They were overjoyed, having already given up hope and resigned themselves to turning back. Never did they expect Ye Yu to choose to take action.
Taking action was one thing, but if they had let Bei Haimi go, they could have avoided war. Yet, he chose to kill directly, which delighted them. They began to encourage him verbally, and soon a trending topic emerged.
"Sandstorm and Rakshasa Pirates, fight with all your might. When the time comes, we won't attack you but will instead target the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew, who will have been worn down. While maneuvering, also inflict some damage on the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew to make it easier for us to wrap things up. Otherwise, facing an unscathed Dominant Feather Pirate Crew, we too will have to pay a price.
However, even if you don't inflict much damage, it's fine. When the time comes, our four pirate crews can join forces, as we all have grievances with the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew."
As soon as this trend appeared, everyone sighed, convinced that the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew was doomed.
Lin Muxue sighed, "It seems it will be hard to meet him in a one-on-one duel. He might not survive, but it's okay. If my opponent doesn't show up, I'll still be the winner and receive the reward. That means even if he dies, I can still claim the prize."
Li Cang confirmed, "There's no way he'll survive. Even if it were our Chosen One Pirate Crew, it would be tough to make it out alive. After all, it's four powerful pirate crews."
Lin Muxue corrected, "If it were Ye Yu, he wouldn't survive, not even with Xia Ling's Ice Fruit and Zhao Yan'er's Flare-Flare Fruit. But if it were me, I could survive."
Li Cang nodded repeatedly, praising her.
"Yes, yes, Xue Er, your Rumble Rumble Fruit is invincible. You can attack, defend, and move quickly. Plus, you've learned Observation Haki so fast that even if your opponent is far away, you can still attack from a distance."
...
At this moment, the Rakshasa and Sandstorm Pirates grew even more confident.
Ye Ming sneered, "You've seen the trend, Ye Yu. It's too late for regrets now. Let the battle begin!"
Meanwhile, the atmosphere within the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew was not heavy, nor was there any resentment toward Ye Yu. Instead, their fighting spirit soared.
Even though they knew this battle would be perilous, they were glad Ye Yu chose to fight.
Xia Ling's fighting spirit surged, "Then let's fight! Let them know the might of our Dominant Feather Pirate Crew!"
"Roar!!!"
Ye Yu commanded sternly, "For this battle, I won't make the first move to conserve my strength for dealing with the Overlord and Flying Pirates. Besides, you are more than enough to handle the mere Rakshasa and Sandstorm Pirates. Our pirate crew's strength is greater than they imagine, especially our Non-Ability Users. It's your time to shine."
"Captain, don't worry, leave it to us!"
"We should indeed conserve some strength."
"Even if it's perilous, we must give it our all to seek a way out."
"Vice Captain, you watch too. We are more than enough."
...
Xia Ling said, "I don't want to see any casualties, so Yan'er and I will step in. Sha La with the Sand-Sand Fruit and Ye Ming with the String-String Fruit are also formidable."
Ye Yu said, "You all can join the fight. I'll stay back and conserve my strength. Hit them hard, make them regret it. Lower crew members, form groups of three hundred to avoid casualties when encountering their formal and combat crew. Executives, target their executives."
"Understood!"
"Captain, leave it to us. You've already done enough by killing one of their executives and using your Conqueror's Haki to knock out all their lower-tier crew members and some of their regular crew."
"We'll conserve our energy for the upcoming battle against the Flying Sky and Overlord Pirate Crews."
...
The ones most eager for battle were naturally the Non-Ability Users. The entire nation was watching the live broadcast, and this was their chance to prove they weren't weak.
Sun Long and Zhou Xing were particularly excited, as they had contracts with Zoro and Sanji, respectively.
Among the Non-Ability Users of the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew, they were second only to Ye Yu and were also executives. They needed to perform well and achieve impressive results.
Immediately, the crew members dispersed and began to act.
Ye Yu, meanwhile, leaped to the top of the tallest building in the city center. With his arms crossed, he stood at the pinnacle, overlooking the surroundings as his Observation Haki spread out, allowing him to grasp the entire situation.
At the same time, he glanced toward the distant sea. The Flying Sky and Overlord Pirate Crews were still nowhere to be seen; it would take some time for them to arrive.
But Ye Yu's heart was cold, his gaze sharp.
"Originally, I didn't plan to go all out in this battle. A slight effort would have been enough to deal with the Yaksha and Sandstorm Pirate Crews. But if you're coming, then to ensure that my Dominant Feather Pirate Crew doesn't suffer casualties, I'll have to take you more seriously. I had thought to reveal my true strength only after recruiting more Non-Ability Users, but since you're coming, then even if I have to reveal it to the entire Dragon Nation, so be it."
...
At this moment, no one knew what Ye Yu was thinking—that he actually had the idea of taking on the Flying Sky and Overlord Pirate Crews alone.
Lin Muxue sneered at this: "Hah, he still thinks he can survive."
Li Cang laughed: "What's the point of holding back? It's as if he thinks he's the ace fighter. Even if he holds back, it's useless. Once the Flying Sky and Overlord Pirate Crews arrive, the difference in strength will be too vast. I think he's just planning to conserve his energy so he can abandon his crew and run away if things go south, then join a stronger pirate crew. After all, his Conqueror's Haki is terrifying, and his strength is decent. He'll definitely come crawling back, begging Xue Er to let him join. So, Xue Er, would you let him join?"
Lin Muxue pondered briefly before nodding: "I could consider it. After all, his Conqueror's Haki is too tempting, and now that we know he has some strength of his own."
Hearing this, Li Cang's heart sank. Naturally, he didn't want this, but there was nothing he could do.
At this point, the Flying Sky and Overlord Pirate Crews were completely at ease.
Jin Mo was excited: "Good, it's a done deal. As for holding back, hah, what's the point, Ye Yu?"
Song Ling then contacted him: "Jin Mo, make sure you don't kill him. I want to terrify his soul and make him submit at my feet."
Jin Mo nodded: "Fine, but if you take Ye Yu, then I'll have to poach more members from the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew. Their cohesion is strong, but I don't believe they won't want to survive now that the mutation has just begun. Once they collapse, I'm sure we can poach them."
Song Ling nodded: "Agreed. Even if I only get Ye Yu, that's fine. I really want to have a child with him. If we have a child, the child's strength won't be bad, right? After all, he's a strong individual himself, so the child would surely inherit that. And his Conqueror's Haki would definitely be innate as well."
This made Jin Mo's eyes light up, and he found Song Ling's idea quite intriguing.
"Your idea is rather unique," he remarked.
Song Ling licked her lips and said, "If possible, I would force him to have many children with me to strengthen my Overlord Pirates. With my voluptuous figure and wide hips, I'm sure I'd be a good breeder."
...
Meanwhile, the battle had already begun.
Sun Long and some crew members arrived at a certain area.
At that moment, Shi Jian, the Stone-Stone Fruit user, emerged from an alley, sneering.
"Members of the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew, state your names. Let's see if you're worthy opponents. I am Shi Jian, one of the executives of the Rakshasa Pirates and a Stone-Stone Fruit Ability User."
Sun Long became
intrigued. "An executive, huh? That sounds promising. I hope you can give me a good fight. Don't disappoint me."
"I am Sun Long, a Non-Ability User."
(End of Chapter)