In the first half of the Grand Line, Jaya Island, Cricket was salvaging and also exploring the route to Sky Islands, but from the start, he has been targeting the wrong goal.
For those without the ability to fly, the only safe route to Sky Islands is via the Summit of High West, but the entrance to this route is far from Jaya Island. For Cricket to reach Sky Islands smoothly, the only option is to take the Knock Up Stream.
For ordinary people, the Knock Up Stream is a dead end, with the chances of safely reaching Sky Islands being minimal. So, Cricket never succeeded.
With the information provided by the pub owner, he now has a more specific purpose. His purpose in salvaging was to earn money for living and accumulate commission fees. Whenever he encounters pirates with an adventurous spirit, he would offer to hire them to take him to Sky Islands.
But he has never succeeded and has instead been ridiculed by many.
Noland’s life hasn’t changed much, but the environment here has undergone a huge transformation. From half a month ago, loud thunderclaps have often been heard in the sky.
Even though the sky was clear, the thunder sounded irregularly day and night, as if someone was fighting in the sky.
Shadows of monsters often appear on the sea surface, as if some beast was fighting in a place they couldn’t see.
Because of these monster shadows, some people in Mock Town were in a state of panic.
Cricket had just picked up his fishing net, planning to go out to sea to catch some food, when the rumbling sound of thunder again appeared in the sky.
At this time, ten thousand meters above, the Master of the Sky, Nola, roared angrily towards the sky, and then a large number of energy leaves gathered behind it, shooting towards the figure in the sky.
“Beast, you are nothing but a wild animal. Now, I’m going to give you one last chance. You have the privilege to become my mount, assist me in ruling this place, and in the future, you can accompany me to Fairy Vearth!”
The man in front was shirtless, floating in the sky. He held a staff made of gold in his hand, and his earlobes were extremely long, reaching down to his chest.
Behind him were not the usual wing decorations of the Skypieans but four drums with mitsudomoe pattern, which were linked together and embedded on his back.
“Enel! This is not the place you should come to. There is only one god in Skypiea. Other than the resurrected ancient god, no one else deserves this title. God’s envoy is on the way here. You still have time to leave!”
“Yahahaha, let him come! Only a god is worthy of being my opponent. I will let you all understand who is the stronger god!”
“You must be looking to die!”
The Shandia chief shouted angrily at the man in the sky.
He knew the other party’s name because it wasn’t the first time he had come here.
…
Half a month ago, which was when Cricket often heard thunder in the clear sky, Enel came to Angel Island for the first time.
Sky Island is a general term for all islands floating in the sky, not a specific island. Shandora was carried by the Knock Up Stream to a sky island named Angel Island, but it is just one of them.
However, due to its fame, when Sky Island is mentioned, most people refer to Angel Island.
Near Angel Island is another Sky Island called Birka, which is where Enel was born. But not long ago, he destroyed Birka with his own hands and led some of his subordinates to attack this place.
The goal is to completely occupy the “Upper Yard,” which was the part of Jaya Island that was blown into the sky.
By accidentally eating the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, Enel became invincible on Birka, leading him to develop the delusion that he was a god.
Skypiea has no soil, so the Upper Yard is called the Holy Island and God’s Island, and in Enel’s mind, it became his territory.
Occupying a strategically advantageous position, Skypiea was akin to a utopia. Only a handful of pirates from the Blue Sea could reach here in a year, and most pirates were no match for the defenders here.
The naturally warlike Shandians, coupled with the Skypieans defending their homeland, the high-quality weapons from Onigashima, and the fancy equipment using Skypiea Dials, made the fighting strength of Skypiea sufficient for the first half of the Grand Line.
Even if they were not opponents, there was also the enormous Serperior guarding this place, until Enel’s arrival disrupted the peace here.
He was pursuing the Fairy Vearth and believes himself to be a true god, not caring at all about the lives of ordinary people.
On the first day he appeared here, conflict broke out between the two sides.
Shandians were unwilling to give up their homeland, which they had fought hard to reclaim. Moreover, no one acknowledged Enel’s self-proclaimed title of “god.”
At that time, Enel did not attack them immediately but waited for them to attack him because, after eating the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, he became an “immortal” in Birka, immune to any attacks.
He was very proud and wanted to use this method to show the Shandians the difference in strength.
The first wave of attacks went as he expected. Whether arrows or spears, they all passed through his electrified body, but the Shandians were not panicked at all.
“A Logia User! Change the bullets!”
For the inhabitants of Skypiea, the Beasts Pirates brought not only supplies but also knowledge.
The current Shandians were not the backward natives of centuries ago but have more common knowledge as new Shandians.
They were inherently conservative, so the Beasts Pirates introduced the new things in the form of oracles.
Seastone, due to its hardness and special properties, cannot be made into ordinary bullets by the outside world, but the Beasts Pirates, with the help of their numerous craftsmen from Wano Country, can process Seastone into various shapes.
Under the chief’s orders, the Shandians quickly changed their weapons, and bullets containing Seastone components continued to attack Enel, but Enel’s abilities were not just limited to the Rumble-Rumble Fruit.
The Rumble-Rumble Fruit combined with his innate talent for Observation Haki expanded his perception range significantly. Moreover, he possessed the ability to read minds, allowing him to discern the thoughts of the Shandians.
In this situation, he chose to dodge.
As a god, dodging humans’ attack was shameful, but the information he gleaned was that these weapons were bestowed upon them by a god, and were powerful divine arms.
Therefore, he was not dodging humans’ attack but a god’s attack. Thinking this way, he quickly accepted this reasoning and took action.
The perception of Observation Haki and the speed of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit allowed him to easily avoid the bullets, but just as he was about to continue, a giant snake revealed itself from the side.
Earlier, Enel used lightning to announce his arrival, and the lightning just happened to damage the Shandians’ new totem pole, drawing out Serperior.
Seeing the snake’s tail coming at him, Enel did not dodge. He intended to finish what he was about to do just now, but in the next moment, Serperior’s huge tail sent him flying.
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