Within the River of Death space, it was still that endlessly flowing blood-red coloured river.
The environment here could hardly be called pleasant. After all, in essence this place was a soul prison formed by Nereus's own Devil Fruit ability.
Rocks himself was in a meditative posture, as if he were comprehending something.
In this world where even time seemed blurred, there was little else for him to do.
"Find something to do? You mean… you can get out of here?"
"When did I ever say you couldn't leave? No matter how exaggerated it seems, this is still just my Devil Fruit ability at its core.
I'm the one who controls this Devil Fruit, so everything is naturally up to me.
That said, the range you can move in can't be too far. It's impossible to roam freely all over the world. But traveling back and forth between Mariejois and Sabaody Archipelago is more than feasible."
The souls within the River of Death, while serving as individual Resurrection Coins, also form an army under the command of Nereus. The souls within it could leave the River of Death to fight. [TN: Resurrection Coins (officially known as Life Tokens in Dungeon Fighter Online) are items used to resurrect a player's character during a dungeon run after they have died. ]
And with just a single thought, Nereus could draw that soul back into the River of Death.
When the River of Death was fully opened and all souls were released, the enemy would be forced to face countless opponents. At that moment, for Nereus, it would be both his strongest and his weakest state.
Under those circumstances, it would be the most likely time for him to be killed.
Unfortunately, Devil Fruit abilities do not remain with the souls of the dead. The souls in the River of Death could only rely on things like physical skills and Haki to fight.
"Oh right, I ran into Harald earlier in the Florian Triangle. I told him what needed to be said, using your dying words as an excuse.
But Harald is now doing his utmost to serve the World Government, believing that this is the way to reintegrate Elbaf into the world."
"That guy is still this naive… So what do you mean by finding something for me to do?"
As for Harald, Rocks had no real solution either. Even when he was alive, he already knew what Harald was like. People like that held absolute conviction in their own beliefs, and even crashing into a wall might not make them turn back.
At the very least, Rocks himself didn't think there was anything wrong with his own plan; it had simply been disrupted.
"Cause some trouble for the World Government. After all, you're 'Davy,' and a dead 'Davy' at that. If you were to appear again, they'd definitely get a headache, wouldn't they?"
"Vohahahahahaha, you're right. Causing trouble for the World Government does sound like a good plan, but I don't intend to appear under the name Xebec."
Nereus's words weren't complicated, and Rocks wasn't slow-witted. Naturally, he understood what Nereus was getting at.
The sudden resurrection of the dead Rocks D. Xebec would indeed bring considerable trouble to the World Government, at the very least diverting some of their attention.
If he hadn't experienced the events of God Valley, Rocks would have agreed to this suggestion outright. But now, he had a better idea.
"What if I use the name Davy D. Jones instead? That rat king mistook me for that ancestor I've never even met the moment they saw me.
From the looks of it, that guy must also be from that era. Who knows what method they used to survive until now.
Compared to a resurrected Rocks, they should be far more afraid of a resurrected Davy D. Jones."
Rocks still remembered Imu's reaction back then. Since he was already dead anyway, he might as well raise an even bigger banner.
"The thing they fear most is surely etched deeply in their memory. Impersonating your own ancestor might not be convincing enough. Maybe you could do both, stirring the waters completely."
"That's true… I'll just adapt as things go."
"Let me remind you, although you're in a state of being dead, when you leave my River of Death to fight, you're not immortal. You can still be injured, and you can still be destroyed."
"Some abilities that specially counter souls can even have unique effects. You still need to be careful."
"You may not trust my plan, but you can't distrust my strength. As long as I can still bring out the power I had in life—even if it's only half—there won't be any problems.
So what do you plan to have me do first?"
"The Marine base at Sabaody Archipelago. Kill the base commander there. So many subordinates were sent to their deaths. If he doesn't go along with them, that would be rather inappropriate."
Nereus's ship was still diving, yet a bizarre figure had already left the River of Death and returned to the open sea.
"Sunlight… it's been a long time… The Marine base at Sabaody Archipelago… where was it again?"
Before long, on Sabaody Archipelago, Rocks began to think about where his target was located.
He was still wearing the same set of clothes he had on at the moment of his death. This was the fixed form of souls within the River of Death. Both appearance and attire were frozen at the instant their blood was taken by Nereus.
Rocks didn't bother finding clothes to conceal himself. He casually grabbed someone, asked a couple of questions, and then headed toward the Marine base.
At the same time, Collier had already finished drafting the report to be sent to headquarters.
In the report, he completely absolved himself of responsibility, stating that he had merely dispatched troops at the earliest opportunity and had immediately ordered them to return upon receiving instructions. However, the captain leading the unit had disobeyed orders and insisted on going.
"Boom! Boom!"
Just as he was admiring his flawless report, a series of explosions suddenly rang out from outside. The artillery emplacements on the outer side of the base were reduced to rubble amid the blasts.
"Report, Rear Admiral Collier! The base is under attack… the enemy… the enemy is only one person… ah—"
The voice from the Den Den Mushi cut off abruptly. When Collier rushed to the window, all he saw was a blue-and-white-haired man raising a massive sword toward the base building.
"Pandemonium!!"
The roaring sword aura destroyed everything in its path with overwhelming force. The word "Justice" carved into the wall was instantly annihilated. In the blink of an eye, the Marine base that once stood there vanished completely, leaving behind only a hollow scar.
Seeing some soldiers collapse to the ground in terror, Rocks didn't make a move. He still needed them to carry the news back.
Instead, his gaze shifted to the World Government office not far away.
"Vohahahahahaha! Scum of the World Government! I've crawled back from hell for revenge!"
"Report to Admiral Kong!! Emergency! The Marine base and World Government offices at Sabaody Archipelago are under attack!!"
"What?! That b*stard actually…Garp! Look at this! This is the result of you letting Nereus run wild!"
"No, Admiral. The attacker wasn't Nereus. The Marines at Sabaody Archipelago say the attacker was… Rocks…"
The moment the words fell, the office fell deathly silent. Kong, who had just been roaring, suddenly calmed down.
"What did you say?"
"The attacker is… Rocks D. Xebec. He claims to be… the Avenger from Hell…"
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