After retiring from the Navy, I became a doting husband.

Boom, boom, boom...

Near the port, the naval base's artillery batteries and three pirate ships flying pirate flags on the sea were exchanging fire with each other.

The sound of black cannons blasting was incessant, black shells flew back and forth with afterimages, causing continuous explosions in the harbor, and smoke filled the entire harbor, even the sky was stained black.

After half an hour of fighting, the three pirate ships drifted away, leaving behind the naval base engulfed in flames.

This left the townspeople watching from afar dumbfounded, with many covering their mouths in disbelief, their expressions utterly awkward.

This is a naval supply base!

A place specifically for naval soldiers and ships to be stationed was attacked by pirates in broad daylight?

How can this be?

Not long ago, pirates ambushed the Navy on Gold Island, causing them to suffer a setback, which has become big news in the East Blue.

Now these pirates are actually chasing after him to fight, and then running away, refusing to engage him in close combat. This is going too far.

Back at the base, Smoker watched the arrogant pirates leave, his lungs pounding with rage, and he nearly swallowed his cigar.

He was tricked on Golden Island and got a severe scolding from his superiors. Now he's being beaten up at home by pirates, which makes him lose all face.

He picked up a Den Den Mushi (communication phone) and dialed the number at the East Sea headquarters in Loguetown: "...Colonel, I need support from headquarters."

"The pirates are using their superior numbers to pursue us, and they may launch another attack."

An aged voice came from the other end of the Den Den Mushi: "Smoker, I don't have enough troops to support you. At the moment, the ships and soldiers in Loguetown are only enough to defend themselves."

"You know that because of your mistake, the Krieg Pirates have become famous and are constantly recruiting. The crew now has over 2000 members, and Krieg is threatening Loguetown..."

After hanging up the Den Den Mushi, Smoker remained expressionless, but a chill ran through him. There was no doubt that the Navy was being suppressed by the pirates.

"Major Smoker, shall we set sail to pursue those three pirate ships?"

Tashigi asked, "The two warships in the base are still under repair, but the troop strength should be sufficient."

"No need, this is probably a trap set by the pirates. We have to wait. Also, they are very likely to enter the town at night, so everyone should be alert and ready to fight them."

Smoker's expression was extremely serious.

Pirates are cunning and evil. If they cannot breach a naval base, they usually choose to infiltrate towns in small numbers to burn, kill, and plunder.

So the navy will be especially busy lately, and the entire Orange Town will become more dangerous and chaotic than before.

……

In the afternoon, Martin saw many neighbors visiting each other in the streets and alleys, discussing something nervously in groups of three or five, chattering away, each with a serious expression and expressing their own opinions.

Listen closely, and you'll hear many people discussing leaving Orange Town.

It's outrageous that pirates would bombard Orange Town in broad daylight; it makes the town's residents feel very unsafe.

Many residents were cursing the navy for being incompetent, not only losing to pirates but also having their homes attacked by them.

Everyone knew what this meant: Orange Town, which had enjoyed a brief period of peace, was once again fraught with danger.

In the coming period, some people will be able to leave the town and head to larger cities.

However, we are now in the early stages of the Great Pirate Era, and pirates are emerging one after another in the East Blue. More than half of the coastal towns in the East Blue are within the territory of pirates.

Where can you run to?

Perhaps only the area around Loguetown is relatively safe.

Now that the pirates have attacked, most of the outer shipping routes are blocked, so who can escape?

The neighbors continued to denounce the pirates' brutality and the navy's incompetence, but very few people actually left.

Mrs. Joel remained silent for a moment, then said nothing, and turned to leave.

They probably felt it was too late to escape now.

In the afternoon, instead of forging a knife, Martin simply focused his mind and practiced his fist and foot techniques.

Martin practiced boxing because he foresaw an upcoming fight and decided to stop using his fists and feet in advance.

His blood and qi surged, his fists roared, powerful and vigorous, like a cannon firing.

That's right, this is the popular Garp Iron Fist style in the military.

As a naval hero, Garp had long ago passed on his boxing skills to the naval soldiers, with almost no secrets.

This iron fist only has three moves: straight punch, hook punch, and swing punch, which is very similar to boxing.

Although the moves are few, they are very powerful when combined with footwork, making them suitable for head-on confrontations and a popular form of unarmed counter-attack.

Drink up!

As he focused his energy in his dantian, his bones began to crack and pop, and Martin's punches and kicks became much faster.

Every punch and kick sent a gust of wind through the air, and the blood and qi flowed with each punch, making the fight powerful and vigorous.

After completing a powerful set of punches, Martin's forehead was covered with a fine layer of sweat, and his blood and energy were pushed to their peak.

As his physique improved, his understanding and application of the Iron Fist deepened, and his strength increased several times over.

Their combat strength is naturally stronger.

His boxing style now possessed a unique charm, like the explosive force of a cannon firing, sometimes powerful and sometimes as gentle as mist.

His arms move like a machine gun, and in a daze, he could kill a person with a single punch.

Bang!

When the fist touched the training stone pillar in front, it immediately shattered, with fragments of stone and leather exploding and falling to the ground.

call!

After finishing his set of punches, Martin slowly stopped.

He could clearly feel that his boxing skills and power had improved a lot, and his qi and blood were now perfectly integrated.

But that's all. He's already mastered Iron Fist. To possess the power of Garp's Iron Fist, he still needs to learn Armament Haki.

clap clap clap...

A round of applause came from not far away.

Martin then saw a cute girl wearing glasses peeking out from behind the fence, clapping her hands high in the air. It was Tashigi.

"Tashigi, what brings you here? I thought you'd run away with that cursed sword."

Martin opened the door for the cute girl.

“Mr. Martin, that’s really too much. I just went out to fight a battle.”

Tashigi puffed out her cheeks, but quickly revealed an envious expression: "I didn't expect Mr. Martin to have such a great physique and such a good Iron Fist. Few people in the Navy Training Grounds can bring out Vice Admiral Garp's Iron Fist so perfectly."

"Huh? You're flattering me as soon as we meet?"

Martin sensed the girl's intention. "Hey, do you need something from me? If you do, just say it."

Dai Siqi did not answer immediately, but instead handed the iron box she was carrying on her back to the other person.

The iron box was very heavy, flattening Tashigi's already small breasts.

"Here's what you wanted. I spent a lot of merit points to get one..."

Dai Siqi pouted.

Martin took the iron box and looked inside; it contained a steel ingot.

This steel ingot looks quite special; its surface is as white as jade, and under the sunlight, it looks like jade with a crystal-clear luster.

This is Yu Gang!

A resource controlled by the World Government, and also an important material for forging weapons of superior quality, such as the Fine Blade.

It's safe to say that there's a market for it, but no buyers.

Judging by its weight, it must weigh at least twenty pounds.

It wasn't for nothing that I gave Dai Siqi that demon sword; this is the reward I'm getting.

"Ahem, Mr. Martin, I need your help with something else."

Tashigi awkwardly drew the blade from her waist, but she only managed to pull it out halfway, because the blade was only half-drawn.

"Did the demon sword break? It seems you've been through quite a few battles on this voyage."

Martin wasn't surprised to see the first generation of the cursed sword broken in two.

The first generation of the demon sword was an unfinished defective product, at best only of the level of a fast sword, with no special features other than being extremely sharp.

"I'm sorry, that Krieg is very strong. I took a bullet from him and the knife broke."

Tashigi's face was full of apologies; a swordsman breaking his sword was definitely not a good thing.

"It's nothing, I'll just give you another knife."

Martin raised his hand and tossed a knife from the knife rack to the other man.

Tashigi took the knife, and the moment she drew it, her big eyes behind her glasses widened in surprise!

What... what kind of knife is this?

Martin gave a wicked smile: "Zanpakuto!"

Chapter 18 Initial Release

What is a Zanpakuto?

Tashigi stared at the knife with disbelief.

This knife is both beautiful and strange. It has a silvery sheen and an indescribable sinister charm. There is a blood-red petal-shaped pattern on the blade, which shows that this knife is unusual.

This is a demonic sword!

It was even more perfect, more beautiful, and more alluring than the demon sword she had seen before.

Dai Siqi's body trembled, and she took out a book from her backpack and immediately began to read it.

"...This is definitely not some kind of demon sword like the Onikiri. It's not mentioned in any books, and it has nothing to do with demon swords. It should be a demon sword that has never been recorded before!"

"It should be a brand new demon sword!"