The Series' Divine Isle Recollection Reveals Why Legends Shouldn't Be Believed Blindly

The adage 'The past is written by the victors' is a key theme that One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda has long integrated into the narrative. Legends often do not capture the complete reality, even for the most influential characters in this story's intricate past. Kozuki Oden was no silly performer prancing through the roads of Wano Country; he acted out of honor and principle. Kuma wasn't a ruthless antagonist who tore apart the Straw Hat Pirates, as well; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, the Davy Jones legend meant more than a pirate's contest in search of flags and crews.

In chapter #1164 of the manga, we see the peak of this theme. The whole God Valley story acts as a cautionary tale, advising audiences not to judge the individuals too quickly.

Myths often do not capture the full reality, even for the most influential characters.

One Piece's most recent flashback, chronicling the Divine Isle event, stands as one of the series' finest storylines to now. Beyond the excitement of seeing icons in their prime, it's compelling to see them prior to when they turned into icons — when their fame had yet to outgrow their human nature. History, as recorded by the Global Authority and recounted through secondhand stories, painted our understanding of individuals like Gol D. Roger, Rocks D. Xebec, and even Garp. But each of the government's records and the narratives of those who were acquainted with them prove unreliable, showing only pieces of who these individuals truly were.

The Man Prior to the Myth

Gol D. Roger may have been driven by mission and the daring attitude that sparked a fresh era of piracy, but before he was known as the King of the Pirates, he was a young man ruled by passion and the desire to explore. When people speak of his legend, they typically refer to his second voyage, the epic quest in search of the Road Poneglyphs that point toward the final island. Yet little is known about his first journey, the one that shaped him prior to glory discovered him.

At that time, Roger was largely unaware of the globe's secret past. His affection for the barkeep led him to God Valley, where he discovered the Global Authority's most sinister truths: the genocidal "contests," the grotesque forms of the Gorosei, and including the existence of the planet's hidden sovereign, the mysterious leader. We haven't seen Roger's reflections about all that's happening in the Divine Isle, but perhaps finding the son of a Holy Knight on his ship will make him realize his place in the world and pursue the truth he caught a glimpse of from Xebec's situation.

The Reality About Rocks D. Xebec

Before this recollection, what we were aware of of Xebec came almost entirely from the former Fleet Admiral's account, each to the audience and to young Navy recruits. He painted Xebec as a vile, ambitious man bent on world domination, someone so dangerous that Roger and Garp had to team up to defeat him. But as it turns out, the strategist was not there at the Divine Isle; he was only echoing the World Government's sanctioned narrative of occurrences, the exact narrative Imu authorized to bury the reality about Rocks D. Xebec and the incident itself.

In reality, The captain, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a principled man who sought to overthrow Imu and dismantle the corrupt Global Authority. We are unsure if he was guided by ambition, retribution for his family, or a desire for fairness, but when he discovered the government's plan to annihilate the island where his kin lived, he abandoned his ambitions of domination to rescue them.

This love for his relatives became his undoing. After facing Imu, he lost his will and liberty, turning into a marionette enslaved to their power. Currently, with what limited awareness is left, he pleads with Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp to kill him — thinking that death would be a kindness in contrast to the torment he suffers. The reality of Rocks is thus very different from the tale told by the former Fleet Admiral, and the manga shows him in a positive light during the God Valley events.

Is He Still Alive Today?

But did Rocks actually die? An interesting idea is that he is still a servant to the ruler in the present day, acting as the scarred individual, maintaining the Global Authority's last Poneglyph in constant movement to keep the One Piece from being found.

The Hero's Secret Defiance

A further protagonist of the God Valley incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured criticism from fans for years for doing nothing as Akainu murdered Portgas D. Ace. That sentiment became even more intense after the timeskip, when he risked everything to rescue the young Marine at Pirate Island, leading many to question why he couldn't do the same for his biological grandchild. Similar doubts have now reemerged with the God Valley flashback: how can Monkey D. Garp serve the Marines, aware the World Government considers mass murder and slavery as entertainment for the elite?

The truth reveals something different. The moment Monkey D. Garp witnessed the Elders' grotesque forms, he attacked immediately. His partnership with Gol D. Roger was not meant to vanquish some evil Rocks D. Xebec, but a bold act of rebellion, an effort to stop the sovereign, who was using Xebec as a pawn to wipe out everyone in the Divine Isle, including it seems, including the Celestial Dragons themselves. This incident is probably the reason Monkey D. Garp detests the World Nobles in the current era and why he never desired to be promoted to Fleet Admiral, answering straight to them.

The Past's Untrustworthy Storytellers

Although the audience are seeing the God Valley event through a recollection narrated by Loki, including viewpoints and occurrences he clearly wasn't present for, I think we can treat this account as completely accurate. The manga may offer an explanation later, maybe linked to Loki's still mysterious Devil Fruit. Still, the God Valley event excellently embodies the notion that the past is written by the victors. This attitude is {