Arceus's Pirate Journey

Chapter 25: Chapter 25: You’re Still a Double Agent

”Pick up the phone, you better know what to say and what not to say.”

Queen picked up the Radio Snail and placed it in front of Purilite, showing a similarly dangerous smile. However, when the voice from the other side came through, no one expected that Purilite had a lot on his mind.

”Purilite, it’s Spandine. Zephyr’s fleet will arrive at the 277th Branch in two days. You better leave there quickly, understood?”

”Yes, I understand...”

”Hmm? Why are you speaking so strangely, and what exactly happened there? Why isn’t there any information from the others?”

”Those pirates erupted into a brawl, probably the people you arranged were also injured...”

”Purilite, you better be honest with me. The treasure of Rocks is not something someone like you can get your hands on. Zephyr is about to arrive, don’t let it fall into his hands.”

With these words, Spandine cut off the Radio Snail, and Queen’s face showed an even more dangerous smile.

”Oh, it seems you haven’t been entirely truthful.”

”No, no, wait! I just haven’t finished speaking! You haven’t asked about this yet...”

”Then you can honestly explain now, why you have contact with someone like Spandine from CP9.”

Spandine, father of Spandam, is currently the officer of CP9. Although the World Government only publicly acknowledges CP1 to CP8, CP9 and CP0 are not secrets to those with power.

People like Queen, with extensive experience in illegal research groups, are certainly well aware of this. Moreover, when Vegapunk was forcibly recruited by the government, it was Spandine who led the team.

A pirate, and one who just recently set sail, even if he’s a Super Rookie, being connected to both the World Government and a Great Pirate is indeed unusual.

In the terrifying shadow brought by King, Purilite finally revealed everything.

Before arriving at the Shampodi Islands, he had been arrested once. Originally, he was going to be sent to the Undersea Prison Impel Down, but he met Spandine.

After the Rocks Pirates were eliminated, the sea did not return to peace. With the current policies of the World Government, it’s impossible to eradicate pirates, and the current situation at sea results from their leniency.

Rocks was initially a huge chain, forcefully locking the monsters of the sea together. Rocks’ defeat also meant this restraint disappeared completely.

Nowadays, in the New World, half the monsters were once Rocks’ crew. Whitebeard-Edward Newgate, Golden Lion-Shiki, Big Mom-Charlotte Linlin, Captain John, Ochoku, Silver Axe—they dominate the majority of the New World.

They are not afraid of pirates, nor of the pirates being too strong. What they’re worried about is these pirates suddenly acting irrationally, doing incomprehensible things, just like Rocks back in the day. Rocks’ ambition was known to all, but no one expected he would directly target the Heavenly Celestial Dragons.

To prevent encountering another crazy person like Rocks, the CPs of the World Government began trying to insert undercover agents among the pirates to provide timely feedback on these situations.

This was Purilite’s original mission—to enter the New World, join under a pirate, and regularly send back intelligence. His bounty was partly orchestrated by Spandine.

Spandine’s abilities are not particularly outstanding, but his connections within the World Government are incredibly strong. After all, he managed to push his useless son Spandam to the position of CP9 chief.

Later on, Purilite encountered John in the Shampodi Islands, and was crushed again. In the First Half of the Grand Line, one could dominate a region by relying on the ability of Devil Fruits, and Logia-type had an overwhelming status.

To those who just set sail, Logia-type meant invincibility, but in the more competitive New World, with the spread of Haki, those relying solely on Fruit Ability could easily suffer.

The Act-Act Fruit made Purilite’s Body Techniques weak, as he could use masks to simulate abilities and gain a puppet army. With these abilities and Spandine’s arrangements, he navigated the First Half of the Grand Line smoothly.

John dealt him a devastating blow, making him realize the brutal reality of the Pirate World, and at that moment, he already regretted setting sail.

However, John’s interest in the abilities of his mask led to his recruitment under John.

By this time, he was already fearful, so he expressed his reluctance to enter the New World to Spandine, also mentioning John’s affairs. Unexpectedly, Spandine offered him a new condition.

If he could infiltrate the John Pirates and find clues to the treasure, the World Government would cancel his bounty, allowing him to become a legal citizen again.

Many are tempted by the Rocks treasure, including the World Government. It was the treasure of the entire Rocks Pirates. Anything Rocks had his eyes on couldn’t be just ordinary silver coins; at the very least, they had to be invaluable treasures.

However, aside from rescuing the Heavenly Celestial Dragons and defeating Rocks, the Battle of Divine Valley yielded no significant gains—the Rocks treasure vanished without a trace, and the World Government couldn’t figure out its whereabouts.

But according to surviving pirates’ confessions, this fortune is highly likely related to John.

Even so, they didn’t openly search for it. For one, John’s whereabouts were hard to track—his ability was incredibly elusive, and searching for him wasted manpower.

He’s the only pirate in the New World without a fixed territory, always treasure hunting or looting treasures.

Furthermore, much of the Rocks treasure was looted from member countries’ treasuries. If the treasure was found and made public knowledge, the kingdom’s treasures would have to be returned.

But if found in secret, the treasure would not only belong to the World Government, but Spandine could also gain significant benefits, leading to his request of Purilite.

In a bid to become an ordinary person again, Purilite accepted John’s invitation.

Subsequently, John personally attacked a Navy Branch in the South Sea, making Purilite transform into his likeness and spread the word to recruit for John’s Grand Fleet.

John knew many were watching him—the Rocks treasure is a fortune that could drive anyone mad, and wealth was just the most ordinary part of it.

The goal was to attract everyone’s attention, while he used this opportunity to find those things.

Rocks was a pirate, not a moving bank; during his voyages, he didn’t carry all his treasure with him, just like Chinjao from the Flower Country, who hid all his treasures on the eternal Ice Continent.

What Rocks carried on his ship was merely a small portion.