Chapter 69: Bai Yin

"Flash Step?"

"Only one branch option?"

"Different skills have different ranges for advancement?"

Gao Wen vaguely guessed, then immediately focused his attention on the newly added branch ability. Judging merely by the name, Flash Step should be an instant acceleration ability similar to Shigan.

"Let's try its power."

Gao Wen stood up, leaped from the window, and landed in the empty space in the center.

Upon landing.

The Guanshi Zhengzong at Gao Wen's waist had already been drawn; the silver blade shone blindingly in the moonlight.

He took a step, instantly activating the Shigan stance. Before he could react, his body appeared dozens of meters away.

Boom!

Under the sudden stop, Gao Wen directly crushed the stone slabs in the harbor; cracks spread outward from himself as the center.

But at this moment, Gao Wen completely ignored these things, for he had now encountered the exact same problem Xiang Keluo had once faced.

His nerve reflex speed could no longer keep up with the Shigan that had received the Flash Step attribute bonus!

"Damn it!"

"The instantaneous burst speed must be raised to at least twice that of Shigan to possibly exceed my nerve reflex speed."

"This attribute... is it really this overpowered?"

Gao Wen looked at the cracks beneath his feet, then at the spot where he had just stood.

If his soles hadn't been a bit painful from the recoil, he would have doubted whether he was dreaming right now!

Gao Wen forcibly suppressed the thoughts in his heart, activated Observation Haki, and strained to perceive everything around him.

In the next instant, his figure vanished from the air; only the constantly shattering floorboards and bursts of explosions remained in the harbor.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

By the time Gao Wen stopped, not a single intact stone slab remained at the location where Xiang Keluo and others had trained during the day.

He stood frozen in place without continuing, for at this moment his legs were trembling constantly!

That was a phenomenon caused by muscles exerting themselves too much; Gao Wen even felt at this moment that these legs were not his own.

But in his eyes there was only excitement:

"The instantaneous burst speed of Flash Step is far more exaggerated than I expected, nearly three times the normal speed of Shigan!"

"However, consistent with my initial speculation, this is a method for high-speed short-range face-to-face engagement; it instantly bursts out at more than three times the speed of Shigan, but the cost is a greater burden on the body."

"In this situation, combined with the sharpness of the Guanshi Zhengzong and my swordsmanship, if the opponent has no significant power gap and lacks Observation Haki or other life-saving means, it can almost guarantee a first-meeting kill!"

"This move is a qualitative leap for my improvement!"

"Previously, upgrades to swordsmanship, physique, and Observation Haki did not bring my rating to Bai Yin, but now it surely can!"

In the midst of his words.

Gao Wen directly opened the system panel; a familiar scene appeared before Gao Wen once again:

【Host - Gao Wen】

【Age - 24】

【Identity - Captain of the Gao Wen Pirate Crew】

【Skills:

Swordsmanship - LV-9: 148/7000 (Godspeed)

Physique - LV-9: 1613/7000 (Balanced)

Shigan - LV-5: 11/5000 (Flash Step)

Observation Haki - LV-3: 376/3200

Navigation - LV-3: 301/800

】

【Badges:

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

Rising Fame - View latent abilities

】

【Rating - Bai Yin:

Even on the Grand Line, you are a powerful force; for the Marines to act against you, they must dispatch someone of Rear Admiral rank or higher!

】

Looking at the inconspicuous two characters "Bai Yin" on the rating, Gao Wen's mouth gradually stretched open.

The breakthrough in Shigan helped him break through the final barrier between Bronze and Bai Yin, truly joining the ranks of the strong.

If following the classification rules of the Cross Guild, Gao Wen's combat power at this moment corresponds to pirates with bounties ranging from over one hundred million to one billion.

In the first half of the Grand Line, the New World, unless one is extremely unlucky and encounters certain out-of-spec existence, there will basically not be too many opponents!

The position of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, which originally existed only in Gao Wen's imagination, now he also has a chance to touch it.

However.

It is merely a sliver of a chance.

After all, even the weakest of the Seven Warlords, according to the System's rating, stood at the peak of Bai Yin, with the vast majority reaching Gold.

As for top-tier powerhouses like Hawk Eyes, they had undoubtedly stepped into the ranks of the Legendary, symbolizing absolute strength.

"However, in the East Blue, one could indeed say they could walk sideways."

"Is it just that my immediate combat power has already approached the upper limit of my potential?"

Gao Wen's brows furrowed slightly.

He would not forget the state of his pirate crew once they reached their potential ceiling: no matter how they cultivated, they could not advance further.

That state was something he, no matter what, refused to accept.

"It is time to consider breaking through my own potential limit. Body modification is not an option for now; that leaves relying on a Devil Fruit, or..."

Gao Wen recalled the battle between Xiang Keluo and Zeff in Raven Port, where, after realizing his true heart, he had elevated his own potential.

Yet now, no one in the East Blue could bring him that kind of pressure.

"Can I only go to the Grand Line?"

Gao Wen murmured.

But at that moment.

A sound of a window closing came from afar.

He looked up and saw an orange tree on the windowsill, its leaves rustling in the sea breeze.

"Uh..."

Gao Wen rubbed his nose, glanced guiltily at the shattered floorboards around him, and slipped away.

The next day.

Xiang Keluo and the others arrived at the port to cultivate as usual.

What met their eyes was only countless shattered floorboards; the ground in the center of the port was no longer fit to stand on.

"What happened here?"

Zeff frowned:

"Yesterday, I trained too hard, my body was on the verge of its limit, and I fell into a dead sleep as soon as I returned to my room, knowing nothing about what happened outside."

Zoro nodded:

"Same here. But to do something like this, besides the three of us, only the Captain should be capable."

"He was secretly training while we were away?"

At this point.

Zoro sucked in a sharp breath:

"Too sinister!"

"No!"

Xiang Keluo shook his head, habitually pushed his glasses up with his palm, and said calmly:

"He is trying to stop us from training, hoping to delay the time he is surpassed by using such a childish tactic as destroying the training grounds?"

"Gao Wen, you have fallen. To keep your position, you have even started playing such petty tricks?"

"Uh..."

Zoro was stunned and instinctively wanted to defend Gao Wen. Before he could speak, Zeff held him back, subtly shook his head at him, and whispered:

"It's useless."

"Once Xiang Keluo decides on something, he won't change his mind easily."

"Is that so?"

Zoro also chose to stay silent, watching Xiang Keluo perform in silence.

The destruction of the training grounds did not stop the group's enthusiasm at all. They cheerfully walked to a flat stretch of beach, warmed up slightly, and then began their respective training.

And it became increasingly competitive.

After all, it is common knowledge that when the first person in your dorm starts grinding, others inexplicably feel an anxiety of 'He is working so hard, yet I am still a waste.'

Only by grinding just as hard can that be resolved.

Moreover, in this past month, they had all achieved their own growth.

After mastering Observation Haki, Zeff had already touched the rating of the Bronze level.

Zoro's transformation was even earth-shattering. As a newcomer, he had successively defeated the Cat Brothers and Jango, becoming the solid fourth person on the ship.

His strength compared to over a month ago had nearly doubled.

At the same time.

Having completed the patrol mission in Raven Port, the Cat Brothers were sitting in a cake shop at the port, enjoying a rare morning tea.

"Awooo~"

Buchi shoved an entire piece of cake into his mouth. Before he could chew, a frantic ringing sound came from the Den Den Mushi in his arms.

Gulp~!

Buchi, his face flushed red, swallowed the cake, then took out the Den Den Mushi and answered it.

"Boss Buchi!"

"We've tracked down the Baratie, the floating restaurant, but there's one man there we didn't know about from the intel — a very terrifying one."

"What kind of man?"

"Not sure, but those eyes — they were like a hawk's!"

(End of chapter)