Chapter 125: The True Secret of Thriller Bark (Part 2)

In Fleet Admiral Sengoku’s recollections of the great battle against the Rocks Pirates, he mentioned an island that vanished from all nautical charts: God Valley.

The surroundings of God Valley were depicted with the outlines of continents, peninsulas, and isolated islets, accompanied by clear latitude and longitude lines for navigation and mutual reference between islands. Thus, it is certain that thirty-six years ago, God Valley was an island accurately marked on the charts. From this, one can deduce that thirty-six years ago, God Valley was an island located outside the Grand Line, devoid of magnetic forces. Consequently, the location of God Valley thirty-six years ago must have been within one of the four seas: North, South, East, or West.

After jotting down this clue on his manuscript, Buffon began searching his memory for further details. The next step was to analyze the island itself. Most islands on the Grand Line possess magnetic fields, with three notable exceptions: the elephant island Zou, Thriller Bark, and Punk Hazard. Zou is a giant elephant that has lived for thousands of years; it is not a landmass and cannot be reached via Log Pose. This raised a question: is there a connection between the remaining two islands?

The architecture at the center of Thriller Bark does not appear to have been built by Moria himself, particularly the structure housing the laboratory once exclusive to Hogback. The outer wall of this facility bears a crest—a circle surrounded by multiple magatama—which is remarkably similar to the emblem of the Alabasta royal family. Furthermore, the crossbars reinforcing the wooden doors within the building are all shaped like fleur-de-lis crosses. This pattern has roots in the West Blue; for instance, Capone Bege, who hails from the West Blue, wears the fleur-de-lis cross on his clothing, and Thriller Bark itself originated from the West Blue. The fleur-de-lis cross also appears in Alabasta, one of the original twenty founding nations, as well as on the gates of Dressrosa, another of the original twenty. Even in Impel Down, the World Government’s great prison, the same decorative motif can be observed.

Through the fleur-de-lis cross, several elements can be linked: the World Government, the former Celestial Dragon nations, the West Blue, and Thriller Bark. Could it be that Thriller Bark, which drifted from the West Blue, is connected to God Valley, a territory under the jurisdiction of the World Government? To travel from the West Blue to the Grand Line, Thriller Bark would have had to cross the Red Line. Who could transport an entire island from the West Blue across the Red Line into the first half of the Grand Line? A name immediately surfaced in Buffon’s mind: Shiki, the Golden Lion.

Known as the captain of the Flying Pirates and a user of the Float-Float Fruit, Shiki was once mentioned in the same breath as the Pirate King Roger and Whitebeard, and he remains the first pirate in history to escape from Impel Down. Most importantly, he—like Big Mom—was once a member of the Rocks Pirates. When combined with the fact that the remains of former Rocks members Wang Zhi, Silver Axe, and Captain John are all present here, it becomes clear that the Rocks Pirates and Thriller Bark are inextricably linked.

As he pondered this, a scene took shape in Buffon’s mind: Thirty-six years ago, God Valley was an island in the West Blue. At its center stood a spire-topped building—the summer palace of the Celestial Dragons, which is now the laboratory of Hogback on Thriller Bark. After the Rocks Pirates were crushed, Shiki used the power of his Float-Float Fruit to lift a small portion of the island’s center, using it as a vessel to escape with the other members to the first half of the Grand Line. This refugee island from the West Blue, after being modified by Big Mom, became the Thriller Bark of today. However, Thriller Bark is too small; it can only be a fragment of God Valley. Where, then, is the other missing half?

There is another island on the Grand Line without a magnetic field: Punk Hazard. As this realization struck, a cold sweat broke out on Buffon’s forehead. If this deduction were true, the Navy’s choice of Punk Hazard as a secret research base was far from simple. Buffon had visited Punk Hazard, an island that underwent two major transformations in the story: the explosion he had experienced, and the duel between Akainu and Aokiji. Both events had, to some extent, stripped the island of its original appearance.

At the center of Punk Hazard lies a mid-sized void, the epicenter of the battle between Akainu and Aokiji. Buffon could now boldly speculate that this location was originally an open plain, and the ten-day battle had turned that flat land into a deep crater. Thirty-six years ago, a piece of land was lifted from the center of God Valley and transported to the first half of the Grand Line—this became Thriller Bark. At the same time, the war-torn remains of God Valley were secretly transported by the Navy from the West Blue across the Calm Belt to the New World; this island is Punk Hazard. The World Government chose a highly concealed position for it, hiding it between three islands with strong magnetic fields. As an island without a magnetic field, Punk Hazard cannot be captured by a Log Pose, making it nearly impossible for pirates to discover it. Even Buffon’s previous visit was only possible because he was led there by a patrolling Navy warship.

"If this is the case, the World Government and the Navy are truly playing a masterful game," Buffon muttered to himself before moving to the next question: what is the origin of the island and its name?

Buffon racked his brain, recalling every detail of the story until he found a clue that could serve as evidence. The emblem on the World Government flag, with its interconnected solid circles, represents the Grand Line and the numerous affiliated nations across the four seas. This pattern is identical to the Birka crest found on both sides of Enel’s throne on the sky island. The only difference is that the central circle of the Birka crest is larger than the other four, and they are not connected by lines. The Birka crest symbolizes the people of the moon looking down upon the four seas, and the Celestial Dragons, descendants of the Birka people, wear similar emblems on their chests. In a world where lineage is paramount, the inheritance of a crest may well signify the inheritance of blood. God Valley might have been the very first landing point for the people of the sky when they descended to Earth.

*God Valley* means *God Landing*. In ancient times, when the lunar people came to Earth, their first coordinate was an unnamed island in the West Blue, surrounded by valleys. They named it "God Valley." Thinking this through, Buffon was stunned by the implications of his own terrifyingly logical deductions. If this ship were to leave the Florian Triangle and be recognized by the World Government, they would undoubtedly use force to seize it back.

The West Blue, home to countless powerhouses among the four seas, is also known as the sea where civilization originated. Ohara is also located in the West Blue, home to the Tree of Knowledge, which houses the world’s largest collection of scholars and books. Why does the West Blue stand out so much more than the other three seas? It is very likely due to the existence of God Valley. God Valley was the birthplace of life itself!

If so, was the Battle of God Valley simply about the Rocks Pirates trying to kill the Celestial Dragons? Roger’s purpose in joining the fray was likely not just to defeat the Rocks Pirates; the fact that he pilfered the Poneglyph from God Valley after the war is the best proof of this. "So, only Garp acted to prevent the collapse of the world order," Buffon mocked internally.

What exactly did the Rocks Pirates want? The power room underground was likely the place where the Poneglyph was stored. Could the body of Rocks himself be here too? Buffon could not remain calm at the thought. If the corpse of that man were on the island, the consequences would be unimaginable. If one were to recover it, stitch it back together, and insert a powerful shadow, three of the Four Emperors would effectively surrender, plus a Golden Lion—Buffon could directly dominate the seas!

Considering this, the purpose of the deal between Big Mom and Moria becomes obvious: she likely wanted Moria to find the body of Rocks and use his shadow-fruit ability to resurrect him. However, all these years, Moria had never found the corpse. These were merely Buffon’s personal speculations, and to verify them, he would have to ask Moria face to face. If Moria confirmed the deal was about "resurrecting" Rocks, then this island was undoubtedly God Valley.

As for the thing on the island that even Rocks wanted to seize, it had either been taken by someone else, remained undiscovered, or perhaps it was on the "other half"—Punk Hazard. He could ask Whitebeard to verify this, but Buffon did not want to bother. Letting others know that he had deduced so many "truths" was not in his best interest. For now, it was best to act as if he knew nothing; once Tom finished checking the power system, he would set sail and leave immediately.

Based on his current analysis, the three former subordinates of the Rocks Pirates had clearly lost interest in this place. As long as the three Emperors and Shiki did not interfere, Buffon had nothing to fear from the World Government alone. He had already offended them to the point of no return, so one more grievance hardly mattered. The Navy must have been searching for it for years, which might be the true reason it was hidden in the Florian Triangle. As for why it was later transformed into Thriller Bark, only Big Mom herself would know.

Of course, there was another possibility. When Buffon previously repaired the corpse of Captain John, he obtained a dying wish: "Find the treasure of the Rocks Pirates, and give it to Charlotte Linlin..." Could it be that the treasure was on this island as well?