" Pops!!"
Ace and the others shouted at the top of their lungs from a great distance.
Xia Chen had no intention of getting involved in this life-or-death situation. He slowly turned and walked away, leaving the place to Whitebeard and his sons.
Let them say a proper goodbye to Whitebeard one last time!
--
After a period of time~
Xia Chen stood on the edge of a cliff on the island, gazing at the distant sea, lost in thought.
At one point, he seemed to sense something and, without turning his head, asked calmly, "Have you taken care of Whitebeard's affairs?"
"Not yet. We plan to bury Pops in a couple of days. Let us, his unfilial sons, spend these last few days with him!"
I came here to thank you; thank you for making the trip!
Ace's voice came from behind Xia Chen, and then he walked to Xia Chen's Xia Chen and stood shoulder to shoulder with him, his gaze also fixed on the distant sea.
"It's nothing! I have great respect for Whitebeard, so I was happy to come and see him off on his final journey!"
"And this time he even let me see the Whitebeard at its peak, so I was actually quite excited!" Xia Chen replied.
Upon hearing this, Ace remained silent for a moment before finally speaking, "Regardless, I still want to thank you!"
Xia Chen turned his head slightly, looked at Ace, and suddenly smiled.
"Alright, then go ahead and thank me. I accept your thanks!"
"Hmm!" Ace nodded, and then a silence fell between them. Neither of them spoke for a long time. Finally, Ace spoke first.
"By the way, why haven't we heard from you guys in the past six months? That can't be right!"
"Oh, that? We haven't gone anywhere for the past six months, it would be strange if you heard from us. Six months ago, Luffy and his crew were still a bit lacking in strength. They might have been okay in the Grand Line, but if they really came to the New World, they would be a bit out of their depth!"
"So we decided to train for a period of time before continuing our journey, and we agreed on a timeframe of six months!"
"It's about time now, it's about time to go back and see Luffy and the others. Speaking of which, it's been almost half a year since I last saw them!"
A smile involuntarily crept onto Xia Chen's lips as he spoke of Luffy and his crew.
He's been with Luffy ever since he arrived in this world, and they've hardly been apart for a while afterward. Now that they haven't seen each other for half a year, he really misses him!
"Alright, I've been out for a while now, it's time for me to go back!"
Xia Chen turned to look at Ace and said calmly.
"Okay!" Ace nodded.
Xia Chen didn't say much. He nodded to Ace and then leaped down. The Flying Nimbus instantly appeared beneath his feet, and then his figure disappeared into the distant horizon.
" Xia Chen..."
Ace murmured softly, remaining in place for a full ten minutes before finally turning slowly and walking towards Marco and the others...
--
In a room in Mary Geoise, the Holy Land.
"Has Xia Chen been inactive for half a year now?"
"Yes! We haven't seen him anywhere in the past six months. Judging from his previous visits to us, he's most likely been on Amazon Lily for the past six months!"
"Tch~ Is this kid obsessed with the Pirate Empress's beauty?"
"Sure enough, few men of this age can resist the allure of beauty, not even someone as strong as Xia Chen."
"But this is actually a good thing for us. The presence of desires proves that a person has weaknesses; otherwise, it would be the most difficult situation if he wanted nothing at all!"
The Five Elders and the others offered their opinions one after another; this was already the umpteenth time they had gathered together to discuss Xia Chen.
Normally, the five of them rarely get together; in most cases, one of them only needs to make the decision.
But because of Xia Chen, the Five Elders' meetings, which were originally infrequent, have become at least once a week, and each meeting revolves around whether Xia Chen has made any recent moves.
After discussing a long list of solutions for dealing with Xia Chen, they only occasionally addressed minor issues. Even though Xia Chen didn't take any action each time, they were still very interested in discussing Xia Chen.
Over the past six months, Xia Chen's name has probably been the most frequently mentioned by them!
"Well... since Xia Chen hasn't made any moves lately, let's just leave him be. That concludes today's meeting!"
Saturn said calmly, then slowly stood up, preparing to leave.
But just then, a voice made him freeze as he stood up, and cold sweat immediately broke out on his forehead.
"Hey, Lord Saturn, don't be in such a hurry! I'd like to hear more of your discussion about me. Why are you in such a rush?"
Upon hearing this, the Five Elders all turned their gazes in a certain direction, and then their faces showed expressions of utter horror.
"Xia... Xia Chen! When did you come in? Why didn't you make a sound?"
Jupiter looked at Xia Chen with a hint of fear in her eyes and asked tremblingly.
Since Xia Chen could appear here silently without anyone noticing, does that also mean that if Xia Chen wanted to kill them, they wouldn't even know how they died?
The thought of Jupiter made her feel as if her life wasn't her own, and that Xia Chen could take it away whenever he wanted.
"You don't need to know when I came in; all you need to know is that I've heard most of your conversations about me!"
"I have indeed been on Amazon Lily for the past six months, there's no need to hide that, so guess why I warned you six months ago not to approach Amazon Lily?"
At this point, a playful smile appeared on Xia Chen's lips, and he continued:
"As for why there hasn't been a sound at all, I can only say that you're too weak to detect me!"
The Five Elders:...
This was the first time they had been told they were weak. If anyone dared to speak to them like that, they would make sure they knew their own worth.
But Xia Chen said what they said...
Hmm... they really are too weak!
After calming himself down, Mars looked at Xia Chen and asked:
"So... Xia Chen, what are you planning to do here this time?"
Mars has now realized that Xia Chen doesn't intend to kill them, otherwise they wouldn't have been able to keep up this for so long.
Since it doesn't threaten their lives, we can discuss the other conditions.
"Actually, it's nothing. I just wanted to verify something!" Xia Chen said calmly, then stared intently at the Five Elders and the others, asking each word carefully:
"Did the Devil Fruit abilities of the previous Five Elders reside within you?"