Chapter Thirty-Six: The Bounty Announced

“What… what on earth is that!”
Staring intently at the object in the sky—a mass of flesh and steel intertwined, resembling a meteor—Qingzhi’s pupils contracted ever so slightly, his mind growing dull, unable to comprehend how several navy warships, nearly ten thousand elite marines, and the weapon known as the Navy’s ultimate “Demon-Slaying Order,” had been utterly annihilated in mere seconds by Chu Yi’s hands.

As surprised as Qingzhi was, so too was the future admiral, Kizaru.
From the moment Qingzhi returned severely wounded, Kizaru had abandoned any notion of underestimating Chu Yi.
After all, there were few in these seas who could put Qingzhi in such a sorry state.
Yet, even with this heightened caution, Kizaru found himself thoroughly shaken by Chu Yi’s display.

That kid…
Could he be a monster?

Meanwhile, the two future admirals of the navy were both left astounded by Chu Yi’s feat. The ordinary crew members of the Red-Haired Pirates were even more overwhelmed.
Their gazes toward Chu Yi now resembled those directed at a supernatural being.
Even knowing Chu Yi was one of their own, the crew could not help but look at him with a new shade of fear.
Apart from Hancock, who gazed at Chu Yi with unreserved adoration, none could resist the awe his actions inspired. Especially Tiger, who believed he had spent the most time with Chu Yi, yet with his sudden rise, Tiger felt a strange sense of unfamiliarity growing within his heart.

Red-Haired Shanks, the future “Emperor,” stared blankly at Chu Yi’s figure, lost in thought, unsure of what he was contemplating.

Among them all, only “Dark King” Rayleigh, having witnessed countless grand events, remained relatively composed, his expression merely touched with surprise. When he saw Chu Yi in the air bring his palms together once more, Rayleigh’s lips curved into a smile as he remarked, “Little brother Chu Yi truly is fascinating. It seems the shock he brings us is far from over.”

“What? You mean Chu Yi still has cards left to play?”

“Impossible, that kid’s already pushed to his limits. What else could he do?”

“Let’s just wait and see!”

As Rayleigh’s words drifted through the air, Shanks, Tiger, and everyone else opened their mouths wide, silently watching Chu Yi, waiting for him to create yet another miracle.

Just then—

A thunderous boom!

With another low shout from Chu Yi, the “meteor,” forged from navy flesh and shattered warship fragments, suddenly moved!

While maintaining his “Heavenly Explosive Star,” Chu Yi, with his palms pressed together, unleashed his “Gravity Domain,” imposing a hundredfold gravity upon the meteor he had condensed!

The instant the hundredfold gravity took hold, accompanied by earthshaking rumbles, there came a rushing sound.
The meteor, already poised to fall freely, accelerated sharply under the pressure of the Gravity Domain. Its descent was so rapid that friction with the surrounding air generated intense heat, transforming it into a blazing inferno that wrapped the meteor in flames.

From afar, to those unaware, it seemed as though the apocalypse had arrived, for the sun itself appeared to be falling from the sky.
Only Chu Yi, staring at the burning meteor as it plummeted from the heavens, wore a solemn expression.

When at last the massive meteor, enveloped in searing heat, crashed into the sea with a mighty boom, sending waves surging—

Seeing the “meteor’s descent” engulf Qingzhi, Kizaru, and the remaining navy forces, Chu Yi, who had already begun to exhaust his body when he unleashed the “Heavenly Explosive Star,” finally allowed a satisfied smile to grace his lips. As darkness claimed his vision, he slipped into an endless void.

………………

“Where am I?”

He still remembered, just a moment ago, he was fighting to his limits in the waters of the Sabaody Archipelago, pouring the last of his strength into the “meteor’s descent,” covering Qingzhi, Kizaru, and the navy overhead.

But in the next moment, unable to resist the onslaught of fatigue, even though Chu Yi wished to spread his Asura wings and return safely to the Red-Haired Pirates’ ship, darkness swept over his sight, and he knew something was wrong. Before he could react, his vision faded, and his mind’s instinctive thought was—

Am I going to die from fainting and falling?

But dying from a fall should come with some sensation; suddenly finding himself in this endless void was perplexing.

Wondering why his own unconsciousness was so unlike that of others, for he still possessed his awareness, Chu Yi soon noticed a dim red glow rising amidst the darkness. Gradually, before him appeared the imposing Asura statue.

Moreover, as the statue manifested, Chu Yi realized the dark red light emanating from it was slowly streaming into his body, following a single ray.

As time passed, Chu Yi sensed his physical and mental exhaustion weakening, and as his strength returned and unfamiliar memories surfaced in his mind, he finally understood why, after fainting, he had arrived in this endless darkness to encounter the Asura statue he so longed to master.

“So that’s it. Although I don’t know how that guy Hancock trained to master the power of the Visualization Fruit, the ability I possess seems to require me to completely exhaust myself, triggering my body’s self-protection mechanism, before I can successfully activate the Asura statue and further cultivate the Visualization Fruit’s powers.”

“I really must thank Qingzhi and Kizaru, who forced me to dig deeper into my body’s potential with the ‘Demon-Slaying Order.’”

“Otherwise…”

“How could my Visualization Fruit abilities have improved even further?”

Thinking this to himself, Chu Yi couldn’t help but recall Qingzhi and Kizaru, who were caught within the range of the meteor’s descent.

Though Chu Yi’s attack was truly terrifying—even Shanks would find it difficult to escape unscathed—Chu Yi knew that natural-type Devil Fruit users like Qingzhi and Kizaru, so long as they utilized their elemental powers, would be hard to kill or even seriously injure with such a move.

He could only hope that Qingzhi and Kizaru, in their efforts to save the few remaining marines, might sustain some injuries, so that after successfully unleashing the meteor’s descent, Chu Yi could feel a bit more accomplished.

At that thought, Chu Yi remembered the frozen fruit material he’d stored in his warehouse and his mind grew feverish.

“Even if I haven’t mastered techniques that counter ‘elementalization’ yet, I’ve already learned the training method for ‘Tiger Shakes the Earth.’ In the future, I’ll have targeted moves against natural-type Devil Fruit users like Qingzhi and Kizaru.”

“And if I can successfully use the frozen fruit material obtained from Qingzhi to complete five awakenings…”

“In the future, I’ll be able to exploit the properties of natural-type Devil Fruits to bully those in the seas who haven’t awakened Armament Haki!”

With this thought, having fully absorbed the memories gained from the Asura statue, Chu Yi felt a sudden sensation of weightlessness. When he opened his eyes again, he saw clearly the graceful figure who had been keeping vigil beside him.

Judging by the night sky outside, it was already late.
Looking at Hancock’s slightly haggard face, sleeping beside him as she fought to stay by his side, Chu Yi didn’t need to guess—he knew he must have been unconscious for quite some time, and Hancock had likely remained at his side, waiting for him to awaken.

Yet, seeing her exhaustion at a glance, Chu Yi couldn’t bear to wake her.
So, gently adjusting Hancock’s sleeping position, Chu Yi quietly nestled beside her, waiting for tomorrow, when she would be rested, for them to wake together.

But just as Chu Yi finished adjusting Hancock’s posture and was about to snuggle up beside her—

Huh?

Suddenly, a wanted poster caught his eye, and on it, Chu Yi unmistakably saw his own familiar face in his Asura form.

“My bounty has finally been issued?”

“I wonder… just how many millions is the reward!”