Zou!

Long ago, Wano Country was a powerful nation with incredibly rich mineral resources.

Back then, Wano was abundant with gold, earning it the nickname "Golden Country" among people.

However, that was many centuries ago.

Today, the visible amount of gold in Wano is scarce.

But hidden beneath the earth's surface, Wano possesses surprisingly abundant gold and other mineral resources.

Even after Kaido made Wano his base of operations several years ago, the mining of Wano's mineral resources never ceased.

After more than a decade of mining, Wano's mineral resources remained plentiful, seemingly inexhaustible.

In addition to the ore known as "Sake Iron" used to manufacture weapons, the renowned Sea Prism Stone, capable of countering Devil Fruit users, is also mined from Wano.

Through Sea Prism Stone, Kaido even conducted business with the World Government.

This is one of the reasons why Nicolas wanted to occupy Wano - controlling the Sea Prism Stone resources undoubtedly grants significant influence.

After the complete conquest of Hakumai, Nicolas chose not to launch attacks on other regions or the Flower Capital immediately. Instead, he chose to destroy bridges and roads leading to other regions, isolating Hakumai from the rest of Wano. He needed time to fully integrate Hakumai into his control.

On this day, the Sea Sovereign floated in the sky.

Suddenly, a colossal entity appeared on the sea not far away, gently dissipating the clouds and mist around it with a light breeze.

"What, what is that?!"

Simon pointed at the distant colossal entity, astonished.

Brook's mouth also hung open, stunned.

It was enormous, incredibly massive! Words could hardly describe its size. At a glance, it resembled a mountain, sending shivers down one's spine and causing adrenaline to surge.

Watching the colossal Zou, Nicolas observed with awe, but quickly regained his composure.

"Phew!"

"What in the world is that thing? How could it be so massive!"

Brook's eyes were filled with shock. He had never seen such a behemoth.

"Is it a Sea King?"

Vista also stared at the slowly moving behemoth in the distance, equally astonished.

Such a colossal entity, the visual impact was unimaginable.

Even compared to giant Sea Kings, it seemed much larger.

"It's Zou Island!"

He took a deep breath and said in a deep voice.

"Island?!"

Brook was puzzled. He closely observed and faintly discerned forests, lakes, and even buildings on the back of the behemoth, indicating the presence of towns.

"Are there towns on the back of that giant creature?!"

Nicolas shook his head. "To be precise, this colossal creature is carrying a burden!"

Upon closer observation, Brook and the others realized that the behemoth's form was that of a giant elephant.

Now, observing the giant elephant up close, they noticed its sluggish reaction and slow movements.

It seemed that the long years of traveling the seas had dulled its senses almost completely.

"An ancient giant elephant that has survived for over a thousand years."

Nicolas murmured.

Seeing the giant elephant in person was far more awe-inspiring than watching it in animation. His mind was filled with countless thoughts.

Over a thousand years ago, such massive creatures existed. What mysterious being or power sealed this ancient giant elephant, turning it into an island and obedient to human commands?

The existence of this ancient giant elephant made Nicolas even more wary of this world. After all, being able to control such a massive creature even after thousands of years was not something that could be achieved solely through the power of Devil Fruits.

"Nicolas, does Zou Island have the Mink Tribe you mentioned?"

Standing beside Nicolas, June looked at the distant giant creature and spoke in a serious tone.

"Yes, and when you see them, you'll be amazed. The Mink Tribe is as unique a race as the Fish-Men."

Thinking of the various animal forms within the Mink Tribe and their ability to transform into powerful Su long only during the full moon, Nicolas became quite interested.

To him, the Mink Tribe was akin to the Beastmen race from Western fantasy worlds in his previous life, possessing human-level intelligence yet having the bodies of beasts, making them a perfect race.

As they approached the ancient giant creature, Brook and the others felt a bit nervous.

After all, such a colossal creature exuded tremendous power just from its appearance.

"What is that...?!"

In the town of the Mink Tribe, a young feline Mink looked on in utter terror at the Sea Sovereign floating above.

At the same time, the Sea Sovereign slowly entered a relatively calm area of the sea. As Nicolas and the others disembarked, they beheld a whole new world.

"This...!"

"It's a fantastical kingdom!"

On the back of the giant elephant, seemingly isolated from the rest of the world for a long time, they could see many plants and animals that had disappeared from the outside world.

What's more incredible was that they felt no vibration beneath their feet, as if they were standing on solid ground rather than the back of a giant elephant.

It was stable, without any undulations.

"It's humans!"

"What are you people? What are you doing here?"

Suddenly, a group of Mink warriors emerged from the surrounding woods, blocking their path vigilantly.

As members of the adventurer group, they were naturally elite warriors of the Mink Tribe, possessing formidable strength.

But for Nicolas and his crew, they were just that. Even on a full moon night, these Mink would hardly pose a threat to Nicolas and his crew.

"Mink warriors, greetings. Allow me to introduce myself."

Nicolas smiled and said.

"I am Nicolas, captain of the Freedom Pirates. And these are my crewmates! We come from Wano Country."

He gestured to the other pirates behind him and displayed the crest of the Kozuki Family.

"Pirates! And that crest... I seem to have seen it before."

"Right, I remember now. Our ancestors recorded that this crest is related to our Mink Tribe like brothers!"

Hearing this, the Mink people became curious. After all, Zou had been almost isolated from the outside world, and they were curious about the intentions of these outsiders. Moreover, the ancient record of the Mink Tribe being brothers with the Kozuki Family was a long-standing tradition.

"Pedro, you're still practicing swordsmanship. Why not join the celebration? Those are friends from Wano Country, and you need to learn to socialize."

A Mink carrying a jug of wine approached. His face was flushed from drinking.

"I'm not of age yet, I don't drink!"

Pedro replied coldly.

"Hahaha, let me tell you, today's wine was brought by those friends from Wano Country. It tastes different from the wine in our Furry Republic, very mellow. If you don't drink, you'll regret it."

With the mention of the wine jug, the man raised it and took another big sip.

"Phew! Not drinking! I must maintain a strong physique to become a member of the Adventurer Group. Alcohol will erode my body."

Pedro coldly replied, turning back to his sword training.