The delicacies of the heavens begin with obtaining gem meat.

Chapter 189 Entering the Calm Belt

Having made up his mind, Jiang Yan strode to the empty dock at the port.

He took a black Poké Ball with gold trim from his waist. This was a luxurious, heavy Poké Ball that he had specially asked Professor Oak to make for Charizard. It was large enough to accommodate Charizard's growing size and make it more comfortable inside the Poké Ball.

He weighed the Poké Ball in his hand, pressed the button in the middle, and threw it.

"I choose you, Charizard!"

A dazzling red light burst forth from the Poké Ball, accompanied by a scorching shockwave, and Charizard crashed to the ground.

At this point, the fire-breathing dragon was already five meters tall, and when its huge wings were spread out, the width even exceeded ten meters.

Its thick limbs are equipped with sharp claws, and flames burn fiercely at the end of its tail.

"roar--!"

The fire-breathing dragon raised its head and let out a roar that shook the harbor.

Where had the fishermen, vendors, and tourists at the dock ever seen a fire-breathing dragon?

Everyone turned pale with fright, and the hustle and bustle of the entire port fell silent for a moment because of the dragon's roar.

But the next second, some people saw the Charizard lower its massive head and affectionately approach Jiang Yan, emitting a low growl from its throat.

Jiang Yan couldn't help but laugh. He reached out and rubbed the Charizard's hard but smooth head, then scratched along its jawline.

Charizard squinted comfortably, the flames on its tail flickering, revealing a satisfied expression.

A newspaper reporter carrying a camera happened to see this scene, and his eyes lit up instantly. Without thinking, he immediately raised his camera and pressed the shutter.

With a soft "click," the image of the Charizard nuzzling Jiang Yan affectionately was captured.

The reporter was overjoyed; this was definitely big news! A mysterious, powerful being, a giant dragon-like creature never before seen? Many people must be curious.

Jiang Yan heard the shutter sound, but didn't pay any attention to it.

He raised his hand and patted Charizard's neck, then lightly pushed off with his feet, his body flipping gracefully and landing steadily on Charizard's broad back.

"Charizard, let's go!"

Jiang Yan bent down and patted the Charizard on the shoulder.

-

"Our destination is the Calm Belt; we're heading to the Grand Line."

"roar--!"

Charizard responded with another high-pitched roar.

Then it suddenly flapped its huge wings, and a strong gale swept across the entire dock in an instant, making the GG sign next to it rattle and even stirring up the gravel on the ground.

With the flapping of its wings, the fire-breathing dragon's body rose higher and higher into the air, flying faster and faster towards the distant horizon where the sea and sky meet.

The people on the dock could only crane their necks and watch as the fire-breathing dragon and Jiang Yan's shadows grew smaller and smaller until they finally disappeared into the horizon.

When it completely disappeared, the port erupted in chaos.

"What was that just now? Was it a Devil Fruit ability?"

"I've never heard of any creature that looks like that! It's terrifying!"

"Who is that person? He doesn't look very old, yet he can control that kind of monster—"

"I think I just saw that guy buy a logbook and a nautical chart at the nautical supplies store. He's definitely heading to the Grand Line!"

,

The discussions were lively, but no one knew Jiang Yan's background. This only added another topic of conversation to the already legendary town of Rogge.

Loguetown is located on the edge of the East Sea, not far from the Calm Belt that separates the four seas from the Grand Line.

Charizard's flight speed is extremely fast, and even with Jiang Yan in tow, it remains stable and swift.

Riding the wind high in the sky, the sea and islands below rush past rapidly. In just half a day, the surrounding wind gradually changed.

The sea breeze that had been blowing suddenly disappeared.

The air seemed to freeze, eerily quiet, even the sound of the waves had disappeared.

Jiang Yan knew that he and Charizard had entered the Calm Belt.

Looking down, the sea beneath my feet was as calm as a polished deep blue gemstone, without waves or spray, a stark contrast to the turbulent ocean not far away.

Beneath this extreme tranquility lies immense danger.

-

Through observation, Jiang Yan could see that every now and then a huge, suffocating shadow would slowly sweep across the sea from below the surface.

The shadows were often hundreds or even thousands of meters long, and even across the sea, one could feel the oppressive presence of their massive bodies.

These shadows are naturally sea kings living in the calm zone, the top predators in this ocean.

However, these sea kings completely ignored the fire-breathing dragon high in the sky.

They didn't even bother to look up, let alone launch an attack.

This is understandable. Even though the fire-breathing dragon has grown to a colossal size of five meters in height and nearly ten meters in length, in the eyes of these sea kings that are often hundreds of meters long, it is probably no different from a human looking at an ant flying in the sky. It is not worth their time or effort.

Jiang Yan stared intently at the shadows that swept across the sea, his eyes shining, and he began to make plans in his mind.

Jiang Yan patted Charizard's neck and said with a smile.

"Charizard, lower yourself a little, it's time to harvest the ingredients."

The fire-breathing dragon responded softly, folded its wings slightly, and its massive body swooped down towards the sea.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Once they were close to the surface of the sea, Jiang Yan took out a Poké Ball and put away Charizard.

After the Charizard was put away, Jiang Yan's body began to fall towards the sea below.

Just as he was about to fall into the sea, Jiang Yan suddenly exerted force in his waist and abdomen, and his legs quickly stepped out like a taut bowstring.

Each stomp produced a muffled sonic boom in the air, and with this brief burst, Jiang Yan's downward momentum was abruptly stopped, and his body was suspended in mid-air for a moment.

Of course, this kind of airtime relying solely on explosive power cannot be sustained, but Jiang Yan had already made plans.

With a thought, a small wooden boat appeared directly below him.

These were purchased specifically beforehand, and more than a dozen have been stockpiled at the Food Restaurant.

With a light tap of his toes, Jiang Yan landed on the deck of the boat, which sank slightly before coming to a stop.

After landing on the small wooden boat, Jiang Yan looked down at the seawater, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing his chin.

"So, how do we lure the sea kings out next?"

Jiang Yan muttered to himself, his mind racing as he considered different options.

To dive directly into the sea to hunt sea kings? Jiang Yan rejected the idea without even thinking about it.

Putting aside the water pressure, the unknown number of sea kings alone is extremely dangerous. If he were to be surrounded in the sea, even if he managed to escape unscathed, he would still be in for a lot of trouble.

The best way is to actively lure these sea monsters to the surface.

In a short while, Jiang Yan had an idea.

He extended his right palm beyond the ship's side, his concentrated thoughts enveloping his entire hand like flowing water.

The next moment, Jiang Yan suddenly exerted force with his arm and slammed it heavily down onto the sea surface.

"Bang--!"

A deafening roar erupted as a hand slammed into the sea, instantly creating a giant wave several meters high. The powerful shockwave crashed into the seawater like a heavy hammer.

One, two, three times—the wooden boat bobbed up and down in the surging waves, but thankfully it didn't capsize.

This continuous tremor, as conspicuous as a torch in the night in this windless zone, naturally did not escape the sea kings' notice.

Soon, the previously calm sea surface suddenly began to churn violently, as if a volcano was about to erupt beneath it.

-

The seawater surged, and huge black shadows slowly rose from the sea, their bodies gradually emerging from the water, blotting out the sky.

One, two, five—a full twenty or thirty enormous sea kings surrounded this area.

Even the smallest one is over 100 meters long. Its huge fins and tail fins create towering waves as they swing, and its white fangs gleam coldly in the sunlight.

Meanwhile, the small wooden boat that Jiang Yan was on was being steadily pinned to the flat head of a sea monster that was over 500 meters long and resembled a giant eel.

This sea monster was larger than the thickest ancient tree, its smooth, bluish-black skin covered with fine scales, and its vertical pupils coldly scanned its surroundings, but found nothing.

Jiang Yan's eyes grew brighter as he looked at the numerous sea kings.

It quickly scanned the surrounding sea kings, as if selecting high-quality ingredients at a market, carefully distinguishing the species and size of each sea king, and even predicting the texture and flavor of the meat inside through the thick skin and flesh.

Soon, Jiang Yan locked onto several excellent targets.

The sea eel beneath me is naturally the first choice. With a body length of over 500 meters, its flesh must be firm and chewy, and its belly fat layer is rich and mellow, making it an absolutely top-quality ingredient.

Not far away, that sea king, over three hundred meters long and shaped like a giant manta ray, is also quite impressive.

-

The broad pectoral fins are definitely full of collagen, making them a rare delicacy for making thick soups.

There's also that sea monster, over a hundred meters long, with a deep-sea blue body and a shape resembling a giant frog.

Frog leg meat has always been considered a tender and juicy delicacy.

Besides, that sea king with its sleek lines, resembling a prehistoric giant shark, must have quite impressive, large fins.

And that giant, shelled lobster sea king—just thinking about its sweet, succulent meat makes my mouth water!

Jiang Yan became more and more satisfied as he looked at them, and couldn't help but smile. He felt that every single one of these sea monsters was a top-quality ingredient, and their entire bodies seemed to exude deliciousness.

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