"Hmm… leave it to me."
Yun Lie pondered slightly, his deep gaze lingered on Kalifa for two seconds, his eyes seemingly able to see through people's hearts.
Then he gently waved his hand, a mysterious light flashed, and Absalom disappeared, taken into his mysterious space.
Since the other party had provoked him first, Yun Lie had already made up his mind and no longer needed to consider Moriah's feelings.
What's more, the unique ability of the Transparent Devil Fruit held extremely high collection value in this fantastical and dangerous sea, and such a precious treasure naturally could not be easily let go.
As for why he didn't directly seize the Devil Fruit on the spot, Yun Lie had his own considerations.
Before Kalifa fully became a member of his faction and truly "regularized," some secrets still needed to be carefully hidden.
After all, once his special ability to plunder Devil Fruits was exposed, he would become a target of pursuit and fear for any power, and by then, there would likely be no place for him in this vast sea.
After the small interlude caused by Absalom, everyone continued forward.
The sea breeze along the way carried a hint of chill, as if telling of the strangeness of this sea area.
Soon, a gloomy ancient castle appeared before everyone's eyes.
Ancient stone walls were covered with moss, and dilapidated towers groaned in the wind, as if telling an unknown horror story.
"Woof woof woof!" Suddenly, a rapid barking sound broke the silence.
A giant Hellhound with three heads and three tails wildly wagging behind it rushed out from the corner, its two blue and one yellow fur glowing with an eerie sheen in the dim light.
This Hellhound had fierce eyes and sharp fangs, making it a terrifying sight.
"This is a Hellhound, quite cute, isn't it?" Robin's eyes sparkled with curiosity, like a seasoned scholar, as she slowly walked forward, her gaze focused on this peculiar creature.
Her elegant posture was as if she were facing not a dangerous zombie dog, but a precious work of art.
"Sister Robin, this is a zombie dog, it's dangerous!"
Seeing this, the other women showed looks of fear on their faces; they had already seen many different kinds of zombies along the way, and although their fear had somewhat lessened, this giant Hellhound looked anything but benevolent.
They all reached out, wanting to pull Robin behind them to protect her safety.
"He's very obedient, if you don't believe me, ask him!" Robin smiled charmingly, her lips curving upward.
Then, she elegantly turned around and pointed her slender finger at the Hellhound.
Just as everyone watched in surprise, a strange scene unfolded—many arms suddenly grew out of the Hellhound's shoulders, grabbing its heads and "seriously" nodding them vigorously.
"Awooo—" The Hellhound let out an unwilling roar, trying to resist with all its might, but found that no matter how much it struggled, it was futile.
The more it resisted, the greater the force exerted by those arms.
In fact, this Hellhound was not stupid; it could even be said to be very clever, as it keenly sensed that the group of people in front of it were absolutely not to be provoked.
Under the shocked gaze of the women, the Hellhound finally obediently lowered its massive body, its originally fierce face instantly becoming fawning, and its three tails wagged happily behind it, looking very comical.
"See, isn't he cute?" Robin looked at the amusing scene before her and once again smiled as she spoke to the women.
This dramatic transformation left the women dumbfounded, secretly complaining about the Hellhound's "cowardly" behavior.
Although the Hellhound was successfully tamed, after discussion, everyone decided not to keep it with them.
After all, the ancient castle ahead was full of dangers, and a battle could break out at any time.
As Moriah's zombie dog, this Hellhound would likely lose its life in the chaos once a battle began.
If it stayed here, at most it would only lose the shadow within it and revert to an ordinary corpse.
So, everyone waved for the Hellhound to leave, and it seemed to understand their meaning, running off without the slightest hesitation.
Just as everyone was about to step into the ancient castle.
"Burururu~"
Yun Lie frowned slightly, seemingly sensing something, and reached into his mysterious space to pull out a Den Den Mushi that was making noise.
Looking at the constantly squirming Den Den Mushi, Yun Lie hesitated for a moment, but finally pressed the answer button.
"Moshi Moshi~~" Yun Lie's voice was calm and steady.
Soon, Fleet Admiral Sengoku's familiar roar came from the Den Den Mushi: "Shichibukai Yun Lie, what do you intend to do by approaching Shichibukai Moriah's sea area without authorization!"
Because of Yun Lie's increasingly powerful strength, his threat level had gradually approached that of the Four Emperors, and the Marine's attention to him far exceeded that of ordinary Shichibukai.
From the moment he appeared in Water 7, his general movements had been under strict Marine surveillance.
As the largest dominant force on the sea, it was not difficult for the Marine, relying on its vast intelligence network, to monitor the movements of a ship on the Grand Line.
"What, is Fleet Admiral Sengoku questioning me again?" Yun Lie slowly squatted down, a faint smile on his face, and replied with a hint of playfulness in his tone.
At this moment, his mood was already tense due to the upcoming challenge, and Sengoku's condescending attitude, as if treating him as a subordinate, further fueled his displeasure.
Since becoming a Shichibukai, he had enjoyed few rights, yet his obligation to fight pirates had never wavered, which filled him with dissatisfaction.
"Two Shichibukai cannot meet casually, you should be very clear about that!"
Sengoku seemed to realize that his attitude was a bit too strong, and his tone softened slightly, bringing up the agreement between the Shichibukai, trying to persuade Yun Lie with it.
"Yes, yes, the Marine's intelligence is truly amazing, you knew I just arrived in the Devil's Triangle. Then, I also met Shanks, the Green-Haired Four Emperors, earlier, Fleet Admiral Sengoku wouldn't not know about that, would he?"
Yun Lie's words were full of sarcasm, especially when he said "Green-Haired," he deliberately raised his voice, his tone full of mockery.
He had been adventuring in this sea for a long time and was no longer a naive child who could be easily manipulated; facing Sengoku's questioning, he naturally would not back down easily.
If it weren't for a special purpose, he would have long since been unwilling to have any further involvement with the Marine.
"These two matters cannot be confused, you…" Fleet Admiral Sengoku still wanted to argue, but before he could finish his sentence, Yun Lie decisively hung up the phone.
Yun Lie had lost patience with continuing to quibble with Sengoku; he was an egoist by nature, and Sengoku had not offered any practical benefits in their conversation, failing to meet his needs.
In Yun Lie's view, it was already benevolent of him not to actively seek trouble with Sengoku.
"Yun Lie, that old Sengoku actually dared to lecture you, you're still too gentle!"
Nami rushed over angrily, gnashing her teeth, her eyes full of fury.
The other women also gathered around, their faces similarly full of anger, and their eyes towards Yun Lie were filled with support and indignation.
Ever since they learned about the things Sengoku had done behind the scenes, their respect for this Fleet Admiral had vanished, and at this moment, they felt immense disgust for his actions.