After two years of training and physical growth, Lin Yuan's strength had improved tremendously.
He had developed many abilities from the Zhu Jiuyin Fruit, going beyond breathing fire and ice and transforming into Zhulong.
After two years of developing it, he could now manage a preliminary human-beast transformation and had also developed the ability to fly.
Although he needed flame clouds to do it, he had made up for his weakness in aerial combat. Now, Lin Yuan was practically an all-rounder on land, at sea, and in the air.
As for his swordsmanship, two years still hadn't been enough for him to reach the level of a great swordsman. Not only was he too young and his body still growing, but he also lacked battles against powerful swordsmen.
For the past year, he had gone out to sea to find pirates to fight. In the East Blue, aside from a certain old man in a dog-head hat, Lin Yuan's strength ranked him number one.
Since Pirate King Roger had turned himself in and been publicly executed, Golden Lion Shiki had cut off his own legs to escape Impel Down and vanished, while Red Count Patrick Redfield had been taken down by Garp, who swooped in at the end, and sent to Impel Down.
Edward Newgate and Big Mom Charlotte Linlin were busy vying for supremacy in the New World, while Kaido of the Beasts was plotting in Wano Country.
As for Red-Haired Shanks, he was still putting his pirate crew together.
Every powerful pirate had either been captured or was busy expanding their own power, so there really wasn't anyone strong enough in the East Blue to threaten Lin Yuan.
"Boom, boom, boom..."
Lin Yuan watched the sea's surface split apart and close up again, over and over. In the end, all he could feel was resignation.
"Sigh, an ordinary sword still doesn't feel right in my hand. It's not as comfortable as my old one. A great swordsman? That really is a difficult level to reach. I'll wait a few more years!"
"And I'll get my Mandala back someday too!"
As for when he would reach the level of a great swordsman, Lin Yuan wasn't in a hurry. Even without a suitable opponent, he was confident he could eventually force his way there with his powerful physique.
The next day, while Lin Yuan was helping Bellemere build her new home, he saw Genzo approach in a rage.
"Genzo, what happened to you? Don't tell me Bellemere got the better of you again!"
Lin Yuan looked at Genzo in amusement. Honestly, Genzo was still rather handsome at this point, and he and Bellemere made a pretty good match. Besides, it would give Nojiko and Nami a dad, wouldn't it?
Genzo had no idea that Lin Yuan was planning to make him a dad. Otherwise, he would surely have been so excited that he'd have dropped to his knees and kowtowed to Lin Yuan.
"Lin Yuan, it's those bastards from the Marine Branch. They saw how much Beli our village's businesses were making and started charging us fees under all sorts of excuses."
"What's even worse is that their commander, Captain Nezumi, openly demanded thirty percent of our profits as protection money."
As he listened to Genzo's angry words, Lin Yuan's expression grew grave, though he wasn't as furious as Genzo.
After arriving here, he had introduced some simple things from his previous life, with baijiu as the main product, both to improve Robin's life and to make it easier for the villagers to accept them.
The village chief and Genzo had gathered everyone to form a trading company and given each household a share, tying the fortunes of all Cocoyasi Village together.
Although the village's alcoholic products were sold mainly in the nearby waters, they had brought in considerable wealth.
"Captain Nezumi? These Marines really do like choosing animals as their code names. But a sewer rat dares covet what's mine? Then I'll take you out early!"
Having made up his mind, Lin Yuan smiled and said, "I'll deal with this. Tell everyone not to get into a conflict with the Marines. If they want to take something, let them have it. But I need you to arrange for some things to be done."
Lin Yuan gave him a few quiet instructions, and Genzo looked at him in puzzlement.
"Will that work?"
"Just do as I say. Remember, you must document all the evidence, but be careful."
Genzo gritted his teeth and made up his mind.
"All right, leave it to me! I'll go now!"
"Oh? Aren't you going to see Bellemere? You could also see Nojiko and Nami. After all, they're really lacking a father's love!"
Genzo's face reddened, and he scratched his head awkwardly.
"Heh heh heh, what are you talking about? There's nothing going on between Bellemere and me. Besides, there's plenty of time for that. I'll go take care of the business first."
With that, Genzo bolted as if he were fleeing.
"Huh? Was that Genzo just now?"
Bellemere came over carrying some building materials, accompanied by Nojiko, who was holding Nami, and Robin.
"Yeah. He saw you coming and ran off scared. He must have a guilty conscience!"
Lin Yuan made the remark casually as he took the things from Bellemere's hands.
Hearing Lin Yuan's teasing, Bellemere couldn't help rolling her eyes. Her gaze drifted toward the retreating figure in the distance, almost out of sight.
"How old are you, kid? What do you know about these things?"
With help from Lin Yuan and some of the villagers, Bellemere's house soon had its basic framework in place.
After finishing the work, Lin Yuan and Bellemere returned home with the others. He said a word to Olvia and headed for the shore.
"How come you're going out again when you just got home?"
Watching Lin Yuan leave, Olvia was a little worried, but she didn't ask. After two years together, she knew Lin Yuan was someone with ideas of his own.
Captain Nezumi was in charge of the Marine 16th Branch, which wasn't far from Cocoyasi Village. Lin Yuan had passed it while looking for pirates.
The sun was already sinking in the west when Lin Yuan found Genzo, who had finished what Lin Yuan had asked him to do.
"Lin Yuan, I've handed over thirty percent of this batch of earnings to them, and I also had a conflict with them. This is the evidence I secretly photographed."
"Mm, good. Give me the evidence. You don't need to worry about the rest. Tell everyone not to go out to sea for a while. Everyone should return to the village."
"Got it. Don't worry!"
Lin Yuan nodded, took the photos Genzo handed him, and put them in a waterproof bag. He was about to head out to sea, but after only a few steps, he stopped and turned around to ask seriously, "Um, which way did those Marines go?"
"Uh..."
Genzo was speechless. Holding back a laugh, he pointed in a direction.
Lin Yuan nodded, then dove headfirst into the sea under Genzo's astonished gaze.
As soon as Lin Yuan entered the water, he transformed into a giant dragon and gave chase in the direction of the Marine warship.
About thirty minutes later, a small warship appeared in his enormous mind. Lin Yuan thought for a moment, then flicked his massive dragon tail, instantly raising a huge wave that swept toward the warship.
"What's that? Quick, pick up speed and head straight for the wave!"
The navigator aboard the ship saw the enormous wave ahead, dozens of meters high, and instantly made a decision and reacted.
The warship reached full speed almost instantly and charged toward the towering wave, throwing spray into the air as it went.
Under cover of the wave, Lin Yuan boarded the warship. He had originally planned to kill Captain Nezumi outright, but he couldn't sense the man aboard.
So Lin Yuan decided to hitch a ride straight to the 16th Branch and deal with him there.
To Lin Yuan's surprise, the Marine navigator was quite skilled. Although the giant wave he had created probably wouldn't have overturned the warship, he was still surprised they had escaped danger so easily.
By the time they returned to the Marine 16th Branch, it was completely dark. Even so, Major Nezumi, having heard that the protection money had been collected, had already come to the harbor, unable to wait.
"Hurry up and carry all the valuables to my warehouse. What a prosperous village! It looks like I should collect protection money every month from now on. No, once every half month."
Looking at the chests of valuables and local products, Captain Nezumi's sleazy face was full of greed. He intended to pocket everything, without the slightest thought of sharing any with his subordinates.
"Hmph, go ahead and laugh. You won't be laughing in a little while."
Lin Yuan stared grimly at Captain Nezumi's greedy face, struggling to suppress his killing intent, then slowly disappeared into the darkness.
"Hahaha, I've struck it rich this time! I never thought a little place like Cocoyasi Village would hand over thirty million Beli in wealth. Wouldn't that be more than three hundred million a year? Once every half month would be seven hundred million Beli."
Captain Nezumi was practically intoxicated by fantasies of the fortune he was about to make. What he didn't know was that his retribution would come so quickly.
"Oh? Seven hundred million Beli a year? You've got some nerve dreaming that big!"
This wasn't twenty years in the future. Beli still had considerable purchasing power at this point. Seven hundred million Beli was worth roughly ten times what it would be later, enough to put bounties on one and a half of the Four Emperors.
"Who's there?!"
Captain Nezumi was shocked. He hadn't expected anyone to be able to enter his room without alerting anyone.
His hand had only just touched the pistol at his waist when a searing pain shot through his shoulder, nearly making him faint. He couldn't help falling to the floor.
Just as he was about to shout, a foot planted itself on his face, leaving him unable to speak. All he could do was keep rasping pleas for mercy in his throat.
"So you're fucking Captain Nezumi? You think you can lay a finger on what's mine?"
Lin Yuan's voice was as cold as an asura from the abyss. He grew even angrier when he remembered how this man had colluded with pirates to prey on civilians in the original story, causing the deaths of Bellemere and many others.
He pressed down a little harder with his foot, nearly stomping Captain Nezumi to death.
"Mmmph..."
Captain Nezumi felt as though his face was about to be crushed, and he was terrified. The pain in his shoulder, in particular, made him want to pass out.
But he struggled to hold on to a sliver of consciousness. He was afraid that if he passed out, he would never wake up again.
"Shut up. If you dare shout for anyone, I guarantee your head will come off immediately."
With that, Lin Yuan took his foot away, unconcerned that Nezumi might shout. Just as he had expected, even though Captain Nezumi was in so much pain he was close to fainting, he struggled not to make a sound.
Lin Yuan ignored Captain Nezumi and walked straight behind the enormous desk, dropping onto the huge sofa and fixing his eyes on him.
Captain Nezumi struggled to his feet and looked into Lin Yuan's eyes. His whole body began to tremble, and all he felt was terror.
What eyes they were! A pair of golden vertical pupils lay within those red eyes. Like the god of death, they were full of a domineering aura and the breath of death, seeming to swallow up his entire mind.
"Y-you... who are you?"
Captain Nezumi was stammering now, partly from the pain and partly from fright.
"You don't need to know who I am. You only need to know that I'm someone you can't afford to offend, someone who can take your life at any time. If I want to ruin your reputation, I can do that whenever I please too."
Captain Nezumi's heart went cold. He stared at the man before him in horror, but when he saw those devouring golden pupils, he immediately lowered his head.
"My lord, I'm just a small fry. I don't know how I offended you, but please give me a chance to atone."
"Oh? To tell the truth, I originally intended to twist your head off this time. If I did that..."
Before Lin Yuan could finish, Captain Nezumi dropped to his knees in fright and begged for mercy over and over.
"M-my lord, my life isn't worth much, and I'm also the commander of the 16th Branch. I can still be useful if you spare me. If you kill me, Marine Headquarters will investigate."
"Are you threatening me?!"
Lin Yuan's expression turned cold, killing intent appearing on his face as a domineering aura radiated from his golden vertical pupils.
Captain Nezumi hurriedly kowtowed, nearly scared to death. His face was deathly pale, whether from excessive blood loss or fright.
"My lord, that's not what I meant. What I meant was..."
"Hmph. Remember, you owe me your life for now. I'll contact you later. As for that thirty million, go have an arm made for yourself!"
Lin Yuan rose to his feet, took a single step, and vanished from where he stood.
"One more thing: don't get any ideas. Even a Marine Admiral can't take me down. If you do... you know the consequences."
Captain Nezumi was startled. He had no idea how Lin Yuan had appeared behind him. Though he was weak for his rank, he still had some experience.
Hearing the rest made him even more afraid. If even an Admiral couldn't take the man down, then what did that make his strength? With someone like that watching him, his life and death were no longer his to decide.
"Bang..."
While Captain Nezumi's thoughts were racing, the sound of the door closing brought him to his senses. He turned around shakily and discovered that the office was empty, with only that arm left on the floor.
A dedicated-line Den Den Mushi and some evidence of his crimes had also appeared on the office desk.
Gritting his teeth, he put both things in his safe. Only then did Captain Nezumi's shrill voice ring through the entire Marine Branch.
"Ah... medic..."