Pirates on Rocks' Ship 996

"Alright, now that everyone's gone, what happened that makes you all so serious?" Neptune asked Shark Star after waving everyone away.

He knew his eldest son was always prudent in his actions, so there must be a reason for him doing this.

“Father…” Shark Star sighed, glanced at Jinbe beside him, then moved aside and pointed at Naga, saying, “She said she was the last member of the Naga clan… I couldn’t tell if it was true or not, so I had no choice but to bring her back!”

"Oh? Is it really a Naga?" Neptune stepped down from his throne, looked at the Naga with interest, and asked.

"Hehe... As the king of Fishman Island... you don't know that history either, do you?" Naga chuckled, speaking with a hint of contempt.

Neptune paused, looking at the Naga with some surprise, and then asked, "What...are you referring to as history?"

"Pretending to be ignorant? Heh heh heh... This is the king of Fishman Island?" Upon hearing Neptune's words, Naga seemed to become angry. Either the other party was lying, or he genuinely didn't know.

Neither of these scenarios is good news for her.

Naga, who had initially had a slightly improved opinion of the Fishman Island royal family because of Shark Star's courage and decisiveness, immediately lost all goodwill towards them again.

It's obvious that if the other party is lying, then they are deliberately refusing to acknowledge this history. In her opinion, if that's the case, then this king of Fishman Island is not even as good as Shark Star!

If the other party is not lying, then it can only prove that Fishman Island has truly forgotten the Naga race, and even the royal family has no records of them.

Seeing Naga's anger, Neptune was somewhat puzzled, but soon Shark Star recounted everything to Neptune.

“I see… But I really haven’t seen any of this in any ancestral texts!” Neptune shook his head and said, “The only record of the Naga in our royal family is on the door of a secret room!”

"The door to the secret chamber?" Shark Star and Jinbe were both taken aback; they had no idea that there was a secret chamber in Ryugu Castle.

“That’s right!” Neptune nodded and said, “According to my father’s instructions, this secret chamber cannot be opened or damaged until the key is found!”

"Where is the key?" Shark Star could sense that the records about the Naga on Fishman Island should be in the secret room.

“I don’t know. My father never told me anything about the key to the secret chamber! He only said that’s what my grandfather told him!” Neptune replied with a wry smile.

Jinbe and Sharkstar exchanged a glance. They both thought of the same thing: to destroy it by force. However, King Neptune had also said that they could not destroy the place.

At this moment, Naga, like Shark Star and Jinbe, thought of the matter concerning Naga on Fishman Island, which should be in the secret room.

"Why did you say that the things about the Naga... were recorded on the door of the secret chamber!?" The Naga hesitated for a moment before asking Neptune.

“Come with me! You might not believe me if I just tell you…” Neptune glanced at Naga and said with a smile.

"Wait... Father!" Just as the group was about to follow Neptune to the secret chamber, Shark Star suddenly called out to Neptune, saying, "I promised Mr. Reina that no matter the outcome, I wouldn't make things difficult for her! So..."

"Hahaha... Don't worry! Even if she's not really a Naga, it doesn't matter if she just looks at the door to the secret chamber!" Neptune laughed as he looked at Shark Star's nervous expression.

"Phew~ Thank you, Father!" Shark Star breathed a sigh of relief and said.

“Let’s go!” Neptune smiled slightly and took the lead, heading deeper into the Dragon Palace.

"Huh...where is this..." Looking at the familiar surroundings, Shark Star asked in surprise, "Father, isn't this...?"

“That’s right, this was originally my father’s palace, but it was later abandoned!” Neptune nodded and said.

When they reached the end, Neptune opened a hidden compartment and then activated a mechanism, which caused the last wall to rotate open.

“Let’s go, it’s inside!” Neptune went in first.

Jinbe and Shark Star, who were following behind him, exchanged a glance and then went inside.

Naga, who was at the back, had a complicated expression. She was both expectant and nervous, but in the end, she took a deep breath and followed her inside.

“These clues… are all I know about the Naga!” Neptune said, pointing to the innermost door after the Naga entered the small room.

The gate was decorated with reliefs depicting mermaids and fishmen fighting against humans, but judging from the images alone, it was impossible to tell whether there were any Nagas inside.

However, above the gate is a strange pattern and a sentence that proves the existence of the Naga.

"The princess's song guides our way forward, while the siren Naga's call protects us!" Shark Star's expression changed drastically after reading the two sentences on the gate.

This not only proves the existence of the Naga, but also proves that the Naga did indeed belong to Fishman Island, and existed as its protectors.

So what Naga said is very likely true, otherwise the royal family of Fishman Island wouldn't need to seal the secret here and prevent anyone from opening it.

It's clear that they themselves know that the decision they made back then might not have been the right one; they were just forced into it.

Unlike him, the Naga standing at the back trembled with excitement when she saw the pattern on the gate.

"The Queen's legacy? Why...? Why is the Queen's legacy here?" Naga took a few steps forward and reached out to touch the door, but Neptune grabbed her hand.

"What are you trying to do? This belongs to our Naga race. As royalty, you have no right to possess it!" the Naga roared angrily at Neptune.

As her anger flared, wisps of black energy appeared around her.

The appearance of this black aura greatly alarmed both Jinbe and Shark Star.

"Naga! What do you think you're doing? Have you forgotten our agreement?" Jinbe's angry shout brought Naga back to reality, who was blinded by rage.

"Phew~ Sorry, I got a little out of control just now!" Naga took a few deep breaths, slowly drawing the black energy back into her body, and said softly.

“It’s nothing… I just wanted to tell you that there’s something strange about this door. Anyone who tries to touch it will get hurt, so I stopped you!” Neptune looked at Jinbe and Shaxing with some curiosity before shaking his head and speaking to Naga.

"Hmph! Of course! This is the legacy of my Naga queen. You are not Naga, so naturally you cannot touch it!" the Naga sneered.

"The legacy of the Naga Queen? What does that mean?" Shark asked, puzzled.

"Our Naga queens are not born naturally, but must be passed down through generations. The first thing each queen must do upon assuming the throne is to inscribe this magic circle so that it can be passed on to her successors! Only by continuously infusing Queen Mori's magic circle can one possess the ability to inherit it!" The Naga glanced at Shark Star and explained softly.

"So, can you now inherit the title of Queen of your Naga?" Shark Star asked curiously.

“Yes!” The Naga nodded and said, “All adult Nagas have the right to inherit, and the Queen will choose her successor from among all adult Nagas!”

"Furthermore, we Naga can only guarantee the purity of our bloodline by intermarrying with other Naga. That's why our numbers dwindled after that incident, until I was the only one left! But the Queen is different! Only the Queen has the ability to give birth to a pure Naga after mating with a merman or mermaid!"

"Huh? In that case... doesn't that mean... as long as you inherit your queen's legacy, the Naga race still has hope?" Shark Star said with a hint of surprise.

“That’s right!” Naga nodded, then looked at Neptune and said, “But why is such an important heritage of our Naga race in the hands of your royal family?”

Chapter 440 The Secret Chamber

“I’m sorry, I really don’t know anything about this!” Neptune shook his head and said, “My knowledge of your Naga race is limited to this relief and these two sentences!”

"Now that you know it belongs to our Naga race, can you return it to me?" the Naga asked, looking at Neptune.

“Without the key, no one can open this door. If you want to break down the door and take what’s inside, then I can only say I’m sorry!” Neptune refused.

"Hmph! As expected, I knew your royal family wouldn't agree so easily!" The Naga sneered and said, "But this is the heritage of our Naga race. Without our magical power, you simply cannot obtain what's inside!"

“I have no intention of taking this for myself! If you have the key, you can open it now, and everything inside is yours!” Neptune said with a smile. “I must obey the oral decree left by my ancestors!”

“Your Majesty is right, and your identity as a Naga is just something you say yourself! We don’t know if it’s true, after all, as you said, the Naga are almost extinct now! If you’re not a real Naga, but a villain who covets the treasures of the Naga race… then wouldn’t we have done something wrong?” Jinbe nodded in agreement.

"Fine! If I open this door, will you let me leave with what's inside?" Naga asked through gritted teeth.

She had no choice; this was the only thing that allowed the Naga race to continue. She had to obtain the inheritance, or the Naga race would perish in her hands.

If she can inherit the legacy of the Naga Queen, she can become the new Naga Queen, and the Naga race will still have a chance to continue.

Shark Star and Jinbe both looked at Neptune. Before it was opened, no one knew what was inside. What if it was something very important to Fishman Island? Should they hand it over to him?

“Since I’ve made that promise, everything inside is yours if you can open it!” Neptune said after a moment of contemplation. “But if there’s anything inside that’s very important to Fishman Island, I hope you’ll return it to us!”

"Hahaha..." Upon hearing Neptune's words, the Naga suddenly burst into laughter, saying, "You're making such a promise now, aren't you afraid that once you open it, it will contain your ancestors' dying instructions, telling you to exterminate the Naga race on sight?"

Neptune smiled slightly. He was now somewhat convinced of Naga's words. Like Shark Star, as a member of the royal family and even the current ruler of Fishman Island, he could understand the reasons why his ancestors made that decision.

Even now, if he had a group of Naga under his command who possessed the ability to control all merfolk and fishmen to fight, he wouldn't feel at ease.

“Even if there are ancestral instructions inside, as long as you promise that you will never control fishmen and mermaids again, I can also keep my promise and let you leave!” Neptune said calmly.

"Oh? Don't you value the teachings of your ancestors? Why did you dare to let me leave?" Naga asked with some surprise.

“Although I don’t know what happened back then that made our ancestors make that decision, things are different now! Judging from your appearance, you should also belong to my mermaid clan, right? As long as you promise not to harm other fish-people and mermaids… then what’s wrong with letting you go?” Neptune said with a light laugh.

Looking at the confident Neptune, Naga was somewhat incredulous. Was this the royal family of Fishman Island? Not only did the eldest prince possess extraordinary magnanimity, but the king was also able to make such a decision in such a short time. She wondered if the other party was putting on a show.

So she decided to take a gamble and open the door to the secret chamber in front of her. If Neptune had deceived her and wanted to kill her on the spot, she wouldn't have anything to say. Anyway, she was the only one left in the Naga clan. If she couldn't pass on the lineage, there wouldn't be much difference between dying early or late.

However, if the other party really lets her leave, she will definitely find a place to peacefully continue the Naga clan's lineage and never mention revenge again.

"Phew~ Okay, you all step back, I'll open the door!" Naga took a deep breath and said directly.

"Let's make this clear first, absolutely no violent destruction, otherwise... I will stop you immediately!" Neptune said, stepping aside.

"Hmph!" Naga snorted, ignoring him, and instead cut her palm, causing bright red blood to flow out immediately.

After closing her eyes and reciting an obscure and difficult-to-understand incantation, Naga imprinted her blood-stained palm onto the relief.

After a while, when Naga opened her eyes, the door to the secret chamber trembled violently, as if it was about to open.

But after trembling for a while, the door slowly calmed down, as if nothing had happened.

"How is this possible?" Naga stared in astonishment at the now-calm gate.

"What's going on?" Neptune and his two companions stepped forward and asked.

They clearly saw the door was about to open, so why did it suddenly stop moving?

“Besides the seal of my Naga race, there is another seal on this gate that needs to be broken!” The Naga said after thinking for a moment with her head down.

"Could it be that we need to..."

"The Little Mermaid?"

After exchanging glances, Neptune and the others spoke almost in unison.

“Perhaps we don’t need the mermaid princess; any blood from your royal family will suffice!” Naga shook her head and said, “Since we’re already here, why don’t we give it a try?”

“Alright, Father, let me go first. If I can’t do it, then let Bai Xing come over!” Shark Star nodded and stepped forward.

“Okay!” Neptune nodded to Shark Star upon hearing this.

"Wait!" But just as Shark Star and Naga were about to open the secret chamber together, Jinbe stepped forward to stop them, saying, "Shark Star, try it yourself first this time!"

"Huh?" Shark Star looked at Jinbe with a puzzled expression, as if asking why.

"What if this door can be opened simply by the blood of the royal family?" Jinbe looked at Naga and said softly, "It's not that I don't trust you, but this matter is of great importance, so it's better to be cautious! What if you just heard such rumors from somewhere and then use us to open the secret chamber and take away the Naga's treasures? Then we would truly have failed the Naga!"

Naga smiled slightly, took a step back, and gestured to Shark Star, indicating that he could try first.

Upon hearing this, Shark Star didn't stand on ceremony. After nodding to Neptune and Jinbe, he directly imitated Naga's actions, slashing his palm and imprinting it onto the relief.

Like the previous Naga sculpture, the relief began to tremble violently before returning to calm.

“It seems that it really does require the blood of two people to open the door!” Jinbe nodded and said.

"So, do you still want to try?" Naga asked with a light laugh.