When the crew returned to where the Glory was docked, they found the area littered with corpses. Most of the bodies had been cleaved clean in half. Standing guard on the deck, Weevil was still alertly scanning the surroundings.
After Buggy's group had left, word quickly spread about the Glory. Many pirates recognized it as Buggy's ship and, knowing of his fearsome reputation, suppressed their greed.
But some fools, blinded by desperation or arrogance, thought they could take advantage of Buggy's absence.
Unfortunately for them, their strength was no match for Weevil. As soon as those pirates approached, he didn't even waste words. Weevil wasn't the kind of man who thought things through — he only remembered Buggy's order: protect the ship, and kill anyone suspicious who came near. To him, strangers approaching the Glory could only be enemies. With his terrifying strength, the outcome was obvious — most were hacked apart with a single swing of his massive blade, while a few barely crawled away, bleeding heavily.
When he spotted Buggy and the others returning, Weevil's face lit up and he shouted across the distance:
"Cousin! You're back!"
The group quickly boarded the Glory, and Weevil eagerly told them what had happened while they were gone.
Not long after they had left, wave after wave of pirates had approached, drawn by greed. Weevil fought them off without hesitation, leaving corpses in his wake. Only a handful managed to escape, grievously wounded.
Buggy gave a nod of approval. "Good work, Weevil."
"Hehehe… cousin!" Weevil beamed at the rare praise, scratching his head sheepishly but grinning ear to ear like a child who had just been complimented.
Before long, Montblanc Cricket came running toward them, carrying a bundle of belongings and looking urgent.
"Lord Buggy! Lord Buggy! I've got news!"
Hearing the excitement in his voice, the crew quickly guessed what it must be about: the Knock Up Stream.
Cricket climbed aboard and caught his breath before reporting:
"Not far from here, in the nearby sea, massive disturbances have begun. The waves are surging violently — it looks like a Knock Up Stream is forming!"
The moment the words left his mouth, Buggy gave the order to prepare the ship. The crew snapped into action. The Glory roared to life under their coordinated efforts, quickly sailing around the island toward the location Cricket had indicated.
Within minutes, they arrived at the site.
There, the once-calm sea was in chaos, the waves thrashing wildly despite the absence of wind. At the center, a massive whirlpool yawned open, plunging into the deep.
Buggy and his crew stared as the spiraling maw pulled everything into its depths. Even Sea Kings caught too close were dragged helplessly into the vortex, some fainting from the pressure, others vanishing completely. The sheer destructive force made the danger painfully clear.
The whirlpool raged for several minutes, then — abruptly — the sea surface smoothed out.
"Captain, isn't this… over? Where's the Knock Up Stream?" someone asked nervously.
Buggy's eyes narrowed. He remembered well what he had seen in the anime: when the whirlpool calmed, that was when the eruption came.
"Steer the ship over there. The current's about to explode upward."
Though confused at how he knew, none of his crew hesitated. They trusted him completely. The Glory sailed directly to the spot where the whirlpool had been.
The hull began to shudder as an immense force built below.
"Everyone, grab hold of something! The Knock Up Stream is about to erupt!" Buggy barked.
The crew latched onto railings, masts, and anything they could, bracing themselves for the violent ascent.
Then it happened.
With a deafening roar, the sea bulged upward, and in an instant, a colossal column of water burst skyward, connecting ocean and heavens. The Glory was seized by the torrent and hurled upward like an arrow loosed from a bow.
But the ride was far from smooth. The upward current flung debris and even entire Sea Kings alongside them, bodies crashing downward all around. The ship tilted dangerously, threatening to capsize.
Buggy's face darkened. If they fell from this height, even he might save the people — but the ship would be utterly destroyed.
Seeing the crisis, Lafitte shouted, "Captain! We have to align the ship with the current. Let me steer her into the flow!"
Buggy immediately agreed. "Do as Lafitte says!"
Under Lafitte's precise navigation, the Glory adjusted its angle to ride with the stream. The hull stabilized, climbing higher and higher as the torrent carried them.
At last, the ship broke free of the water's grip, still propelled upward like a launched rocket. They soared, cutting through the clouds until — suddenly — they burst into a dazzling sea of white.
It wasn't sky, but an ocean made entirely of clouds.
The crew gasped in wonder, eyes wide at the surreal sight. A few impulsive sailors even joked about diving in for a swim, until Buggy barked a sharp warning.
"That's not water — it's a cloud sea! Fall through, and you'll plummet straight down to Jaya. From this height, without special powers, that's certain death!"
The warning sobered them instantly. All eyes turned back to the breathtaking view of the boundless White Sea spread before them — the legendary gateway to Skypiea.