I am the Bandit King of the East Sea.

"Those without wings on the sky islands are the gods. Although they appear no different from humans on the ground, they have long lifespans comparable to the giants on the ground."

At this moment, the Rainbow Bridge had pierced through the clouds, and the view suddenly opened up.

What appeared before Sig and the others was a large floating island located at the top of the World Tree.

The floating island is located at the top of the tree trunk, surrounded by a ring of ocean above the clouds.

The island's architecture consists of two layers: an inner city and an outer city. The outer city has orderly streets and tall, clean houses, while the inner city is situated on higher ground and features more exquisite and beautiful architecture. At the heart of the inner city, which is also the center of the island, stands a long, towering staircase that seems to reach into the clouds.

Amidst the swirling clouds and mist, a corner of a magnificent divine palace faintly emerges at the top of the steps.

"The outer perimeter is the dwelling place of the angels, while the inner city is the dwelling place of the gods and a small number of angels," the Winter God explained briefly.

"And at the top of the Heavenly Ladder is the Heavenly Palace where the God-King resides, which is our destination."

"A world with internal and external layers? I suggest renaming it the First Ring, the Second Ring, and the Eighteenth Ring." Sig's face remained expressionless, but in his heart, he thought of the first place he had been to after arriving in this world: the Goa Kingdom in the East Blue.

The Kingdom of Goa was also a country with a clear distinction between its inner and outer areas, with nobles, commoners, and vagrants living in completely isolated places.

"What do you mean by the divine beings you just mentioned?" Sig asked casually, as he was inquiring about the island.

Although Ah Ling once lived on this island, that was many years ago.

"Among the gods, those who haven't obtained divine power are the most ordinary divine citizens," the Winter God continued.

"Only gods who possess divine status and divine power are true gods."

"Based on the type and strength of their divine power, they can be further divided into lower-level gods, middle-level gods, and higher-level gods..."

“Even without divine power, someone as strong as Ah Ling can rise from the ranks of the gods to become a lower-level god, or even a middle-level god like me.”

"If one can obtain an elemental godhood, one will possess an elemental god body, rendering one immune to all attacks from mortals, thus enabling one to ascend to the ranks of high-level gods..."

"Does a mid-level god have the five social insurances and one housing fund? Can he afford a house within the first ring of the island? Does he include 72 wives?" Sig asked casually.

In the world of One Piece, gods are either Celestial Dragons or Enel. There's only one Sky Knight, Gan Fall, who left a decent impression, but his strength wasn't particularly great. He was vastly different from the gods in the common perception, so it was difficult for Higuma to feel any respect for these so-called gods.

“Wait a minute—” Barrett interrupted the Winter God’s narration. He wasn’t interested in these fancy details, but he was very interested in these self-proclaimed gods:

"I've been wondering about this ever since... the divine power you're talking about, could it be... a Devil Fruit ability?"

Upon hearing this, the Winter God's expression turned cold, and the surrounding temperature immediately dropped significantly, but Barrett remained oblivious, continuing to sneer:

"Devil Fruit users are called true gods on Skypiea? Then your so-called true gods are really cheap, they don't sound powerful at all."

"Hilarious. I'm also an ability user, so could I also be the...true god you're talking about?"

Although Barrett had a very high opinion of himself, he only believed in his own fists and didn't believe in any gods or Buddhas.

Not only the Winter God, but even the usually silent gatekeeper was angered by Barrett's overly arrogant attitude, and a ripple appeared in his deep eyes.

“You mortals of the Blue Ocean are at best false gods who have stolen the fruits of divinity. The authority of the gods is not to be touched by mortals.” The Winter God’s gaze also turned cold.

"You're getting cocky just because I called you fat?" Barrett found it both funny and exasperating.

"A Divine Fruit? You think I won't recognize it just because you changed the name?"

"Devil Fruits are treasures of the sea, originally ownerless. You say they were stolen? Whose were they stolen from?"

The atmosphere gradually became heavy.

Sieg didn't stop them; he listened to the conversation and became somewhat interested.

In the Sky Island Kingdom, the Devil Fruits of the surface world are called God Fruits, which is quite the opposite.

Users of Devil Fruits are often ostracized by the world, just like Robin and others in their childhood, who were regarded as monsters.

However, in the divine kingdom, it is the opposite. Only those who consume the fruit of divinity are considered true gods, and they can directly achieve a class leap, advancing from a commoner to a true god.

“So, this is the insurmountable generation gap between us and you Blue Ocean people.” A deep voice rang out; it was the gatekeeper who finally spoke.

Those empty, deep eyes looked at Barrett and slowly said:

"In your understanding, the so-called Devil Fruit is a treasure of the sea, belonging to no one, and whoever gets it first gets it."

"But do you know how Devil Fruits are created?"

"When a Devil Fruit user dies, a new Devil Fruit is born... So, where did the first Devil Fruit user, or rather, the first Devil Fruit, originate?"

"What if... the very first fruit belonged to someone?"

The series of questions posed by the goalkeeper left Barrett, who was only interested in stirring up trouble, speechless for a moment.

He hadn't really considered that.

Sig also seemed to realize something.

For Barrett and other inhabitants of this world, Devil Fruits are an integral part of this world.

Just as fire is hot and ice is cold, eating a Devil Fruit grants superpowers; this is an objective law established by the Creator.

No one thinks about where the original Devil Fruits came from.

“Interesting.” Vegapunk suddenly stepped forward from the crowd, his gaze falling with interest on the gatekeeper and the god of winter.

"According to you, does that mean the original Devil Fruit, or God Fruit, belonged to a true god on Skypiea?"

"If you understand the regeneration pattern of Devil Fruits, then under normal circumstances, when the previous user dies, the Devil Fruit's ability can indeed be passed down from generation to generation."

"However, there are exceptions."

Vegapunk seemed to be deep in thought.

Devil Fruits can be reborn nearby by preparing the fruit in advance.

However, in certain emergency situations, such as during a fierce war, there is simply no time or opportunity to prepare fruit.

The gatekeeper's gaze sharpened instantly. He glanced at Vegapunk a few times, somewhat surprised.

"You guessed right."

"Devil Fruits originally belonged to the power of the gods of the divine realm."

"Eight hundred years ago, there was a great war that affected the world. Countless true gods fell in the war. In our history, this is known as Ragnarok."

"The gods perished in the war, and their powers, which were carried by fruits, were lost on the battlefield of the Blue Sea."

"From Ragnarok onwards, the authority of the gods fell to the mortal realm—this is the origin of the Devil Fruits that ended up in the human world."

"Devil Fruits originated from the gods of the divine realm; they are the divine power and authority that we have inherited from generation to generation."

Sig narrowed his eyes.

Has the authority of the gods fallen to the mortal realm?

He found the phrase strangely familiar.

In the journey through the past, this sentence, like the Black Flame Dragon, appears in the system prompts as a description of a causal connection event.

“I’ve never heard of such a claim before,” Vegapunk stated bluntly.

"I have another question. Why did what you call a God Fruit become a Devil Fruit in the Blue Ocean?"

The gatekeeper curled his lip.

"Devil Fruits? How could someone who possesses superhuman abilities be a demon?" he said calmly.

"The problem lies with you Blue Ocean people... calling a God Fruit a Devil Fruit is slander."

"Ragnarok is the time of the destruction of the gods. The old gods perished along with the world. And new gods will appear."

"As for why our abilities are called Devil Fruit abilities..." the gatekeeper scoffed.

"Go ask the Celestial Dragons."

As the gatekeeper spoke, Sieg recalled something.

Devil Fruits are clearly extremely powerful fruits; for example, the three admirals Akainu, Kizaru, and Aokiji were all Logia-type Devil Fruit users.

But the Celestial Dragons' attitude was a bit strange; they treated Devil Fruits as playthings and casually fed them to slaves.

At this moment, the rainbow beneath the gatekeeper's feet had extended to the top of the heavenly ladder, where the heavenly palace in the clouds was located.

They descended back to the ground before the heavenly ladder, crossed the enormous whalebone bridge, and arrived at the palace gates.

"I have to go now."

The gatekeeper escorted Sig and the others to the palace gate, then transformed into a rainbow and disappeared from sight at an astonishing speed.

"The guardian deity talked a lot today. He's over three hundred years old and is one of the oldest gods on the Sky Island, but he rarely mentions this history." Ah Ling was also a little surprised.

"Ah Ling, why didn't you tell us about these things beforehand?" Sig looked at Ah Ling.

"I'm not interested in history, and this is the first time I've heard of these things," Ah Ling said casually.

“But there are quite a few good restaurants in the inner city…” She swallowed hard and glanced at Sig.

Ah Ling is a former pirate and has no interest in this kind of history.

Vegapunk, on the other hand, seemed quite excited after hearing this.

“Sig, I feel like we’ve come to the right place,” Vegapunk said.

"If this is the origin of Devil Fruits, then it will surely be a great help to our research."

At this point, Vegapunk paused, then gradually calmed down a bit.

"However, this is only his opinion and may not represent the truth."

“I am reminded of something from a long time ago.” Stusky’s gaze lingered.

"Many years ago, CP0 learned that there were a large number of Logia-type Devil Fruits in the waters of the Giant Kingdom, and persuaded Rocks with this information. Later, Rocks led his pirate crew to attack the Giant Kingdom... but that war did not break out."

"What the Giant King holds is not actually a Logia-type Devil Fruit, but the compass and nautical chart of God Valley."

"Upon closer reflection, there might be some errors in CP0's intelligence," Stussy said slowly.

"What if the island in the skies above the Elbaf Sea, rather than the Elbaf Sea, possesses a large number of Logia-type Devil Fruits?"

Guided by temple attendants, the group entered the temple hall.

The temple hall was tall and magnificent, with gods arranged on both sides. On the throne in the palace sat a tall, imposing middle-aged man with bright, shining eyes and a cheerful smile, though a faint shadow lingered deep within his eyes.

"Are you the bandit king of the Blue Sea?"

The Goddess of Winter had witnessed the previous war in the land of giants. Before returning to her divine kingdom, she had a brief exchange with the Giant King and gained some information about Sig from him.

Not only the god of winter and the god-king on the throne of the temple, but also the other gods were quite interested in Sig and turned to look at him.