Vice-captain of Whitebeard pirates

Larson and the others gathered together. The man who woke up had made no sound and was still lying on the ground not far away.

"Dark shadow again?"

Rayleigh frowned: "It feels like these guys can't be shaken off."

"Maybe this is the danger we have to face on the third level," Larson said. "Be ready to face the attack of the shadow at any time, otherwise the result will be the same as theirs."

"These guys were all killed by the shadows. Although we don't know their strength, judging from their numbers, the number of those shadows must be very large, otherwise, the screams would not have been heard until we came over. In this period of time, they could resolve the battle and leave without leaving any trace."

"Agreed."

Larson nodded: "Although the strength of these black shadows is not very great, we have not determined their number yet. I suggest that it is better for us to leave here as soon as possible. If thousands of black shadows really come out, it also poses a considerable threat to us."

"I agree with your judgment," Rayleigh said.

The two looked at each other and reached a tacit agreement.

Whitebeard and Roger, behind them, touched their noses. Why did the two captains seem to have no sense of presence? Larson and Rayleigh made it seem as if the two of them did not exist. The decision was made in just a few words.

But fortunately, both of them were used to this, and neither of them were stingy people, so naturally, they didn't mind.

They only felt comfortable because with Larson and Rayleigh, the two of them, as captains, felt very relaxed. They seemed to only need to contribute a little at the critical moment when others needed help. There was no need for them otherwise.

Rayleigh said: "Then let's go back."

Just when the four of them were about to leave, no one noticed that behind them, the man who had been on the brink of death and had died after opening his eyes and saying a word, stood up quietly!

Not only him, but the people around him who had been killed by the shadows all stood up silently, their oily green eyes staring at the backs of Larson and the others.

A black substance spread over them from nowhere, and in just a moment, it had already enveloped their entire bodies. In the blink of an eye, everyone present had turned into black shadows.

The wind moved.

Larson narrowed his eyes. Rayleigh remained silent, a smile appeared on Whitebeard's face, and Roger also looked impatient.

Finally, someone broke the silence, and dozens of black shadows transformed from dead people rushed towards the four of them.

No one spoke, and there was no eye contact. Almost at the same time, Larson and the others turned around simultaneously.

"Breakthrough!"

A white halo gathered on the top of Whitebeard's naginata, and as he roared silently, an invisible crack slashed out.

In an instant, the sky and the earth changed color, the ground trembled, and the approaching shadows instantly turned into pieces of dust and vanished.

"Heh-heh."

Before the pride on Whitebeard's face disappeared, Roger also began his display on the other side. There were no unnecessary movements. He simply held his large sword, coated in Armament Haki, and swung it casually. A purple sword mark appeared.

A very clean area was cleared in front of him by this sword mark.

There were still two shadows that had slipped through, so Larson, who had originally planned to take action, silently withdrew and watched Rayleigh's efforts with admiration.

After a few seconds, the battle that seemed to have happened but didn't quite unfold was over.

The corpses on the ground had disappeared, replaced by black matter and a stench that was enough to make anyone gag.

"Let's get out of here first!"

Larson couldn't stand it anymore, covered his nose, and ran towards the location of the camp.

It fully demonstrated what it meant to work without exerting any effort but to eat faster than anyone else.

Whitebeard and the others followed, completely ignoring their image, as if they were not the same people who had fought so heroically just moments ago.

There was no way around it; although the smell was really unpleasant, image and all, these concerns were completely forgotten once they caught the scent.

The smell became lighter, and Larson breathed a sigh of relief. He noticed that the scent only spread over a very short distance, as if something in the forest was affecting it, preventing it from dispersing further.

At the same time, they also saw the bonfire still burning not far away.

On the other side of the bonfire, Gaban also spotted Larson and the others as they returned.

He was a bit surprised: "Why did you come back so soon?"

"Ahem, don't mention it."

Rayleigh, who ran back, looked annoyed. He thought to himself that if he had known, he would have stayed and let Gaban take his place.

"Hmm? Did you find anything over there? What happened to those people?"

Phew!

Larson took a deep breath, trying to get rid of the lingering stench in his nose.

"All dead."

Larson said calmly: "Killed by those black shadows."

"Ah, I see."

Gaban nodded, unfazed: "Looks like those things have some tricks."

"I don't know about tricks, but now I know what these guys are capable of."

"Capabilities? What kind?"

Thinking of the scene from earlier, Larson pursed his lips: "They can turn the people they kill into their own kind."

"Tch, what's the big deal? As long as we don't get killed by them, their ability won't affect us."

Rayleigh raised his hand to his forehead, feeling exasperated: "Did you even listen carefully to Larson just now?"

Gaban touched his nose guiltily: "What? Did I say something wrong?"

"Do you think the point of Larson's words was just for you to be wary of their ability?" Rayleigh said, exasperated.

"What if?" Gaban asked, feeling unsure.

"It's about their numbers."

Before Rayleigh could speak, Larson cut in.

"These guys can use their numbers to attack and kill those pirate groups that are slightly weaker and have a relatively small number of people.

After killing these people, they turn into black shadows, which not only replenishes the black shadows' numbers but also strengthens their overall power.

If we let them continue killing like this endlessly, we might end up facing all the pirate groups that have come to the island!

Although these pirate groups may not be particularly powerful, judging from the rules of the first two levels,

The rules of the next level are likely tied to these shadows, and it might even be something that strengthens them."