Rayleigh sat near the window in the bar, one hand under his chin, his gaze fixed on the receding figures of a man and a woman outside the window, a white light reflected off his glasses.
Shakky, carrying a glass of red wine, swayed gracefully as she approached. Noticing Rayleigh's gaze, she took a small sip and said:
"You seem to value that boy very much."
"He has met Bullet."
Rayleigh's seemingly calm words fell on Shakky's ears like a thunderclap in a clear sky, causing the beautiful eyes of this weathered woman to slightly narrow.
Back when Bullet was 17, he had already fought Rayleigh, who had been famous at sea for many years, to a draw. Later, he challenged Roger many times, and his strength was terrifying.
Shakky, who controlled a vast intelligence network, was well aware that after Roger's death, Bullet caused chaos in the New World and was eventually secretly arrested by the Navy. He was now imprisoned on the sixth basement level of Impel Down, a place that not just anyone could go to.
Moreover, based on Shakky's understanding of Bullet's personality, that guy was not a mild-mannered person. If you provoked him for no reason, you might suffer unforeseen disasters.
The boy was only seven years old. He not only successfully met Bullet, but also managed to escape unscathed from the man who was the heir of the devil. This feat alone was enough to make him famous all over the world.
However, few stories about Damon's deeds circulated outside the public.
"Could it be that he is a leader of the younger generation secretly trained by the Navy?" Shakky asked.
Rayleigh, his eyes deep and unfathomable, gazed at the blue sky and white clouds, and said meaningfully:
"The wind is going to pick up."
As the saying goes, "The weather is unpredictable, and fortune can change in an instant."
Perhaps because the Sabaody Archipelago was relatively close to the New World, the weather here was also unpredictable. One moment the sky was clear and blue, and the next a strong wind was howling, followed by dark clouds pressing down and a torrential downpour.
Damon and Momousagi Gion had barely left Shakky's Rip-off Bar when they felt the power of the torrential rain.
Momousagi Gion's body was half-wet from the rain.
Feeling the gazes of passersby, some fiery, some lewd, Momousagi Gion frowned and tightened her navy cloak.
She glanced at the boy out of the corner of her eye and saw that he seemed to be lost in thought. Her heart, like the weather, was suddenly stirred.
"You brat, you don't even care about others!"
Damon was focused on the system notifications and didn't notice the girl's predicament.
"Ding!"
"Congratulations, host, for reciting a classic line from Akame ga Kill! You have been awarded one chance to draw a prize. Would you like to start the prize wheel?"
There were only two types of prizes on the lottery wheel: Imperial Arms and Imperial Guards.
Imperial Arms: Dimensional Square Shangri-La, Eight Chambers of the Dead's March, Demon-Possessed Armor...
Imperial Guards: King of Smash, Rattlesnake, Water Dragon Sword...
[Dimensional Square Shangri-La]: A spatial teleportation type that could instantly move a target to a designated location. The farther the distance, the greater the energy consumption, requiring a huge amount of energy, and it could not be activated continuously. (Currently lacking energy)
Suddenly, a square mechanical object appeared in Damon's palm, which he could easily grab with one hand. He flipped it over and put it into his pocket.
If the Dimensional Square Shangri-La was used well, it meant that Damon would have an additional highly strategic piece of equipment.
The Grand Line ran along the planet's equator, with the Red Line cutting through its middle. Together, they divided the world's oceans into four seas, dotted with islands that were difficult to reach. Travel between them could take months, or even three to five years, depending on the distance.
However, with the Dimensional Square Shangri-La, provided there was a sufficient energy source, it meant Damon could return to the Goa Kingdom in the East Blue at any time, or make strategic deployments in the four seas.
"A source of enormous energy?"
"It seems that the Philosopher's Stone transmutation array I set up in Impel Down will come in handy. After the Philosopher's Stone was completed in a few months, I would be able to use the Dimensional Square Shangri-La."
Damon had an idea in mind, but then realized that he seemed to have overlooked something.
When the two stopped to rest at the entrance of the auction in Area 7, Damon realized that he had a burden with him.
Damon planned to disguise himself as Dragon Ash, the descendant of the dragon, and go into the auction to deal with the three-eyed Den Den Mushi. He didn't want the girl to discover his secret.
"Are you cold?"
As Damon's voice fell, Momousagi Gion saw the boy draw his sword, a crimson flame covering the blade, emanating a warm aura.
Momousagi Gion felt a warmth in her heart, thinking to herself:
"Could it be that he did this for me..."
Before she could react, Damon suddenly gripped the hilt of the sword tightly with both hands, and a pillar of fire shot into the sky.
"All things in the universe are but dust, yet the blade flows like fire!"
"Bankai!"
With a temperature of 5000 degrees Celsius, the flames instantly evaporated the surrounding rain and mist, turning them into wisps of smoke that drifted out. Even the girl standing close by could feel her clothes, which had been soaked by the rain, drying at an astonishing speed.
Unbeknownst to Momousagi Gion, shrouded in mist, an astonishing fiery slash shot into the sky, penetrating directly into the troposphere. With its terrifyingly high temperature, the slash instantly dispelled the thunderclouds above the auction venue.
Here, like a fish that slipped through the net, sunlight pierced through the gaps in the thunderclouds and fell.
A thick fog, bizarre and fantastical.
Pedestrians stopped to watch, occasionally letting out exclamations of surprise.
When Damon emerged from the mist, he had already changed drastically.
With yellow skin, black hair and black eyes, and a bare chest, he had a five-clawed golden dragon totem branded on his back. There was nothing about him that showed any connection to Damon.
As Damon entered the auction hall, a customer service representative came forward to greet him.
"May I ask if this distinguished guest is here to consign items or participate in an auction?"
"Consign items."
"Okay, please come with me to the appraisal room. We will have a professional appraiser assess the value of the items you have consigned."
The auction house was magnificent and luxuriously decorated, with every inch of the space exuding a nouveau riche style. Damon felt like he was being taken on a tour of a grand palace, and everything he saw seemed new and exciting.
Upon entering the appraisal room, Damon looked around.
The walls were covered with business licenses, qualification certificates, and industry awards, as well as a framed photo of the auctioneer shaking hands with the mayor of the Sabaody Archipelago, subtly suggesting that this was a very formal, professional, and rigorous venue.
After Damon sat down, he took out a three-eyed Den Den Mushi from his pocket.
A regular Den Den Mushi could be purchased for only 100 Berries. These household Den Den Mushi reproduced quickly and could be easily kept alive by feeding them plants such as leaves. They were affordable for ordinary households.
However, after being parasitized by the Blood Demon Art's eyeball clone, the Three-Eyed Den Den Mushi was a rare breed that had never been born in this world before. Although it had nothing special about it, it was currently the only one in the world. Under the principle that things were valued for their rarity, that was enough to drive its price up to a very high level.
The appraiser was clearly an expert; after examining it carefully with a magnifying glass, he found nothing amiss.
"Dear guest, our auction offers two options for consigned items."
"One option is a buyout. We will purchase this three-eyed Den Den Mushi for 5 billion Berries, but the proceeds from the auction will not be shared with the customer."
"The other option is a profit-sharing system. This item will be auctioned off, and the potential earnings are unknown. It could lead to overnight riches, but more likely the returns will be unsatisfactory. We will also charge a 5% commission on the transaction."
When the appraiser spoke about the second option, his tone became somewhat somber, as if implying to the guest that this approach was not advisable.
If it were an ordinary person, they would probably choose the first option: take the money and leave.
Damon was still planning to swindle money from the Celestial Dragons and nobles, so he ignored the appraiser's hints and directly chose the second option.
Next, they signed a contract and agreed on a time to collect the proceeds from the auction.
The entire process seemed perfectly legitimate, with nothing amiss, making it impossible to guess that this was actually an auction with shares held by a major pirate behind the scenes, easily lowering one's guard.
When Damon walked out of the auction, he found that Momousagi Gion was still guarding the entrance, looking around curiously, as if wondering where Damon had gone.
Damon shook his head inwardly. Instead of returning to his original state, he turned and entered the illegal area next door.
Noticing that a group of people had been quietly following him since he left the auction, Damon snorted coldly and suddenly disappeared around the corner.
The group was immediately startled and quickly followed.
This was a dark, narrow alleyway, with wastewater and garbage everywhere on the ground, and flies buzzing around.
The group of people didn't mind the dirt and walked straight into the alley.
Unbeknownst to them, two jade dogs, one black and one white, suddenly leaped out from the elongated shadows behind them.
Ten Shadow Spells! Summon Jade Hound!
The two jade dogs' bodies were entirely composed of shadows, about the same size as ordinary wolfhounds, with scarlet triangular marks branded on their foreheads, which in the darkness seemed to open a third eye on their foreheads.
They were creatures of the shadows, moving silently through the night and in the shadows, like assassins skilled in stealth.
Corpses fell silently one by one until the alleyway returned to silence.
Damon had returned to his original appearance and came back to the entrance of the auction house. Looking at the silly girl waiting for his return, a smile appeared on his face.
"Let's go."
"Let's go hunt down the Doflamingo Pirates."
_________________
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