Mock Town

"Issho! You know him?" Baboon King Burns asked, his face full of surprise.

Issho was hardly famous.

Calling him a nobody would not be an exaggeration... He truly could not understand how the captain knew about him.

"Hahaha..."

Moke could not help bursting into laughter. "What a case of searching everywhere only to find it without effort! I never expected that recruiting such a capable man as Baboon King Burns would bring such an unexpected gain. What a gift from heaven!"

Baboon King Burns raised a brow. "Captain, have you taken a liking to him? Could it be that he has extraordinary strength too?"

Moke looked at Baboon King Burns in surprise. "You're gambling buddies. You don't know how strong he is?"

Baboon King Burns looked a little embarrassed and rubbed his nose. "That guy is practically possessed by bad luck, so whenever we gamble, all I have to do is bet against him. It saves effort and worry... and I always win. Wouldn't you like a gambling buddy like that?"

"Uh..."

Well, Moke could not even refute that.

He immediately laughed again. "In that case, let's go meet him together. After all, who has a grudge against Beli?"

"Hahaha..."

"Yohohohoho..."

"Horohorohoro..."

Everyone present could not help laughing.

Beli—who did not like it?

Take Baboon King Burns, for example. He had planned to head to Golden Island and win big.

Then Baboon King Burns frowned again. That was right... he wanted to win big. But if everyone went...

Moke, Jesus Burgess, Weevil, Brook, Perona, Ata, and himself—seven people in total. If every one of them won big, they would probably alert Golden Island's owner, Gild Tesoro.

That guy was not someone to provoke.

Thus, he revealed a hesitant expression. "Captain, Golden Island's owner, Gild Tesoro, is a major figure in the Underworld. We still have to deal with Doflamingo. If we end up facing him too, I'm afraid things won't look good!"

At that, Moke narrowed his eyes, though they gleamed with light.

Gild Tesoro—what One Piece fan did not know him?

He was known as the Golden Emperor.

Strictly speaking, this man could be considered a legend.

He had built the world's largest entertainment city, "Grand Tesoro," and it had even become an independent kingdom recognized by the World Government. He was also a business genius who controlled countless industries around the world.

His wealth accounted for twenty percent of the entire world. He had connections in both the underworld and the legitimate world. In the Underworld, he was the Golden Emperor who used money to control the dark world, with influence stretching across the globe.

On the surface, he was the king of an independent kingdom recognized by the World Government. With the power of money, he could freely manipulate the Celestial Dragons and even mobilize the World Government's power.

He had risen from a penniless slave to the richest man in the world, becoming the king among underground forces. He had become someone who could freely manipulate the Celestial Dragons and even wield the World Government's power.

Was that impressive or not?

Absolutely impressive!

He had a famous saying: "Those without money can accomplish nothing. They can only be controlled!"

Those words were cruel, but realistic.

They laid bare the essence of every world.

But if someone like that could be brought under his command, it would be like adding wings to a tiger. Even taking a step back, if he could not be recruited, then taking Grand Tesoro for himself...

Obtaining the wealth within would still be an enormous gain.

"Gild Tesoro truly is an extraordinary figure. Not only does he possess remarkable strength, but he also commands powerful forces. If we want to take him and his Grand Tesoro and make them our own, we need sufficient strength. With just us, it may still be difficult... You go ahead first. I'll find another capable man... Then we'll make a proper mess of things."

"You want to attack Grand Tesoro?" Baboon King Burns' eyes widened, filled with shock.

"Hahaha..."

Moke burst into laughter. "Our pirate crew needs territory of its own too! I think Gild Tesoro's massive entertainment city would be an excellent choice."

However, he also understood.

If he occupied that place, the World Government and the Celestial Dragons would probably be unable to sit still. Although he had tremendous confidence in his own strength...

He was not arrogant enough to believe that, with his current strength and influence, he could hold that territory against special targeting from the World Government and the Celestial Dragons.

The difficult part was not taking it, but holding it long-term.

He had to recruit two more powerful people...

Moke suddenly thought of something and turned to Baboon King Burns. "By the way, do you have any rubber? Or ceramics..."

Baboon King Burns said, "Huh?????"

Mock Town.

Blackbeard, Poison Q, and Lafitte had just landed on the island and were walking along the road leading to Mock Town.

Blackbeard was in an excellent mood at the moment because he had found a rather good crew member in the West Blue.

More importantly, Lafitte had proposed an astonishing plan that had greatly tempted him...

Now, all he needed was to find someone with a decent bounty and send them as a gift to Sengoku's desk at Marine Headquarters. Then the plan would be halfway successful.

"Zehahaha..." Blackbeard laughed.

"Hmm?"

But the smile on his face immediately froze. His Observation Haki had detected someone's presence, and that person's aura was extremely terrifying.

Even he had no choice but to become cautious.

He turned to look into the sky and saw a beam of light descending into Mock Town ahead.

"Light?"

Blackbeard raised a brow.

Because light made him think of two people. One was Admiral Kizaru, the Glint-Glint Fruit user. The other was Moke, the newly appointed Shichibukai with multiple abilities.

But no matter which one it was, he had to treat them seriously.

He muttered inwardly, Who could it be? And what are they doing here?

At the same time, on the other side of this small island, the Straw Hat Crew had also landed. They were heading toward Mock Town as well...

Moke, who had already landed in Mock Town, curled his lips into an amused smile. "Mock Town... It really is a place of special significance!"

He had never expected that even after Robin had joined him and Crocodile had been killed by him...

The plot had long since changed, yet Blackbeard and Luffy, these two future Emperors, were still going to meet in this place.

Interesting!

He entered the only tavern in Mock Town.

The moment he stepped inside, he saw a group of pirates shouting arrogantly nearby.

Well, he recognized them at a glance. Wasn't that Bellamy, Doflamingo's crazed little fanboy?

It seemed this guy was simply destined to be beaten into the sky!