The Star Train's Journey Through the Heavens

Chapter 204 Star's Bounty
"Thank you for your kindness, but I'm sorry, I cannot join you," Tiger said after much deliberation.

"Why?" Meng Huaifeng asked curiously.

No matter how you look at it, it's better to join them; he'll be safe, and his brothers will be safe too.

"Big brother..." Jinbe looked at Tiger anxiously.

Tiger raised his hand to stop Jinbe's persuasion and said seriously, "Being able to live freely in the sunlight and coexist peacefully with humans is the dream of countless fish-men, and it is also my dream. It is something I have been working hard to do and pursuing."

"My dream has only just begun, and I see the possibility of it becoming a reality. For the future of Fishman Island, I will not leave, even if it means death. If I were afraid of death, I would not have chosen to climb Mary Geoise in the first place."

"Moreover, my strength is considered among the strongest of the fishmen. If even I run away, then why should the others persevere? And to whom will the future of Fishman Island be entrusted?"

“I have slapped the World Government in the face. The World Government will not let me off easily. If I am at sea, they will target me. But if I join you and leave, disappearing but not dead, it is hard to guarantee that they will not target Fish-Man Island and force me to show myself.”

“So, I can’t leave before my dream comes true; I must stay! Even if it means death,” Tiger said firmly.

"Big Brother..." The fishmen looked at Tiger with emotion and admiration.

"However, I'm truly sorry to have to drag my brothers into being hunted down by the World Government and the Navy along with me," Tiger said to the fish-men, sounding somewhat guilty.

"What are you saying, brother? If we were afraid, we wouldn't have left Fishman Island to follow you in the first place."

"Exactly! We joined voluntarily, we weren't forced to join."

"What's there to be afraid of? Haven't we fought enough navies already?"

"..."

The fishmen were all incredibly excited.

"I see. I was overthinking it. Mr. Tiger has a very strong will. I wish you success in realizing your dream soon," Himeko said.

"Thank you. You have shown me hope and a path. It is a pity that I cannot join you, but I have things I must do. I hope to live to see that day come," Tiger said with emotion.

You know, at first he was just a traveler who wanted to see the sights of the world.

He was fascinated by what the world beyond the stars would be like.

His decision to refuse was made with immense determination.

He vaguely saw his own end, but how could he achieve that unattainable dream without any bloodshed or sacrifice?

He was mentally prepared.

“We can’t directly help you realize your dream, but we can offer some insignificant assistance. I can improve your strength to increase your chances of surviving that day. How about it?” Meng Huaifeng asked.

“Then I’ll accept it with a heavy heart. I will always remember the kindness of everyone on the Starry Sky Train,” Tiger said.

He does need help to achieve his dream, and the stronger the help, the better.

“I see that your boxing techniques can control ocean currents. I can teach you some water control techniques to improve your boxing techniques and make your water control even stronger,” Dan Heng said enthusiastically.

"Our fish-men have the best water control skills. How can you, a human, know more about water control than us?" Aron asked doubtfully.

Dan Heng beckoned with his finger, and a huge current of water rose from the sea, enveloping the ship before falling back to the other side of the ocean.

Arlong was dumbfounded, and Jinbe immediately bowed respectfully and said, "Brother Danheng, please give me your guidance!"

Fishmen are clearly not related to the definition of the God River Body in the Super God World; they should just use the genes of the first-generation beast body.

Meng Huaifeng took out the materials and loaded the first generation of beast genes into Tiger's editor.

Unlike Axe King Morgan, the super genes of the first-generation beast form are much more compatible with Tiger, and its appearance only changes slightly.

Tiger himself was already quite strong, even stronger than a typical Marine Rear Admiral, and in addition, fish-men's basic physique was much stronger than that of ordinary humans.

After receiving super gene enhancement, Tiger's strength instantly reached the level of a Yonko's first mate and a candidate admiral. It wouldn't be impossible for him to overpower a Marine admiral in the sea.

Moreover, Tiger's own talent ceiling has been broken, and if he trains properly in a short period of time, his strength will improve by leaps and bounds.

With Dan Heng's strength and level of skill, improving a fishman's karate style would be a piece of cake.

Even considering whether the fishman could learn it, Danheng had to suppress his performance and reduce the power.

Overnight, Dan Heng maximized the power of Fishman Karate, building upon the foundation that Jinbe, with his exceptional talent, could control.

With the same move, the Ocean Current Shoulder Throw, Jinbe can now control ten times more seawater than before!
If you were to say that Jinbe ate a Devil Fruit that allows him to control seawater, many people would probably believe it.

After the super gene was fully loaded, Tiger couldn't help but ask what the world outside the crew's world was like.

Meng Huaifeng, March 7th, and Xing took turns showing Tiger videos, explaining as they watched. The over five-meter-tall Tiger held the small phone and watched intently all night.

Tiger almost regretted it and joined the train crew to travel to other worlds.

At the critical moment, a sense of responsibility and mission restrained his restless heart.

The Wisdom Clan, Fox-People, Pipixi Clan, Mechanoid Clan...

The vibrant, peaceful world depicted in the video not only broadened his horizons but also provided him with much inspiration on how to achieve his dreams.

The next morning, the train crew bid farewell to the Sun Pirates.

"Tiger, you can be kind to everyone, but you can't be too careful. Human nature is complex; there are good people and bad people. Appropriate precautions are necessary."

"Don't generalize. Just because one person is good doesn't mean everyone is good, and just because one person is bad doesn't mean everyone is bad. Just like you fish-men, there are good and bad people too." Before leaving, Meng Huaifeng said meaningfully to Tiger.

“I understand, I haven’t been wasting my years on the high seas,” Tiger laughed.

"And you, Ah Long?" Meng Huaifeng asked alone.

"Huh? I understand." Ah Long was stunned for a moment, then quickly nodded.

"I hope you really understand." Meng Huaifeng gave him a deep look, otherwise what awaited this guy, A Long, would be an ancient species of berserk horned dragon.

The Justice Ship gradually disappeared into the distance.

Arlong scratched his head and asked Jinbe, "Why did he ask me that alone?"

"I don't know." Jinbe shook his head.

Tiger watched the train recede into the distance, reflecting on the help they had given him.

They will be leaving this world in just over two months, and I have absolutely no chance or ability to repay them.

Tiger slowly knelt down in the direction the train had left.

This is all I can do to express my gratitude.

……

Naval Headquarters, Marinevandor.

"Only these four people attacked you, right?" Lieutenant General Tsuru confirmed.

"Yes."

"Are there any CP members on your ship?"

"Ah."

"Alright, I understand. I'll draft the bounty posters for these four people," Crane said helplessly.

Although they didn't want to push the mysterious and unknown Star Train organization to the opposite side of the Navy, CP was there, so there was nothing they could do. Even if the Navy didn't put a bounty on them, the World Government would.

The World Government can withdraw bounties offered by the Navy at will, but the Navy has no power to withdraw bounties offered by the World Government.

"Um... there's another person who hasn't made a move yet, but they've asked us to raise the bounty on her."

"...Which one?" Crane asked, her brows furrowing slightly.

Has it been influenced by the trend of pirates comparing their bounties? This is not a good sign.

"Star, she gave herself the title of Galaxy Baseball Man."

"Galaxy Batman?" He was slightly taken aback and took out a photo from the drawer.

One of those three titles, the Sea Patrol Rangers, it turns out, refers to them.

Although those four attacked the Navy and demonstrated considerable strength, they did not kill anyone and posed little threat.

Let's set the bounty at forty to fifty million Berries.

Setting the target too high would embolden the pirates; as long as it can be explained to the World Government, that's fine.

As for the star who made special requests...

"This trend of competing to increase the reward amount must not be allowed to continue!" He thought to himself.

Moreover, you can't just offer as much of a reward as you want.
He quickly printed out five photos, drafted a reward, and handed them over to the reward office.

As for Aokiji, well, I haven't encountered any enemies.

As for the intelligence gathered through probing, let's wait until the two sides are truly forced into hostility before revealing it.

……

The newsbird delivered today's newspaper.

Himeko put 100 Berries into the Newsbird's small backpack and also gave it a piece of jerky.

Himeko was the only one on the ship who read all the newspapers without fail; the others only glanced at them occasionally.

After reading the news at sea, Himeko turned to the bounty page.

With a helpless sigh, he said, "Zhu Qing, your bounty has been released."

"Am I there? Am I there?" Xing eagerly moved closer.

Himeko spread the newspaper out on the table.

Zhu Zhuqing, the Starry Sky Train, has a reward of fifty million.

Star Train Red Hair, Dawn, Bounty of 40 Million.

Su Xiaoli, the Star Train, has a bounty of 35 million.

"Why so little? Didn't Uncle Tiger have two or three hundred million?" March 7 asked, puzzled.

"The bounty is not only based on strength, but also on the evil deeds," Meng Huaifeng said.

"Why wasn't I included?" Xing pouted, looking a little unhappy.

“You didn’t do anything,” Meng Huaifeng said.

"I told him."

What's the point of saying it?

Turn to the next page of the newspaper on March 7th.

“Ah Xing, I’m so glad you’re here for me,” said March 7th.

"How much?" Xing asked with delight.

"4..."

"Forty million? That's fine too."

“It’s 4,” March 7th said again.

Xing leaned closer to take a look and saw a bright 4, without a single zero after it.

Xing rubbed her eyes in disbelief, then looked at her bounty amount again, almost pressing her eyes against it.

"Hahahaha!" Meng Huaifeng couldn't help but burst into laughter, frantically slapping Xing's arm.

Even Dan Heng couldn't help but laugh.

"I dare say that Ah Xing's bounty is absolutely unprecedented and will never be repeated!" Meng Huaifeng affirmed.

"Wait, wait! There must be some mistake! Printing technology is so outdated now, the printer must have broken down by accident and missed printing seven or eight zeros!" Xing argued.

"Looking at the distance between the 4 and the symbol representing money, and comparing it with other people's bounties, we can confirm that there is no zero in the middle, so it wasn't a missed bounty," Dan Heng analyzed.

"I don't believe it!" Xing said stubbornly.

“I’m keeping this newspaper; I’m going to cut it out and hang it by my bedside.” Meng Huaifeng reached for the newspaper.

"No!" Xing hurriedly snatched the newspaper and crumpled it into a ball.

"Those navy are going too far! No way, I have to stir things up and raise the bounty!" Xing said angrily.

"What are you planning to do? Murder or arson?" Himeko gently tugged at Hoshi's ear.

Xing hurriedly shook his head: "I want to uphold justice and fight against the corrupt navy and evil nobles."

“That’s fine.” Himeko released Hoshi’s ear.

The train continued its journey, passing several distinctive islands and naval bases, including Four Seasons Island and Flower Island, but failed to find one that met the requirements.

Woodworms are something that seem to be everywhere when you're not paying attention, but when you are, you can't find them no matter how hard you look.

Xing finally encountered a wicked nobleman, taught him a lesson, and made a name for himself, only to discover that this country was not a member state, and the world government didn't care about it at all...

The train crew encountered the Sea Train and, in Water Seven, also met the shipwrights Tom and Franky.

Although young Franky wasn't as twisted as he would become later, his true nature was already beginning to show.

Meng Huaifeng tried to persuade Tom to leave Water Seven and return to the sea.

Tom refused without hesitation, saying that a real man should take responsibility for his actions.

Tom is quite strong; he's a fish-man, so he could easily escape if he wanted to.

He gave up resisting on his own.

For the Seven Waters, disciples, and a resounding slogan.

Tom's fate cannot be changed simply by helping him improve his strength.

Meng Huaifeng shrugged helplessly, having no choice but to put aside his desire to help others and respect their fate.

(End of this chapter)