The Straw Hat Pirates gained a lot from their trip to Elbaf. Luffy made further progress in his control of Conqueror's Haki, Zoro's Conqueror's Haki also got on track, Aokiji even skipped two levels, not only Awakening Conqueror's Haki but also being able to control it stably. Sanji is almost green with envy!
Robin finally met Saul, whom she had been waiting for, and Usopp was reunited with his giant master. Nami found some treasure in the abandoned palace, Franky obtained some planks from the Treasure Tree Adam, Brook seemed to have met someone from the past!
Since he has not found any clues about the fourth Road Poneglyph, Luffy has decided to continue his voyage and will not change course until he reaches Laugh Tale Lodestar Island!
Luffy certainly hopes to find clues to the Road Poneglyph on the few remaining islands, but if he really can't find them, he'll have to think of other ways!
Roger had already been to Lodestar Island once before, but he didn't know the exact coordinates of Laugh Tale, so he approached Whitebeard to invite Kozuki Oden, the second division commander under Kozuki Oden, to join his crew.
Afterwards, the Roger Pirates sailed the Grand Line again, finally gathering the coordinates of Laugh Tale, and eventually arrived at Laugh Tale, becoming the first Pirate King!
Luffy Road Poneglyph were related to whether he could find Laugh Tale, so he didn't care much about them, thinking that he just needed to sail to the end of the Grand Line!
But now he knows that without the Road Poneglyphs he can't find Laugh Tale, so he's started to pay more attention to the Road Poneglyph. If he still doesn't find a clue to the fourth Road Poneglyph when he reaches Lodestar Island, Luffy will follow Roger's example and retrace the Grand Line!
If you still can't find it, just go through it again. There are so many routes in the Grand Line, who knows which route the fourth landmark is hidden on?
Luffy believed that his crew would always be with him on his voyage, even if they couldn't find Laugh Tale in the end. As long as the journey was enjoyable, that was enough. With this in mind, the Straw Hat Pirates set sail!
"These scumbags don't dare to lay a hand on us, so they went after Luffy. It seems they're now locked in a life-or-death struggle!"
Elbaf is a very closed country, and it's difficult for things that happen inside to get out. This time, it involves the World Government and the Holy Knights, so the Elbaf leadership is even less willing to spread the news. A gag order has been issued from top to bottom, and they dare not provoke the World Government any further!
Vic managed to get a general understanding of the Elbaf and his Luffy!
Luffy called Vic for two reasons: one was to warn Vic to be careful of the Holy Knights, and the other was to ask how to become stronger. Gaban had already been ripped bald by Luffy, and now he's ripping off Vic!
Except for not explicitly mentioning the God Realm, which is an extremely powerful realm, Vic told Luffy everything else. Luffy is also one of Vic's trusted allies. If anyone could break through to the God Realm in the shortest amount of time, Vic believes that person is most likely to be Luffy!
Luffy may not be the most talented person in the world, but he is the chosen one. Driven by various coincidences and opportunities, he will be the fastest to become invincible!
Furthermore, Vic emphasized the development of the Devil Fruit's power, since the Gum-Gum Fruit has become an extremely special Human-Human Fruit, Model: Nika, a being that even the World Government is wary of!
Vic had reason to believe that Imu was terrified of the perfected Laws of this law that allowed him to fight at will. Since you're afraid, then I'll make it happen. What's poison to him is honey to me!
" Vic! Your worries have come true. If we're still scattered in different places, they'll definitely find us. With their immortality, we'll be the ones who suffer the most. Perhaps only two or three of us will make it back!"
Rebecca looked terrified. She was right next to Vic and Luffy on the phone, and since the Den Den Mushi by default, she heard everything that happened in Elbaf!
Even the Straw Hat Pirates and the entire Elbaf almost perished at the hands of the Holy Knights. If they faced them alone, their chances of survival would be slim!
"This enemy is unlike any we've ever faced before. They have manpower, money, and resources. They've been at the top of the world for hundreds of years, and their foundation is terrifyingly deep!"
As enemies who see us as a thorn in their side, we can forget about having an easy time in the future. Think of the countries destroyed by the World Government, and the peoples who have been enslaved for generations!
In the eyes of the World Government, we are more hated than those nations and ethnic groups, because those nations have already been destroyed by them, and those ethnic groups have been enslaved for generations and are no longer valued by them.
But we didn't surrender; we continued to resist. More importantly, I learned the World Government's biggest lie. If I exposed the truth about their deception of the world, the World Government's rule over the world would be greatly diminished. That's why the World Government is so relentless in its pursuit of us!
The World Government has been running this world for over 800 years. Standing at the top of the world, they possess the best resources and can seize whatever they desire!
What? You won't give it to me? Then I'll arrange a hunting competition for you, guaranteed to drastically reduce your country's population and lead to its destruction!
Those who survived by sheer luck didn't waste their lives; some mined, some built bridges, and at worst, they were sold into slavery for money!
If they run out of money to squander, they'll conjure up some kind of Heavenly Tribute and expect the whole world to support them. You say you won't pay? I declare this country unprotected by the World Government, and the navy will not interfere with its sovereignty!
To put it bluntly, it's telling those pirates and outlaws, we don't care about this country, you can wreak havoc however you want!
When they have power, money, and resources, they can attract many people to join them. Even if only one in a thousand of these people are truly talented, that's still a huge number!
They will also extend olive branches to those who have risen to fame and are exceptionally talented. The Shichibukai are just the lowest level; the Holy Knights are only the entry level!
Therefore, the World Government has the most powerful individuals, which is difficult for all the Yonko crews combined to match. Even if Imu and the Five Elders don't take action, they can still firmly control the world. This is what they did before Luffy appeared!
Although Vic had infiltrated Mary Geoise, he dared not claim to know everything about the World Government's power. Even he knew he had to keep some tricks up his sleeve, so what about the Celestial Dragons had stood at the top of the world for hundreds of years? Not all the Celestial Dragons were incompetent fools!
Although Vic was somewhat worried that Luffy and his Holy Knights and Imu, after much deliberation, he decided not to interfere with Luffy's growth!
Luffy has grown stronger through battles, his path completely different from Vic's. If Vic were to protect him out of concern for his safety, he might actually destroy this future God Realm powerhouse!
Not just Luffy, but the entire Straw Hat Pirates all possess the characteristic of rapidly growing in battle, which can also be described as strong adaptability!
If you don't grow, you won't be able to keep up with the team, and the next enemy you encounter might kill you. They all know what they are about to face: immense pressure. But when they encounter their resilience, they unleash a miraculous rate of growth!
While Vic continued to hide, the Straw Hat Pirates passed through two more islands, and were indeed attacked by the Holy Knights once!
Because there were no teleportation coordinates for this attack, the God's Knights also pursued it by ship. For some unknown reason, Imu did not participate in the attack this time!
The God's Knights encountered the Straw Hat Boy, who had become even stronger, Zoro, who could now fully control his Conqueror's Haki, and Aokiji, who could now reliably unleash his Conqueror's Haki Aokiji!
So the God's Knights didn't gain any advantage. In order to avoid being torn apart and left there, they didn't engage in a death match. After being defeated, they immediately retreated, because these three guys were truly the counter to their immortality!