"What's up in the sky?"
Suddenly, Shirley, standing on the lookout platform, let out a cry of surprise, drawing everyone's attention upward.
What entered their eyes was an endless expanse of white.
"Clouds?"
"But can clouds really stretch that far?"
Lance frowned tightly, completely unable to understand the situation before him.
"That's not a cloud layer! That's the White Sea of the Sky Island!"
Hammer suddenly woke up, staring excitedly at the cloud layer right in front of them.
"Sky Islands exist above the White Sea, over 7,000 meters above the ocean, probably around 10,000 meters high!"
"The appearance of the White Sea means we're about to reach the Sky Island!"
At that moment, Hammer stopped panicking. The joy of finally reaching the Sky Island instantly washed away all his fear.
"So how are we supposed to get in?"
"White Sea? It's still a sea, right? You, Shirley, and Hina are Devil Fruit users, Hammer."
Lance looked at Hammer, Shirley, and Hina thoughtfully.
"Get lost. It's called the White Sea, but it's actually clouds! We're not going to drown!"
Hearing Hammer curse irritably, Lance finally relaxed.
As long as they wouldn't drown, everything was fine.
The Knock-Up Stream was still rising, and soon it pushed the Warhammer straight into the White Sea, the cloud layer itself.
In an instant, everyone felt their breathing halt.
The sensation of oxygen deprivation struck immediately.
Boom!
With a loud explosion, the Warhammer burst through the cloud layer.
The Knock-Up Stream beneath the ship had already vanished.
The Warhammer slowly descended and steadily landed atop the clouds.
Only then did everyone finally relax.
"Huff! Huff! Huff!"
Everyone gasped for breath desperately, but no matter how much they inhaled, they couldn't shake off the suffocating lack of oxygen.
"After all, we're over ten thousand meters above sea level. The air's incredibly thin. Adapt as quickly as you can."
Hammer breathed heavily with difficulty. At that moment, he felt somewhat regretful. If he had learned Life Return earlier, he could have adjusted his body and avoided this situation entirely.
For a while, the only sound aboard the Warhammer was heavy breathing.
The first to adapt was Hammer, followed by Shirley, Gion, then Lance, Tokikake, and afterward Hina along with the soldiers.
At that moment, the difference in everyone's strength became obvious.
After all, powerful individuals handled situations like this much better.
"So this is the Sky Island? Looks pretty nice."
Shirley gazed at the endless white sea of clouds, a trace of delight appearing on her face.
After all, the pure white cloud ocean truly was beautiful.
"Stop admiring the scenery, Shirley. Hurry and check our bearings. See if there are any islands nearby."
"There's no wind in this cloud sea, Lance. I'm going to activate the Warhammer's propulsion system. You take command of the deck."
Lance nodded.
The Warhammer's propulsion system was normally never used and only existed for special situations.
Only the Warhammer's supreme commander, Hammer, had permission to use it.
Hammer walked to a massive iron door at the rear of the cabin and forcefully pulled it open with both arms.
Inside was a rather small room containing only something resembling a boxing strength tester.
"First time using this thing. Hope it works well."
Hammer stretched out his right hand and slowly placed it against the device.
The next second.
DUANG!
A gigantic hammer strike instantly activated. The machine compressed under the force, and then a powerful burst of propulsion erupted from the rear of the device.
The entire Warhammer was immediately pushed forward by the force.
"Good grief… is Hammer literally turning himself into the ship's power source?"
It was Lance's first time experiencing this propulsion system as well, and he was utterly shocked.
If even he was this surprised, there was no need to mention the others.
But Lance was, after all, the vice captain. He quickly adjusted his mindset and began issuing orders.
"Coastline spotted at one o'clock!"
"Good! Change course! Head toward one o'clock!"
As the Warhammer slowly sailed toward the shore,
Suddenly, several figures emerged from the coastline, with one even flying into the sky, all charging toward the Warhammer.
"All hands alert! Someone's approaching!"
Lance immediately issued a warning.
A black shadow suddenly flashed across the sky, and at the same time, a figure descended from above, landing on the Warhammer's deck.
"Hm? You people are from the Blue Sea?"
The newcomer wore light armor and a helmet while holding a circular knight's lance.
His slightly aged face and long beard gave him a rather elderly appearance.
At the same time, the shadows on the cloud sea also reached the Warhammer.
Upon closer inspection, they were small boats carrying people dressed in white clothes, all with small wings on their backs.
"People of the Sky Island?"
"Boarding our warship just like that… isn't very polite, is it?"
Lance's face instantly turned serious, and the surrounding soldiers slowly drew their weapons.
"Lance, everyone, put your weapons away!"
Hammer's voice suddenly rang out, and all the soldiers sheathed their weapons again.
The three-meter-tall giant stepped out from the cabin and slowly walked toward the white-bearded elder.
As soon as Hammer arrived before him, the elder instantly felt an overwhelming aura pressing toward him.
"People of the Sky Island, hello. We are Marines."
"I am Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral Hammer. These are my subordinates."
Hammer calmly introduced himself while his laid-back kingly aura slowly spread.
"Marines? The rulers of the Blue Sea…"
The elder fell silent for a moment before speaking slowly.
"I am Gan Fall, the god of the Skypiea."
"We noticed someone approaching Angel Island, so I came to investigate. Judging by your appearance, you really do seem like some sort of authority."
Gan Fall's gaze slowly swept across the soldiers.
The identical uniforms, iron-blooded aura, and seagull-like emblem made it easy to recognize them as highly trained military personnel.
"I wonder, what business do you have coming from the Blue Sea to the Sky Island?"
"Uh, God Gan Fall, we're guests who traveled from far away. Isn't talking on the ship a bit inconvenient?"
Gan Fall suddenly slapped his forehead.
"Ah, you're right. Please follow us onto the island."
"We can continue our conversation there."
As he spoke, Gan Fall blew a whistle.
A pink shadow instantly descended.
Everyone looked over and discovered it was a pink horse with wings.
"How can there be such a bizarre horse???"
That thought appeared in everyone's minds.
Only Hammer knew the truth, it was actually a bird that had eaten the Horse-Horse Fruit, which was why it looked like this.
"Please follow our patrol unit onto the island."
After speaking, Gan Fall rode the horse and flew toward Angel Island's shore.
The patrol members also turned around and headed toward Angel Island.
"Lance, I'll keep powering the ship. We're heading for the shore!"
The Warhammer activated once more.
Destination: Angel Island!