Chapter 173: The Assault! The Fire Calamity!

Time slipped by, and several days passed.

In the clinic, the number of patients receiving treatment grew ever larger, even to the point where the wards could no longer accommodate them; the rooms originally belonging to Xiang Keluo and the others were now occupied by patients.

The purple spores filling the air had reached a level visible to the naked eye, like a thin layer of pale mist.

"Doctor, is there any hope for us?!"

In the ward.

An old man looked at the doctors coming and going before him, tending to different patients, tears welling in his eyes.

And the people around him had already lost even the desire to speak.

It was the scent of despair spreading.

Watching their bodies weaken day by day, even when they regained consciousness and saw such a scene, nothing but unspeakable despair filled their hearts.

"There will be."

The doctor with the afro held the old man's hand, feeling something strangely heavy for the first time.

Looking at the patients around him, he suddenly remembered the look in Hiruluk's eyes when he looked at him back then.

"I'm starting to understand now why Hiruluk was willing to face death with a smile back then."

"Did he leave us behind just for this moment?!"

As he spoke, tears welled in the afro doctor's eyes, yet in the next instant, he held them back.

Doctors cannot cry, at least not in front of patients.

He moved through the crowd, doing his utmost to save everyone's lives.

Until...

"The new medicine is ready!"

In the research lab.

A cry of astonishment rang out; a doctor, his expression agitated, stumbled out of the ward.

He felt that everything before him was so surreal.

Having dedicated himself to drug research, he naturally knew that developing normal medicines without months, or even years, of research and experimentation was simply impossible.

But now...

He raised his hand; in his palm lay a blue pill, plain and unadorned, yet at this moment carrying the hope of everyone present.

"We have already tested it on Dr. Kureha, Nami, and that sailor; their conditions were too dangerous, reaching a point where treatment was unavoidable."

"A single dose can eliminate over ninety percent of the spores in the body; taking several doses consecutively will lead to a full recovery."

"A miracle!"

"Only a miracle can explain this!"

"I have studied medicine all my life, and never imagined that an effective medicine could be developed in such a short time!"

"Simply, simply..."

"Dr. Chopper is the greatest doctor I have ever known!"

In the ward.

The patients suddenly fell into silence; the shift from despair to hope caused their brains to instantly shut down.

A few breaths later.

The atmosphere of despair in the clinic was swept away; on the faces of every conscious person appeared a smile of survival.

"It's wonderful. I... I can still live. I can still watch Anya grow up."

A woman with weary eyes picked up a child beside her who had already lost consciousness from high fever, and for a moment, she wept tears of joy.

A tall hunter thought everything before him was merely a dream; he reached out and slapped himself, then, amidst the surprised gazes of the crowd, grimaced while touching his face.

"We... no, this nation is saved!"

"Chopper?!"

Someone felt the name familiar; thinking carefully, they recalled it was the name of the snow beast by Kureha's side, and also the name of Hiruluk's adopted son.

"I remember now! It's the snow beast who followed that quack doctor!"

"Even after we did such things to him, is he willing to step forward and save us?!"

A man lowered his head, looking at his own palm.

He vaguely remembered that when that reindeer first came several years ago, he had even fired a shot at him, the reason being nothing more than fear.

"I'm sorry. Truly, I'm sorry!"

"He is the one who saved Kestda; no, the plague has already spread across the entire Drum Island; what he can save is this nation!"

"The greatest doctor in the Drum Kingdom!"

As the crowd cheered.

Kureha slowly awoke, feeling the lightness returning to her body, listening to the waves of cheers coming from outside the ward.

In an instant, she understood what had happened; a smile involuntarily curved her lips:

"Hiruluk's foolish son, you did it~"

"You are far more outstanding than I imagined, outstanding by countless times!"

As she spoke.

Kureha slowly rose, took a blanket from the side, and draped it over Chopper, who had fallen asleep at the desk due to extreme exhaustion and suddenly relaxing.

In this small reindeer's hand, he still clutched a pestle.

Kureha reached out and stroked Chopper's head, a hint of relief appearing in her eyes, yet in the next instant, her expression turned as uncomfortable as if she had eaten excrement:

"Only good people cannot be doctors; only skilled ones cannot be doctors either. That blond kid was truly right."

"Simply..."

She turned her head to look at Chopper, falling into thought for a moment:

"Though I am unwilling to admit it, I still want you to just leave like this."

"Foolish son."

In his sleep.

Chopper twitched his ears, saliva dripping from the corner of his mouth, yet a smile graced his face; this sleep was both sweet and peaceful for him.

It could even be said to be the best sleep he had had since Hiriluk's death.

With the special medicine successfully developed, three doctors worked day and night, following the formula Chopper provided, to produce the corresponding pills.

After the patients in the clinic swallowed the pills, they quickly improved; even patients with milder symptoms were cured within half a day, though their bodies were weak and they temporarily lacked strength.

Hope returned to Dalton's small town.

And although these pills had not yet been named, a name circulated among the patients.

Chopper's Forgiveness.

Upon learning the medicine had been developed, Dalton rushed over with his people in a panic.

Seeking to transport these medicines to all the towns on Drum Island in the shortest time possible, to save more people.

Around Drum Island.

On an island, a Xiong Xiongdahuo blazed; a crimson demon dragon burned the purple spores on the island with fire.

Having done all this, the demon dragon spread its wings and soared high, yet failed to notice that as the burned spores drifted down from the sky, they had already turned into pink fluff, coalescing together like cherry blossom petals.

High in the sky.

A biting cold wind blew past Gao Wen's eyes; he ascended higher until he vanished into the clouds.

The news that Chopper had developed the special medicine, and that Kureha, Nami, and others had escaped danger, had reached him days ago via Xiang Keluo.

Gao Wen's suspended heart finally settled, and he focused all his attention on the matter at hand.

Yet what puzzled him greatly was that after days of searching, he had scoured Drum Island and even several surrounding islands.

Yet he still found nothing; Moshuru and his group seemed to have vanished into thin air.

"No news from Akin either; could I have guessed wrong?!"

"Is he controlling this remotely, preparing to use this plague to destroy the Kingdom of Drum? But... for what purpose?!"

After some thought.

Gao Wen still found no answer, only that the unease in his heart grew ever more obvious.

He forcibly suppressed it, thinking to himself:

"Search for one more day; if there are still no clues, then that proves the guy is indeed controlling everything remotely."

At the same time.

Inside a certain underground cave.

Covered in mud, Moshuru led his subordinates, hiding here; they advanced deeper along the underground waterways.

"I remember it should be correct."

"The underground drainage outlet of Drum City comes down from this branch; as long as we follow here, we can avoid the people on the surface, and..."

"That dragon in the sky!"

Moshuru's eyes revealed a fear as tangible as substance.

If before he only knew the Seven Warlords were strong but felt no real sense of it,

then the moment he saw the Red Dragon, he understood.

That was absolutely something he could not deal with; he didn't even know how to fight against such a thing.

Mentioning Gao Wen.

The pirates beside Moshuru were also terrified, with some already trembling.

"Captain, are we really going to provoke that thing?!"

"Just a glance makes me unable to stand steady, let alone that it's a dragon! A legendary dragon that can spew fire, unleash lightning, or even poison gas..."

"And..."

Speaking.

This pirate hesitated but could not hold back:

"Captain, we have been winding through these underground caves for over ten days and still haven't found the correct direction."

"Perhaps in the years you were gone, Wapol renovated Wang Cheng?"

"Impossible."

Moshuru shook his head, his tone firm:

"Given his nature, he would absolutely not spend resources on such a thing; he doesn't have the brain for it."

"Trust me, this time it will definitely work!"

Seeing this, several pirates responded weakly:

"Yes!"

Moshuru nodded, preparing to continue advancing through the underground cave, when a cry of alarm suddenly reached his ears.

He turned to look and saw a pirate stumbling toward him, speaking in panic:

"Captain, our men hidden above have sent back intelligence: the doctors of the Drum Kingdom have already developed an antidote."

"If this continues, it won't be long before the arrangements we left behind are disrupted."

Hearing this, Mrushu's eyes flashed with a hint of surprise:

"That fellow Wapol should have driven out all the doctors in the Drum Kingdom long ago. Is it the group of doctors under his control that acted?!"

"It should be."

The messenger pirate nodded, panic evident in his eyes:

"If this development continues, taking over this country will not be as easy as we thought."

Mrushu glanced at him and said coldly:

"When did I say I wanted to take over this country? I only wish to finish what I started back then."

"Besides, my lord Ash is nearly here. With his power, even that flying dragon that has us pinned down and gasping for breath is no match for him."

Mrushu patted his own chest, feeling the special virus spores cultivated over more than a decade, their toxicity and infectivity reaching the extreme. A grotesque grin gradually spread across his lips:

"That they could cure these ordinary spores was within my expectations. But the little darlings nurtured within my body—even at the Drum Kingdom's most advanced period, they could never have been overcome."

"Once we return to Drum Castle and use the cannons within to scatter them, at that time..."

"Bang!"

The pirates were startled into shock. When they came to their senses, they saw Mrushu already walking away, laughing loudly.

This time, Mrushu dropped the joking expression from his face. His entire aura grew even more terrifying as he slowly disappeared into the depths of the underground passage.

Seeing this, the pirates felt their very souls tremble. They exchanged glances and saw the fear in each other's eyes.

After a moment of hesitation, they followed him, gradually vanishing into the darkness.

The next day.

Nami and that sailor woke up one after another. Nami, having survived the ordeal, looked at Chopper, her eyes sparkling with little stars:

"Is this the doctor who cured me?"

"So cute~ Just like a doll~"

She grabbed Chopper and pulled him into her arms, ruthlessly roughing him up, which made Chopper burst into laughter.

Kureha, standing nearby, saw this and a faint smile played on her lips.

It had been a long time since she had seen this reindeer laugh so happily.

But as she watched, Kureha's brows gradually furrowed, and she murmured:

"According to Gao Wen, there is no doubt that this plague was caused by Mrushu. Yet news that Chopper has developed a special cure has been spreading for several days now."

"Mrushu still has no leads."

"Then what exactly is he plotting... Wait!"

Suddenly, a scene that had truly occurred in the Drum Kingdom reappeared before Kureha's eyes. Her pupils trembled:

"Oh no!"

"That fellow is probably preparing to use the giant cannons in Drum Castle to instantly scatter the spores within his body across the entire Drum Kingdom!"

Kureha was so agitated that she shouted these words.

Nami turned her head, even stopping her hands from petting Chopper, and asked in confusion:

"But for these deadly spores, hasn't Chopper already developed a special cure? In theory, even if infected, there would be a way."

"No!"

Kureha took a deep breath, her face solemn, her gaze as gloomy as water:

"This time is different."

"The spores that fellow intends to release are likely the deadly ones cultivated within his body for nearly twenty years."

"Compared to the current ones, their power is on an entirely different scale!"

"Twenty years ago, the crisis that nearly destroyed the Drum Kingdom was caused by him. That is precisely why the old king expelled him."

"If he succeeds this time, everything you have done will be in vain!"

Everyone was stunned by Kureha's words. Nami's lips trembled, and an uncontrollable terror gradually surfaced in her eyes. Chopper, standing nearby, felt the same.

Soon.

Xiang Keluo also heard this news. He had just taken out his Den Den Mushi and was about to dial when his action was interrupted by a violent sound of something tearing through the air.

He looked up and saw a black figure wreathed in flames streaking across the sky.

"What is that...? A dinosaur burning with flames?!"

"No, that is a Devil Fruit user, an extremely powerful one. The feeling this guy gives me is even more terrifying than Gao Wen's!"

"Damn it!"

(End of this chapter)