Meanwhile, in the first half of the Grand Line.
A small village by the sea.
"Boss, should we still rob it now?"
The pirate henchman asked with some fear.
There are Neo Marines recruitment ships everywhere outside now.
While the primary responsibility of these recruitment ships was recruiting soldiers, eliminating some pirates was merely a side task.
I've heard that each warship has at least a Vice Admiral in command.
In most parts of this sea, there is a very strong power.
"I'm out of food, of course I'll rob!" the pirate captain said fiercely. "I don't want to work, robbing money is much more fun!"
After hearing that Luo Wen had declared war on the World Government, he and his followers went into seclusion.
At first, they were living a life of extravagance and great joy.
However, given their spending habits, they could have survived as pirates by simply robbing and using whatever they wanted, or by not being given anything at all. But now that they've gone into seclusion, that's no longer an option.
But none of them wanted to work; they were all only interested in getting something for nothing.
Now, it's like a leopard can't change its spots; he's trying to go back to his old ways.
"Don't be afraid, we'll stop after this one job. It'll be the last time, nothing will happen." The pirate captain said with a strange expression, "How can our luck be that bad? After this job, I'll never rob again, and I'll be a good person from now on."
This was both to appease his younger brother and to appease himself.
As for whether this will be the last time, who knows?
"The captain is right, this is the last time, there's no way to turn the tables!"
"Hurry up! If we kill them all, who will know it was us!"
Some of the underlings were blinded by profit, and their hearts were gradually filled with greed.
Dozens of pirates, their eyes bloodshot and radiating murderous intent, marched into the village.
Meanwhile, the villagers also discovered this group of pirates who made no attempt to conceal themselves.
"What happened?"
"Pirates! Pirates are coming towards the village!"
"Run!"
The villagers screamed in terror upon discovering the pirates.
Although they hadn't encountered pirates on a large scale, they had heard many stories of pirate invasions of the surrounding villages.
Moreover, many villagers who went out fishing were killed by pirates every year, so they naturally knew how terrifying pirates were.
"What do we do now? Ask the navy for help?"
"What are you begging for! They always come afterward, how can we possibly get there in time!"
"Besides, those naval personnel are all parasites; most of them have already fled!"
"What do we do then? Are we just going to wait to die?"
My wife just gave birth to our son, and the baby is still so young...
"My daughter isn't married yet, she can't die!"
Tears streamed down the faces of many villagers, who retreated in despair.
They couldn't outrun the pirates, they couldn't defeat the pirates, they could only wait to die.
Among the crowd, a strong man with his eyes closed, leaning on a cane, sighed softly.
He was revealed to the pirates as everyone retreated.
The pirates watched as he smiled calmly, but fear flickered in their eyes.
This person didn't flinch or dodge; they must have some reason for their confidence.
"You villains, you really deserve to die."
His lifeless eyes rolled back as he smiled, his voice filled with disgust.
"He was blind!"
"Because I'm blind, I'm not afraid."
The pirates breathed a sigh of relief, but a nameless rage surged within them once more.
They have always been the ones watching civilians flee and reveling in the fear of the weak.
But they were actually frightened by a blind man, and their fear made them feel ashamed and angry.
"You blind fool, what are you pretending for!" The captain grinned maliciously at Xiao, "You can't see fear, then I'll let you hear the screams of everyone who dies! Let's see if you'll kneel down and beg me then!"
"I may be blind, but I can still see your sins." He smiled at the pirates, as if he could still see them. "You heinous criminals, bury yourselves here."
A purple energy wave shot into the sky, and meteorites from outer space responded accordingly.
As the meteorite entered the atmosphere from outer space, it created a fiery red tail through frenzied friction.
Whoosh!
"What's that in the sky?!"
"A meteorite?"
Attracted by the unusual activity in the sky, the pirates all looked up.
A tiny dot magnified in their eyes, and its true nature was revealed in an instant.
A meteorite with a fiery tail was hurtling towards them with pinpoint accuracy!
"Too fast! We have no chance to dodge!"
"It was that blind man who did it! How could we be so unlucky!"
"Damn it, this was clearly the last robbery!"
The pirates screamed in terror.
The meteorite fell too fast; the moment it appeared before their eyes, their death was inevitable.
In their final moments, they couldn't help but regret.
If they had robbed somewhere else, they wouldn't have been so unlucky to encounter such a powerful opponent.
Boom!
The meteorite eventually fell, and the violent impact with the ground caused the entire island to tremble.
The area where the pirates were located was instantly destroyed by the meteorite, leaving only molten sand and a meteorite with a diameter of three meters.
The meteorite wasn't large, but the energy it generated from falling from outer space was enough to kill these pirates dozens of times over.
Yixiao stood silently in place, unmoved by the destruction of the pirates.
"Wow, that's powerful! It can actually summon meteorites from outer space?"
"The pirates were all wiped out in an instant!"
Those in the village who noticed the strange phenomenon gaped in astonishment.
They never imagined that the blind man who often mingled among them doing nothing would actually be such a powerful figure.
Fortunately, he was there, otherwise the entire village would have been wiped out by pirates.
"Are we going to hide any longer, members of the World Government?"
Yi Xiao stood still and said calmly.
He was blind, but his Observation Haki was far more useful than his eyes.
He didn't use a slashing attack but instead used his Devil Fruit Ability, just to Tremor-Tremor these guys.
"Of course not, Mr. Yixiao."
Several CP agents emerged from the trees where they were hiding, their faces still showing shock.
They knew Yixiao was powerful, but they were still greatly surprised to see him in person.
Admiral, this is definitely an Admiral- level figure, a powerful Admiral- level figure just like Lord Aramaki who has already been recruited into his ranks.
If we can bring him back, that would be a great achievement.
"What business do these important figures from the World Government have with an unknown nobody like me?"
He smiled calmly and asked.
"We are here on the orders of the Five Elders to invite you to join the World Government," the lead agent said respectfully. "If you are willing to join, the World Government is willing to offer you the position of Marine Admiral, and after retirement, you can go to the Holy Land Mary Geoise to become a supreme Celestial Dragons!"
This demonstrates the World Government's sincerity; they would never have promised such benefits if it weren't for the immense pressure from Luo Wen.
"Heh, so the World Government wants to recruit dogs." Fujitora's expression remained unchanged as he refused without hesitation. "I have no intention of joining the World Government; it's too filthy."
Before the Paramount War, he would have been somewhat interested in joining the Navy to realize his ideals.
But after the Paramount War, the true nature of the World Government was exposed, and the entire Navy was a mess, so naturally he wouldn't go there again.
Come to think of it, the Neo Marines on Luo Wen's side would be a better fit for him to realize his ambitions.
"Please reconsider. The World Government has ruled the world for eight hundred years; we will surely have the last laugh." The CP agent forced a smile. "What that Luo Wen was talking about was just the necessary darkness of the world; it's been the norm for eight hundred years."
"Darkness has become the norm." Yixiao stopped in his tracks and sighed, "Then we really need to think about it carefully."
"You agreed?"
The agents said with great delight.
Swish!
With a single stroke, he drew his staff-sword and killed all the agents.
The agents' eyes widened in surprise, amazed by the sudden attack and the powerful swordsmanship.
"When darkness becomes the norm, then light becomes all the more precious," Yixiao murmured to herself, walking towards the sea towards the sun.
He has made up his mind to join the Neo Marines and witness that precious light.
A ray of light that appears only after eight hundred years of darkness—how beautiful that must be!
For a moment, Yi Xiao even regretted blinding herself back then.
Who could have imagined that this barren land, which had existed for eight hundred years, would suddenly burst forth with such light?