Chapter 216: Robin Joins and the Ranking Battle Reboots

Kobra saw this and slowly withdrew, gently closing the door behind him to give Robin more time alone.

Huh~

A warm breeze swept across the windowsill, stirred the curtains, then curled Robin's hair tips, revealing a face of exquisite beauty.

Her lips carried their usual faint smile, yet unlike before, it lacked the usual scrutiny and mockery.

It was warm.

Robin's heart was warm too.

The book still held its records of Alabasta's history, but what she saw now were her own bloodstained footsteps along the path she had walked.

Pam!

The book was shut.

Robin turned her head toward the window.

Amidst a sky of swirling sand, two unseen figures continued their relentless battle, nearly altering the very heavens above.

"How extraordinary…"

"Captain!"

…

Night fell.

Over Alabasta, the sky was strewn with stars, a full moon hanging high, illuminating the world as if it were daytime.

"Huh~"

"That was thrilling!"

Xiang Gaowen's upper body was bare, his Demon Form scales crisscrossed with bloodied wounds, nearly every patch of skin broken.

Yet in his eyes burned an indescribable exhilaration.

After all, having a Marine Admiral as a sparring partner might only happen once in a lifetime.

Now, whether in physique, Devil Fruit, or combat skills, Xiang Gaowen had already entered the ranks—he would no longer lag behind in battles against Admiral-level foes.

Only in Haki did he still face a substantial gap compared to Admiral-level powerhouses.

Xiang Gaowen naturally seized every moment to refine his Haki.

But.

Xiang Gaowen's mood was splendid; Yellow Emperor's, however, was far from good.

He rubbed his aching lower back, feeling as if his bones might scatter, his face pale from exhaustion, his gaze toward Xiang Gaowen filled with helplessness.

As a Marine Admiral who had endured Zephyr's training, how could he not see that Xiang Gaowen was using him as a whetstone to forge his Haki?

What if, because of this sparring, he actually raised a new Sea Emperor…

That would be a real comedy.

The only thing that brought Yellow Emperor relief was:

In his perception, though Xiang Gaowen had trained relentlessly during this time, his Haki—especially Conqueror's Haki—had grown almost nothing, a small mercy in an otherwise grim situation.

"To refine Haki, the best way is to fight powerhouses, not to train with me like children playing house~"

Xiang Gaowen said nothing, merely glanced briefly at his system panel, his eyes landing on the Conqueror's Haki bar:

【Conqueror's Haki - LV-3: 7706/15000】

Since his last battle with Yellow Emperor, only six days had passed, yet Xiang Gaowen's Haki had gained over three thousand experience points—averaging more than six hundred per day.

One Yellow Emperor equals six Fujitora!

Though such sparring yielded far less experience than real combat, it made up for it in volume and consistency.

At this rate, in another dozen days, Xiang Gaowen's Conqueror's Haki would reach Level 4, and all accumulated progress would be released at once.

This was also what set him apart from others in this world.

"Just be my sparring partner—I know my own limits."

"So you're not even pretending anymore?"

Yellow Emperor shook his head, too tired to argue further.

Xiang Gaowen taking the wrong path didn't affect him; in fact, for the Marines, losing a Four Emperor-level pirate was a good thing.

"Do as you please~"

"But couldn't you let this old bone pile rest for a few days?"

"Fine then, I'll leave."

"If you're going to say that, it's pointless."

"Heh~"

Xiang Gaowen sneered twice, snatched his coat from the floor, leapt up, and flew toward the Alabasta Royal Palace.

…

A few minutes later.

Creak~

The door opened.

Robin instinctively looked up and saw Xiang Gaowen, bare-chested, casually draped in his coat, standing slowly at the threshold.

His exposed skin was covered in bloody streaks, yet they did not appear filthy—instead, they radiated a fierce, wild aura.

"Awake?"

Xiang Gaowen's lips curled in a faint smile as he said:

"The Marine Admiral has arrived, Baroque Works has been uprooted, Crocodile has been captured; barring surprises, he'll face permanent imprisonment."

"Execution is impossible."

"A Logia-type Devil Fruit, and at that a Suna Suna no Mi, which is considered quite good even among Logia — once it leaks out, within a few years it could create a powerful pirate."

"This place is no longer a fit place to stay."

"My previous promise — I keep my word."

"Come…"

"I'm willing."

Robin set down the book in her hand and looked softly at Xiang Gaowen.

"…"

Xiang Gaowen was stunned, and for a moment did not react.

He had originally thought he would have to do some persuading, but things had gone far more smoothly than he had anticipated.

"'I'm willing' what?"

At some unknown point, Vivi had arrived behind Xiang Gaowen and forcibly squeezed her head through the doorway; she looked at Xiang Gaowen, then at Robin, and the gossip fire in her heart blazed fiercely.

"Mr. Xiang Gaowen, where is he stirring up trouble with the ladies this time?"

"I heard Nami say there's a Miss Kalifa on the ship, and a Gasha in the East Blue — mmph mmph!"

Xiang Gaowen's face was covered in black lines; he raised his hand and covered Vivi's mouth:

"What nonsense is all this?"

"Hee hee hee hee~"

Robin rested one hand against her cheek, and the gaze she turned on the two of them grew ever softer.

She did not know the internal situation of Xiang Gaowen's pirate crew, but just this scene alone was enough for her to judge that it must be far warmer than Baroque Works.

Robin watched the two of them bicker before her, the corners of her mouth curving into a playful smile:

"Who can say for certain about such things?"

"And you?"

"Princess Vivi?"

The words fell.

The hospital room fell silent in an instant.

A faint blush rose on Vivi's pretty face; she stared blankly at Robin, then at Xiang Gaowen, whose face was covered in black lines, and for a moment even forgot why she had come here in the first place.

"What kind of trouble are you stirring up here?"

Xiang Gaowen's mouth twitched even more; he simply let go of Vivi and turned to look at Robin.

For the first time, doubt rose in his heart — whether bringing this woman in had been right or wrong.

But no matter what…

Words once spoken cannot be taken back.

Faced with Robin's teasing, Vivi was for a moment at a loss; she hurriedly placed a box in Xiang Gaowen's hands:

"This is a Devil Fruit that Igaram discovered."

"With the arrival of you, Mr. Xiang Gaowen, this fruit came into being at just the right time; I think the person it has been waiting for might just be you all."

Having said that.

Without waiting for Xiang Gaowen to speak, Vivi stumbled away, and within a few breaths had vanished at the end of the corridor.

"Captain, you're even more popular than I imagined~"

Robin looked at Xiang Gaowen with a teasing gaze.

"Women only slow down the speed of my blade."

Xiang Gaowen replied coolly, and turned his attention to the wooden box in his hand.

He raised his hand and opened the box.

A fruit that looked like countless blades of air currents coiled together appeared before Xiang Gaowen's eyes.

"This is…"

Xiang Gaowen's gaze fell upon this Devil Fruit, and he felt an intense sense of familiarity.

Robin at his side, however, had discerned its true identity.

"Rarer than a Logia… a Mythical Zoan!"

"Alabasta's gratitude is truly generous."

"Ah."

Xiang Gaowen's gaze fell upon the Devil Fruit in his hand, and a playful smile flashed through his eyes.

He had once seen this fruit in the Devil Fruit encyclopedia, on a page not far from the one recording the Red Dragon.

At this moment.

An image surfaced in Xiang Gaowen's mind of Xiang Keluo acting tsundere and tearing out a page from the Devil Fruit encyclopedia, and he murmured:

"The ability of this fruit happens to be a perfect fit for the fighting style of a certain someone on our ship."

"I just wonder what that fellow's reaction will be, knowing the fruit he's been waiting for is right before his eyes."

"Especially now — with Roubo Luqi's development of the Bone-Bone Fruit, his combat power should already surpass Xiang Keluo's… right?"

"After all, before Roubo Luqi obtained his ability, the gap between him and Xiang Keluo was already negligible; add the Bone-Bone Fruit's boost on top of that…"

"Tsk~ someone's face is going to be hard to save~"

Looking at the fruit in his hand, Xiang Gaowen also had other thoughts stirring in his mind.

Several months had already passed since entering the Grand Line, and four new members had joined along the way.

Within the pirate crew, the seating arrangement based on the previous martial arts tournament was no longer applicable.

At the very least, at this point Roubo Luqi's combat power was a notch above Sanji and Zoro, whose development was not yet complete.

We can't let these leeks sit idle; we must find them something to do.

Moreover, Luqi, Zoro, and Sanji have all reached the critical point in their physical cultivation, possessing enough awakening potential to manifest Haki.

Intense confrontations, even battles involving the clash of beliefs, can accelerate this process; indeed, someone might even directly awaken Haki through combat alone.

Thinking thus,

Xiang Gaowen informed Robin of the general situation within the pirate crew, relayed the subsequent arrangements to her, and then, without lingering, turned and departed.

At the same time.

Whiskey Peak.

The two groups led by Ah Jin and Xiang Keluo had just met here when they received Xiang Gaowen's order.

"New members joining the crew, and... a ranking battle within the team to commence in seven days?"

Zoro subconsciously tightened his grip on the sword in his hand.

His gaze swept past everyone present, finally resting on Luqi, Ah Jin, and Xiang Keluo.

If facing Sanji, he still had confidence that he would at least not lose, but the strength of these three was at least a notch above his current level.

Especially that previous battle at the Martial Arts Tournament where Xiang Keluo, relying on his speed, directly pushed him off the arena, was something he had remembered until now.

If I don't settle this score, how can I establish myself here in the future?!

Furthermore, this is a rare opportunity to clash with opponents whose strength is close to my own!

Like Zoro,

almost everyone at that instant fixed their gaze on Xiang Keluo.

That coin, representing the position of the strongest officer beneath Xiang Gaowen, who would not desire to obtain it?

"Finally, the moment has arrived?!"

The corners of Luqi's mouth stretched wide, revealing a beast-like aggressiveness.

After joining Xiang Gaowen's pirate crew, this was the opportunity he had been waiting for all along to become one of the top three great officers.

Yet now that it had truly arrived, his identity had changed.

But now, here, he felt an even greater sense of belonging.

Only that determination not to lose to anyone remained exactly as it once was, without the slightest difference.

"Truly... just thinking about it makes my blood boil!"

"Coo-coo~"

Sensing Luqi's emotions, the white dove Hattori let out several excited cries.

"You feel the same way, don't you?"

"Coo-coo~"

Flapping its wings, Hattori circled the group a few times before returning to Luqi's side.

This time,

it did not perch on Luqi's shoulder but stepped directly onto his hat, spreading its wings wide to desperately display its strength, which instead made it appear incredibly cute.

Ah Jin and Xiang Keluo exchanged glances.

Invisible sparks flickered in the air between them.

The competition between the two needed no further words.

It was just that Xiang Keluo, who had previously held the advantage, had now become the weaker party.

"This time, the winner should be me!"

"Is that so?"

A faint smile played on Xiang Keluo's lips as he said lightly,

"However, before crossing swords with you, I must first go to Alubarna to retrieve that thing I have been waiting for."

Ah Jin immediately realized:

"A Devil Fruit?"

"Didn't you say that even a dog wouldn't eat that stuff?"

"I never said that!"

Xiang Keluo's old face flushed red as he directly denied his own dark history.

Feeling the gazes of everyone, he hesitated not a moment, turned, leaped off the Raven, activated his Spoon Stance, and instantly vanished from everyone's sight.

"Hahahahaha~"

Only then did bursts of raucous laughter erupt on the deck; even Ah Jin and the others, watching the scene of Xiang Keluo fleeing in panic, revealed faint smiles on their faces.

However,

no one among the crowd held any objection to this.

After all, long before the Martial Arts Tournament began, Xiang Gaowen had established the rule that whoever took first place would earn the priority right to choose treasures such as Devil Fruits and famous blades and swords.

And although the first Martial Arts Tournament appeared to end in a draw on the surface, the true victor was still Xiang Keluo.

Yet at this very moment,

Sanji's voice, trembling with excitement, rang out from a corner nearby...

"A female cook!"

"A female cook!"

"A fe—!"

"Idiot!"

Veins bulging on her forehead, Nami could not resist lashing out, punching Sanji so hard that he flew through the air, performed three and a half flips, and landed face-first, his legs twitching continuously.

Seeing this, everyone felt the terrifying aura surrounding Nami and immediately wore expressions of terror, quickly retreating lest her blood splash onto them.

Even Roubo Luqi could not help but swallow hard:

"Just now, in that instant... Nami's Haki was even more terrifying than the Captain's!"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone nodded vigorously.

"That's right!"

"As one of the three unspeakable taboos of the Xiang Gaowen Pirates, this is the level she should possess!"

"What are the three taboos?"

"The Captain's past, Xiang Keluo's washed socks, and Nami's treasury—though the last one should be changed now... it is Nami's Haki!"

"Hey, hey, hey~"

"I can hear everything you're saying!"

Crack, crack, crack—!

Nami cracked her knuckles, her voice cold and sharp.

The deck instantly fell silent; within a few breaths, the crowd gathered there had scattered completely.

The next day.

Within the Bastan Realm.

Xiang Gaowen did not go to find Kizaru to cultivate Haki as usual; instead, he came to the royal library of Alabasta.

Cobra had long been waiting there; seeing Xiang Gaowen arrive, he raised his hand to place a worn historical book into Xiang Gaowen's hands and said:

"You will likely need this thing."

(End of Chapter)