And on Skypiea, nothing was more precious than soil. They would never abandon it.
Fang Yi just shrugged. This was one of those things—unless both sides changed their hearts, his words were meaningless. And if he ended up taking the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, then without Enel's interference, this war would likely drag on even longer.
After saying goodbye to Gan Fall, Fang Yi led his companions out of the divine palace. Their next goal: search for gold within the city of ruins.
"Don't damage these ruins—they're important historical relics!" Fang Yi reminded them as they walked.
"Well, well… who would've thought our Captain respects history?" Tiffany teased, looking at him oddly.
"Not exactly. These ruins represent a glorious past—I just don't want to destroy them. That said, the gold is scattered. We'll need to search separately. Tiffany, you stick with me. Everyone else, regroup on the Dragon Wolf tomorrow morning. Any problems?" Fang Yi said with a shrug.
"No problem," Shanks and Barrett both shook their heads.
In truth, they weren't all that interested in gold. Who knew how much they'd even gather?
"Oh, Barrett—one more thing. There's a giant python in these ruins. They call it the 'Lord of the Sky.' Don't go killing it, alright?" Fang Yi was reminded suddenly.
He was worried the massive serpent might provoke Barrett, and Barrett's usual response to provocation was to eliminate it. Best to warn him first.
"Lord of the Sky? Is it strong?" Barrett tilted his head, eyes narrowing in interest.
Fang Yi rolled his eyes. "It's just a snake. You tell me—strong or not?"
Hearing that, Barrett immediately lost interest.
"Hissss—ROOOAAR!"
But at that moment, a thunderous roar echoed from the ruins, shaking the air. A colossal serpent stretched its massive body and howled at the sky.
"This… is the 'just a snake' you were talking about?" Tiffany said, face twitching.
"Cough, cough… Well, I didn't expect it to be this big…" Fang Yi scratched his nose awkwardly.
"Say… if we go searching for gold there, will it stop us?" Shanks asked, staring thoughtfully at the behemoth.
"Er… Just don't kill it, that's all!" Fang Yi muttered, stroking his chin.
Shanks and Barrett exchanged grins, then split off to hunt for gold.
"Captain, look! Real gold! Over here!" Tiffany shouted excitedly after a long walk, clutching a small golden piece she had found.
"The amount of gold here… seems much less than last time." Fang Yi frowned.
Sky Islanders didn't care about gold. Neither did the Shandians. So for hundreds of years, the gold had lain untouched. It shouldn't have decreased.
"Hissss—ROOOAAR!"
Again, the Lord of the Sky's roar echoed from the ruins.
That's when Fang Yi suddenly remembered—ah, right. The place with the most gold… was inside the serpent's belly.
"Come on, Tiffany—we're going to find that big snake!" Fang Yi waved her over.
"Coming, Captain!" Tiffany beamed. The idea of stumbling across gold lying on the ground fascinated her—it was like a dream.
Soon, following the sound, they came face-to-face with the colossal serpent.
"This beast must've lived for centuries… To grow this enormous…" Tiffany's eyes widened in awe.
"I'd wager it's swallowed a good bit of gold. Let's head into its belly and take a look!" Fang Yi said, eyes narrowing.
"Okay, got it—wait. WHAT did you just say, Captain?" Tiffany froze, staring at him in disbelief.
"I said we'll check its belly." Fang Yi replied calmly.
"But… didn't you say we shouldn't kill it?" Tiffany stammered.
"I never said kill. If it swallows us, we'll get inside just fine." Fang Yi answered matter-of-factly.
"Eh? Swallow… us?" Tiffany's jaw dropped.
"Of course! How else do we get in?" Fang Yi replied, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Gulp…" Tiffany swallowed nervously, then backed away.
"Uh, Captain… I just remembered something—I left the stove on back at the ship. I should… uh… go turn it off. You go ahead, I'll catch up!"
"No need to be scared—it'll be fine!" Fang Yi grabbed her as she tried to flee.
"Trust me, it's perfectly safe."
"Ahhh! Nooo! I don't want to get eaten!!" Tiffany screamed and thrashed wildly.
Her cries, of course, caught the attention of the Lord of the Sky.