"Saint Charlos, if you wish to enjoy the sight of the fire, this distance should be more than sufficient," said a black-suited official standing beside the Celestial Dragon aboard the World Government's ship.
As he spoke, he frowned slightly and instinctively covered his nose.
The stench from the burning trash heaps, carried by the sea breeze, had reached the ship.
Fortunately, Saint Charlos, who wore his signature bubble helmet that completely isolated him from the outside air, was entirely unaffected.
"Indeed, this is quite the rare spectacle of a fire. Truly magnificent," Saint Charlos remarked with a satisfied expression as he gazed at the sea of flames.
Suddenly, his gaze shifted to one of the refugee ships ahead on the sea.
His brows furrowed deeply, and his grotesque, bloated face twisted into a grim, sinister expression.
"Filthy commoners! How dare they show such disrespect! Boldly sailing toward my ship like that!"
Saint Charlos erupted in fury. Raising a cannon, he directly aimed it at the nearest refugee ship.
The cannonball struck the ship, exploding on impact!
The entirely wooden refugee ship was blown open with a gaping hole, and the flames from the explosion quickly set it ablaze.
Saint Charlos did not stop. He fired shot after shot, relentlessly bombarding the refugee ship!
This sudden incident caught everyone off guard.
On a large sailboat further away on the other side of the refugee fleet, Dragon, the leader of the Revolutionary Army, lowered the binoculars in his hand.
His face was grim, darker than the stormiest skies.
Through the binoculars, he had seen a scene that filled him with uncontrollable rage.
"Celestial Dragons," he spat the cold words from his mouth.
He quickly stepped onto the deck, crouching slightly as he prepared to leap into the distance, but a Revolutionary Army officer immediately grabbed his cloak.
"Leader, you're not planning to confront the Celestial Dragon here, are you?"
"Our Revolutionary Army is not yet ready to go to full-scale war with the World Government! If you harm a Celestial Dragon, you'll provoke an Admiral prematurely. That could render all the efforts we've made over the years completely futile!"
Several Revolutionary Army officers rushed forward, their faces pale with worry.
"Hmm? So you think we should just stand by and watch as the Celestial Dragon attacks the refugee ships?"
Hearing this, Dragon's brows furrowed deeply as he looked at the officers around him.
"...We just believe that whatever we do, we should carefully consider the impact on the bigger picture..."
Dragon's brows furrowed even deeper as he found himself caught in a dilemma.
The Celestial Dragons were an inevitable target for the Revolutionary Army to confront someday.
But right now, it was too early. Such a move could force them into a direct confrontation with the World Government before they were ready, potentially destroying the foundation of the Revolutionary Army.
While Dragon wrestled with his thoughts, aboard the pirate ship with the skull flag, Sig's expression was equally grim.
The refugee ship being bombarded was right next to his, and he could even hear the cries and pleas for help from the people aboard the burning vessel.
"Why are the Celestial Dragons here?"
The ship he was on, the largest in the refugee fleet, was the former pirate ship. Because of the rush to escape, the skull flag hadn't been taken down, making it exceptionally conspicuous!
What's more, the pirate ship was already very close to the Celestial Dragon's vessel!
Sig's heart was instantly in turmoil.
Bang bang bang bang bang bang!
The sound of the "Emperor Engine" began to echo uncontrollably, roaring at an astonishing frequency!
The tension within him at this moment was no less than when he faced Garp before.
The Celestial Dragons! They were an enormous threat, and in some ways, even more dangerous than Garp!
At least with Garp, there was a tiny chance for reasoning. One could try to negotiate or find a way to maneuver around him.
But with the Celestial Dragons, reasoning was out of the question. If you so much as looked at them the wrong way in a crowd, you could be sentenced to death!
On the pirate ship's bow deck, Ivankov, standing beside Sig, cast him a surprised glance.
"Conqueror's Haki... Sig-BOY, are you thinking of taking action against the Celestial Dragon here?"
Ivankov's heart was in turmoil. The consequences of taking action against the Celestial Dragons were immense. Even for the Revolutionary Army, whose goal was to overthrow the World Government, they would likely have to weigh the decision carefully.
Although they had previously speculated that Sig's goal might be to assassinate a Celestial Dragon... witnessing such a shocking event right before his eyes still shook Ivankov deeply!
What Ivankov didn't know was that as soon as he spoke those words, the shock within Sig was even greater than his own.
Sig's eyes widened slightly, and for a brief moment, his rapid heartbeat missed a beat. Then, it began to pound even more violently!
I didn't say anything wrong, but the two ships are so close. What if the other side takes it seriously?
At that moment, Sig suddenly felt an unfamiliar sound—a cannon's roar—cut off abruptly!
A foreboding thought flashed through his mind, and he turned his gaze to the side, toward the World Government's ship, only to see Celestial Dragon Saint Charlos also looking back in his direction!
The two gazes met in mid-air!
Damn it, this is what it feels like to be noticed!
Sig's heart exploded with tension as he realized, at that moment, that the Celestial Dragon, who was wearing his characteristic square bubble helmet, had a disgusted expression on his face.
"Pirates? I despise pirates the most!"
With that, Saint Charlos raised the cannon in his hand and aimed it directly at Sig from a distance.
Sig's heart began to race uncontrollably, and at that moment, the "Emperor Engine" inside him roared louder, its frequency almost drowning out the sound of the waves, reaching the Celestial Dragon's ship across the sea.
The Celestial Dragon, who had been aiming at Sig, shook his hand slightly, and his cannonball went astray, landing in the water.
Sig's face darkened like iron. Although the cannonball missed, all his previous hopes were already shattered.
After locking eyes with the Celestial Dragon, he knew there was no way out now.
At this point, he had only two choices.
First, lie down, close his eyes, and wait for the Celestial Dragon's cannon to strike, praying that his luck would hold out and he could survive the blow.
Second... was a very thrilling path with no return.
In essence, these two paths were just a matter of dying sooner or later.
Damn it! If I were lucky, I wouldn't have gotten this ridiculous system, but instead, I would have gotten an invincible system, kicking the Four Emperors and punching Admirals!
Sig didn't believe in his luck at all.
The good news was that the Emperor Engine still worked. It had clearly slightly intimidated the Celestial Dragon.
The bad news was that the two ships were not far apart, but still over a hundred meters away. In the end, the Emperor Engine was just the sound of a heartbeat, which could slightly affect the Celestial Dragon, but it was likely at its limit.
Sig gritted his teeth in frustration.
"Isn't it just a Celestial Dragon? I am the descendant of dragons!"
Sig roared inwardly, but the intense feeling of panic still rapidly spread within him, causing his breathing to quicken.
His hand slowly but firmly reached into his chest, where he had prepared a backup plan.
However, due to the rushed situation, Sig hadn't even had the chance to test whether this backup would truly be effective.
Sig took a deep breath, his hand moving into his chest as he flipped the switch on the device hidden inside...
Boom boom boom boom boom boom!
The sound of the Emperor Engine suddenly amplified, instantly drowning out the sound of the waves and the cries for help from the refugee ship, producing a thunderous roar that sent shivers down everyone's spine!