Exploring the Sky Island White Sea

Moore Thomas waited for Brook's arrival at the port of Jaya Island under the protection of his personal guards. Brook was now the captain of the Hell Pirates with a bounty of 200 million Beli, far stronger than when he had first set sail from the Sabaody Archipelago.

Seeing the Yomi, flying the flag of the Hell Pirates, appear in the distance, Moore Thomas clenched his fists. If the legendary Sky Island truly existed and he could relocate the World Economic News Agency there, he would no longer have to fear persecution from the World Government.

"Big Brother Brook!!!"

Moore Thomas transformed into his half-beast form and took to the sky, waving at Brook.

"Moore, is everything well?"

Brook, also riding atop his Qilin Lion, had flown ahead from the ship to the port to greet the future media tycoon.

"Aside from a few staff members leaving and a slight dip in newspaper production, our papers are still very popular!"

Moore Thomas said excitedly. As a rising private news agency, he took great pride in being able to compete neck-and-neck with the World Government's own agency, and even occasionally suppressing them.

"You have the oxygen masks and small oxygen canisters I asked you to prepare, right?"

"They've all been custom-made on other islands; they'll be delivered in a few days."

"Excellent. Now, let's bring Jaya Island under the rule of the Hell Pirates!"

"That's great, Big Brother Brook! I had the same thought!"

Moore Thomas was full of anticipation for Brook's step-by-step plans; even if the Sky Island didn't exist, establishing a base here was a good move.

The Yomi sailed into the port of Jaya Island. As a pirate town, it was permanently occupied by pirates who managed the island themselves.

It was unclear why the Navy had never come to purge the place. Perhaps it was because the line between the civilians here and the pirates had become blurred; they lived like pirates, yet held no bounties, and often provided cover for pirates to retreat.

Over time, the Navy simply stopped caring, and passing pirate crews frequently stopped here for supplies and to enjoy the pirate-themed services.

"Redfield, go occupy this island and plant our pirate flag. This island belongs to us now!"

The strongest pirate on this island likely had a bounty of only fifty or sixty million Beli. Redfield, a powerful dragon, should easily be able to crush these local snakes.

"Understood!" Redfield gripped his cane sword and charged toward the center of Mock Town.

Silvers and Shakky, both of whom had bounties, eagerly followed Redfield to beat down the pirates of Mock Town, hoping to see if they could increase their own bounties in the process.

Moore Thomas had people watching the ship, while Tom, Crocus, and Antonio followed Brook to the headquarters of the World Economic News Agency.

Looking at the dense, chattering flock of tens of thousands of seagulls in a breeding building not far from the headquarters, it was clear that Moore Thomas was truly the "Seagull King" in every sense of the word.

Moore Thomas transformed into his full seagull beast form and let out a loud cry. The seagulls instantly fell silent, all turning their gaze toward the king in their eyes.

"Have a few seagulls carry the sample oxygen masks, and let's fly up to take a look! Get one for my Qilin Lion, too!"

Under Moore Thomas's command, several Seagull News Birds removed the newspaper bundles from their necks and replaced them with small oxygen canisters. They even wore small, transparent masks over their beaks, connected to the canisters.

Once the seagulls had adjusted, Moore Thomas and the Qilin Lion also donned their masks. With that, Brook rode the Qilin Lion, carrying Moore Thomas and the seagulls as they flew high into the sky.

They were testing the feasibility of reaching the Sky Island firsthand. As they climbed, the temperature dropped and the oxygen levels plummeted. Even birds that could withstand the cold could not survive the lack of oxygen, with the exception of certain special species.

After passing the five-to-six-thousand-meter mark and reaching seven thousand meters, they saw white sea clouds. Brook suddenly noticed that the oxygen levels here had risen again; although still lower than on the ground, it was perfectly survivable.

Even the temperature was rising rapidly, returning to ground levels and continuing to climb, feeling almost hotter than the Blue Sea.

The Shandian people living on the Sky Island rarely wore clothes, looking like primitives and sporting dark tans, which was a testament to the high temperatures of the Sky Island. It seemed both the Sky Island and the White Sea had the effect of concentrating heat and generating oxygen.

As they continued to ascend and touched the sea clouds of the White Sea, both Brook and Moore Thomas felt a wave of exhaustion. Brook quickly pulled him onto the back of the Qilin Lion.

These sea clouds contained a horny substance known to the Sky Islanders as "pyrobroin." This substance was ejected into the sky by volcanic eruptions and changed density when it condensed with water vapor, forming sea clouds and island clouds.

Sea clouds were very similar to the seawater of the Blue Sea, which was why they could drain the strength of Devil Fruit users and prevent them from using their abilities. This was the reason some users could never reach this place; if they charged directly into the sea clouds, they might lose their strength and fall back to the Blue Sea. Furthermore, the buoyancy of the sea clouds was strong enough to allow ships to sail upon them.

Island clouds floated above the sea clouds; they were soft, elastic clouds that people could walk on, serving as the land of the Sky Island where the angelic residents lived.

When Jaya Island was blasted up to the Sky Island, these angels, who had never seen soil, treated it like a treasure and fought a four-hundred-year war with the Shandian people over the land of Shandora.

Given that they now knew seagulls with oxygen masks could reach the White Sea, a slightly exhausted Brook ordered the Qilin Lion to return to the ground, and Moore Thomas called for the seagulls to follow.

"Big Brother Brook, the Sky Island might actually exist!!"

Back on the ground, Moore Thomas shouted to Brook in excitement. Below the White Sea, they had already seen Sky Fish and Sky Beasts living in the clouds.

"So now, you need to select loyal employees to work on the Sky Island. In the future, we can even breed Seagull News Birds up there!"

Brook said, planning to have Redfield use his special Observation Haki to help Moore Thomas screen his employees and check for World Government spies.

"I understand. As long as we have a good base, our World Economic News Agency will definitely develop rapidly and surpass the sales of the World Peace Dove News Agency!"

Moore Thomas was a man of ambition. Having been hunted by the World Government, he longed to drive the World Peace Dove News Agency into bankruptcy, even if that seemed impossible.

After all, the World Peace Dove News Agency was backed by the World Government, and the member nations would always be their captive audience, providing a solid foundation for their sales.

In the center of Mock Town, the arrogant pirates drew their blades to confront the insolent Redfield. However, under Redfield's overwhelming strength, the strongest pirate in Mock Town was killed for his defiance, causing the other pirates to lose their nerve instantly. Passing pirate crews also chose to leave immediately.

The native pirates had no choice but to submit to the rule of the Hell Pirates. Fortunately, Brook and his crew didn't demand exorbitant protection fees, which allowed many tavern and restaurant owners to breathe a sigh of relief.

Several groups of pirate thugs even joined the outer ranks of the Hell Pirates, becoming a pirate guard force to maintain order in Mock Town.