"Shukaku will replace the Dragon Vein as the energy core, while Den Den Mushis equipped with cameras will enable beyond-line-of-sight puppet control."
Imu clicked his tongue in amazement as he looked at the report and accompanying stereoscopic footage displayed in the holographic projection.
"Crocodile sure has no shortage of clever tricks. He doesn't seem like a Sea Star Person at all."
He immediately had "Star Sea," the name given to the Super Den Den Mushi's artificial intelligence, send the footage to Vegapunk at the Academy of Sciences.
At the same time, he shifted his attention to the Dragon Vein.
In truth, thanks to the advanced information he had provided, the World Government had sent researchers and alchemists to study it in Loulan's underground palace long ago.
At first, many conventional devices from the Academy of Sciences had been unable to detect the Dragon Vein's energy at all, and some had even wondered whether they had gotten it wrong.
But when Principal Taylor from the Truth Alchemy Academy branch in Academy City brought two intermediate-rank alchemy professors to inspect it—
—they were stunned to announce that they could sense an immense, indescribably vast, and extremely concentrated source of ley line energy.
They even speculated that, as long as one used mental power to draw out the ley line energy here, it could form a highly condensed physical manifestation of ley line energy.
Yet when Principal Taylor activated the transmutation circle he had carefully drawn on the ground—
—it merely emitted a brief flicker of purple light before he let out an obvious groan of pain, his face turning deathly pale as he collapsed to the floor.
Naturally, the two alchemy professors cried out in alarm and concern.
"Principal, what's wrong?!"
Although Taylor was much younger than either of them, he was