They walked inland along the coastline, passed through a dense jungle, and finally arrived in front of a hidden cave.
Immediately after, the staff behind them stepped forward and pushed open the sealed stone door, revealing an empty warehouse. Only a few scattered boxes of phones were piled in the corner.
Morgans looked at the empty warehouse, a trace of helplessness on his face. He had expected the phones to sell fast, but he hadn't thought they'd sell this fast.
Ron stepped into the warehouse alone, leaving Morgans and the others waiting outside.
A moment later, he completed the purchase through the system store.
Money wasn't a problem at all. His share of the TikTok revenue gave him so much cash he couldn't even spend it all. Ron didn't even bother counting the string of zeros—as long as he could buy more phones, that was enough.
Suddenly, a dark vortex appeared out of thin air at the top of the cave. It was only fist-sized at first but rapidly expanded to a diameter of over ten meters.
The next second, phones began pouring out of the vortex like a waterfall. The thunderous roar echoed through the entire cave.
Brand-new phone boxes rained down like snowflakes, quickly forming a small mountain, then growing into hills, until they nearly filled the whole cave.
Ron calmly walked out of the warehouse, casually patting away invisible dust from his clothes.
"One billion units. That should last you a while."
His tone was as calm as if he'd just poured a cup of tea.
"O-One billion?! I gotta see this." Morgans was so shocked he could hardly believe what he heard.
He rushed into the warehouse. When he saw the mountain of phones, all his feathers stood on end, his wings frozen mid-flap, completely stunned.
Several minutes later, Morgans finally snapped out of it and stumbled back out, his wings trembling with excitement.
"O-One billion?! T-This should be enough to sell for a while!"
"So, how should we set the price?" Morgans asked, his eyes filled with anticipation.
"Up to you," Ron replied with a faint smile, his tone easygoing. He knew Morgans would naturally price them based on the market. All Ron had to do was make sure there was enough supply for everyone to afford them.
...
Three days later
Ron stood on the deck of the World Economic News Paper's airship, the wind brushing past his face with a refreshing chill.
He chatted casually with Morgans, both holding glasses of wine, enjoying this rare moment of peace.
For the past few days, Ron had been reminiscing with Morgans aboard the airship, laughing over past stories.
Just then, Ron glanced at his phone. The number of TikTok users had already surpassed ninety-seven million, causing a faint smile to tug at the corner of his lips.
TikTok's user base was still growing.
Behind them, the News Coos were busy transporting boxes of phones into the airship's cargo hold. Morgans flapped his wings excitedly as he watched:
"Ron, look! Big news! This is definitely big news!"
Suddenly, a push notification popped up.
Ron tapped the video. Smoker appeared onscreen, standing before the Alabasta Royal Palace, holding up evidence of Dance Powder and revealing it to the public.
In the video, Smoker's stern voice and the undeniable evidence provided by the Royal Guard quickly pushed the clip to the top of TikTok's trending list in just ten minutes.
"The Seven Warlord of the Sea, Crocodile, is the true mastermind behind this country's civil unrest!" Smoker's voice echoed in the video, each word carrying enormous weight, striking straight to the hearts of the people.
Ron lightly slid his finger across the screen, watching the comments explode:
> "What?! I knew these Warlords were shady, but I didn't think they'd get exposed like this."
> "No wonder Alabasta's been dry for three years! With that crap around, rain would be a miracle!"
> "What's the Navy even doing? How is someone like this still a Warlord?!"
> "They're pirates, duh. Of course they'd pull something like this."
> "Man, I feel bad for the people of Alabasta."
...
Ron stared at the comments, deep in thought.
He knew this wasn't just some viral news drop—this video could spark a domino effect.
With Crocodile's identity exposed, pressure on the Navy would skyrocket.
And TikTok, as the platform where it all broke, was becoming even more influential.
...
Marine Headquarters, Marineford
The afternoon sun filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Fleet Admiral's office, bathing everything in warm golden light, giving the illusion of calm.
That peace didn't last long.
Sengoku was half-reclined in his oversized leather chair, glasses slipping to the tip of his nose, slowly scrolling through his phone.
Beneath his furrowed brows, he was reviewing each video carefully: a food shortage on an island in the South Blue, black market trades in the West Blue, strange weather patterns on the Grand Line… Every clip was a piece of intelligence.
Suddenly, an urgent message popped up in the Marines' high-level group chat.
Sengoku's finger froze mid-scroll. Smoker's serious face reflected in his lenses.
"The Seven Warlord of the Sea, Crocodile, is involved in rebellion. To prevent the Alabasta civil war from escalating, I've released a video exposing his crimes to the public. We're attempting to apprehend him now. Requesting reinforcement from HQ!"
"Damn it!" Sengoku slammed the table and shot to his feet. The solid wood desk cracked from the impact.
He quickly opened Smoker's attached video: the screen showed the underground vault in the Alabasta Royal Palace stacked with Dance Powder, footage of Crocodile secretly meeting with the rebel leader, and falsified rainfall records… All indisputable evidence!
The office door slammed open. Before the messenger could even speak, Sengoku had already ripped off his cloak and bellowed,
"Emergency meeting! All Vice Admirals and above, report within five minutes!"
His roar made the windowpanes rattle. Even the Marines on guard outside instinctively stood straighter.
In the war room, Sengoku shared Smoker's video with everyone present.
Akainu, who had reluctantly learned how to use a phone, now found it indispensable. At first, he had sneered at it, but after actually using it, he was hooked.
It wasn't just a tool to receive orders—it let him monitor the world in real time, and serve his "Absolute Justice" at any moment.
Now, watching the Alabasta video, his anger surged. His fist ignited with molten lava, and glowing magma dripped onto the floor, burning deep scorch marks.
"The Seven Warlords system is a mistake!"
"For once, I agree with you," Aokiji said, reclining with his hands behind his head. He strongly supported Akainu's take.
The Warlords were pirates from the start. Who thought legitimizing them was ever a good idea?
Kizaru was still staring at his phone, scrolling lazily through videos. He had no interest in getting involved. If he had to jump on every crisis like this, what was the point of retiring later? Might as well work until the grave.
The rest of the officers also watched with dark expressions, anger brewing over Crocodile's actions.
"Kuzan!" Sengoku slammed his fist on the strategic map, denting it right over Alabasta. "You are to depart immediately! Apprehend Crocodile and bring him to justice!"
(To be continued.)