One week after the Hundred Seasons Island incident.
The Beautiful Pirates and the Barto Club had been officially incorporated. Cavendish and Bartolomeo were appointed as the first and second captains of the Sixth Fleet.
Allen entrusted them with the management of twelve islands in the surrounding waters, along with the two main Sea Train lines starting from Hundred Seasons Island, passing through Cigar Island, and finally arriving at Dressrosa.
The day after incorporating the two pirate crews and assigning their duties, the Freewill immediately set sail for Raijin Island.
Using his own soul to infuse the thunderclouds, Allen created his second main combat Homie. Following Big Mom's previous naming convention, he named it [Zeus].
With that, the dark clouds that had perennially shrouded the skies above Raijin Island completely vanished.
Afterward, Allen and his crew made a stop at Fish-Man Island on their way from Raijin Island.
After a year of reconstruction, the Fish-Man District—once a stronghold for vagrant fish-men and outlaws—had been transformed into an entertainment district fully open to the public.
The Fish-Man District primarily featured various "legal" gray-market industries, specifically designed to attract pirates passing through Fish-Man Island as they traveled between the New World and the first half of the Grand Line.
Having tasted the benefits, Neptune also began to vigorously develop conventional tourism on Fish-Man Island.
At the same time, he opened up large-scale foreign trade, selling various underwater specialties to the rest of the world, with the primary trading partners being the other territories under the Demon Lion's banner.
Allen's collaboration with Iceburg to develop the Sea Train had vastly improved transportation and logistics efficiency between the islands, all for the sake of driving their mutual development.
The massive profits generated from this would, in turn, feed back to Allen, who continued to invest the money into the construction of the Sea Train, forming a virtuous cycle.
Now, throughout the first half of the New World, all territories with developed tourism and abundant resources had been fully connected to the Sea Train network.
Next, Allen planned to have Iceburg shift his construction focus entirely to the vast territories they had taken over from the Big Mom Pirates.
They would similarly prioritize the construction of islands that could bring greater returns and had a higher cost-effectiveness for investment, aiming to trigger the highest developmental benefits in a short period.
After enjoying themselves on Fish-Man Island for a few days, the Freewill set sail once again.
Allen then visited places with extremely harsh environments, such as the Ice Continent, the Naroa Volcanic Archipelago, and the Sunken Lands, successively creating Homies of ice and snow, magma, and swamps.
Spending nearly a month, Allen consecutively created six Homies: [Luoshen], [Zeus], [Zhurong], [Mogura], [Hera], and [Jiulong].
They corresponded to the natural elements of water, lightning, fire, earth, snow, and swamp, respectively.
Afterward, Allen spread the word that he was looking for a handy weapon.
Allen was proficient in all cold weapons. For the longest time, he only had Kashu. Although it was sufficient, he felt it lacked enough prestige.
How could a mere Skillful Grade Sword be worthy of a dignified Emperor of the Sea like him? Moreover, he planned to infuse his weapon with his own soul, turning it into a Homie to make it even more comfortable to use.
After finishing all this, Allen devoted himself entirely to training, while simultaneously keeping an eye on the development of his territories.
Time passed day by day. The fact that Big Mom's position as an Emperor had been replaced by Allen gradually went from being a hot topic of discussion to something people were accustomed to.
As time went on, the landscape of the New World completely stabilized. Under Ace's leadership, the New Whitebeard Pirates also fought several somewhat famous battles.
One of these was defeating the great pirate [Wang Zhi] and taking over Hachinosu.
The strongly rising Ace, coupled with captains like Marco and Jozu who possessed both fame and strength, gradually secured the final seat among the sea's most powerful factions.
In the end, the four factions of Demon Lion Allen, Red-Haired Shanks, Kaido of the Beasts, and Flame Emperor Ace became the universally recognized new Four Emperors of the sea!
One year later.
Spring Island Prislin, known as the "City of Art," where countless writers and artists from around the world gathered.
As a Spring Island, its climate was stable, remaining mild and humid all year round.
The island consisted of a circular ring of land nesting a round, pancake-like landmass in the center. The two landmasses were connected by four rainbow bridges designed by architects.
The outer ring was divided into four districts—East, South, West, and North—each with its own port. After the Freewill docked at the "Music Port" in the West District, Allen, Nami, and the others disembarked.
Upon entering the town, Allen's group arrived at the central street.
The West District was the city of song and dance. Various shops related to singing and dancing could be seen everywhere along the wide streets, and even the cafes were fully decorated with musical instruments.
"As expected of the City of Art, it really is bustling here," Nami muttered as she looked around at the lively street scenes.
Every few dozen meters, they could see a small, temporarily erected stage by the street. The area below was packed with spectators, while the people on stage sang and danced.
From classical theater to modern mainstream music, there was every type of song and dance performance imaginable.
Robin looked around with a faint smile on her face, showing a strong interest in everything here.
By now, she had grown her hair out, her smooth, jet-black long hair cascading down her shoulders.
Two years had passed since the Summit War. Yet, in Allen's eyes, Robin seemed to have grown a few years younger. While maintaining her mature charm, she had also gained a touch of gentleness.
Nami had also grown her hair long, looking even more youthful and vibrant than before. Her figure, in particular, had developed significantly over the past two years.
He couldn't even grasp them with one hand anymore.
As they passed by a tavern, Allen suddenly stopped and said, "Let's find a place to rest first. Drifting on the sea for a week has almost made me sick to my stomach."
"I think you just want to drink again." Nami couldn't help but roll her eyes at him, saying in an exasperated tone, "It's still broad daylight. Don't you dare get dead drunk later."
"What are you saying? When arriving at an unfamiliar place, a tavern is the best spot for pirates to gather information and learn about the local area." Allen shrugged with his hands spread out, then turned and walked straight into the tavern.
The tavern was bustling. When it came to a love for alcohol, the so-called artists here probably wouldn't lose to pirates.
Allen walked straight to the bar, slapped a neat stack of Berries onto the counter, and told the boss to bring out the shop's finest reserved liquor. Just as he sat down, he heard a conversation coming from the side.
"I really didn't expect this. After being silent for two years, I thought they were long dead."
"Tell me about it. The way he crashed the Summit War back then to save his brother really shocked me."
"To think that the entire crew has returned this time. Calculating the time, they should have already entered the New World by now."
A few men with exaggerated makeup, dressed like stage actors, sat around a table discussing in low voices. Several wine glasses and a newspaper were laid out on the table.
"Eh? Who were you guys talking about?"
A voice suddenly came from behind them. A man wearing a crown laughed loudly and turned his head to say, "Hahahaha! Who else could it be but the man who saved his brother at the Summit War? It's obviously Straw Hat... kid..."
Looking at the unfamiliar, cute face in front of him, the man wearing the crown froze on the spot.
"Uh... who are you, beauty?"