Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two ships, one after another, like bullets, plunged fearlessly into the Sky Road on the giant mountain.
Even though the slope of the Sky Road exceeded 70 degrees, the water flow remained just as rapid, and the speed of the ships showed no signs of abating.
Woosh woosh woosh!
The wind, like blades, continuously blew past everyone.
It stung their cheeks.
But this slight pain was insignificant compared to the excitement in everyone's hearts.
Even Kong Tai and Indigo couldn't help but reveal excited expressions on their faces since the moment their ship entered the true Sky Road.
Everyone gripped the railings at the bow of the ship with both hands, to prevent themselves from being flung off by the high-speed vessel.
This was far more thrilling than a roller coaster. A roller coaster was only tens of meters long, while this Sky Road stretched for tens of thousands of meters, and its speed was incomparable to a roller coaster.
Only Kong Tai, at the bow of the ship, ignored the wind and the tilting hull, standing still.
He glanced at everyone, then turned his head to the left of the ship, a flash of red light in his eyes.
As expected of the treacherous Sky Road, danger arrived as soon as they entered.
"A show of strength?"
Kong Tai chuckled, reached out to pull Guina, then exerted force with his legs. With a "whoosh," he leaped onto the windmill at the bow of the ship, sat down with Guina in his arms, and remained unmoved by the wind.
Guina leaned her back against Kong Tai's chest, looked up at his chin, a gentle smile gracing her lips. She then shifted, finding a more comfortable position, squinted, and turned her gaze to the constantly flashing lightning in the sky with great interest.
Just then, on both sides of the ship, the sea suddenly swelled. The massive heads of Sea Kings broke through the water, shattering the restraint of the currents, and with their gaping mouths, they lunged towards the Going Merry.
Kong Tai didn't even spare a glance at these Sea Kings. Instead, he relaxed his body, leaning his back against the blades of the windmill, and raised his head to gaze at the sky. Stardust swirled in his pupils, and an invisible, world-dominating aura surged from him, instantly sweeping across the entire ship and the entire river.
For an instant, it was as if time and space had frozen. Only the Going Merry continued forward, while all around it, the Sea Kings with their gaping mouths and fangs glinting coldly under the light, were frozen in place.
Only after the Going Merry passed did their eyes turn white, and they fell into the water with a "bang." Their colossal bodies then rolled with the currents, following the Going Merry towards the mountain.
"This guy is really lucky!"
Kong Tai raised his gourd and took a drink, then grimaced at the sailboat ahead.
It seemed that only this initial section of the Sky Road was guarded by Sea Kings.
The ship ahead had attracted the Sea Kings, and due to its speed, it had escaped.
Their ship, however, became the target of the Sea Kings' attack.
Generally, Sea Kings dared not venture into the depths of this Sky Road, because in their perception, any Sea King that entered this river had never returned.
Over time, this path became a forbidden zone for Sea Kings.
They only dared to roam near the entrance of the Sky Road.
These few Sea Kings were truly unlucky to have encountered Kong Tai. Now, stunned into unconsciousness, they had no choice but to be swept upwards, even if they didn't want to.
Just as Kong Tai unleashed his Conqueror's Haki to stun the Sea Kings, Colon, who had transformed back into a human on the deck of the sailboat ahead, suddenly sensed something. He turned his head and witnessed the Going Merry rushing through the gaping mouths of several Sea Kings, completely unscathed.
"What the hell is this?"
He stared at the Going Merry behind him, his eyes widening gradually, his pupils constricting. Finally, sweat poured from his forehead as if a dam had burst.
"You've got to be kidding me!"
"What kind of luck is this? How could you possibly be here!"
He hadn't recognized the Silver-Haired crew earlier because they had changed ships. After four months, the Four Seas already knew that another pirate king, renowned throughout the world, had emerged from the Grand Line.
He was no weakling in the North Blue, and the North Blue was not the East Blue, so he was not unfamiliar with the Grand Line and was basically aware of the major events occurring on it.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have plunged directly into the Grand Line to seek treasure.
After all, the Grand Line was not a pleasant place in the Four Seas.
Since he dared to come, he must have been fully prepared, so he had read up on the news of the Grand Line, especially the news from recent years.
Having read it, how could he not know about the Silver-Haired crew!
Who could have known that the renowned pirate, Silver-Haired, who had recently appeared in the news, was not in Alabasta!
His route was two sea routes away from Alabasta.
And yet, he had encountered him.
He didn't even know who to complain to.
He wasn't a rookie pirate who had just set sail and knew nothing. Having been a pirate in the North Blue for so many years, he had long known the gap between himself and these world-famous pirates.
It wasn't a lack of confidence, but the reality of it. He was simply no match for these individuals. Moreover, after entering the Grand Line, he had encountered a crew of pirates. Although the fight ended in a draw, it made him realize what monsters those with bounties exceeding 1 billion were.
A pirate with a bounty of just over 100 million could fight him to a draw, so what about Silver-Haired with a bounty of 1.5 billion?
The mere thought sent shivers down his spine, a chill of dread.
Furthermore, he had heard the legends of Silver-Haired!
Legend had it that although Silver-Haired was himself a pirate, he deeply despised pirates. All the pirates he had encountered so far had never reappeared.
Their disappearance meant, needless to say, that they had all been killed by him.
Such a brutal pirate, and he had encountered him. He didn't know if he had stepped on dog feces when he went out today, or if he had offended the God of Death.
"Ah... spit!"
"Damn it."
Colon turned his head and spat a thick glob of phlegm, then cursed loudly, forcefully suppressing the fear in his heart. He turned to look at the clouds above, a fierce glint in his eyes.
So what if he was Silver-Haired? On this Sky Road, he didn't believe the other party would abandon his ship and his companions to come and kill him.
"As long as we reach the Sky Island..."
Unsure of what he was thinking, Colon's expression returned to calmness. "His ship is ahead. As long as we reach the Sky Island, with the map guiding him, he'll definitely be able to escape."
"Yeah... definitely."
A blazing flame seemed to flash in Colon's eyes as he once again bolstered himself inwardly.
However, sometimes confidence was a good thing. But when the gap in strength between two people was too vast, to the point where even giving you a head start, not by much, even if you ran for several kilometers, you still wouldn't be able to escape.
This was the sorrow of the weak.
In this world of the survival of the fittest, if one couldn't become strong, it was better to stay put in the Four Seas and continue to be a local emperor.
Once one entered the Grand Line, without the ambition to become strong, their journey would essentially stop in the first half of this paradise.
Of course, on this sea, the most important things besides strength were sufficient luck.
Just like Colon at this moment, he was someone abandoned by the goddess of fortune. Even if he had the ambition to become strong, and the drive to conquer the sea, what use was it?
He had encountered Kong Tai!
Encountering Kong Tai meant that, let alone his ambition, even if his strength were twice, thrice, or five times greater, it would all be in vain.
From the moment his ship met the Going Merry, his fate was already sealed.
Sealed to...
Descend into the abyss of purgatory and truly walk through it.
Who told him that, in Kong Tai's perception, he was a villain!
This was fate, perhaps!