The Eve of the Storm, Marines Attack!

On the massive warship, Kong looked helplessly at the current Admiral lounging in a chair and complaining, but he had to admit the old man was right.

White Wolf Magnus wasn't weak, but Kong had heard from Admiral Rona that White Wolf Magnus and Admiral Rona were at most evenly matched. If Admiral Rona hadn't been concerned about the presence of the Giant King Harald and continued fighting, it was hard to say who would have won.

And he, as an Admiral candidate, was already slated to succeed the current Admiral Jiang Ma after his retirement and become the new Marine Admiral.

In other words, his strength had undoubtedly reached the Admiral level.

Even if Admiral Jiang Ma's strength had declined with age, he could still unleash Admiral-level power for a short burst.

With two of them against one, Kong didn't know how they could possibly lose.

The only problem was.

They couldn't find the White Wolf Pirates at all!

Ever since they stole the Celestial Gold, the White Wolf Pirates had vanished as if they'd disappeared from the face of the earth. They had been sailing the seas for over a month without finding any leads.

That was until the Den Den Mushi on the warship suddenly rang.

"What, Sphinx!?"

Upon receiving the transmission from Marine Headquarters, Kong immediately became serious.

"Admiral Jiang Ma, the White Wolf Pirates' whereabouts have been discovered. One day ago, White Wolf Magnus appeared in the non-affiliated nation of Sphinx and defeated three pirates with bounties over 100 million in a one-on-three battle!"

"Headquarters now suspects that the White Wolf Pirates intend to take Sphinx under their wing and develop this country into their own territory!"

Sphinx was a place where pirates fenced stolen goods; the Marines had known this for a long time, but even knowing it, taking down Sphinx wasn't easy.

Because the pirates would run.

The pirates had no sense of belonging to Sphinx. As soon as the Marines arrived, they would flee, leaving behind only an island of ordinary residents from a non-affiliated nation, which held no value for the Marines.

Therefore, Kong, who was then a Marine Rear Admiral, had proposed a suggestion: since the pirates couldn't be completely eliminated, Sphinx should be made a fixed exchange point for pirates. The Marines would dispatch a large number of intelligence personnel to infiltrate the island and gather information on the pirates.

This approach proved to be highly effective. They took advantage of the pirates' complacency and set up ambushes along their routes, eliminating several major pirates who had previously used Sphinx to fence their stolen goods.

It was precisely because of this achievement that Kong was promoted from Marine Rear Admiral all the way to Admiral candidate.

Furthermore, to avoid killing the goose that lays the golden eggs, the Marines only targeted pirate crews that posed a significant threat and were extremely vicious.

The small fry were left alone for the time being.

Thus, to this day, countless pirates still frequented Sphinx. As it developed, the risks were long ago replaced by convenience.

Even though the pirates had become more vigilant, there were always more ways than difficulties.

How about understanding Devil Fruit abilities?

However, upon hearing that Magnus had defeated the three major pirate crews that originally controlled Sphinx and brought Sphinx under his control, Kong felt something was amiss.

Who was the person who initially advised him not to bother with Sphinx?

"Hmph, just a rabble of pirates. Magnus has fallen too, actually wanting to use these pirates to fight us."

Jiang Ma snorted. After so many days, he finally wasn't lying in a chair or held in the gentle embrace of a female slave.

He issued his first order of his own volition.

"All forces, listen up! Head to the non-affiliated nation of Sphinx, and order the surrounding Marine branches to dispatch warships for support!"

Although Jiang Ma was old and lecherous, his mind wasn't broken. He could look down on the enemy strategically, but he wouldn't underestimate Magnus tactically.

If Magnus were truly that weak, he would have been locked up in Impel Down long ago.

How could he still be at large?

Moreover, if Magnus truly possessed Admiral-level strength, combined with his old crew members, there was a real possibility that they might not be able to catch Magnus.

Therefore, he needed to add multiple layers of insurance.

From beginning to end, Jiang Ma never believed Magnus would do anything other than try to escape.

Engage in a head-on confrontation?

Don't be ridiculous.

They had the equivalent of two Marine Admirals here!

Time moved to March.

The news of White Wolf Magnus's appearance in Sphinx gradually spread.

If the pirates in Sphinx were initially cheering for Magnus's forceful seizure of the Celestial Gold, then after their initial excitement cooled down, they finally began to realize something was wrong.

Why hadn't the White Wolf Pirates left yet!

The pirates never imagined that the White Wolf Pirates would stay in Sphinx indefinitely. After all, the White Wolf Pirates' modus operandi had always been like this; even if they planted their flag somewhere, they wouldn't linger.

Not to mention, the White Wolf Pirates had stolen the Celestial Dragons' Celestial Gold, making them a thorn in the side of the World Government, an enemy they wished to eliminate as quickly as possible.

In such a situation, if the White Wolf Pirates stayed in one place for too long, it would undoubtedly attract a large-scale encirclement by the Marines.

What was the point?

Magnus had also been asking himself these days, what was his point?

If he wanted to develop his influence, then once Rocks and Newgate grew stronger, with three Emperors on their ship, even the World Government wouldn't be able to do anything to them.

But how long would that take?

Ten years or twenty?

As the captain, he had to rely on his crew's strength just to dare face the Marines, to face the World Government. What would be the difference between him and the future clown Buggy then?

The strength of Conqueror's Haki was the strength of the user's spirit.

Could he, who relied on his crew to become a king and conqueror, truly be qualified to be a king?

"You don't want to back down either, right?"

Magnus listened to his heart, which had become increasingly vibrant over the past year, and a smile spread across his face.

Whether he could win or not, he would only know after fighting!

"Who will be coming this time? Elephant Mountain definitely won't be. Rona? Has her injury healed? Tsk, it wouldn't be Jiang Ma, would it? If that old geezer really comes, I swear I'll cut him down in a few strikes. Kong? That brat, he should have Admiral-level strength by now."

Magnus whispered softly, and as names were spoken, the aura around him grew stronger, even causing the villa temporarily provided by the Black Heart Merchant Dukemon to tremble.

"Hahaha, although the future Emperors of this era haven't grown yet, it's true that no era lacks strong individuals!"

Magnus had initially been lamenting that it would still take a long time for Rocks and Newgate to grow, let alone the future Admirals.

But while the future Emperors hadn't grown yet, the current Admirals were all still in their prime.

Soon, he would know who the Marines had sent this time.

[Marineford Calendar Year 1481, March. On the lawless island Sphinx, you encountered a large Marine fleet led by the current Admiral "Steel Bone" Kong. As an ordinary pirate, your only task is to escape this major Marine operation alive.]

[After this operation, you will receive a pirate bounty. The higher your pirate bounty, the richer the rewards will be after this operation concludes.]

[May your pirate path not stop here!]