Then, with a flick of his finger, flames shot out from his fingertip.
"Boom!"
Before anyone could react, Shiki was sent flying backward at a speed far greater than when he came, his body tracing an arc in the air.
It crashed heavily onto the ground not far away.
"!!!"
The onlookers stared wide-eyed at the scene, as if they had witnessed something unbelievable.
Then everyone immediately turned their attention to Xia Chen, their expressions even more solemn than before.
"Was that flame from Logia Fruit user?"
Charlotte Linlin began to speak.
"It should be!" Newgate nodded, then added:
"But I've seen a user of the Flame-Flame Fruit before, and his flames are quite different from this man's!"
"When that flame appeared just now, I felt a chill run down my spine; it definitely couldn't have been an ordinary flame!"
After speaking, Newgate turned and looked behind him.
"I wonder how that guy Shiki is doing?"
As if in response to Newgate's words, a series of coughs came from the dust and smoke behind them.
Immediately afterwards, Shiki slowly stood up from the smoke and dust, and walked out of the smoke and dust step by step.
But when Shiki appeared before everyone, they were all taken aback.
Shiki looked utterly disheveled; his golden hair was disheveled, his clothes were tattered, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
What was most striking was his chest, where a large patch of ripe, dark flesh lay.
At this moment, Shiki looked at Xia Chen with fear in his eyes. He was about to say something when he couldn't hold back and vomited a mouthful of blood.
This scene sent another chill down everyone's spine.
They had assumed that Shiki was knocked out simply because Shiki didn't understand his opponent's abilities and suffered an unexpected loss.
You won't get hurt!
But now this...
"He won't get hurt? Nobody would believe it if you said it wasn't a serious injury!"
As those who were on the same side as Shiki, they were well aware of Shiki's strength.
Even if they haven't reached the level of Admiral, the difference is minimal!
Even against Admiral, they can hold out for quite some time.
But what did they see now? This young man had severely injured Shiki with just a flick of his wrist?
Is this some kind of absurdity? Doesn't this mean that the other side could easily defeat anyone except for Rocks?
It's important to know that even Newgate, the strongest under Rocks, was only slightly stronger than Shiki and had only recently reached the level of Admiral.
Not to mention the others, they are all weaker than Shiki, Shiki is the third strongest member of the Rocks Pirates.
"So, Rocks! Is my strength enough to earn me a position equal to yours on your ship?"
Xia Chen smiled faintly and asked Rocks.
Rocks's eyes flickered, and he did not answer Xia Chen's question immediately.
Judging from how easily Xia Chen defeated Shiki just now, he was certain that the man in front of him was definitely no weaker than him, and might even be stronger!
Keep in mind that he wasn't confident he could severely injure Shiki with a single blow.
but...
He's not without his trump cards! If he were to go all out, given his abilities, the outcome would be uncertain!
Getting back to the main point, if it were in the past, Rocks, who was likely stronger than himself, would never have allowed him to pose a threat, much less have allowed him to join his pirate crew.
There's a high probability that a war will break out!
But things are different now. For the plans he wants to implement next, he needs strong people, the stronger the better!
Therefore, it doesn't seem impossible to get Xia Chen to join his pirate crew now, even if the other party demands to be on equal footing with him.
Anyway, he doesn't really care about these things!
As long as the other party is willing to work with him to implement his plan, that's all that matters!
With this in mind, Rocks made a decision, then looked at Xia Chen and said:
"Sure! You can join our pirate crew and have the same status as me! From now on, you'll be another captain of the Rocks Pirates!"
Rocks's words also carried a subtle implication: although they were both captains, the pirate crew was still called the Rocks Pirates, so he was still in the position of leader!
Xia Chen was unaware of Rocks's thoughts, but even if he had known, it wouldn't have mattered to him; he didn't care about such things.
Rocks Pirates simply because I thought it would be fun!
After all, the theme of this era before the God Valley Incident revolved around the Rocks Pirates.
Once you join the Rocks Pirates, you'll never be short of fun things to do!
Those around them were stunned by this, wondering why they suddenly had another captain.
However, no one objected to Rocks's decision.
The arrogant and unruly Shiki from just now is now facing the consequences!
For the Rocks Pirates, strength is everything; here, as long as you have the strength, you can rise to the top!
Xia Chen had already completely intimidated them with his strength, so how could anyone possibly raise any objections?
Seeing that no one refuted his opinion, Rocks smiled and said:
"In that case! To welcome our new captain..."
Let's have a pirate extravaganza!
"Uh... Captain, the men are all still lying down because of the new captain! Looks like... we can't have a proper celebration!"
One of the captains looked around cautiously and then spoke.
Rocks:...
--
One day later~
Marine Headquarters.
In a conference room.
A dozen or so sailors sat around a table.
Judging from the cloaks worn by these naval officers, their lowest rank is Vice Admiral or higher.
One of the men, a sharp-looking man with short hair, casually asked the man next to him:
" Sengoku! Do you think that old geezer, Sora, has something wrong with his head? Why did he gather us all here if he had nothing better to do?"
" Garp! You bastard! Show some respect to the Fleet Admiral Kong, stop calling him 'old codger' all the time!" a female Marine said irritably from the other side.
"What's the big deal? Tsuru! Just tell me Fleet Admiral Kong is old or not!"
"He's so old and still alive, what else could he be but an immortal old man?"
Garp picked his nose and said nonchalantly.
Hearing this, Sengoku sighed inwardly, feeling helpless. He really wanted to say that he didn't know this guy. Then he said:
"If nothing unexpected happens, something big must have occurred! Otherwise, so many people wouldn't have been summoned, and even the three Admiral wouldn't have been absent!"
As he spoke, Sengoku turned his gaze to the three people on the other side.
Two of the three had gray hair, while only one looked middle-aged.
At first glance, they were just three ordinary people, but they all exuded a powerful aura.
Judging from the cloaks they were wearing, these three were none other than three Admiral of the navy!
At one point, the meeting room fell silent, even the usually carefree Garp.
A series of footsteps, starting light and gradually increasing in volume, were heard, and then the door to their conference room was pushed open.
The figure that appeared before everyone was none other than the current Fleet Admiral — Steel Bone Sky!