The Eve

In a dilapidated warehouse, Krieg and Gin waited somewhat anxiously.

"Click."

The warehouse door, which had not been opened in a long time, creaked harshly.

Krieg and Gin grew wary at the same time. They were both pirates—men who lived by the edge of the blade.

Su Xiao stood at the warehouse entrance but did not enter directly.

"Wait here for me."

With that, Su Xiao entered the warehouse. Behind him, Hank's mouth opened and closed, but in the end, he said nothing and could only stand guard outside.

Inside the warehouse, he saw several wooden crates scattered about haphazardly. The floor was covered in dust. Apparently, the warehouse had been abandoned for a long time.

"Too slow. Is this the attitude of the Goa Kingdom?"

Krieg spoke first, his tone somewhat hostile.

Su Xiao chuckled and sized up Krieg before him.

He had a tall build, and his features were hidden beneath a hood. Although they were several meters apart, Su Xiao could still smell a strange odor.

It was the scent of some kind of deadly poison. Su Xiao sometimes coated his blade with poison, so he was familiar with it.

"You'll handle the matter. Once it's done, the kingdom will confer noble status upon you."

Su Xiao went straight to the point. He did not want to waste words with these pirates.

"That's it? Weren't there supposed to be three factions competing...?"

Krieg had only gotten halfway through his sentence when Su Xiao interrupted him.

"No. The other two factions are rabble. I have the authority to make the decision. You only need to answer yes or no."

Being interrupted halfway through his sentence clearly displeased Krieg, but they were currently inside the Goa Royal Capital, so even this pirate did not dare act too arrogantly.

Su Xiao had not come to meet Krieg alone. More than a hundred guards were lying in ambush near the warehouse.

Krieg hesitated. He seemed not to trust Su Xiao—or rather, Krieg did not trust the Goa Kingdom.

"Explain what exactly you want us to do first."

Apart from those inside the Royal Capital, no one outside the city knew about the plan to burn Terminal Station.

Krieg was an outside roaming faction and therefore knew nothing about the specific situation. These men had been lured here by the promise of noble status.

"Ignite Terminal Station at six tomorrow evening. The timing must be exact..."

Su Xiao began explaining the details. The more Krieg and Gin listened, the more solemn their expressions became.

"Burn the whole thing down? That'll be difficult. Terminal Station covers a large area."

"Have you never heard of explosives?"

Su Xiao stared at Krieg, prepared for him to turn hostile at any moment. The negotiations had reached their most critical point.

"Are you kidding? With that quantity of explosives, I'll abandon this deal unless you provide them."

Su Xiao had expected Krieg to take that stance.

"Is that so? What a pity."

With that, Su Xiao turned to leave without even attempting to bargain with Krieg.

"Wait."

Gin called out to Su Xiao, then leaned close to Krieg's ear and whispered:

"Boss, if we transport all the explosives from the ship, it should be enough."

Krieg glared angrily at Su Xiao. Of course he knew the explosives on the ship would be enough; he simply hated to part with them.

"Do you really think you'll gain noble status just by igniting Terminal Station? You'll provide the explosives, of course. Otherwise, there's nothing to discuss."

Half an hour later, Su Xiao walked out of the warehouse, leaving behind the pained-looking Krieg and Gin.

As the promised benefit, Su Xiao left behind a certificate. It was a document conferring noble status from the kingdom.

As long as Krieg signed the document and then had it notarized by the kingdom, he could become a noble.

Moreover, neither party could destroy the agreement unilaterally. It bore the seal of the World Government.

Pirates were not easy to fool. Without a genuine lure, they would never risk their lives.

"Lord Byakuya, have the negotiations been settled?"

Hank asked tentatively. Su Xiao's footsteps suddenly stopped.

"Are you sure you want to know?"

Su Xiao's icy gaze made Hank instinctively retreat several steps.

"I wouldn't dare."

At that moment, Hank deeply regretted not killing Su Xiao when they had been choosing weapons.

"Hank, there's something I need you to do. This matter is very important."

With that, Su Xiao signaled for the guards lying in ambush nearby to reveal themselves. More than a hundred guards assembled behind him, and he led them back to the guards' headquarters.

--

Night fell. Su Xiao sat alone in the office at the guards' headquarters, with the room plunged into darkness.

The sudden appearance of the Krieg Pirates had not disrupted Su Xiao's plans. Instead, it had made everything go more smoothly.

With his elbow propped on the desk, Su Xiao gently pressed his forehead.

Although he was reasonably intelligent, he knew that his current plan was not perfect. There might be unknown flaws hidden within it.

But this was unavoidable. He was too weak at present and could only accomplish his goal through careful planning.

Given Su Xiao's usual style, he preferred to solve problems with the blade in his hand.

"Soon. As long as I leave this high-risk world..."

Although the first world he had entered was a high-risk world like One Piece, he believed that Reincarnation Paradise could not keep throwing him into worlds more than five levels above him.

The reason he had entered the One Piece World might have been a trial by Reincarnation Paradise—a trial related to his identity as a Hunter.

Or perhaps, before completing the Main Quest, he did not truly count as a Hunter. He merely possessed the title of one and had none of its functions.

Su Xiao slept in the office that night.

Early the next morning, Su Xiao woke up and began preparing for tonight's operation.

This was the final day of the Main Quest's time limit. Midnight tonight marked the absolute deadline for completing it.

Tonight, he would assassinate the king of the Goa Kingdom. Everything would hinge on this attempt.

Su Xiao spent the entire day working nonstop. As the person chiefly responsible for burning Terminal Station, he received "clearance" from every department he dealt with.

The Minister of the Left had been completely ruined. The one time Su Xiao saw him, those lifeless eyes sent a chill down his spine.

He remained busy until four in the afternoon, when he finally finished everything. Then he entered the office at the guards' headquarters and vanished from everyone's sight.

Now, all he needed to do was wait for the pirates outside the city to ignite Terminal Station.

As for the Goa Kingdom's purpose in burning Terminal Station, it was almost laughable.

In a little over ten days, the Celestial Dragons, the world nobles, would come on an inspection tour. To prevent them from seeing the vast mountains of garbage outside the city, the Goa Kingdom chose to burn Terminal Station to the ground, along with the refugees outside the city.

There were at least several thousand refugees outside the city.

These were the rulers of the One Piece World. To keep those above them from seeing a stain, they could burn tens of thousands of people alive.

At five in the evening, the sky gradually darkened. The night wind blew gently. In another hour, it would be time to burn Terminal Station, yet the city was eerily quiet.

In the pitch-black office, Su Xiao was the only person sitting behind the desk. A green treasure chest suddenly appeared in his hand.

This treasure chest had been obtained after he killed the Master of Mt. Colubo. He had simply been too busy lately to open it.

The green treasure chest filled Su Xiao with anticipation, and a smile appeared on his tired face.

Treasure Chest (Green), open: Yes/No

You chose to open it. Several items appeared in Su Xiao's hand.

You opened Treasure Chest (Green) and obtained the following items.

Obtained 1,000 Paradise Coins.

Obtained Soul Crystal (Small).

Obtained Tiger Claw.

...

No equipment appeared, but that was within his expectations.

Su Xiao had already opened several treasure chests and had gained some understanding of their rules.

The grade of items obtained from a treasure chest was related to its color. Of the grades he currently knew, they were white < green < blue.

As for the equipment or items inside, they were related to the person or animal that had dropped the treasure chest.

For example, if Su Xiao killed a tiger, the treasure chest dropped by that tiger would never contain a sword or shield.

After killing a tiger, he would most likely obtain its claws or hide. The same applied to killing humans.

After killing the Black Market Merchant, Su Xiao had obtained the letter of introduction left behind by the Black Market Merchant.

After killing Ogre, Su Xiao had obtained the pendant Ogre had been wearing.

Su Xiao examined the items in his hand.

The Paradise Coins were directly stored in his imprint. Although they were called coins, they were actually a form of currency without physical form.

Tiger Claw

Quality: Green.

Type: Material.

Rating: 16. (Note: Green materials have ratings from 10 to 30. The higher the rating, the more valuable the material.)

Description: The claw of an Elite Creature. It can be used to forge equipment in Reincarnation Paradise or as an enhancement additive.

Soul Crystal (Small)

Quality: None.

Type: Condensed Soul Essence.

Rating: None.

Description: Soul Crystals are rare items with many uses... (Insufficient authority. The following information cannot be obtained.)

Playing with the Soul Crystal in his hand, Su Xiao was completely baffled by the two newly obtained items.

Yet he had a feeling that this glistening, translucent crystal, only the size of his little fingernail, might be the most valuable item he had ever obtained.

Everything would become clear once he returned to Reincarnation Paradise. For now, his top priority was completing the mission.

Before he realized it, the time had reached six in the evening.

Su Xiao left the office and vanished into the night. Either he would complete the mission tonight, or he would die in the royal palace. There was no third possibility.

The pirate arc was about to end. Guess what the next world will be. Here's a spoiler: after the pirate arc ends, the protagonist's strength will increase considerably.