Chapter 18: The Bait (Sixth Update)
Su Xiao chose to join the Revolutionary Army for a simple reason: it offered the greatest degree of freedom. He had previously considered Blackbeard and Whitebeard, but joining the former was too difficult, and the latter had conflicting natures. Even though Su Xiao’s relationship with the Whitebeard Pirates was friendly, once he joined, his plans would be restricted.
The Revolutionary Army was different. Su Xiao only needed a faction to participate in the Summit War battlefield. He didn’t expect any military support from the faction he belonged to.
There were about six days left until the Summit War began, and the most bustling place right now was definitely Amazon Lily. After all, the story’s protagonist, Luffy, was there, and many contractors would be heading there to reap benefits.
Compared to Amazon Lily, Impel Down would also have quite a few contractors, followed by the Sabaody Archipelago.
“Welcome aboard. Now we’re on the same side.”
“Koala, if there’s nothing else, I’ll be going.”
As soon as the negotiation ended, Rez Max walked to the ship’s railing, lowered a small boat, and gradually disappeared over the horizon.
“Where to next?”
Su Xiao asked casually, though in reality, he had no intention of leaving the nearby waters.
“I’ll have someone take you to the New World.”
Koala, having successfully negotiated, felt refreshed. Although Su Xiao was dangerous, he was undoubtedly a top-tier weapons researcher.
“Impossible.”
Su Xiao flatly refused.
“What’s wrong?”
“Not long ago, I killed a few of Big Mom’s sons.”
“This…”
Koala scratched her head. She had indeed heard about that incident.
“Where’s your nearest branch?”
“On the Sabaody Archipelago.”
“Let’s go there. I’ll help you manufacture some weapons there.”
“Alright.”
Koala agreed without much hesitation, seemingly unconcerned about the current situation. Or rather, this came from confidence in her intelligence network. Besides, it aligned with Koala’s personal thoughts—she instinctively wanted to keep Su Xiao away from the Revolutionary Army’s base in the New World.
Lowering a small boat and using an Eternal Pointer to determine their direction, Su Xiao, Bubu Wang, Amu, and Koala headed straight for the Sabaody Archipelago. Amu, being strong and sturdy, was in charge of rowing.
The Sabaody Archipelago wasn’t far from Su Xiao’s current sea area. With just a pair of oars, Amu rowed at a speed no less than that of a mechanical motor, leaving Koala stunned. In less than a few hours, Su Xiao spotted the distant mangrove groves.
Arriving near the coastal waters of Sabaody, Koala pulled out a Den Den Mushi like a magician, dialed a number, and soon bubbles began rising from the sea surface near the small boat. A round, plump submarine surfaced.
Boarding the submarine, Su Xiao approached the Sabaody Archipelago from underwater. When the submarine surfaced, Su Xiao climbed out of the hatch and found himself beneath a large tangle of mangrove roots. The surrounding soil showed signs of artificial excavation—this was the underground area on the edge of the Sabaody Archipelago.
Following a winding upward staircase, Su Xiao returned to the surface in a low-lying mangrove forest.
“This is the 72nd Mangrove Zone. Usually, no one comes here. Our branch is over there.”
Following Koala’s pointing finger, Su Xiao saw an abandoned pirate ship.
Koala walked up to the abandoned ship and lightly tapped the wooden planks on its hull.
A wooden door on the hull was pushed open. The person opening it was a middle-aged man with a full beard, wearing a gray shirt. He glanced at Koala, his lips moving as if he wanted to say something.
“I know. Guarding this place is boring, right? I’ve brought a new member. This is Kukulin Bai Ye. I’ll be staying here for a while too.”
Koala stepped inside the abandoned ship, which revealed a hidden interior connected to an underground base behind it.
Su Xiao also entered the abandoned ship. At first, it was indeed an overturned wreck, but further in, there was an underground passage descending about five meters underground.
The underground base had a simple structure: a long, narrow corridor with five rooms on each side.
“Over here.”
Standing in front of a wooden door, Koala waved her hand. Su Xiao walked over, pushed the door open, and found a room of about fifty square meters. It was dry inside, and the ceiling had a type of glowing tree root. Judging by the color of the light, it was clearly sunlight.
“The roots of the Eve Tree?”
“That’s right, but only this patch. It’s almost withered. It can probably glow for a few more years at most, since there’s only a small branch of the Eve Tree above.”
Koala stretched lazily. Because the room had sunlight and good ventilation, it didn’t feel stuffy like an underground room—it felt like being in a natural environment.
“You can stay here temporarily, or you can head to the New World now.”
“I’ll stay here.”
“Oh.”
Koala wasn’t stupid. She immediately guessed what Su Xiao was waiting for.
“I’ll help you prepare some potions here.”
Su Xiao sat on the wooden bed in the room. There were still a few days until the Summit War began, and he planned to stay out of sight until then.
“Potions? Not weapons?”
“Manufacturing explosives carries risks. If something goes wrong and causes an explosion, this place will be exposed in no time.”
Of course, Su Xiao wasn’t going to make explosives for the Revolutionary Army for free. He intended to use this opportunity to advance his Plant Alchemy. If the Revolutionary Army could provide materials, his Plant Alchemy could reach a high level in a short time. If they didn’t, he would “find a way” to make them provide them.
“Is that so?”
Koala was clearly disappointed.
“Here’s a list of what you need to prepare. Don’t try to gather these materials alone—it’ll be a waste of time.”
Su Xiao pulled out another list. Koala’s expression soured. If Su Xiao had pretended to draft it on the spot, she would have felt much better. As it was, the feeling of being “set up” grew stronger.
Koala glanced at the list absentmindedly, but soon her expression gradually froze.
“These… all need over a hundred copies!?”
Koala seemed struck by the cost. Most of the materials on the list were rare and expensive.
“Potions that permanently improve physical fitness without side effects naturally require rare materials.”
“Improve physical fitness…”
Koala murmured to herself, hesitated for a moment, then looked at Su Xiao with a troubled expression.
“Can we gather a few copies first? Then I’ll send the finished product to headquarters. Only then will they likely send more of the materials you need.”
“Alright.”
Koala left the room. Su Xiao let out a long breath and lay down on the bed. Since entering the One Piece world, he hadn’t rested at all.
Koala’s efficiency was decent. Through the Revolutionary Army’s intelligence channels, she managed to procure a few copies of the materials Su Xiao needed.
Under the gentle sunlight, three bottles of [Stigmata Potion] emitted a golden glow.
“No problem. This is a potion I developed a long time ago, mainly used to help the World Government train new recruits. Remember, only children under ten with average physical fitness can use this potion. It can only be used once in a lifetime. After drinking it, strength, speed, and endurance will noticeably improve, with no side effects. If the user’s physical fitness exceeds a certain level, it won’t work.”
Su Xiao handed the three bottles of [Stigmata Potion] to Koala. As for his explanation, he had made it up on the spot. [Stigmata Potion] only worked on users with attributes below 20 points. Not all kids were as strong as Luffy or Ace when they were young, so giving it to Revolutionary Army recruits under ten should be fine.
“I’ll pass that along.”
Koala took the [Stigmata Potion] and hurriedly left. Su Xiao picked up his tablet and immersed himself in a game.
Early the next morning, the door was knocked on urgently.
As soon as Bubu Wang pushed the door open, Koala strode quickly into the room.
“The potion you made really works, and it truly has no side effects. How did you do it?”
Koala seemed to see Su Xiao in a new light. She finally understood why the World Government was searching for him everywhere—maybe it wasn’t just because of the Celestial Dragon’s death.
“Have the subsequent materials arrived?”
“They have. Three hundred copies, and they’ve also sent extra personnel.”
A man with short stubble, nearly three meters tall, stood behind Koala. After tasting the benefits, the Revolutionary Army not only sent materials but also assigned a bodyguard.
It turned out that with advanced knowledge of alchemy, even someone drenched in bloodlust wouldn’t be rejected by many factions. Instead, they would become a guest of honor—a key researcher needing protection.
PS: (Six updates complete. It’s the start of the month, asking for monthly votes.)