6 6. Combat Power Ceiling, Zoro Evolution
Luffy's smile remained on his face as he spoke calmly.
Zoro stared at Luffy with wide eyes for a moment, then struggled to contain his excitement.
"What are you waiting for then? Use it on me!" Zoro exclaimed eagerly.
"Huh, I thought you, Zoro, would be against relying on external power like this," Luffy replied, sounding somewhat surprised.
"Why shun external power? If there's a better sword in front of you, why not use it?" Zoro shrugged.
"And besides, this sea is too perilous. I want the power to protect my crewmates. We're too weak," Zoro explained.
"No, the weak one is you, Zoro," Luffy countered solemnly. "I'm really strong now. Stronger than the bear I faced before, even stronger than Grandpa Aokiji."
"You jerk!" Zoro felt a surge of anger at Luffy's serious tone. He couldn't argue with it—it was the truth.
According to Luffy's words, Zoro realized the extent of Luffy's strength.
Stronger than Kuma, even stronger than Aokiji and Garp.
Kuma was a formidable Warlord of the Sea, while the latter two were Marine Admirals—the highest-ranking combatants in the Marines. Garp, in particular, was a legendary figure, known as the Marine hero who had challenged the infamous Pirate King countless times.
In other words, Luffy's current strength had elevated him to the pinnacle of the seas.
"I'll do it then," Luffy declared, reaching out and pointing into empty space.
Zoro leaned in, curious, but saw nothing—a shimmering light curtain visible only to Luffy.
It was a system unique to Luffy himself, called the Combat Power Ceiling System. As the name implies, it could elevate a person's combat prowess to the utmost limit of the world.
However, it was restricted to members of the Straw Hat Pirates. Its primary function was to utilize evolution points to enhance an individual's physical abilities, skills, tactics, and even potential for growth.
In the past few days, Luffy had gained a deep understanding of the capabilities of this system.
It seemed that the system had been with him since his early days. Its logbook meticulously recorded every battle he had fought since leaving Windmill Village. And it was through these battles that Luffy accrued evolution points.
Whether he emerged victorious or suffered defeat, battles yielded points, with victories garnering more. The number of points earned also correlated with the strength of the opponent faced.
For instance, despite not prevailing in his encounter with Aokiji, Luffy received the highest number of evolution points from that battle compared to all others.
Moreover, it wasn't just Luffy's battles that contributed to the accumulation of evolution points. Since he began recruiting crewmates, the system recorded the points gained from the entire crew's engagements in real pirate life.
Despite only a year having passed since setting sail, Luffy had already experienced numerous battles. Even though he had previously pushed his combat power to impressive heights, there were still plenty of evolution points to be earned.
Luffy located Zoro's image among the crew and selected him for evolution.
"Individual successfully scanned: Roronoa Zoro, the Straw Hat Pirates' first mate."
"Estimated cost: 10,000 evolution points. Proceed with evolution?" the system prompted.
"Evolution," Luffy affirmed, squaring his shoulders as he pressed against the shimmering light curtain.
With 20,000 evolution points still at his disposal, Luffy had more than enough to evolve Zoro.
"The comprehensive evolution of physical fitness begins. Estimated time: five days," the system announced.
"Conqueror's Haki evolution begins. Evolution complete."
"The evolution of sword skills begins. Evolution complete."
"Is this the power of the ability you gained?" Zoro wondered aloud, sensing an indescribable change take hold.
Everything around him seemed to shift.
A faint hum filled the air, and Zoro's treasured sword, the Wado Ichimonji, transformed instantly into a deep shade of black.
"Black Blade," Zoro murmured, staring in disbelief at the formerly inscribed word "Wado Ichimonji" now adorning his sword.
The Black Blade represented the ultimate form of all famed swords, yet even its previous owner had divulged little about its true nature.
He had always believed that the Black Blade was crafted from a special material. But when that special power enveloped the blade, the words "Wado Ichimonji" transformed into the Black Blade.
It was worth noting that both were hefty, sharp swords. However, the Shusui he had just dispatched to Longma surpassed the Wado Ichimonji in terms of weight and hardness.
"The blade's hardness and power transmission are indeed much greater," Zoro remarked, swinging the blade with precision.
This was also a hallmark of the Black Blade. When he wielded the Qiushui previously, the sword energy he unleashed was several times stronger than that of Guiche. Now, the characters of Wado Ichimonji have inherited the characteristics of the Black Blade.
"Furthermore, I can clearly sense the improvement in my swordsmanship," Zoro continued, closing his eyes and executing fluid motions with the three blades in his grasp. Though he didn't exert forceful sword energy, his techniques were noticeably more refined and potent than before.
"I can already envision his silhouette," Zoro proclaimed upon opening his eyes, which gleamed with an intensity that was both bright and sharp.
Back in the restaurant on the sea, Zoro had once sparred with the world's greatest swordsman, Hawkeye. That duel had starkly revealed the gap between him and the pinnacle of swordsmanship.
But now, he could vividly recall the swordsmanship Hawkeye had displayed during that encounter. If another battle were to ensue, Zoro was confident that in terms of swordsmanship, he wouldn't lag far behind Hawkeye—if not surpass him.
"This is my Three-Sword Style," Zoro declared, gazing at the trio of blades in his hand. "One day, my name will echo throughout the heavens."
"Speaking of which, Zoro, your evolution is incredibly rapid," Luffy remarked from the side.
"When I first evolved, aside from Conqueror's Haki, it took me ten days to complete the process," Luffy explained. "But for you, it only took ten days to evolve your physical fitness. Conqueror's Haki and swordsmanship evolved instantly."
"What did you say? Conqueror's Haki? What have I evolved?" Zoro inquired.
"You've evolved your body, Conqueror's Haki, and swordsmanship," Luffy clarified.
"Conqueror's Haki?" Zoro mused. "So, the ability to coat my body and sword, predict movements, and strike through the air—all of that is what they call Conqueror's Haki."
"Soga, that's how it is," Luffy exclaimed, smacking the palm of his left hand with his right. But then he furrowed his brow in confusion. "But come to think of it, what exactly is Conqueror's Haki? I feel like I heard about Haki when I was really young, but it slipped my mind."
"I'm not sure either. I haven't heard of it," Zoro admitted with a smile. "For something as specialized as this, it's best to consult an expert."
"An expert?" Luffy echoed, tilting his head in puzzlement.
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