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Chapter 179 Big News
Chapter 179 Big News
Bai Yu leaned against the ship's railing, watching the lively scene before him. His eyes had long since returned to their dark state, and the indifference in his eyes had been replaced by a faint warmth.
"Dinner's ready!!"
The dining table in the center of the deck was quickly filled with a dazzling array of delicacies. The banquet, featuring raw marinated and cooked seafood, exuded an enticing aroma in the sea breeze. Each dish was as exquisite as a work of art, and carried the unique freshness of the sea.
A whole row of raw marinated seafood, the freshest taste of the sea, the Dawn's seafood reserves are all top delicacies caught from the depths of the New World.
The translucent, raw marinated bluefin tuna belly, as thin as a cicada's wing, is soaked in a secret sashimi sauce and sprinkled with finely chopped green onions and wasabi paste. It melts in your mouth, fresh and sweet, with no fishy smell. The raw marinated drunken crab has a thin shell and tender meat, with plump crab roe. It is thoroughly marinated with aged Shaoxing wine and a secret sauce. One sip is a blend of rich wine aroma and the sweetness of crab meat.
There are also raw marinated shrimp, raw marinated ark shells, and raw marinated octopus tentacles, each of which retains the most authentic freshness and tenderness of seafood, making them smooth and refreshing.
Drunken shrimp, drunken snails, and drunken abalone are slow-cooked with high-proof liquor, cinnamon, star anise, bay leaves, and other spices, then chilled. The aroma of liquor permeates the meat, which is firm and chewy. The cool taste combined with the mellow aroma of liquor is unforgettable.
A whole steamed king squid weighing hundreds of kilograms was placed on the table. The squid meat was white and tender, steamed to perfection, and drizzled with delicious steamed fish soy sauce. It could be easily torn off the bone with a gentle touch. It was tender and chewy, with the unique sweetness of the sea.
The charcoal-grilled golden lobster has a crispy, reddish-brown shell and plump, juicy meat. Sprinkled with salt and pepper and herbs, the aroma of char and freshness collide. There are also blanched scallops, braised eel, seafood soup, and steamed scallops with garlic and vermicelli. All kinds of seafood dishes are available, showcasing the freshness of the deep sea in the New World to the fullest. The steaming aroma fills the entire warship.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the table, a variety of exquisite desserts were laid out.
Soft and fluffy cheesecake, sweet but not greasy chocolate mousse, fruity strawberry tart, cool and silky vanilla ice cream, as well as coconut milk jelly and mango pudding made with fresh sea coconuts, are colorful and cute.
Artoria looked at the dessert in front of her, and the corners of her mouth unconsciously turned up slightly. She picked up a small piece of strawberry tart and gently put it in her mouth. The sweet taste melted on her tongue, and a satisfied light shone in her eyes.
Rangiku, already impatient, held a grilled lobster in her left hand and a glass of chilled fruit wine in her right, her lips smeared with sauce as she ate: "Hana-nee, you have to try this raw marinated crab, it's super delicious!"
Retsu Unohana nodded slightly, elegantly picked up her cutlery, and tasted the seafood in front of her. Her cool and aloof expression was full of gentleness as she watched Rangiku enjoying her meal. The smile in her eyes grew even stronger.
She would occasionally pick up a cup of light floral tea, sip it slowly, and exude a gentle and refined demeanor, a stark contrast to her earlier appearance wielding a sword to slay enemies on the battlefield.
Uchiha Hakuba sat in the main seat, with several light seafood dishes laid out in front of him.
The sea breeze, carrying the aroma of wine and the fresh scent of seafood, wafted across the deck. Uchiha Shiraha, a piece of boiled scallop between his fingers, watched Rangiku with her mouth full of sauce, and still remembered to call out to Unohana Retsu, saying, "The Red-Haired Pirates have recently returned to the New World."
He suddenly spoke, his voice not loud, but it instantly quieted the noisy deck.
Matsumoto Rangiku paused in her lobster-eating motion, then her eyes lit up: "Shanks? The guy we met two years ago?"
He actually went back to the New World?
Nico Robin put down her tea, her voice tinged with nostalgia: "I still remember him holding that barrel of wine, laughing as he told us he was going to the East Blue, but who would have thought—"
"I never expected him to lose an arm in the East China Sea."
Nico Robin took over the conversation, her fingertips lightly tapping the table.
"According to intelligence, he did it to save a boy; that's very much his style."
Artoria paused slightly, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes: "Red-Haired Shanks? I've heard he's an incredibly powerful guy. People often say he's strong enough to become the fourth emperor of this sea, the New World. He's famous for his swordsmanship and Conqueror's Haki. How could he have lost an arm so easily? Besides, the East Blue is the weakest of the four seas, not even touching the threshold of the Grand Line. An opponent who could break his arm must be no ordinary person."
Retsu Unohana put down her flower tea and said with a smile, "Either the opponent is far beyond our imagination, or it's to save this boy—he did it willingly."
Artoria put down the cake and asked curiously, "Just who is this boy who would risk losing an arm to save the red-haired girl?"
"I just exchanged letters with Shanks and called him Luffy."
Bai Yu put down his wine glass and gazed at the distant sea: "He's the grandson of the Marine hero Garp. He ate the Gum-Gum Fruit and aspires to become the Pirate King. Shanks gave him his straw hat, saying he'd take it back when he became a great pirate."
Rangiku's eyes lit up: "The Pirate King? The grandson of a naval hero wants to be the Pirate King? How interesting."
She paused, then frowned. "But who is Shanks? Even in the East Blue, no one should be able to hurt him this badly. Could it be someone from the Navy? Or perhaps it was Garp who did it?"
"Not the Navy."
Bai Yu shook his head.
"It is the king of the near seas, a giant sea monster that dominates the East China Sea."
"Not a Sea King?" Artoria frowned even more. "Given Shanks' strength, even if he were a Sea King, he shouldn't have lost an arm."
"He did it on purpose, didn't he?"
Nico Robin suddenly spoke up and asked.
"I guess so. Shanks was a gambler to begin with. He said he was betting on the future of the era. So I think he lost his arm not because he couldn't beat the Sea Kings, but because he wanted to pass on his will to the boy named Luffy. There might even be more reasons, but we don't know."
Unohana Retsu nodded slightly: "I see. He used one arm to plant a seed for this era."
Bai Yu looked at everyone, a hint of nostalgia flashing in his eyes: "Robin, Rangiku, and Shanks are some of my few friends. Back then, when he said he was going to the East Blue from the West Blue, everyone thought he was just going to relax. No one expected him to make such a choice. Now that he's back in the New World, I'd like to go see him, see how he's changed over the years, and talk about the Big Mom Pirates, which may no longer exist."
Rangiku laughed and raised her glass: "It's a deal then! When we see Shanks, we'll definitely make him treat us to the strongest liquor!"
Artoria picked up a strawberry tart, took another bite, and looked on with anticipation: "I'd like to meet someone who makes you think so highly of them."
The sea breeze still gently caressed the deck of the Dawn, the fresh aroma of seafood, the sweetness of desserts, and the crispness of chilled fruit wine mingling together. The discussion about Shanks was still going on, and just as Uchiha Shiraha was about to reach for another boiled scallop, the Evening News Bird flapped its huge black feathers and landed hard on the ship's railing.
With a flick of its beak, a roll of world economic news, smelling of ink and bearing huge, exaggerated headlines, drifted down and landed precisely in the center of the long wooden table.
Matsumoto Rangiku was the first to reach out and scoop it up, casually glancing at it. The next second, her hand holding the grilled lobster suddenly stopped, she forgot to chew the lobster meat in her mouth, her lazy, smiling expression instantly froze, and even her voice unconsciously lowered a few decibels: "Hey—look at this."
Nico Robin put down her tea and gracefully leaned forward.
Retsu Unohana gently put down her teacup, her cool gaze falling on the newspaper. Even Artoria temporarily put down her strawberry tart, her emerald eyes looking over with a hint of doubt.
Uchiha Shiraha looked up and saw that the front page headline was in bold, glaringly bright scarlet letters, spanning the entire page—
[A massive earthquake strikes the new world! Whole Cake Island is completely wiped out! The entire population of Whole Cake Island is destroyed! The fate of Charlotte Linlin, one of the Four Emperors, is unknown!]
The subtitle is even more shocking:
A mysterious golden pillar of light pierced the heavens and earth! An unknown ultimate power destroyed the island in a single blow!
The entire newspaper was covered by Moore's most exaggerated and impactful layout. On the left was a panoramic old photo of the once prosperous and sweet Cake Island, and on the right was a vast, empty, deep blue sea, a scene after the Holy Lance Judgment, where the entire island and its remains had completely sunk to the bottom of the sea.
The central page features a breathtaking scene that Newsbird may have captured from thousands of meters away in the air:
Artoria stood atop the Dawnbreaker's watchtower, her blue and white robes as pure as snow, raising the Holy Lance Rungonimid aloft, a single strike traversing heaven and earth...
A gentle yet domineering golden beam descended from the sky, tearing apart the gloomy expanse and completely enveloping Cake Island in a sacred yet terrifying light of judgment.
The visuals are stunning, yet terrifyingly so.
Matsumoto Rangiku gasped, her fingertips tightening slightly: "This—this is the move you used just now, Artoria? It was filmed and made the headlines?"
Artoria herself was slightly taken aback. Looking at the golden light piercing the sky in the newspaper, a slight ripple passed through her calm eyes: "It was just a judgment, I didn't expect it to be recorded so clearly."
Retsu Unohana laughed and said, "The power of this attack is enough to make the entire Grand Line tremble."
Nico Robin quickly flipped through the newspaper pages, reading aloud Morgan's embellished yet poignant report: "World Economic News Agency Exclusive Report—The Island of One Thousand Nations, Cake Island, has recently been completely erased from the New World Map."
There were no aftermaths of war, and no news of any survivors emerged.
The Sweets Empire, which once ruled the New World for ten years alongside Whitebeard and Kaido and was known as the Iron Fortress, along with Charlotte Linlinmo's entire core family, officers, fleet, and subordinates, vanished overnight.
Smoothie, Perospero, Cracker, Katakuri, Brulee, Compa—all the names that resonated throughout the New World were marked as: missing, presumed dead.
Charlotte Linlin, one of the Four Emperors, is a user of the Soul-Soul Fruit and Conqueror's Haki. She has completely disappeared without a trace, and her fate remains a mystery.
Whole Cake Island, once home to the entire world, is now just an eerily calm sea, devoid of even a single stone or candy crumb. Only the magical creatures and humans of the other islands remain unaffected.
Robin paused here, then pointed to the bottom line of bold black text: "[The Goddess of War is suspected of possessing ultimate power surpassing the Four Emperors! Is the golden pillar of light the power of a god, or a legendary ancient weapon?!]"
The new world was in complete uproar because of this newspaper.
Admiral Sengoku of Marineford, the Navy Headquarters commander, gripped the newspaper tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force. On the desk in front of him were urgent intelligence reports, satellite images, and on-site ocean current monitoring reports from all over the world.
"Vanished—the entire Whole Cake Island, including its foundation, has vanished."
Sengoku took a deep breath, his bespectacled eyes fixed on the golden beam of light, his voice trembling with barely concealed emotion, "Not destruction, but utter annihilation—this kind of power is simply beyond the capabilities of humankind."
Garp, who was standing to the side with a senbei in his mouth, had an unusually serious expression on his face, devoid of his usual nonchalance: "That girl—she's with Shiraha, right, Artoria?"
"Destroy the island in one strike."
Akainu stood by the window, his eyes as cold as knives.
"Uchiha Shiraha was already difficult to deal with, and now he has an ally with this level of destructive power—the balance of the new world has been completely broken."
Qingzhi sipped her tea gently, her voice low: "Once Morgans reports it, the whole world will panic. Next, pirates, kingdoms, and the underworld will all start frantically speculating about what that golden pillar of light is."
"9
Sengoku slammed the newspaper on the table, his voice heavy: "Activate the highest alert immediately! Order all Vice Admirals to stand by and find a way to locate Uchiha Hakuba and his group! With one of the Three Emperors gone, the New World is about to descend into chaos!"
Edward Newgate, the white-bearded captain of the Moby Dick, sat in the head seat, a huge flask in his hand, his thick eyebrows furrowed as he looked at the newspapers being passed around by the crew.
"Gurrah--- That old hag Charlotte Linlin has actually been uprooted."
His low laughter contained no joy, only heaviness.
"Not even an island was left behind—what terrifying power."
Marco crouched on the mast, staring at the golden beam of light on the newspaper, his expression grave: "Dad, this isn't an ordinary attack; it's unlike any Devil Fruit ability we know of."
"Uchiha Hakuha————"
A complex light flashed in the white-bearded man's eyes: "That kid really did what none of us would have done easily—he took down one of the Three Emperors."
"That golden light, was it the power of his companion? It's too strong—from now on, there will be no more balance in the new world."
The white-bearded man tilted his head back and gulped down a large mouthful of wine, gazing at the distant sea: "Is the new era going to be completely overturned by that kid?"
On Onigashima in Wano Country, Kaido of the Beasts sat on his throne, his feet resting on his drunken subordinates, a crumpled piece of World Economic News in his hand, his dragon eyes surging with a violent, shocked rage and fear.
"Whole Cake Island—gone?!"
Kaido roared fiercely, causing the entire Onigashima to tremble. "That Linlin girl actually— Waaaaaah—"