"Old man!"
"Not coming down for a chat?"
Kong Tai retracted his gaze, looked up at a cloud in the sky shaped like a chicken leg, a smile playing on his lips, and called out softly.
His voice was not loud, but it clearly reached the ears of an old man wearing armor, a black cape, and a long white beard, who was behind the chicken leg cloud in the sky.
The old man held a giant spear, his feet planted on the back of a pink-skinned, black-spotted bird.
The old man looked towards the direction of the flames below, his eyes filled with contemplation.
Had the strongest warrior of this generation of Shandians, the Battle Oni·Wiper, already died?
Died so easily.
Ever since his godhood was snatched by Enel four years ago, he had been hiding on a small island cloud outside the sky, working as a professional mercenary.
He helped those who came from the Blue Sea, assisting them in fending off attacks from Shandians or sky fish.
He had clashed with Wiper many times in these years. Although Wiper was always repelled by him, it did not mean Wiper was weak.
On the contrary, this fellow, as a descendant of the great warrior "Kalgar," who was described by his own people as terrifying like a demon, was actually a very powerful individual.
Yet, such a powerful individual, when facing the ship below, and even after he initiated the attack, was killed with a single spear.
He didn't even dodge...
No...
It should be that he couldn't dodge at all, and he died.
"Heh heh!!"
"Old man, shall I invite you down?"
Just then, Kong Tai's light chuckle echoed in the old man's ears again.
It was this chuckle that broke the old man's train of thought. He withdrew his gaze, his expression grave, hesitated for a moment, and then lowered his head to speak to the bird beneath him, "Pierre, since they've discovered us, let's go down and meet them!"
"Pie~"
Pierre let out a cry, flapped his wings, and swooped downwards.
Breaking through the clouds, a strong wind assailed them, the sound of the wind whistling incessantly in their ears.
And the old man on Pierre's back stood as if his feet were rooted, steady on the bird's back.
Without the obstruction of the clouds, his gaze fell upon the Going Merry for the first time.
His eyes first swept over Aruo in the middle of the deck, who was retracting his spear, then quickly averted his gaze.
"That must be the枪手 (qiāngshǒu - marksman) who killed Wiper!"
Even he felt a fatal threat from that person.
He then turned his gaze to the bow of the ship.
"Hmm!"
His eyes narrowed.
"Another one!"
A blue-haired little girl, who gave him an even more dangerous feeling than the previous marksman, was lying on a lounge chair at the bow, sipping juice and reading a newspaper.
Beside her lounge chair, on a sword rack, lay two long swords, one black and one white.
And the black-haired woman on the lounge chair to the girl's other side did not give him any sense of danger.
But the handsome man sitting on the guardrail in front of the girls, holding a fishing rod, gave him a very strange feeling.
The man exuded no aura. Apart from his outstanding appearance, he felt no danger from him.
Yet, it was this man who exuded no danger that made the old man's already grave expression even more tense.
He had seen men like this in his life.
And only once.
Although the handsome man below felt completely different from the man he had encountered before, the special aura, which was imperceptible and yet eye-catching, was the same.
And the man he had encountered before was the most powerful person he had ever met.
Including the current God, Enel.
The strongest in all aspects.
Therefore, the handsome man below, unless he was an ordinary person, must also be a powerful individual whom he could not predict.
And how could a man with such an aura be an ordinary person?
Towards such a strong individual, he dared not show the slightest disrespect.
Because such a strong individual already possessed the power to destroy the entire Angel Island.
Even if Enel came to stop him, it would be useless.
Even if Enel had eaten the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, which was said to possess the power of a god, it would be useless.
Therefore, when he landed on the Going Merry, he dared not stand on the guardrail like he had on the Thousand Sunny, but instead landed on the deck at the bow of the ship.
"Pie~"
Pierre retracted his wings, let out a cry, and stood proudly beside the old man.
The old man, however, stood straight on the deck, the tip of his giant spear planted on the deck, his hands placed on the top of the shaft. He looked at Kong Tai and said in a serious tone, "May I ask why you have summoned me down?"
"Won't you introduce yourself first?"
Kong Tai said without turning his head, then with his right hand holding the fishing rod, he pulled upwards.
Instantly, the sea of clouds to the front left of the Going Merry seemed to have some colossal creature about to emerge. The surface of the sea bulged upwards, and then Kong Tai pulled a flat, giant sky fish up.
"Another flatfish!"
Hearing the commotion, Ah Hua, who had been sitting cross-legged on the middle deck, sharpening a kitchen knife, immediately stood up, rushed to the bow, and stood beside Kong Tai.
He looked at the flat sky fish on Kong Tai's hook, his face filled with disappointment.
They were getting tired of eating these flat-bodied fish these past few days. Because they caught so many, they had even given this type of fish a name: "Dustpan Fish."
Just as Kong Tai had initially thought, no matter how delicious fish were, eating them every day would eventually lead to monotony.
It had only been a little over three days.
Ah Hua was already showing disdain for the sky fish that they had been so excited about when they first encountered them.
"You don't want to eat it anymore?"
"Not exactly, I'm just a little tired of it and want to try something different."
"Haha!! You rascal!"
Kong Tai pulled the sky fish closer. The fishing rod, in his hands, seemed less like a fishing rod and more like a sword.
Whoosh—!
A silvery-gray sword energy shot rapidly from the tip of the fishing rod towards the sky fish.
No matter how the sky fish struggled, it was in vain.
The sword energy easily pierced the sky fish and disappeared into the sea of clouds behind it.
The struggling body of the sky fish instantly stiffened in place, and then, like a deflated balloon, it rapidly shriveled. Despite its size, only about 20 to 30 catties remained in the end.
Kong Tai pulled the fish up, removed the hook, and tossed the fish and the fishing rod to Ah Hua.
"Don't you see we have guests? Hurry up and cook."
"Oh..."
Ah Hua took the fish and fishing rod, turned around, his gaze lingering on the old man for a moment, then quickly walked down the deck and headed towards the kitchen in the back.
When Ah Hua appeared, the old man had no opportunity to speak. After Ah Hua left, he finally looked up at Kong Tai and spoke calmly.
"It is indeed impolite to question someone right away."
As he spoke, he released his hands, held up his spear, and then stepped forward. He placed his left hand on his abdomen and bowed slightly towards Kong Tai.
"You may call me Gan Fall. I am a Sky Knight and a professional mercenary. May I know your name and what guidance you have for me?"