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The old man with the cane was struck hard on the ground as if by a heavy hammer, causing the ground to crack instantly.

The Five Elders were all terrified!

They weren't unaware of how sensitive the mermaid princess's identity was; it's just that right now, without offering those pirates some sufficiently enticing bait...

How could those narrow-minded guys, who were only fit to focus on their own pathetic schemes, dare to risk a direct confrontation with the navy and openly attack Zhou Ze?

The old man with the cane, who had been slammed into the floor by the powerful force, dared not struggle in the slightest, much less beg for mercy.

Lord Im did not speak, but his attitude was already very clear.

The air seemed to freeze. After a long while, the old man with the birthmark on his head finally spoke with difficulty.

"My lord, I must ask for your instructions!"

There was no response from the Void Throne until the Five Elders were about to stare defiantly at Lord Im, at which point a slight sound came from the throne.

That was the sound of fabric rubbing together. This slight noise made the Five Elders lower their heads again, awaiting instructions.

A piece of paper floated down silently and landed in front of the Five Elders.

That's a bounty poster!

The Five Elders all know the person on the wanted poster!

Blackbeard, Marshall D. Teach!

Just as they were wondering what was going on, Lord Im's ethereal voice drifted over, sounding exceptionally faint and mysterious in the vast hall.

"He is no longer a threat!"

The Five Elders paused for a moment, their gazes involuntarily falling on Blackbeard's bounty poster.

Initially, they didn't take Blackbeard seriously at all; in fact, for decades, they had no idea that Whitebeard had such a person under his command.

Even after Blackbeard acquired the Dark-Dark Fruit and the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, they didn't take him very seriously.

Until Shanks, the Red-Haired, came alone to Mary Geoise to meet them.

To their surprise, Lord Im also paid special attention to Blackbeard after that.

Now, after listening to their 'Zhou Ze elimination plan,' Lord Im is more concerned about Blackbeard, which really puzzles them.

Blackbeard is no longer a threat!

This sentence, coming from Lord Im, has only one meaning:

That is, Blackbeard is dead!

After all, deeply influenced by Lord Im's will, they also believe that 'all threats must be completely eliminated'!

The Five Elders didn't have time to ponder the details of Blackbeard's death; their minds were racing.

Lord Im wouldn't bring up Blackbeard's death without a reason. Considering his previous dissatisfaction with their plan to expose the secret of the Ancient Weapon 'Sea King'...

"My lord, do you mean that the pirate's death is the bait...?"

Lord Im did not answer directly. With a flick of his slender fingers, Blackbeard's bounty poster instantly turned to dust.

Then, the sound of footsteps, 'tap tap tap', grew louder as they approached.

Lord Im is stepping down from the throne!

The Five Elders bowed respectfully to see Lord Im off.

The footsteps were slow yet rhythmic, and just as the Five Elders thought Lord Im would leave, that ethereal voice rang out again.

“‘Even a lion needs to exert its full strength to hunt a rabbit.’ Now that the pirate is dead, how can Shanks, who shared a long-standing grudge with him, stand aside?”

"Whoosh!"

A piercing sound of air being torn apart exploded in the ears of the Five Elders.

Before the Void Throne, among the swords and blades, a rapier plunged straight down, pinning a photograph that Lord Im had tossed from his sleeve firmly to the ground.

In the photo, Zhou Ze, wearing a naval uniform, is beaming with a bright smile.

Then, the footsteps gradually faded away.

After a long while, the Five Elders helped the old man with the cane to his feet. The bald man with the knife glanced at the photo of Zhou Ze, who was pinned to the ground with a bullet to his forehead.

"'Even a lion needs its full strength to hunt a rabbit,' that seems to be the words of that bastard Zhou Ze. How could Lord Im...?"

"Cough cough!"

The long-haired old man coughed violently twice, interrupting the bald man with the knife.

"Be careful what you say... refining the plan is what we should be doing now!"

Upon hearing this, the five elders glanced somewhat guiltily in the direction where Lord Im had left, and then retreated in unison.

In the passageway not far away, Lord Im, hidden in the darkness, stood silently, his piercing eyes fixed on the photograph in his hand.

My gaze lingered on the first photo for a long time. In the photo, Princess Vivi, wearing a blue dress and with long, sky-blue hair that reached her waist, smiled radiantly.

Below Princess Vivi's photo, there is another photo, showing only a corner of it.

It was that pink, taiyaki-shaped hair tie!

Chapter 432 I'm not in the Air Force, I just arrived!

G4 base.

Tina stood on the office balcony, looking towards the bay and seaside in the base square.

"Little Tina, didn't you come to comfort me? Why are you staring at that jerk?"

Momousagi's disgruntled voice came from behind Tina.

Tina glanced back at Momousagi, then turned away again.

"Gion, in your current state, you don't need my comfort at all!"

Just as Momousagi was about to speak, Tina interrupted her again.

"By the way, Gion, aren't you going back to Mary Geoise? You've been here for quite a while now!"

Hearing the order to leave, Momousagi grew even more dissatisfied. She strode over to Tina's side, gathering her emotions, ready to complain about Tina's prioritization of romance over friendship.

However, she couldn't say it aloud. She noticed a deep, unyielding sorrow in Tina's eyes.

Momousagi swallowed back her sarcastic remark and glanced at Zhou Ze on the beach.

"That bastard has been quite relaxed these past few days since he finished writing those incomprehensible documents day and night. You don't need to worry about him at all!"

Momousagi's tone was so calm that it was completely unlike her usual energetic self. Tina was stunned for a moment, then turned her head to look at Momousagi with a slightly surprised expression.

Momousagi seemed to know that she wasn't good at comforting others, and felt a little annoyed with herself, so she turned her head away.

Tina composed herself, a slight smile playing on her lips, and looked away from Momousagi's expression.

"Gion, what are you talking about? How could Tina worry about Zhou Ze? There's nothing Zhou Ze can't handle, Tina has always believed in him!"

The two were friends for many years, so how could they not hear that the other was saying things they didn't mean? Not knowing how to comfort her, Momousagi became even angrier at herself.

She frowned slightly, lowered her gaze, and pondered what she could do.

Then she noticed that Tina beside her was always unconsciously rubbing the knuckle of her right ring finger, even though there was nothing there.

Momousagi, known for using alluring colors to capture pirates, has a keen eye for subtle human movements. She instinctively sensed that Tina's actions were somewhat strange.

However, before she could ask anything, Tina, perhaps sensing something, spoke first.

"Gion, Tina is going to Alabasta. Zhou Ze has some things to deliver to Binz. Do you want to come with her?"

"Hmm... maybe Vivi is here too. You haven't seen Vivi in ​​a long time, have you?"

Seeing Tina's feigned ease and beaming smile, Momousagi narrowed her eyes. After thinking for a moment, she shook her head.

"I won't be going. If you see Weiwei, please give her my regards. I want to rest for a bit before heading back!"

The excuse wasn't very clever, and Tina could tell. However, she didn't insist. She smiled, nodded goodbye to Momousagi, and then left.

Momousagi leaned on the balcony railing, watching Tina talk to Zhou Ze by the sea before leading the warships away from the base.

Only after Tina's warship disappeared above the horizon did Momousagi purse her lips, leap off the balcony.

On the beach in the bay, Zhou Ze, wearing a floral shirt, beach shorts, and sunglasses, lay comfortably on a chair with a pole propped up beside him. On the other side of the small table, chilled pear wine and a fruit platter were prepared.

Zhou Ze didn't pay any attention to whether the fishing float moved or not, and happily took a sip from his wine glass.

"Are you going to die?"

The sudden sound startled Zhou Ze.

"puff!"

He spat out a mouthful of wine before turning his head to look at Momousagi standing beside him.

"Uh... Gion, what brings you here? Didn't Tina say you wanted to rest for a bit?"

Momousagi didn't answer Zhou Ze's question, but just stared intently at him.

Zhou Ze looked at Tao Tu for a while, then sat up a little from the recliner, pushed his sunglasses up over his head, and revealed a big smile.

"What nonsense are you talking about? I was just fishing, how is it that I'm going to die?"

Momousagi narrowed her eyes, looking at Zhou Ze with a mocking expression.

"Zhou Ze, from the first time we met, I knew you were a liar!"

"You should know very well that you can't fool me when it comes to whether a man is telling the truth or lying!"

Zhou Ze's expression turned awkward for only a moment, then he coughed lightly, his voice weaker.

"Cough, I really was fishing!"

Momousagi's breathing became heavier, and she gritted her teeth, saying...

"You bastard, you're still lying!"

Seeing Zhou Ze's nonchalant attitude, Momousagi became even more furious.

"Okay, you're fishing, but where's the fish?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Ze glanced at the fishing float, which swayed rhythmically with the waves but remained completely still, and sighed helplessly.