The pirates were also taken aback when they saw Vic suddenly appear. His ability to appear without anyone noticing was quite frightening, mainly because Vic's current appearance was too intimidating, making him the center of attention wherever he went.
People who have weapons implanted in their bodies are not uncommon, but they have never seen anything like Vic's Thunder Drum, which floats in mid-air. It is completely beyond their comprehension. When they see Vic walking towards them, they are somewhat uneasy and forget that they still have hostages in their hands. They are at a loss.
The captured soldiers stared blankly at Vic, thinking they had encountered a god descending to earth. Their minds automatically conjured up images of golden light surrounding Vic, celestial music playing in their ears, creating an incredibly atmospheric scene. However, the other three parties were completely unaware of all this.
"Can't you pirates just shut up for once? Are you also searching for the One Piece? Do you even know what kind of pirates are waiting for you ahead? Ignorance is bliss!"
Vic felt sorry for these small-time pirates; they had become the touchstone for those who truly succeeded, finally emerging victorious and entering the New World, but what awaited them?
Charlotte Linlin? Kaido? Ochoku? Silver Axe? Whitebeard? They were all ruthless men left behind by Rocks. Any one of them would be a nightmare for them. There were also other rising new forces blocking their way. If they were lucky enough to meet Whitebeard, they might have a chance to find a powerful father. If they met anyone else, they would really have to gamble their life on being single and hoping to escape by sheer luck.
"We... we were summoned to sea by the Pirate King... even if we don't get the One Piece, our lives will still be worthwhile, at least we fought for our dream!"
The pirate captain initially stammered, but then, as if struck by a sudden thought, his voice became strong and clear. He was no longer as tense and fearful as before. Although Vic seemed mysterious and powerful, if someone wasn't even afraid of death, what else did he have to fear? If he had the ability, he could have slaughtered even the gods.
"Hmm? So you're going to sea for your dreams? Well, you're doing it the wrong way. Well then, I'll give you a quick death!"
The pirate's answer surprised Vic, because while many pirates dream of going to sea, they are far too few compared to those who go to sea for money.
Originally, Vic intended to give them a quick death so they could meet Buddha, but now Vic's planning to send them to Impel Down on sewing machines. People with dreams should be given a chance to reform.
After Vic finished speaking, lightning shot out from all parts of his body, accurately hitting all the pirates. Vic used only the most ordinary attack, but all the pirates fell to the ground unconscious. Except for the bald pirate, they all had afro-like hair, smoke was still rising from their bodies, and their bodies were twitching unconsciously, as if they were trapped in a nightmare.
" Thunder God! Thunder God!..."
" Thunder God! Thunder God!..."
" Thunder God! Thunder God!..."
Suddenly, shouts of "Thunder God!" rang out. At first, only a few soldiers were shouting, but then more and more people joined in, the shouts became more and more unified, and the voices grew louder and louder. In their eyes, Vic truly was like a god, shaking their minds and bodies, and saving their lives.
" The Logia Rumble-Rumble Fruit? A legendary fruit! How did you manage to obtain it?"
Rob Lucci looked on in disbelief. With such Devil Fruit and the support of the Navy, such a large and well-established organization, given Vic's past talent, he was destined to become Marine Admiral, and even had the chance to become the Navy's top leader, the Fleet Admiral!
And what about him? At present, he can only be a department head in CP9, and even that requires a lot of connections. No one, no matter how strong, can get to that position. He really envies Vic. If Vic continues to develop steadily, he will definitely have a place in the highest position in the Navy.
"Alright, quiet down!... Move these pirates out; they deserve to be judged for their crimes."
Although Vic also wanted to promote his reputation, he became a little embarrassed after a while, so he stopped everyone and made them do hard labor.
The soldiers were more than happy to oblige and moved with lightning speed, avoiding Lucci as they passed by. They were furious because he had just tried to kill them, but dared not speak out; after all, he was a member of the World Government, and they couldn't afford to offend him.
What happened next was quite simple. The king personally thanked Vic and invited Vic to a banquet at the palace. The naval commander also came to meet with Vic. They had all heard about Vic's exploits from the soldiers and knew that Vic was definitely a big shot in the navy. However, when Vic asked him about the next route, it wasn't to the headquarters. They had other missions to do and couldn't even take these pirates with them.
Vic declined the king's invitation, but his reputation Thunder God spread throughout the country. The people also learned about the kidnapping incident at the palace and combined the Thunder God with the thunder beast that had appeared in the sky before, creating a new legend!
The pirates were taken to Enies Lobby by CP9 warships for trial, so Vic forcibly boarded Rob Lucci's ship. Once they arrived at Enies Lobby, they wouldn't be far from Marine Headquarters, making it easy to get back later.
Although Lucci was very reluctant for such a seemingly extraordinary and pretentious person to join the ship, the Navy was considered their ally, so he couldn't refuse openly. He could only refuse them outright.
It's just that he was too weak to beat Vic. Otherwise, given his personality, he probably wouldn't have let Vic join the crew. After all, he was the man who later gave orders to Fleet Admiral Akainu, so he still had that much pride. He was also able to bend and stretch.
Now that Vic can openly use his Divine Staff for training, he can simply tuck it into his waistband, which makes Vic even more impressive.
He sat cross-legged on the deck of the warship, with Thunder Drum floating behind him and lightning striking him from nowhere. The scene was astonishing; it was as if the name Thunder God was being forced into people's minds. No introduction was needed; the first adjective that came to mind for onlookers was Thunder God. Lucci was incredibly envious; he also wanted to become a power user.
If Vic continues to travel and carry out missions in this manner, his reputation might surpass Garp's in no time. Garp is a man with built-in special effects; who else in the pirate world enjoys such treatment?
It's estimated that only Red-Hair, more than ten years from now, could achieve that. His Conqueror's Haki, which can cause physical destruction, counts as one, and Charlotte Linlin's screaming is half of it, but that's a passive skill. Kaido doesn't have that effect even when he's not transformed.
While Vic was training on the CP9 warship, Zephyr had already led the Elite Camp cadets back to Marine Headquarters.
The reason they were able to return so quickly was because they were traveling along the Grand Line, in the same direction as the pirates, so they didn't encounter many pirates and were mostly sailing at sea. As a result, they returned to headquarters before graduating from the Elite Camp. They no longer needed to undergo any assessments; the entire journey had served as an assessment process. They just needed to wait for Zephyr to report their evaluations and military achievements and await their assignments.
Rebecca and the others had barely disembarked from the warship when they rushed off to their old beach house without even saying goodbye to Zephyr. If Vic had returned, he would definitely be there. She didn't even ask anyone for directions before heading off.
Wendy and Barnett exchanged a helpless glance and could only follow behind, while only Frodeku followed along, completely bewildered.
Zephyr could only smile wryly as he watched the group's retreating figures. He had maintained contact with headquarters and knew that Vic hadn't returned yet, but he hadn't told them while on the warship. He had planned to tell them when he got back, but Rebecca was too impatient and ran off with Ain in her arms.
But the result was destined to disappoint Rebecca. The cabin was still the same cabin, only it had become somewhat old and dilapidated, with weeds growing all around it, making it look rather desolate. It was completely different from the lively scene it used to have. Vic was not in the cabin either. Rebecca stood at the door of Vic's room, looking inside in a daze.