Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 289 The Secret of the Holy Mother's Flame, a Prelude to the Destruction of the World?

After reviewing the intelligence data, Bane looked up and asked, "Dr. Vegapunk said that each Mother Flame can only support the use of the Holy Mother's Flame a maximum of three times. The World Government tested it once in the Calm Belt, and now there are at most two uses left. Is this answer reliable?"

"There shouldn't be any problem. It was because the Doctor altered the technical data of the Mother Flame that the World Government was unable to produce it on its own. Coupled with the leak from the traitor, this led to the Eighard Incident. Subsequently, our Revolutionary Army received the Doctor's request for help and participated in the incident. It can be almost confirmed that the Five Elders and others wanted to obtain the Mother Flame technology from Eighard and the traitor. This shows that they did not master the technology. From the beginning, the Doctor only produced two Mother Flames, and the other one was destroyed in Eighard," Sabo explained.

"And how powerful is the Holy Mother's Flame?" Bane asked again.

"It's terrifying," Sabo said immediately. "According to Dr. Vegapunk's description, a single strike is enough to destroy three islands the size of Marine Headquarters and penetrate the mantle, causing a maritime catastrophe. Before the New World War last year, the world's sea level suddenly rose by one meter, which was caused by testing the Mother's Flame."

Although sea levels have been rising gradually over the years, a rise of one meter at once is unprecedented and is indeed quite terrifying.

Living in a place like Melvue, Benn felt nothing, but many of the refugees transported to Melvue had lost their homes because the island had been submerged.

Bane can destroy an island with a single blow, and with a little effort, he could even manage three Marine Headquarters-sized islands.

But to raise the sea level by one meter with a single strike is something even Bane couldn't do, no matter how hard he tried.

This demonstrates the terror of the Virgin Mary's fiery blaze.

"I wonder if I could withstand a direct hit? But I'm a Dark-Dark Fruit user, so I should be able to absorb it, right?" Bane thought to himself.

In any case, as it stands, the Holy Mother's Flame is a massive weapon of mass destruction with the fire attribute. Correspondingly, natural-type ability users who are not countered by it, as long as they can elementalize, are not much of a threat. The main threat of this weapon lies in its ability to instantly destroy massive armies and islands, shake the foundations of rule, and accelerate the destruction of the world.

Upon seeing the analysis report, Bane suddenly looked up curiously and said, "By the way, there's something I still don't understand. It clearly created a huge crater in the ocean that didn't dissipate for days, causing seawater to flood in. Normally, shouldn't that have lowered the sea level? Why did this attack cause the sea level to rise by one meter?"

When this matter was mentioned, Sabo was silent for a moment, then said, "This is also an important piece of information that I came here to report to you."

Seeing Sabo's serious expression, Bane raised an eyebrow and asked, "What is it?"

"Through the many ancient materials possessed by our Revolutionary Army, and Dr. Vegapunk's preservation of some documents about Ohara, we have a relatively reliable hypothesis about Uranus and the rise in sea level," Sabo said softly.

Bane was quite interested in this.

He knew that sea levels would rise, and that within a few years or decades, a massive catastrophe would likely occur, with the ocean swallowing everything.

But he didn't know the specific reasons, how it was triggered, why it happened, or where it came from.

When Sabo brought this up, he was naturally very interested. Bane raised his hand to stroke the stubble on his chin and asked seriously, "What do you mean? What's your speculation?"

"The rising sea levels are an 'illusion' for those of us who live on the sea. In reality, it's not the sea levels that are rising, but the foundations that are sinking!" Sabo said in a deep voice. "The reason why the Holy Mother's Flame, also known as Uranus, could raise the world's sea levels by one meter with a single strike seems to be because it has triggered accelerated changes in the Earth's crust or mantle. The main manifestation of this is that the Earth has 'shrunk,' causing the world's foundations to sink by one meter."

Bane?

If you put it that way, I suddenly understand.

"So what caused this foundation subsidence? And what will be the final result?" Bane quickly asked again.

"The specific reasons are unknown, and even Dr. Vegapunk couldn't find an answer. There's no description in ancient documents, at least not in the ones we have. As for what the final result will be, it's not something we need to consider right now. This kind of change at this level will probably take hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of years to produce the so-called 'result,' but there's no doubt that the ocean swallowing everything is just the beginning," Sabo explained softly.

Hearing this, Bane clicked his tongue and said, "Then it seems my Dark Portal plan is inevitable."

Although Sabo didn't say it explicitly, and Dr. Vegapunk didn't give any definite results, the things he just said sounded like the planet was about to be destroyed.

Or perhaps it's just a matter of time?

Considering that there really are lunar people, aliens, and all sorts of other strange interstellar life forms in this world, then maybe this damn world will force everyone to wander together.

Although it's unclear exactly when this will happen, Bane has no intention of accepting this outcome and prefers to begin the war "For the Horde".

You must take the initiative into your own hands!

"The Dark Portal?" Sabo was puzzled and confused when he heard Bane utter these words.

Bane smiled, raised his hand and patted Sabo on the shoulder, saying, "After we finish this battle, eliminate the evil World Government, and when we truly want to establish a new World Government and create a new order on this sea, you will naturally know."

In fact, the current situation of world destruction is becoming increasingly advantageous to Bane. As we all know, once external threats are resolved, internal strife often begins.

Without sufficient external pressure to constantly push forward, the so-called New World Government would likely quickly experience internal conflicts. After all, Bane's pace was too fast. Instead of cultivating the groundwork over decades to lay a solid foundation, he chose to accelerate as much as possible, using powerful violence to forcibly unify all forces.

Therefore, many internal conflicts have not been eliminated. For example, the revolutionary army is currently in a honeymoon period, but whether there will be disagreements in the future is hard to say.

Without the world's main government as its biggest enemy, and with its internal foundation not being particularly solid, it is almost obvious that internal conflicts would arise.

However, in this situation, with a world-destroying crisis looming ahead, things are completely different. With this external pressure, coupled with Bane's formidable personal strength and command of the most powerful and violent army, such internal problems are unlikely to arise in the short term.

At the very least, one must venture into another world to catch their breath and escape this survival competition.

However, once everyone enters the other world, there will be even more external conflicts, which goes without saying. At that time, the internal forces will definitely continue to be rapidly integrated and truly become one.

Thinking about this, Bane felt very grateful for the gifts of nature.

After discussing these topics, Bane planned to board the warship and head to meet up with Professor Zephyr and the others.

"Aren't Dragon and the others over there too? It's on the way anyway, do you want to come with me?" Bane invited Sabo.

Sabo seemed to have something he wanted to say to Bane and wanted to further improve his relationship with this future world leader, so he had no reason to refuse and immediately nodded, saying, "Then I will accept your offer."

Seeing that their conversation had ended, Ain and Weber also lowered their guard.

The group headed towards the port. Bane seemed to notice that Sabo wanted to say something several times, but hesitated and wavered each time.

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

After smiling, Bane patted Sabo on the back and said, "Just say what you want to say. Why are you hesitating like this? Is there something you need my help with? Since we got along quite well this time, if it's not too much trouble, I can help you."

Hearing this, Sabo's eyes lit up, and he said with slight excitement, "I am extremely grateful!"

After a pause, he said with a hint of difficulty, "Actually, what I want to talk about is still related to my sworn brother, Ace. He's currently imprisoned in Impel Down, the deep-sea prison, and Impel Down hasn't made any public statement yet, but given their nature, they really don't need to. I'm thinking, what can I do to atone for Ace's sins? Reduce his sentence? Get him released sooner?"

Sabo is quite sensible; no wonder he was promoted by Dragon to the Revolutionary Army's "second-in-command."

He didn't mention asking Bane to find a way to get Ace out at all; instead, he talked about what he would do to help Ace lessen his crimes.

Perhaps he was worried about lingering conflicts between Bane and Ace? After all, Ace was essentially sent into Impel Down by Bane himself; Ace had even chased Bane down at sea back then.

But whatever the reason, Bane felt comfortable hearing this and thought the kid knew how to behave.

"Theoretically speaking, there is no possibility of outsiders making arrangements for certain individuals within Impelton to atone for their sins," Bane said softly at first.

Upon hearing this, Sabo's expression brightened. After all, he wasn't stupid; usually, when someone starts a sentence with "theoretically speaking," the meaning that follows is far from theoretical!

"But considering that whenever a new regime is established, it is common practice to pardon some minor crimes, giving those who are about to go astray a chance to repent and turn back to the right path, this is a common practice. Ace's crime is neither too serious nor too minor," Bane said slowly.

You say Ace is vicious and ruthless? This guy isn't the kind of pirate who burns, kills, and robs ordinary people. The worst thing he did was dine and dash, and he specifically chose to eat at those fancy restaurants for rich people. He didn't bully ordinary folks.

You might say he hasn't committed any unforgivable crimes, but he was a high-ranking officer in a former Yonko-level pirate crew with a bounty of 550 million Berries.

This situation is quite complicated, and the main factor that defines this situation, realistically speaking, is whether the background is strong enough.

If Ace were truly just an orphan pirate, who would even mention him now? Let alone being imprisoned in Impel Down. Bane would have killed him long ago and extracted the Flame-Flame Fruit, even though that thing is so bad that even a dog wouldn't eat it.

However, Ace has a powerful background. His grandfather, Garp, is a high-ranking official in the Navy. It is because of this connection that he was able to survive being imprisoned in Impel Down until today.

Now, Sabo, the second-in-command of the Revolutionary Army, has also remembered their brotherhood and wants to plead for Ace, which is also part of the background.

In this situation, defining his crime becomes quite complex.

Who determined Ace's crimes? The World Government, the Marine Headquarters.

But now, Bane and his men are both attacking the world's ruling government and destroying the old navy.

If I'm already doing all this, why should I follow your rules and approve of the criminals you arrest?

Without finishing his sentence, Bane smiled meaningfully at Sabo, patted him on the shoulder, and quickly boarded the warship.

(End of this chapter)