The Selfishness of Human Nature and Tiger’s Advance

On the streets of New York City, surrounded by towering skyscrapers, Natasha had just seized a flying craft and was engaged in a pursuit battle with Loki.

To stop the spatial gate from continuing to transport the Chitauri army to Earth, they had to use Loki’s Mind Scepter to destroy the transmission device’s core.

As the two chased each other, Barton, standing atop a high-rise building, fired an arrow at Loki. Loki caught it with his bare hand.

Loki gave a wicked smile, seemingly mocking Barton.

Then the arrow suddenly exploded, blasting Loki straight off the flying craft. By sheer coincidence, he landed right beside Chu Yang.

Chu Yang bent down and picked up the Mind Scepter.

"Take your hand off it, you despicable mortal!" Loki glared at Chu Yang through gritted teeth. Even now, he remembered that it was this boy before him who had ruined his painstaking scheme!

"Queen of Gods Frigga misses you very much. When you go back this time, remember to apologize to her properly, you rebellious teenage boy." Chu Yang snorted and mercilessly mocked Loki.

Being lectured by Chu Yang, an "authentic" teenage boy, Loki’s face visibly reddened. He was clearly furious beyond measure.

"Shut up! I will not allow that filthy mouth of yours to speak her name!"

Loki roared in fury!

But Chu Yang ignored him.

He suddenly turned around, reached into the air, and clenched his hand.

Loki’s voice abruptly stopped, then dissipated like foam.

An illusion!

The real Loki was being held tightly by the throat in Chu Yang’s grip, his face turning livid.

"How did you know?"

Loki panicked and struggled desperately.

"You studied magic under Frigga for so many years, and this is all you learned? I’m very disappointed, Loki. I thought we could have had a pure contest of magic."

Chu Yang shook his head in disappointment. Looking at Loki, who was gradually losing consciousness from lack of oxygen, he hesitated before ultimately deciding not to kill him.

Frigga had treated him well. Killing Loki would surely plunge her into unimaginable pain.

As for those injured because of Loki, Chu Yang had already dispatched Shadow Clones to help them. As long as they still had a breath left, he could save their lives with his immense life energy.

Chu Yang casually tossed him to the ground and turned toward the spatial portal.

Loki, having crawled back from death’s doorstep, gasped for air.

He stared at Chu Yang’s back, his eyes bloodshot.

He drew a dagger from his waist and slowly approached him from behind.

The corners of Chu Yang’s mouth lifted slightly. "I’ll leave him to you."

Loki froze in place.

Who was he talking to?

Just as Loki was bewildered.

A thick green arm suddenly grabbed Loki’s ankle from the side and dragged him away in one swift motion. Violent sounds of smashing and pounding soon echoed from inside the room.

At this moment.

Chu Yang had already arrived at the portal. Dr. Erik lay beside it, barely alive.

The apology in his eyes showed that he had regained his senses.

Chu Yang walked up to the transmission device and thrust the Mind Scepter into it. Unlike Natasha, who had struggled so much, he easily pierced through the defensive force field.

The beam connecting the two spaces rapidly contracted, and the wormhole above the sky swiftly closed.

Barton looked up at the sky and spoke into his earpiece. "Looks like the war is over, everyone."

A moment later, as a massive Helicarrier flew over New York City, S.H.I.E.L.D. began taking full control of the postwar cleanup.

After hearing reports from the New York police commissioner and the director of the emergency medical center, Nick Fury stared at his assistant Maria Hill in astonishment. "No casualties?"

"How could a war this big have no casualties? Are those idiots so bad at lying?"

Hill hesitated. "Sir, I think they might be telling the truth…"

Nick Fury frowned deeply. "What do you mean?"

"Take a look at this." Hill brought a laptop before Nick Fury. A short video was playing on it.

In the video, Chu Yang, cloaked in the Tailed Beast Cloak, was treating the wounded. The process was simple. He merely placed his hand on them, and their wounds healed at a visible rate.

The next second, civilians who had bled all over the ground were lively and energetic, as if nothing had happened.

"Oh, my God."

Even the well-traveled Nick Fury could not help but stare in shock, utterly dumbfounded.

"So the report that no civilians died may be true."

Looking at Chu Yang on the screen, Hill felt her throat go dry and swallowed several times. She vaguely remembered that she had once fought this person.

Dear God, it’s a miracle I’m still alive!

Nick Fury took a deep breath and continued, "I understand. What about the Tesseract and the Mind Scepter?"

Hill answered, "The Mind Scepter has already been recovered by our people. As for the Tesseract… Thor insists on taking it and Loki back to Asgard. I think we need to stop him."

Nick Fury asked in return, "On what grounds do we arrest an ally who just helped us defeat the enemy?"

Hill was unconvinced and gritted her teeth. "Loki caused such chaos and destruction. Are we just going to let him go that easily?"

Nick Fury turned and looked at Hill seriously. "As long as there were no casualties, everything else is insignificant. Besides, we desperately need Asgard as an ally. You saw what happened today. Against such a terrifying alien army, we could never contend with them using our own strength alone."

Hill could only suppress her unwillingness and nod. "I understand."

Nick Fury was cursing inwardly as well. Did she think he did not want to keep the Tesseract?

What a joke!

Who wouldn’t want it?

The problem was, what did they have to fight Asgard with?

Thor alone was difficult enough to deal with. Add in Odin, the king of gods, and those legendary "gods"—how many times could Earth survive being destroyed?

Nick Fury hurriedly dismissed those dangerous thoughts and picked up the casualty report again, revealing a relieved smile.

After the great battle ended, Thor took the Tesseract and Loki and returned to Asgard ahead of the others.

Now that he knew Flying Thunder God allowed him to travel between Earth and Asgard, Chu Yang did not care about who possessed the Tesseract.

Perhaps Asgard’s magical technology could even help him study it better.

Besides, in terms of research value, the Tesseract was not as valuable as the Mind Scepter.

The Mind Stone within the Mind Scepter had not only awakened Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch’s abilities, but also created Vision, a hero on the level of a bug.

Once the Mind Scepter fell into Hydra’s hands, Chu Yang could retrieve it sooner or later. Forcing possession of it at this stage would only cause unnecessary conflict. More importantly, he did not have the time or energy to research two Infinity Stones at once.

He might as well make use of Hydra’s scientists.

That was called reasonable time management.

The Battle of New York had come to an end. The district centered around Stark Tower had suffered severe damage, and Tony, the "prodigal rich kid," voluntarily covered all reconstruction costs.

His actions sparked an extremely enthusiastic response from the public, and Iron Man once again made the news.

But the headlines belonged to the Avengers.

This war had made the Avengers household names across the entire world. Even people on other planets knew of their existence.

After all, the renowned Thor was part of the team.

Aside from a few key figures, Chu Yang was inevitably swept into the storm of public discussion as well.

It could even be said that, setting aside the media hype, he was the person civilians talked about most!

Chu Yang had saved too many lives.

If Tony and Nick Fury had not kept his identity tightly confidential, Stark Tower’s entrance would probably have been packed every day with people coming to express their gratitude.

The reason for the secrecy.

Tony was worried that Chu Yang’s private life would be affected.

Nick Fury, meanwhile, did not want Chu Yang’s influence to grow too great.

Ever since learning about his abilities, Nick Fury had felt an inexplicable wariness toward Chu Yang. Someone capable of instantly creating a terrifying army naturally needed to be watched and controlled.

However, considering Tony and Thor’s feelings, Nick Fury did not go too far. He merely invited Chu Yang to S.H.I.E.L.D. two weeks after the battle ended.

S.H.I.E.L.D. was undergoing massive expansion.

The Battle of New York had made people realize its importance, especially those upper-class officials and wealthy people who feared death.

Captain America had become S.H.I.E.L.D.’s leading figure, responsible for training new recruits, while Natasha and Hawkeye assisted him.

As Chu Yang and Tony passed through the main hall, they happened to see them gathering people together.

Tony shouted teasingly, "Steve, are you back to your old job?"

Steve shrugged.

When Natasha saw Chu Yang, she quietly said a few words to Steve, then walked over with an apologetic expression.

"Hey, Yang, I’m sorry about what happened last time…"

"Thanks to you, I had a very interesting trip."

"Really?"

"Of course. In a sense, I should thank you."

If Natasha had not caused such a fuss back then, and if Tony had not egged things on, Chu Yang might not have gone to New Mexico with Phil Coulson.

Naturally, he would not have met Thor or been taken to Asgard.

Seeing that Chu Yang truly did not hold it against her, Natasha breathed a sigh of relief. Over this period, she had been caught between Director Fury and Tony’s disputes, unable to please either side.

Steve suddenly walked over and extended his hand toward Chu Yang. "Thank you for your help that day, and thank you even more for saving so many lives. Director Fury told me that almost no one died in this war."

"This is practically a miracle."

Just as Chu Yang was about to say a few polite words, Tony could not help but snap, "And now, the boy who created that miracle is being brought here to be interrogated!"

Steve sighed helplessly. "Tony, watch what you say. This isn’t an interrogation, just an inquiry. Besides… we need to understand Yang’s abilities. That benefits everyone."

Tony wanted to argue further, but Chu Yang stopped him. He reassured him, "It’s fine, Tony. I understand Director Fury’s difficulties, and this has nothing to do with the Captain. Don’t take it out on him."

Tony could only let it go and shrugged. "Fine, since you put it that way, I apologize, Steve."

Steve gave Chu Yang a grateful look and nodded.

"However, let me make this clear. If Yang mysteriously disappears somewhere again this time, I won’t let any of you off easily. Mark my words!"

Tony warned them sternly.

"Don’t worry about that. How about this? I’ll go in with him myself." Steve looked up at the clock hanging in the hall, calculated the time, then said, "Training hasn’t started yet. In fifteen minutes, he and I will come out together."

Tony nodded slightly, then turned to Chu Yang and said quietly, "I’ll wait for you here. If anything happens, contact me immediately."

Before they left, Tony had secretly placed a communicator inside Chu Yang’s clothes.

Chu Yang agreed, then entered the elevator with Steve and arrived at Nick Fury’s office on the top floor of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Hill stood by the elevator to greet them. When she saw Steve, she paused before reluctantly saying, "Captain, I’m afraid you’ll need to wait here."

Steve frowned. "Why?"

Hill explained, "There’s another official in the office, Mr. Alexander Pierce, a minister of the World Security Council. The contents of this meeting must remain confidential."

Steve sensed something was wrong and was about to object when Chu Yang moved before him.

Chu Yang calmly walked toward the room and turned back to smile at Steve.

"I’ll wait for you here. If anything happens, you can call for me."

Steve said it as though encouraging Chu Yang.

The door closed, and Hill led Chu Yang farther inside.

There was unexpectedly a long, narrow corridor behind the door, with another elevator at its end.

The two entered the elevator.

Chu Yang noticed that it had no floor buttons and went directly to some location within the building.

"You seem pretty popular. I didn’t expect the Captain to care about you so much."

Hill smiled at the side.

"He’s probably grateful because I saved those civilians."

Chu Yang closed his eyes and silently calculated the elevator’s descent speed to determine what floor they were reaching.

Ding!

The elevator doors opened, and the two walked out. Chu Yang looked around. Everything was made of alloy steel. It was extremely quiet, visibility was poor, and the place was even somewhat dim. The atmosphere was exactly like an interrogation room.

Chu Yang frowned slightly.

"Uh, don’t misunderstand. This really is Director Fury’s office. He just likes this oppressive style. I tried to talk him out of it during the renovation, but it was useless. He’s extremely stubborn in certain matters…"

Seeing that Chu Yang’s expression was off, Hill hurriedly explained.

Chu Yang: "…"

The alloy door ahead suddenly opened, and a black egghead poked out. It was Nick Fury.

"This isn’t oppressive, it’s understated, Agent Hill. Casually criticizing someone else’s taste is rude."

Nick Fury narrowed his eyes. Hill gave an awkward but polite smile and stepped aside, signaling for Chu Yang to enter first.

"Thank you."

Chu Yang thanked her and walked into the room. He immediately saw Alexander Pierce sitting on the sofa, holding up a glass of red wine with a meaningful smile.

When Nick Fury turned back, Pierce immediately put on a friendly expression.

"How does it feel to become the hero everyone talks about?"

As Nick Fury spoke, he bent down to pour Chu Yang a glass of red wine as well. Then he suddenly remembered Chu Yang’s age and asked, "Can you drink?"

Chu Yang smiled. "My coming-of-age ceremony was held in Asgard."

The high-quality wine slid down smoothly, and its mellow taste surprised Chu Yang. It was his first time drinking alcohol.

Nick Fury drained his wine in one gulp before speaking. "When I first met you, I thought you were an agent from another country, so I specifically investigated your background."

"Later, I thought you were a mutant and tried to recruit you into S.H.I.E.L.D."

"In the end, you transformed into a magician and displayed astonishing abilities in the last battle. I had no choice but to invite you here."

Nick Fury stared fixedly at Chu Yang with deep eyes and joked, "Can you tell me whether you have any other identities I don’t know about? I’m a timid person. I can’t take too much excitement, so I’d rather prepare myself in advance."

Chu Yang grinned. "I’m just an ordinary magician. I have no other identity."

Nick Fury let out a long breath. "You don’t seem to have much to do with ordinary."

Chu Yang retorted, "You have nothing to do with being timid."

The two exchanged smiles. Then Nick Fury began asking Chu Yang about the abilities he had used earlier. In a good mood, Chu Yang cooperated fully, giving explanations that were half true and half false.

The reason he was happy was because of the other person in the room—Alexander Pierce.

A core Hydra figure hidden within S.H.I.E.L.D.

As long as Chu Yang controlled him, taking control of S.H.I.E.L.D., and even Hydra, would only be a matter of time.

Chu Yang had been worrying about where to find him, yet the man had delivered himself right to his door.

And…

Pierce seemed very interested in Chu Yang as well.

After Nick Fury finished asking his questions, Pierce took the initiative to say, "Nick, could you give me a little time? I’d like to speak with this young friend alone."

"Tony Stark is waiting for him in the lobby." Nick Fury did not agree. Instead, he was warning Pierce not to try anything.

Nick Fury knew this former colleague and friend’s personality very well.

Pierce smiled. "No ill intent. Just a chat, all right?"

Nick Fury turned to look at Chu Yang. Chu Yang readily agreed, a bright smile on his face.

"Three minutes."

Nick Fury quickly left the office.

"Hello, Mr. Chu Yang. My name is Alexander Pierce. I am the current Secretary of Security for the World Security Council, responsible for liaising with S.H.I.E.L.D. You can think of me as Director Fury’s superior."

"Hello, Secretary Pierce. It’s a pleasure to meet you."

The two shook hands. Pierce suddenly leaned close to Chu Yang’s ear and whispered, "Would you be interested in working for me personally? With me, you will gain unimaginable power."

In Pierce’s eyes, although Chu Yang possessed astonishing power, he was merely a child with little experience of the world.

Young people like that were often very easy to tempt.

Money, power, women.

Pierce knew Chu Yang was close friends with Tony Stark, so money and women might not move him. That left power.

"Unimaginable power?" Chu Yang looked at Pierce with feigned delight, then leaned toward his ear and whispered, "Are you planning to give Hydra to me?"

"What?" Upon hearing Hydra, Pierce froze. Then his expression changed drastically as he cried out, "You’re—"

Before he could say the final word, Chu Yang had already cast the Imperius Curse. The incantation echoed beside Pierce’s ear like a devil’s whisper.

Pierce’s expression went blank, as though his soul had been pulled from his body.

Three minutes later, Chu Yang and Pierce left the office together. Both wore smiles, looking as though they had enjoyed a pleasant conversation.

Nick Fury waited for them by the elevator, suddenly curious about what they had discussed inside.

After seeing Pierce off, Nick Fury took Chu Yang back to the top floor to meet up with Captain America.

Seeing that Chu Yang was safe and sound, Steve finally relaxed.

Just as the two were preparing to return to the lobby, Nick Fury could not hold back any longer and asked, "What did Pierce say to you?"

Steve looked at Chu Yang in surprise.

Chu Yang smiled faintly. "Secretary Pierce invited me to work for him and promised me many benefits, but I refused. At this stage, I only want to focus on my studies. For certain reasons, I’ve been out of school for a long time."

Nick Fury seemed to have guessed Pierce’s intentions as well. He nodded and did not press further.

Chu Yang entered the elevator, pressed the button for the lobby, and happily hummed a tune.

Steve found Chu Yang to be in unusually high spirits and teased, "It seems Secretary Pierce offered you quite a price. You must have felt rather recognized."

Chu Yang smiled even more happily and nodded repeatedly. "It was indeed a very sincere reward."

Nick Fury stood beside the elevator and watched the two descend. He kept feeling that something was off, yet he could not say what exactly it was.

Tony stood in the lobby, having somehow gotten hold of a newspaper and reading it with great interest.

Natasha, however, noticed that from the corner of his eye, he kept glancing at his watch.

Ding!

The elevator arrived, and Tony and Natasha both looked toward it.

Chu Yang and Steve slowly walked out.

A smile appeared on Tony’s face. He deliberately lowered his head to look at his watch, then praised Steve, "Captain, you’re a very punctual man. If I were a lady, congratulations—you would have won my heart."

Tony’s casual joke happened to stab at Steve’s heart, reminding him of the one date he had missed in his life.

Pain flashed through his eyes and vanished.

Natasha gently patted Steve on the shoulder.

"All right, the tour ends here. If we head home now, we can still make it in time for a dinner Pepper made herself."

Tony hooked an arm around Chu Yang’s neck and swaggered out of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Steve took a deep breath, turned around, and walked toward the new recruits waiting for training.

Only after getting into the sports car did Tony seriously ask Chu Yang, "What happened in there?"

Chu Yang recounted everything from beginning to end.

After hearing it, Tony sneered. "Those people actually tried to poach you from me. I knew they had no good intentions when they called you over."

Chu Yang said with a smile, "It’s not certain who’s poaching from whom."

Tony paused. "What do you mean?"

Of course, Chu Yang would not confess that he had raided someone else’s house. But thinking about how Tony and the others had gone in circles only to end up working for him made Chu Yang unable to stop laughing.

Tony tilted his head in confusion and exchanged a look with Happy in the driver’s seat. Happy looked even more confused.

The One Piece world.

The Red Hair Pirates were holding a feast on an island somewhere in the New World.

Chu Yang found Shanks snoring soundly atop a huge boulder and shouted into his ear, "Captain, I need to leave for a while."

Shanks jolted awake and rolled off the boulder, complaining, "If you want to go wandering, just go. Why wake me up?"

Chu Yang said solemnly, "This time, I might be gone for quite a while."

Shanks’s expression turned serious. After a long silence, he asked only one question. "Do you need help?"

Chu Yang grinned and shook his head.

"Is that so?" Shanks smiled too. "Then go early and come back early!"

"Why are we going to such lengths to send this human back to her hometown?"

"Arlong, we’re almost at our destination. Why are you still saying things like that? If Brother Tiger hears you, he’ll be unhappy again."

"Brother Tiger is too merciful toward humans. You could even call it weakness. These past few years of sailing have disappointed me somewhat."

"That’s enough, Arlong. Don’t say any more."

Arlong of the Sun Pirates and the ship’s doctor Aladdin were whispering on deck. When they saw a human girl approach, they immediately stopped talking.

Aladdin forced a smile and asked, "Koala, what is it?"

Koala said nervously, "Captain Tiger is looking for you."

"Thank you. I’ll go right away." Aladdin patted Koala’s head and, before leaving, shot Arlong a warning look.

Arlong gave a disdainful sneer and looked at Koala with hostility.

Koala grew even more nervous. The man before her was the person she feared most on this ship, without question.

Arlong suddenly asked, "We’ve been sailing for several weeks now. If my calculations are right, we should be close to your hometown, shouldn’t we?"

Life immediately returned to Koala’s stiff little face, and she nodded joyfully.

Who would have thought that Arlong would suddenly change his tone and say darkly, "In that case, make sure you get off the ship obediently when the time comes. Honestly, sharing a ship with you these past days has made me sick."

Koala tightly clenched the corner of her clothes. A mist rose in her eyes, tears welling in their sockets. She tried hard not to cry and silently endured Arlong’s vile attitude.

Considering the warnings Tiger and Jinbe had given him before, Arlong did not make things too difficult for her. After muttering a few curses, he walked past Koala.

The next day.

The Sun Pirates successfully arrived at Koala’s hometown—Foosha Village.

"Everyone, stay on the ship. I’ll take Koala home. If we all go ashore together, we might cause panic among the local residents."

As Tiger spoke, he was the first to disembark.

Koala followed behind him. Reluctantly, she looked back at the crew, waved, and called out, "Goodbye, everyone! After I get home, I’ll definitely tell everyone in the village that there are many good Fish-Men too!"

The crew loudly called their farewells to Koala as well.

On the way home, the excited and nervous Koala took Tiger’s hand of her own accord. His body suddenly stiffened, and he became nervous as well.

At the entrance to the village, many villagers were eagerly waiting. Among them, a young woman was so agitated that she could hardly sit still.

The moment she saw Koala, she rushed straight over.

Koala, who had been taken away by the Celestial Dragons and made into a slave, finally saw her mother again after many years.

Koala and her mother held each other tightly, weeping with joy.

Tiger turned to leave with a gratified smile, but he suddenly heard Koala’s voice.

"Thank you, Captain Tiger, and everyone in the Sun Pirates! I’ll remember you forever!"

With his back to Koala, Tiger waved his hand and left without looking back. At that moment, wrapped in happiness, Koala could never have imagined even in her dreams that Tiger would die on this island because of her.

After walking back some distance, Tiger gradually lost sight of Koala’s village.

He was genuinely happy for Koala.

But at this moment, he could not smile at all.

A large number of Marines suddenly appeared before Tiger, surrounding him from all sides. Countless gun barrels were aimed directly at him.

"Fisher Tiger, you madman who dared set fire to the Holy Land! Today is the day you die. Redeem yourself properly in hell!"

Strawberry, then a Marine rear admiral, spoke expressionlessly.

At the sight of the Marines, Tiger was first shocked. Then, as though realizing something, he gradually became disappointed.

Tiger softly asked, "Why?"

"The little girl you brought back."

Strawberry said, "Those branded as slaves by the Celestial Dragons are slaves for life."

Tiger understood. So they had traded his life in exchange for Koala’s freedom.

Then Tiger’s heart filled with rage.

It was both because of humanity’s selfishness and because of his hatred for the Celestial Dragons.

"Send him on his way."

Strawberry ordered the attack. In an instant, the roar of guns and cannons became deafening. Tiger spread his arms and laughed wildly in grief and fury as he faced his death.

At that moment, the ground beneath Tiger’s feet suddenly bulged. Trees as thick as waists broke through the earth’s restraints, blocking the path directly before Tiger.

The bullets failed to pierce the trunks. Instead, they rang out with clangs, as though striking iron plates.

"This is…"

Tiger froze. He was very familiar with this ability, and a figure suddenly flashed through his mind.

"Sir, what do we do now?" the major beside him asked in a low voice.

"Keep firing!"

Strawberry gritted his teeth.

Thus, even more powerful firepower blanketed the area where Tiger stood.

Under the hail of bullets, the trees around Tiger continued growing wildly.

While protecting Tiger, the roots underground rapidly spread beneath the Marines’ feet.

More trees and vines burst from the ground. Within a few breaths, Strawberry and all the Marine soldiers were swallowed by a dense forest.

"Sir, I think I’ve heard of this ability at headquarters…"

The major suddenly recalled someone. Then he began trembling and stammered, "It’s the one aboard Red Hair, one of the Four Emperors, who is called the right-hand man alongside Vice Captain Ben Beckman…"

"Shut up!"

A furious shout made the major quickly shrink back. He glanced at his superior, only to find that Strawberry was trembling even harder than he was.

Of course Strawberry knew who his subordinate was talking about!

Just half a year ago, he, his superior Vice Admiral Borsalino, and several other vice admirals had been patrolling the central New World when they happened to encounter the Red Hair Pirates.

The battle had been nearly one-sided!

Only two people on the other side had made a move in that battle.

Vice Captain Ben Beckman had fought Vice Admiral Borsalino evenly.

As for the remaining vice admirals, they had actually been wiped out in an instant by a young man!

Shanks, one of the Four Emperors, had not lifted a finger from start to finish.

Even now, Strawberry still remembered the horrifying scene of towering trees covering the warship’s deck, his comrades being strangled by trees one after another, blood staining the entire warship red…

The young man had held a wooden sword in his hand as he approached him step by step.

Just like now.

Strawberry froze for a moment, then looked up in terror. Chu Yang was already standing before him, raising the wooden sword in his hand.

With one slash, Strawberry’s head flew into the air.

Within the dense forest, screams rang out continuously before gradually falling silent.

Every Marine became nourishment for the trees.

"Yang?"

Tiger looked at the newcomer in surprise and delight.

"I said I would come back to see you."

Chu Yang helped Tiger up, checked his injuries, and then treated him with pure life energy.

"If you hadn’t appeared this time, I definitely would have died." Tiger smiled bitterly. "I never expected that what nearly got me killed would be my own kindness toward humans."

"There is nothing wrong with kindness itself. The ones at fault are those who exploit it." Chu Yang turned to look at the small village and asked, "How do you plan to deal with those people?"

Tiger was lost in thought for a moment before finally slowly shaking his head. "I went to such lengths to send her home. I can’t destroy her home with my own hands, can I?"

Chu Yang sighed. "Tiger, you haven’t changed."

Tiger looked seriously at Chu Yang and said, "No. If you hadn’t come today, I definitely would have come to hate humans deeply. I might even have hated them until the moment I died."

"In the end, it was because you didn’t let me down."

"However, today’s experience also taught me something. For those who were once slaves of the Celestial Dragons, gaining freedom is not as simple as erasing the mark on their bodies."

Chu Yang silently listened to Tiger’s words, then said as if he had sensed something, "Unless we solve the root of the problem—the Celestial Dragons."

Tiger smiled.

Yes, that was exactly what he had been thinking.

All this time, Tiger’s goal had been to rescue slaves. His conflicts with the Celestial Dragons had only happened when they were unavoidable.

But things were different now. Tiger realized that as long as the Celestial Dragons remained, no matter how many slaves he saved, new slaves would continue to be created.

The only option was to completely overthrow the Celestial Dragons’ rule.

"Yang, can you help me? I want to try and change this world." Tiger gazed at Chu Yang with earnest eyes.

Chu Yang had no interest in changing the world. He had only one goal.

Revenge!

Even after so long, Chu Yang still remembered what he had suffered when he first arrived in this world. Whenever he touched his chest, he could still feel the lingering warmth of the branding iron.

"As long as it harms the Celestial Dragons, I’m interested."

Tiger’s eyes lit up at Chu Yang’s reply.

A little later, the two returned to the Sun Pirates together. The fish-men were instantly stunned when they saw Chu Yang.

"Hey! Are my eyes playing tricks on me? I’m actually seeing that kid Yang!"

"Probably not, because I can see him too!"

"Didn’t the captain go to take Koala home? How did he bring Yang back too? This is unbelievable."

"Quit talking and get down there to welcome them!"

A huge group of fish-men rushed down from the pirate ship and surrounded Chu Yang, all asking where he had disappeared to over the past few years.

Chu Yang exchanged pleasantries with them as well.

Jinbe walked over to Tiger and quietly asked what had happened. Tiger merely brushed him off with a few vague answers. He did not mention what had just happened and intended to bury it forever.

It had taken great effort to change these fish-men’s view of humans. Tiger did not want all those years of work to go to waste.

Sensing that his big brother was somewhat exhausted, Jinbe did not keep pressing him and joined the others in welcoming Chu Yang back.

That night, the Sun Pirates held a banquet. While everyone else ate, drank, and made merry, Tiger and Chu Yang sat by the bonfire discussing their next move.

"Tiger, have you heard of the Revolutionary Army?"

"It sounds familiar. I remember it’s an organization active on land."

"That’s right. The Revolutionary Army is mainly active on land, liberating the countries oppressed by the World Government."

"The countries that can’t afford the Heavenly Tribute, right?"

"Mm. Not only can those countries not receive the Marines’ protection, but they also face the threat of being wiped out by the Celestial Dragons."

"Those damned Celestial Dragons." Tiger cursed angrily, then asked, "You brought up the Revolutionary Army out of nowhere. Do you want me to work with them?"

"That’s right." Chu Yang nodded. "Although the Revolutionary Army is still in its early stages, I think they’ll eventually become a major force against the World Government."

Tiger fell into thought.

He did not reject working with other forces, provided that they possessed a basic moral bottom line.

Tiger did not know much about the Revolutionary Army. Judging from what they had done in the news, they did not seem like bad people.

"How can we contact the Revolutionary Army?"

Tiger suddenly asked.

"Their headquarters is in Baltigo."

Chu Yang replied.

"You know a lot about the Revolutionary Army! You even know where their headquarters is."

Tiger was surprised, but also puzzled.

"I’m a crew member of one of the Four Emperors now. I have this much intelligence capability." Chu Yang smiled.

Even the Four Emperors themselves might not know where the Revolutionary Army’s headquarters is, right?

Tiger silently grumbled to himself, but did not say it aloud. Everyone had their secrets. All he needed to decide was whether to trust Chu Yang.

"Since you mentioned the Four Emperors, if you openly stand against the Celestial Dragons, what does Shanks plan to do?"

Tiger was rather curious.

"Our captain isn’t ambitious. He never deliberately pursued the title of Four Emperors, so he probably won’t interfere in this matter. But…"

"If I run into a threat I can’t handle, those guys will definitely come help me."

Tiger knew that "those guys" referred to the Red Hair Pirates’ crew members.

"So they’ll remain neutral for now." Tiger nodded. "I understand. Let’s figure out a way to contact the Revolutionary Army first."

A figure suddenly approached them.

"While everyone else is happily enjoying the banquet, what are you two secretly talking about over here?"

"Big Brother Tiger!"

"Yang!"

Slightly drunk, Jinbe staggered as he walked, still constantly complaining that the two of them were being unsociable.

Chu Yang and Tiger exchanged a glance.

Tiger smiled, pulled Jinbe down to sit beside him, and whispered something into his ear.

Jinbe first went blank.

Then his expression gradually froze, and a flicker of panic passed through his eyes.

What?

Big Brother is actually going to war with the Celestial Dragons?

I must be drunk.

Jinbe suddenly felt his lips go dry and his throat itch. He wanted to say something, but could not get the words out.

Chu Yang took in Jinbe’s expression.

If this had been Jinbe ten years later, he probably would have slapped the table and said they should do it. The current Jinbe did not yet have the courage to go head-to-head with one of the Four Emperors.

After finally digesting the news, Jinbe could not help asking, "Big Brother Tiger, why are you telling me this?"

Tiger narrowed his eyes and smiled. "The Marines have always been watching my movements. If I rashly go to Baltigo, I’m afraid I’ll bring considerable trouble to the Revolutionary Army. So I hope you can represent the Sun Pirates and make contact with the Revolutionary Army."

Jinbe was shocked, but also hesitant. Under normal circumstances, he would have agreed without hesitation. But this was far too important. He feared that he would fail and delay Tiger’s great plans.

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