Fish-Man Island, located 10,000 meters beneath the holy land of Mariejois.
This was a mandatory stop on the way to the New World, once plagued by countless pirate raids until Whitebeard, one of the Four Emperors, claimed it as his territory and restored peace.
However, Lin Xuan furrowed his brows slightly at this moment.
Something felt off!
Gazing at the island enveloped in massive bubbles, Lin Xuan couldn't shake the feeling that things weren't quite right.
When he noticed that the entrance to Fish-Man Island, which should have been guarded by the royal guards, was instead watched over by casually dressed fish-men, he knew something had gone wrong on the island!
At that moment, the surrounding currents suddenly surged.
Soon, over a dozen enormous sea beasts appeared before Lin Xuan, encircling him completely.
On the backs of these sea beasts sat several tall fish-men, one of whom held a steel fork and pointed it at Lin Xuan, shouting, "Who are you? What's your purpose in approaching Fish-Man Island?"
Lin Xuan glanced at them and immediately recognized their identities—they were members of the New Fish-Man Pirates.
Because right after, he spotted Ikaros Much and Dosun from the New Fish-Man Pirates in the group.
"Has the upheaval on Fish-Man Island got something to do with the New Fish-Man Pirates?" Lin Xuan pondered.
Could his arrival have triggered Hody Jones's rebellion ahead of schedule?
Still, Lin Xuan was a bit surprised.
Judging by their reactions, it seemed they didn't recognize him?
After all, following the outbreak of the war on the Sabaody Archipelago and the Summit War, many people had learned of his appearance through live broadcasts and newspapers.
Plus, with the Ninja Guild's influence now, most people knew who he was.
However, what Lin Xuan didn't know was that Ikaros and the others truly didn't recognize him.
They hadn't been paying attention to events in the outside world.
For the past while, they'd been secretly preparing for their captain Hody Jones's plans, so they had no time to keep up with external news.
The corner of Lin Xuan's mouth curled up as he thought to himself, "I was just wondering how to make my entrance, and these guys come delivering themselves right to my door."
At the same time, seeing Lin Xuan remain silent, Ikaros flew into a rage and barked, "Human, I'm talking to you!"
As he spoke, he spurred the remaining sea beasts into action, launching an attack on Lin Xuan.
In the next second, Lin Xuan's figure vanished from the spot.
"Bang! Bang! Bang...!"
Several muffled thuds echoed through the depths, and the sea beasts exploded without even a chance to cry out, their crimson blood swiftly staining the nearby waters red.
As for Ikaros and the others riding them, their bodies shot backward like cannonballs.
"Boom!"
A massive crash rang out as the fish-men slammed into Fish-Man Island's bubble membrane, unleashing a violent ripple that shook the entire island.
At that moment, on Fish-Man Island.
The island had already descended into chaos, with even the central Ryugu Palace in total disarray.
Many areas had suffered severe damage, as if they'd just endured a fierce battle, with numerous fish-man corpses scattered on the ground—many wearing the uniforms of the royal guards.
On Gyoncorde Plaza, most of the island's fish-men and merfolk had been gathered.
In the center of the plaza, several large fish-men were bound with chains, restrained right in the middle.
These fish-men were none other than King Neptune of Fish-Man Island and his sons.
Beyond them, plenty of royal guards were also tied up and carelessly tossed on the ground.
Off to one side of the plaza, the even larger mermaid princess Shirahoshi sat there, weeping.
Standing shoulder to shoulder before them, Hody Jones and Vander Decken IX gazed at the chained Neptune, a cold smirk spreading across Hody's face.
He had finally waited for this day!
Not long ago, he had led the New Fish-Man Pirates in collaboration with Vander Decken IX to launch a surprise assault on Ryugu Palace.
That's right—just as Lin Xuan suspected, due to Lin Xuan's influence, the Summit War had erupted early, and in the end, the World Government was crushed, sending shockwaves through the entire world.
Hody Jones had seen his opportunity and acted ahead of time.
Recently, with the help of the ES drug, they had easily breached Ryugu Palace and captured King Neptune and the others one by one.
Next, he planned to use a visual Den Den Mushi to publicly execute Neptune in front of all of Fish-Man Island and take control!
At that moment, on Gyoncorde Plaza, the assembled fish-men and merfolk were utterly shocked.
No one could have imagined that Hody Jones would suddenly attack Ryugu Palace, and now he was preparing to publicly execute the king—they had all been subdued.
After Hody Jones listed out King Neptune's numerous "crimes," he finally grew impatient and prepared to begin the execution.
He had waited far too long for this day!
A savage glint flashed in Hody Jones's eyes as his gaze shifted to Mermaid Princess Shirahoshi.
In truth, the main goal of his plan to seize Ryugu Palace was to eliminate the mermaid princess he feared—the "monster" who could communicate with Sea Kings!
"Do it!"
At Hody Jones's command, his subordinates swiftly moved in, ready to carry out the execution on Neptune and the others.
As for the mermaid princess, he planned to save her for last, since he was currently cooperating with Vander Decken IX, who adored Shirahoshi—he couldn't afford to turn on him just yet.
However, at that very moment—"Boom!"
A tremendous roar echoed, and the entire Fish-Man Island seemed to tremble. Then, several figures came hurtling from afar at high speed.
Finally, those figures crashed into nearby buildings, collapsing the structures around them.
"What happened?"
Hody Jones's expression shifted as he quickly looked toward the rubble, his pupils contracting in shock.
Ikaros?
Lying in the ruins were none other than Ikaros and the others he'd left outside to stand guard, their bodies twisted grotesquely, lying motionless—whether dead or alive, it was unclear.
At that point, the people on the island could feel the bubble membrane shudder once more.
Then, a figure flew in from the distance, appearing in the sky above the plaza in an instant, hovering mid-air and looking down on everyone.
"Who are you?" Hody Jones's face darkened as he roared in anger.
The intruder's appearance here at this time meant without a doubt that Ikaros and the others had been taken down by this guy.
However, the figure in the air let out a cold snort. In the next second, an overwhelming pressure swept out, instantly blanketing the entire island and causing everyone's expressions to change drastically.
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T/N:
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