Upper Yard was the largest piece of land ever carried up to Sky Island.
Because of the ringing of the golden bell, the Sky Islanders revered Upper Yard as a sacred land.
For this land alone, the Sky Islanders and the native Shandian people of Upper Yard had fought for hundreds of years. That hatred had been passed down through generations and had never truly faded.
After Xiao brought everyone to Upper Yard, they immediately split up to search for the legendary Golden City of Shandora.
It was precisely with the gold of Shandora that Enel had built the Ark: Proverbs.
Enel's original intention in creating the Ark was to use it to reach the so-called Endless Land—the moon hanging high in the sky.
Xiao's objective, however, was different.
He wanted that technology.
If possible, Xiao also hoped to personally set foot on the moon someday. Not out of idle curiosity, but because of his deep fascination with the technological civilization of the Sky Islanders.
After all, there still existed a complete scientific relic of the Moon People.
As one of the best-preserved ancient ruins, it undoubtedly contained an enormous amount of lost scientific and technological achievements of incalculable value.
Xiao still remembered that a group of space pirates were constantly excavating the ruins left behind by the Moon People.
Were they searching for precious treasures?
Or were they pursuing long-lost pinnacle technologies?
Xiao didn't know.
But one thing was certain.
As the ancestors of the Sky Islanders, the Moon People would never have rashly decided to migrate to the Blue Planet. Before doing so, they must have made exhaustive preparations.
At the very least, all technologies related to survival and settlement would have been fully researched.
And those preparations had ultimately manifested as Sky Island's most miraculous achievements—
Island Clouds technology and Dials.
Only by mastering these two systems could the Sky Islanders' needs for food, clothing, shelter, and transportation be fully met.
Yet what Xiao desired most of all was the spaceship used by the space pirates—a vessel capable of freely traversing outer space.
Although Xiao now controlled multiple worlds, due to technological constraints, he had never been able to leave the planet itself.
He was still firmly bound to the ground.
Once he acquired a true spacecraft and entered the space age, the cosmic resources of multiple worlds would be enough to propel his power into another phase of explosive growth.
…
…
Xiao sent Burgess and the others to search for the Ark: Proverbs, while he headed alone to Enel's God Pavilion.
As Enel's stronghold, it was certain to contain valuable spoils.
Sure enough, under Xiao's mental radar scan, he quickly found what he was looking for—
The design schematics of the Ark: Proverbs.
He also discovered the Sky Island cutting shell technology that Enel had personally refined.
Its operating principle was strikingly similar to Xiao's own abilities: it could absorb an enemy's attack power, convert it, and release it as a devastating sword slash.
Such a slash could easily cleave through a trunk as thick as three grown men embracing, shattering stone and iron alike.
Its destructive power rivaled that of a swordsman capable of cutting steel.
Every living creature tested with it had been cleanly severed in two—without exception.
The most terrifying aspect was that anyone could use it.
Even an ordinary person.
As long as they mastered the technique, they could unleash a lethal slash.
It was a weapon exclusively equipped by Enel's priests.
In addition, there were various strange machines invented by Enel.
Xiao judged them to be early prototypes of the Ark: Maxim.
Though they weren't especially valuable in function, they were all made of pure gold.
Even if melted down and sold as raw material, it would still be a massive profit.
After all, gold could only be formed in trace amounts through stellar supernovae.
In any world, it was an irreplaceable precious metal that played a critical role in industrial systems.
After looting Enel's God Pavilion clean, Xiao headed toward the center of Upper Yard.
There, a towering and awe-inspiring giant beanstalk rose into the heavens.
It resembled the mythical vine from Jack and the Beanstalk, capable of connecting the earth to the sky.
Standing beneath it, humans appeared pitifully small—no different from ants.
Already familiar with the course of events, Xiao didn't hesitate.
He took off directly and flew toward the top of the beanstalk.
After some effort, he finally reached its summit.
Upon a small island cloud at the top, Xiao saw the sacred relic cherished by the Shandian people—
A golden bell, cast entirely of gold and baptized by thousands of years of history.
Four hundred years of wind and rain had covered its surface in moss, yet the golden light it emitted remained dazzling, untouched by time.
In ages past, the Shandians had revered it as "The Lamp of Shandora."
As long as it rang, even sailors lost in violent storms could find their way home by its sound.
Xiao stood silently before the golden bell, sensing the ancient, immutable aura it radiated.
The passage of millennia had left countless marks upon it—marks that did not diminish its beauty, but instead added solemnity and mystery.
"This really is… beautiful."
Xiao couldn't help but admire it.
A sense of reverence for history and civilization welled up within him.
The Golden Bell was not merely a relic or a priceless treasure—
It was a living chronicle.
Through it alone, one could glimpse the former glory and splendor of the Golden City of Shandora.
At the base of the bell stood a stone engraved with indelible ancient script.
The text matched exactly the historical inscriptions of Alabasta, recording the legend of another Ancient Weapon—
Poseidon, a living weapon capable of commanding the Sea Kings.
Beside the inscription, engraved into the golden base itself, was another line of ancient text:
"I arrived here and guided this text to its final destination."
—Gol D. Roger, Pirate.
Xiao glanced at it briefly, then lost interest.
He opened a door of time and space, preparing to take the golden bell for himself.
He had no interest in the pirate world's history, nor any desire to study it deeply.
However—
At the very moment the spatial gate opened—
Something went terribly wrong.
Dark clouds rolled in like mountains collapsing upon an egg.
Thunder roared, lightning blazed across the heavens, and the sky transformed into a scene straight out of the apocalypse.
Xiao suddenly felt as if the entire Sky Island was venting its fury.
At the same time, the power of fate surged violently—rising to its absolute peak.
It was as though the world itself were issuing a warning:
If you dare take the Golden Bell—
it will fight you to the death.
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