Hoo!!
The fierce wind howled, causing Sage's fur-lined cape to flap loudly and his white hair to dance wildly.
On the deck, aside from him and Renedia who stood firm, Lily and Marika could barely maintain their footing, while the others swayed in the wind, clinging to anything sturdy to prevent themselves from being blown away.
Beneath the Death Star, monstrous waves surged, making the ship seem as insignificant as a baby atop an adult's head, powerless to halt the giant waves' advance.
"How could this be?"
Lily exclaimed in disbelief, "These winds and waves are too much!"
She had already maximized the strength of the winds and waves but still underestimated them.
In the East Sea, such levels of wind and waves had never been seen; it defied all logic.
"This is the Grand Line, Lily."
Even amidst the wild winds, Marika's expression remained unchanged, still softened by her gentle smile, "It's said to be unpredictable, and indeed it is."
"No matter how unpredictable, it wouldn't..."
Lily was about to argue but then paused, glancing instinctively at Sage, pursing her lips, and said, "Well, it's possible."
Sage: "..."
He felt somewhat offended.
He glanced at the raging storm around him, then went to the edge of the ship, looking back. The waves were not only enormous but also persistent, a whole area covered by waves, and due to the storm, there wasn't any way to stop them.
Even Renedia's face was flushed red now, as she continued to maintain the ship's balance, preventing the storm and the waves from capsizing it.
It had to be this girl...
Without her, the ship, capable of safely navigating the East Sea, would have capsized the moment it entered the Grand Line.
Sage was quite used to it.
He had dealt with such situations before. Initially, he thought it was just bad luck, minor issues that could be fixed by investing more effort.
If the seeds for planting weren't good, he'd spend money on better seeds, switch to better land, and just as they started to sprout, pests appeared...
If he couldn't catch any fish, it meant the fishing rod wasn't good, or the fishing spot wasn't right!
So he spent a fortune on bait, set it all up, and used a high-end rod to fish. He attracted a school of fish, and even a small Sea Beast popped out of the water, giving him a thumbs-up before swimming away.
So frustrated, Sage broke the fishing rod in half.
From then on, he learned a lesson: the more you invest, the more bad luck you get.
For example, now, he had obtained a ship capable of safely navigating the stormy sea, but the moment he entered the Grand Line, it almost capsized.
But no matter!
"As long as you have enough strength, everything is still under control!" Sage clenched his fist, smiling confidently.
A ship alone isn't enough, but what if you add in an ability user?
With Renedia here, this ship won't flip!
Just like no matter how unlucky he got, he was still alive, and he finally had the opportunity to step towards his dream.
Renedia was his subordinate! She's a part of the Pirates, after all, without a crew, a lone pirate can accomplish nothing.
"Sage, something's off!"
Renedia was trying her best to control the ship, face flushed, "No matter what I do, I can't stop the ship, nor can I keep it still—something is pushing it forward!"
Her Power Ability, even if it couldn't get the ship out of the storm, could at least keep it still, allowing it to wait until the waves passed. But now, she couldn't even do that.
"Hmm?"
Upon hearing this, Sage was momentarily stunned, and then his pupils flashed a red dot, causing him to instinctively look towards the waves, "There's something there!"
As his words fell, the massive ocean waves parted, revealing gigantic blue skin.
"A Sea King!!" Renedia screamed.
It was a mud eel-like blue Sea King, swiftly drifting on the ocean, its size two to three times that of a Navy battleship with the Death Star atop it like a small black hat.
Rumble!
The eel leaped like a dragon crossing the gate, taking the Death Star even higher, while its head tilted downward, prepared to dive into the sea.
If it dived in, the enormous force would crush the entire ship into the sea.
Buzz!
At the moment the Sea King was about to descend, the surrounding storm seemed to halt momentarily.
Lily swallowed, instinctively gripping her sword hilt.
Marika's gently smiling eyes opened, revealing a cold moon-like gaze.
Even Renedia stopped using her abilities at this moment.
Apart from them, only Gin seemed relatively okay, yet his body was trembling violently, struggling to steady himself, but unable to do so.
As for the other pirates on deck, some rolled their eyes and collapsed at this moment.
"Huh? What's going on? What happened?" Pearl clasped her head in panic, looking at those mysteriously fallen.
At that moment, the descending eel suddenly stiffened, its tail standing out from the water, briefly pausing.
Currently, the Supreme King couldn't be released precisely, even as Sage tried his best to control it, but at such close range, people still were impacted.
"Stop! Beast!"
Sage's right hand coiled with black, flow-like Haki, fist clenched, poured all his Haki through his palm.
"Tenha Kassatsu!!"
Bang!
The Haki struck the eel-like Sea King's head, denting it inward, the North Star Divine Fist Secret Technique with Haki penetrated through the eel's secret hole, causing a fountain of blood to spray from the dent.
"Aoo!!"
In agony, the eel roared a violent sound wave, plowing a short trench on the sea ahead, swinging its head heavily, flinging the Death Star off, then submerged into the sea, erupting giant water splashes in all directions.
The rapidly flying Death Star in the sky, after maintaining a while, plunged downward fiercely, splashing the sea followed by a severe shake, yet ultimately steadied.
"Phew..."
Renedia controlled the ship to stable, finally sat on the deck, wiped sweat off her brow, "What a massive Sea King."
"Not just the Sea King."
Lily drew her slim sword, White Thunder, looking ahead coldly, "There's the Navy!"
The Death Star landed facing three advancing warships.
Other pirates, having gone through so much then encountering the Navy, would certainly feel down on their luck, their doomed end!
But Sage...
"Isn't this perfect? My original plan was to find someone at sea to snatch a Log Pose."
Sage revealed a smile, "Now, my plan is realized, hasn't the Log Pose come to me!"
What bad luck...
It's all within his plan!