The natural system started off strong, but the navy finally reached its peak!

This is exactly the style of these old-fashioned maritime tycoons!

Unexpectedly, this guy who made his name by killing me back then is actually quite to my liking.

Looking at the golden lion before him, grinning from ear to ear, as if he could already see himself regaining his legs and returning to his peak.

On the surface, Guern remained calm, but inwardly he shook his head and chuckled to himself.

"The fruit of surgery... is indeed a tempting guise. For an old cripple like you, the allure is fatal."

While the so-called "Operation Fruit" can certainly cure Shiki's physical disability, Gern holds a more hidden, and perhaps even more powerful, trump card.

One of Zephyr's current disciples, Ain!

The girl who possesses the Paramecia-type Rewind Fruit.

She can now rewind the state of any target she touches by ten years!

What if we could continue developing this technology, going back twenty, thirty years... or even longer?

That would be more than just healing injuries; it would be a terrifying ability to almost reverse time and return one to youth!

This is the hidden power that Gern truly values, a power capable of causing even greater waves in the future.

The Operation Fruit is the obvious bait, while the Rewind Fruit is his trump card hidden in his sleeve.

(It's currently unclear whether it's simply a regression in age or a regression in both ability and age, but Xianyu has directly set it as a regression in age.)

Sigh, but actually, even Paramecia-type Devil Fruits can achieve the same effect of simply reducing the strength of others once they're developed.

"Oh, right!!" At this moment, Golden Lion's smile faded, and he asked with a hint of impatience, puffing on his cigar.

"Who exactly is this guy you're talking about who ate the Op-Op Fruit? Where is he now?"

Upon hearing this, Gern paused for a moment, looking at the Golden Lion with some confusion.

You didn't know? Trafalgar Law is now considered one of the supernovas, he's quite famous.

Supernovas mean the strongest new pirates of this era. Are you such an old man with such a closed information network?

Seeing the disdainful look in Gern's eyes, the Golden Lion felt slighted, gave a cold snort of annoyance, and exhaled a smoke ring.

"Hmph! Who do you think I am? Do you think I only care about those small fry?"

The intelligence I've collected is all truly useful and can influence the overall situation!

After saying that, he even acted like he was "very high and mighty".

"Oh? Is that so?" Gern raised an eyebrow and followed up on his question, asking, "So whose intelligence have you been collecting?"

“Of course…” Golden Lion pointed at Gern with the hand holding his cigar and said matter-of-factly.

"you."

Gern: "Am I the only one?"

The golden lion raised its head, its golden mane fluttering in the wind, its tone even carrying a hint of inexplicable pride.

"That's right! All these years I've been lurking in the East China Sea, I've mainly focused on keeping an eye on your movements!"

From your transfer to G-3, to the arrest of Roger, to even reading only your newspaper while in prison, and then taking charge of G-10 in the New World...

In short, I'm keeping a close eye on your every move!

Gern looked at the Golden Lion's "I only have eyes for you" attitude.

Considering that this old fellow has remained patient and silent for twenty years, yet has only ever "remembered" me...

Combining the intense emotional fluctuations just now with the current "focus"...

"Huh... this guy... could it be that his hatred ran so deep that after so many years of watching him, it turned into love out of hatred?!"

Thinking of this, for a moment, Guern silently and very naturally... took five, six, seven, or eight steps back.

His face also revealed an extremely subtle expression, a mixture of surprise, suspicion, vigilance, and a hint of disgust.

The golden lion may be old, but it's still sharp!

Was Guern serious about taking that half-step back? It was such a small gesture, yet it made him want to explode!

"Damn it!!!" The Golden Lion roared, nearly dropping his cigar in his rage, waving his arms wildly.

"What the hell is that face you're making?!"

I consider you a rival, someone I must surpass and be wary of, following in Roger's footsteps! A rival!! Understand?!

Who would have such disgusting thoughts about a navy brat like you?!

Seeing the furious and eager-to-clarify Golden Lion, Gern finally breathed a sigh of relief, patted his chest, and his face returned to that smug smile.

"Oh, the opponent... You should have said so earlier. You scared me with your gay-ish attitude just now."

I thought my irresistible charm was something even veteran legendary pirates couldn't resist.

Golden Lion: "......(╬￣皿￣)"

................

[Salted Fish's comment: Everyone's comments are exactly the same as what Salted Fish thinks, and they resonate with me.]

This man is a golden lion!

The great pirate and tyrant who ushered in a legendary era, the only man to inherit the ideal of world domination.

He was the most powerful man of his legendary era! The pride of an age!

He is also the man who dared to abandon everything when he had it all, just for the sake of a worthy opponent, and single-handedly stormed into the Marine Headquarters!

Why were Roger and Whitebeard able to have perfect endings?

Why can't the Golden Lion have the fate of a hero or a villain?!

He's the man in the novel "Salted Fish" who truly unlocked the name "Skyquake" for the protagonist, Gern.

His demise shouldn't be uneventful, nor should it happen when he's at his weakest.

He was a ruthless and cunning man, someone who planned, schemed, and used any means necessary.

We should do everything in our power to bring this legendary era to a truly glorious end!

Instead of looking like this old lion now.

This is the kind of ending that the salted fish wanted—the old era's three heroes!

(Therefore, no matter how well he is written about, please do not believe the Golden Lion.)

Chapter 422 is 'default' rather than a response.

Enraged by Gern's absurd remarks, Golden Lion lost all interest in continuing his banter.

He took a deep drag on his cigar, forcibly suppressing his anger, and asked directly.

"Enough nonsense! Where to next? I don't have time to sit here with you enjoying the sea breeze."

"Oh?" Gern raised an eyebrow, a playful smile on his face. "What you mean by that... is that you've already decided?"

Will you become my right-hand man, Golden Lion?

Upon hearing Gern bring up the topic again, Golden Lion did not answer immediately, but lowered his eyes slightly, the smoke from his cigar blurring his expression.

He no longer responded with the same outright refusal or outburst of anger as before.

Instead, he quickly and carefully reassessed the power that Gern currently controlled in his mind.

For the past twenty years, he has been hiding in the East China Sea, seemingly isolated from the world, but in reality, he has devoted most of his energy to collecting intelligence about Gern.

Of course, this is not love.

At this moment, this intelligence unfolded in his mind like a clear picture:

Gern himself: Marine Admiral "White Scale", user of the "Heaven-Shattering" Fruit, master of the pinnacle of physical skills inherited from Garp and Zephyr, master of the pinnacle of all three types of Haki, wielder of the Black Blade Eight Desolations...

Their strength goes without saying; they have long stood firmly at the top of this ocean, an undisputed "King" level existence!

Its core subordinates (natural disasters):

Dracule Mihawk: The world's greatest swordsman, whose strength is unfathomable, and who is recognized as an "Emperor" level fighter.

Douglas Barrett: "Descendant of the Devil", a master of physical combat, a user of the Fusion Fruit, possessing all three types of Haki, and peak Armament Haki, and also possessing Emperor-level strength.

Gern's power is not simply a matter of one emperor leading two deputies.

It's a terrifying setup: one "King" leading two "Emperors"!

Secondary core:

Enel: User of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, possesses all three types of Haki, and has "Mind Field" (top-tier Observation Haki).

His strength has reached the level of a near-general, and he has the enormous potential to challenge the "Emperor" level at any time.

Bartholomew Kuma: Former Revolutionary Army officer, Paw-Paw Fruit user, formidable strength, racial bonuses, possessing both top-tier support and terrifying attack abilities, also possessing the strength of a weak general.

Tesoro: A user of the Gold-Gold Fruit, possessing dual-color Haki. His strength increases dramatically in areas with gold, and he is at the level of a weak general in his normal state. With the enhancement of his region, he can even unleash "Emperor" level combat power.

Boa Suzaku Toritoma: Former executive of the Amazon Lily, possessor of dual-color Haki, a great swordsman, and a solid Yonko vice-captain level.

Ribo: A user of the Heal-Heal Fruit, possesses both types of Haki, is a member of the Mink Tribe, is a master of physical combat, and is skilled in both support and combat. She is also at the level of a Yonko's first mate.

Upon closer inspection and consideration, even the Golden Lion himself was secretly alarmed.

"That bastard... Has the 'Cataclysmic' force under his command become this powerful on paper?!"

This is not the structure of a Yonko pirate crew at all!

This is a story with an absolute core (King) and multiple top-tier combatants (Emperors/Quasi-Emperors).

And a group of elite senior officers (royal vice-presidents/weak generals), a terrorist group that can be described as a war fortress!

"No wonder...no wonder this guy could utter such arrogant words as 'one man suppressing four emperors'...he certainly has the confidence and the ability to do so!"

"With his power, he has the strength to completely uproot and utterly destroy the power of any so-called 'Sea Emperor' in the New World!"

Even facing two at the same time, they might not necessarily be at a disadvantage!

Having figured this out, Golden Lion was even more certain that what Gern said meant he was likely to provide him with ample resources.

Of course, more importantly, Gern gave him hope of returning to his peak and regaining his power! (This is the main point.)

Having figured this out, the golden lion slowly raised his head, his expression changing.

His eyes no longer held struggle or hesitation, only the decisiveness of a great pirate and a rekindled wildfire.

Manipulating his body, he hovered steadily a little behind Gern, like a general about to go into battle with his commander.

He didn't answer "yes" directly, but his tacit attitude and eyes said it all.

He, Shiki the Golden Lion, 'tacitly' joined the "Catastrophe" camp!

Looking at the change in the golden lion's eyes, Gern knew that the old lion had finally made a choice.

"Hahahaha!" So he nodded in satisfaction and stopped worrying about verbal confirmation.

"Stop with the nonsense." The Golden Lion snorted, but his tone was different now. "Target, location."

Upon hearing this, Gern's smile grew even brighter.

He knew that he had dragged this former flying pirate onto his chariot.

"Target: Trafalgar Law, captain of the Heart Pirates, user of the Op-Op Fruit." Gern no longer kept him in suspense, stating clearly.

"As for the location... according to intelligence, they should be on their way to... the Sabaody Archipelago right now."

"no problem."

Seeing that the Golden Lion had already adopted a cooperative stance, Gern asked directly, "Don't you plan to go back to Wilmère first and make arrangements for the follow-up?"

After all, that's a base you've been running for twenty years.

Or perhaps…” Gern’s expression suddenly changed. He put one hand behind his back, made a supporting gesture with the other, and looked up at the sky.

He recited in a deep, resonant tone, imbued with boundless domineering power,

"Even if I, the Golden Lion, bear the weight of time and need to support Vermeer with one hand, I am still invincible!"

These words were incredibly powerful, instantly elevating his status!

It perfectly embodies the concepts of aloofness and power!