Chapter 48: Mastering Armament Haki! Comprehensive Evaluation Upgrade!
Chapter 48: Mastering Armament Haki! Comprehensive Rating Improved!
Huff! Huff!
Digging pits! Filling with trees!
Exactly!
Cruz’s so-called “bold idea” was to plant the Seed of the Dessert Tree on the Boing Archipelago!
To be precise,
he intended to plant it in the Temptation Forest, the central region of the Boing Archipelago!
According to the item description of the Seed of the Dessert Tree, once planted, all the land within a one-kilometer radius around the growing tree would become barren and lifeless, as the seed would excessively absorb all nutrients from the soil.
In that case,
if Cruz planted the Seed of the Dessert Tree in the Temptation Forest, the influence of the seed would transform this dreamlike kingdom filled with wondrous delicacies into a desolate wasteland!
The Boing Archipelago—or more specifically, the Baron of the Stomach—
Cruz had no knowledge of the origins or formation principles of such creatures.
He only knew one thing:
The Baron of the Stomach survives by capturing prey attracted by the rich aromas emanating from the Temptation Forest!
The Temptation Forest was undoubtedly an irreplaceable “plant organ” of the Baron of the Stomach!
If Cruz planted the Seed of the Dessert Tree there,
this “Tree of Delicacies,” which could convert all the delicious food in the Temptation Forest into treats hanging from its branches, would, while completely draining the forest, also continuously absorb the Baron’s own nutrients!
The Dessert Tree would become a parasitic “cancerous growth” on the Baron of the Stomach!
Once the Seed of the Dessert Tree fully matured,
the Baron, having been drained of all nutrients, would become a lifeless, dead island!
At that time, Cruz could easily claim the high-grade bait symbolized by the Baron of the Stomach.
“One Seed of the Dessert Tree, exchanged for one Baron of the Stomach.
Or rather, trading C-grade bait for B or A-grade bait—this deal is absolutely worth it!”
Cruz clasped his fingers together, holding the Seed of the Dessert Tree in the palm of his hand.
As for the earlier idea of giving the Seed to Charlotte Linlin to exchange for the treasures of the Whole Cake Island—
that was utterly unrealistic.
Who was Big Mom?
A born destroyer, the Empress of the Whole Cake Island, and the only female Pirate Emperor alive!
If Cruz really took the Seed of the Dessert Tree to Whole Cake Island to meet Big Mom, it was quite likely the seed would be snatched by someone from Big Mom’s crew before even reaching the core of the island.
Moreover,
Cruz had a deadly grudge against Big Mom—a grudge of national annihilation!
It was a pity that the Seed of the Dessert Tree was not some poisonous delicacy…
Otherwise, Cruz would have risked everything to plant this treasure tree, which held fatal attraction for Big Mom, in the Totland Kingdom!
Leaving the treehouse with the Seed of the Dessert Tree, Cruz wandered through the Temptation Forest, eventually finding a prime location near the Ramen Waterfall.
“Mountains, water, noodle soup, grilled meat—this truly is a place of great feng shui!”
Cruz raised his finger and used the Sixth Style technique of the “Finger Gun” to dig a deep pit in the ground covered with grilled meat, then tossed the Seed of the Dessert Tree inside.
“This should be fine, right?”
He patted his hands and filled the meat pit with scattered pieces of grilled meat.
“Grow well here! And grow fast—drain the Temptation Forest completely by tomorrow!”
Cruz was not worried that planting the seed would cause the Boing Archipelago to collapse entirely, losing the world coordinates of “Gourmet Prisoner.”
After all, the Boing Archipelago was an archipelago,
and the Baron of the Stomach was not a solitary entity.
With the Seed of the Dessert Tree planted, Cruz did not rest.
While waiting for the tree to grow, he sat cross-legged on the ground and silently began studying the techniques of “Ape Martial Arts.”
As for “Food Meaning”?
That could wait until mealtime.
“The power of Ape Martial Arts lies in controlling one’s own cells!”
Cruz closed his eyes, his mind flashing with details of the “Dance of the Ape” combat techniques.
Fortunately, he had fished the Ape Martial Arts ability directly from the Dimensional Sea.
Otherwise, mastering even just “cell control” would have taken an unknown amount of time!
It was worth noting that among the Six Styles, there was also a secret-level ability capable of freely manipulating the body—Life Return.
But in terms of precision,
Life Return could control the body, hair, and internal organs.
Ape Martial Arts, however, controlled the cells themselves!
Cruz meditated quietly on the basic techniques of Ape Martial Arts for several minutes before suddenly opening his eyes, a spark of delight gleaming within.
He had expected that mastering Ape Martial Arts would take at least half a day.
However, one ability had given him a modest but pleasant surprise:
Sixth Style—Paper Drawing!
The essence of Paper Drawing was to release all muscular tension, using the subtle air currents generated by perceiving an opponent's movements to make the body light and supple like paper, allowing for effortless control and evasion.
Although the force release of Paper Drawing was not at the same level as Ape Martial Arts, it laid a very solid foundation for the latter!
Thanks to this, Cruz effortlessly became familiar with the Ape Martial Arts ability and began finely controlling his cellular structure.
Fingers of the right hand, right palm, right forearm, left hand, chest, abdomen…
The scope and precision of Cruz’s cellular control steadily improved.
After only half an hour,
he was able to roughly manipulate all the cells in his body and temporarily release his body’s weight.
Having reached this milestone, Cruz paused his deeper study of Ape Martial Arts.
Maintaining his cellular control, he then demonstrated another physical technique:
Iron Fist!
While tightening his entire right forearm with Iron Fist, Cruz simultaneously employed Ape Martial Arts to command all the muscle cells in that forearm to adopt a defensive stance.
Time flowed on.
The forces of Iron Fist and Ape Martial Arts collided and merged countless times.
Until now.
“Iron Fist! Ape Martial Arts!”
Both forces erupted simultaneously, and a deep, dark shade appeared on Cruz’s right forearm, shimmering with the heavy, hardened black metallic luster of steel—intimidating to behold.
At the same time, new prompts continuously flashed on the screen:
[Through relentless physical training, you have comprehended a higher-level technique and obtained the C-grade ability “Armament Haki”!]
[C-grade Ability: Armament Haki]
[Description: Armament is one of the three classifications of Haki, capable of enhancing one’s defense and attack power.]
[Effect: 1. Hardening: The most basic use of Armament Haki, covering the body with Armament Haki to make it harder than steel, greatly increasing defense; 2. Devil Fruit Lock: The basic effect of Armament Haki, able to touch the physical body of Devil Fruit users.]
[Evaluation: Even harder! Even more unyielding!]
[Haki attribute activated!]
[Haki: C]
[Your comprehensive rating has improved to C!]
(End of chapter)