Jaya Island was now shaped like two small beasts embracing each other, divided into an east and a west island. Mock Town on the east coast had been wiped clean by Chronos, but the west coast was still peaceful and serene.
The main force of the Whitebeard Pirates was on the west coast. After some activity, they got a taste of the Grand Line's unique atmosphere.
However, they had found no information about Skypiea, except for...
"Hey, boss, do you know about Skypiea?"
Whitebeard asked the mustachioed owner, pushing away a cherry pie he had only taken one bite of with a look of disgust.
"Skypiea..."
The mustachioed man hesitated, glanced at the enormous Whitebeard, and decided to play it safe.
"Sorry, I don't know."
"Hmm? What about the City of Gold?"
"The legend of the great liar from the North Blue, Noland?"
"That's the one."
"I think that's just a legend... After all, no one has found it in the last four hundred years. However, a few years ago, a man claiming to be a descendant of Noland came here, saying he was going to bet his life to fight against fate. If you want information about the City of Gold, that guy should know the most, right?"
The owner told them everything he knew, hoping to satisfy the giant before him.
"A descendant of Noland?"
Marco leaned his head in, extremely interested in the topic, but unfortunately, the owner didn't know anything more.
"Thanks, boss."
Seeing that they couldn't get any more out of the owner and having obtained the information they wanted, Whitebeard was satisfied.
Chronos, of course, knew everything, but exploring the truth of past legends step by step was also an interesting affair. This was the Whitebeard Pirates' adventure.
Before long, the entire crew left the tavern and, following the information given by the owner, began searching for the residence of Noland's descendant.
Jaya Island wasn't large, and the location the tavern owner gave was quite distinctive, so the Whitebeard Pirates found it quickly.
On the coast stood a small, two-story stone castle. But what was surprising was that behind the castle, a huge wooden board was propped up.
Marco and the others looked at the board with confusion, finding it very out of place, until they walked around to the back and understood what was going on.
"Hey, hey, hey, using a castle-shaped wooden sign to decorate your house? Isn't that a bit too shabby!" Marco said with a look of disdain, looking at the wooden board painted to look like a tall, magnificent castle.
"The whole house is only a third of the size of that board, right? Is such a decoration necessary?" Thatch also complained. The person living in such a building must be a strange fellow.
"Gurararara, it seems that descendant of Noland is an interesting person."
Whitebeard, on the other hand, found it very amusing. It was his own house, and it didn't affect anyone else, so how he decorated it was naturally up to him.
Chronos sized up the structure before him. He remembered that Noland's descendant hadn't arrived here at this time.
But it didn't matter; the world's timeline had already been altered.
"Hey, is anyone home?"
"Anyone here!"
Marco knocked heavily on the small castle's door, but there was no response.
"Not home?"
Just as Marco was considering whether to break down the door or wait, a gurgling sound of bubbles suddenly arose.
Although it was very faint, to the ears of the Whitebeard Pirates, the sound was no different from firecrackers.
Their collective gaze turned to the sea surface. Amidst the constantly rising bubbles, out popped... a chestnut!?
No! It was a person's head!
A strange fellow with thick lips and a long horse-like face burst out of the sea. Before he could even take two breaths, the Whitebeard Pirates appeared before his eyes.
The moment he saw the Whitebeard Pirates, the chestnut-headed man's pupils shrank. He hurriedly reached his hand behind his back and then blustered, "Hey! Who are you? What are you doing at someone else's front door!"
For a moment, no one responded. Their gazes were all focused on the glint of gold the chestnut-headed man was hiding behind his back.
Although it was just a fleeting glimpse, they had all seen it clearly. It was a golden sculpture.
"Hey! You're the descendant of Noland, aren't you? You've found the Golden Hometown your ancestor spoke of!?" Marco asked excitedly. He must have found it!
The chestnut-headed man's face darkened, and his muscles bulged, clearly about to erupt.
"Calm down, young man."
At this moment, Whitebeard spoke.
"I am Whitebeard, Edward Newgate. I wouldn't stoop to robbing you of that little bit of gold."
The Whitebeard Pirates looked at Whitebeard and familiarly saw the suppressed desire in his eyes. Before Chronos came aboard, he had been terribly poor.
"Although I'm also interested in that legendary Golden Hometown, this time, we're here for Skypiea."
"Skypiea?" The chestnut-headed man had calmed down after Whitebeard's first sentence, because he knew from his aura alone that he would be no match for Whitebeard.
But upon hearing the end, the chestnut-headed man couldn't help but look strange.
"You think Skypiea isn't a legend?"
"How should I put this?"
Chronos stepped forward and explained.
"We've been to the Giant Kingdom Elbaf in the New World. There, they have records of the world, which include records of Skypiea."
Although Elbaf was a nation of warriors, they were not careless with their historical records. They even had a dedicated library to record history and the world.
When the Whitebeard Pirates went to the Giant Kingdom, Chronos often read books in the island's Owl Library and had a very good relationship with the librarian, Biblo—a giant owl.
Hearing this, the chestnut-headed man's expression brightened, and he also recalled the rumors about Whitebeard.
After some thought, the chestnut-headed man said, "You're saying that Skypiea exists here on Jaya Island?"
Whitebeard nodded. "My son says it does, so it definitely does."
The chestnut-headed man fell into thought and stopped hiding, taking out the golden sculpture from behind his back.
"I can tell you all the information I know, but I also hope you can do me a favor."
"Speak," Whitebeard said magnanimously.
The chestnut-headed man looked at the sea, his eyes filled with a complex mix of anger, hatred, and unwillingness.
"My name is Montblanc Cricket. That 'Liar' Montblanc Noland, he's my grandfather's grandfather's grandfather's... anyway, he's my ancestor. Although I probably only have a tiny bit of his bloodline in me, he really ruined my life!"
Cricket's tone was full of resentment.
The legend of 'Liar' Noland was about a self-proclaimed adventurer named Montblanc Noland who deceived a king with a 'lie,' claiming to have discovered an island in the sea with mountains of gold. This led the king to personally head to the Grand Line with two thousand soldiers and a fleet.
Facing fierce storms and sea monsters, only one hundred soldiers ultimately landed on that island with the king and Noland.
But on that island, there was only a forest, with no gold in sight.
The king, in a rage, sentenced Noland to death on the charge of lying.
Noland's last words were—"Oh, right! All that gold must have sunk to the bottom of the sea!"
Even at death's door, Noland was still lying. The king and his men were extremely disappointed in him, and so no one ever believed Noland again.
"Because of that guy's death, the Montblanc family was exiled from the country by the king. We lived a painful life and are still cursed by people to this day..." Cricket said calmly. That was his family's experience, and his own.
"But his descendants at the time... not a single one of them hated him."
"Because in their words, that Noland was a rare, honest man!"
Cricket's expression became complicated.
"In the picture book, Noland's smile before his death was comical and ridiculous, but in his descendants' descriptions, he cried with great sorrow and unwillingness."
"So, you want me to help you find the Golden Hometown to clear Noland's name?" Whitebeard grinned. He could feel Cricket's resentment.
"Don't be ridiculous!!!"
Hearing Whitebeard's words, Cricket's face immediately twisted, and he started cursing.
"I don't care if that guy was an honest man or some great explorer, that has nothing to do with me!"
"But just because I inherited that bastard's bloodline, I've been cursed by people I don't even know! Can you understand how a child feels in that situation! That's how I grew up!!!"
Cricket exploded, venting all the resentment and anger he had accumulated since childhood.
The members of the Whitebeard Pirates were speechless, looking at Cricket with a mixture of understanding and incomprehension.
Before they arrived, or rather, before Chronos said the City of Gold existed, most of them had read Noland's story and treated it as a joke.
If Chronos weren't their brother, they would have probably made a few mocking remarks themselves.
If Noland's descendant had appeared before them, they would have joked about it.
Whitebeard looked at Cricket calmly, seeing an unwilling, angry child.
"Gurararara, that's really terrible."
Cricket was taken aback, then sighed. What was the use of telling these people?
"To restore the honor of the Montblanc family, quite a few of our family members went to sea in search of the City of Gold, but most of them went missing. To escape Noland's shackles, I also chose to go to sea and eventually, by a twist of fate, came here, to Jaya Island, the legend of the City of Gold. Countless members of the Montblanc family wanted to come here but failed. I, who hate Noland the most, actually succeeded in reaching this place. It's just as the picture book said, there's no gold here at all. I was about to just leave, but standing on the coast of this island, looking at that sea, I understood. This is fate! I have nowhere left to run. I must settle things with Noland right here! I don't care about clearing Noland's name. Whether there's gold in this sea or not! This is just a duel between me and the man who ruined my life! I'm going to settle the score with him!"
Cricket was undoubtedly a stubborn man, but such people also had a certain charm.
Marco and the others looked at Cricket, so agitated they paced back and forth, unable to find the words to describe their feelings.
In their eyes, this was perhaps what it meant to be a real man. He could have just walked away, but because of his inner conviction, he had to find out the truth.
The reason didn't matter. What mattered was that he wanted to do it.
"Gurararara!"
Whitebeard laughed heartily. He didn't dislike this kind of person.
If it weren't for Cricket's deep entanglement with Noland, Whitebeard would have even wanted to take him in as a son.
"So, what do you want me to do?"
Cricket looked up at Whitebeard and said, word by word, "Help me see if there's a City of Gold in this sea. You can do that, right?"
Huh!
Marco and the others were startled. They thought Cricket would stubbornly insist on finding the City of Gold himself to represent his victory!
Cricket ignored Marco's surprise. He had already said that he 'didn't care at all' about clearing Noland's name!
"If I were alone, I might not be able to do it, but I'm not alone!"
Whitebeard laughed loudly. The current situation made him happier than winning a great battle.
"Namur."
"I'm here, Pops."
The pale-skinned shark fish-man stepped forward, his expression calm.
"This son of mine is a fish-man. When it comes to exploring the sea, no one is more suitable. I'll leave it to him."
Cricket nodded. A fish-man, huh...
With a splash, Namur entered the water.
Cricket, seeing so many people waiting, didn't look embarrassed at all. He walked to the side, sat down on the ground, and waited with his arms crossed.
Chronos watched this scene, feeling a bit emotional.
Although many people in his past life criticized One Piece's theme of bloodlines, their criticism was either off the mark or too one-sided.
Luffy did rely on the many connections of his father and grandfather, but the adventure was his own choice. In life-or-death situations, he had help from others, but he also pulled through on his own.
In One Piece's theme of bloodlines, the biggest beneficiaries were never people like Luffy, but the Celestial Dragons.
Even the Straw Hat Pirates' adventure, which could be called a second-generation adventure group, their parentage mostly brought them negative consequences.
Sanji's family modifications, Usopp's father abandoning his wife and child, Robin being the 'Devil Child,' Franky being persecuted because of his master, and so on.
If the bloodline theory were to truly play out as described, then Luffy should have been a Marine, Ace should have been the next Pirate King, Yamato should have inherited the Beasts Pirates, and Blackbeard should be enjoying a life of luxury on Hachinosu Island.
But...
None of that happened. On the contrary, there were even cases of a Celestial Dragon's child not being a Celestial Dragon.
Oda's concept of bloodline, for the most part, is about children rebelling against their parents.
A cheap biological father, an expensive adoptive father—this is a common occurrence in One Piece.
The reason the bloodline theory discourse emerged wasn't because of Oda's conceptual problems, but because his depiction of combat power was so terrible.
Characters would often get inexplicably stronger, and the reasons were extremely unjustified.
For example, Luffy's Nika awakening, and Law and Kid's inexplicable awakenings. When situations like this appear, characters coming back from the brink of death is a minor issue.
Coupled with the fact that combat is the most important thing in One Piece, the idea that the child of a strong person is also strong exacerbated this situation.
One Piece's most awkward contradiction is that it has it both ways: it says the bloodline of the strong grants divine abilities, as with Luffy, and it says commoners can become strong through hard work and talent, as with Koby.
Both are piles of crap; choosing either is disgusting.
Come on, bloodline theory? Should we take a look at Koby in the distance?
In comparison, Chronos even felt that Nika was a bit better.
After all, Joy Boy wasn't a god, and he also failed in the end. It really couldn't be called a divine gift.
If depicted a little better, it could even be seen as a successor taking over the legacy of their predecessor and becoming stronger.
The same goes for Koby. There are so many ways to depict a commoner genius, but he chose the most disgusting one.
If only Oda's descriptions in this area were a little better, it wouldn't be so nauseating.
The biggest problem with One Piece should be this sentence: "Power levels serve the plot."
In the past, Oda could write slowly. Now, Oda is in a hurry to finish, and the already somewhat abstract power levels have become even more abstract.
Cricket, in particular, is a negative example of the bloodline theory.
Noland's bloodline might have made Cricket a little stronger, but he endured insults from childhood to adulthood and pursued his conviction through diving.
All the Montblanc bloodline gave Cricket was a terrible childhood, a wasted youth and prime, and the after-effects of decompression sickness.
Chronos's thoughts wandered, and he let out a soft sigh, waiting for Namur to reappear.
He felt some sympathy for Cricket, so Chronos was willing to offer a helping hand.
I'll find a reason later to analyze and tell him the true location of the City of Gold, and take him to see it for himself, Chronos thought.
After a short while, bubbles appeared on the sea surface. Namur leaped out of the water, holding several gold sculptures and a small golden bell in his hands.
Cricket looked at him with an unsettled gaze, as if awaiting the verdict of fate.
Shaking his head, Namur said with regret, "There's no City of Gold in the sea. I searched a large area, overturned a lot of the seabed, even sea caves. Apart from some gold fragments, I found nothing else."
"Heh~"
A sound, whether of mockery or resignation, escaped Cricket's throat.
As if a shackle had been released, yet as if a true shackle had been shouldered, Cricket's posture was still upright, but his spirit seemed to have died a little.
Looking at Whitebeard, Cricket said calmly, "Let's go. I'll tell you everything I know about Skypiea, but..."
Cricket shrugged. "No guarantees it's correct."
Whitebeard clicked his tongue, looking displeased. He turned to look at Cricket's room, and his face darkened even more.
"Brat, I can't fit into that little room of yours."
Cricket's expression didn't change. "Don't you have so many sons?"
Whitebeard looked at Chronos. "Chronos."
Chronos stepped forward, looked at Cricket, and smiled. "Mr. Chestnut Head, have you ever heard this phrase?"
""In the skull's right eye, I saw the gold.""