Seeing Lin Muxue disembark to call Ye Yu, Li Cang furrowed his brows, sensing something amiss.
Ye Yu was puzzled and asked with a frown, "Is there something else?"
Lin Muxue was inwardly shaken. She hadn't expected Ye Yu's Conqueror's Haki to be so powerful. She had used her Rumble Rumble Fruit ability to kill over a hundred Man-eating Fish, but with just one burst of Ye Yu's Conqueror's Haki, all the fish had fainted and collapsed. Although they weren't dead, it was still an incredibly impressive feat.
Lin Muxue's tone softened considerably, and a faint smile appeared on her usually cold face. "Ye Yu, I didn't expect your Conqueror's Haki to be so strong. It seems the Non-Ability User you contracted isn't entirely useless."
Ye Yu, impatient and unwilling to waste time, replied, "Just get to the point. Don't beat around the bush."
Lin Muxue was annoyed. She was Lin Muxue, the Chosen One, and she had taken the initiative to approach him with a smile, yet he was being so cold. But Ye Yu's Conqueror's Haki was undeniably strong. If he was this powerful now, he would only become more formidable as he leveled up. For her, he was a valuable asset.
Lin Muxue extended an invitation, "Ye Yu, join my crew. I won't make you a low-ranking member anymore; you can be a full-fledged crew member."
This made Li Cang frown. As he had suspected, Lin Muxue wanted to recruit Ye Yu, and he naturally wasn't happy about it.
The members of the Chosen One Pirate Crew weren't surprised. After all, if they had faced the Man-eating Fish themselves, few of them would have been able to handle the situation.
Ye Yu sneered, "You're not going to beg me to join, are you? It hasn't been long since you changed your mind."
Lin Muxue corrected him, "I'm not begging; I'm inviting. I apologize for what happened before, so forgive me and join the crew. I've come here personally to invite you; you wouldn't refuse, would you?"
As she finished speaking, Lin Muxue adopted a coquettish pose, batting her eyes as she waited for Ye Yu's response.
Ye Yu pondered for a moment and said, "I really don't want to join your Pirate Crew. But if you're willing to kneel before me and apologize, begging me to join, I might consider it."
Lin Muxue's expression changed instantly, and she was furious. "I'm inviting you like this, and you still won't join?"
"No, I won't."
This infuriated Lin Muxue, who hadn't expected this outcome. "Ye Yu, your Conqueror's Haki may be strong, but it's far from enough to make me kneel and apologize. I've come here personally to invite you, showing you great respect, and yet you're ungrateful? I'm the Rumble Rumble Fruit user! I'm Lin Muxue, the campus belle! I have high talent, great potential, and I'm beautiful. Someone as perfect as me has come to invite you personally, and you still refuse?"
Ye Yu remained indifferent. "I'm not like some of your admirers. You think this is enough to make me join? You're not showing any sincerity."
"You!" Lin Muxue was furious. She felt she had been sincere enough. To lower herself even further? Impossible. Ye Yu wasn't worth it.
But she also didn't want to miss out on someone like Ye Yu as a potential ally, and she felt a slight regret.
At that moment, Li Cang approached and snorted coldly. "Ye Yu, you really overestimate yourself. Xue Er has invited you personally, and you still refuse to join."
Ye Yu mocked, "I told you, I'm not like you, a lapdog."
Li Cang clenched his fists, gritting his teeth, and turned to Lin Muxue.
"Xue Er, if he doesn't want to join, forget it. Do you really think he's that important? His Conqueror's Haki, though it did surprise us and knocked out quite a few of our crew members, they'll wake up soon enough. Besides, those who were knocked out were all low-ranking crew members, so his Conqueror's Haki is still pretty much useless."
"Even if his level increases and his Conqueror's Haki improves, our low-ranking crew members will also grow stronger. In the later stages, his Conqueror's Haki will probably only knock out some small fry, and in a world like this, there are too many of them to count. So even if his Conqueror's Haki is somewhat special, it's still pretty much useless."
Li Cang crossed his arms, sneering, "So, there's no need to think too highly of him. Compared to our powerful Devil Fruit abilities, he's far behind. There's no need to invite him to join..."
Lin Muxue snapped, "Shut up!"
Li Cang was taken aback. Was Lin Muxue still not giving up?
He had made it clear—Conqueror's Haki was useless.
Although Ye Yu hadn't done anything, all the man-eating fish had fallen to the ground. But unlike Lin Muxue, who had used her Rumble Rumble Fruit to kill all the man-eating fish, Ye Yu had only knocked them out. They would wake up soon, so it was pretty much useless.
However, Lin Muxue had her own reasons for being so persistent. Against strong opponents, or even those with a bit of strength, Conqueror's Haki might be useless, but being able to knock out a lot of small fry was still impressive.
In future Pirate Crew battles, imagine having a crew member with powerful Conqueror's Haki. Before the battle even begins, a burst of Conqueror's Haki could knock out a large portion of the opposing crew, significantly reducing their numbers. That would be a huge advantage.
Moreover, in any Pirate Crew, the majority of members are low-ranking crew members. So, Conqueror's Haki is very much needed in large-scale battles. That's why she had personally come to invite Ye Yu to join, believing that the Chosen One Pirate Crew desperately needed someone with powerful Conqueror's Haki.
Lin Muxue finally asked, "Ye Yu, I'll ask you one last time—will you join? If you're willing, I can make you one of the Executives of the Chosen One Pirate Crew!"
This shocked Li Cang, as well as the rest of the Chosen One Pirate Crew.
Li Cang immediately protested, "Xue Er, he's not worthy! Just because he has that useless Conqueror's Haki doesn't mean he should become an Executive. The Executives of our Chosen One Pirate Crew should at least be geniuses, people with real strength. He's already wasted himself relying on Conqueror's Haki. He's not qualified to be an Executive. Xue Er, you're overestimating him..."
Lin Muxue scolded, "Shut up!! Go back to the ship and stop bothering me!"
Li Cang had no choice but to leave, feeling very displeased and thinking it was completely unnecessary.
Lin Muxue turned to Ye Yu, smiling as she asked, "So, what do you think? I've shown you my sincerity, haven't I?"
Ye Yu proposed, "Make me the Captain, and then kneel down and apologize to me. I might consider it."
This made Lin Muxue completely lose her composure, and she snapped, "You wish! I've already compromised so much, and you're pushing your luck! Do you really think you're that important? I just wanted to rely on your Conqueror's Haki to clear out some small fry during future battles. Do you really think you're that crucial? In this world, it's the strong who dominate. Having the ability to clear out small fry means nothing. In a major battle, it's still the strong who call the shots, and the number of strong fighters is what truly matters. Making you an Executive was already a stretch, and now you want to be Captain? You're not worthy! So many people want to board my ship and can't. I'm giving you this chance, and if you don't take it, you'll regret it later!"
With that, Lin Muxue stopped inviting him, knowing it was impossible, and turned to walk toward the pirate ship.
Ye Yu sighed softly, "I gave you the chance, but you're not up to it."
This made Lin Muxue pause in her steps, and she sneered, "Hah, do you really think you're that important? If you don't get on the ship, I'll feel just a slight regret, and within an hour, I'll forget about it completely. You're acting like I'm missing out on some crucial power. How laughable."
Ye Yu didn't say anything more and turned to leave, chuckling inwardly. Conqueror's Haki, only capable of knocking out small fry? Useless?
He found it amusing. They had no idea how terrifying Shanks' Conqueror's Haki was, capable of even knocking out Marine Vice Admirals. Moreover, everything he contracted could stack, including Conqueror's Haki.
So, in the future, his Conqueror's Haki would surpass Shanks' and even surpass Joy Boy's.
Thinking of this, Ye Yu looked forward to the day when his Conqueror's Haki would knock out a Marine Vice Admiral-level powerhouse, making even Admirals break into a cold sweat. He wondered what expression Lin Muxue would have then.
Putting these th
oughts aside, Ye Yu walked over to Zhang Tian and smiled gently.
"I'm fine. I'm sorry for worrying you earlier. Let's go."
(End of Chapter)