At the Graveside

"Eight million? That's incredible!" Locke said it was impressive, but his face showed neither surprise nor fear.

At that moment, Simba remembered that he was an eight-million-Beli pirate. There was no need to fear this kid, so he ordered his crew, "Get him! Take this brat down!"

Hearing their captain's command, the surrounding crewmen gave it no thought. They drew their weapons and charged straight at Locke.

"Tch! Starting so soon? Still, to thank you for keeping me company, I'll play everyone a song!" As soon as Locke finished speaking, he vanished from where he stood, evading the pirates' attacks. When he reappeared at the bow, several miniature figures had appeared at his feet.

A rendition of Carefree Journey drifted out from the purple light as several tiny purple figures performed it.

The pirates paid no attention to the music. Seeing that their attack had missed, they charged at Locke again.

"What a bunch of brutes. You can't even appreciate such wonderful music." Watching the pirates rush at him again, Locke curled his lip and spoke helplessly.

"Since you don't want to listen to music, then lie down!" Locke placed a hand on the Tang Dao at his waist as he watched the pirates charge him.

"Shing!"

With the sound of a blade leaving its sheath, Locke gripped the Tang Dao and dove forward, slipping through the gaps in the pirates' attacks. When he stopped again, he was already behind them, slowly sheathing the Tang Dao.

After Locke put away his Tang Dao, the pirates behind him collapsed one after another.

"When you're listening to music, listen properly. Don't move around and ruin the experience." After sheathing his blade, Locke spoke to the fallen pirates.

Ever since Locke obtained the Phantom Fruit and used its power to recreate the first song from his original world, he had become hopelessly enamored with that music. Or rather, it was not the music itself that he loved, but the world that had created it—the world he missed.

"Y-you... who exactly are you?" Simba was terrified after Locke took down all his crewmen in one move. Sweat covered his face as he stammered.

"Shh! Quiet. Listen to the song. This is a melody being played just for you!" Locke held a finger to his lips as he spoke to Simba.

For a moment, the entire ship fell silent, with only the music still playing.

Sweat dripped down Simba's face as he grew incomparably tense.

"Ah! I've had enough! Kid, I'm not someone you can toy with!" With a furious roar, Simba raised his spiked club and smashed it toward Locke.

"You really have no patience. You couldn't even last the length of one song." Locke merely shifted lightly aside and avoided the spiked club.

"Bang." The dodged spiked club slammed into the ship, punching a hole straight through it.

"Kid, if you've got guts, stop dodging!" After missing his strike, Simba swung at Locke again.

"Fine. You lie down too!" Locke dodged Simba's attack again, then drew the Tang Dao and ended Simba with a single slash.

After killing Simba, Locke casually picked up a barrel of liquor aboard the ship and drank while listening to the music.

Before long, the Phantom arrived. When Carmen led Big Bear and Second Bear aboard the pirate ship, all they saw were pirates lying on the deck and Locke sitting among them, drinking alone while listening to music.

Carmen asked no questions. With a wave of her hand, she swept all the fallen pirates into the sea, regardless of whether they were alive or dead. She trusted Locke. Since he had acted against them, they could not have been good people.

After sweeping the pirates overboard, she had Big Bear and Second Bear remain on the ship to move its food and liquor.

After searching the entire ship, Locke discovered that this pirate crew was truly wealthy. Their food alone was enough to feed Locke's group, along with bottomless eaters like Big Bear, for ten days. They had also found nearly thirty million Beli in treasure.

Locke and the others moved everything from the ship onto the Phantom. Then Locke tossed over a barrel of liquor, followed by a torch, directly setting the pirate ship ablaze.

"Let's go. We'll continue on our way." After finishing everything, Locke spoke to the others behind him. Without even looking back at the pirate ship he had set on fire, he returned to his room.

Back then, One Piece Roger had also gone to sea with the dream of changing the world. He had opened the Great Pirate Era and could indeed be said to have changed the world, though not thoroughly enough.

The early days of the Great Pirate Era were like the darkness before dawn. All kinds of vicious pirates appeared across the seas, plundering everything they saw. Yet at the same time, they dealt blows to the World Government, which had existed for hundreds of years, making more and more people dare to challenge its authority. For now, these people and pirates all fought separately.

But to change everything completely, the seas needed a king. And Locke felt that, if possible, he wanted to become that person.

Nothing else happened during the voyage that followed, and Locke's group soon returned to Bisi Island.

That day, whether the heavens had sensed the mood of the Phantom Pirates or it was merely coincidence, when Locke and the others disembarked, the previously clear sky suddenly filled with dark clouds.

Carmen stayed aboard to watch over Yun Zhinnan, who was still unable to leave his bed, while Locke accompanied Big Bear and the others toward the cemetery.

Big Bear walked at the front, carrying Colonel Nezumi, who had been trapped aboard the ship the entire time. Second Bear and Panda followed behind with their heads lowered, while Locke trailed at the very end.

During the past few days at sea, Colonel Nezumi had not remained unconscious the entire time. But whenever he woke up, Big Bear and the others only gave him some water before knocking him out again. They had no desire to hear what he had to say.

Soon, they arrived before the graves. The three bears knelt down stiffly.

"Fellow villagers, today we have brought the culprit who killed you. We will use his head to honor your memory. May you rest in peace." After speaking, Big Bear kowtowed three times before the graves, with Second Bear and Panda following right after him.

After finishing their kowtows, Big Bear dragged Colonel Nezumi before the graves and forced him to kneel there. Then he found some cold water and splashed it directly over the unconscious colonel, waking him up.

"Look! These are all the people you killed. Today, I will use your blood to honor them." Seeing Colonel Nezumi awaken, Big Bear said.

"N-no... don't... kill me!" Nezumi begged weakly.

Big Bear seized Colonel Nezumi by the hair and pressed his entire face against a gravestone. "Look! Look at them! When you killed them, did you ever listen to their pleas for mercy? Huh? Answer me!"