Chapter 183: Medicine Has Its Limits!

Chopper shivered all over as if struck by lightning.

He instinctively shrank behind the door, peeking his head out to look at the crowd, his brows furrowing tighter and tighter:

"Such high-intensity training is less like cultivation and more like self-torture."

"Once or twice, the human body's recovery ability can heal it, but over time, it will absolutely leave many hidden injuries."

In the midst of his words.

Chopper even saw several pirates in the crowd who were clearly exhausted, their faces pale, their limbs trembling.

That was a sign the body was nearing its limit.

A normal person reaching this point would almost certainly stop training due to physical discomfort, yet that pirate not only didn't stop, but even wore a perverted smile on his face.

He couldn't help but warn them:

"Even the most diligent cultivation should have limits; if you continue like this, it will even affect your lifespan."

Suddenly, a slightly mocking voice entered Chopper's ears.

"If you can't withstand even this level of training, how could you possibly stand your ground in Gao Wen's pirate crew, which is full of monsters?"

"What we pursue is the strongest!"

Zoro's mouth split into a grin, swinging the barbell in his hand with even greater effort, leaving trails of afterimages in the air.

His words left Chopper stunned on the spot, staring blankly at the crowd before him.

"But... but..."

Chopper stammered, unable to speak, yet he understood in his heart that he could not persuade this group of men who were single-mindedly seeking strength.

Similarly, relying solely on Jinbe and Zoro's words, he could not persuade his own judgment as a first-rate doctor.

Yet, seeing the will burning like fire in everyone's eyes, Chopper couldn't help but feel a sense of respect in his heart.

"Is this the secret to your immense strength?!"

"Even if you bet everything, even if you sacrifice your future lifespan, you must obtain the power to protect your comrades and realize your dreams?"

Chopper murmured to himself, his gaze gradually growing fiery:

"Then as the ship's doctor, what I can do is help you minimize the aftereffects as much as possible."

"Among the prescriptions collected by Dr. Kureha, there are many medicines that can help repair hidden injuries to the body."

Having said that.

Chopper turned and walked directly toward the sickroom, having already made up his mind to use his medical skills to assist these men in becoming stronger.

Standing nearby, Nami, having heard Chopper's words clearly, also secretly breathed a sigh of relief:

"I told you so."

"Not everyone is like those monsters, with nothing but muscles on their minds."

"Hehehehe~"

She let out a few dry laughs, her forehead covered in sweat.

After all, aside from herself, everyone on the ship was a training maniac, spending every day either lifting iron or on the way to lift iron.

Just thinking about it made one feel utterly bored.

"Thank goodness."

"At least I have Chopper as a kindred spirit; we both specialize in our professional knowledge, unlike this group..."

Nami turned her head, looking at the crowd training feverishly on the ship, and couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"As a normal person, my life is so hard."

"By the way."

"These past few days I've been busy drawing maps of the seas near Drum Kingdom, and I haven't finished reading 'Navigator: Three Years to Mastery, Five Years to Expertise' that I bought earlier."

"Decided: I won't be allowed to sleep tonight until I finish it, or else I'll double the amount tomorrow!"

Chopper, who had just reached the door of the ship's medical room, paused in his steps.

His ears twitched slightly, his neck turned bit by bit to look at Nami, and the corners of his mouth twitched wildly.

Where exactly is that normal?

Nami, you seem to need that kind of thing even more!

Nami looked at Chopper, somewhat confused:

"What's wrong?"

"N-nothing... nothing, I just remembered a medicinal soup suitable for you that can replenish energy and relieve fatigue; it should suit you quite well."

"Really?"

Nami immediately became interested, stars appearing in her eyes:

"It's so great to have a first-rate ship's doctor on board~"

"Nothing, it's what I should do."

Chopper sighed, then pushed the door open and returned to the room.

Only then did he realize that it seemed like he was the only normal person on this ship...

No, I'm a reindeer; does that mean there isn't a single normal person at all?

Oh, the captain counts as normal, but he's basically never seen; could he be secretly training too?!!

My life is so hard~

Chopper sighed, leaped onto a chair, and began mixing medicines to replenish nutrition and repair hidden injuries according to the prescription he remembered.

A few days later.

Late at night.

The sea breeze blew, bringing a touch of coolness.

On the deck, the cultivation of all those workaholics showed no sign of stopping; drenched in sweat, they were exhausting every last shred of potential within their bodies.

Chopper carried a bowl of prepared medicinal soup onto the deck, observed everyone's physical condition for a while, and finally could not resist letting out a startled cry:

"This defies logic!"

"Such high-intensity cultivation has not only failed to break their bodies, but their vitality is instead growing stronger?"

He thought he was seeing an illusion, rubbed his eyes with his hand, looked at Xiang Keluo and the others again, and finally confirmed a fact.

Even while undergoing such high-load training every day, their bodies had not declined with the passage of time; on the contrary, they were becoming more vigorous and spirited, radiating a booming aura of life, while so-called hidden injuries were nowhere to be seen, not even a shadow of them.

Even the lights in Nami's room were still on, clearly indicating she was still burying herself in her navigation textbooks.

Hearing Chopper's exclamation, Ah Jin could not help but reveal a faint smile at the corner of his mouth and said lightly:

"There is nothing pirates cannot do—didn't you say that yourself once?"

"Doctor Chopper?"

Chopper froze, his eyes shining like stars, filled with brilliance:

"This is what it means to be a pirate?!"

"This is what it means to be a pirate."

Ah Jin's tone was firm as he extended his right hand toward Chopper and said:

"Earlier, I overheard the Captain mention casually that we must learn to solve problems at their root; so, as a doctor, what must you do to achieve that?!"

"I understand!"

In Chopper's mind, a flash of lightning struck.

He felt a tingling sensation rush through his entire body, his pupils trembling continuously from excitement, while he muttered softly:

"As a doctor, the only way to solve problems at their root is to prevent companions from getting injured."

"And the best method to accomplish this is to defeat all opponents before any of our companions can be harmed!"

"I understand! I understand it all!"

The more he spoke, the brighter Chopper's eyes became, for he had finally found the path in his heart:

"Medical arts have limits!"

"Because no doctor can bring the dead back to life, but I can eliminate all dangers before my companions are ever injured!"

"This is true medical art!"

"In other words... treating illness before it arises?!"

He looked at Ah Jin and said with a firm tone:

"Captain Ah Jin, I want to join you!"

"I want to obtain power greater than anyone else's, eliminating all danger factors before my companions can be injured."

"This is the so-called panacea capable of curing any disease!"

"As long as no one falls ill, all diseases are cured!"

"I have attained enlightenment!"

On the deck.

Everyone looked at Chopper at the cabin entrance, who seemed to be undergoing some profound realization; though they did not quite understand what he was muttering, they all simultaneously displayed looks of approval.

"Although I don't know what you're mumbling about, that look, that posture, that spirit... I approve of you!"

A burly pirate, with arms crossed over his chest and ridiculously oversized pectoral muscles trembling continuously, looked at Chopper with a hint of a smile in his eyes.

"Indeed!"

"As long as one becomes the strongest, one can avoid injury!"

Others who had grasped Chopper's philosophy nodded one after another, expressing their agreement:

"As long as no one gets injured, that is absolutely perfect medical art... a profound understanding!"

"One can even extend this logic further: if we defeat all opponents, there will be no enemies and no danger!"

With everyone exchanging remarks, the atmosphere on the deck immediately became lively.

Standing amidst the crowd, Xiang Keluo's mouth twitched repeatedly:

"What a mess of nonsense..."

"These people... are becoming more and more obsessed!"

He vaguely remembered.

In the beginning, he and these pirates had trained desperately only for the sake of shares in the pirate crew and fighting for positions within the group.

Yet after merely a few months had passed, the atmosphere within the pirate crew had gradually begun to feel off.

Because they had fallen in love with the feeling of cultivation itself.

Breaking through physical limits, torn muscles regrowing, strength increasing bit by bit—all of this had captivated these pirates.

It was simply, simply, simply as if they were addicted!

Thinking of this.

Xiang Keluo took a deep breath and looked at Chopper again, his heart suddenly startled:

"This newcomer has only joined for such a short time, yet he has already been assimilated?"

"No."

"People like me, unwilling to remain beneath others, or undercover agents like Roubo Luqi, have all been directly or indirectly dragged into this endless competition!"

"Even... we have no choice but to participate!"

"Even if I secure the first-place ranking, I cannot afford the slightest relaxation, after all, monster newcomers like Zoro and Sanji are watching the position beneath my butt every single moment."

"And the starting point of all this..."

Xiang Keluo fell into deep thought.

Scenes flashed before his eyes of the time Gao Wen announced the ranking competition and the team's profit sharing within the pirate crew.

He felt nothing but a chill running down his spine.

"That guy Gao Wen, did he calculate even this point from the very beginning?! Did he personally create an environment within the pirate crew where internal competition was unavoidable?!"

"Using a pair of invisible great hands to manipulate every single person in the pirate crew!"

"Hiss—!"

Xiang Keluo sucked in a cold breath, his tone even trembling slightly:

"That guy Gao Wen, not only possesses talent that can be called perverted, but he has also calculated the human heart with crystal clarity; the cultivation before us has become a battlefield we cannot abandon!"

"Is everything up until now part of your calculations?!"

"Too terrifying!"

At this moment.

In Xiang Keluo's eyes, he had completely seen through Gao Wen's schemes, and had even found the purpose behind why Gao Wen would do such a thing:

"Is it to make us catch up to your footsteps, so we won't be like those old folks from the East Sea, unable to cope with future battles and forced to leave?!"

"Truly..."

"How could I possibly fall in a place like this?!"

Speaking thus.

Xiang Keluo looked down at his own legs.

After a day of cultivation, plus over a ton of weight on his lower legs, his legs were constantly trembling from exhaustion, with blood vessels bursting in many places.

Yet Xiang Keluo's eyes revealed dissatisfaction with himself:

"How can I be so weak?!"

Xiang Keluo increased his weight once more; as one lead bar after another was placed into the weight bags, the deck beneath his feet began to depress slightly.

Only after he exerted all his strength to jump and could barely lift himself a few centimeters off the ground did he nod in satisfaction, turning his attention to the cultivation ahead.

"Hm?!"

Seeing this, Ah Jin raised an eyebrow, interpreting Xiang Keluo's sudden change as a provocation.

Ever since consuming the Bone-Bone Fruit, Ah Jin's combat power had advanced by leaps and bounds; believing he would not lose to Xiang Keluo, how could he accept the other party surpassing him in training volume?!

"Interesting!"

"I'm in!"

With that, Ah Jin also increased the weight blocks on his body, the quantity even more exaggerated than Xiang Keluo's, to the point where the bones throughout his entire body emitted cracking sounds.

The heavy pressure made his face flush red, yet he still forced a calm demeanor:

"Isn't this quite easy?!"

"One, two, three..."

On the deck.

Sounds resembling Ah Jin straining on the toilet immediately rang out.

Seeing this, Zoro, Sanji, and Roubo Luqi hesitated not a bit, directly choosing to follow the two and increase their cultivation load.

"Oh—!!!!"

"The senior officers have all started extra training!"

"We cannot slack off even half a bit!"

Everyone immediately became fired up.

Sounds like ghosts weeping and wolves howling echoed from the deck, continuing until two-thirty in the morning before finally ceasing.

Even with the badge's bonus accelerating their physical recovery, they were exhausted enough to gasp, their bodies pushed to the limit until they could not even move a finger.

They simply lay down randomly on the deck and fell into deep sleep.

"So this is what it means to be a pirate?!"

Chopper, having observed their cultivation and moved by everyone's spirit, personally served each of them medicines he had concocted to relieve fatigue and heal hidden injuries.

In his mind, he even began to imagine the scene of his own cultivation tomorrow.

At the same time.

Nami stretched her waist, looking at the finely drawn nautical chart on the table; she sniffed the scent of ink and brush, and a look of satisfaction floated onto her face:

"The nautical chart of the Drum Kingdom is finally complete!"

"Perfect!"

"Even among the charts I have drawn, this counts as one of the few Many Masterpieces!"

As she spoke.

A sea breeze blew in from outside the window, striking Nami's face, bringing a trace of coolness that refreshed the heart and spleen.

Nami turned her head to look at the deck outside the window, her gaze immediately landing on Chopper, who was distributing medicinal soup to everyone.

Looking at the small, busy reindeer amidst the crowd, the corner of Nami's mouth couldn't help but curl into a slight smile as she said:

"Thank goodness."

"There is still someone normal on the ship like me."

She patted her chest, which still couldn't be called magnificent but had grown a size larger than half a year ago, revealing an expression of lingering fear.

"This way, I'll have someone in the future I can actually talk to, instead of being like those guys whose heads are full of nothing but muscles or men, indulging in cultivation all day long."

The moment she thought of this, a sincere smile appeared on Nami's face.

Little did she expect that early the next morning, amidst the great army of cultivators, she would spot a reindeer-human built as sturdy as an orangutan.

(End of Chapter)