After King left, Kaido grabbed the huge sake gourd, took a massive swig, then stood and picked up the spiked club beside him.
"Bastard, still haven't found Moria?"
Kaido had already received word that Gecko Moria's ship had encountered a whirlpool in the seas around Wano Country.
Having stayed in Wano Country for so long, Kaido naturally knew what the whirlpools in its waters were.
They were undersea currents.
As long as a ship was sturdy enough, it would not be destroyed by the currents.
The currents were not even passages completely filled with seawater, so ships could sail through them.
But after spending so many years in the New World, Kaido had long grown accustomed to all sorts of strange environments.
What infuriated him was that so much time had passed since the news arrived, yet there was still no further information.
What were those useless subordinates of his even doing?
"Captain Kaido!"
Just as Kaido was stewing in anger, a pirate rushed in, holding up a Den Den Mushi.
"Hm?"
Kaido suddenly turned his head and fixed his bloodshot crimson eyes on the newcomer.
The pirate shuddered under Kaido's gaze, stopped short, and immediately stood at attention.
"Captain Kaido, we've found Moria's group."
"Where?"
Kaido immediately burst into laughter.
"Our people spotted the Thriller Bark Behind the Ridge."
"Tell the men to prepare the ships. We're going to war."
Laughing loudly, Kaido slung the enormous spiked club over his shoulder and strode outside.
"Yes, Captain Kaido."
The pirate snapped to attention, then hurriedly ran out.
By the time Kaido arrived, the ships were ready, and a large group of pirates was waiting for him.
The moment Kaido appeared, everyone erupted into cheers.
Kaido leaped onto the ship, making the entire vessel tilt.
"Set sail! Head Behind the Ridge! I want to see what the hell dared to steal my cargo!"
Kaido pointed his spiked club toward Behind the Ridge in Wano Country.
Behind the Ridge.
It was a rather special place in Wano Country.
Most other places were towns, mines, and the like.
Behind the Ridge, however, was where Wano Country buried its dead.
After people died, most were sent to Behind the Ridge for burial.
As a result, countless people were buried there.
The atmosphere was extremely gloomy, but pirates did not care about that.
"Captain, we couldn't find the combat captain. When we fell into the sea, he wasn't on the ship. He was clearing the enemies on the reef island."
"Hehehehe, it's fine. Lin Ye is strong; nothing will happen to him. Get some rest. At dawn, we'll launch our attack.
Wano Country will be mine!"
Moria let out a shrill laugh at those words.
"Yes!"
Hearing Moria say that, the pirates who had come out with the ship immediately grew excited.
Since following Gecko Moria into the New World, they had not lost a single battle in the past year, and that had filled them with confidence.
Sensing the emotions of his crew, Moria laughed as well.
Still, quite a few crew members had fallen into the sea and been swept away when the ship plunged into the whirlpool.
But once this war was over, they could simply recruit more crew members.
As long as they defeated Kaido and became overlords of the seas, they could have as many subordinates as they wanted.
Besides, Wano Country was quite a large island with a decent environment, making it well suited as a base.
Moria had realized it now.
If he wanted to become the One Piece, he would inevitably have to clash with the pirate crews of the old powers of the sea.
That meant he definitely needed a logistical base.
A ship alone would not be enough.
Problems could easily arise.
Moria had already begun considering what would come after defeating Kaido.
Flower Capital.
Lin Ye raised the blade in his hand and cut off Kurozumi Orochi's head once again.
[Blank Trait: 297]
That was the harvest from this battle. Of course, Lin Ye had kept some traits that looked useful.
But the only ability he truly valued was still Kozuki Toki's.
Though its consumption was immense, Lin Ye felt that this ability definitely had greater uses.
Kozuki Toki's strength was average, so her development of this ability was surely insufficient.
Or rather, traveling through time from several hundred years ago had consumed too much of Kozuki Toki's strength, and she had yet to recover.
But no matter what, the ability was more than enough to inspire anticipation.
However, improving this ability required far too many traits, and he had no traits to spare right now.
Only when he became strong enough in his own estimation would he invest some traits into this ability.
But there was still something else to look forward to next.
Lin Ye's gaze fell on Kurozumi Orochi's body on the ground.
Beside the short body, three somewhat square heads lay rolling nearby.
Every time this guy revived, he began with his body.
As for the heads Lin Ye had cut off, they would not disappear.
But his next revival would be his last.
This guy's Devil Fruit ability really could buy him time.
Lin Ye slightly raised his head and yawned. Then his eyes caught a streak of fire flying toward him from the horizon.
Hm?
Lin Ye closed his mouth and immediately spread his Observation Haki.
"This guy is... King?"
The distinct clothes on King's body gave away his identity.
Why had he come?
Was he here for Lin Ye?
Which meant Kaido's side had received the news?
The moment Lin Ye saw King approaching, he understood.
If Kaido had not known what happened here, one of Kaido's top commanders... no, that term probably did not exist yet.
Anyway, someone at the level of an Emperor's right-hand man—
He would not have come personally.
As Lin Ye pondered, Kurozumi Orochi's headless corpse twitched, and dark purple energy poured from his body.
Then, within that energy, a long, slender shadow emerged.
"Spare me, my lord!"
Before the dark purple mist had even dispersed, Kurozumi Orochi's terrified voice rang out.
A strange serpent head was pressed tightly to the ground, its eyes filled with terror.
Of the other seven serpent heads, six had been cut off. The remaining one had a piercing wound and had fallen still as well.
Looking at the desperately pleading Kurozumi Orochi, Lin Ye stood and planted one foot on Kurozumi Orochi's head.
Kurozumi Orochi's body trembled, his pupils shaking wildly.
He was clearly terrified beyond measure.
He could not escape.
And he understood clearly now that he had only one life left.
If his head was cut off, he would definitely die.
He had only recently become a daimyo. He still had ambitions to fulfill.
But when he saw Lin Ye raise his blade, his neck twisted violently as he tried to struggle. Yet the head beneath Lin Ye's foot did not move in the slightest.
"Stop!"
A furious roar came from above, followed by a Flaming Slash descending from the sky.
The corners of Lin Ye's mouth rose as the blade in his hand fell.
Splat!
Orochi lost his head.
The wildly struggling neck was suddenly freed, twisting and writhing together with the body.
Only this time, the head was gone.
[Picked up Rebirth Level 1] [Picked up Observation Haki Level 1]
Lin Ye sprang back and kicked the severed head beneath his foot toward the descending slash.
Before you continue