"Are You There Too?"
After Dragon and the others left, Shakky sat in silence, recalling the moment when Bai Yu walked into a different space.
She looked down at the life card in her hand—it had stopped moving.
Before, Rayleigh's life card had burned violently, with most of it consumed by flames, before suddenly stopping. This had left Shakky extremely worried.
At first, she hadn't understood why the life card had gone dormant.
Now she knew.
They were no longer in the same dimension.
However, Shakky was still puzzled.
"But why did the life card suddenly recover the moment that other dimension appeared? Did Rayleigh… recover?"
The fully intact life card rested in Shakky's hands, no longer burning.
She sighed in relief.
"At least… he's still alive."
Immortal Prison
When Bai Yu stepped inside, he was greeted by an unexpected scene.
A ragged old man sat in the center of the prison.
Surrounding him were Enel, Crocodile, Daz Bonez, Lucci, Moria, and a dejected Cavendish—all of them listening intently.
Rayleigh sat on the ground, laughing as he spoke:
"Yeah, that bastard Roger… he was a liar and a troublemaker. He caused chaos every damn day. If I start reminiscing, I might end up in tears!"
Cavendish, his eyes burning with curiosity, asked, "So just how strong was he?"
Rayleigh laughed heartily.
"Despite being a bastard, he was a force of nature. None of you would stand a chance against him!"
Crocodile scoffed.
"Could he beat Whitebeard?"
Rayleigh shrugged.
"They were equals. If they ever fought to the death, there'd be too many factors to consider… Every time they clashed, it lasted for days, and it always ended in a draw."
Enel, unimpressed, frowned.
"Then he wasn't strong enough."
Rayleigh raised an eyebrow.
"Listen, kid, you've got the wrong idea. Strength isn't just about brute force—"
But Enel cut him off.
"Could he defeat Bai Yu?"
Rayleigh's face darkened immediately.
"…It's Roger, not 'King Roger'—and forget it. Anyone got some wine?"
Rayleigh deliberately changed the subject.
Just hearing Bai Yu's name made his limbs ache.
If a monster like Bai Yu had existed in his era, Rayleigh had no doubt that Roger would've grabbed him and fled without looking back—only daring to fight if Bai Yu was deathly ill.
"Are you all having fun?"
Shff! Shff! Shff!
The moment Bai Yu's voice rang out, everyone stood up in an instant, retreating from their places and starting to exercise.
Rayleigh: "???"
Moria: "???"
Cavendish: "The Devil…"
Boom!
Bai Yu threw Saint Rosward onto the ground like a piece of trash and spoke casually:
"This Celestial Dragon is yours now. Beat him to death every day. When his spirit finally breaks, chop him up and feed him to the fish."
Everyone: "!!!"
Ruthless.
The prisoners stared at the limbless Celestial Dragon lying in a pool of his own blood.
Even Rayleigh was speechless.
The outside world was undoubtedly in chaos right now.
"…We'll talk about that later," Bai Yu interrupted, shutting down any discussion.
Without another word, he walked over to Absalom's isolated prison cell.
The man was still unconscious.
Moria's face twitched slightly, but he gritted his teeth and said nothing.
"Here it comes—the power of a god!"
Enel held his breath.
Crocodile exhaled slowly.
"Every time I see it, it's unbelievable… and this is just one of his simplest abilities."
"Energy… Transfer!"
Bai Yu placed his hand over an apple.
Before their astonished eyes, the apple grew in size, transformed, and turned into a Devil Fruit.
The Suke Suke no Mi (Clear-Clear Fruit) had been successfully restored.
Bai Yu turned and spoke indifferently:
"As you can see, he's not dead yet. If any of you are dissatisfied with your Devil Fruit ability, or if you want a different one… Perform well, and you can choose."
Lucci's eyes widened.
His Devil Fruit—the Neko Neko no Mi, Model: Leopard—was strong, but it was still just a regular Zoan.
Compared to Logias and Mythical Zoans, his fruit was mediocre.
Lucci was tempted.
"Die."
Bai Yu casually clenched his fist.
Before anyone could react, Absalom crumbled into dust, completely erased from existence.
Not a trace remained.
The silence in the prison was deafening.
Even Rayleigh felt his scalp tingle.
"What the hell was that…?"
Bai Yu's methods were beyond comprehension.
He turned to Moria, his voice calm.
"I'll take care of Perona from now on. Do you have anything to say?"
Moria tensed for a moment… but then, hearing Perona's name, he sighed in relief.
"As long as she's safe… I have no complaints."
Bai Yu nodded.
"The new era is here. Try to become stronger. I have no use for weaklings who just scream and whine."
And with that, he disappeared.
The prisoners exchanged looks.
"…I really need a drink," Rayleigh muttered.
"The old man is too old to keep up… Nothing I say matters anymore."
He exhaled deeply, lying on the ground.
At his age, there was nothing left to fear or strive for.
Whoosh!
Crocodile tossed a book toward Rayleigh and snorted.
"Read the Haki training manual Bai Yu left behind and teach me, or I'll make your life hell."
The other prisoners' eyes lit up.
Rayleigh, the legend, was right in front of them.
Instead of training blindly, why not learn from a master?
Everyone gathered around him again.
Rayleigh sighed.
"Did Bai Yu seriously just turn me into a teacher?"
But then, curiosity got the better of him.
He opened the book.
"The True Mastery of Haki."
"…The title sucks," he murmured.
But the moment he read the first page… he froze.
Then he flipped to another page.
And another.
By the time he reached the end, his hands were trembling.
"Conqueror's Haki… can be trained?! What kind of joke is this?!"
The manual detailed three revolutionary training methods:
• Meditation → Observation Haki
• Physical Training → Armament Haki
• Dream Visualization → Conqueror's Haki
It was unbelievably well-structured.
Beyond anything Rayleigh had ever imagined.
He closed the book and looked at the eager prisoners.
"…Alright," he sighed.
"I'll teach."
Meanwhile, Bai Yu returned to his spaceship, welcomed by the warmth and affection of the girls waiting for him.
After explaining his plan, he continued:
"Next, I need to settle all of you safely. I'll send your families to Skypiea for now."
The Five Elders were furious right now.
He wasn't afraid of them—but he didn't want the girls exposed until they were stronger.
The girls nodded in agreement.
Robin asked, "And what about you?"
Bai Yu smiled.
"The fastest way to get stronger… is through battle."
He gently stroked Kaya's hair.
"I'll secure a territory in the New World for us. Then, we'll all train together."
The girls were silent for a moment—but then they smiled and nodded.
Bai Yu had declared war on the old era.
And the world… would never be the same.
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