"Hahahahaha!!"
Kong Tai let out a loud laugh, released Issei's hand, and then his figure vanished from its original spot, reappearing beside Issei.
His sudden disappearance and reappearance instinctively triggered a response in Issei's body, revealing a hint of the aura possessed by peak experts. It was this hint of aura that made Hua and the others dare not underestimate the blind uncle who insisted on boarding their ship.
Kong Tai showed no surprise at Issei's reaction. He reached out, hooked his arm around Issei's shoulder, and chuckled, "Right, Uncle Issei, since we can now be considered companions, can I ask you a question?"
"Ask away!"
"Can you tell me how you manage to travel around the sea alone when you're blind?"
Issei was silent for a moment before answering, "Most of the time, I travel by passenger ship. Wherever the passenger ship goes, I go. I don't have a destination anyway. But there are some special occasions; at those times, I navigate by the moon in the sky."
"So, you can sense the moon?"
"Mm!" Issei nodded.
Although he had guessed it beforehand, hearing the answer directly from Issei's mouth still filled Kong Tai with admiration.
Picking up the cane-sword leaning against the gambling table, Issei followed Kong Tai outside, saying as they walked, "I ate the Superhuman-type, Gravity-Gravity Fruit. When my eyes were still good, my mind was too complicated, so I couldn't develop the fruit's full potential. But after I lost my sight, I discovered that my Observation Haki had undergone a special mutation due to the fruit's abilities."
"Mutation?"
At that moment, on Kong Tai's left, Kuina poked her head out, tilting her head towards Issei, and asked curiously, "What kind of mutation is it that allows you to sense the moon beyond the heavens?"
"I can't explain it clearly," Issei mused for a moment before replying, "Ever since my Observation Haki mutated, on land, it has strengthened considerably, but not to an unbelievable degree. However, when I extend my Observation Haki towards the heavens, I can sense the meteoroids drifting in space, and that includes the moon."
"Meteoroids..."
Issei's answer elicited gasps of amazement from Hua and the others behind him. They were no longer novices, so they understood just how monstrous Observation Haki that could sense meteoroids was. Even if it could only extend upwards, it was still incredibly powerful.
"Wait, meteoroids, the Gravity-Gravity Fruit..."
As if a thought struck her, Kuina suddenly stopped, looking at Issei with astonishment, and exclaimed, "So, Uncle Issei, with the Gravity-Gravity Fruit, you can pull down meteoroids from the sky to attack enemies!"
"Mm!" Issei nodded without denying it. "My usual offensive methods, apart from this sword in my hand, are the Gravity-Gravity Fruit. And yes, I can indeed pull down meteoroids from the sky to attack enemies."
"That's amazing!"
Now she understood why Kong Tai had lingered here for so long. If it were an ordinary Admiral-level powerhouse, Kong Tai, with his current strength, wouldn't have bothered to stay. But if it were an unconstrained lone wolf with no weaknesses, that would be a different story. The Gravity-Gravity Fruit, she knew without a doubt, would grant flight abilities, and having trained in Kong Tai's domain since childhood, she was well aware of the terrifying nature of gravity. Although Issei's Gravity-Gravity Fruit might not possess the same terrifying power as Kong Tai's domain within a small area, it could certainly slow down an enemy's movement.
Looking at the cane-sword Issei used for probing and recalling the momentary sharpness he displayed when startled by Kong Tai's teleportation, a fighting spirit gradually flickered in Kuina's eyes. He was not only a top-tier Devil Fruit user but also a top-tier swordsman who combined his fruit's abilities with his swordplay. He was so similar to her that it felt wrong not to spar. Thus, she challenged Issei without hesitation.
"Uncle Issei, after we leave here, can you spar with me?"
As soon as she finished speaking, she gazed at Issei with her round, expectant eyes. Issei, without turning around, could sense Kuina's anticipation despite his blindness. After a moment's thought, he agreed.
"Certainly. We'll talk about it after we leave here!"
"Then let's hurry!"
Hearing Issei's reply, Kuina, pulling Kong Tai's left hand, eagerly walked towards the exit of the gambling hall.
"Hmm..."
At that moment, everyone stopped collectively, looking towards the elevator labeled "VIP Exclusive" on the left side of the corridor ahead. As they watched, the elevator door dinged and slowly opened. A man with a bulging belly like a nine-month pregnant woman, wearing a transparent, spherical helmet that covered his entire head, emerged, accompanied by two young and beautiful female attendants. Following them were two tall figures clad in black and white striped cloaks and wearing masks.
Since the distance wasn't too great, everyone could clearly hear the fat man's grumbling.
"Honestly, what is that Tesoro guy doing? As soon as we started playing, the whole building felt like it was shaking."
As he said this, he suddenly noticed that the usually bustling gambling hall was unusually quiet. So, he raised his head and looked into the hall, where he saw Kong Tai and his group standing in the right-hand aisle.
"Huh! Brat, what are you looking at?"
The fat man arrogantly raised his head, his face full of pride, as he looked at Kong Tai. "Don't you kneel when you see this prince?"
The fat man's arrogance made Kong Tai's lips curl upwards into a mocking smile. Behind him, Hua and the others burst into laughter.
"Hey! Can't you understand what I'm saying?"
Seeing that Hua and the others showed him no respect and were now letting out grating laughter that made him uncomfortable, the fat man was utterly enraged. He reached for the golden pistol that always hung at his waist, raised it without hesitation, and fired several shots towards Kong Tai and his group.
Bang bang bang!!
"Hahaha!! Die! You lowly swine."
The fat man's eyes widened, his arrogant face filled with pleasure, as if in his eyes, Kong Tai and the others were about to be gunned down, and their blood would flow just as he imagined. He enjoyed witnessing the death throes of these lowly swine.
However, at this moment, he didn't notice...
He didn't notice the terror in the eyes of the people behind him, whether they were the attendants or the masked CP0 agents. The fat man, positioned at a high level, might not pay attention to anyone in the world, not even the Four Emperors. But how could the casino attendants or the CP0 agents not recognize the distinctive azure blue pupils and the head full of silver hair? This was the world's current strongest, Silver Hair Kong Tai, who didn't give a damn about the World Nobles!