Chapter 89: Time-Time Fruit VS Slow-Slow Fruit
"That kid is good in every way, except for how much he loves to sleep." Huo Jia scratched his head.
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Mountain Peak.
Shi Feng, currently under control, began to tremble, showing signs of waking up.
Finally, his eyes snapped open. The dream cloud "Shi Feng" immediately smashed a fist toward the real Shi Feng.
Bang!!
With a punch fast enough to leave an afterimage, Shi Feng blasted the dream cloud "Shi Feng" apart, scattering it into wisps of pale white cloud cotton that drifted down like snow.
Bai Han, who was sprinting away, suddenly went pale. "Hurry! He broke free from the control!"
Chen Yu hadn't even recovered from the pain of the beating yet, but he was carrying Zhuge Jing, Dragon Aotian, and Shen Lie—three people—while sprinting wildly.
Glancing back, he saw the figure with bull horns looking like an evil ghost. Chen Yu's legs turned into a blur.
Ling Yue picked up the unconscious Sailuo and stumbled forward as well. "Aisha, can you heal him? Will it consume your lifespan?"
Aisha indicated that it was no problem and raised her hand to administer a simple healing treatment to Sailuo.
Upon waking up, Sailuo didn't ask any questions. He immediately opened an Air Door.
The group passed through the spatial door and emerged in a bamboo forest.
Suddenly, a black figure leaped down from a bamboo branch.
She landed steadily in the middle of the path, blocking their way.
"Yo, what a coincidence?" Su Qingyu crossed her arms, blades of grass still stuck in her purple hair. Her gaze swept over the disheveled group.
Finally, her eyes landed on Chen Yu, and the corners of her mouth curled up. "This road is closed."
Chen Yu's footsteps faltered, his heart skipping a beat.
Although the person in front of them was smiling, Chen Yu and Ling Yue recognized her.
It was the black-clad figure who had fought Huo Jia in the air just moments ago.
A powerhouse at the Master rank (Tier 7) or higher!
Su Qingyu simply lifted a fingertip. Pale purple Slow Beams washed over the ground like a tide, circle after circle.
Within the range of the light, everything became sluggish.
Bai Han wanted to speak, but found she couldn't open her mouth. All her movements were slowed down several times over. "W-What... is... hap... pening? My... b-body... feels... like... lead..."
Although Ling Yue's movements were congealed, a strange light flashed in her eyes.
Chen Yu's eyes widened, and he exclaimed inwardly. The Slow-Slow Fruit?
"Just making you a bit sluggish," Su Qingyu said, leaning casually against a bamboo stalk. "Bullying our little bull comes with a price, you know."
Chen Yu grit his teeth and tried to take a step forward. The speed at which his foot sank into the mud was absurdly slow; every inch he moved felt like wrestling with an invisible rope.
Sailuo had just recovered from serious injuries and was of no help.
The three of them were sitting ducks.
Bai Han had just controlled Shi Feng and suffered a backlash when he broke free; she couldn't exert her abilities right now. "I can't do it... I can't launch a mental shock..."
A second later, the slow duration ended.
Ling Yue hurriedly reached out to support Bai Han, her own arm still throbbing with pain. She had been grazed by Shi Feng's fist earlier, and a purple bruise was already swelling up.
She looked up at Su Qingyu. Pale blue frost condensed in her palm, which she then threw out.
Sailuo tried to open a door to run again.
But Su Qingyu fired the Slow-Slow Fruit ability once more.
The range of the light was massive. Chen Yu tried to retreat out of range but failed, entering the slowed state again.
The frost Ling Yue threw was wrapped in the slowing fluctuations, floating lazily in the air. It couldn't even touch the hem of Su Qingyu's clothes.
"You're not good enough," Su Qingyu chuckled. She tapped her toe on the ground, her figure appearing in front of Ling Yue in the blink of an eye. "A Logia type?"
"Ling Yue!" Chen Yu suddenly shouted.
Using the split second of Su Qingyu's distraction, he lunged forward.
Although his speed was still slow, he poured all his strength into concentrating his Armament Haki onto his right fist, smashing it toward Su Qingyu's back.
This punch used every ounce of his strength. If it hit, even if it didn't break her defense, it would force her back.
But Su Qingyu acted like she had eyes in the back of her head. Without even turning around, she raised her hand and slashed her fingers through the air.
"Ten times slower."
The invisible fluctuation intensified instantly. Chen Yu's movements froze. His fist stopped in mid-air, unable to move even a finger.
Ling Yue and the others could clearly feel their blood flowing leisurely through their veins. Their heartbeats slowed as if they were about to stop, and even the sound of the wind in their ears became intermittent.
"Now you see the gap?" Su Qingyu turned around, looking at the frozen Chen Yu with a playful tone. "A Peak Trainee, even a Mythical Zoan, shouldn't dream of contending with a Master..."
Her words were not yet finished.
Suddenly, she glimpsed a faint layer of golden light rising around Ling Yue.
The light was weak, yet it carried a bizarre fluctuation. Like a stone thrown into a calm lake, it forcibly pushed open a small circle within the surrounding Slow waves.
Ling Yue's fingers moved. Although still slow, they were significantly faster than before.
Even Bai Han, whom she was shielding behind her, could slightly lift her arm.
"This is..." Su Qingyu raised an eyebrow with interest.
Ling Yue closed her eyes, fine beads of sweat seeping from her forehead.
It had been a long time since she last activated the Time-Time Fruit's ability, but she didn't dare use full time manipulation.
After seeing Su Qingyu's operation, she gained inspiration. She quietly accelerated the flow of time around herself and Bai Han by three times.
This was already her limit. The consumption of the Time-Time Fruit was immense.
The golden light of the Time-Time Fruit clashed with the purple light of the Slow-Slow Fruit.
After maintaining it for only a few seconds, Ling Yue's face turned deathly pale.
"Run!" Ling Yue grit her teeth, sweat dripping from her chin. "I can only hold it for a moment. Run now!"
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Monitoring Room.
A flurry of rapid swish-swish sounds filled the air.
The researchers in the monitoring room, seeing the golden light on Ling Yue, looked as high as kites.
Pens scribbled furiously on paper, the tips moving so fast they almost sparked.
Among them, the eldest, Professor Wang, snapped his fountain pen with a crack. Ink splattered all over his hands, but he was completely oblivious to it.
His eyes were glued to Ling Yue on the screen, his voice trembling. "It's time fluctuations! It really is the time fluctuations of the Time-Time Fruit!"
"Localized time acceleration! She can actually control the range precisely, accelerating only herself and her companion without affecting the surrounding environment!"
"She used the Time Fruit to reverse-engineer the effects of the Slow-Slow Fruit!! Genius!"
Beside him, a young researcher began to boldly imagine the future. "If developed further... if a soldier is critically injured on the battlefield, could she reverse time to restore the wound?"
"And prediction! By accelerating her own time flow, she could dodge attacks half a second in advance. In a life-or-death match, that's a chance for survival!"
"What about time travel?! Could she..."
Cui Ye also stood up, his tone filled with shock. "Ling Yue... the seedling most likely to reverse humanity's plight."
Unlike everyone else's shock, a trace of worry appeared between Huo Jia's brows.
"What's wrong?" Cui Ye asked, puzzled.
"The consumption is too high," Huo Jia said, his gaze deep. "The more powerful the ability, the greater the price to use it."
Professor Wang interrupted, grabbing another pen. "Look at her face. She's only maintained it for a few seconds, and she's already about to collapse."
"The potential of the Time-Time Fruit is enormous, but a stable energy supply method must be found. Otherwise, it's all empty talk."
Being the elder, Professor Wang quickly recovered his calm. "But it is something to celebrate. After all, she is a hope."
With that, he started writing on the paper again, his handwriting scribbled but forceful.
The "Time-Time Fruit Development Route" on the paper was quickly filled up.
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Back Mountain.
Chen Yu reacted. Under the cover of the golden light, his stiff body finally recovered slightly.
He lifted his leg and kicked the three deadweights—Zhuge Jing and the others—straight into the dimension of Sailuo's Air Door.
Ling Yue's golden light was already flickering; clearly, she couldn't maintain it much longer.
Su Qingyu also reacted, shouting coldly, "Trying to run? Not that easy!"
(To be Continued)