Chapter 334: The Overlord's Advancement

"Mm."

Xiang Keluo responded with a sound; seeing Xiang Gaowen's expression remain unchanged, he knew Xiang Gaowen had everything under control.

Over the past two years, Xiang Keluo had basically figured out Xiang Gaowen's temperament and style.

With preparation, Xiang Gaowen would not recklessly drag himself and his companions on the ship into trouble without cause.

Even the previous plan to become one of the Seven Warlords was intended to evade pursuit by the World Government to the greatest extent possible.

At least for now, Xiang Gaowen's decisions had not shown any errors.

Yet.

For some reason, recalling what he had witnessed earlier in the border village of Britannias, Xiang Keluo felt a vague sense of unease in his heart.

The madness of those commoners was something he had never seen before.

It faintly exuded an air of evil intent.

Unable to hold back, Xiang Keluo spoke up to remind him:

"In any case..."

"Be careful with everything."

After concluding this brief meeting, Xiang Gaowen and his group piloted the Lionheart Knight away from the nearby waters, advancing along the inland river channels deeper into the heartland of Britannias.

They moved toward the location of the royal capital, Avalon.

After the great battle.

This journey appeared calm and tranquil, with few unexpected incidents occurring.

The ship had returned to its usual quietude, yet the expressions on everyone's faces carried a hint of solemnity.

An atmosphere of an impending major battle faintly enveloped them all.

The sounds of cultivation on the deck continued late into the night before finally subsiding.

Sitting in the captain's cabin, Xiang Gaowen could clearly see through the porthole several figures lying exhausted on the deck.

Zoro, Sanji, Law, Bepo, and even Cavendish were among them.

Yet there was little fear on their faces, only anticipation—an expectation for the battle that was about to come.

Xiang Gaowen's feat of defeating two legendary-level powerhouses while fighting alone still made their heads spin even now.

That could no longer be described merely as outrageous.

"Where exactly has our captain reached now?!"

Law, a toothpick dangling from his mouth, soaked in sweat, stared blankly up at the sky.

The shock brought by the battle at Water Seven was refreshed once again today.

"That kind of thing... who knows?!"

Sanji responded vaguely, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly:

"That monster is just like that."

"Just when you think what you've seen is his limit, he soon brings out something new to refresh your understanding."

"However..."

"I have already found a way to catch up to that monster!"

He reached out to touch the black raid suit in his bosom, a look of determination shining in his eyes.

Seeing this, Zoro couldn't help but speak up to remind him:

"The Germa raid suit?!"

"The captain said that relying too much on external tools will limit one's own growth."

"No!"

Sanji shook his head:

"Perhaps before long, I won't need that kind of thing anymore."

"When that day truly comes, Mosshead, you'd better hand over the number four coin obediently."

Zoro raised an eyebrow:

"Is that so?!"

"I'm actually looking forward to the day you lose to me again."

As his voice landed.

Sanji rarely failed to retort, but this time his tone was extremely serious:

"Reiju told me that suit probably won't affect my personality, but if—and I mean if—one day I really do something I'll regret."

"Mosshead... don't go easy on me!"

Zoro froze, about to reply, when a large hand pressed down on Sanji's head.

It was Ah Jin.

Ah Jin vigorously rubbed Sanji's head and teased:

"You've certainly learned quite a bit of cool talk from the captain~!"

"Captain Ah Jin?!"

Sanji let out a startled cry; realizing what he had just said, his old face turned red:

"Stop messing around, hey!"

He lowered his head trying to break free, but Ah Jin's hand remained firmly pressed on his head, giving it a fierce ruffle before continuing:

"On this ship, no matter what, you have us."

"And the captain too."

"That guy may never have said it, but he would absolutely never give up on any single companion."

"Any one of them."

Ah Jin murmured in a low voice, the corners of his mouth involuntarily curling into a slight smile.

Having returned to the Lionheart Knight, his mindset had, unbeknownst to him, undergone a transformation he himself had not yet realized.

The knot left in his heart by Keluo back then was also thoroughly untied at this moment.

The murderous aura throughout his body gradually dissipated, replaced by a peaceful and stable field; his entire presence was now completely different.

"Captain Ah Jin..."

Sanji, momentarily at a loss, simply stopped struggling and let Ah Jin ruffle his hair a few times, immediately prompting bursts of laughter from all around.

Keluo sat lightly to the side, his face also involuntarily revealing a hint of a smile.

The sea breeze blew.

It lifted the curtains of the captain's cabin, bringing with it a touch of coolness.

After entering the Legendary realm, Xiang Gaowen's physique had grown even more powerful, so he naturally feared this bit of sea breeze not; yet he still retained his old habit.

He casually reached out to close the window.

Creak~!

A piercing sound of friction rang out.

Xiang Gaowen's movement paused slightly, not because of the noise made by closing the window, but due to the familiar system prompt sounding in his mind.

"Physique Experience +2301!"

(Omitted)

"Conqueror's Haki Experience +21564!"

"This is..."

Xiang Gaowen's eyes lit up.

Although he had already anticipated that repelling two Emperor-level powerhouses simultaneously would yield considerable growth for his Conqueror's Haki,

now that it had actually happened, the data still somewhat exceeded Xiang Gaowen's expectations, surprisingly surpassing twenty thousand points.

He knew that during his previous battle with Golden Lion at Seven Water Capital, the gain had barely exceeded ten thousand.

Xiang Gaowen even felt a twinge of regret as to why he hadn't given Big Mom and Xia Mu Luo Ke a chance to start over.

If these two were to team up and fight him every now and then, the growth speed of his Conqueror's Haki would be just like riding a rocket.

Of course.

Xiang Gaowen was merely thinking this in passing.

Even if Big Mom and Xia Mu Luo Ke posed no threat to him personally, if they were to turn their attacks against his companions on the ship, the danger would be immense.

Even without this gain, Xiang Gaowen would strangle such dangers in the bud.

"Speaking of which, it should be about enough."

As soon as the words left his mouth,

a system panel appeared before Xiang Gaowen.

【Conqueror's Haki - Lv5: 33008/50000 -> Conqueror's Haki - Lv6: 4572/100000】

The next instant,

violent air currents radiated outward from Xiang Gaowen as the center.

The lighting lamps on the deck suddenly shattered; the heavy pressure caused the Lionheart Knight to sink abruptly, its draft exceeding the danger line by several times!

Fortunately,

this burst of Haki came quickly and departed even faster.

In the next moment, it vanished without a trace, and the Lionheart Knight gradually floated back up to the safety line.

On the deck, Keluo and others who had been resting with closed eyes simultaneously opened them, looking toward Xiang Gaowen's cabin.

"Is this... the Captain's Haki?!"

"The sense of oppression is even stronger!"

"It's heavier and more condensed than before; even my consciousness feels somewhat blurred!"

A sailor couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Even though he is already approaching the pinnacle of the world, the Captain's speed of progress can still be described as terrifying! Does this man not have an upper limit?!"

"So that theory about talent potential doesn't exist for the Captain, does it?!"

The murmurs among the crowd gradually grew louder.

Zoro reached out to press down on the sword at his waist, which was stirring restlessly.

He very much wanted to take another look at Xiang Gaowen's blade, but he knew even more clearly that if he were to truly cross swords with Xiang Gaowen, he probably wouldn't even be able to see the other's move clearly.

The challenge at Rapeseed Flower Port before, strictly speaking, could hardly be called a battle; it was merely Xiang Gaowen intentionally offering guidance.

"Is the gap becoming wider and wider?!"

"This won't do!"

Zoro murmured in a low voice, sitting cross-legged on the deck, placing his three beloved blades from his waist onto his legs, calming the restless swords while forcing himself to quiet down.

After a long while,

the surroundings gradually fell silent.

"Heh..."

Xiang Keluo and Ah Jin exchanged a glance, seeing nothing but numbness in each other's eyes.

Yes, numbness.

Such scenes, such images, they had experienced countless times.

Xiang Gaowen's seemingly endless potential and absurd growth speed left those trying to keep up with his footsteps with nothing but despair, endless despair.

That was a gap no human effort could bridge.

"Why am I not surprised at all?!"

"Who is?!"

"In these past two years, the Captain has brought us far too many surprises."

"Ah."

The two looked at each other and smiled.

Amid their relief, a sense of ease shone through.

"How could any human possibly catch up to such a monster?!"

"That is not something we should dare to hope for."

Xiang Keluo took a deep breath, stood up, patted his buttocks, and slowly walked into the cabin, only to violently shove the cabin door open the very next instant.

"I simply refuse to believe it!"

"Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely do not eat that monster's exhaust fumes!"

"Bastard!"

Xiang Keluo roared, his voice nearly tearing apart:

"Rest?!"

"Only useless people rest!"

"I won't let that monster laugh at me!"

As soon as his words landed,

Xiang Keluo leaped up, jumping to the top of the mast.

In an instant,

the surging air currents around them grew even more violent, pushing the Lionheart Knight to accelerate!

This was Xiang Keluo practicing his ability to control air currents.

It could also help him touch that gate of awakening which was gradually opening!

Seeing this, Ah Jin couldn't help but shake his head, yet he gritted his teeth, stood up, and led everyone on the ship back into a state of cultivation!

The crew's already nearly insane cultivation intensity reached a new level, arriving at a point of non-stop day and night effort.

It wasn't until five in the morning, when Xiang Gaowen truly could not bear to watch any longer and forcibly made them stop, that everyone finally relented.

During this process, many had already collapsed from exhaustion and lost consciousness, yet even so, smiles still remained on their faces.

Smiles of contentment.

Morgan, suffering from insomnia, walked out of the cabin; seeing this scene, she couldn't help but shiver:

"These people..."

"Seem no better than those believers of the Heaven Awakening Church."

"Just as obsessed!"

"Even more terrifying!"

For a moment,

were it not for Xiang Gaowen's face being truly so captivating, she would have begun to doubt whether leading these people into Britannias was really a good thing!

As she pondered,

an image inevitably floated into Morgan's mind: Avalon filled with muscular burly men pumping iron...

Hiss—!

A chill swept through her lungs.

Morgan abruptly turned and rushed back into the cabin, truly daring not to look at the scene on the deck any longer.

Several days later.

Xiang Gaowen and his group left the pirate ship in a hidden canyon, leaving Franky, Cavendish, and others to guard the vessel, before disembarking with the main force.

They were now close to the center of Britannias, where Avalon was located; the river ahead could no longer support the Lionheart Knight's navigation.

Fortunately,

with Morgan leading the way, Xiang Gaowen and the others were not entirely blind.

The group traversed the dense forest and soon spotted a small town at the end of their line of sight.

However,

before Xiang Gaowen's group could approach, piercing shouts of killing erupted from the town center, as countless ragged commoners, wielding crude weapons, rushed out from within the town.

"Blasphemers!"

"Where are they!"

"They overturned the divine statue and burned down the church!"

"Everyone will suffer divine punishment for their actions; your children and homes will all be consumed by fire!"

"Only with their blood can the god's wrath be quelled!"

A voice of incitement rose from the crowd.

Seeing this, Xiang Gaowen's brows furrowed tightly.

He could naturally see that those attacking him were nothing more than ordinary commoners.

Incited by the Tianjue Church, they had lost their reason and launched an attack against him.

"It's like this again."

Xiang Keluo waved his hand, detonating a current of air that sent the attacking crowd flying.

Yet merely a second later, these commoners struggled back to their feet; though many were injured, not a single one retreated, their eyes filled with an indescribable madness.

"This is already the fourth town we've passed through in these past few days, and we still haven't found a single normal person. Looking at it this way, probably everyone in this country has been brainwashed by the Tianjue Church."

"What awaits us in Britannias?!"

A bad premonition arose in Xiang Keluo's heart.

He turned his head to look at Xiang Gaowen, his worry growing even deeper.

From the East Sea until now, he had never seen Xiang Gaowen strike against commoners; Xiang Gaowen felt their pain and suffering as if they were his own.

But now, what filled Xiang Keluo's heart even more was worry.

If, when fighting Wales, the opponent used such methods, how would Xiang Gaowen respond?!

Or perhaps...

Directly threatening the lives of these commoners; given Xiang Gaowen's character, probably...

"No need to worry."

Xiang Gaowen, perceiving Xiang Keluo's thoughts, shook his head and said:

"If necessary, I will act."

"Good."

Xiang Keluo nodded.

Immediately after, a burst of wild, domineering aura erupted, sending the distant crowd flying; everyone instantly lost consciousness.

By the time they regained consciousness, Xiang Gaowen had long since vanished without a trace.

Only in the sky did a crimson figure streak across the earth, speeding toward the location of Avalon.

At the same time.

Avalon.

Wales sat upon the Wang Zuo.

Beside him, Joan was reporting on the movements of Xiang Gaowen and his party after entering Britannias.

"According to intelligence sent back from churches everywhere, Knight Xiang Gaowen and his group have already penetrated deep into Britannias; at most two days, and they will arrive here."

"They have passed through multiple towns and suffered repeated attacks, yet they never struck against commoners, merely using their unparalleled might to stun the local populace before departing."

"Judging by Knight Xiang Gaowen's style, he is quite similar to Arthur of years past."

"Equally benevolent—no, equally childish."

Wales propped his chin on one hand, his face bearing nothing but indescribable contempt:

"Fantasizing about becoming a hero who saves everyone?!"

"Truly naively adorable~"

(End of Chapter)