8 Chapter 8

In Abel's perspective, the "Wraith's Heart" talent was essentially a life-draining talent.

Calculated at a rate of consuming 5 days of his lifespan per minute, an hour-long battle would take away 300 days.

With his current lifespan just over a thousand days, it would only allow him to enjoy a few hours of the talent's effects.

What could he accomplish in a few hours?

He couldn't even make a round trip to the Grand Line.

Not to mention the legendary battles that could last for days on end.

Even if he purchased all 99 "Red Hearts" from the system store, it wouldn't be enough to sustain the consumption of this talent.

So the "Wraith's Heart" talent was rather impractical at the moment.

However, it was a blue-quality talent after all - close to the lowest rank - and he couldn't demand too much.

In the state of the transformed Wraith, his defense, speed, and strength all increased by 50%, and his pain perception was reduced by 50%.

It seemed decent enough. If it weren't for the life-draining side effect, Abel could have accepted it.

After all, it was a low-quality blue talent - what more could he expect?

Now, the only thing he could look forward to was its 'growth potential'. Maybe after it evolved, these shortcomings would be improved.

"No wonder it's just a blue-quality talent. Any ordinary person probably wouldn't dare to use it."

"But I'm different. Since there are items like 'Red Heart' in the system store that can extend my lifespan, it implies that I will be able to purchase similar items in the future."

"So as long as I don't use it recklessly and save it for a critical moment, it's acceptable."

"Plus, the 'Wraith's Heart' is a growing talent. While the conditions for growth seem quite dangerous, maybe I can try it in the future when I can ensure my safety."

With these thoughts, Abel's mood improved slightly.

He had initially planned to remove the toxins of the Lead-Poisoning disease as soon as he or Law obtained a Devil Fruit.

However, things didn't go as planned.

Now that the Lead-Poisoning disease had mutated into his talent and become a part of him, it seemed he would no longer have the chance to remove it.

A single sip or bite could bring fortune or disaster.

Even Abel himself was unsure whether this change was good or bad.

Considering that he would undoubtedly need to use his talent in the future, Abel decided to activate the "Wraith's Heart" talent, wanting to experience its effects firsthand. He needed to be prepared because when in a real fight, his opponents wouldn't give him the chance to make mistakes. Any slip-up could cost him his life.

"Ugh"

Abel couldn't help but groan in pain during the activation process of the "Wraith's Heart". His heart started to beat rapidly as a wave of terrifying toxins spread throughout his body with his blood.

In the blink of an eye, Abel's skin turned a sickly pale color, similar to how the original white spots had spread throughout his body. His eyes filled with blood, flickering a bewitching fiery red color under the dim light.

Even his previously short hair began to grow wildly, eventually reaching his waist and turning completely white.

This was the true Wraith form! A ghostly pale specter!

At this moment, even Law might have trouble recognizing Abel, or perhaps wouldn't dare to.

"Phew"

Abel exhaled deeply after the transformation. He hadn't expected the activation of this talent to be so painful. Fortunately, as soon as he fully transformed into this ghost-like state, the pain was halved, reducing from unbearable to merely distressing.

"Adapting in advance was indeed the right decision."

Abel thought as such, because the pain he was experiencing now was not reflected in the system's description. If he hadn't prepared himself mentally, he would have been caught off guard.

Abel glanced at his now pale hands and clenched his fists, feeling the changes in his body. Although it wasn't a drastic sensation, his strength did seem to have increased slightly. He was still quite weak, so there wasn't much of a noticeable change.

To truly unleash the power of this talent, he first needed to build a solid foundation; there was no such thing as a free lunch.

So, after a quick adaptation, Abel hurriedly deactivated his Wraith form. The toxins spread throughout his body rapidly retreated back into his heart, the white spots faded, and his white long hair turned back to its original black, with the excess part crumbling into dust.

He had consumed 5 days of his lifespan in less than a minute, which was no longer a matter of pain.

However, he then tried to slightly release the toxins stored in his heart. The next second, the familiar white spots sporadically appeared on his body, accompanied by a slight pain.

"I can control it indeed."

Suppressing his discomfort, Abel glanced at his "Wraith's Heart" talent, relieved to find out that maintaining his current state did not count as activation. Otherwise, his conspicuous transformation would be impossible to explain to Law. Unexplained phenomena could create unnecessary barriers.

So, for now, it was better to maintain the status quo.

His character profile now read:

[Host: Gustavus Abel]

[Basic Trading Qualification]

[Gender: Male]

[Age: Ten]

[Height: 140 cm]

[Weight: 25.5 kg]

[Lifespan: 4 years and 355 days]

[Talent: Wraith's Heart (Blue)]

[Abilities: None]

[Trading Points: 825]

Looking at his remaining lifespan of less than five years, Abel was suddenly tempted to use all his trading points to purchase "Red Hearts".

But he resisted.

After all, he had realized the value of trading points.

Also, for him now, was there a difference between having a lifespan of 5 or 10 years? In the short term, it was a wasted investment.

It would be better to keep them handy, to purchase something more useful for his current situation.

Having made up his mind, Abel no longer hesitated.

But,

"Law has been gone for quite some time. Why hasn't he returned yet?"

He frowned slightly, a feeling of unease creeping in.

Thus, leaving a marker behind, he immediately set off to find Law's traces.

Fortunately, he was now able to control the release of his lead virus, so as long as he wanted to, he could appear as a slightly distressed normal child on the outside.