The Five Elders returned to the Chamber of Authority and personally issued an order to Fleet Admiral Sengoku—
Fire Fist Ace must be publicly executed, before the eyes of the entire world.
This execution would serve as a warning to every pirate on the Grand Line.
It would proclaim the absolute authority of the Marines and the World Government.
At the same time—
The Five Elders once again raised Luo Xing's bounty.
And this time, it increased by a full one billion in a single stroke.
Luo Xing's bounty officially reached a terrifying 3,000,000,000 Beli.
Of course, beneath the photograph on the wanted poster, that small line of text still remained:
"Alive capture: 5,000,000,000 Beli."
The public execution of the Pirate King's son, Fire Fist Ace.
The Beast Pirates' Prince Consort, Luo Xing—bounty raised to three billion.
The moment these two pieces of news spread, the world erupted.
Blackbeard
Not far from Marine Headquarters, Marshall D. Teach was the first to see the newspaper.
"Zehahahaha… three billion, huh?"
Teach grinned wildly. "That's already brushing up against the real Four Emperors."
His eyes glittered with madness and excitement.
The Marines had already sent him confirmation—
He had been accepted as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.
Ace would be publicly executed.
And with Whitebeard's personality, there was no doubt—
Whitebeard would come. With everything he had.
That would be Teach's stage.
The entire world would witness his grand debut.
His name—Blackbeard—would thunder across the seas, louder even than that so-called Fifth Emperor, Luo Xing.
Just imagining it made Teach tremble with anticipation.
He couldn't wait.
Amazon Lily
Deep within the Calm Belt lay Amazon Lily, protected by countless Sea Kings—
a land almost completely isolated from the outside world.
Yet even here, news still fell from the sky.
A news-carrying seagull descended.
Boa Hancock accepted the newspaper…
and casually turned the seagull to stone with a Kiss Shot.
Crack.
The stone bird shattered on the ground.
Nearby, Sandersonia and Marigold carefully watched their sister's expression.
In the past, their proud elder sister rarely read newspapers—
she believed nothing in the world was worthy of her attention.
But ever since Elder Nyon claimed that Hancock had contracted Love Sickness,
the Pirate Empress had begun reading the news frequently.
She showed no obvious reaction, as though she were merely glancing at world affairs.
But her sisters knew better.
Whenever the paper mentioned Luo Xing,
their sister's brows would lift slightly—
A sign of happiness.
Just like now.
After Hancock left, Sandersonia and Marigold picked up the newspaper.
Sure enough.
Sandersonia frowned.
"Elder Sister really has fallen for the Beast Pirates' Prince Consort… but he already has a wife. Kaido's daughter."
"So what?" Marigold snorted.
"With Sister's peerless beauty, how could she lose to Kaido's daughter?"
"That's not the issue," Sandersonia sighed.
"You know Sister's pride. She would never lower herself to compete for a man."
If Luo Xing had been unmarried, they wouldn't have worried.
Strong, handsome, brilliant, with world-shaking inventions—
he truly seemed a perfect match for the world's most beautiful woman.
But he already had a wife.
And Hancock's pride would never allow compromise.
She hadn't even admitted her Love Sickness.
Whenever Elder Nyon mentioned Luo Xing, Hancock scoffed in denial.
Yet the more she denied it, the deeper the sickness grew.
And Love Sickness… could be fatal.
Many former queens of Amazon Lily had died because of it.
How could her sisters not worry?
The New World — Moby Dick
On the Moby Dick, Marco froze as he read the newspaper.
Whitebeard lay in his chair, eyes half-closed—
yet he noticed Marco's reaction instantly.
After consuming a Senzu Bean, Whitebeard's physical condition had improved greatly—
everything except his long-standing heart illness.
"News about Ace?" Whitebeard asked calmly.
Marco clenched the paper.
"Ace has been captured. The Marines plan to publicly execute him."
"What?!"
Vista, Jozu, and the others cried out in shock.
"Damn the Marines!"
"We have to save Ace!"
"That means storming Marineford!"
"So what? We're the Whitebeard Pirates!"
"We can't just let Ace die!"
Arguments erupted.
Some insisted on immediate rescue.
Others warned that Marineford was too dangerous.
The debate grew heated—
Until Whitebeard spoke.
"Ace will be saved."
Silence fell.
"You are all my sons," Whitebeard declared.
"If any one of you is captured… I will go, without hesitation, to bring you back."
The crew erupted with emotion.
"Father!"
"We'll follow you!"
"Always!"
The decision was made.
Red-Hair Pirates
Elsewhere, Red-Hair Shanks stared silently at the newspaper.
Benn Beckman smoked quietly.
Lucky Roux gnawed on a chicken leg.
"Captain," Roux said casually,
"Are we going to save Fire Fist Ace? He's Roger's son, after all."
Shanks didn't answer.
Normally, someone as free-spirited as him wouldn't hesitate.
In the past, he had tried to save Ace—
only to be delayed by Kaido.
But the truth was—
Shanks' true identity had ties to the Five Elders.
Even without Kaido, he couldn't freely intervene in the war.
"It's happening," Shanks finally sighed.
"No one can stop it now."
He had foreseen this outcome when he visited Whitebeard.
But Whitebeard hadn't listened.
Beckman nodded grimly.
"Whitebeard will go. A war between a Yonko and the Marines is inevitable."
"And the Beast Pirates…" Beckman continued.
"That Fifth Emperor—Luo Xing—won't miss this opportunity. He'll move."
Beckman, the sharpest mind among them, saw it clearly.
But what Luo Xing intended to do—
Even he couldn't tell.
Dracule Mihawk, also present, spoke calmly.
"That man once said he would change the world.
That he would ignite a war engulfing the entire globe."
"This conflict between Whitebeard and the Marines…"
"May only be the opening act."
Shanks and Beckman fell silent.
Whitebeard.
The Marines.
The Beast Pirates.
Luo Xing.
The age was accelerating toward chaos—
And no one could predict where it would end.
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