Ink-scented newspapers, carried by industrious newsbirds, are delivered to every corner of the seas.
…
“The spirit of the Pirate King?!”
“Is this for real?”
“Ah, so there’s such a thing…”
Upon seeing this news, ordinary people, after initial astonishment, found it to be an additional topic for post-meal conversations.
Timid individuals, who worried for a while, soon returned to normal, joining the conversation.
“Humph, this kind of news is obviously fabricated.”
“Even the World Economic News is falling, publishing such articles…”
Many people scorned this sensational news.
…
Perhaps due to the hellish experience of being recalled by the Stand repeatedly, Liam’s endurance had increased.
Or perhaps, under this “Shadow Clone” style of high-pressure training, Liam’s own strength had visibly improved.
Though not yet towering in stature, his body became a bit more robust.
As the original Liam, he gradually adapted to this devilish training rhythm.
The Stand continued to act as an unfeeling exercise machine, meticulously completing the daily workout routine.
Liam progressed from sporadically enduring one hour to pushing through two, then three hours…
Gradually, he could follow the Stand throughout the entire exercise routine each day.
However, the corresponding result was that, when retrieving the armored Stand at night, and ‘B.I.B.’ merged into his body, the hellish experience and exhaustion seemed to be doubled enjoyment.
Fortunately, the quality of this body was indeed good. Despite the seemingly masochistic exercise, Liam could feast heartily, and absorb sufficient nutrients, and after a good night’s sleep, he could almost fully recover.
If it were his body from the previous life, practicing in this way would probably result in waking up the next day with an entirely stiff and sore body, experiencing excruciating pain.
In just a few days, he would likely be carried into the hospital.
But in the world of One Piece, this body became increasingly resilient through training.
…
Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
In an office, a Marine Admiral known as “Buddha Sengoku” flipped through a newspaper. When he saw a certain small section in the corner, his pupils suddenly contracted.
Putting down the newspaper and taking a closer look, he was infuriated.
The senbei plate on the table was empty.
“Garp!! You ate my senbei again!!”
Sengoku, feeling annoyed, threw the newspaper to the robust man in his fifties sitting on the sofa, munching on a pile of senbei. “Look at the newspaper, bottom right of page four.”
“Wow hā hā hā! Because this senbei is really delicious!!” Garp laughed heartily, paying no attention to Sengoku’s frustration.
Sengoku massaged his temples; this old friend’s personality was indeed too unconventional. But fortunately, he was very reliable in important matters…
“How about it, anything after reading…” Sengoku asked, but when he looked up, Garp, holding the newspaper, had a big bubble on his nose, actually leaning back with his neck and snoring!
A huge cross appeared on Sengoku’s forehead.
“Ka— Pu—!!”
With a pop, the bubble burst, and Garp instantly woke up, exclaiming, “Ah, I fell asleep.”
“I asked you to read the newspaper!!” Sengoku pounded the table and shouted.
“I read it!”
Crunch, crunch.
Garp continued to eat senbei, seemingly indifferent. While eating, he chuckled, “A ‘person’s dream will never end,’ right? It really sounds like something that guy would say! HāHāHā!”
Sengoku massaged his temples in silence.
“But… Roger’s ghost? That’s a joke!”
The aging “Marine Hero” had a shadow over his eyes, grinning, “If such a thing existed in this world, countless resentful spirits would have long been queuing up to find those Celestial Dragons, those stupid pigs…”
“Be careful of what you say!” Sengoku quickly rebuked in a stern tone.
Garp with a laugh said, “Di I say anything?”
“I’m not referring to the absurd idea of Roger’s spirit coming back…” Sengoku pointed at a brief mention in the news report with his finger, “‘That Devil Child briefly appeared on an island’…”
…
After the nightly cries of Hell, Liam could feel the potential within himself being gradually unearthed, all while indulging in feasts and drinks.
Adapting to the rhythm of this demanding exercise, experiencing the addictive feeling that every effort brought a reward was truly satisfying.
Moreover, the most important part was that he put in less than or equal to one thanks for the trouble, yet received double the returns!
Since Liam’s consciousness wasn’t connected with the Stand when it was released, he had no knowledge of its experiences during the process. It was akin to passive leveling up.
It was like leveling up all day, but logging in the next day was a bit painful.
Nevertheless, the passive, absorbent pain, considering the rewards, could be endured with gritted teeth by anyone.
After enduring, rewarding himself with a cup of hot milk tea poured by Robin, sprinkling some fragrant flowers, was indeed very pleasant.
As night fell, Liam, the main body, slept soundly in the bedroom.
Meanwhile, the armored Stand ‘B.I.B.’ was released, its eyes glowing white as it moved around the house and its surroundings, resembling a diligent security commander, keeping an eye on the night’s activities.
In another room, Robin sat under a lamp reading a book. Sometimes, she would get too tired and fall asleep on the book.
Late into the night with the lamp still lit, ‘B.I.B.’ remembered the main body’s reminder. It would come through the wall, pick up the sleeping Robin from the table, tuck her into bed, cover her with a blanket, and then pass through the wall again.
And so…
Unbeknownst to them, twenty days passed.
…
West Blue, South Island, the outskirts of King City, in a rented house, on the grass in the courtyard.
Robin had a thick book spread out on her knees, but her attention was unusually not on the book. Instead, she watched the boy on the grass and the more than one-meter-long floating pipe stick in front of him.
Liam, shirtless, with traces of muscles faintly visible on his young body, was now covered in sweat.
He held a similarly sized section of pipe as if it were an iron rod, staring intently at the black armored Stand holding the pipe in front of him.
Naturally, no matter how they faced off, there was no result. After all, they were originally one entity. In terms of fighting skills or the technique of wielding the pipe in their hands, it was a draw.
Ding! Ding! Bang! Boom!…
Robin watched the boy wielding the pipe iron rod, engaging in a back-and-forth with the pipes flying in the air. The main body’s iron rod couldn’t hit the Stand, but the Stand’s iron rod could genuinely strike the main body’s flesh.
After enduring a few blows, Liam had bruises all over him, wincing in pain.
He threw the pipe iron rod away and shouted, “If you’re a man, don’t use weapons! Come on, hand-to-hand!”
The armored Stand wasn’t sure if it counted as a man, but ‘B.I.B.’ didn’t know. Anyway, whatever the main body said was fine! So it also threw away the pipe iron rod and rushed up to grapple with the main body.
Now, their conditions were quite similar, and they could both hit each other.
Equal strength, equal skills, almost identical judgment, and reaction speed— there seemed to be no end to the fight.
Robin watched from the side as it looked as if Liam was grappling with the air. With his face all red, covered in sweat, he finally collapsed on the ground, gasping for breath.
“I… gasp, gasp… you… you won’t get tired… but the ‘strength’ you owe me… I’ll reimburse you… later…”
(End of this chapter)
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