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Chapter 178: A Rising Star
🕑 Added 2025-09-08 12:58:14 +0000 UTCChapter 178: A Rising Star
Hearing this, Shane couldn't help but laugh, a laugh that echoed across the sea, full of mockery and disdain.
"Become a Celestial Dragon?"
He spread his hands. "I thought you were going to offer me some incredible terms, but this is it? To become one of those pigs in bubble helmets? Why would you think that would appeal to me?"
Saint Shamrock's brow furrowed, a look of displeasure on his face.
The two black-robed figures behind him also stiffened, clearly not expecting Shane to refuse so bluntly, let alone insult them.
Such audacity!
"Mortal, do you know what you're saying?"
Gunshi couldn't help but take a step forward, her voice icy, her hand under her black robe slightly raised. "To dare to refuse the invitation of the Holy Knights is to challenge the authority of the gods!"
VWOOM!
Several bandage-like arrows wrapped around her arm and, in the span of a single second, they quickly merged into a giant arrowhead, which shot toward Shane's chest.
Hmm?
Shane keenly sensed that this arrowhead was different.
It seemed to contain some kind of power of law, a very bizarre and overbearing Devil Fruit ability.
I can't dodge!
But…
I never planned to dodge in the first place!
A red light flashed in Shane's eyes, and a torrential, surging black and red Haki erupted from him. A massive bolt of lightning, like a furious dragon, tore through the night sky and crashed into the arrowhead.
CRACK!
The arrowhead was instantly swallowed by the flood of Conqueror's Haki and shattered. The remaining Conqueror's lightning traveled along the arrow to its source, Gunshi's arm…
SWISH!
Saint Shamrock drew his sword and, with a low cry, he stepped in front of her and blocked the blow.
But his hand also went a little numb, and his heart skipped a beat.
"You were too reckless, Gunshi," Saint Shamrock said in a low voice. "A guy who can fight that Admiral Sakazuki to a standstill is not someone you can handle just yet."
Gunshi pursed her lips, a look of indignation on her face.
But Saint Shamrock ignored her and looked up at Shane, his voice calm. "A very powerful Conqueror's Haki, almost on par with my… well, never mind. In any case, a powerhouse with such excellent potential as you has the right to be the sharpest sword under my command. It's a pity to let you just wander the seas. I'll ask you again, are you really not willing to join the Holy Knights?"
"Not interested! If you want to fight, then fight! Less talk!"
Shane clenched his right fist, and Conqueror's Haki wrapped around it. He grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth. "Let me see for myself just how strong you 'gods' really are!"
Saint Shamrock was silent for a moment, and then he let out a small laugh.
"That's right," he said with a leisurely sigh. "You mortals who have mastered extraordinary powers, one or two of you, will always inevitably delude yourselves into thinking that you have the right to surpass the gods. You are not the first, and you will not be the last…"
"It seems that if I don't beat you into submission, you won't be willing to surrender. In that case—hmm?"
Saint Shamrock had just tightened his grip on his sword when his brow suddenly furrowed deeply, and he turned to look into the distance.
Seeing this, Shane also followed his gaze to the horizon.
In his vision, a massive pirate ship.
The Curtain Call could already be considered a medium-to-large-sized ship, but in front of this ship, it was like a small sampan.
Bright, eye-catching pink sails, a flamboyant design that resembled a cream cake, a Jolly Roger with lipstick, and the figurehead at the bow was even singing and laughing…
"The Queen Mama Chanter,"
Gunshi said with a click of her tongue. "It's Big Mom's flagship. How troublesome."
Shane, of course, also recognized the famous pirate ship, and he couldn't help but grin.
First, an ambush by Akainu, then the arrival of the Holy Knights, and now one of the Four Emperors was sticking her nose in…
Heh, this is quite a party!
But thinking about it, it was to be expected.
After all, among the Four Emperors, Big Mom's territory was the closest to the entrance of the New World.
And the Charlotte family was massive, with a clear division of labor, and they had close ties to the underworld, giving them a decent intelligence network.
He and Akainu had been fighting here for almost a whole day, causing such a commotion. In this situation, it would have been strange if Big Mom hadn't been alerted.
"Let's go for now,"
Saint Shamrock said calmly. "I have no interest in dealing with one of the Four Emperors in a situation like this."
He then glanced at Shane. "Joining the Holy Knights has a hundred benefits and no drawbacks. Think it over carefully. We will meet again. I hope that next time, you will have a change of heart."
Shane raised an eyebrow, and before he could respond.
CRACK!
Another massive black bolt of lightning fell from the sky. The uncomfortable, evil, twisted aura briefly spread out and then quickly disappeared.
The sea returned to a state of calm.
The three black-robed figures had vanished without a trace.
"So mysterious,"
Shane snorted.
He had no fear of this vice-commander of the Holy Knights, who looked exactly like Red-Hair. He also didn't think that his strength was any greater than Akainu's.
But this strange ability to appear at any time with a portal, to come and go as they pleased, was a bit troublesome.
Is it a power granted by Imu?
Shane narrowed his eyes.
It was fine for now.
He only had one ship, and he would be able to sense them coming.
But in the future?
When he had established his own territory, he would have times when he was away, and he might be vulnerable.
It seemed that the next time the shop refreshed, he would have to keep an eye out for an item that could counter this ability.
As for now…
The trouble with the Marines had been dealt with. As for the behemoth that had just arrived, whether it was a new problem or something else, he would have to go and see for himself.
Shane gestured to his comrades on The Curtain Call to stay put for the time being, and then, with a Moonwalk, he flew alone toward the Queen Mama Chanter.
…
…
Holy Land, Mary Geoise.
In the top-floor office of the World Government, the atmosphere was a little tense.
The Five Elders were either standing or sitting, exchanging the intelligence files that CP-0 had just delivered, their expressions varied.
"A stalemate with Sakazuki for a whole night?"
"Such a terrifying growth rate."
"His threat level needs to be re-evaluated."
The curly-haired man with the flat-top hat, Saturn, narrowed his eyes. "Also, on the side of the Holy Knights, Figarland's son seems to have taken a liking to this brat and has gone to recruit him personally."
"Recruit?"
The man in the kimono, Nusjuro, was a little surprised. "If this person could also become a Holy Knight, that would be for the best… what was the result?"
"For the time being, he was unsuccessful,"
Saturn said, shaking his head. "That brat refused directly, and just then, Charlotte Linlin's flagship arrived, so Shamrock returned to the Holy Land. But from the looks of it, he hasn't given up yet."
"Then let him continue to try. We have no right to interfere too much in the affairs of the Holy Knights,"
Nusjuro said, adjusting his glasses. "But this battle… although Sakazuki was not at a disadvantage, from the overall situation, the Marines have still lost a great deal of face."
"Let's try to suppress the news. Send someone to warn Morgans. He needs to know his place. The fact that Shane and Akainu fought a great battle, that can be mentioned, but the details are not to be revealed, especially the part about the Holy Knights' intervention."
Shepherd Ju Peter said calmly, "Also, gentlemen, I think it's time we reported to Lord Imu."
"I second that."
"Seconded."
…
In the deepest part of Pangaea Castle, in a place called the "Room of Flowers."
At the very top, the magnificent Empty Throne stood tall.
And the tall figure, shrouded in shadow, was now strolling leisurely through the flower path. He bent down and picked a flower, gently smelling it.
Not far away, five old men who were usually high and mighty, at the pinnacle of world power, were now almost prostrated on the ground, not even daring to breathe.
"Are you finished?"
Imu turned his head slightly, his androgynous voice coming.
"Yes, my lord,"
the middle Elder said, not daring to look up, and he said respectfully, "That is all we have to report about that Shane. To have progressed so far in just over six months, to be able to fight a Marine Admiral to a standstill, it is truly worrying. If we let him continue to grow…"
"Is he of the D. clan?" Imu interrupted him, taking a photo from his outstretched hands and asking leisurely.
"We have thoroughly investigated. There is no connection."
"What about a Devil Fruit ability?"
Imu's ripple-like eyes glanced at the young man's face in the photo.
"He is not a Devil Fruit user. He relies purely on his powerful physique."
"Then why worry? At least, we are not worried,"
Imu let out an enigmatic chuckle. He slowly walked toward the Empty Throne, his long robe trailing over the flower petals, his voice like a flowing ice spring. "To be able to fight the strongest in the sea at the age of eighteen is rare, but there have been many such examples in the past. He is not special, is he?"
"As long as that wall, that barrier, is still there, no matter how fast a guy like that grows, there will always be a limit. And that level… is not enough to affect anything."
As if he were getting bored, Imu waved his hand. "Alright, go. You can handle a small matter like this yourselves. We are not very interested. But the balance of power in the New World has been stable for a while now, hasn't it?"
"Then let this little fellow go and stir things up a bit. If it can bring some fun, that would be good…"
…
In the next two days, a rather eye-catching piece of news, with the New World as its anchor, gradually spread throughout the Four Blues.
—The super rookie, Shane, who had caused a storm in the first half of the Grand Line, had officially led his subordinates into the New World!
And he had fought a battle with the Marine Admiral, Akainu, a fierce battle that had lasted for over ten hours, with no clear winner.
The details of such an intriguing great battle were not disclosed, and the report was not even on the front page, but was just a side note in the third section.
This caused many pirates who only ever read the headlines to miss it, greatly affecting the speed at which the news spread.
But one thing was hard to ignore.
The wanted poster for this "World's Greatest Swordsman," Shane, had been updated again after only about ten days.
The new bounty was set at 2.13 billion Berries!
It might not seem like a big increase, but it had broken the two-billion mark, and the symbolism of that was quite intriguing.
You see, below the Four Emperors, the number of pirates with bounties in the billions was not small, and if you included the old-timers who had retired, there were even more.
But pirates with bounties of over two billion, even if you included all the old-timers from Roger's era, were few and far between.
Therefore, the change in bounty was undoubtedly a declaration that Marine Headquarters' assessment of Shane's threat level had reached a whole new level!
And so…
Even though the World Government had deliberately suppressed it, and even though the news was spreading much more slowly than usual, with the help of those who were interested, the name of the "World's Greatest Swordsman," Shane, was gradually becoming known throughout the seas, a topic of heated discussion in the streets, in taverns, and at the docks!
His fame, for a time, even rivaled that of the Four Emperors!
…
"Is the new era finally upon us?"
someone said, standing on a cliff and looking out at the stormy sea. "A rookie who can fight a Marine Admiral to a standstill just after entering the New World? Even in the past, that's a rare sight."
"Hey, the last guy with a reputation like that was that Red-Hair Shanks, right?"
"And now there's another Shane. Does that mean that the balance of the Four Emperors, which has only been stable for a few years, is about to become a balance of five in the near future?"
Some people didn't care about Shane's bounty, but they were very concerned about his epithet.
"What's all this nonsense? How can there be another 'World's Greatest Swordsman'? Isn't the World's Greatest Swordsman supposed to be Hawkeye Mihawk?"
"Tsk, he was the one from half a month ago. This is an epithet acknowledged by Marine Headquarters. As for Mihawk… tsk, he's probably not very happy about it."
"Indeed. If it were me, I'd be pretty pissed off too. Hey, I wonder when those two will fight. I'm so excited…"
Of course, there were also those who had missed the previous newspapers and knew almost nothing about the name Shane. It was only now, in the heated discussions in the streets and taverns, that they were slowly learning about the glorious achievements of this young powerhouse.
For example, in the North Blue…
on a small island, in the falling snow, a submarine slowly surfaced and docked at the shore.
"Hey, Law! What are you doing over there?! We're leaving!" a white bear, cupping its paws around its mouth, shouted at the figure standing on the shore.
The young man in the spotted fur hat didn't answer. He just stared blankly at the sky, his thoughts elsewhere.
It wasn't until his comrades had come up to him that he snapped out of it, rolled up the newspaper, and tucked it under his arm. He looked up, a rare, bright smile on his face.
"Hey, Bepo, Shachi, Penguin," Law grinned. "Let's leave the North Blue. Let's officially set out for the Grand Line, what do you say?"
"Huh?! Huh! What's with you?"
Bepo was taken aback. "Just a while ago, you said we had to train a bit more before we could take that guy on. Why the sudden change of heart? And you're smiling so scarily. Don't tell me… you have a fever?"
It put its fluffy bear paw on Law's head and then on its own…
"Your body temperature is different from a human's, you idiot! What's the point of that?!" the other two said, a black line appearing on their faces, and they roared.
"I'm sorry…" Bepo immediately lowered his head and apologized pitifully.
"I don't have a fever. Don't worry,"
Law said with a smile, patting his shoulder. He looked up at the falling snow, his gaze soft and nostalgic. "I… I just have someone I really want to see…"
