Although Xie Wen knew Shanks was coming to see him, after hanging up, he continued copying Vegapunk's research with the Felines at a leisurely pace...
The Red Hair Pirates didn't have the Dudu. Even if they set off immediately, it would probably take them several days to arrive.
Besides, Xie Wen had no grudge against Shanks. On the contrary, they had quite a few connections, so he wasn't worried about him coming at all.
He had to admit that Vegapunk's research covered an astonishing variety of fields. Even just copying all the cultural research took Xie Wen and the others two and a half days.
After finishing with the research here, Xie Wen and the others once again slipped out of the institute under cover of Blizzard. After meeting up with Robin, they once again activated the Research Commission's secret technique: Klee Meow Treasure-Seeking Technique.
Since they had no definite target, the Little Plushie used her usual method of spinning around and letting her tail point the way. The tip of her tail ended up pointing toward a strangely shaped peak in the distance, which was also the tallest mountain on Karakuri Island.
Unlike the other peaks, its summit was shaped like a round head of broccoli, and two enormous bolts stuck out of its sides halfway up...
One look was enough to tell that Vegapunk had been tinkering with something there.
Xie Wen hadn't considered that place before because he vaguely remembered it being one of Vegapunk's failed projects.
"That's the 'Geothermal System,' which was meant to warm the entire island," Robin, who had already thoroughly investigated the island, immediately explained. "Apparently, Vegapunk built it when he was young, but he couldn't finish it because of technical and financial limitations."
*Looking at it that way, the One Piece world's