The Pride of Being a Four Emperors Crew Member!

When Chen Ye opened his eyes again, the entire world had become completely different in his perception.

He had not been "unconscious" for long. Most of the crew members were still lying on the deck and groaning, while a few tough old crew members were helping their companions to their feet under Marco's command.

But none of that was Chen Ye's focus.

A black-and-white image had appeared within his consciousness.

This was not an illusion.

This was the [Peak Whitebeard Observation Haki] he had exchanged for. After absorbing the terrifying energy from Whitebeard and Shanks' Conqueror's Haki clash, it had been forcibly catalyzed and mutated into an Observation Haki ability unique to him.

Is this the Observation Haki ability that was born just for me?

"Chen Ye? You're awake? How are you feeling?"

Marco's voice sounded beside him, carrying a hint of concern.

Seeing Chen Ye's pale face and cold sweat covering his forehead, he assumed that Shanks' Conqueror's Haki had injured his foundation.

"I'm fine."

Chen Ye abruptly sat up and grabbed Marco by the arm.

He looked at Marco, and the ingratiating, flattering smile he usually wore was gone from his eyes.

In its place was an unprecedented gravity and urgency.

"Brother Marco, where's Pops? I need to see Pops!"

Several crew members who were tending to their companions looked over in surprise.

This strange new little brother felt completely different today. That urgency did not seem fake.

Marco also noticed that something was off about Chen Ye. Frowning, he pointed toward the bow.

"Pops is over there. Is something urgent?"

Chen Ye did not answer.

He released Marco, practically scrambled to his feet, and staggered toward the bow.

Whitebeard stood alone at the prow, holding his bisento as he gazed in the direction Shanks had departed. Under the setting sun, his towering back cast a shadow as immense as a mountain.

Yet at this moment, an indescribable heaviness lingered around him.

"Pops!"

Chen Ye rushed behind Whitebeard. Having run too fast, he was gasping violently, and even his voice trembled.

Whitebeard slowly turned around. A trace of barely perceptible fatigue rested in those eyes that had seen countless storms.

"What is it, brat? Why are you so flustered?"

Marco, Jozu, and the others followed as well. They watched Chen Ye uneasily, afraid that this new little brother might do something earth-shattering again.

Chen Ye took a Deep Breath and forced himself to calm down.

He knew this was his last chance, and his only chance.

"Pops, Brother Marco."

Chen Ye's gaze passed over the two men before him in turn. His tone was incomparably serious, even carrying a trace of pleading.

"While I was unconscious, through my Observation Haki—"

"I sensed it... I saw a very, very bad future."

(As a Transmigrator, he naturally knew Ace's fate, so he needed to find a rather absurd yet reasonable excuse.)

He paused, swallowed with difficulty, and spoke the most critical name.

"It concerns... Ace."

The moment those words fell, the air went silent.

The sea breeze whipped Whitebeard's cape with a loud flutter, yet it could not break the deathly stillness.

The casual concern on Marco's face vanished instantly, replaced by cold seriousness.

"Chen Ye, do you know what you're saying?"

"I know exactly what I'm saying!"

Chen Ye's voice suddenly rose. He stepped forward, his eyes locked tightly on Whitebeard.

Because he knew Ace's ending from the anime in his previous life!

And because of the Observation Haki ability he had just awakened!

Ace would die.

Chen Ye practically roared those final words.

Whitebeard's gaze became incredibly sharp. The pressure belonging to the World's Strongest Man unconsciously radiated from him, making the surrounding air feel thick and heavy.

Everyone around them thought Whitebeard was about to get angry!

That he would give Chen Ye a proper lesson!

But after a moment, Whitebeard suddenly let out a low laugh. There was none of his usual boldness in it, only an indescribably complicated emotion.

"Gurarara..."

He extended his massive palm and gently placed it on Chen Ye's head.

"Brat, your talent is even more astonishing than I imagined."

"You can sense ill omens in the future? Impressive."

Whitebeard's words ignited a sliver of hope in Chen Ye's heart.

"Pops, you believe me?"

"Yes."

Whitebeard withdrew his hand and looked out at the vast sea again, his voice becoming distant and profound.

"Actually, ever since Ace left, I've felt uneasy."

"I also have... a very bad feeling."

Marco's expression changed upon hearing that.

He understood Whitebeard. Pops never spoke without reason. If even he said so, then could Ace really...

Chen Ye said excitedly, "Then what are we waiting for?! Pops! We need to find a way to contact Ace and make him come back immediately! No matter what it takes, we have to make him stop hunting Teach!"

However, Whitebeard slowly shook his head.

"No."

"Why?"

Chen Ye could not understand. Even his voice changed pitch.

"Why not?! Are we just going to watch him die?!"

"Chen Ye!"

Marco sharply stopped him. He held Chen Ye by the shoulders and shook him hard.

"Calm down!

Let Pops finish!"

Whitebeard did not get angry. He merely looked calmly at Chen Ye, his eyes revealing a kind of affection and... helplessness that belonged to the strong, something Chen Ye could not understand.

"Brat, remember this."

"Ace is my son, and he is also the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division."

"He is not a flower raised in a greenhouse, but an eagle soaring across these seas. His companion was killed. Hunting down the Traitor is his responsibility as captain, and the dignity he cannot yield as a man."

"We are pirates. No one can stop a man from heading toward the battlefield that belongs to him."

"These are the rules."

Whitebeard's words were calm, yet they carried an unquestionable resolve.

Marco sighed as well, softening his tone as he consoled him. "Chen Ye, I know you're worried about Ace. But you need to trust him. That's Ace—the user of the Flame-Flame Fruit, one of Pops' proudest sons. Even if... even if he truly cannot defeat Teach, with his strength, escaping unharmed would never be difficult."

"Yeah, newcomer," Diamond Jozu said in a deep voice. "Ace's flames aren't for show. Stop scaring yourself."

Their words were like dull blades cutting into Chen Ye's heart.

Trust Ace?

Escape unharmed?

Chen Ye knew better than anyone that it was precisely because of that pride belonging to a strong man that Ace would step by step enter the trap Teach had prepared for him.

He would be defeated.

He would be sent to Impel Down.

He would ultimately die beneath Akainu's Magma Fist.

Chen Ye opened his mouth, wanting to say something more.

But when he saw Whitebeard's unshakable gaze, and the unquestioning trust in Marco and Jozu's faces toward their companion, he suddenly understood.

It was useless.

Everything was useless.

His prophecy and his warnings appeared so pale and powerless before the deeply rooted pride and convictions of these heroes who ruled the seas.

Chen Ye could change nothing but let out a powerless echo.

"I understand."

Chen Ye lowered his head, his voice hoarse, as though all his strength had been drained away.

Thinking that he had accepted it, Whitebeard patted his shoulder again, his tone softening somewhat.

"Gurararara... Go rest, my son. Don't think too much about this."

Chen Ye said nothing else. He silently turned around and walked back toward the cabin one step at a time.

To everyone else, his back looked incomparably lost and dejected.

Only Chen Ye himself knew.

Beneath his lowered eyelids, the urgency and fear in those dark pupils were rapidly fading away.

What replaced them was helplessness.

The helplessness of knowing the final outcome, yet being unable to change it!

But it was not over. Chen Ye still had a Trump Card!

That was the system!

Since he could not change the course of fate—

Then before fate swallowed everyone, he would change the final outcome by any means necessary!!

His consciousness sank into the system interface.

The two SSR Character Card Pools sitting side by side were emitting an alluring glow.

[SSR Character Card Pool: "World's Strongest Man" — Edward Newgate (Peak)]

[Current Analysis Progress: 45.88%!]

[SSR Character Card Pool: "Strongest Conqueror" — Shanks (Peak)]

[Current Analysis Progress: 40.15%!]

In Shanks' exchange list, the S-Rank skill line stabbed deeply into his eyes.

[S-Rank Divine Departure Sword Technique Insights (Fragment)]: Consume 30% "Shanks" Analysis Progress to exchange.

He had enough Analysis Progress to exchange for it.

But he understood even more clearly that it was far from enough.

One fragment could not change anything.

In the end, his gaze locked firmly onto Whitebeard's Card Pool.

45.88%.

Still more than half short.

Just wait a little longer!

Then this world would experience the terror of Peak Whitebeard once again!