"Empty Tai, there's a ship ahead."
At the bow of the Freedom, Kong Tai was lying in a lounge chair, eyes closed, resting.
Hearing the shout from A'Luo in the crow's nest above, he opened his eyes.
Red light flickered in his pupils, and his Observation Haki instantly swept across the entire sea surface. He then closed his eyes and said, "Take care of it!"
They were still in the Devil's Triangle at this moment.
After Brook boarded yesterday, they chatted for a long time. As night approached, they stayed on the Thriller Bark for one night and only set sail this morning.
This was the third pirate ship they had encountered today.
All of them deserved to die.
There was no greeting. Each time, he would sweep with his Observation Haki, and A'Luo on the mast would end the battle with a few shots. After all, they were just minor figures, not worth their significant effort.
During this time, they had also encountered merchant ships, but they did not disturb them and quietly left.
After Moria took their shadows, he would often drive people off his ship, letting them return to their original vessels, and then leave these shadowless individuals to fend for themselves in the Devil's Triangle.
He wouldn't kindly keep these people around!
And those whose shadows were taken would, like Brook, dare not leave this place, so they could only drift in this sea, waiting for death, waiting for decay.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
With four consecutive shots, the pirate ship in the distance, which they hadn't even fully seen, only revealing a black silhouette, had its deck pierced and its cabin blown apart by A'Luo.
The pirates on board either jumped into the sea, waited to sink with the ship, or waited to be engulfed by the explosion flames.
Three choices, but all led to death.
It was just a matter of dying sooner or later.
Even the optimal choice of jumping into the sea was essentially waiting for death.
In this Devil's Triangle, the chance of surviving after falling into the water was no less than finding a needle in a haystack, or winning the lottery jackpot.
These individuals had not given those they harmed any hope of survival. Since Kong Tai and his crew encountered them, Kong Tai and his crew also gave them no hope.
Well…
In fact, they were given hope. After all, jumping into the sea still offered a one in a few hundred million chance of survival, albeit a slim one. Yet, there was still hope of living, wasn't there?
Hahaha!!
A'Luo retracted his gun, blew on the muzzle, and then reinserted the Meigou at his waist. With a swagger, he ran a hand through his flamboyant hair and turned to Brook, who was watching him with surprise, and said with a smile, "How was it, Brook? Am I amazing!"
"Amazing, Yohohoho~"
Brook snapped back to attention and gave A'Luo a thumbs-up.
He then glanced at the Meigou tucked at A'Luo's waist and laughed, "A'Luo, this gun is a special gun, isn't it!"
This was the third pirate ship they had encountered, and A'Luo had fired three times, each time ending a ship with a few shots.
This power was completely beyond his comprehension.
He knew Kong Tai's group was very strong, but after all, whether it was during his time in the Rumbar Pirates or in this Devil's Triangle, the strongest person he had ever seen was Moria.
Regarding strong individuals, he, like most pirates, only thought they were strong, but he had no clear idea of how strong they were or how much stronger they were than him.
But since boarding the Freedom and joining the Freedom Adventure Group, he had learned.
Let alone Kong Tai and Kuina.
He hadn't truly fought yet, but just what Kong Tai had revealed was enough for him to regard Kong Tai as a god.
Even A'Luo, who was the lookout, navigator, and sniper, his strength had already far surpassed his imagination.
It turned out that A'Luo's strength had not been fully displayed in his fight with Moria.
It was on the sea that he could showcase his true power!
"Mhm!"
A'Luo lowered his hand, drew the Meigou, and stroked it with a smile. "This gun is a special gun that ate the Inugami Fruit, Dachshund form. It can shoot bullets like cannonballs."
"Oh…"
Brook nodded, as if understanding dawned on him.
He had been wondering how such a small gun could fire bullets with such immense power, even greater than real cannonballs.
So it was a gun that had eaten a Devil Fruit!
"It's truly amazing. This is the first time I've seen an object that has eaten a Devil Fruit."
"Mhm!"
A'Luo looked at the Meigou, a flicker of memory in his eyes, and then continued, "This technology of making objects eat Devil Fruits, according to Kong Tai, was created by a scientist of the World Government, Dr. Vegapunk, who is said to possess knowledge beyond this world by 500 years."
"The World Government?"
Brook looked at the Meigou in A'Luo's hand, its muzzle transformed into a dog's head, licking A'Luo's hand, and asked in surprise, "So, there must be more such weapons in the World Government!"
"I don't know."
A'Luo put his hand down, letting the Meigou revert to its gun form, and reinserted it at his waist. He then said, "Anyway, since setting sail, this gun is the first weapon we've encountered that has eaten a Devil Fruit."
"But Kong Tai said that most objects, even if they eat Devil Fruits, aren't very useful. Meigou is a special object, perfectly combined with the Devil Fruit, creating a special gun suitable for marksmen. Other objects that eat Devil Fruits aren't as strong as Meigou!"
"Mhm!"
Brook nodded, indicating understanding, then glanced at the pirate ship that had drifted away, spewing fire and filled with the screams of pirates, a strange light flashing in his eyes.
Being on the Freedom, he felt an unprecedented sense of security.
Was it strength?
No.
It was the unparalleled confidence that the crew exuded, the confidence that made it seem as if they could handle anything, even if the sky were to fall.
Well…
After all this talk, it still came down to strength.
The Freedom did not slow its pace at all due to the sudden appearance of the pirate ship. They had a Log Pose pointing towards the island ahead, so even in this fog, they wouldn't get lost.
As the waves hitting the bow of the Freedom grew more rapid, and as the ship's body began to sway more violently, everyone on board knew they were about to leave this area.
This involuntarily made everyone's low spirits due to the fog gradually liven up.
Their faces also revealed expressions of anticipation.
Anticipation of seeing the sun again, seeing the sky, seeing blue skies and white clouds, seeing islands, seeing human settlements.
But the heavens!
They are always contrary to one's wishes.
As the fog ahead gradually dissipated, what greeted the Freedom was not blue skies and white clouds, nor sunlight, nor the sun, but darkness, like a collapsing sky, accompanied by a torrential downpour, a fierce hurricane, and a sea surface churning like a washing machine.
"A'Luo, ahead looks like a large storm area. Should we continue forward?"
A'Luo did not answer but lowered his head and shouted towards the bow, "Kong Tai, forward?"
"Go!"
A lazy yet firm voice came from the bow.
A'Luo then replied to Brook, "What is this bit of wind and waves? If you want to stop the Freedom, bring ten times as much!"
"Hahahaha!!"
Brook looked at A'Luo, feeling the confidence in his tone and aura, and began to laugh along.
"Yohohoho~"
"It seems if I want to truly integrate into this team, I really need to boost my own confidence!"