Chapter 718
(Chapter 205 Ace)
Unbeknownst to Chen Fan, while he and the Empress were enjoying their time together, the World Government were already in a flurry of activity. Red-Haired had made contact with Whitebeard again. Even Fleet Admiral Sengoku, couldn't remain calm, the Roar, "What is Red-Haired to? Is he going to team up with Whitebeard? Is he plotting against the World Government? Damn it! As one of the Four Emperors of the New World, have some self-awareness! The Four Emperors have immense power, and their subordinates are all incredibly brave and skilled. On the high seas, not the mainland, numbers are less important."
The more people there are, the more useless they become, hindering their ability to operate effectively. If a million-strong army were to press on the mainland, the battle would be decided solely by top-tier combat power and sheer numbers. Therefore, despite the World Government's massive navy, they are largely ineffective against the Four Emperors. To make matters worse, other pirates of Little One cause trouble, forcing the navy to be widely dispersed. Consequently, the Four Emperors' pirate crews, numbering only around 1,000, possess a combat strength comparable to the navy.
Last time, Red-Haired personally came to Whitebeard's ship because Ace wanted to pursue Blackbeard, causing panic and putting the Marines on high alert. This time, Red-Haired came to dissuade Ace from attacking Chen Fan, because he now knows even more how terrifying Red-Haired Chen Fan is, and that he himself might not be a match for Chen Fan. Ace, if Ace really angers Chen Fan, he will almost certainly die. Moreover, Chen Fan alone is already a powerful force that dominates a region. If this matter causes Chen Fan and Whitebeard to fight, they might even clash. Chen Fan doesn't know exactly how strong Chen Fan is, but after fighting Whitebeard for so long, he knows how strong Whitebeard is. When beings like them fight, it's earth-shattering. Who knows what kind of changes the world would undergo at that time? Red-Haired' goal is actually the same as the World Government: to maintain the balance. If the balance is accidentally broken, who knows how many lives will be lost.
Now, Chen Fan's Fairy Tail symbol has spread throughout the world of Pirate King through the newspapers. Some newly New World pirates who saw the symbol on Laboon's head obediently paid money, became friends, and left. Laboon's life became much more carefree and happy.
Furthermore, the fact that Chen Fan was able to extract Devil Fruit has caused a sensation throughout the world. On one hand, some people saw that Chen Fan had an extra Devil Fruit in his hand after the battle. On the other hand, the news that Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine, whom Chen Fan had let go, had their Devil Fruit powers disappear and that they thought Chen Fan had the ability to turn Devil Fruit User into ordinary people, has somehow spread.
Well...! Actually, that's not wrong. Combining the two, everyone can figure out what's going on. Chen Fan can extract Devil Fruit from the bodies of Devil Fruit User. What does that mean? It means that if Chen Fan wanted, he could even form an army of Devil Fruit User. Who in the world could stand against him then? However, it seems that Chen Fan hasn't used this ability to create any army of Devil Fruit User, which has made everyone quite curious.
The World Government are also searching for Chen Fan. Countless pirates are imprisoned in the Navy's dungeons, many of whom possess Devil Fruit abilities. If Chen Fan were to extract these Devil Fruits and then equip the Navy with them, the consequences would be obvious: the era of pirates would be completely ended, everyone would have a new life, the seas would be purified, and the world would be at peace.
Chen Fan has become a hot commodity for the World Government. They want to win Chen Fan over because he is the best choice for world peace. Of course, the ultimate goal of winning him over is destruction. The world simply cannot allow someone like Chen Fan to exist. However, they cannot take action now because they do not yet know what Chen Fan's purpose is.
Chen Fan's ship sailed towards them, and as it drew closer, the people on the shore noticed that the owner of this ship was one of the culprits who had brought the entire island to its doom.
"Ah...! Ah... Ahhh... Ah... It's here!... It's here!!" A person on the beach saw the insignia of Chen Fan's ship and scrambled towards the island, shouting loudly as he ran.
Everyone who was rebuilding the entire island stopped. Some were local residents, and some were pirates. They were all unwilling to give up and were determined to get their hands on that Devil Fruit. Pirates are such greedy creatures; they can wait ten or twenty years for treasure. They had all seen the power of that Devil Fruit, and there were four women on that ship. It was possible that one of them would eat the Devil Fruit, but they simply ignored that possibility.
... Seeking fresh crocodile...
"What?! That ship's back! Those little bastards! I almost chased them into the Calm Belt and became food for those Sea Kings. They actually dared to come back this time! I'll make those women know how powerful I am!" a pirate leader shouted.
"Yes! We must get that Devil Fruit back!"
"Oh!"...
Everyone shouted and rushed to the beach, grabbed their weapons, and hid. When the ship docked at the pier, everyone charged forward.
"Little girls! You've got some nerve coming back. Did you think all those pirates chasing you died in the Calm Belt? I've been waiting here for ten days, and it wasn't for nothing! Hahaha... Gaa!" The pirate was dumbfounded.
Suddenly, Chen Fan appeared on the bow of the ship. This devilish guy—they hadn't even dared to imagine it, automatically assuming Chen Fan would perish together with Blackbeard —now that they saw Chen Fan here, everyone was dumbfounded.
"So you're the pirates who chased my ship back then? You seem to want Devil Fruit, right? They're right here, come and take them!" Chen Fan took out a purple Devil Fruit, placed it on his lap, and looked at the pirates below as he spoke.
"Run!"...
Chen Fan jumped off the ship and forcefully swung his foot. A crescent-shaped, sharp wave of energy, like sword energy, rushed towards the group, killing them all. This was the "Tempest Kick" from the Navy Six Styles. For the pirates who had once tried to hunt down Chen Fan's woman, there was no other way but death.
Suddenly, a ball of flame rushed towards Chen Fan, its target Chen Fan Devil Fruit in his hand. "Whoosh...!" Chen Fan vanished from his spot using his Silent Step, then looked at the newly appeared figure and said, "Are you also a pirate chasing me?"
"No, I am Fire Fist Ace, the second division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. The Blackbeard you killed was originally my subordinate. I was responsible for taking him back to face punishment, but I didn't expect you to kill him. He attacked you and died, so he deserved it. My goal this time is the Devil Fruit in your possession, because that Devil Fruit belongs to our Whitebeard Pirates." Ace said, looking at Chen Fan.
Chapter 206 Battle with Ace
(Chapter 206 Battle with Ace)
"Kid, what you're saying is quite amusing! This is spoils of war that I obtained after defeating Blackbeard, and it took me a lot of effort. You think you can just take it back like that? Do you think you're so great, Fire Fist Ace, or are you trying to intimidate me with your Whitebeard Pirates?" Chen Fan glanced at Ace disdainfully. Pirates are all a bunch of self-centered guys. Perhaps Chen Fan felt a little sad when Chen Fan saw Ace die before, but seeing it with his own eyes, and hearing what Ace said, was he kidding? He worked so hard to get spoils of war, and you just take them away like that, making a big fuss about it? Do you really think your Whitebeard Pirates the best in the world? Heaven is number one, Whitebeard is number two;
"Blackbeard was originally one of my men. This Devil Fruit belonged to the fourth division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates' '030' crew. Blackbeard killed the fourth division commander and then escaped, so this Devil Fruit should belong to our Whitebeard Pirates," Ace said, looking at Chen Fan.
Chen Fan lowered his head, chuckled, and shook his head. These pirates certainly had unique ideas. Then he looked up at Ace and asked with a smile, "So, whose Devil Fruit was this before?"