Charlotte Linlin's huge figure stood on an earthen slope, her icy purple eyes reflecting the tragic living hell within the Colosseum below. Her long pink hair fluttered slightly in the wind thick with the scent of blood.
Just then!
A figure carrying a domineering aura descended from the sky!
"Boom!"
The dark shadow crashed heavily onto the top of a stone pillar built of giant Rocks, not far from Charlotte Linlin!
"Rocks," Charlotte Linlin said, looking at the figure.
She suspected this guy had chosen this spot on purpose, as Rocks, standing atop the pillar, happened to be exactly one head taller than she was at the moment.
Rocks had his arms crossed over his chest, his messy black-and-white hair blowing in the wild wind. On a face full of wildness and dominance was a nearly playful, scrutinizing smile as he looked down at the massive pink figure below.
"Muhahaha... Our 'Dragon Swordsman' has come to watch the fun too? Well? Linlin, is this scene 'appetizing' enough?"
He spread his arms as if embracing the entire bloody Colosseum, his face showing unmasked appreciation and fanaticism.
Charlotte Linlin didn't look up at him. Her gaze remained on the chaotic mire below, and she spoke in a calm, steady voice:
"Noisy. A waste of effort."
Rocks didn't care about her coldness at all; instead, he grinned, revealing a row of forest-white teeth:
"Waste? No, no, no!"
He extended a finger, pointing at the battlefield below that looked like a boiling anthill,
"Look! This is screening! In the face of despair and death, the truest side of human nature is exposed! Cowardice, stupidity, hypocrisy... all will be crushed!
Only the most ruthless, strongest, and most unscrupulous beasts are qualified to follow in my, Rocks', footsteps! And only they can... survive the battles of the future!"
As if to prove his words, Charlotte Linlin's gaze happened to catch a scene in the chaotic battlefield below:
A female pirate with a lithe build and dual blades was struggling to drag a male pirate out of danger, who was about to be hacked to death.
She was wounded, yet regardless of her own safety, she used her body to knock aside a sneak attacker and shielded the male pirate behind her, her voice urgent:
"Brother! This way!"
The male pirate was still in shock, his face filled with gratitude and the relief of a survivor: "Aya! Thank—"
However, before he could finish!
Just as the female pirate, Aya, turned her back to him to warily face new enemies, the gratitude in the male pirate's eyes was instantly replaced by an extreme coldness and greed!
Without the slightest hesitation, the short blade in his hand, carrying a poisoned cold light, stabbed ruthlessly into Aya's kidney from behind!
"Ugh—!"
Aya's body stiffened abruptly, her dual blades falling from her hands. She turned her head with difficulty and disbelief, looking at the "brother" she had just risked her life to save, her eyes filled with incomprehensible shock and shattered pain:
"Brother... brother... why...?!"
There was no guilt on the male pirate's face, only a hint of twisted pleasure. He jerked the short blade out, bringing with it a spray of hot blood, his voice as cold as a snake's hiss:
"Because you're in my way! A woman, actually stronger than me? If you live, you'll only take away my chance to become a Crew member for Rocks!"
Without even looking at his sister, who was clutching her wound and stumbling to her knees, he turned and lunged at a nearby competitor, beginning a new round of slaughter.
Aya fell in a pool of blood, her eyes staring fixedly at her "brother's" cold back until her pupils completely dilated. Meanwhile, the male pirate stepped over her corpse and began a new round of killing.
Charlotte Linlin's purple pupils contracted suddenly, and her fingers resting on the hilt of her nodachi tightened slightly. Deep in her eyes, a wave of intense disgust flashed. This disgust wasn't directed at the bloodshed itself, but at that bottomless betrayal and the loss of humanity.
"Hahahaha! Did you see that?!"
Rocks' laughter, full of madness, rang out again. He pointed at the male pirate who had just completed his betrayal and was frantically plundering, his tone full of appreciation and approval:
"Just like that! What a perfect jackal! To survive, to climb up, any bullshit family ties or gratitude can be trampled underfoot! This is the kind of 'Crew member' I need! Ruthless enough! Selfish enough! Muhahahaha!"
His laughter echoed in the bloody air like a demon's hymn.
Charlotte Linlin didn't speak again. She gave the laughing Rocks a cold glance, turned her massive body around, and her purple high heels made a heavy thud on the dust-covered ground as she walked straight away from the Colosseum.
"Lady! Wait for me!"
Kurozumi Higurashi was stunned by this sudden departure and hurriedly trotted to keep up, not daring to breathe loudly. She could feel the bone-chilling coldness emanating from Charlotte Linlin at this moment.
Rocks' laughter died down, his black cloak flapping loudly in the wind.
He narrowed his eyes, watching Charlotte Linlin's departing back. The playful smile on his face didn't disappear, but his gaze became deep and inscrutable.
A pirate with a flattering and somewhat sinister face said to Rocks:
"Captain, this woman... is too arrogant! She dares to be so cold to you! That look just now... Hmph, I don't think she respects you at all! Be careful not to nurse a viper in your bosom; she might betray you in the future!"
Rocks didn't look back. The corners of his mouth curled into an even more wild and uninhibited arc, and he let out a low, confident laugh:
"Muhahaha... Betrayal?"
He suddenly spread his arms as if to embrace the entire chaotic New World. His voice boomed like thunder, filled with absolute desire for control and a domineering aura that looked down on everything:
"I am Rocks D. Xebec! Would I be afraid of betrayal?!"
"As long as she still has desire in her heart—the desire to become stronger, the desire to live, or... that ridiculous desire for 'cleanliness'! She is my best partner! Her strength, her blade, will all ultimately be used by me!"
He turned his head sharply, his eyes like abysses sweeping over the pirate who had spoken, and laughed wildly:
"Strength! That is the eternal royal road! As long as I am strong enough, the jackals, tigers, and leopards on this sea can only be my claws and fangs! Muhahahaha!"
The sinister pirate was cowed by Rocks' madness and confidence. His face was instantly filled with admiration and fanaticism, and he loudly agreed:
"The Captain is right! I was overthinking it! With an invincible Captain like you, Rocks, leading us, any betrayal is a joke!"
He seemed to already see the scene of the Rocks Pirates crushing the World Government and becoming the king of the world under Captain Rocks' leadership, trembling with excitement.
Rocks turned and asked, "Did you get the Eternal Pose for Elbaf?"
The pirate, still excited, quickly replied enthusiastically, "We've got it! Captain Rocks!"
"Good! Old friend, I'm coming for you! I hope you don't disappoint me! Muhahahaha!"
Rocks laughed loudly, turning his gaze back to the even more tragic slaughterhouse below, as if Charlotte Linlin's departure and his subordinate's advice were just insignificant interludes... "Lady Linlin, are we just leaving like this? Are we not recruiting new Crew members?" Kurozumi Higurashi followed closely, asking cautiously.
Charlotte Linlin didn't stop, not even looking back:
"There's no need. There are no Crew members here that I want, not even the most basic sailor."
Beehive Island was, after all, a den of pirates. Trying to recruit Crew members who caught her eye here was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Kurozumi Higurashi hesitated, "Then... where are we going next?"
Charlotte Linlin's pace slowed down. She had just wanted to leave that disgusting Colosseum and hadn't decided where to go next.
She stroked her chin with her left hand, thinking about the current situation.
As a transmigrator, she knew clearly that this world's number one pirate group would eventually meet its end, but that was more than ten years away. For now, she needed to use it as a shelter to avoid trouble from the Marine and the World Government.
Although her current strength was very high—with her powerful physique, she was confident she could stall even Rocks, the world's strongest man, for a while.
But it would only be stalling. With Rocks' great strength, he was fully capable of penetrating her physical defense and causing significant damage to her internal organs.
And the Marine, as the world's number one force, only needed to send an Admiral-level combatant who could keep up with her speed to capture her and throw her into Impel Down after exhausting her stamina.
Because her current attack power was quite inferior compared to her defense. Since she didn't know Conqueror's Haki Infusion or Ryuo at all, she might not even be able to break through the Armament Haki defense on the surface of world-class powerhouses like Rocks.
Just like in the original plot, where Charlotte Linlin, as one of the Four Emperors, couldn't even kill Law—even when she used Armament Haki to attack and Law had no defense.
Of course, if the opponent didn't know Haki, that was a different story. Even against the strongest warrior of the Giant Race, she was confident she could completely crush them. After all, her physical defense and strength were not something an ordinary person could withstand.
Now, she could only protect herself in clashes with the world's top powerhouses but could hardly win. Especially after becoming a woman, unless she completely disregarded others' gazes, she also had to distract herself during intense battles by using Haki to protect her clothing. Since using Haki consumed stamina, this further weakened her chances of winning.
Since she didn't know Conqueror's Haki Infusion or Ryuo yet, she would go find someone who did!
With her mind made up, she spoke in a deep voice:
"Go find Newgate. There's something I need there."
Choosing Edward Newgate over other members of the Rocks Pirates was because of her knowledge of this "Whitebeard" from her past life's memories—he was a man of principle who valued loyalty and affection.
As for the other members of the pirate group? She felt it would be merciful if they didn't try to screw her over, let alone teaching her Haki techniques. In this world, there was no such thing as a free lunch.
"Yes, Lady Linlin," Kurozumi Higurashi replied respectfully.