Chapter 189: Indestructible Diamond, Top-Tier Powerhouse

Gao Wen's already outstanding appearance, further enhanced by the powerful effects of the Heavenly Man entry, became even more ethereal.

In the first few days, Kalifa's gaze was practically glued to Gao Wen, making him shudder with disgust.

Nami and the others also felt something was strange; they couldn't pinpoint what was wrong, but they simply felt Gao Wen was different from before, radiating an aura that made people unable to resist wanting to draw near.

Gao Wen could only attribute his own changes to the effects brought by comprehending the Six Powers' ultimate technique, Life Return.

For a moment.

Everyone's enthusiasm for cultivating the Six Powers increased significantly.

Although Roubo Luqi and Miss Kalifa were somewhat surprised, they did not investigate further.

This was because Life Return, while having roughly similar basic abilities for everyone, produced slightly different final effects depending on each person's personality, combat preferences, and physical condition.

And with the injection of experience points tonight, Gao Wen's Crimson Dragon Fruit finally reached LV-5:

Crimson Dragon Fruit-LV-4: 14765/15000 —> Crimson Dragon Fruit-LV-5: 142/25000

……

"Detected that the Host's Crimson Dragon Fruit has upgraded to LV-5; you may choose one of the following branches:"

"Battle Armor, Blazing Flame, Sharp Claws"

……

"Three branch options?"

Gao Wen looked at the three branch options provided by the system.

For a moment, he fell into deep thought.

Blazing Flame and Sharp Claws were easy to understand; they were enhancements targeting the Dragon Breath and Dragon Claws respectively.

Both leaned towards the Crimson Dragon's inherent abilities; one emphasized control over the Dragon Breath, while the other emphasized close-quarters combat.

Immediately, Gao Wen ruled out Sharp Claws.

After all, Gao Wen had already developed the Demon Form based on the principle of the Waver Ball.

The Demon Form combined the strength of the Human-Beast Form with Gao Wen's own speed, making it the combat form most suitable for him.

At this point, investing in Sharp Claws to enhance the Crimson Dragon's own killing power seemed somewhat useless.

Instead, Battle Armor and Blazing Flame made Gao Wen hesitate.

"Blazing Flame is clear; it should enhance the power of the Crimson Dragon's breath. Acquiring it would significantly perfect my long-range attack methods."

"But this Battle Armor..."

Gao Wen had a hunch.

This branch ability was directly linked to the Demon Form he had developed.

After some hesitation, Gao Wen made a decision in his heart:

"The Crimson Dragon Breath is mostly used for clearing large groups of fodder; the current power is sufficient. If it's not enough, I'll just activate the Crimson Emperor Azure Star and wipe out the map along with everything on it."

"I choose Battle Armor!"

The words fell.

Gao Wen's body involuntarily transformed into the Demon Form.

A tingling sensation spread across his skin; scales fell off in patches, only to rapidly grow back as smaller, harder scales.

Even the spikes on his elbows and spine slowly fell off, replaced by even finer spikes.

Within just a few minutes, Gao Wen's Demon Form had changed its appearance.

His body size shrank considerably, to about 2.2 meters, his figure appearing more slender and upright, while his weight increased by thirty percent.

If Gao Wen's previous Demon Form merely looked like he was wearing a suit of armor, with the traces of the Human-Beast Form still visible overall.

Then the current Demon Form looked more like a person wearing a thin, form-fitting soft armor, possessing less bestial ferocity and more aesthetic beauty.

More importantly, the crimson scale armor covering Gao Wen's body now displayed a crystalline luster, like jade.

"This is..."

Gao Wen raised his hand and clenched his fist, creating a loud explosion in the air.

Crack!

His eyes suddenly lit up:

"The power of the Demon Form has nearly doubled, and I can feel that the hardness of this layer of scales has improved greatly."

Hiss!

Gao Wen drew Guanshi Zhengzong and slashed it against the dragon scales on his arm, but it only produced a shower of sparks, leaving not even a single scratch.

"Resisting the slash of a named blade?!"

"No!"

"This is far from the limit!"

Gao Wen gradually increased his force, even using Haki, yet could not leave a single scratch on himself.

Only after deploying the Extreme Weapon did he barely break through the scale armor, drawing a line of blood, which was repaired in an instant by the Crimson Dragon's self-healing ability.

"Defense comparable to the level of Scorch Calamity Kaido?!"

"And I possess the self-healing ability that Kaido lacks; if I add high-intrength Armament Haki on top of this foundation, my overall defense can climb another tier."

"Perhaps there is a chance to reach a state of near-impenetrability like Big Mom."

"Plus the Crimson Dragon's terrifying stamina..."

Gao Wen imagined how he would react if he encountered an opponent like this.

He felt his teeth ache.

But when he possessed such abilities, there was only one feeling left: pure satisfaction.

"If I face Kaido again, I might not even need to rely on the advantage of the terrain to maneuver against him; simply taking his hits head-on would be possible."

"The Battle Armor's boost focuses mainly on defense, while also providing a significant increase to strength; nearly doubled strength is enough to make my slashes even more powerful."

"This time, it's not a loss!"

Gao Wen's gaze burned with heat.

The awakened trait of the Red Dragon Fruit reaching LV-5 did not disappoint him, directly raising his immediate combat power by a small tier.

Thinking of this,

Gao Wen raised his hand and opened the system panel:

【Host - Gao Wen】

【Age - 25】

【Identity - Captain of the Gao Wen Pirate Crew】

【Skills:

Swordsmanship - LV-14: 4831/75000 (Divine Speed, Extreme Weapon)

Physique - LV-15: 6015/120000 (Balance, Harmony, Heaven and Man) (Demon Form: LV-17 / Human-Beast Form: LV-17 / Beast Form: LV-18)

Flash Step - LV-8: 3001/12000 (Flash Step)

Red Dragon Fruit - LV-5: 142/25000 (Battle Armor)

Six Powers (All) - LV-5: 22652/40000 (Life Return)

Observation Haki - LV-6: 10153/18000 (Precognition)

Armament Haki - LV-4: 645/8000

Conqueror's Haki - LV-2: 201/8000

Navigation - LV-5: MAX

Sniping - LV-5: MAX (Precision)

】

【Badges:

Captain's Wrath - Subordinates' stamina recovery speed +20%

Rising Fame - View latent potential

Bounty Over 100 Million - Favor of the Great Sea (Used)

Warlord of the Sea - Experience Storage Jar (Allocated: Navigation, Sniping, Paramecia-type Devil Fruit)

】

【Rating - Gold:

Indestructible, Top-Tier Powerhouse, Material of a King!

】

"Unknowingly, this body is already 25 years old; has it been over half a year since I came to this world?!"

Gao Wen sighed, then immediately lowered his head to look at the system panel.

During this period, apart from the improvements in the Red Dragon Fruit, Physique, and Six Powers, Gao Wen's other skills had also made considerable progress.

Swordsmanship and Armament Haki had advanced further to LV-4; only one more level of improvement was needed to unlock their respective traits.

However,

this would still require a few months, but now Gao Wen's own combat power had gradually stepped into the top tier, so this bit of time made no difference.

Currently, the gap between him and the top-tier powerhouses still lay in Haki.

Apart from the awakened Observation Haki that predicts the future,

Armament Haki and Conqueror's Haki were just passable for bullying opponents below the level of the Three Calamities, the Star Generals, and the Warlords of the Sea.

If truly engaging stronger opponents, he would still have to rely on the boost from the Red Dragon Fruit, the future-predicting Observation Haki, and Gao Wen's own swordsmanship.

"Indestructible, Top-Tier Powerhouse?!"

Gao Wen's gaze fell upon the system's rating; he clearly understood the weight of these two adjectives:

"Unknowingly, below the level of the Warlord Emperors, I have no rivals."

"Even against a Warlord Emperor, as long as it is not a top-tier Warlord Emperor or a hard counter in compatibility, if the battlefield is suitable, who wins and who loses is very hard to say."

"Even if I cannot win, escaping is not a problem."

"Finally, I have some capital to stand on in this world."

Gao Wen murmured, the corner of his mouth unable to help but curl into a smile, and his entire body relaxed at that moment.

He took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled through his mouth.

When he gripped Guanshi Zhengzong again, he had casually opened the room's window.

Letting the sky full of flashing thunder and the battering rain pour in from outside, he could still sleep as peacefully as in a quiet room, simply because the power hidden within his body had given him the confidence to face all storms.

What Gao Wen did not notice was that, accompanying the moment he lay down, the experience for Conqueror's Haki on the system panel slowly jumped up a notch.

This storm lasted a full two days.

The Gao Wen Pirate Crew simply held a banquet on the desolate island.

Everyone drank and laughed heartily.

Even Roubo Luqi and Miss Kalifa enjoyed themselves, displaying a relaxed posture completely different from the past.

Clearly, without the World Government, without the CP organization, and without the complex relationship of being pirates, they and the pirates present could already be called friends.

It is just that every banquet has a day when it ends.

So does the storm.

Two days later, the dark clouds scattered, and the sea once again resumed its once most forgiving appearance.

The wind was light, the waves gentle—perfect for sailing—but Gao Wen's pirate ship had broken down.

"The propulsion system is damaged; we can no longer sail."

Roubo Luqi, after conducting a detailed inspection with several shipwrights, made his judgment:

"This warship was hastily modified; the craftsmen's skills were far from refined, and certain details were handled with brutal carelessness, leaving behind numerous flaws."

"Perhaps it would have been fine in the East Blue, but against the capricious and unpredictable weather of the Grand Line, every flaw has surfaced."

As Roubo Luqi spoke, the shipwrights aboard turned red-faced.

They had personally participated in the ship's initial modification; now that problems had arisen, they were the first to blame.

Roubo Luqi continued:

"Captain, there are no materials on this island sufficient to repair the hull. What do we do next?"

Gao Wen nodded, ignoring the anxious shipwrights, and turned directly to Xiang Na:

"How long until the nearest port?"

Xiang Na pulled out her personal sea chart and searched through the permanent compasses she had bought in Rose Red Port and Drum Kingdom, falling into deep thought.

Several minutes later.

Xiang Na gave her answer:

"The nearest port is the Cactus Islands, only five hundred nautical miles from here."

"But according to Roubo Luqi's assessment, this ship won't make it there."

"No!"

Gao Wen shook his head, a spark of eager excitement flashing in his eyes:

"It can make it!"

"Captain, drifting at sea is far more perilous than being stranded on a desert island—we…"

Roubo Luqi was about to dissuade him when Gao Wen's body suddenly swelled, transforming into a vast, mountain-sized crimson dragon.

Its wings spread wide, blotting out the sky and sun.

The dragon's size had grown several times larger than before; its length from head to tail neared one hundred thirty meters, its fine, translucent scales—like jade—glinting brilliantly in the sunlight.

Brilliant, dazzling.

So much so that everyone stared, spellbound.

Roubo Luqi, however, immediately understood Gao Wen's intention, and a faint smile tugged at his lips:

"So that's what 'can make it' means?!"

The others now grasped Gao Wen's plan and excitedly returned to the ship.

Minutes later, amid the crew's cheers, the crimson dragon seized the hundred-meter-long warship and soared into the sky, flying toward the sun, vanishing into the clouds.

At this moment,

even Roubo Luqi was stunned.

A flying ship? This must be every shipwright's dream.

That bastard Balie…

Pfft.

Boring.

…

…

…

At the same time,

the Cactus Islands.

Hundreds of towering cacti, hundreds of meters high, encircled the small town in the center.

Crowds passed constantly, including many pirates—men and women dressed as such—strutting openly, their faces radiating arrogance and malice.

They did not know that from the very moment they stepped into this town, they had become lambs awaiting slaughter.

Countless Baroque Works pirate hunters lurked in the shadows, like leopards hunting their prey.

Vivi sat in a corner, downed the juice on her table in one gulp, her face filled with clear fury:

"Those bastards have gone too far!"

"To join Baroque Works, you have to defeat a pirate crew?!"

"Damn it!"

Ikaleem sat beside Vivi, watching her with concern, unable to help but urge:

"Princess… Vivi my lord, I think we should just give up."

"Infiltrating Baroque Works so recklessly is far too dangerous—if anything happens to you, I'll never forgive myself."

As captain of the Alabasta Kingdom's guard, he had watched Vivi grow up from childhood; his devotion to her rivaled even that of King Cobra.

For him,

Vivi was both the princess he swore to serve, the future queen, and a daughter to him.

"Ikaleem!"

Vivi shook her head, her tone turning stern:

"Crocodile isn't that simple. The Dancing Powder we found in Arama was his doing—he's surely plotting something in secret."

"We can't just ignore it!"

Upon hearing this, Ikaleem's brow tightened into a deep frown.

He knew well that Vivi was speaking the truth.

But now, Crocodile's popularity within the kingdom is even higher than that of King Nefertari Cobra himself; toppling him will not be easy.

If we can truly find evidence on this journey, that would be good. What I fear is finding no evidence, only to have Crocodile seize upon our missteps—that would be truly fatal.

After all, Crocodile is one of the Seven Warlords!

Igaram knew deeply that he could not dissuade this stubborn Princess; he could only place his hope in the three sitting beside them:

"Three of you, payment is not an issue."

"In this critical moment, please lend your aid and guarantee the safety of Princess Vivi."

Jabra raised a hand, patted his chest, and said:

"Leave it to us."

"With our strength, unless we face Crocodile head-on, the men under his command pose no threat."

Kaku raised a hand, assumed the opening stance of Noh theater, shook his head, and adopted a theatrical tone:

"Yo-yo-i~"

"Precisely so! I too cannot stand such a base person who steals a nation!"

"On this journey, I am willing to face boiling water and blazing fire; I will not decline!"

The Owl sat aside. He raised a hand, attempting to unzip the zipper on his mouth, but the next instant, quick-eyed Jabra pressed him down.

Jabra's voice, lowered so only the two of them could hear, reached his ear:

"Stop talking, stop talking!"

"If you keep talking, you'll spill all our secrets; this mission will be ruined before it even begins!"

(End of this chapter)