Reaching an altitude of ten thousand meters, Ash Thalos finally witnessed the legendary White Sea and the island clouds with his own eyes.
An ocean made entirely of white clouds stretched endlessly beneath him. Above was a vast blue sky, below was a sea of misty whiteness, and the weather was calm and radiant. It was a breathtaking, almost dreamlike sight.
Several miniature floating islands, formed from fragments of Jaya Island, surrounded God Island. Farther out, countless archipelagos made of island clouds drifted quietly across the White Sea.
The three small islands Ash had brought were positioned some distance away from God Island, but that did not matter.
He decided to follow his original plan. First, he flew two full laps around God Island at maximum speed, directly scanning the entire area with Observation Haki.
Fortunately, he did not run into the awkward situation of the Shandians and the Sky Islanders already being locked in open warfare.
His memory was correct. In the Sea Calendar year 1515, Enel had not yet arrived on Skypiea to seize power.
The one currently ruling as God was still the Sky Knight, Gan Fall.
Ash did not even spare the old man a second glance. He flew straight toward the Golden City of Skypiea, which was located along the massive giant vine at the center of God Island.
Obstacles like towering vines and enclosing mountain walls were meaningless to him. For someone who could fly freely, terrain had already lost its purpose.
When Ash finally laid eyes on the Golden Land of Skypiea, even though most of it was buried under layers of plants and vines, the exposed sections alone were enough to nearly blind him.
This was the Golden Land before Enel's destruction.
This was the untouched city, before Enel stripped it bare to construct the Ark Maxim.
Gold was everywhere.
Ash's eyes lit up.
So this is what real wealth looks like. No more converting pirates into bounty money.
Speaking of bounties, Ash felt a wave of irritation.
Earlier, he had Pini take the heads of the two Giant Warrior Pirates captains to exchange for bounty money. The Marines had actually said that for pirates with extremely high bounties, the full amount could only be redeemed if they were captured alive. If they were dead, only seventy percent could be claimed.
The explanation was that Devil Fruit users needed to be imprisoned in Impel Down to prevent their fruits from reappearing in the world. Non-Devil Fruit users could be executed publicly as a warning.
The logic made sense.
But why was none of this written clearly on the wanted posters?
What, it was written and he simply never noticed?
Fine. Aside from his own wanted poster with a bounty of eight hundred Berries, Ash had never really paid attention to the fine print on others.
Maybe they really did say things like "dead or alive" or "must be captured alive."
Still, it was annoying.
Ash calmed himself and slowly approached the gigantic golden bell.
Although all this gold already belonged to him the moment he saw it, proper business still had to be done.
He raised his fist and gently struck.
Dong…
Dong…
Dong…
The bell, silent for four hundred years, rang once more.
The sound echoed across the sky, spreading throughout the entire White Sea.
Every person on Skypiea, whether Shandian or native Sky Island resident, froze in place.
At the same time, the bell was also heard on Jaya Island, ten thousand meters below.
Mont Blanc Cricket had just returned to Jaya aboard a Saruyama Alliance ship, only to find the island completely deserted and Mock Town reduced to scorched ruins. He was still in shock when the distant bell reached his ears.
He froze.
Then he dropped to his knees, clutching his head as tears streamed down his face.
It is the golden bell.
That sound, it really exists.
Skypiea is real.
My ancestor did not lie.
Noland was not a liar.
On Skypiea, within the Shandian village, a group of young warriors training with weapons also stopped and stared toward God Island in disbelief.
An old man wearing a strange hat suddenly fell to his knees and began to sob.
"This is the Light of Skypiea."
The youths were stunned.
"Village Chief, are you sure? You are not mistaken? Is this really…?"
The old man cried uncontrollably.
"There is no mistake. The golden bell has been rung. Someone has lit the Light of Skypiea. The promise our people have waited four hundred years for has finally been fulfilled."
A young man wearing goggles, with three feathers stuck behind his head and holding a long spear, spoke hesitantly.
"Then who rang the bell? Could it be Gan Fall?"
"Who cares who rang it?" another young man interrupted. He wore a bandana, had a cigarette in his mouth, and a tattoo on his left shoulder. "We will find out when we get there."
He was clearly the leader.
The others immediately agreed and rushed toward the nearby Wavers.
"Wyper, try not to clash with Gan Fall," the Village Chief shouted urgently. "He is the only God in four hundred years who has been willing to coexist peacefully with us."
"I know, Chief," Wyper replied impatiently.
At a time like this, who had the patience to deal with Gan Fall?
The group sped off, but Wyper suddenly felt something was wrong. He turned his head and noticed an extra person at the back.
"Laki, who told you to follow us? Go back!" he roared.
Hidden behind the group was a young girl, about thirteen or fourteen years old. She had a black ponytail, wore light purple clothing, and carried a flintlock rifle on her back.
"I am a Shandian warrior too," Laki replied without fear. "You do not get to decide whether I fight or not."
Wyper's face darkened, but by now they were already close to God Island. There was no time to turn back.
At the entrance to God Island, Ash floated calmly in mid-air, watching the two groups approach.
Leading the larger group was a man riding a flying horse. He wore Western-style plate armor and carried a long spear.
Even though his face was hidden by a helmet, the outfit made his identity obvious.
This had to be Gan Fall.
After all, the creature beneath him was impossible to mistake.
Pierre, a Sky Bird that had eaten the Horse-Horse Fruit.
Its appearance was, frankly speaking, bizarre.
Behind Gan Fall followed a large number of God's Guards.
From Ash's perspective, they were nothing more than weaklings.
The other group consisted of more than ten young Shandian warriors, all armed with different weapons. The front five were clearly the core members.
Ash raised an eyebrow.
So that little girl really did sneak in.
Looking at their formation, the man in the center with the bandana and tattoo had to be Wyper, the future Great Warrior of the Shandians.
The four beside him should be his main companions, though Ash could not remember their names. They had appeared too briefly in the original story and were mostly taken out by Enel.
That girl must be Laki.
She looked even cuter in person.
But she was not the one Ash truly cared about.
Aside from Enel and Wyper, the person he remembered most on Skypiea was a little girl named Aisa.
A child who naturally awakened Observation Haki.
A rare genius.
But judging by the timeline, Aisa should only be four years old right now.
So she was still useless for the moment.
Both Gan Fall's group and Wyper's group had already noticed Ash floating in the air.
Since ancient times, flight had always been a dream of mankind.
And those who could truly fly were instinctively viewed with awe.
At this moment, with the Light of Skypiea ringing through the heavens, a mysterious stranger hovering in mid-air was enough to shock everyone present.