After a brief discussion with his companions, Eli Winters and the group set out to find a new residence. Of course, since the previous villa had been destroyed—and it had been a rental—they would have to pay a hefty compensation fee.
That night, after dinner, Eli didn't engage in much conversation. He needed time to reorganize and refine his abilities.
In the new villa, Eli sat on the sofa and called out in his mind, "Tongzi, open my status panel."
Status Panel:
Age: 16
Physical Strength: Emperor Level
Speed: Emperor Level
Spirit: Emperor Level
Devil Fruit: Modified Demon Fruit—Spatial Fruit
Spatial Mastery: 51%
Time Awakening: 57%
Haki: Three Types—Observation Haki MAX (can sense space-time, anticipate enemy moves, predict events up to three days in advance), Armament Haki Top Level (Ryuo), Conqueror's Haki Top Level (Haki Wrap)
Haki Skills: Six Conqueror Techniques (Dragon, Tiger, Bear, Whale, Bull, Eagle)
Spatial Fruit Skills:
Spatial Slash, Spatial Chaos Blades
Storage Space, Dual Kamui (Intangibility, Redirect [transfer enemy attacks], Transit, Distortion)
Teleportation, Spatial Confinement, Spatial Walking, Void Exile (pulls enemies into chaotic space streams and crushes them)
Spatial Gate (create a portal of spatial energy to transport targets over large distances; differs from Kamui, which requires contact with the target)
Spatial Ultimate Techniques: Radiant Cross, Spatial Compression, Spatial Collapse, Elemental Imprisonment
Time Fruit Skills:
Time Reversal: Rewind enemy actions 1–3 seconds during combat, rewriting events within that timeframe
Time Stop: Completely halts time, freezing all matter and living beings
Time Flow Control: Accelerate or slow down time for specific areas or targets, affecting movement and actions
Swordsmanship: Seventh Level, Nothingness Slash
Sword Techniques: Point Break Style, Soaring Slash, Phantom Sword Style, Broken Sword Style, Void Strike (everything struck turns to nothingness)
Combination Techniques: Extreme Hunt Judgment, Reverse Lifespan Slash
Combat Strength: Emperor Level (the highest tier in the pirate world; "Emperor" here is a classification, not a literal title. It distinguishes between king-tier powers.)
Pet: Kung Fu Panda, Big Pan
Age: 10
Haki: Three Types—Observation Haki Advanced, Armament Haki Top Level (Ryuo), Conqueror Haki Advanced (Haki Wrap)
Skills: Eight Extremes Staff Technique
Ultimate Techniques: Shockwave, Martial Extreme Break, Overlapping Waves, Spellcraft, Dance Wheel Shield, Shadow Staff, Two-Polarity Staff
Mastery of evasion with staff
Combat Strength: King Level
Prosperity Points: 29,663 (some spent)
Inventory:
Nature-type Devil Fruits: Lava Fruit, Thunder Fruit
Ancient Zoan-type: Tyrannosaurus Form (from Golden Sky)
Superhuman-type: Swim Swim Fruit, Float Fruit, Fly Fruit
Regular Zoan Fruits: White Ape, Honeybee, Shiba Inu
Disguise Mask, 2 Purification Potions, various treasures, one Tech Castle
Special Items: Life Gourd (4 drops), Boundary-Sealing Stone
Eli stared at the panel, deep in thought. He wasn't surprised that his spatial mastery had advanced; it had already stagnated for a while. But the awakening of his time ability was unexpected. He didn't remember ever eating a Time Fruit. This matter would need to be clarified with Tongzi.
"Tongzi, are you there? Let's have a chat." Eli called out in his mind.
[I am here, Host.]
"Tongzi, what's going on with this time ability?"
[Please do not be alarmed, Host. You are the original body that crossed over. To enhance your physical form, the system used the Time Fruit as a base to evolve your body. That is why your physiology regressed to a six-year-old state.]
"Then why didn't I notice it before?"
[Because you didn't consume it directly. Your body had been absorbing the primal energy of the Time Fruit until your spatial ability reached 50%. Only then did the time essence fully integrate with your body. Since your body had already adapted, the awakening jumped immediately to 57%.]
Hearing Tongzi's explanation, Eli's mind cleared. That made sense. No wonder his spatial ability had always felt unusual. For example, in his Kamui space, living beings could survive temporarily. Without time, they would have been frozen. Only Kamui had previously exhibited this effect, which is why he had never explored it in depth. Now he understood.
"Tongzi, how do I improve my time ability next?" Eli asked eagerly.
[You must cultivate it yourself. The system's Time and Spatial Fruits differ from those in the pirate world. Imagination alone won't suffice. You need to perceive the changes at their core.]
Eli sighed. He had hoped for a shortcut from Tongzi, but it seemed he had no choice but to cultivate it himself.
At least his Time Awakening was already at 57%, granting him a few powerful techniques. Some of the spatial and temporal skills could even be combined, far stronger than using them individually.
For instance, combining Spatial Confinement with Time Stop would drastically increase the power.
He decided to try immediately. Standing up, he extended his hand and first activated Spatial Confinement. The air around him instantly solidified into a transparent block. Then, he channeled his time ability into it. He felt a strange energy overlay, and what had been simple spatial confinement became deeper and stronger. It was as if time itself were locked within this small area. Previously, someone with immense Haki might have broken through his spatial confinement. But now, not even the likes of Whitebeard could escape. Once trapped, enemies could only await their fate.
A grin spread across Eli's face, his eyes alight with excitement. He knew he had taken another step toward greater power. With this new combination, he could assert dominance even more boldly.
Even more terrifying was a technique born from fusing swordsmanship with time ability—the Reverse Lifespan Slash. Its danger wasn't just in raw damage; it directly severed the target's lifespan. And as Eli's time mastery grew, the years cut would increase.
Focusing deeply, he tested it. With his current strength, a single strike could cut three years off an enemy's lifespan. And these lost years were irreversible. For example, if someone could have lived to 70, after a strike from Eli, they would only reach 67. No potion could restore it.
For those with short lifespans, this was catastrophic.
Though the skill was formidable, Eli still preferred finishing enemies with his own hand.
Satisfied with the reorganization of his abilities, Eli returned to bed. In this world, he felt virtually invincible. A sly grin crossed his face.