Chapter 326: The Azure Dragon Arrives
At first, his body felt normal, no different from when his heart was beating.
Until ten minutes later, he felt his body slowly weakening.
However, this weakening wasn't rapid.
He stood and paced back and forth, checking the time.
After twenty minutes, his body went limp, nearly collapsing to the ground, his vision blurring. He immediately sat down in a chair.
Thirty minutes later, his body grew increasingly weak, his vision blurring intermittently.
"Half an hour is the limit?"
Rhodes pondered, then released control, stimulating his heartbeat again. Feeling his strength returning, he exhaled deeply and clenched his fist.
"Half an hour is enough. With that much time, even if my heart were pierced, I'd have ample opportunity to mobilize special energy to repair and heal."
In the dim chamber, his eyes gleamed with excitement.
This evolution, besides increases in basic strength, endurance, and vitality, had also yielded many special abilities.
Free control over different parts of his body was one, and another was active regeneration.
He could rapidly heal injuries by consuming a special energy accumulated within his body!
This was somewhat similar to the super-strong regenerative abilities of Zoan-type powerhouses like Jack the Drought, but there were differences—roughly, one was active, the other passive.
"In that case, my heart is no longer an absolutely fatal weak point. It's not much different from other organs now."
Rhodes smirked.
For a normal person, the heart was one of the most vital organs. Even someone like Garp, who'd honed his physique to the extreme, would die if his heart were pierced, though he could survive longer than most.
"With this transformation and strengthening, my chances of winning against Kaido of the Beasts have increased by at least ten percent!"
Rhodes exhaled, a hint of confidence in his eyes.
Strongest in a one-on-one fight? We'll see about that.
Chesterton Island
This was an uninhabited island.
The reason was that the island lacked a stable water source, and the climate was too harsh for normal people to survive long-term.
The island produced a special kind of redwood.
This redwood emitted a unique sandalwood fragrance, favored by some nobles and wealthy merchants, thus giving the uninhabited island economic value. However, it remained sparsely populated, with only occasional logging expeditions.
The once desolate Chesterton Island was now teeming with people.
These people were roughly divided into three camps.
One was the Marines, led by Sengoku, accompanied by Vice Admiral Tsuru and Vice Admiral Gion.
Powerful women always attracted attention and stirred desires for conquest, and Gion, as one of the few elite female combatants on the seas, naturally drew covetous stares from many. Numerous powerful pirates dreamed of storming Marine facilities and capturing her.
However, due to Gion and the Marines' overwhelming strength, this remained merely a fantasy.
The second group was naturally the Red Hair Pirates.
The Red Hair Pirates differed from the other Yonko crews.
They constantly adventured around the world without fixed territory or a massive fleet. Their ship, the Red Force, practically represented the entirety of the Red Hair Pirates' strength.
The combined might of a Yonko crew made them the most powerful faction present.
The final camp was far more complex, containing the largest number of people, though it wasn't merely a rabble—several factions within possessed considerable strength.
Among them, former Shichibukai Gecko Moria stood out most prominently with his seven-meter-tall, onion-shaped physique. His expression was cold and brooding, as if contemplating something unpleasant, his eyes flashing with a chilling glint of murderous intent.
Few of the new generation of pirates knew that before becoming a Shichibukai, Moria had been a pirate in the New World.
Moria had once been a pirate brimming with confidence in his strength and daring to pursue his dreams.
But then, catastrophe struck. His pirate crew was utterly defeated by one of the Yonko, Kaido, and all his companions were annihilated, causing him to lose his ambition.
"Kaido..."
Moria's shadow trembled beneath his feet. He yearned for revenge.
Just then, a calm voice came from beside him.
"Moria, your probability of death today stands at 89.7%."
Moria was startled and turned to see a man with long blond hair holding a deck of tarot cards, shuffling them methodically.
This man was none other than the Straw-Straw Fruit user, Basil Hawkins.
"Hawkins, are you serious?"
Moria wasn't angry—the two were currently allied, and he was well aware of Hawkins's abilities.
"By asking that question, your probability of death has risen to 99%."
Basil Hawkins spoke calmly, like a deity pronouncing judgment.
"..."
Moria's lips twitched, a chill creeping through his heart.
Ninety-nine percent...
Was that remaining one percent just Hawkins's consolation prize because they were allies?
Didn't that essentially mean he was guaranteed to die?
"Oi, we're allies right now. His danger won't affect us, will it?"
Supernova Scratchmen Apoo's eyes widened. A 99% mortality rate—that practically meant Moria was doomed.
"We're not in danger. It's only Moria."
Hawkins glanced at Moria. It seemed the former Shichibukai had some plan in mind.
Moria gritted his teeth, remaining silent.
He knew his decision was incredibly risky, but he also knew that if he missed this opportunity, he might never have another chance.
He understood the vast gap between himself and Kaido of the Beasts.
Even with his powerful allies around him, he was likely doomed to fail.
Another Direction
"Koala, do you really know the Thunder God Swordsman?"
"Of course! I once beat up Rhodes, you know. One punch and he went down. He's nothing compared to me."
Koala boasted with evident pride to the friends she'd made on her journey.
Sabo watched from the side, somewhat exasperated.
He ignored Koala's embellishments and looked around at the gathered crowd, inwardly marveling:
"Has Rhodes really reached this level? A single duel can attract so many powerful figures."
The last time he'd seen Rhodes was during the Paramount War. While Rhodes had been impressive then, he hadn't been the main character on that grand stage.
But now, not long after, Rhodes had become the undisputed protagonist, someone who could compete with Kaido of the Beasts.
Just the announcement had caused upheaval throughout the New World, shaking the entire world.
And as Sabo contemplated this...
A dark shadow suddenly appeared between the distant sea and sky. This shadow rapidly enlarged, and before anyone could discern what it was, a series of thunderous sounds preceded it, deafening like a bolt from the blue.
"What is that?"
The shadow moved too fast for people to see clearly, and its immense speed carved a long white trail across the sea, as if something massive had cleaved through the ocean, creating towering waves.
After a brief moment, people finally saw the shadow clearly. They were first stunned, then erupted in clamorous astonishment.
"That's... an Azure Dragon?!"
On the day of the decisive battle, the Azure Dragon had arrived!
(End of Chapter)
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