Please go rest in Impel Down!

Having settled on his main hunting target, Ye Yang returned the bounty posters to Shakky and rose to head outside.

Just then, Rayleigh, who had been sitting silently on a barstool, suddenly spoke.

"Wait, kid. Give me proof that you aren't lying to me!"

Ye Yang paused in his steps, then walked straight out the door, his voice echoing through the quiet bar.

"Portgas D. Rouge."

Hearing that familiar name, Rayleigh fell silent again, his expression deeply conflicted.

Area 21, inside a certain bar.

Wild, defiant laughter filled the entire bar, shutting out the tranquility outside as pirates drank and played around without restraint.

Several corpses lay silently at the entrance, giving off a nauseating stench of decay.

The bar's owner and staff seemed accustomed to all of this. Without any panic, they simply poured drinks for the pirates and wiped down tables in silence.

A pirate lackey with a mohawk stood up, a bottle of rum in hand, his face flushed with drink as he laughed wildly.

"Let me tell you, those bounty hunters out front didn't know their limits. They thought beating a few small-time pirates with bounties in the tens of millions meant they could come capture our captain. Guess how many moves it took our captain to kill them?"

The other pirates in the bar immediately grew interested, joining in with laughter and banter.

"I bet no more than ten moves. Your captain is one of this year's Supernovas, after all, and he's Fierce Tiger Reika, the one with the highest bounty. How could those worthless bounty hunters last ten moves?"

"Hahaha, you give those losers too much credit. I bet no more than five!"

"I bet three moves or less. If I'm wrong, I'll drink five bottles of rum as punishment. Of course, you're paying!"

"Haha, aren't you a slippery one?"

"We've made all these guesses, so tell us already. How many moves did Lord Lei Jia take to kill those losers?"

Hearing pirates from other crews praise his captain, the lackey felt a surge of pride, as though he were the one being praised. He puffed out his chest and said with a laugh, "Too bad, you all guessed wrong. Our captain only made one move, and all four of those worthless bounty hunters were dead!"

"He's that strong?"

"That's Lord Lei Jia for you! If only I'd met Lord Lei Jia sooner, I could've joined your crew!"

"Yeah, if only we could join your crew. We'd definitely become famous across the seas and become great pirates someday!"

"Compared to Lord Lei Jia, our captain of the Crow Pirates was pathetic. A few days ago, he couldn't even beat a Navy lieutenant commander and got arrested on the spot. We've actually been thinking about finding another crew to join!"

"Hmph!" Just then, a vicious-looking, burly man seated at the bar suddenly snorted. He glanced at the pirates in the bar and said disdainfully, "I, Fierce Tiger Reika, am the man who'll become the Pirate King someday. Not every piece of trash is qualified to follow me!"

The pirates who had just been joining in the praise all looked unhappy at those words. After all, no one would feel good about being called trash to their face.

But given the burly man's fearsome reputation, none of them dared voice a complaint.

"Pfft!" Suddenly, a snicker came from a corner of the bar, reaching everyone's ears with perfect clarity.

Everyone in the bar's expression changed. Wasn't that openly mocking Fierce Tiger Reika?

Who dared be so bold? Did they have a death wish?

The pirates stole a glance at Fierce Tiger Reika's face.

Sure enough, his expression was dark. He was already furious.

Crash!

Fierce Tiger Reika stood up and smashed the rum bottle in his hand, scattering shards of glass across the floor.

He stared coldly toward the source of the sound. "Whoever dared laugh just now, get the hell out here!"

His answer was another snicker.

"Pfft!"

Covering his mouth, Ye Yang said mockingly, "Sorry, what you said was so funny that I couldn't help laughing."

"Damn you, you dare laugh at me!" Veins bulged on Fierce Tiger Reika's forehead as he roared angrily at his lackeys, "Grab him! I'll skin him alive and show everyone what happens to anyone who dares laugh at me! If you let him escape, you'll take his place!"

"Yes, boss!"

At Fierce Tiger Reika's command, the lackeys of the Fierce Tiger Pirates immediately put down their bottles and surrounded Ye Yang without even picking up their weapons.

Perhaps to them, he was merely a harmless, somewhat handsome young man who wasn't worth using weapons against.

The mohawked lackey from earlier led the way, looking at Ye Yang with a savage grin. "Kid, stay still and behave, and you'll spare yourself some pain!"

"That line really does sound familiar." Ye Yang scratched his cheek, the smile disappearing from his face. He glanced sideways at Fierce Tiger Reika and said flatly, "Fierce Tiger Reika, one of this year's pirate Supernovas, with a bounty of 180 million Beli. Identity confirmed."

Fierce Tiger Reika frowned, staring at Ye Yang as he said slowly, "Kid, you know my name and still dare laugh at me? Do you have something to fall back on?"

"I don't have anything to fall back on." Ye Yang spread his hands, regarding him intently as a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. "Now that I've confirmed it's you, I just want to ask you for something."

Fierce Tiger Reika's frown deepened. "What?"

"Your... bounty!"

The instant Ye Yang finished speaking, before the pirates in the bar could react, his figure suddenly became a phantom. He swiftly broke through the blockade of lackeys and appeared before Fierce Tiger Reika.

Everyone stared blankly at the scene. This turn of events had already gone beyond their expectations.

Standing before Fierce Tiger Reika, Ye Yang smiled faintly. "Thanks for all your hard work sailing for so long. Now, please go rest in Impel Down."

Thud, thud, thud!

The instant his words fell, the lackeys behind him suddenly collapsed in unison, their eyes wide and their breathing gone.

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