One Piece Gunslinger

Actually, it wasn't that Li Ang didn't want to shake off Max, but rather that he couldn't. This thought had already formed in his mind when Max recounted his tenth victory. However, Max's strength was far greater than Li Ang had imagined, and he held onto Li Ang firmly, refusing to let go. Li Ang was afraid that using his full strength would tear his clothes, so he could only continue listening to him.

After listening to Max talk for a while, Li Ang thought that this wasn't going to work, so he simply took Max to the training ground and let him ramble on while he focused on practicing his punches with Haku, which would also help him improve his concentration.

Haku was also troubled upon seeing Max; he knew Max's character well. If Max hadn't been constantly traveling, the title of "Great Demon King" wouldn't have been his. "Why did you bring Max here? Don't you know everyone's avoiding him?"

"Of course I didn't know, he just wouldn't let me go, I was desperate too, I could only lead him the whole way. Whatever, let him say what he wants, I didn't practice ours." Li Ang said he felt the most helpless one. He hadn't noticed Max's talkative nature when watching One Piece before, never imagining he'd have this kind of personality.

Li Ang can only attribute this to the fact that Marcus has not yet suffered any setbacks. He will only become relatively silent after Marcus's two divorces or when his undefeated myth is broken.

"Well, that's all we can do." Haku shook his head and said to Kella, "Kella, let's just ignore him and focus on our own things."

But after recounting his twenty-six glorious victories, Max still wouldn't let Li Ang go. He held Li Ang firmly and continued, "I've been playing in casinos for so long, and I've only won tens of thousands of Berries, but they want to arrest me and accuse me of cheating. Do you know why?"

“Is that even a question? Anyone can easily see that the casino couldn’t possibly be open just for you. Even though you bet very small each time, you win every time. In the end, wouldn’t all the gamblers in the casino start following you?” Li Ang said matter-of-factly after finishing a set of exercises. “Then in the end, the casino would have to come out and arrest you. How could they let such a large sum of money be taken away?”

"Oh my, I didn't expect you to be so clever despite your unassuming appearance. Let me tell you what happened when I was surrounded by so many big hands." Marcus understood the situation after hearing just a few sentences and didn't seem to care much, continuing to tell the rest of the story.

"Huh? My master isn't some kind of clever little devil. He's much smarter than you," Kella retorted from the side.

“Yes, yes, your master is the smartest. Now, the exciting part is about to begin: Marcus's battle against the Mafia, his escape from the casino, and his subsequent pursuit. You three, pay attention, the best is about to start.” Marcus paid no attention to Kelra's words and prepared to continue telling the exciting story.

Li Ang and the other two ignored him and continued their cultivation.

"Back then, tsk tsk. Let me tell you, there were at least dozens of thugs in black, all carrying guns, who surrounded us gamblers," Max said, beaming.

“Some people gave in and knelt down, handing over the money they had won with me. Of course I was furious, but I couldn’t fight off those dozens of thugs by myself. Just when I, Marcus, thought my legend was about to end again, the casino floor suddenly collapsed, and it happened to be right where those thugs were standing. I, Marcus, was completely unharmed.”

"I must say, my luck is incredible. How could a gambler who has never lost a battle fall to this place? Even the heavens are on my side now," Marcus said proudly, puffing out his short frame.

"Next, not only did the floor start to collapse, but the ceiling also started to fall down. This was a big problem, and I couldn't run as fast as everyone else. Just then, Max received help again. A big, strong man among the gamblers picked me up and started running outside."

"Of course, those people were hot on my heels and wouldn't let me go no matter what. They even tried to pin the blame for the casino collapse on me. But that man was really something. The ones behind him couldn't catch up at all, and those who tried to block his way were swept away by his stick."

"Then he took me onto a small boat, and we left quickly. But those people didn't give up and chased after us in a big boat. Max then embarked on a great escape to five islands with another gambler."

At this point, Max paused for a moment, then said in an incredulous tone, "But this world is truly full of wonders. That gambler is clearly so skilled, but he happens to be blind. And a blind man who loves to gamble—doesn't he always get cheated?"

When Max mentioned "the floor collapsing" and "the ceiling falling down," Li Ang vaguely sensed that something was wrong.

When Max uttered the highly sensitive keyword "blind gambler," Li Ang immediately stopped what he was doing. He rushed to Max and demanded, "And then, where did that man go in the end?"

Seeing Leon's suddenly serious expression, Max sensed that things weren't so simple and replied, "That man and I escaped to five islands. We parted ways on Apple Island. He said that since we had escaped those people's territory, we could go our separate ways. I thought it wouldn't be convenient for me to bring a stranger to our headquarters, so I didn't try to stop him."

Hearing this, Li Ang almost wanted to strangle Max. What inconvenience? It was incredibly convenient.

"Haku, prepare to set sail!" Leon immediately turned to Haku and said. "Pass down the order to have intelligence personnel on Apple Island and around Apple Island gather information on that man. We must find him."

Li Ang then said to Max, "Max, tell the intelligence officers everything you know. We need to find that man now."

Seeing Li Ang's unprecedented seriousness, the three realized the gravity of the matter and quickly took action.

Fearing that others might misunderstand, Li Ang specifically instructed, "By the way, once you find him, you must treat him with courtesy. He will be a powerful asset to our revolutionary army."

Li Ang thought to himself, "I hope I haven't mistaken someone for someone else. I can ignore everyone else, but I can't let Fujitora Ichisho get away with this."

P.S.: Just a two-in-one for today, a new chapter begins tomorrow.

Chapter Thirty: The Second Voyage

"Streamline! Streamline, understand?" Li Ang roared. "We're not going to war. Why have so many ships? One ship is enough. Get a smaller ship and a few more people. More people are useless."

As the saying goes, "The higher-ups just give orders, but the lower-ups run themselves ragged." These revolutionary soldiers hadn't even recovered from last night's banquet when Li Ang's orders early this morning put them to work again.

Just then, a soldier carrying a sack of flour stumbled and accidentally let the sack slip off his shoulder. In an attempt to prevent it from falling, the soldier lost his balance and fell to the ground, rolling down the wooden plank and bumping into two other soldiers carrying supplies.

"Sigh, drinking has led to trouble!" Li Ang looked at the soldiers who were still clearly suffering from the aftereffects and couldn't help but rub his forehead. "I need a more sober navigator. I don't want to end up in the mouth of a sea king for no reason."

Just then, Long arrived at the scene. He looked at the slumped crowd and then at the furious Li Ang, and said, "This is indeed a problem. It seems we should drink less alcohol when we hold banquets in the future, otherwise we won't be able to effectively organize manpower if something happens suddenly."

Li Ang also heard Long's words and echoed, "That's right! We must change this in the future, otherwise we'll be helpless if the enemy attacks at this time."

Long looked puzzled and asked, "However, I heard that you've made such a big move this time, all for that gambler Max met at the casino?"

Li Ang knew what Long was thinking, but instead of directly answering Long's question, he first asked indirectly, "Where do you think we are inferior to the World Government?"

This question almost choked me. What the hell is wrong with this? There's basically no comparison.

Seeing the strange expression on Long's face, Li Ang stepped onto the prepared small boat and said, "The Revolutionary Army is to the World Government what an ant is to an elephant, a light boat to a warship, or a thatched hut to a palace. It can be said that with our current strength, it is like a mantis trying to stop a chariot or an ant trying to shake a tree if we want to deal with the World Government."

At this point, Li Ang leaned against the ship's railing and looked at the dragon that had followed him up, saying, "But in my opinion, our Revolutionary Army is actually only three aspects behind the World Government."

"Oh? Only three aspects are missing?" Long asked curiously. "I wonder what those three aspects are?"

Li Ang chuckled and said, "It's very simple: manpower, money, and production capacity."

Before Long could react, Li Ang continued, "This person aligns with our beliefs and is highly capable, greatly benefiting our revolutionary army, even..."

"even?"

"His strength and role are even comparable to that of a naval admiral!"

“I see.” A smile appeared on Long’s face as he said with relief, “No wonder he was clamoring for scientists, to restore production in backward regions, to develop and control the economies of various countries, and to go find Fujitora this time. It was all for those three purposes.”

“Absolutely. Not just our revolutionary army, but any power, nation, or even any civilization in the world, all rely on three fundamental things: manpower, money, and production capacity. These three complement and constrain each other, forming the foundation of everything.” Li Ang added silently to himself, “This is something Sid Meier taught me.”

"Alright, everything's almost ready. Are you really only taking this few people with you?" Long finally couldn't help but ask.

"I'm not going to war with anyone, I'm just looking for someone," Li Ang said, pursing his lips.

Before disembarking, Ryu hesitated for a moment, but still decided to give the instructions: "Alright, if you encounter any problems and need manpower, contact headquarters again using Den Den Mushi. If it's particularly urgent, I can get there within a day no matter where I am in the world."

"Just wait, I will bring our revolutionary army's general back safely. If I have to call for reinforcements for such a small matter, I'm a dog." Li Ang seemed completely oblivious to the fact that a flag had been raised as soon as he stepped out the door.

With the members in their positions, Li Ang boarded a boat and set sail.

"Tch, I didn't expect that blind man to be such a formidable figure. If I had known, I would have brought him directly, and there wouldn't have been so much trouble." Li Ang had already left the port when Max finally arrived, dragging his short legs along.

Watching the small boat gradually disappear into the distance, Max said indignantly, "And what's more, I'm the one who's closest to that blind man, yet they didn't take me along."

"Alright, you don't need to blame yourself. If that person were really as amazing as Li Ang said, he probably wouldn't have come even if you had invited him back then," Long comforted Max after listening to his complaints. "Besides, I don't think you can bring that person back if you go out again. It has nothing to do with how well you know him or not. The main thing is whether you can agree with him."

"Dragon, are you trying to comfort me? You're obviously just trying to put me down. You've gone too far." Max got even angrier after hearing Dragon's words. "If you want to say I'm not capable enough, just say so. You're clearly trying to say that Leon is better than me, aren't you?"

"Hey, where did he go? How did he disappear again in the blink of an eye? Come back here!" The dragon had already run away, leaving Max alone on the beach grumbling.

Meanwhile, on the boat, Li Ang was also in high spirits, stubbornly standing at the stern to watch the whole scene on the shore. He secretly rejoiced that he had acted quickly, otherwise Max would definitely have followed, and Li Ang had had enough of his glorious stories.

"Come on, let's ignore him and continue our training today." Li Ang turned around and found Haku and Kella, feeling quite pleased with himself.

This time, Li Ang had just returned and went out again, taking a total of 10 people with him. Kella and Haku were with him as usual. Then there was a navigator to steer the ship, and finally, a squad of 7 people, all of whom were combat personnel.

Although they are called combat personnel, they actually do all the dirty and hard work. Compared to combat, they are obviously more short-handed for miscellaneous tasks. For combat, Haku and Leon are enough.

Apple Island isn't that far from Baltimore, otherwise Max wouldn't have chosen to return to Baltimore from Apple Island.

If Li Ang and his group travel at full speed, they can reach Apple Island in less than a day.

However, on his way to Apple Island, Li Ang's Den Den Mushi rang.

"BuluBuluBulu"

"Reporting to the Chief of Staff, we have obtained information that the person described is no longer on Apple Island, but departed from Apple Island by boat this morning."

Li Ang raised an eyebrow: "Where did that ship go?"

"According to our intelligence, that ship should be heading to the Kingdom of Yutakana."

After reviewing the intelligence, Li Ang ended the call, thinking to himself, "I didn't expect that the order was issued this morning and we've already received news this afternoon. These intelligence personnel really deserve an MVP award."

"Turn around, we're heading to the Kingdom of Yutakana," Leon immediately ordered.

Haku was resting in the cabin when he heard Leon order them to go to the Kingdom of Yutakana, and he rushed out. "Leon, this Kingdom of Yutakana is no ordinary place!"

P.S.: Congratulations on gaining my first follower! To celebrate this moment and to thank this reader and everyone else for their support, I'm adding an extra chapter today.

Chapter Thirty-One: A Land of Abundance

"Oh? Then tell me properly, what's so special about the Kingdom of Yutakana?" Seeing Haku's expression, Leon also became a little curious about the Kingdom of Yutakana.

Haku is indeed an experienced fishman, and he has a good understanding of the situation in various parts of the world. Bringing Haku along was definitely the right choice for Leon. Otherwise, when Leon arrived in the Kingdom of Yutakana, he would be completely confused.

Yutakana means "rich" in the local language, and the Kingdom of Yutakana means "rich country".

So the name wasn't chosen arbitrarily; as its name suggests, the Kingdom of Yutakana is indeed a prosperous and wealthy land. It's safe to say that Yutakana is one of the richest countries in the world.

This raises a question: why is this place so rich? If it is so rich, why doesn't the revolutionary army take action against it? According to Haku, there isn't even a single revolutionary army intelligence officer here.

The reasons for this are a long story, and it even goes back to the geography of this planet.

As we all know, the Grand Line is actually a ring around this planet, while the Red Line is another ring that intersects the Grand Line perpendicularly. The two rings divide the planet into four equal parts, each of which is exactly a quarter of a sphere.

It's worth noting that the Grand Line is not located on the planet's equator, and the Red Line, perpendicular to it, is not on the planet's meridian either—a common misconception. The two rings form an "X" shape, diagonally dividing the planet into four sections.

This division creates an "X" shape where the top part is the North Sea, the bottom part is the South Sea, and the left side is west and the right side is east. This divides the world's vast ocean into the four seas of east, west, south, and north.

If we follow the theory that the Grand Line is on the equator and the Red Line is on the meridian, forming a cross shape, then the divided sea areas should be called the Northeast Sea, Northwest Sea, Southeast Sea, and Southwest Sea.

The intersection of the "X" shape formed by the two rings is Reverse Mountain, the gateway from the four seas to the Grand Line. The other intersection of the two rings behind the planet is Mary Geoise, the Holy Land, where the Celestial Dragons reside.

Why not enter the Grand Line directly from the four seas of the east, west, south, and north, but instead all enter through the currents of Reverse Mountain? Of course, it's because there is a calm belt on both sides of the Grand Line, and these two calm belts are like two much smaller rings, enclosing the Grand Line in the middle.

While the Calm Belt isn't entirely windless—if it were, the Amazon Lily's kingdom on Amazon Lily would have perished centuries ago due to poor air circulation—the winds are too weak for ships to navigate.

But the lack of wind isn't the key issue. Besides wind, there are other power sources to propel ships, such as steam, electricity, and even Franky's cola power.

If all else fails, we have a boat equipped with plenty of oars, and we can row all the way across the calm zone by manpower, though it's a bit tiring and slow. Anyway, this means that it's not like we can't do it without wind; there are plenty of other solutions.

The biggest problem with the Calm Belt is that it harbors a large number of Sea Kings, and many of their nests are located there. Wow! If you don't prepare properly and try to row in, you'll definitely never get out.

Reverse Mountain is a one-way route; you can only go forward, not backward. So, is the Calm Belt like a wall, trapping the Grand Line inside? Are the people inside unable to get out?

That's impossible, of course. First of all, Mary Geoise is an exit point of the Grand Line. Back then, the liar Noland discovered the Golden City on the Grand Line, then left through diplomacy in Mary Geoise, and later took the king with him on another trip.

This shows that it is indeed possible to leave the Grand Line in Mary Geoise. If obtaining passage rights through diplomatic means is possible, then smuggling is certainly also possible.

How did Barefoot Zeff leave the shipping route in the first place? This question can be roughly explained by this.

The manga mentions that his voyage took a year, suggesting that Zeff completed the first half of his adventure and ultimately ended it by re-entering the Red Line. This makes sense because the World Government cannot possibly govern the entire Red Line. Anyone without legal travel permits could easily travel to and from the Red Line from anywhere outside of the Holy Land of Mary Geoise.

And another character, Admiral Krieg. It is precisely this seemingly insignificant figure who exposes the biggest mystery! Krieg, who was driven out of the Grand Line by Hawkeye, only had seven days for his entire journey. How could he possibly leave the Grand Line from this remote, desolate location? As mentioned before, the entrance, Reverse Mountain, is a reverse current, allowing only entry and not exit.

So, how did Krick return to the East China Sea? I only have one explanation: he crossed the doldrums, which allowed him to quickly return to the East China Sea.

The Calm Belt isn't insurmountable, so the navy solved this problem by installing Seastone on the hulls of their ships. Seastone emits waves similar to the ocean, preventing sea kings from detecting the warships' presence. After all, they are animals, and their intelligence cannot surpass that of humans.