Chapter 280: Dominant Body

"And according to our latest intelligence, the person behind the Martial Arts Grand Tournament is none other than the Knight, Gao Wen!"

Tesoro frowned slightly, raising a hand to accept the newspaper handed to him by Baccara.

He opened it to take a look.

What met his eyes was a photograph of a young, handsome man possessing an aura of majesty difficult to describe in words.

It was unmistakably Gao Wen, who had appeared in Water Seven.

However.

Looking at this face on the newspaper, Tesoro's eyes carried an indescribable hint of contempt.

"In times like these, there is actually a Warlord of the Sea who would respond to the World Government's call, willing to sacrifice his life to become their lapdog."

The movie based on Gao Wen was something he had not only watched but was also one of the financial backers behind the production company.

In fact, the reason that movie was able to be filmed and released normally was due to Tesoro's behind-the-scenes promotion.

This was solely because, in the Gao Wen of the story, he had seen a reflection of his former self.

A man rendered powerless, forced by oppressive authority to lose his beloved; such experiences almost completely overlapped with Tesoro's own past as a slave.

He had originally thought Gao Wen should be the one existence most capable of understanding him, but it now appeared otherwise.

"Even after experiencing such a past, even though that woman sacrificed her own life to let this fellow survive, what he ultimately gained was..."

"Just another loyal hound of the World Government?!"

"He has forgotten his lover, but I will not!"

Baccara opened her mouth, but looking at Tesoro before her, what came to mind were the countless treasures Tesoro had sent to Mary Geoise over these years.

How are you... any different from him?

These words, however, Baccara ultimately did not speak aloud.

She was merely a pirate; currently under Tesoro's command, she sought only treasure, and naturally would not offend her benefactor over this.

"Boss, regarding our plan to seize the Martial Arts Grand Tournament project, should we call it off or..."

"No!"

Snap!

Tesoro snapped the newspaper shut in his hands.

After taking a deep breath, he once again resumed his usual calm demeanor as a formidable leader.

Although Tesoro's initial dream was to pursue music and become a world-renowned superstar, a person's talents often do not lie in the direction they expect.

What he was truly skilled at was business.

Thus, even though his heart was filled with extreme anger at this moment, upon seeing tangible profits, he instead calmed down.

With money, I can buy everything!

An experience like losing Stella must absolutely never happen a second time!

"Change the strategy!"

"Abandon the approach of attempting to completely control the Martial Arts Grand Tournament; that is impossible, and Knight Gao Wen will not easily relinquish control."

"We will choose to invest capital, leveraging the platform of the Martial Arts Grand Tournament to extract gambling profits from across the entire world."

"Understood, Boss."

Baccara placed one hand over her chest and bowed to Tesoro; just as she was about to turn and leave, Tesoro's voice reached her ears:

"By the way, stop screening that movie."

Baccara froze, somewhat confused.

"The movie adapted from the story with Knight Gao Wen as its prototype."

"Yes!"

In the Grand Line, glaciers stretched endlessly to the very limit of vision.

A group of survivors from Water Seven advanced laboriously along the direction of the glaciers.

Whoosh—!

A News Coo swept across the sky; after dropping off a newspaper and accepting several banknotes from Gao Wen's hand, it flapped its wings again to fly toward its next target.

"Lionheart Knight..."

Gao Wen looked at the title plastered on the front page of the newspaper, and after roughly scanning the report's content, the corner of his mouth curled into an amused smile.

"The content of the report states that the Marine Admirals joined forces to kill the Jin Shizi."

"Yet whether it is the title he arbitrarily altered, or the penetrating sword wound on the Jin Shizi's chest deliberately displayed in the photograph, both imply that the one who killed the Jin Shizi was not a Marine Admiral, but me."

"That fellow Morgans is also unwilling to become a mere tool of the World Government, it seems."

"Daring not to resist directly, he can only choose a method like this?"

"Heh."

After a light chuckle, Gao Wen lost interest in the report's content and casually handed it to Fujitora beside him.

"Uh..."

Fujitora paused, raising his hand and halting it mid-air.

To take it or not to take it, he was stuck.

Seriously.

Handing this thing to a blind man is, to some extent, a bit impolite, isn't it?!

"Give it to me."

Xiang Keluo shot Gao Wen an annoyed glance, snatched the newspaper, and thus barely alleviated Tiger's embarrassment before changing the subject:

"Speaking of which, for someone like Akainu to make such a decision is truly unexpected."

"After all, when one's closest friend falls before one's eyes, anyone would be moved; it's just that Peng En..."

Gao Wen did not continue.

He suddenly recalled T-Bone's original fate: dying a few years later at the hands of the very civilians he had always protected.

Compared to that, dying now in Water Seven would be far more heroic; at least he would not experience such grief, nor would he waver in the justice he had always firmly believed in.

However.

Knowing T-Bone's nature, even if he knew those people harbored malice toward him, he likely would not have wavered in the slightest.

Gao Wen rarely felt respect for anyone, especially in this world on the verge of going berserk, but T-Bone was undoubtedly an exception.

He was simply too pure.

This was a man who had truly carved the knight's creed into his bones, even though he had long since abandoned the identity of a knight.

"He is a true knight, a man with a great will."

Tiger's tone carried an indescribable mix of respect and regret:

"Failing to arrive in Water Seven sooner, failing to preserve that man's life, is my fault."

"It is not your fault."

Gao Wen shook his head.

He spoke no more.

A few days ago, after leaving Water Seven, Gao Wen's original plan had been to locate the Raven, charge straight into the New World, and find a foothold in Britannias.

Unfortunately, things did not go as planned.

A storm had completely destroyed the Raven's propulsion system; even the keel had snapped.

Roubo Luqi hadn't even conducted a detailed inspection; after merely glancing at it, he had sentenced the ship to death, declaring it beyond repair and at its absolute limit.

Moreover, dragging it away under current conditions was hardly realistic.

Gao Wen simply set the Raven ablaze, led his subordinates away, and headed for the nearest port to devise a new plan.

Coincidentally, at that moment, Tiger invited Gao Wen to accompany him in escorting these civilians to the next port, and Gao Wen agreed without a second thought.

Thus, the current situation came to be.

However, the biggest problem currently facing Gao Wen was actually the matter of a pirate ship.

The New World was undoubtedly the most dangerous sea region in the world.

This danger stemmed not only from the powerful warlords gathering here and carving out territories on all sides but also from the various extreme and utterly unscientific weather patterns of the New World.

Ordinary ships could not navigate such waters normally; even the original Raven would have struggled to endure.

"This is troublesome now..."

"However."

"A blessing in disguise."

"Most of Water Seven's shipwrights survived; afterward, we can ask them to build a pirate ship capable of navigating the New World."

"As for funds, Raven Port has plenty."

Thinking this.

Gao Wen now had a clear plan for what came next and turned his attention to the system panel.

During this period, everyone had been fighting in Water Seven with little time for cultivation, so growth in other areas was minimal; only Conqueror's Haki had increased significantly.

【Conqueror's Haki - LV - 5: 10189/50000 (Unyielding Body)】

After the battle with the Jin Shizi ended, Gao Wen had harvested nearly ten thousand points of Conqueror's Haki experience again, a speed that was staggering.

It was just that for Conqueror's Haki to see such a significant improvement again, only heaven knew how many battles would be required.

Furthermore, it would likely be difficult to find another opportunity as good as Water Seven, where one could successively clash with legendary powerhouses like Big Mom, Wang Zhi, and the Jin Shizi.

However.

With Gao Wen's current strength, saying that the vast world held no place he could not go would not be an exaggeration in the slightest.

Gao Wen's heart gradually settled; the sense of urgency born from insufficient power that he had felt before was gone.

His posture and gaze were far more composed than in the past.

In Tiger's words, Gao Wen now possessed a certain momentum—the momentum of a strong person controlling everything!

Consequently, his planning for future actions became much more relaxed, which was why he had the leisure to accompany Tiger in escorting these civilians away.

After all, he needed to reach the next port anyway; this journey could serve as a way to relax.

Moreover, Gao Wen had his own selfish motives.

The combat power Tiger was currently displaying was already very close to what it had been during the Dressrosa arc.

If he could be recruited, it would be a tremendous asset to Gao Wen.

However, the hope was slim.

As for the first attribute provided by Conqueror's Haki, after a brief hesitation, Gao Wen chose Unyielding Body.

Peerless offered effects he could not discern, carrying certain risks; it might yield huge gains, or it might not suit his fighting style.

But speaking of Unyielding Body, he could not be more familiar with it.

He had played many action games, all of which featured the Unyielding Body setting; simply put, it granted immunity to crowd control but not to damage.

Although the ability of Unyielding Body differed slightly from Gao Wen's expectations, it was largely the same.

The only thing Unyielding Body immunized against was the direct interference of Devil Fruits on the body.

Furthermore, this immunity did not require Gao Wen to activate it consciously; it remained passively effective at all times.

Now, Tiger's Gravity-Gravity Fruit could no longer affect Gao Wen directly, though it could still act upon Gao Wen's clothes or the blade in his hand.

In other words, it is the so-called immunity to direct interference, but not to indirect interference.

Although a powerful Conqueror's Haki can indeed disperse the control effects of Devil Fruits, there are still some special abilities that are exceptions—once they hit, one will lose all power to resist and become a complete puppet or target.

Gao Wen naturally had no chance to test these abilities, but he could almost be certain that these nearly unsolvable abilities were probably ineffective against him as well.

In other words, even the Empress's Love-Love Fruit's strong control would not work on Gao Wen after awakening his Supreme Body.

"The effect of this ability is greater than I imagined."

"Now my combat power is already close to the ceiling; in a frontal entanglement I fear almost no opponent. What I truly need to guard against is actually strong-control abilities like the Love-Love Fruit."

"Supreme Body has helped me fill in the last shortcoming. From now on, these little tricks hold no meaning for me either."

"If you want to take me down, you can only fight me head-on—and who can be confident of taking me down in a head-on fight?!"

"Wait…"

"Supreme Body immune to hard crowd-control the whole match, fast startup with high damage, large-scale AOE, plus the Demon Form second stage…"

"Why is this template looking more and more like a game BOSS?!"

Thinking of this.

Gao Wen's expression turned a little strange, but Xiang Keluo's voice suddenly reached his ear:

"Hey~ Gao Wen, what are you thinking?!"

Xiang Keluo walked shoulder to shoulder with Gao Wen, glancing back from time to time.

His gaze fell on a man and a bear at the back of the crowd, and the corner of his mouth could not help but curl into a slight smile:

"That guy's eyes have been fixed on you ever since leaving Water 7. He probably wants to board the ship."

"Speaking of which, he is the companion Bepo has been waiting for all along, and he also has quite a bit of talent."

Gao Wen did not turn his head and said lightly:

"Things obtained too easily are often not treasured. Wait until he speaks up himself."

……

……

……

Law walked shoulder to shoulder with Bepo, following at the back of the crowd.

Over the past few days, Law had already figured out Bepo's changes, and in his heart he was even more certain that he had to board Gao Wen's big ship.

This man's own strength was not only powerful, but his methods for training subordinates could also be called outstanding.

One must know that although Jin Shizi's scheming against Law was real, his cultivation of Law was wholehearted. Yet even under such circumstances, Law's growth rate was actually still inferior to Bepo's.

At this moment, even without touching Bepo's body, he still knew that beneath that loose coat of his, there must be exaggerated weights measured in tons.

Integrating cultivation into daily life—this was the first lesson Law saw!

The violent bear that had appeared in Water 7 a few days ago had left a deep psychological shadow on Law. Even without having fought it, he knew that he most likely was no match for Bepo in that state.

The key was that from Bepo's disappearance to his appearance in Water 7, only a month had passed in between, and he had already grown to this extent?!

If it were him, Law did not dare to think—if it were him, wouldn't it take three years to reach the Grand Line and five to become an Emperor?!

"Mr. Gao Wen values your talent highly. He also invited me to board the ship before."

Bepo looked at his own exaggeratedly thick arms, his eyes filled with an indescribable look of determination:

"With my recommendation, you shouldn't have any problem boarding the ship."

"What exactly are you thinking right now?!"

"The helplessness of watching Pejin and Xia Qi fall right in front of me while I could do nothing—I've had enough of it, and I never want to experience it a second time."

"And on Mr. Gao Wen's ship, we can obtain the power to protect our companions. Moreover, right here there is also a ship doctor who shares your aspirations!"

"A ship doctor who shares my aspirations?"

Law was instantly interested:

"What do you mean?!"

"The ship doctor of the Gao Wen Pirates—Chopper!"

A trace of indescribable longing appeared in Bepo's eyes:

"His understanding of medical arts and of being a doctor has already surpassed this era. He can even break free from the limitations of the doctor's identity, viewing this world with a brand-new perspective and brand-new philosophy!"

"In fact, my being able to reach where I am now is entirely thanks to Doctor Chopper's guidance."

Gulp—!

Law swallowed a mouthful of saliva, almost unable to restrain himself from opening his mouth to Gao Wen and making his request.

He did not know about other things, but Bepo's changes he had witnessed with his own eyes. In just one month's time, one could reach such a degree…

No!

I must hold back!

Things obtained too easily are often not treasured, and even less will they be valued!

Even if I have to give up One Piece and join under Gao Wen, I want to become a key figure among them, not a dispensable existence pushed to the margins.

Law gripped the long blade in his hand tightly and forced himself to speak:

"I… I'll think about it a little more."

"After all, Bepo, you know, One Piece has always been my dream. To give it up just like this—how could I be willing?"

(End of this chapter)