179. Thriller Bark

West Blue, Reverse Mountain.

The Red Line and the Grand Line intersect at two points: the Reverse Mountain and the Holy Land Marie Joie.

The Reverse Mountain serves as a gateway to the Grand Line from around the world. It has five waterways in total. Water flows in and out, with one leading directly to the Grand Line. The other four connect the Four Seas to the Grand Line, making Reverse Mountain a common entry point for most pirates into the Grand Line.

Certainly, the Calm Belt is another route to the Grand Line. The two Calm Belts, situated on the left and right, traverse almost the entire Grand Line. However, in contrast to Reverse Mountain, the Calm Belt is home to Sea Beasts, making it a riskier passage for people due to the many dangers involved.

At this moment, a massive island—or more precisely, a pirate ship—sailed slowly in the vicinity of Reverse Mountain.

The hull is incredibly vast, almost appearing like a small island at first glance. Were it not for the colossal pirate flag fluttering in the sky, no one would easily identify it as a pirate ship.

The pirate flag's style is exceptionally distinctive, capturing the curiosity of many in the pirate world due to its unique and intriguing aesthetics.

The flag features a skull design with realistic onion-shaped hair and fiery bat wings in the background. The combination creates an overall fierce and imposing appearance.

Any pirates in West Blue, upon seeing this emblem, would likely instantly recognize the owner of the pirate ship.

West Blue hero! It's Gecko Moria!

The renowned pirate from West Blue, known even before the Great Pirate Era commenced, managed to escape a recent clash with Kaido of the Beasts, one of the New World's Sanko. His fame has surged, and the World Government has raised his bounty to 320 million berries! (A/N: In reality, he was held captive by Kaido for several years and recently broke free.)

Despite the ship's colossal size, its destination isn't Reverse Mountain. Given its immense proportions, it can't navigate the entrance to Reverse Mountain. The sole route for entering the Grand Line is through the Calm Belt near Reverse Mountain.

On the island ship, everything, from the atmosphere to the decorations, exudes an eerie and unsettling vibe.

A towering city wall surrounds the island, expertly concealing the ship's interior. At the center, there's a gate featuring a massive red doors.

Right at the heart of the entire island ship stands an old castle, showcasing European medieval aristocratic architecture. The occasional screams from crows contribute to the overall eerie ambiance.

Currently, inside the castle's conference hall.

The vast conference hall lay empty, illuminated only by a few large, silently burning white candles.

A colossal man, nearly 5 meters tall, rests against a load-bearing pillar indoors (A/N: Moria's actual height is not nearly 7 meters, I mentioned this casually), presenting a peculiar appearance far from that of an ordinary human.

He resembles a demon with a fiery onion hairstyle, delicate horns on either side of his forehead, sharp teeth, and a pointed mouth. Clad in a shirt with a bat-shaped collar and Gothic-style attire, his appearance is quite distinctive.

The man was Gecko Moria, recently escaped from Wanokuni.

"Kishishishi, we're nearing the Calm Belt, soon to re-enter the Grand Line!"

Moria was filled with excitement. Ever since his defeat by Kaido and the subsequent imprisonment for mining, he had lost all his companions. His sole focus in life now was to seek revenge and kill Kaido. With this goal in mind, he returned to his hometown in West Blue to retrieve Thriller Bark and is now set to embark on his next plan.

Indeed, Thriller Bark is renowned as the largest ship in the world. Whether it's the Ship of Promise 'Noah' or the Ark Maxim, none can match the sheer size of Thriller Bark, which rivals that of an entire island!

"Lord Moria, where are we headed in the New World this time?"

A raspy voice suddenly echoed in the empty hall where Moria stood alone.

"The foggy sea area within the Florian Triangle is a place shrouded in darkness throughout the year. It's the perfect location to bring my dream to fruition, Kishishishi!"

Moria unconsciously uttered towards the desolate corner.

"Furthermore, Absalom, you should conceal your Devil Fruit power in my presence," Moria added.

"Uh... Lord Moria's awareness is still remarkably keen."

The voice resounded once more, and simultaneously, a slender figure slowly emerged from the corner, delivering a sly pat on Moria's backside.

The bright candlelight illuminated the scene, exposing Absalom's appearance completely to Moria's eyes. Despite not looking very old, he had a slender and withered physique, with wrinkles on his face, a pitiful smile, and his loose robe draped over his form.

"Idiot, it's called Observation Haki," Moria cursed with a smirk, giving Absalom a casual glance. He continued, "Your body is too scrawny. Have Hogback transform it for you."

Absalom and Hogback were both partners he discovered in West Blue, but Hogback's journey aboard the ship was entirely distinct from Absalom's. Hogback played a crucial role in Moria's vendetta against Kaido and was closely tied to the execution of his upcoming plan.

Absalom was a different case. Leveraging the power of the Clear-Clear Fruit, this guy audaciously attempted to pilfer from Gecko Moria. Eventually, he was captivated by Moria's charisma and chose to join him aboard the ship.

"Really? In that case, I desire the jaw of a lion, the skin of an elephant, the muscles of a bear and an orangutan, ensuring no woman will ever look down on me!!!"

Absalom grew a bit excited upon hearing this and began to express his desires one after another. He had heard of Hogback's renowned reputation as a genius surgeon on a global scale, and he had personally witnessed the miraculous medical skills of this world-famous doctor. Absalom had long been impressed by Hogback, and his frail body harbored a deep sense of low self-esteem.

In fact, it can be observed from this point that Moria has started to deviate. While possessing formidable methods, he is undoubtedly taking shortcuts and relying on external forces.

"Kishishishi, anything you desire, go and inform Hogback. Once we reach the Florian Triangle, we can kick off my zombie army plan. Besides, I'll assist him in resurrecting his Victoria Cindry!"

"By the way, how's that little girl I picked up some time ago?"

...

Above the Calm Belt.

Baby-5 transformed her hands into a pair of telescopes, eagerly scanning the surroundings.

Atlas maintains a regular altitude and speed during flight, primarily relying on Baby-5's endurance. In theory, Baby-5 could transform into an airplane, but unfortunately, both of them lack familiarity with this concept. Due to a bit of knowledge gap, the idea never materialized.

'It appears that besides addressing her character issues, there's also a need to impart some additional weapons knowledge to her.'

Atlas was contemplating in secret.

On the contrary, Baby-5 shuddered inexplicably, but in the next moment, she began shouting with excitement.

"Hey! Brother Vice Admiral, there's a massive island moving down there!"

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