Work and Rest in Balance! That Was the Mark of a True Powerhouse

After the tavern owner finished speaking, he suddenly seemed to remember something and looked at Lin Ye.

"By the way, if you're going there, I suggest you wait a while before leaving."

Lin Ye looked up at the owner, puzzled.

"Ahem!"

Seeing Lin Ye's gaze, the tavern owner looked around and lowered his voice.

"I heard that some scholars from Ohara set sail a year ago. They seemed to be researching history, but that isn't something ordinary people can study. After that, there was no more news of their ship."

Lin Ye's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Of course, I'm just saying."

As he spoke, the owner continued wiping the cup in his hands.

"Thanks."

Lin Ye nodded. After finishing his juice, he stood up, tore off the gold thread binding his hair, and tossed it to the owner. His gaze swept across the tavern before he strode out.

"Old Sadin, what were you talking to him about?"

After Lin Ye left, someone in the tavern called out to the old man.

"I just saved all your lives, you know that?!"

The tavern owner known as Old Sadin flew into a rage.

"Look at those clothes! Look at that sword! Is that someone you idiots can afford to provoke? You've all got eyes, but you might as well not!"

The tavern owner spat, his gaze sweeping across the much quieter tavern before he picked up the gold thread Lin Ye had left on the table.

The patterns of the thread could still be seen, but it had been kneaded together.

It had turned into a somewhat thin little gold disk.

No matter what, he had made a profit!

"But where have I seen this before?"

Old Sadin muttered hesitantly, his eyes darting around until he spotted the wanted posters on the wall.

His body stiffened, and his gaze locked onto the fourth bounty poster in the top row.

The side-profile image of Madman Lin Ye.

No way!

Old Sadin's eyes shot wide open.

"Impossible, impossible. How could someone that important appear in the West Blue?"

"Right, right. People like that operate on the Grand Line. There's nothing in a place like the West Blue worth a great pirate coming for."

Even so, Old Sadin could not stop trembling.

If it was really him, hadn't he just spoken with someone that important?

And he was going to Ohara?

Old Sadin's eyes widened as a sudden premonition rose in his heart.

Something major might be about to happen in Ohara.

The docks.

Lin Ye had no intention of staying here any longer and directly asked whether there were any ships headed for Ohara.

Very soon, Lin Ye arrived before a merchant ship.

"You're going to Ohara? We're a merchant ship. We don't take passengers."

The captain looked at Lin Ye, his tone still fairly polite.

"A guard."

Lin Ye raised the sword in his hand and looked at the captain.

"There are so many pirates on the sea now. Even merchant ships need guards. If you run into pirates, casualties are unavoidable."

"You?"

The captain naturally knew Lin Ye was right.

But looking at Lin Ye's somewhat youthful face and the exceptionally fine swordsman's attire he wore...

Could he be some young master from the island who had gone to sea to imitate others?

Lin Ye raised his hand. A slash flew from his descending palm, cleaving through the sea in the blink of an eye.

A deep sword mark appeared across the water beyond the docks.

Seawater surged back into it, and every ship in the harbor rocked violently with the waves.

"Gulp!"

A Swordmaster!

The captain frequently went to sea, so he had seen plenty and knew that some swordsmen could unleash slashes that injured people from great distances.

But he had only heard of such things. He had never seen one with his own eyes.

After all, in his eyes, a Swordmaster was already among the strongest people on the sea.

"You..."

As the captain spoke, he suddenly noticed his tone and hurriedly changed it.

"My lord, please come aboard. It is my honor for my merchant ship to receive your protection. Rest assured, I will pay you a generous reward."

The captain had already made up his mind to hand over every bit of profit from this voyage.

He had never expected to encounter such a powerful person.

Lin Ye nodded and was led aboard the merchant ship by the captain.

The merchant ship was quite large. There were over a hundred sailors assigned just to move its cargo.

All kinds of goods.

Most of them were everyday necessities.

"My lord, I'll arrange accommodations for you. Please don't hesitate to ask if you need anything."

The captain spoke with a fawning nod.

People always changed quickly in the presence of the strong.

"There's no need. Just do your work and set sail as soon as possible."

"Understood. The cargo will be loaded shortly, but even without stopping along the way, it will take more than half a month to reach Ohara from here."

After Lin Ye nodded, the captain immediately went to urge the sailors to work faster.

Seeing the captain treat Lin Ye with such respect, the sailors were all curious about his identity.

Of course, no one dared to ask.

Just as the captain had said, the merchant ship soon set sail.

"My lord, the ship is rather humble, but this is the finest cabin we have!"

The captain named Alichi respectfully led Lin Ye to the room at the highest point of the ship.

This was actually the captain's own cabin.

But now that Lin Ye had arrived, Alichi had someone clean it up and gave the room to him.

Lin Ye did not refuse. He waved Alichi away.

After closing the door, Lin Ye walked to the window and looked out at the boundless sea. A flock of seabirds glided past the ship before lowering their altitude and riding the air currents created by its passage.

Setting his sword on the table, Lin Ye lay back on the bed with its clean bedding.

A quiet period like this did not seem so bad.

For nearly two years, he had spent the first year killing people. Then, for more than half a year, he had crossed the Calm Belt, leaving both his body and mind exhausted.

Yet after arriving in the West Blue these past two days, his body had relaxed instead.

He even felt as though his strength had improved slightly.

That was rather interesting.

So becoming stronger required a balance between work and rest?

It worked out perfectly. While the Marines were heading to Ohara, he could take the chance to rest properly, conserve his energy, and bring himself to his peak condition for the coming battle.

On the merchant ship.

Alichi came out onto the deck, where a group of sailors gathered around him.

"Captain, who exactly is that man? Why are you treating him like this?"

A young sailor asked with a face full of curiosity.

"A strong man. A true powerhouse of the sea!"

Hearing this, Alichi looked at the curious sailors around him and felt the urge to show off.

"There are countless powerful people on the sea. I've heard that some have eaten secret treasures of the sea and gained all sorts of powers. Others train in swordsmanship and become powerful figures on the sea through the swords in their hands."

Seeing the looks in the others' eyes, Alichi felt even more pleased with himself.

"And after training in swordsmanship, those who can swing their swords and unleash slashes are called Swordmasters. They are powerful people of the sea."

Swordmasters!

Everyone's faces were filled with longing.

"But becoming a Swordmaster definitely isn't easy. At the very least, I've never heard of one in the West Blue. I only heard about Swordmasters from people who had gone to the Grand Line.

They say that's where the truly powerful people are."

"I know! The clash between the sea overlord Kaido and Madman Lin Ye happened in Wano Country!"

A young man said excitedly.

"Right. Those are the truly powerful people of the Grand Line. One look from them would be enough to kill us."

Alichi nodded with a solemn expression.