Madman Lin Ye! Bounty of 87 Million

From the current situation, it seemed highly likely.

That was Lin Ye's judgment. He had even considered finding Devil Fruits in the future, having someone eat them, then killing them to pick up traits containing the fruit's abilities.

But there was no rush for that now.

"Hehehehe, boys, more fools who don't value their lives have delivered themselves to our door."

Having just sailed out from beneath thunderclouds raging with wind and rain, they found themselves beneath blazing sunshine in the blink of an eye.

Then Moria's wild laughter rang out.

In an instant, the Thriller Bark Pirates entered battle formation.

Lin Ye walked to the rail and gazed into the distance.

Sure enough, more than a dozen pirate ships were charging straight toward them.

Lin Ye raised a hand to rest on the hilt of the sword at his waist, then turned to look at Moria standing at the bow.

The pirates beside Lin Ye saw his movement, and a trace of awe flashed through their eyes.

Whenever Captain Lin Ye made a move, none of their enemies survived.

It had been that way in every battle since he joined the pirate crew.

His methods were ruthless, and so was he.

Yet it was precisely because of that that he had become the captain of the combat division after only a year with the crew.

"Hehehehe, don't be in such a hurry, Lin Ye. Leave their captain to me this time."

Seeming to notice Lin Ye's gaze, Gecko Moria rested the long blade in his hand on his shoulder and said with a strange giggle.

A year ago, he had merely made an offhand remark in Loguetown. Who would have thought he would recruit such a little monster?

This brat's strength had grown quickly.

Moria glanced at Lin Ye from the corner of his eye as he thought to himself.

But it did not matter for now. Lin Ye was still far from reaching him.

Otherwise, he really would have had cause for concern.

Lin Ye did not know what Moria was thinking, and even if he did, he would not have cared.

Since joining Moria's pirate crew, he had only ever used swordsmanship and Armament Haki in battle. He had never used any of his other abilities.

Lin Ye knew his own weakness: his combat experience was insufficient.

In the first half of the Grand Line, Armament Haki was already enough.

After entering the latter half, however, his combat experience and swordsmanship had both improved greatly.

Still, he habitually kept his strongest abilities hidden.

Armament Haki and Conqueror's Haki were enough to handle almost anything unless he encountered pirates worth hundreds of millions.

To him, encountering pirates meant harvesting Blank Traits.

Whether they were killed by others or by his own hand, traits would drop all the same.

Even if pirates on Moria's side died, there would still be traits.

At that moment, the dozen or so pirate ships charging toward them began to turn. After making a wide circle, they attempted to flee.

"Boys, move in."

Moria chuckled when he saw that, swung his long blade, and pointed it at the pirate fleet trying to escape.

The massive Thriller Bark, as enormous as an island, turned around.

It began pursuing the fleeing pirate crews.

"Damn it, it's Gecko Moria!"

A brawny man with a face full of beard and a mouth full of sharp teeth cursed aboard one of the ships that had turned to flee.

Gecko Moria was a great pirate whose reputation had grown increasingly prominent over the past year or so.

Yet every pirate crew that encountered Moria met the same fate.

They were all wiped out completely.

Not long ago, the Marines had issued Gecko Moria's bounty poster.

The bounty was a full 300 million.

Bounties had not yet skyrocketed in this era.

In the New World, great pirates with bounties exceeding 100 million were already figures everyone feared.

A bounty of 300 million placed someone in the first tier beneath the New World's overlords.

Not to mention his exceptionally ruthless methods.

The fact that no one survived an encounter with him made Gecko Moria's reputation all the more terrifying.

Of course, the true culprit behind it all was Lin Ye.

Even Moria found Lin Ye's killing intent terrifying, but he was not in a position to stop him.

That was how the Thriller Bark Pirates' terrifying legend had been forged.

Compared to before, Gecko Moria and his pirate crew were far more famous, though most of that fame was infamy.

"Move! We'll be safe once we enter Wano Country's waters!"

Watching the enormous Thriller Bark pursue them, the captains of the dozen ships roared one after another.

These ships were transporting supplies for Kaido, the overlord who occupied Wano Country.

No matter how bold Gecko Moria was, would he really dare oppose Kaido?

"A bunch of cowardly trash."

Moria snorted as he watched the ships flee in blind panic.

The Thriller Bark continued accelerating, its massive hull, like an island, plowing directly over the slower ships.

The pirate ships it crushed sank straight into the sea, leaving behind only shattered planks floating on the surface.

Lin Ye frowned slightly.

He would not gain anything if this kept up.

He had already thoroughly figured out the system.

Only people who died within a certain range of him had a chance of dropping traits.

Only bubbles he could see could be actively collected by him.

The two pirate ships that had just been crushed had not contributed a single trait to him.

That was at least one or two hundred people. They should have contributed dozens of traits no matter what.

With that thought, Lin Ye looked toward Gecko Moria.

This was not the first time Lin Ye had reacted like this.

Before Gecko Moria could say anything, Lin Ye drew the long blade hanging at his waist.

The blade was dark and dull, faintly gleaming with a black luster.

His legs bent slightly, then he explosively pushed off, launching himself dozens of meters into the air.

With another fierce kick, the air exploded with a boom as Lin Ye shot toward the pirate ships ahead.

Then cheers erupted from atop the Thriller Bark.

He was here, he was here.

The Thriller Bark's number one battle maniac, the ruthless Madman Lin Ye.

Watching Lin Ye charge out, Moria's eyelid twitched wildly, but he did not stop him.

Moria believed he had already understood Lin Ye's personality.

What Lin Ye had shown Moria was a bloodthirsty battle maniac who became fired up at the sight of combat and showed no mercy.

The Marines' bounty poster and epithet for Lin Ye were enough to prove it.

Madman Lin Ye, bounty of 87 million.

In this era, a bounty of that amount was comparable to several hundred million twenty years later.

In the Marines' eyes, Lin Ye was already a figure on the level of a Supernova.

Since Lin Ye had made his move, Moria did not remain idle either.

His huge body leaped into the air. Black shadows spread like two enormous wings, carrying Moria toward another pirate crew.

As Lin Ye was about to land on the pirate ship, he turned and saw Moria's movement, immediately frowning.

Stealing my business again. Still, judging by the distance, it should be enough.

For now, five or six hundred meters seemed to be the limit. Beyond that distance, the dead would not drop traits.

Looks like I need to speed things up.

With that thought, Lin Ye's body became like a shooting star as he smashed directly onto the pirate ship beneath him.

The deck exploded. Several pirates nearby were hurled into the air by the shockwave, and before they could land, a dark blade flashed past. They died on the spot.

After collecting the two bubbles that dropped, Lin Ye swept his gaze around.

"Madman Lin Ye, bounty 87 million? My bounty is 93 million."

The pirate ship's captain recognized Lin Ye immediately and flew into a rage.

He was afraid of Moria, but Lin Ye was just an officer under Moria, wasn't he?