"Rayleigh is dead."
After a moment of silence, Shakky spoke.
The atmosphere solidified, and Bullet, on the other end of the Den Den Mushi, showed an expression of disbelief.
"That old man is dead? Who did it?!"
In his shock, Bullet's tone rose several notches. He had met Rayleigh just over a year ago. Although the latter had aged a lot, his physical condition was still healthy, and he could have lived for another ten years without a problem.
Unless someone had intervened, Bullet found it hard to imagine Rayleigh dying a natural death. What shocked and puzzled him was that in this world, even if someone could kill Rayleigh, if the latter was determined to escape, basically no one could stop him.
"Pirates? Or... Marine?"
Listening to Bullet's confusion, Shakky had no intention of keeping it a secret. After all, such an event would soon be known to the world, and Marine would not miss such an excellent opportunity to promote their Admiral.
"Hoo..."
Shakky let out a long breath and spoke coldly, "It was Renji."
"..."
After a long silence, Bullet continued, "Was it just him?"
Shakky said, "It should be. No one else could have helped much."
Boom!
The ground trembled incessantly. Bullet put down the small hill, and its astonishing weight created more cracks in the ground.
Bullet looked towards the sea, and in his mind, he couldn't help but recall that great battle. He still bore scars from Renji's attacks, and the hellfire-like burning pain was something he didn't want to endure again.
Kaido seemed to have been the most severely injured among them.
Thinking of this, Bullet muttered, "That kid from back then, can he really kill Rayleigh alone now?"
"Hahaha, Rayleigh! It's your honor to die by his hand, you from the old era."
Listening to Bullet's wild laughter from the Den Den Mushi, Shakky gritted her teeth. "I agree to all your conditions. Amazon Lily will abandon its national title and be fully incorporated into your War Kingdom."
"Hahaha! Shakky, Rayleigh is dead. With just you and those women, you are not qualified to negotiate with me now." Bullet laughed loudly, his tone domineering.
"Now, you are seeking my protection."
Bullet said this, but he still desired the fighting strength of Amazon Lily, whose members were almost all Haki users. Moreover, these female warriors seemed to be fully equipped with Armament Haki storage.
The secret to Armament Haki storage should be with Shakky.
"Okay, and to show my sincerity, I can also tell you a very important piece of news first."
Shakky took a deep breath. She knew that joining Bullet's War Kingdom under the current circumstances would mean a great loss, but she had no other choice.
"Doflamingo, the King of Dressrosa and a Celestial Dragon, is now preparing to hold an unprecedented duel tournament with the Flame-Flame and a Paramecia fruit as rewards."
"Heh heh, I know that. Shakky, your intelligence channels don't seem to be very good."
Hearing this, Bullet was a little disappointed. He had already known this news.
Ignoring Bullet's taunt, Shakky continued, "Besides these two Devil Fruits, there is another extremely valuable Devil Fruit in Doflamingo's hands."
"Zoan type, Mythical Beast, Bird-Bird Fruit, Phoenix form."
"Oh?" Hearing this, Bullet's eyes narrowed.
This Devil Fruit was extraordinary. Its user was said to be immortal. If he were to eat it, Bullet believed that he would definitely become the next strongest in the world.
It's just a pity...
He had already eaten one Devil Fruit and couldn't eat a second.
However, the immense value of this devil fruit still held infinite attraction. Even if he couldn't eat it himself, he absolutely couldn't let an enemy force get their hands on it.
"Heh heh, that's a good piece of information." Bullet grinned.
Shakky thought her goal had been achieved, but Bullet continued, "However, that's not enough, Shakky."
"..."
"I have one more piece of information, but you must promise me that all future actions will prioritize killing Renji." A hint of madness flashed in Shakky's eyes.
"Kill Renji? Heh heh, kill an Admiral. Why do you think your information is worth such a risk?" Bullet sneered, secretly thinking if this foolish woman had lost her mind because of Rayleigh's death.
"No, this information is absolutely worth it." Shakky's eyes showed confident certainty.
Then she spoke in a deep voice, "Because this information concerns the One Piece."
As her words fell, Bullet's eyes narrowed slightly. Although the One Piece was tempting, it was somewhat different from the path of the strongest he pursued.
But Shakky's next words made Bullet's pupils constrict.
"Regarding one of the Three Ancient Weapons, the whereabouts of Pluton... and the fourth Ancient Weapon, a super-giant robot with unknown power."
...
Above the Sabaody Archipelago, a figure floated quietly.
Renji looked at the Proof of the Strongest in his system space, a smile on his lips.
It could only be unlocked after reaching Prestige Lv. 6, and only by killing a peak pirate certified by the system.
If Renji's guess was correct, those who qualified to be certified as peak pirates by the system were the Four Emperors of the New World.
"Shanks, Kaido, Charlotte Linlin, Douglas Bullet." Renji licked his lips.
"Which one should I start with?"