It turned out that Moriarty had been one of the people in charge of this Storm's Eye base, responsible for testing that new type of warship with self-repairing capabilities. However, during an extreme test, the warship's power core had undergone an unknown mutation, producing a strange energy field that could drain the life force of living creatures. The entire base of marines had their life force sucked dry in an instant, turning into desiccated corpses. And because he was a Shadow-Shadow Fruit user and could hide his true body in his shadow, he had luckily escaped, but had also been trapped on this island, isolated from the world, until today. That experimental warship had also been deemed a failure because of that accident and was abandoned in the deepest dock of the base.
"So that ship is still here?" Dolum's eyes instantly lit up. He grabbed Moriarty's collar and asked excitedly. "It's... it's in the S-class dock in the deepest part..."
"Great!" Dolum danced with excitement and was about to run to the dock.
"Wait," Ren's voice sounded. He walked over to the jet-black ghost ship, reached out a hand to gently touch its hull, and closed his eyes. "This ship... is built from a very special wood. It seems to be absorbing the surrounding negative emotions and converting them into its own energy."
"That's right!" Moriarty quickly explained. "That's Soul Wood, which I found in a forbidden place in the New World. It can resonate with my Devil Fruit ability. This ship is alive!"
Ren opened his eyes, a flash of understanding in them. He turned to look at Newgate and Dolum and said calmly, "The power core of that experimental warship is unstable and too dangerous. We can't have it."
"What?!" Dolum was as if struck by lightning.
"But this ship..." Ren patted the ghost ship beside him. "After some modifications, it can become our new vessel. Its material and characteristics are far more suitable for us than those mass-produced products of the Marines. And..." Ren's gaze swept over the desiccated marine corpses on the ground, finally landing on Moriarty. "Its kitchen seems to still have a lot of... top-tier ingredients left over from back then."
Half an hour later, the long-absent smoke of cooking rose from the base's square. In the well-preserved kitchen of the ghost ship, Ren had found a large amount of rare ingredients that had been sealed by time. He used these ingredients to prepare a long-overdue, grand feast to celebrate moving into their new home. Roasted whole lamb, seafood chowder, fruit salad... a sumptuous array of dishes covered the square. The crew sat around a bonfire, eating and drinking heartily.
Newgate looked at the scene before him. He watched Gatz and Dolum fighting over the last piece of roasted meat, watched Silver silently hand Ren a towel to wipe his hands. A heartfelt, warm smile appeared on his usually somewhat stern face. This was the home he wanted.
As for Phantom Moriarty, after being knocked out by Newgate's Haki and having all his shadows stripped away, he had become a weak, ordinary ghost. He was put into a glass jar that Ren had found in the kitchen, and was now called "spare seasoning." Maybe one day, Ren could research a phantom-flavored jam.
A brand-new era, one belonging to the Whitebeard Pirates, had officially begun on this forgotten island, accompanied by a feast full of laughter and joy...
Three years passed in the blink of an eye. In the New World, on an unnamed spring island, cherry blossoms fell like rain in the warm air, dyeing the entire island a romantic pink. In the largest tavern in the center of the island, the atmosphere was a stark contrast to the gentle scenery, filled with the smell of gunpowder.
"You bastards! Do you know who we are? We are the Blood Axe Pirates! Our captain has a bounty of eighty million Beli! If you know what's good for you, hand over all the wine on this island!" A pirate with a face full of menacing flesh and a giant axe on his shoulder had his foot on a table, roaring at the tavern owner. In the tavern, the other customers were already trembling in fear, hiding in a corner.
Just then, a lazy voice came from the second floor of the tavern. "So noisy. You're disturbing my sleep."
Everyone looked up and saw a man as tall as an iron tower leaning against the railing on the second floor, yawning. His bronze skin was covered in a mix of old and new scars, full of a wild, oppressive presence. It was "Giant Anchor" Gatz.
"Who the hell are you? You dare to meddle in Lord Barro's business!" "Blood Axe" Barro glared at Gatz.
Gatz ignored him and just shouted down, "Hey! Dolum! Has the Captain's sail been patched up yet? If we don't leave soon, the Head Chef's cherry blossom cakes will get cold!"
Behind the bar, a short man with messy hair and dark circles blacker than the bottom of a pot suddenly looked up. He was holding a needle and thread, carefully mending a huge sail. "Almost! Almost! Stop rushing me!" the shipwright, "Iron Wall" Dolum, shouted impatiently. "Do you think it's easy to repair a mast that was cracked by the aftershock of you and Lord Whitebeard's clash? This is Soul Wood! If it weren't for the special tree sap that Chef Ren made, it would have fallen apart long ago!"
"Whitebeard?" "Blood Axe" Barro's face changed slightly at the name. That title was now a thunderous one in the New World.
"That's right. Whitebeard!" Gatz grinned, showing his white teeth. He leaped down from the railing and landed with a BOOM. The entire tavern shook. "I'm in a good mood today. If you know what's good for you, take your men and scram. Otherwise, I'll stuff that axe of yours up your ass."
"You're courting death!" "Blood Axe" Barro was furious. He considered himself a figure in the New World. How could he be so humiliated? He roared, swung his giant axe, and chopped down at Gatz's head. However, Gatz didn't even use his signature giant anchor. He simply raised his right hand, opened his five fingers, and accurately caught the descending axe blade. CLANG! With a crisp sound, "Blood Axe" Barro's full-power strike, which could shatter a stone tablet, was caught by Gatz's bare hand. The axe blade was less than an inch from his forehead, but could not advance any further.
"What?!" "Blood Axe" Barro's eyes nearly popped out of his head.
"Good strength," Gatz commented, then squeezed his five fingers hard. CRACK! The giant axe, made of refined steel, was actually crushed, leaving five clear finger marks. The body of the axe let out a pained groan. "Unfortunately, it's like a tickle." Gatz kicked out. "Blood Axe" Barro's massive body was sent flying backward like a cannonball, crashing through the tavern wall and disappearing into the distance. His men watched, dumbfounded, their weapons falling to the ground.
"Leave," a cold voice came from the shadows of the tavern. "Phantom" Silver was standing there at some point, the spear in his hand exuding a chilling coldness. The pirates, as if granted a pardon, scrambled out of the tavern...
After the battle at God Valley, Rocks's name had become the World Government's greatest taboo. To avoid unnecessary trouble, and also to respect Newgate's dream, one cherry-blossom-filled night, Newgate had personally drawn the flag that would intimidate the world for decades to come—the flag of the Whitebeard Pirates. Edward Newgate had officially become the captain of this ship of monsters.
And their vessel was the ghost ship made of Soul Wood that they had obtained from the Storm's Eye base. After three years of painstaking modifications by Dolum, combined with the application of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit ability squeezed out of Moriarty, this ship had truly become a real sea fortress. It could dive into shadows, self-repair, and even replenish its power by devouring the surrounding negative emotions. Dolum had named it—the Moby Dick.
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