Upon hearing Xia Ling's words, everyone was in disbelief and couldn't react immediately.
"Cap... Captain, what did you say? Ye Yu cleared it all by himself?"
Xia Ling nodded: "Yes, it had nothing to do with me or Yan'er."
This shocked the crew, and they widened their eyes, looking at Zhao Yan'er.
Zhao Yan'er nodded: "That's indeed the case."
The crew believed it and were deeply moved.
"Wow, the Captain isn't joking."
"Incredible, this is the Yellow Secret Realm, and Ye Yu cleared it all by himself."
"Could it be the quantity type? Ye Yu solved it with his Conqueror's Haki."
"Very likely, there must have been more than the previous mosquitoes, which Ye Yu naturally countered. Otherwise, with the Captain and Vice-Captain being so strong, they wouldn't have just let Ye Yu carry them."
...
Instantly, they all felt this was the case.
Xia Ling spoke loudly: "Continuing from where I left off."
Immediately, the ship fell silent, eager to know what Xia Ling was about to announce.
Zhao Yan'er had already guessed, and even so, she fully supported it.
Xia Ling announced: "From now on, I am no longer the Captain of the Pirate Crew."
This left the crew in shock once again.
"Ah? Why?"
"Is it because the Vice-Captain is stronger than the Captain again, so now the Vice-Captain becomes the Captain? After all, in our Pirate Crew, the strongest leads."
"So that's how it is."
...
Xia Ling shook her head with a smile: "You're all mistaken."
Zhao Yan'er nodded: "Indeed, you're mistaken. My current strength is still no match for Xia Ling. Her Ice Fruit is still slightly more powerful than my Flare-Flare Fruit."
Instantly, the crew was dumbfounded. If not this, then why? There couldn't be anyone stronger than the Captain and Vice-Captain on the ship.
Xia Ling glanced at Ye Yu and solemnly announced.
"From now on, Ye Yu will be the Captain of our Pirate Crew!"
As soon as these words were spoken, there was a brief silence, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
After three seconds of silence, everyone erupted in uproar!
"Ah? What?"
"Making Ye Yu the Captain, this?"
"Although Ye Yu's Conqueror's Haki is strong, his personal strength definitely can't compare to the Captain and Vice-Captain."
"Exactly, if he had contracted a powerful Devil Fruit, Ye Yu with his top-tier talent would surely be stronger than the Captain. But now, Ye Yu's only strength is his Conqueror's Haki."
"Clearly, the strongest leads. Why is this happening? Have the rules changed?"
One crew member pouted, somewhat displeased.
"Is it because of the Captain's relationship with Ye Yu? Knowing they are good friends, but giving the Captain position to Ye Yu, this isn't right."
"Yes, it must be that Ye Yu wanted to be Captain, so the Captain gave it to him. The Captain and Ye Yu must be more than just friends. I think the Captain likes Ye Yu."
"Captain, we don't agree. This can't happen. The rules can't be changed."
"Yes, this will also make us a laughingstock among other Pirate Crews."
...
Xia Ling spoke sternly: "Everyone, quiet. The rules haven't changed. It's still the strongest who leads. That's why Ye Yu is becoming the Captain—because he is stronger than both me and Yan'er!"
The crew's shock was now stronger than ever. Ye Yu being stronger than the Captain and Vice-Captain? How could that be possible?
Xia Ling said, "The Yellow Secret Realm we just encountered wasn't a quantity-based one, but rather a single enemy. So, you can probably guess the strength of this opponent. Even I would find it difficult to defeat him in a one-on-one fight. It took both Yan'er and me working together to take him down. However, Ye Yu managed to quickly defeat him all by himself. And both Yan'er and I could tell that Ye Yu didn't even use his full strength. It was practically a one-sided beatdown against the Tiger Man."
Zhao Yan'er nodded, "That's right."
Then she turned to Ye Yu to confirm, "Ye Yu, you didn't use your full strength just now, did you?"
Ye Yu shook his head, "No."
This piqued the curiosity of both Xia Ling and Zhao Yan'er.
"So, how much of your strength did you actually use? Can you tell us?"
They could see that Ye Yu had handled the Tiger Man with ease, not using his full power, but they weren't sure exactly how much he had held back.
Ye Yu thought for a moment and said, "I'd say I used about thirty percent of my strength."
This statement shocked Xia Ling and Zhao Yan'er. They had assumed that even if he hadn't used his full strength, it would have been at least a bit more than half. But they never expected it to be so little.
They believed him, though. Recalling the fight, Ye Yu had wielded his sword with just one hand. If he had used both hands, the increase in power wouldn't have been as simple as doubling it.
For example, hitting someone with a stick using one hand might hurt, but using both hands to swing it with full force would cause much more pain than just doubling the impact.
So, they believed him, even though it was hard to accept.
Zhao Yan'er exclaimed, "I didn't expect you to be not just stronger than me, but by such a significant margin."
After her initial shock, Xia Ling was delighted, "Yu, I never realized you were this strong. Thinking back to when I said I'd protect you, it's laughable now."
Meanwhile, the crew members were left in a state of confusion. The information that defied their understanding was slowly being processed in their minds.
"Ye Yu single-handedly defeated the enemy in the Yellow Secret Realm."
"Even the Captain couldn't defeat that enemy, but Ye Yu did it without using his full strength."
"Although I want to believe it, it's just too unbelievable. Even hearing it from the Captain and Vice-Captain, it's hard to accept because it's so outrageous."
"Yeah, could it be that they're making this up to make Ye Yu the Captain?"
...
Xia Ling and Zhao Yan'er weren't surprised by the crew's skepticism. After all, they had also found it hard to believe when they saw it firsthand.
Who would have thought that contracting seven Non-Ability Users could make someone so strong?
Xia Ling spoke seriously, "It's true. There's no need to deceive you. I just realized that Non-Ability Users aren't inferior to Devil Fruit users. To be precise, the strong ones among Non-Ability Users."
Zhao Yan'er nodded, "That's why Ye Yu is so powerful. He didn't choose a Devil Fruit not because he was unlucky, but because he had a clear goal from the start, right?"
Ye Yu nodded, "Yes, you guessed correctly. I wanted to recruit more Non-Ability Users, so I kept it a secret. For now, let's not spread this around. Once we've recruited enough Non-Ability Users, we'll reveal it to the world. For now, it's enough that everyone knows I'm strong."
Ye Yu's words made the eyes of those who had contracted Non-Ability Users light up. Although it was hard to believe, it might be true.
Otherwise, why would Ye Yu specifically recruit high-talent Non-Ability Users? It showed that their potential was not inferior to Ability Users of the same talent.
Many were still in disbelief, standing there in a daze, half-convinced and half-doubting.
"Is it really possible for seven Non-Ability Users, bound by a Contract, to surpass the strength of a powerful Captain and Vice-Captain? Those are the formidable Ice Fruit and Flare-Flare Fruit we're talking about."
All the crew members exchanged glances, looking at each other in disbelief.
Xia Ling spoke up, "I know it's hard for everyone to believe, but it's true. For those who still doubt, you'll soon be convinced. After all, as members of the same Pirate Crew, you'll quickly witness Ye Yu's strength."
The crew members found her words reasonable. After all, a lie couldn't remain hidden forever.
There would surely be opportunities to explore the Mystic Realm together in the future.
Xia Ling announced, "So, from now on, the Captain is no longer me, but Ye Yu!"
Instantly, the crew erupted in cheers and applause.
"Congratulations to Ye Yu for becoming the Captain!!"
"From now on, we won't call him 'Ye Yu the Great,' but simply 'Captain.'"
"Can a Non-Ability User really be this strong? I feel even more confident now that I've contracted with Sanji."
...
Xia Ling turned to
Ye Yu and suggested, "Now, let's come up with a name for our Pirate Crew. Yu,
you should think of one, since you're the Captain. The real transformation has begun, and we've never settled on a name before. Now's the time."
(End of Chapter)