Caesar's fear was gradually turning into loyalty.
To enhance the effect of fear, Chu Yang made Caesar watch the entire process of Judge's mind being tormented by illusions.
Caesar trembled as he watched until the end, when Chu Yang used the Imperius Curse to control his mind.
After all this was done, Caesar had already knelt down in sincere submission, his forehead pressed firmly against the ground.
His devout appearance was like that of a fanatical worshiper.
At this point, Chu Yang's objectives for this trip were all achieved; he had gained Caesar and Judge, and also acquired the Germa Kingdom, which was once the overlord of the North Blue.
Judge's four children were inherently valuable.
The clone soldiers, however, were expendable; these individuals lacked independent thought, their combat power was average, and at best, they were just moving toys, far inferior to the Shadow Clone Jutsu.
It would take over a month for the Germa Kingdom to return from the North Blue to the Grand Line, and Chu Yang didn't have time to wait for them, so he took Caesar and returned to Wano Country first.
Meeting old acquaintances always brings joy, especially when Caesar saw the huge Sea Stone shackles on Queen's neck, which made him even happier.
"Yo, isn't this Queen? How did you end up like this after all this time?" Caesar taunted him, winking; back when they were in the Government Science Unit, they all looked down on each other's research to some extent.
"You're not dead yet?"
Queen, who had somehow gotten a cigar, puffed on it, looking at Caesar with disdain.
"I won't die until you do."
Caesar sneered in response.
Chu Yang walked in from outside, saw the two at loggerheads, and smiled, "Stop arguing, you'll be seeing a lot of each other from now on. Focus on completing the tasks I assign you."
Caesar immediately prostrated himself, respectfully saying, "As you wish, Boss."
"Boss?" Queen looked at Caesar in surprise, then turned to look at Chu Yang, and immediately followed up, "Boss, after the lab is completed, shouldn't we add more staff here?"
Chu Yang snapped his fingers, and suddenly, a person with an identical appearance appeared behind him.
One after another.
Queen and Caesar watched in astonishment as the lab was filled with Chu Yang's Shadow Clones.
"Is that enough?"
Queen and Caesar exchanged glances.
"Enough! More than enough!"
Chu Yang nodded, then reminded them, "From today onwards, no outsiders are allowed in the lab, including Fishmen and the Revolutionary Army. I want them to know my secrets as late as possible."
Caesar replied confidently, "Boss, don't worry, as long as I'm here, I guarantee no one will get in."
Chu Yang verbally praised Caesar a few times, then walked into the innermost room.
Opening the door, the dying "Big Mom" Charlotte Linlin was suspended in the center of the room by Sea Stone chains.
"Kid, we don't have any deep-seated grudges, why torture me like this?"
Her tattered clothes and messy hair made the former Emperor of the Sea appear particularly wretched and disheveled.
Coupled with her venomous gaze, Charlotte Linlin looked like a demon from hell.
One sent to hell by Chu Yang himself.
"Just as you said, there's no enmity between us. I'm just interested in your Devil Fruit ability."
Chu Yang waved his hand to conjure a wooden chair, then sat down in front of Charlotte Linlin.
"You can't obtain the power of the Soul-Soul Fruit this way. You might as well kill me. In a few years, a new fruit will appear. You're so young, this amount of time is nothing, isn't it?"
Charlotte Linlin was extremely agitated, desperately pleading with Chu Yang to kill her. In just a few weeks, she had spent several years in Chu Yang's illusion space, and her mind was on the verge of collapse.
Even so, the Imperius Curse still failed to work on her, perhaps due to the strong mental fortitude of a top-tier expert, or because Big Mom's Soul-Soul Fruit played a certain role.
"Frankly, I'm seeking the essence of the Devil Fruit, not a fruit with obvious side effects. Although I'm very sorry, I can only ask you to endure it for a bit longer."
Chu Yang smiled kindly, stood up, and walked out of the room, completely ignoring Charlotte Linlin's hysterical curses behind him.
Meanwhile, the World Government was in a frenzy over the bounty orders.
Pirates on the Grand Line were continuously being tempted by the high bounties, beginning to gather forces and attack Marine branch bases.
Four Marine branches were successively destroyed, all officers below the rank of Rear Admiral were annihilated, and countless soldiers were injured.
This was an unprecedentedly severe incident!
Marineford suddenly realized that the overwhelming bounty orders would bring about even more violent turmoil than the Great Pirate Era.
...
Wuxia World.
Past Zhongnan Mountain was the border leaving the Southern Song and entering the Northern Song.
As the carriage passed the border between the two countries, Chu Yang stood by the boundary marker, lost in thought. After being in this world for so long, he still hadn't gotten used to treating the Southern Song and Northern Song as two separate countries.
Thinking that after leaving the Northern Song border, the next stop would be the Great Ming, Chu Yang felt a sense of disorientation.
"What a mess..."
Huang Rong and Mu Nianci were lighting a fire to cook. Hearing Chu Yang's muttering, Mu Nianci looked at Huang Rong, utterly confused.
"What's wrong with Chu Yang?"
"Don't mind him, he's always been like this, spouting nonsense now and then. It's probably a side effect of cultivation. Now it seems it's a good thing we don't have the chance to cultivate, at least our brains won't go wrong."
"Rong'er, it's not that serious for Chu Yang, is it?"
"Hmph! You've only known him for a few days. Just watch, when he goes crazy, see if you can still call him Chu Yang."
Mu Nianci's face turned crimson, and she stopped talking, lowering her head to help Huang Rong.
Not long after, the meal was ready. Huang Rong was skillful, and with the abundant food reserves in the carriage, this meal had chicken, fish, vegetables, and meat, so rich in variety that it didn't look like they were on a journey, but rather on a picnic.
"Little Chu, when I was in the city just now, I heard that there's going to be some kind of big gathering here in the Northern Song. Should we go take a look?"
Huang Rong's eyes darted around; at fifteen, she was exceptionally mischievous.
Chu Yang rolled his eyes, "No wonder you cooked so much today, turns out you had an ulterior motive."
Huang Rong put her hands on her hips, indignantly retorting, "I cook this much every day, okay? Look at you, you're almost getting fat!"
Chu Yang found it a bit amusing; how could he get fat? The energy provided by the food wasn't even enough for his body's circulation.
"Go on, go on."
Chu Yang thought about how he had been making them camp in the wilderness recently just to rush the journey, and felt a little guilty.
Although the carriage had a huge space and everything they needed, it lacked human warmth. After a long time, they would still miss the hustle and bustle of human life.
Let alone the two of them, Chu Yang himself wanted to stroll around the city.
Having been a teacher for so long, he missed the time when a group of children were noisy around him.
Huang Rong and Mu Nianci held hands and cheered.
After lunch, the carriage continued its journey, but this time, they headed towards more populated areas. Huang Rong inquired along the way and finally learned a place name.
Juxian Village.
After storing the carriage at an inn, the three of them arrived on the main street. They didn't even need to ask for directions; they just followed the surging crowd and found Juxian Village.
Today, heroes gathered, a group of self-proclaimed chivalrous individuals assembled to discuss how to deal with Qiao Feng, who had become a Khitan.
"A righteous group beatdown..."
Chu Yang smacked his lips, making a meaningful sarcastic remark.
"My father always disdained those who were called great heroes, but he held this Beggar Clan Chief Qiao in high regard. He must not be someone with an undeserved reputation."
Huang Rong had heard rumors about Qiao Feng; a generation's great hero had become a universally reviled figure in just a few months, which made her sigh endlessly.
"Qiao Feng's misdeeds are numerous, and it's an undeniable fact that he has successively harmed many martial arts seniors. Your esteemed father is somewhat blind."
A sneer approached from afar. When Huang Rong heard someone insulting her father, she immediately turned her head, glaring angrily.
The newcomer was dressed as a beggar, yet his clothes were spotless. His eyes slanted upwards, making him look very sinister, and he was still spouting outrageous remarks at Huang Rong.
"I thought it was someone else, turns out it's just a yellow-haired girl. No wonder she speaks without knowing her place."
As soon as his words fell, Huang Rong's figure flashed. She rushed in front of the beggar and slapped him several times, directly sending him flying.
"Ouch!"
The beggar fell heavily to the ground. The next second, a group of beggars rushed out from the crowd, surrounded him, and helped him up.
"Elder Quan, are you alright?"
"Elders, I'm fine. That stinky girl's attack was vicious; she must not be from the righteous path."
The beggar named Elder Quan glared at Huang Rong with gnashing teeth.
One of the beggars, hearing this, stepped forward and, filled with righteous indignation, cupped his hands to Huang Rong, saying, "Miss, Elder Quan spoke out of turn just now, but you shouldn't have used such a poisonous hand."
Huang Rong sneered, "Who told him to insult my father? He deserved it!"
The other Beggar Clan elders, hearing this, cast a disdainful glance at Elder Quan. In ancient times, filial piety was emphasized, and insulting one's father was a great disrespect, so it was no wonder the other person reacted so strongly.
However, the next second, Huang Rong's words offended all of them.
"Looking at your attire, you should all be Beggar Clan disciples. That Qiao Feng was clearly your chief; even as a former chief, he bestowed many favors upon you in the past, perhaps even saving your lives."
"For you to come and attend this gathering today is somewhat ungrateful and heartless. How can you still call yourselves heroes? I think it's a gathering of cowards, isn't it?"
The faces of the Beggar Clan elders turned ashen. Huang Rong's sharp retort hit their weak spot perfectly; it was false to say they felt no shame at all.
Chu Yang finally couldn't help but burst out laughing.
It has to be my Sister Huang, ruthless with few words, brilliant, brilliant.
Quan Guanqing had just been publicly shamed by Huang Rong, and now he heard Chu Yang's laughter, instantly becoming furious. He pulled out three poisoned darts from his Pregnant and shot them at Chu Yang.
Hearing the sound of something cutting through the air, the Beggar Clan elders wanted to stop him but it was already too late; they could only shout loudly.
In a flash, Chu Yang directly reached out and caught the three poisoned darts in his hand. When he opened his palm, he was completely unharmed.
Quan Guanqing's pupils suddenly constricted. Knowing he had hit a tough opponent, he was just about to come up with an excuse when a familiar whooshing sound came from beside his ear.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!