Above the clouds…
Lu Linglong's face was flushed with excitement as she shouted, "Woo-hoo! So this is what ascending to heaven feels like? It's absolutely thrilling!"
"Zhu Qing, Sannan, Vivi—let's go swimming!"
Su Xiaoqi retorted irritably, "What swimming are you talking about? You're a Devil Fruit user."
Lu Linglong smirked mischievously and whispered in Su Xiaoqi's ear, "Don't tell me you don't want to see us in swimsuits?"
"Ahem…" Su Xiaoqi cleared his throat awkwardly. "Swimming is fine, but let's wait until we actually reach Skypiea."
Just then, Chopper's panicked voice came from the bow: "Bad news! Usopp fell into the sea—wait no, he fell into the clouds and disappeared!"
"Let's go check the bow," Su Xiaoqi said.
When they reached the bow, they saw **Himejima Akeno** gracefully flying back onto the deck, carrying Usopp and some bizarre-looking fish.
"Ara\~ these fish look quite special. I wonder if the chef can prepare them?" Akeno said with a warm smile, her voice dripping with playful curiosity.
Sanji immediately turned fawning: "At your service, my lady\~!"
Tokisaki Kurumi gritted her teeth angrily: "That bitch… I'm going to kill her right now."
Su Xiaoqi grabbed her collar: "Stop messing around. It's not the time yet. Besides, some idiot is heading our way."
Everyone turned to see a masked figure gliding across the cloud surface, carrying a shield and what looked like a rocket launcher.
Su Xiaoqi called out: "Luffy, Zoro—he's your problem. If you lose, you two will be doing extra training in the gravity room while everyone else enjoys Skypiea."
Luffy grinned and got into position: "No way! I'm going to have fun exploring Skypiea!"
Zoro drew his three swords: "I don't mind training, but I hate losing."
Thanks to their gravity room training, Skypiea's thin air was no issue. Within moments, the Shandian warrior was soundly defeated.
"Not bad," Su Xiaoqi praised. Then he suddenly looked up and fired a small energy blast at a white cloud above.
Thud!
A figure in full armor—along with an ugly bird—crashed onto the deck.
Su Xiaoqi crossed his arms: "I don't like people lurking above me. Let's cut to the chase."
"1 billion Beri—that's 10 trillion Ekus in your currency—and we'll take down Enel for you. What do you say, former 'God' of Skypiea… Gan Fall?"
The entire crew was stunned—except Nami, whose eyes turned to dollar signs.
"Su Xiaoqi!" she squealed. "If you get me that 1 billion Beri, you can scam me however you want! I'll even help you scam me!"
Su Xiaoqi rolled his eyes: "You're only worth about 300 million at most. This money is for Vivi and Alabasta."
Nami's face fell in disappointment while Vivi blushed and kissed Su Xiaoqi's cheek: "Thank you, husband\~"
Gan Fall, still processing the demand, finally spoke: "If you can truly defeat Enel… Skypiea can gather the funds. But you must promise not to harm any innocent citizens."
"Deal," Su Xiaoqi said, taking a whistle from him. "Now scram. We've got a god to overthrow."
As Gan Fall flew off on his ugly bird—now transformed into an ugly horse—Luffy blinked in confusion: "Wait, I'm fighting Enel?"
The crew collectively facepalmed. This guy just extorted Skypiea and now he's making Luffy do the dirty work?!
Su Xiaoqi patted Luffy's shoulder: "Think of him as great training experience."
Luffy laughed: "Shishishi! I'll punch him flying!"
Kurumi, however, remained sullen until she finally confronted Su Xiaoqi: "Darling… have you really been seduced by that woman?"
Su Xiaoqi sighed: "Kurumi, borrow some points from Zhu Qing and try the gacha again. Trust me—you'll need it."
Kurumi was shocked: "Are you saying I can't beat her?!"
Su Xiaoqi looked her in the eye: "If you judge her by her original strength, you'll lose. Badly."
Kurumi clenched her fists, then suddenly asked: "Darling… if I died, would you be sad?"
He flicked her forehead: "Stop being dramatic. Once your quest triggers, I'll help you kill the First Spirit myself."
Kurumi smiled softly: "…I think I'm really falling for you."
Su Xiaoqi snorted: "Yeah, yeah. Save the sweet talk for when you stop trying to manipulate me."
When they reached the Gates of Heaven, Nami bluntly told the old gatekeeper they were tourists—and wouldn't pay any fees.
After experiencing Skypiea's famous "Express Shrimp" ride, they finally arrived on the floating island.
As everyone marveled at the breathtaking scenery, Su Xiaoqi—hovering midair—casually called out:
"Hey Sanji? I'm starving. Cook up that giant shrimp for me. Make it extra spicy."