The Phoenix Pirates had already launched the surrender notices over Beehive Island some time ago, and by now, many of Wang Zhi's men had read them.
From above, Marco hovered in mid-air, his eyes scanning the island. On the surface, the Wang Zhi Pirates appeared orderly, but he knew better. Even the slightest crack in their resolve would lead to chaos.
"Time is almost up," Marco said calmly. "Order the brothers to attack. Strike decisively, leave them no room to breathe."
"Yes, sir!" The message spread quickly through the transponder snails, and over forty Phoenix Pirate ships surged toward Beehive Island from every direction, a storm of sails converging on the island.
Wang Zhi noticed the overwhelming assault and barked orders with urgency.
"Everyone, retreat into the tunnels immediately! If they dare to follow, engage them and hold them off!"
The Phoenix Pirates hit the island fast and hard. One bunker after another fell, and the shore defenses were reduced to rubble. These fortifications, effective against ordinary pirates, were no match for Captain-level fighters, particularly Ace. As a Logia-type Devil Fruit user, his flames easily overwhelmed the static defenses.
Within an hour, every one of the island's two hundred plus bunkers and turrets was destroyed, and the Phoenix Pirates claimed the surface as their own.
"Damn it, they're too cautious!" Sak cursed. "They've only just started fighting and already disappeared underground. We've taken the surface, but the casualties inflicted on them are minimal—just a few hundred!"
It didn't take long for the pirates to locate tunnel entrances.
"Found one here!"
"Another over here!"
"Here too!"
Yet no one dared descend immediately. The tunnels were dark and unknown; going in meant risking death.
Marco's forces quickly surrounded the island. The surface was under their control, but underground, the Wang Zhi Pirates remained elusive, hidden like rats.
"Hey, Wang Zhi Pirates, come out!" some of the Phoenix Pirates shouted from the tunnel entrances, taunting those below.
Jozu approached Marco, concern in his eyes.
"Marco, what should we do next? Should we push into the tunnels?"
Marco sighed lightly, a trace of helplessness in his expression.
"I expected this tactic," he admitted. "Still, I didn't anticipate Wang Zhi's men would be so cowardly as to resort to tunnel warfare."
Vista's expression was serious as he added, "It is a cunning strategy. If we rush blindly into the tunnels, we could fall straight into an ambush."
Marco's gaze swept over the maze of underground passages.
"Not only that," he said firmly, "we don't know where they might emerge. Inform the brothers to remain vigilant. Wang Zhi is an Island-Island Fruit user. No one can predict where he might appear."
He turned toward Ace, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
"Ace, they've all hidden underground. The rest is up to you."
Ace returned the smile with a confident glint in his eye.
"Leave it to me! They think tunnels will keep them safe? My flames will burn through every passage."
Green fire flickered around his hands as he approached a tunnel entrance.
"Firefly…" he called, releasing a volley of glowing fireballs that darted into the passage like a swarm of luminous insects. They exploded in succession, illuminating the tunnels with their deadly light.
Below the island, Wang Zhi had been navigating the tunnels for three days. He had considered counterattacking as an Island-Island Fruit user, but Marco's strategy had effectively neutralized him. The Phoenix Pirates' main force guarded the surrounding waters, leaving only elite captains on the island.
Each time Wang Zhi attempted to form a stone giant and strike out, Marco's Observation Haki, capable of predicting short-term future movements, pinpointed his location instantly. Even while inside the stone, Marco knew exactly where he was.
After several skirmishes, Wang Zhi realized he could not win.
At that moment, Doran and a few senior cadres approached.
"Captain…" they said cautiously.
Wang Zhi recognized them immediately, his voice strained.
"Doran… how goes the battle?"
Doran's expression was solemn.
"Last night, over a hundred more men escaped and surrendered to the Phoenix Pirates."
Wang Zhi slammed his fist onto a nearby table, his anger erupting.
"Damn that Marco! Using such a poisonous trick against us!"
An older man beside Doran, gray-haired and weathered, spoke up.
"Captain, we must act. What of Kaido and Big Mom? Have they responded?"
Wang Zhi snorted in irritation.
"Hmph, I know them both too well. They won't move without a clear advantage. And now, with the Phoenix Pirates completely surrounding us, communication is impossible. We may be isolated, but if we can hold out for half a month, Kaido and Big Mom will be forced to act."
He straightened his posture, his voice hardening.
"Tell the men to hold. The Phoenix Pirates can only set fires and scatter surrender letters. These tunnels were my work, built over twenty years. The provisions within will last three years. I will wear them down, even if it kills me."
Excitement flickered in the eyes of the remaining men. Doran, however, let a subtle, unusual smile slip across his face.
"Captain," he said, leaning closer, "I actually have a plan that can turn our situation around."
Wang Zhi's eyes lit up with hope. Doran was a strategist he trusted implicitly.
"Tell me," Wang Zhi urged. "What is the plan?"
Doran leaned even closer, lowering his voice to a whisper.
"My plan is—"
Before he could finish, a knife plunged sharply into Wang Zhi's abdomen. His pupils contracted in shock.
"Sea Stone… Doran? You betrayed me?" he gasped.
At once, several old men emerged from the shadows, their long blades piercing Wang Zhi, pinning him to the chair. The captain's eyes widened in disbelief. These were his comrades, men who had stood beside him since the days of the Rocks Pirates—forty years of trust shattered in a heartbeat.
Trembling, he pointed at them.
"Doran… and all of you… how could you?"
Doran's eyes flickered with a hint of regret, but his voice was cold and resolute.
"Captain, the situation has already reached this point. Even if we wait, there is no guarantee others won't act first. Crew members defect daily to the Phoenix Pirates. If we do nothing, we are doomed."
He paused, his voice carrying a chilling finality.
"Sacrificing one of us is far better than the death of all. Do not worry, Captain. After your passing, your wife and daughters will be taken care of."
Wang Zhi's breath hitched as the reality sank in. The island's strongest defender had been undone—not by Marco, but by those he had trusted most.
The underground rebellion had begun.
And with it, Beehive Island's fate tilted irreversibly toward the Phoenix Pirates.
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