From the Wandenreich's escape to One Piece

Chapter 113 Breaking Free from the Kama Alliance and Heading to the Sky Island

An explosion ten times more powerful than before erupted a thousand meters into the air!

The golden flames and the domineering purplish-black aura clashed, annihilated, and spread wildly, forming an ever-expanding sphere of destructive light, which then transformed into a blazing white halo that swept across the sky!

The powerful shockwave completely tore apart and evaporated the thick clouds, revealing a dazzlingly blue sky behind them, as if a giant hole had been truly blown open in the firmament!

The shockwave from the explosion even caused Zeus, who was in pursuit, to shake violently!

The light gradually faded, and the wind pressure subsided slightly.

Beltz's dragon-like figure reformed at the edge of the explosion, hovering before the "purified" azure sky, like the center of this enormous void.

His white robes fluttered wildly in the turbulent airflow, his chest rose and fell slightly, and his breathing became a little rapid, but his golden vertical pupils remained calm, and his right arm holding the knife was as steady as a rock!

He glanced back at the pursuers who had been momentarily slowed by the shockwave, then abandoned the fight. The air around him surged again, instantly pushing his speed to its limit. He transformed into a streak of azure light and shot towards the ever-changing sea of ​​clouds in the sky above the Grand Line.

"Damn it!!! Don't even think about running away!!!" Kaido's furious roar, his eyes blazing with rage, came from behind.

He could hardly believe his eyes.

This is so weird!

He remembered that back in God Valley, even though Beltz had eaten the Azure Dragon Fruit, he was still no match for him.

He chased and beat me all the way, and I finally managed to escape by using the ability to fly with the Azure Dragon Fruit.

However now—

How much time has passed?

Only three years!

He went from being chased and attacked by himself to being able to withstand his own and Lingling's combined attacks?

Did this guy suddenly leap over the dragon gate and really turn into a green dragon?

This upgrade speed is too fast!

This made Kaido even angrier!

He didn't believe this power belonged to Beltz himself; he only felt it was the blessing of the Azure Dragon Fruit.

As expected of the strongest level of Devil Fruit!

If he had been the one to eat that Devil Fruit, he would have been invincible by now, right?

Kaido was furious, and Linlin was also extremely angry.

They had all already considered the Azure Dragon Fruit their own, and now, seeing its power, they unleashed their fury upon Beltz.

"Napoleon! Prometheus! Zeus! Blow him down!"

At that moment, Lingling summoned all of her Soul Weapons!

The sun overhead, Homie Prometheus, burst forth in raging flames, intertwining with the lightning of the thundercloud Shenus, all of which poured into the emperor's sword Napoleon in her hand.

Flames, lightning, and domineering energy intertwined and compressed wildly on the blade, emitting a teeth-grinding buzz, and a dazzling energy halo condensed at the tip of the sword.

"Fire the light cannon!"

A glowing energy ring formed on the front of the greatsword, and with Lingling's shout, a terrifying energy wave shot out from the blade!

Although this energy beam is far less powerful than the combined attack with Kaido, "Sea Overlord," its energy is more restrained and its penetrating power is stronger!

Beltz, in his dragon form, stood on the air, and his power grew increasingly terrifying.

"Lingling! Your generous gift... it's still a bit lacking! With that little bit of skill, you should just use it for grilling lamb chops!"

Beltz turned around again, the blade in his hand still burning with flames. He held the knife with both hands and slashed forward with force!

boom!

The two forces collided again, but this time it was not as terrifying as before. The laser beam was pressed against the blade, and Beltz was also trying his best to resist.

puff!

With a loud bang, Beltz sliced ​​through the energy cannon, which was powerful enough to pierce through anything!

The energy beams dispersed, one pointing upwards and the other downwards.

One of the split beams went straight upwards and disappeared into the thin atmosphere at a higher altitude, its destination in the universe unknown.

The other beam plunged vertically downwards, like a spear of light cast down by a god, and fiercely pierced the azure sea below!

"Pfft—BOOM!!!"

A momentary hole appeared on the sea surface, followed by a frantic backflow of surrounding seawater, forming a huge whirlpool hundreds of meters in diameter that could not be calmed for a long time!

Then, a brief, deep darkness was revealed below, as if even the ocean had been pierced by the residual force of the attack!

"We'll meet again someday!"

Beltz, seeing that he was now far enough away from the Drum Kingdom, laughed loudly, his voice echoing clearly between heaven and earth.

Using the slight recoil from the collision, he no longer held back. In his dragon-human form, his muscles bulged, and the air around him emitted a sharp crackling sound. His speed soared again, and he flew away into the distance in a flash!

He was only letting Charlotte Linlin go; otherwise, Zeus wouldn't have been able to catch up with him.

"Damn it! Chase after them! Zeus, faster!" Lingling urged frantically.

However, Zeus's speed had reached its limit, and he could only watch helplessly as the figure in front of him grew smaller and smaller, more and more blurry, until it finally disappeared completely at the edge of his vision where the clouds met.

Zeus is not even as fast as in his dragon form, but when flying in his dragon form, he is faster than in his dragon form!

Once he had pulled the two of them far away from Drum Kingdom, he stopped pretending and went full speed ahead, instantly widening the gap between Kaido and Linlin!

"Damn it!" Lingling was furious. The Azure Dragon Fruit was gone, and now the Swallow Fruit was gone too, all stolen by one person, and she couldn't do anything about it!

"This guy—" Kaido said in a deep voice, "Where did he come from? There hasn't been a trace of him in the past three years."

Since Beltz possesses such great power, and is not affiliated with the World Government, he shouldn't be so unknown.

Since he's so strong, he wouldn't be content to remain an unknown nobody, would he?

But strangely, there was absolutely no news about him on the high seas, which was very odd.

After all, he couldn't possibly have become this powerful in just three years simply by relying on a Devil Fruit, could he?

"It's impossible to achieve anything through mere training; only intense battles can unleash the full potential of the hard work put into training, allowing one to leap forward."

Kaido himself is one thing, but even Big Mom's intelligence network has no clues about Beltz. They don't even know what this guy's name is!

Regardless of their anger, Beltz had now successfully distanced himself from them, confirming that they couldn't catch him.

He slowed down a bit.

They abandoned the previous ship and flew directly into the sky.

It flew until it reached an altitude of 7,000 meters before continuing its flight.

Actually, he didn't know the exact location of the Sky Island, but anyway—

Luffy and his crew took off from the area near Mock Town.

Then he can just fly in that general direction.

Besides gold, there's also a Rumble-Rumble Fruit on the Sky Island.

If he can find it, then he will have obtained another powerful Devil Fruit.

Although Logia-type Devil Fruits can become somewhat of a "version trap" in the later stages, it must be acknowledged that the Rumble-Rumble Fruit is an extremely powerful Devil Fruit.

One is a Gluttony Fruit, the other a Rumble-Rumble Fruit. The former is definitely for himself, while the latter—

That depends on whether Vegapunk can replicate Blackbeard and Aaroniero's ability to absorb multiple powers. If he can't replicate it—

Leaving this powerful Devil Fruit to one's subordinate would be an excellent idea!

He reverted to his dragon-human form.

The dragon-human form is powerful, but it consumes too much physical energy.

After eating the Mythical Zoan-type Azure Dragon Fruit, his stamina had been greatly enhanced, but even so, he was still struggling to keep up.

The dragon form is much better; if you don't fight, you can even maintain the dragon form for your entire life.

After transforming into a blue dragon, he released Shamrock and Shanks from the shadows and let them ride on his back.

As soon as they came out, the two looked at Beltz with admiration.

"The ship—Captain! That's—that's amazing!!!" Shanks was so excited that he was incoherent, gesturing wildly, that he almost slipped off the dragon's back. Luckily, Shamrock reacted quickly and grabbed him tightly.

But he remained oblivious, continuing, "Those two were so terrifying, yet you cleaved their energy blasts in two with a single strike! The sky practically exploded! I—I saw it all clearly from the shadows!"

Shanks shouted excitedly.

He was young and hadn't seen much of the world, but even a fool could see how terrifying the battle between Beltz and Kaido Linlin had been.

After the collision, even the clouds in the sky were blown open with huge holes!

The power was so terrifying that it shocked the two people in the shadows!

Yes, you can see the outside world even inside the shadows. They are hidden in Beltz's shadows and can see very clearly. It's truly an immersive experience!

You can even feel the terror of that power erupting!

"If you study hard, you will become just as strong in the future."

Beltz said, "You two are both geniuses."

"Can I become as amazing as the captain?" A strange light flickered in Shamrock's eyes.

"Captain Beltz, teach us how to fight!"

"Going out to sea for training and adventure is itself a form of training. Watching me fight will also help you improve," Beltz said. "I will teach you; you have the potential to become emperors of the sea!"

The Emperor of the Sea?

Both of them were a little confused upon hearing this.

Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?

How could anyone possibly become the emperor of the sea?

But young children often believe these fantasies wholeheartedly!

The more firmly a person believes in something, the stronger they will be in the future!

Because unwavering belief itself is a form of power!

After flying in the sky in dragon form for about a day, Beltz finally sensed the presence of life.

We're almost there!

He suddenly accelerated, breaking through the last thin layer of drifting clouds.

In an instant, a dreamlike scene came into view.

It was an endless, white, and soft ocean, with white clouds spread out at your feet, shimmering softly in the sunlight.

The entire aerial world is divided into two layers: the White Sea at 7,000 meters above the ground and the White-White Sea at 10,000 meters above the ground.

The so-called Sky Island is located in the White Sea.

"Hold on tight," Beltz warned, as the dragon's body snaked upwards, beginning its charge toward the "white sea" ten thousand meters above the ground.

As they ascended, the change in air pressure made Shanks and Shamrock feel their eardrums bulge and their breathing become slightly difficult, but both of them gritted their teeth and remained silent.

"Can they handle it?"

Beltz asked, "They are still children after all, and they may not be able to withstand such an oxygen-deficient environment."

"It's alright."

Shamrock nodded.

They weren't trying to be brave. While it's true that the air is thin at 10,000 meters, it's not unbearable.

The sudden change in oxygen levels caused them some discomfort, but they were fine once they adapted.

Seeing that the two were alright, the Azure Dragon broke through the last layer of clouds and landed steadily on the "White Sea" at an altitude of 10,000 meters.

Beneath my feet lies a solid yet slightly springy expanse of pure white cloud, and all around me stretches an endless expanse, as if I were in a pure land from mythology.

"Wow—!!!" Shanks jumped off the dragon's back, excitedly running and rolling on the cloud ground, exclaiming in amazement.

Shamrock also squatted down curiously and touched the incredible white earth with his hands.

As the name suggests, the White Sea is a pure white expanse.

They were amazed by the world.

Is this the heavens that Captain Beltz was talking about?

It's a place twice as high as the 5,000-meter-high Cigu Mountain!

The two children ran wildly across the cloud island in shock.

While trying to connect with the ocean of subconscious thoughts on the sky island, Beltz chased Shanks as they wandered above the clouds.

Just like when he was looking for the Gluttony Fruit, he was now using the same method to find the Rumble-Rumble Fruit.

The Rumble-Rumble Fruit was eaten by Enel many years later.

They definitely haven't eaten yet.

Because Enel is now about the same age as Shanks.

They're only two years older at most.

Yes, he remembered that Enel was born in Birka, located in the south of Skypiea, which was destroyed by Enel about eighteen years before the start of the story.

So Enel's Devil Fruit must be there too, right?

Well, the gold is definitely not going anywhere, but the Devil Fruit is very likely to be eaten, so let's go find the Devil Fruit first.

"Children, let's head south!"

Beltz gave the message.

The two people who were strolling on the sea of ​​clouds obeyed the command and ran south.

His mental penetration is even greater than the range of Observation Haki and spiritual pressure perception.

Once the direction was determined, he could explore a wider area.

"Neither of you wants to eat a Devil Fruit?"

He asked a question.

"A Devil Fruit?" Shamrock asked. "Is it the ability that Captain Beltz has to transform into a dragon?"

'

"Yes, but not every Devil Fruit can turn you into a dragon. Each Devil Fruit has different abilities."

"But after eating the Devil Fruit, you can't swim anymore and you'll become a landlubber."

1

Upon hearing that they would become unable to swim, the two immediately showed expressions of reluctance.

They are men destined to become warriors of the sea; how can they do it if they can't swim?