One Piece Visits the World's Secret Ruler in New Cliffhanger

One Piece loves a good mystery, and it has woven several suspenseful cases in recent years. Of course, few can compare to the mystery surrounding the World Government and its secret leader. If you thought the Celestial Dragons were bad, things got even hairier when One Piece revealed there was a shadow king ruling the royalty. And now, the One Piece manga has revisited the figure.

The whole thing went live this week as One Piece put out a new chapter, and it was all a flashback. Fans were taken back in time to the Reverie as fans watched Sabo and Jewelry Bonny cause havoc while the King of Alabasta faced some trouble of his own. It was there we watched the king speak with the Celestial Dragons about the world's lost history, and it ended with Im making a shocking appearance.

Even the Celestial Dragons are shocked that Im would appear in the throne room with Alabasta's king as their existence is meant to be top secret. As far as the world knows, there is no one more powerful than the Celestial Dragons, but that is not true. The rank is ruled over by Im, and the shadow figure is seen staring down at Alabasta's king after hearing his tale.

We don't get to hear much from the ruler, but Im does repeat the name of Alabasta's original ruler. Lily is her name, and the king came before the Celestial Dragons in the first place to learn about his predecessor. Records say Lily forewent becoming a Celestial Dragon to rule her country in person, and that is how the king came into power as we know. However, his digging revealed Lily never returned to Alabasta. You can see why the man wants answers, but it seems Im may stand in the way of the king's questions. And given what we know about One Piece's present day, it seems likely Im and the Dragons have something to do with the king's assassination.

Of course, we will find out more about Im soon enough. The figure has kept quiet since debuting in Reverie, and there are tons of theories about the figure. If Luffy's enemy is the World Government, then Im is going to be his final opponent. We have yet to even sample this leader's power, but given their tight control of the Dragons, you can bet Im is hiding power unlike we've ever seen before. 

What do you think about One Piece's latest cliffhanger with Im? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB.