Holy Land · Mary Geoise · Domain of the Gods.
Within the territory of the Jaygarcia family, the area surrounding Saint Valthior's residence had become completely out of place compared to the mild, pleasant climate Mary Geoise enjoyed year-round.
Along the nearby streets, the rare flowers, plants, and trees transplanted from all over the world were now entirely frozen over, radiating a chilling frost.
It was as if this specific area had inexplicably plunged into the dead of winter.
"Achoo!" A Celestial Dragon riding on the back of his obese slave passed through the area and suddenly sneezed. He immediately complained, "What's going on? Why is it so cold here? My coat—bring me my coat! And someone light a heater!"
"Yes, Saint Sheper!" the servants beside him hurried to respond and act.
Meanwhile, his butler said, "I heard that yesterday at noon, Saint Valthior returned from the lower world. Ever since he came back from Pangaea Castle, the temperature here has changed drastically. There are rumors that Lord Saturn granted him a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit with frost abilities."
"Huh?" Saint Sheper froze for a moment, then burst out angrily, "That arrogant bastard is back? Lord Saturn really dotes on him. Even members of the Holy Knights need achievements to earn powerful abilities, but he just went down to the lower world for a stroll and gets rewarded like this… Damn it! With the competition approaching, and now he suddenly has a Mythical Zoan, won't he just lord it over me again!?"
His butler quickly began flattering him, saying all sorts of pleasant things to calm his mood.
But inwardly, he couldn't help complaining.
Even without a Devil Fruit, Saint Valthior would still lord over you anyway… You're seriously overestimating yourself.
Then again, Celestial Dragons like his master were the norm in Mary Geoise, so there was nothing more to say.
After grumbling for a bit, Saint Sheper waved his hand. "Has the golden pistol I ordered from the slave artisan been finished yet? That's my ace weapon for winning the tournament. If it's not ready before I leave tomorrow, I'll have their whole family executed—"
He paused, a lewd grin creeping across his face.
"—Wait, doesn't he have a daughter? Bring her to my room instead. I'll make good use of her…"
As he spoke, he reached into his crotch and scratched, then changed his mind. "Forget it, no need to wait that long. We're going back to the palace now. Go grab his daughter and bring her to warm my bed. It's all that damn Valthior's fault for making it so cold here..."
...
While Saint Sheper went off to indulge in his cruelty, over in the training ground of Valthior's residence, Valthior himself was enthusiastically experimenting with his new ability.
As the Young Master of the Jaygarcia family, his residence occupied an area second only to Saturn's within the family estate.
And given the extravagance of Celestial Dragons, his residence naturally had every imaginable facility.
The training ground he stood in now was where he used to hone his fundamentals and temper his body. When he wasn't around, Bartholomew Kuma would train here as well.
"Kuma, use your full strength. Swing that iron club at me," Valthior instructed.
Kuma was clearly used to such commands by now.
At first, years ago, he had been fearful and uneasy when ordered like this. But over time, he had grown accustomed to this kind of sparring.
Even if he beat Valthior bloody during these endurance drills, he would never be punished—in fact, he might even be rewarded.
That was one of the reasons he respected and remained loyal to Valthior.
His master was broad-minded—a Celestial Dragon unlike any other.
At Valthior's command, Kuma let out a low shout. The muscles in his arm tensed instantly as he swung the heavy iron club in a wide arc, cutting through the air with a sharp whistling sound as it smashed toward Valthior.
It was clear that after years of proper nourishment and training, Kuma's strength was astonishing—even at just nine years old.
As expected of someone with Buccaneer blood.
In the past, Valthior would use this kind of beating to train his Armament Haki. But today was different. He didn't activate his Haki. Instead, he simply raised his arm to block the incoming strike.
"Ice Crystal Armor!" he shouted.
In an instant, frost erupted. A layer of crystalline ice armor formed over his raised arm, perfectly encasing it.
If someone could see through it, they'd realize the change went far deeper than the surface. His arm bones had crystallized, becoming far harder than before, while his flesh had grown more flexible—like compacted snow—capable of absorbing and dispersing force.
Clang!
Kuma's iron club struck Valthior's arm, sending shards of ice flying. Since Valthior had only just obtained the ability and wasn't fully proficient yet—and given Kuma's immense strength—the ice armor cracked with fine fractures.
But the force that penetrated the armor was quickly dispersed. Valthior's muscles sank slightly under the impact before absorbing it completely.
The attack was, in essence, perfectly blocked.
And that wasn't all.
A biting cold surged outward instinctively. In the blink of an eye, the iron club froze over, and the frost spread rapidly along it toward Kuma's hands.
But Kuma didn't seem surprised—he had clearly experienced this before. Reacting quickly, he released the club and retreated several steps.
In the next instant, jagged ice spikes erupted from the end of the frozen weapon, piercing the air before subsiding.
"Phew… almost got frozen solid again," Kuma exhaled.
Valthior, on the other hand, nodded in satisfaction. "Not bad, not bad. This ability is really something. This frost counterattack happens naturally—I don't even need to think about controlling it. If someone tries to ambush me in the future, they might end up freezing themselves instead."
It was basically like an automatic ice counter.
Mythical Zoans were notoriously difficult to fully develop, but they also had a clear advantage—right from the moment of consumption, they granted instinctive abilities.
Take Kaido, for example. The moment he ate the Azure Dragon fruit, he could already breathe fire.
This kind of instinctive power was activated immediately. Further development only increased its strength.
The Ice Zheng's innate abilities were similarly impressive.
For instance, the "Ice Crystal Armor" Valthior had just used allowed him to instantly form extremely durable ice armor while transforming his bones and flesh with frost properties—making them both harder and better at absorbing force.
And that was only in his human form. In beast form, his skin would grow a layer of silver-white frost fur, further enhancing his defense.
In short—his durability had skyrocketed.
And not just his defense.
Even though he had only eaten the fruit yesterday, Valthior could already feel a comprehensive enhancement in his physical abilities.
For example, his stamina—he had been training since morning, yet felt no fatigue at all.
That would have been impossible before.
This meant he could train longer every day, accelerating his growth in strength.
This was one of the hidden advantages of Zoan users.
At the same time, his recovery ability had improved drastically. Injuries were inevitable in this kind of training. Previously, even with the best medical care available to Celestial Dragons, bruises and strains would take days to heal.
Now, however, the bruises inflicted by Kuma faded rapidly.
And then there was strength.
Even though Valthior was talented, he had previously been weaker than nine-year-old Kuma—whose strength already rivaled that of a giant.
But after consuming this Mythical Zoan, when they tested strength earlier that morning, Valthior, while still at a disadvantage, was now able to hold his ground.
And more importantly, he could clearly feel his strength continuing to grow naturally—as if his body were constantly developing. With training, this process could be accelerated even further.
Mythical Zoans…
They really were insane.
No wonder they sat at the absolute top tier of the power scale. Even someone like Luffy had to evolve in that direction, practically unlocking cheats just to keep up.