Phoenix Wings, Legend of Supersonic Speed!

Boom—!

A terrifying sonic boom exploded beside Chen Ye's ears.

The world instantly stretched and warped in his vision, finally turning into a blur of colors racing backward.

He only had time to see Elderly Whitebeard's massive body below, along with an island ravaged beyond recognition by battle, rapidly shrinking in his vision until they became an insignificant black dot.

Then even that black dot was swallowed by the endless blue.

This was Marco the Phoenix flying at full speed.

Ordinary people could not even keep up with Marco's speed using most Devil Fruit abilities.

Chen Ye clung tightly to the warm, jade-like feathers on Marco's back, his entire body nearly torn apart by the terrifying inertia.

The raging wind was no longer air currents, but invisible, unbreakable walls crashing into him one after another.

He finally understood why Marco had told him to hold on tight.

At this speed, let alone ordinary people, even a physically powerful Marine Vice Admiral would be flung away in an instant by the slightest mistake and shredded to pieces by the high-altitude currents.

"How is it, kid?"

"Can you still handle it?"

Marco's voice rang clearly beside his ear.

Chen Ye was astonished to discover that a thin layer of flickering blue flame had enveloped him like a bubble, blocking out most of the lethal wind pressure outside.

Marco had used the properties of his Regeneration Flame to create a small shelter for him.

"N-No problem!"

Chen Ye forced the words out through clenched teeth, his voice trembling slightly from excessive excitement.

Slowly Raised His Head, and after adapting to this unbelievable speed, Chen Ye beheld a magnificent sight he would never forget for the rest of his life.

They were flying ten thousand meters above the ground.

Below them was a seemingly boundless sea of white clouds, its edges gilded by sunlight until it resembled a frozen Golden Ocean.

Whenever gaps appeared in the clouds, they could glimpse the vast sea below, like an enormous sapphire polished to perfect smoothness, lying there in stillness.

Islands appeared in their field of vision one after another, only to be left behind in the blink of an eye, as fast as green bullets streaking past them.

The distant horizon was no longer a straight line, but bore a visible curve belonging to this enormous world.

"Gurarara... What an exciting plan."

Marco's voice carried a trace of emotion.

"But for some reason, my blood is boiling instead."

"Because we're making history, Brother Marco."

Chen Ye grinned.

"No, we're changing history!"

"Changing history?"

Marco repeated softly, his gaze becoming incomparably resolute.

"Well said!"

Man and bird spoke no more.

They became a streak of azure light, tearing through the sky at a speed that ignored distance and space as they flew straight toward the first half of the Grand Line.

Meanwhile, aboard the Moby Dick.

The enormous figurehead remained as imposing as ever, but an unusual atmosphere hung over the deck—somber, with an undercurrent of impatience.

The next morning.

When the commanders discovered that Marco, captain of the First Division, and Chen Ye had vanished overnight, the entire ship erupted into commotion.

"Marco's gone?"

"And Chen Ye Kid too!"

"Where did they go?

Could they have secretly run away because they were afraid of the coming battle?"

"Impossible! Marco would never abandon Pops and his brothers!"

Diamond Jozu, the burly commander of the Third Division, was the first to find Whitebeard sitting alone on the throne at the bow, gazing out at the sea.

His face was full of worry and confusion.

"Pops, where did Brother Marco and Chen Ye go?"

"Marco and Chen Ye Kid went to find reinforcements."

Whitebeard did not turn around. His voice was calm, yet carried unquestionable authority.

Jozu's words came to an abrupt stop.

Vista the Flower Sword, Izo, and the other commanders who had hurried over afterward also stopped in their tracks, exchanging bewildered looks.

Whitebeard slowly turned his massive head, his eyes that saw through all things sweeping over the sons he trusted most.

"To save Ace, we won't be enough on our own."

His voice was low and powerful, carrying across the entire deck and instantly silencing every noisy discussion.

Reinforcements?

That word stunned all the commanders.

With the Whitebeard Pirates' reputation and strength, who else did they need as reinforcements on these seas?

And who was qualified to become their reinforcement?

"Pops, what kind of reinforcements are they?"

Vista could not help asking, unconsciously tightening his grip on the hilts of his twin swords.

"That's right, Pops! Aren't we Whitebeard Pirates enough?"

"With just one word from you, we could turn even Marine Headquarters upside down!"

The crew was fired up.

In their hearts, their Pops was the World's Strongest, and their pirate crew was the strongest in the world.

"Gurararara!"

Whitebeard let out a hearty laugh, though it carried a complexity and anticipation his sons could not understand.

Of course, he knew how loyal and powerful his sons were.

But more than anyone, he knew who their enemy in the Summit War would be, and just how brutal a war it would be—a war that would exhaust the strength of an entire era.

Not to mention his own body...

"It's just to make things more lively."

Whitebeard casually came up with an excuse, a mysterious smile appearing on his weathered face.

"As for who we invited..."

He paused, deliberately keeping them in suspense and thoroughly whetting everyone's appetite.

"That's a secret for now."

"When the time comes, you'll naturally be shocked."

After saying that, he ignored them all and turned his gaze back toward the distant horizon.

The commanders exchanged looks. Though their hearts were full of questions and speculation, since it was Pops's decision, they chose to trust him without question.

Still, no matter how hard they tried, they could not imagine just how earth-shattering the surprise their Pops spoke of would be.

No one noticed.

After saying the words "a secret," Whitebeard's hand—the one not gripping his bisento—quietly clenched into a fist.

Within his aged body, the Haki to Reign Over the World, suppressed for far too long, was slowly awakening like a dormant volcano.

His gaze seemed to pierce through endless space and time, seeing the blue flames racing across the horizon.

Rayleigh...

Garp's Grandson...

And... Peak Me...

Gurararara...

Ace.