Birth of the Shichibukai!

The King of the Celestial Dragons?!

Forced to remain kneeling, Doflamingo froze when he heard that. He had thought the other party was one of the Five Elders.

But from the sound of it, that did not seem to be the case. Or did this so-called king have five people?

"Fufufufufu~~"

Even in such a terrifying situation, Doflamingo could still barely laugh. Yet his pale face and the cold sweat beading on his forehead made him look thoroughly wretched.

"Then, King... King of the Celestial Dragons, you—no, Your Excellency—what do you want with me? I stopped being a Celestial Dragon long ago!"

The pressure on him abruptly lessened, and his speech finally returned to normal, though his heavy gasps still broke up his words.

"From the moment you knelt, your status as a Celestial Dragon was restored," the person above replied airily.

Doflamingo pondered those words.

It sounded as though only Celestial Dragons were qualified to kneel before him, so because Doflamingo had knelt, he had regained his identity as a Celestial Dragon?

Arrogant to the extreme!

That was his second impression of the other party. His first was that he was incomparably powerful.

"Donquixote Doflamingo, Mu grants you the honor of becoming one of the Shichibukai. You are qualified to receive Mu's direct orders."

That was another statement of absolute arrogance, carrying an authority that allowed no refusal.

What were the Shichibukai?

Doflamingo voiced his confusion, but this time, no reply came for a long while. He began to hesitate. After roughly ten minutes, he cautiously tried to raise his head.

At once, he discovered that everything had returned to normal. Moreover, there was no one left upon the Empty Throne.

When had he left?

Doflamingo rose with an exceptionally grim expression, feeling that everything he had just experienced was far too inexplicable.

The King of the Celestial Dragons?

The Shichibukai?

Right, he had also effortlessly regained his status as a Celestial Dragon!

What was he supposed to say? What was he supposed to do next? Just go back like this?

Just as Doflamingo was caught in a dilemma, the great doors behind him slowly opened again. This time, he turned around immediately.

But just as he was about to assume a defensive stance, he saw five middle-aged men clad in white robes appear before him.

"Relax, little one."

"We are the Five Elders you wished to meet."

Doflamingo inwardly grumbled, Weren't you the ones who summoned me? How did it become me wanting to see you? Still, he also let out a sigh of relief. At last, there was someone he could speak with normally.

"Come. Have a seat with us, and we'll explain the situation in detail."

"Fufufufufu~, if that's the case, why did the five of you need to come in person? You could have simply sent someone to lead me there," Doflamingo sneered.

"Within Pangaea Castle, anything involving Lord Imu is handled personally by the five of us."

The bald elder holding a long sword, dressed in a white kimono beneath his robe, spoke expressionlessly. Then the five of them turned in unison and left the hall once more.

Doflamingo could only follow. After all, he too was full of questions.

Before long, he followed the Five Elders into a luxurious, spacious room. The sofa set in the center was especially eye-catching.

The five men ahead of him took their usual seats. Saint Topman Warcury, seated in the middle, pointed at the empty sofa.

"You may sit there."

Doflamingo had no objection. With an arrogant swagger, he plopped down onto it. He sat on sofas all the time, so he was thoroughly familiar with them.

"Come to think of it, this is the first time anyone other than the Five Elders has sat on the sofas in this Room of Authority. You are the first."

"What an honor~" Doflamingo said with a grin, crossing his legs.

"There is no need to call it an honor. You are now Lord Imu's envoy, a member of the Shichibukai, and a Celestial Dragon once more. You are fully qualified to sit with us." Saint Shepherd Ju Peter smiled faintly.

"Then can you tell me who exactly Lord Imu is, and what the Shichibukai are?"

Doflamingo was still young and could not help asking impatiently. His mind had suffered an enormous shock, and he truly could not calm down.

"Hehe, don't be impatient. We will explain one thing at a time."

Among the Five Elders, Saint Topman Warcury seemed to be the leader. His voice was the steadiest and most imposing, carrying a faintly oppressive air.

"Lord Imu is our master, the king of all Celestial Dragons, the founder of the World Government, and its true ruler!"

"The supreme existence of the past, present, and future. If this world must have a god, then he is the one and only god in the river of history!"

His tone was filled with fanatical worship. As he spoke, his expression resembled that of an extreme devotee desperately suppressing his excitement.

Though the other four said nothing, the light in their eyes was identical.

But as the saying went, the ignorant feared nothing. Though Doflamingo had just personally experienced Imu's terror, he had not grown up in Mary Geoise, nor had he been exposed to the most hidden history. Thus, what he felt toward Imu was more fear and wariness than anything else.

Of everything they had said, he immediately seized upon the key point: the founder of the World Government!

Did that not mean the man seated upon the Empty Throne might have lived from eight hundred years ago until now? At that thought, Doflamingo's mood grew even heavier.

"Then what about the Shichibukai?"

"As we said, the Shichibukai are Lord Imu's envoys. Not only are they qualified to hold direct talks with us, they are also qualified to receive Lord Imu's direct orders."

"However, you must keep this identity secret. The same goes for the restoration of your status as a Celestial Dragon."

Hearing that, Doflamingo understood. He laughed. "Fufufufufu~ So you want me to work for you."

"Everyone has their value, do they not?"

"Fine, fine. Then tell me, what do you want me to do?" Doflamingo relaxed and leaned back into the soft sofa.

"You are to maintain your current public identity, infiltrate the Underworld, and provide us with the intelligence we require. Naturally, we will also provide you with the necessary assistance during that time," Saint Topman Warcury said directly.

Doflamingo laughed after hearing that. Was this not what he had intended to do in the first place? Becoming a major figure in the Underworld had been his first goal. Now, he merely had the additional task of providing intelligence to the World Government—and, crucially, he could receive the Five Elders' secret assistance.

No matter how he looked at it, he was the one profiting!

"Fine, I accept!"

"Good. Take this. From now on, we will contact you through it whenever there is something." Saint Topman Warcury produced a golden Den Den Mushi marked with black rings.

Doflamingo took it and examined it in his palm. Then, at that moment, the other party suddenly said something that made his heart tremble.

"Oh, right. Your younger brother, Donquixote Rosinante, is currently at Marineford."

"You captured him?!" The ease on Doflamingo's face instantly vanished. His expression darkened as he lowered his voice, his attitude turning hostile.

"If that were the case, he would be in Holy Land Prison or Impel Down," Saint Marcus Mars remarked with a sigh.

"Don't worry. That little one was very lucky. He met Sengoku back then and was even adopted by him. But his personality is completely opposite to yours. Despite having gone through the same experiences as you, he became a very kind child. What a strange thing."

Doflamingo pressed his lips together and remained silent for a moment. Then he stood, his face grim. "There's nothing else, right? If not, I'm leaving!"

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