Moria's defeat and the change in the Warlord seat sent shockwaves throughout the world, like a massive tide.
The Warlords were no small fry.
In most people's eyes, the seven great pirates might be second only to the Four Emperors of the New World.
Perhaps not in individual strength, but certainly in terms of influence.
And Moria, as one of the oldest Warlords, had the most pirate challengers' heads to his name.
Regardless of his strength, his presence was infamous.
But such a Moria was defeated by another, and even his Warlord throne was stolen.
Not to mention the one who took it, a man with a bounty of 1.9 billion Berry!
As someone who debuted at his peak, with the highest debut bounty in history, and rose by stepping on the shoulders of a Yonko, the Steel Giant had received countless attention and praise since the day he first appeared.
Even after more than three months, discussions about him never ceased, because his bounty and his actions could indeed be called epoch-making.
And such a legendary man, after disappearing for a hundred days, became a Warlord on the condition of arresting the legendary great pirate, Golden Lion.
His appearance, his experiences, his weapons, everything about him, mysterious as it was, held immense discussion value.
Big News Morgans keenly sniffed out the immense value behind this news.
Several consecutive issues of his newspaper featured special front-page headlines about the man rebranded by the World Government as Poltorto.
And to boost the topic, Morgans cleverly dragged the Yonko Big Mom into every Chapter mentioning Poltorto as a foil.
There was nothing he could do.
After all, this Sea Emperor was famous, intimidating the seas, and yet someone had stepped on her shoulders to rise.
The act of tearing down power levels was indeed something humanity had enjoyed since ancient times.
While such behavior would undoubtedly heavily offend Big Mom, Morgans didn't care.
This humanoid bird was willing to risk his life for first-hand, breaking news.
Offending a Yonko? He truly wasn't afraid.
At worst, he wouldn't attend the tea parties anymore.
Anyway, ever since Poltorto's single nail blast annihilated most of the underworld kings at the tea party, the power Morgans had taken over was more than he could digest himself.
Oh right, and the arrested Golden Lion.
To be honest, this news didn't generate much buzz.
Although Golden Lion was a legendary pirate, on par with Whitebeard and Roger twenty years ago, he was ultimately an old man who had been missing for twenty years.
This era had long forgotten that group of once-dominant pirates.
New pirates who had just set sail probably hadn't even heard of the legends of the Flying Pirates, and even if they had, it was only as a comical stepping stone, a backdrop to the glorious history of the Pirate King Roger.
Just like the Spanish Armada, destroyed by a storm, the dramatic defeat of the loser might be talked about with relish, but few would remember the leader of the defeated.
Morgans, knowing this, besides completing the task assigned by the World Government, emphasized how no one could escape the World Government's grasp.
However, the Chapter given to Golden Lion only lasted for one issue, and was less than one-tenth the size of Poltorto's.
The once formidable Governor of the Flying Pirates now gave off a pathetic sense of being an outdated celebrity, truly lamentable.
Impel Down Great Prison, Level 6: Eternal Hell.
This is a hidden prison not recorded in any register, where only the most heinous, most brutal, and most feared by the World Government are confined, forgotten by the world.
Several piercing jeers echoed throughout the entire sixth level of the prison.
Today was a special privilege for them; Warden Magellan had uncharacteristically sent them a copy of today's newspaper.
And the newspaper published, naturally, the news of Shin becoming a Warlord - as well as the desolate and tragic news of Golden Lion's capture, which only occupied a tiny Chapter.
The captured Golden Lion was sent to his old cell last night.
Now, he's been stripped of his legs, and even the beloved swords that supported them are gone.
Learning from the last escape, Seastone handcuffs not only bound his hands but also his neck.
If he tried to escape again, he'd probably have to try chopping off his own head.
"Hahahaha, Shiki, look at you, such a tiny Chapter, how pathetic."
"You lurked for twenty years just to be caught by a junior as a trophy? Hahahahahahaha!"
"The famous Golden Lion, caught and then Morgans has to explain who you are, how laughable hahahahaha."
Inside the Level 6 great prison, continuous mocking laughter directed at Golden Lion Shiki echoed.
The prisoners confined in Level 6 were all criminals so heinous they had been erased from history.
Such a group of scum, of course, had no thought of respecting their elders.
Golden Lion closed his eyes, remaining silent the entire time.
Imprisoned tightly in his cell, he was like a statue.
"Shut up, all of you."
An incredibly indifferent voice sounded from the prison next to Golden Lion, and instantly, the entire prison fell silent.
The speaker was an old man, with a thin, tall build, white hair braided into two pigtails hanging over his shoulders, and crimson eyebrows.
Even confined, he remained as elegant as a noble from some country.
"How exactly did you get caught, Shiki?"
He looked at the silent Golden Lion and asked softly.
"None of your business, Barolorick."
Shiki opened his eyes and glanced at his old friend, saying indifferently.
He didn't care about the mockery of the other prisoners in Impel Down.
How could a lion care about the laughter of hyenas? In his eyes, in the entire Level 6 of Impel Down, only two men were worthy of speaking with him.
One was the guy next to him, Barolorick Redfield, once known as "Redfield the Solitary," "Red Count," and "Red the Hermit," a man who, in the past era, could contend with Whitebeard, Roger, and himself with his own strength alone.
"Heh, I thought the wound on your head had gotten much worse."
The elegant Barolorick looked at the half-rudder on Golden Lion's head and chuckled playfully.
"It seems I worried too much. You're still that lion, even a lion in its twilight years, still a lion."
"How about it? What kind of person is that brat who caught you?"
"Despicable, cold, full of insidious schemes and calculations, completely unlike most characteristics of a hero."
Golden Lion recalled Shin's characteristics and said indifferently,
"But the only thing I can acknowledge is his ambition. An ambition no smaller, perhaps even grander, than my own."
"Oh, then he might be a man worth looking forward to." Barolorick stretched his body and chuckled.
"By the way, he also had an autograph, said he'd give it to you if he had the chance." As if suddenly remembering something, Golden Lion showed a malicious grin.
"It seems to be from someone named Brook."
"What?!"
Barolorick's voice suddenly became incredibly agitated, his nose breathing heavily, his elegant face instantly collapsing, looking exactly like a crazy fan seeing their idol.
"Could it be Soul King Brook? But that's impossible, the Rumbar Pirates are already-"
"That guy's a skeleton now." Golden Lion looked at his 'old friend' who had lost control, and showed a mocking smile.
"He ate the Revive-Revive Fruit, and now he's an undying undead, sailing on the ship of that old geezer Garp's grandson."
Barolorick took a long time to calm his breathing, but soon, realizing something, he glanced at Golden Lion's face, his eyes slightly narrowed, then he said nothing.
"Hmph, what a boring thing."
A disdainful snort came from a deeper cell.
The speaker was a large man with wild yellow hair and a resolute, somewhat ferocious face.
Aside from wearing prison clothes, his limbs were tightly bound by Seastone shackles.
Yet, even so, he continuously performed squats.
He had been exercising ever since Golden Lion was brought here, or rather, while most Level 6 prisoners were idle, he continued to train.
Those movements looked simple and direct, but he was bound by Seastone shackles.
For a Devil Fruit user, even moving is extremely difficult when bound by Seastone.
But he overcame the absolute physical suppression that Seastone inflicted on Devil Fruit users, forcing his body to constantly train.
"Douglas Bullet."
Golden Lion spoke the other's name, someone he wasn't familiar with.
This guy was once a member of Roger's crew, known as the 'Demon Heir,' and had once committed the heinous crime of utterly destroying a nation.
After being defeated and joining Roger's ship, his strength was on par with Silvers Rayleigh, Roger's right-hand man.
Upon learning of Roger's terminal illness and impending death, he challenged Roger again, failed, and chose to leave his ship.
It was also around that time, when Douglas was making his name in the New World as a rookie, that Roger was preparing to collect the four Road Poneglyphs to reach Laugh Tale, and he happened to miss the sea battle between Golden Lion and Roger.
Like Golden Lion, he rampaged across the seas due to Roger's execution, and was eventually defeated by a Buster Call led jointly by Garp and Sengoku, and imprisoned here.
In the entire Level 6 prison, Douglas's strength was even comparable to Redfield, because he was in his prime, with powerful Armament Haki and Devil Fruit abilities that gave him the strength to contend with a Yonko.
Level 6 of Impel Down holds monsters who have disappeared from the sea.
The reason their names are not widely known is precisely because the World Government wishes to erase their history.
So in Level 6, the more widely spread the legend, the weaker the prisoner.
Only monsters like Redfield and Bullet, who are almost forgotten, are the most terrifying in this level.
Clang, clang
The heavy sound of Seastone shackles clattering on the ground echoed.
A young man, with a Whitebeard flag tattooed on his back, was dragged into Level 6 of the prison like a ragdoll by two Jailer Beasts.
He was thrown into the cell next to Golden Lion, Seastone shackles securely locking his limbs to the wall.
Such strict security, even Douglas didn't enjoy.
"You're Roger's son?"
After the Jailer Beasts left, Golden Lion looked at Ace, who was like a puddle of mud, with a critical eye, scoffing,
"You sure do your father proud."
Golden Lion's words instantly stirred up agitation among all the prisoners on the sixth floor.
Almost all of them got up to see what the legendary Pirate King's child looked like.
However, upon seeing Ace, who was like a puddle of mud, they all showed disappointment.
"This is the Pirate King's son? How disgraceful."
"Isn't that Fire Fist? I remember he joined the Whitebeard Pirates... Roger's own son went to be Whitebeard's son?"
A chorus of mocking laughter echoed through the sixth level of the prison.
Seemingly unable to bear such taunts any longer, Ace lifted his head, his eyes red, gritting his teeth and snarling,
"Roger...he's not my father! My old man is Whitebeard!!!"
Douglas, who had been exercising, couldn't help but stop his movements and sneered,
"Weak trash, you don't even dare to admit your own father? As expected, more of that useless woman Rouge's blood flows in you than Roger's!"
"What did you say!!!"
Ace roared, his eyes red, grabbing the Seastone shackles behind him.
The clanging of chains against the wall echoed continuously, but it only drew a chorus of mocking laughter.
"All shut up." Redfield's indifferent voice silenced the entire sixth floor's laughter.
However, he then began to laugh loudly.
"Hahahahahahaha, Roger's son actually became Garp's grandson? Hahahahahahahahaha!"
Redfield let out a long, drawn-out laugh.
He wouldn't be like these lowlifes who liked to kick people when they were down and gloat over Roger's son's misfortune.
But he was still immensely amused by the comical generational issue.
If one day he could meet Whitebeard, or rather, if he were to die in this prison and meet Roger, he would definitely mock them thoroughly.
Ace, with red eyes, clenched his teeth, a grinding sound emanating from between his tightly bitten teeth.
Golden Lion glanced at the unwilling Ace, a strange light flashing in his eyes, and whispered,
"Heh, a turning point in history..."
Impel Down, outside the Gates of Justice.
A pirate ship with a lion's head was moored here.
The straw-hatted boy looked at the towering giant gate, pushed down his hat, and shouted against the sunlight,
"Ace, I'm here!!!"
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