A blinding white light blossomed within the space of consciousness.
Looking at the Platinum Treasure Chest quietly floating in midair, Lucas was somewhat surprised.
According to the system, the Platinum Treasure Chest Trial Version could produce a one-hour trial card.
After experiencing the item and deciding whether it was suitable, he could then choose whether to purchase it or draw again.
It was essentially a case of getting on the ride first and paying afterward.
Lucas had originally thought that this kind of shameless business practice existed only in his previous life.
He hadn’t expected it to exist in the era of the Pirate King as well.
Still, this was exactly what Lucas wanted.
Upgrading the Gold Treasure Chest to the Platinum Treasure Chest had already cost him one hundred million Berries.
If he spent another hundred million Berries only to pull something useless, it would seriously damage his enthusiasm for work.
Looking at the Platinum Treasure Chest quietly floating within his consciousness, Lucas exhaled slowly.
"System, open the Platinum Treasure Chest Trial Version!"
"Ding! Please wait, Host!"
"Ding! Congratulations, Host. You have obtained..."
The system’s ethereal notifications rang out one after another.
Looking at the reward that appeared within his consciousness, Lucas’s pupils contracted slightly.
Was this the trial version of a jackpot?
"ROAR!"
A low growl suddenly rang out without warning.
Lucas withdrew from his consciousness and looked ahead.
The Sea King that had been blocking their path was fleeing wildly as though it had encountered some terrifying natural predator.
Aramaki had already extended a vine, preparing to poke the Sea King with it.
His expression froze.
"Damn it! Who was it? Who scared away my prey again?"
"I’ll definitely drain them dry!"
Everyone aboard the ship was startled by the sudden turn of events.
At first, they had assumed that Lucas was going to use Conqueror’s Haki to drive away the Sea Kings along their route.
However, they hadn’t sensed Lucas’s distinctive, violent Conqueror’s Haki just now.
Instead, they had witnessed the Sea Kings flee for their lives as though something truly terrifying had appeared.
Lucas raised an eyebrow and soon smiled as he took a swig from his gourd of Strong liquor .
"Aramaki, I’m worried you’ll burst before you can drain it dry."
"Looks like we’ve reached our destination."
"I’ll burst?"
Aramaki rolled his eyes disdainfully and was about to say something.
But then he saw the increasingly dense mist spreading across the entire sea.
Within it, an enormous shadow seemed to reach all the way into the heavens.
Aramaki’s expression instantly stiffened.
For the first time, he found himself unable to argue.
If he really managed to stick his vines into that colossal creature...
Compared with that enormous body, wouldn’t he be no different from a mosquito?
"This... this is Zou, where the Mink Tribe lives."
"It’s truly magnificent."
"I never thought Admiral Lucas could actually find this legendary place."
"Looks like following this ship really wasn’t a bad decision!"
Naguri grinned with his pipe between his teeth.
At his age, the biggest reason he had chosen to go out to sea was simply that he wanted to travel and see more of the world.
And ever since boarding the ship, the things he had witnessed had truly broadened his horizons.
Beating up a Seven Warlord of the Sea.
Tying up a Celestial Dragon.
Beating someone right in front of the Five Elders.
And now they were even preparing to declare war on a Four Emperor.
This was quite the thrill.
"Heh heh, Brother Naguri is right."
Fujitora smiled and raised his head toward the mist ahead.
"I originally thought this world was so filthy that it was unbearable to look at."
"I never imagined I would miss so many things."
"Sometimes, I really do wish I could open my eyes and see exactly what Admiral Lucas looks like."
A gigantic elephant’s leg suddenly emerged from the mist.
It came crashing down a thousand meters away from the warship.
The resulting wave surged outward like a hurricane, sweeping across the entire sea.
"Brother Fujitora, I’ll leave this to you."
Lucas calmly looked at the enormous wave rushing toward them and took another sip of Strong liquor .
"There are forty million Berries waiting here."
This wasn’t the time to worry about whether Sengoku’s wallet could take it.
Now that he had the Platinum Treasure Chest, every opening cost more than a hundred million Berries.
If he didn’t take the opportunity to accumulate some money, that would be difficult to justify.
"Heh heh. Don’t worry, Admiral Lucas."
"I’d also like to see what makes you so confident that you’ll be able to earn those forty million."
Fujitora’s cane sword slid slightly from its sheath.
Purple waves of gravitational force instantly enveloped the entire warship.
The next moment, as the enormous wave approached, the warship rapidly shot upward into the sky.
Meanwhile, on Zou, within the Mokomo Dukedom.
More than a dozen figures appeared in the plaza.
As the extremely rare Mink Tribe of the sea, Minks had always been prized commodities in slave auctions.
Their starting prices weren’t particularly high, sometimes only around 700,000 Berries.
However, they often became the favorites of various nobles.
Whenever female Minks appeared, in particular, they would frequently fetch astronomical prices.
For precisely this reason, the Mink Tribe harbored an intense hatred toward humans.
Zou was located within the Calm Belt.
However, it wasn’t actually that far from the Kingdom of Dressrosa.
It only took about a day to travel between the two.
But Zou wasn’t an island.
It was a gigantic creature that was constantly moving.
As a result, reaching Zou required a Vivre Card.
This made finding Zou—and actually reaching and boarding it—an exceedingly rare occurrence.
There were indeed very few people capable of reaching Zou.
Nevertheless, the defenses on Zou remained extremely strict.
Aside from the two kings, who respectively governed during the day and night, dozens of powerful Mink warriors were also responsible for security.
They belonged to two elite forces: the Musketeer Squad and the Guardians.
There was still more than an hour before the six-o’clock shift change.
However, unlike the two kings, who were famously unable to stand each other, the members of the Musketeer Squad and Guardians clearly didn’t share that habit.
"Wanda, I didn’t expect you to bring Carrot out again today."
"Looks like you have very high hopes for her."
Within the Musketeer Squad, Pedro, a former leader among the Mink warriors and a jaguar Mink, took a sip of the drink someone handed him before smiling.
Several members nearby also smiled amicably.
As a dog Mink, Wanda was undoubtedly one of the standout beauties among the Mink Tribe while also possessing considerable strength.
Her combat ability was first-rate even among the Musketeers and Guardians, and she was clearly highly respected.
Faced with Pedro’s question, Wanda smiled and rubbed Carrot’s head.
"Heh heh. The two kings regard Carrot as one of the most likely candidates to become the next ruler."
"For the sake of the two kings, I have no choice but to train Carrot properly, so I brought her out to have a look around."
"Oh, and Carrot, don’t forget the taboo of our Mink Tribe."
"Tonight is the night of the full moon."
"You absolutely must not look directly at the moon."
"If you can’t control your transformation, you’ll turn into a rampaging monster."
"That would be a disaster for both you and everyone around you."
As she spoke, Wanda turned to look behind her.
Only to find that Carrot was already staring up at the sky.
"Wanda, today the moon looks like a ship!"
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