Pirate: I, Ace, am the King of Eclipse!

Hundreds of objects scattered instantly, weaving through the enemy from different directions at varying heights. Blades blocked the gaps, while stone and water cones filled in the void, their attack trajectories constantly shifting. Enemies caught in this chaos not only had to defend themselves from all sides but also had their Observation Haki judgment disrupted by the chaotic movement.

After completing the first round of control, Leona grasped White Night in her right hand and lifted Meteorite in her left. Large swaths of earth and rocks rose from the ground, forming a gigantic lion hundreds of meters long in the air. Dark red sword energy climbed the lion's mane, and the giant lion opened its mouth to pounce on the distant mountains.

"Dual Sword Style: Lion King's Roar!"

The mountain wall was smashed open by the giant lion, and rock layers collapsed inward along the cracks. Leona simultaneously displaced her own weight, cutting into the smoke and dust from a blind spot. The dissection blind spot unfolded before her eyes, exposing the mountain's most vulnerable core.

The meteorite was as light as a feather until it fell. She only released the fruit's effects a fraction of a second after the blade struck the rock face.

"Gravity Return!"

The weight of tens of thousands of pounds pressed back onto the sword, along with the Armament Haki and the impact just trapped in the defensive structure, flooding into the crack. A muffled thud came from inside the mountain first, followed by a collapse from the middle, with rubble and dust surging to both sides.

Leona emerged from the smoke and dust, glanced at the meteorite in her left hand, and then sheathed the White Night. With crowd control, direct pressure, and the finishing blow of the heavy sword, combined with the White Night's high-speed slashes targeting single opponents, the dual-sword fighting style she desired was beginning to take shape.

Only half of the throne remained at the highest point of the palace. Ace sat cross-legged on the ruins, listening to the sounds of all things pervading the entire island; no training activity from anywhere escaped his perception.

His fists rested on his knees, black and red arcs of electricity crackling along his skin. Whenever his Conqueror's Haki was about to explode outwards, he forcefully pulled it back, pressing it back into his fists. Once, twice, the scattered electricity diminished, and the power coiling around his fists thinned.

The barrier that had blocked his path to the Conqueror's Haki was almost completely gone. Continuing to practice alone would only slowly wear it down; to truly break through it, he still needed a formidable opponent worthy of his full strength.

Chapter 122 Soothing the Soul, Sword Pointing to the Southern Sea Library

Night fell on the main island of Wilmère, and the sky was filled with stars.

A huge bonfire burned in the square of the palace ruins, the firewood crackling intermittently. The oil dripping from the roasting meat fell into the embers, its aroma spreading on the night breeze. The Eclipse Clan sat around the fire, eating heartily and jokingly discussing their daytime training.

The ground, shattered during the day, hadn't been cleaned up yet, and traces of training were visible everywhere among the ruins. At night, the group stopped sparring and simply ate and drank around the campfire. The fire illuminated their faces and cast the image of the ruined palace behind them onto the snow.

They never hold back during training, and even the most severe injuries are mitigated by Ace's Vermilion Bird Divine Flame. As the crimson flames sweep across their bodies, injuries and physical fatigue vanish, while the training benefits from muscle tearing and rebuilding are fully preserved.

The divine fire could only restore their bodies, but it couldn't help them relax their minds. After maintaining high-intensity training for several days in a row, everyone's nerves were constantly on edge, and they couldn't relax immediately even at the banquet.

The sound of a violin came from the direction of the cliff.

Brooke, dressed in an English gentleman's suit, stood on the snow, his skeletal fingers moving between the strings of a piano. The melodious tune carried a hint of the chill of the underworld, crossing the square and blending into the laughter and conversation around the campfire.

"Hehehe, everyone's really motivated. But if you stretch your spirit too tight, it will break." Brooke's eyes lit up with a ghostly blue light, and he changed the direction of his bow. "Let's use this piece as a condiment for tonight's banquet. Music: Healing the Soul."

The musical notes carried an aura of the underworld, washing over everyone like ripples on water. The nerves, agitated by the repeated release of domineering power, gradually calmed, and their shoulders and backs relaxed. The mutated beasts locked in iron cages in the distance stopped their back-and-forth ramming and lay down, soon falling asleep and snoring.

The music continued to drift in the night breeze, and the group, who had been playfully teasing each other, quieted down. The tension built up from the continuous training didn't disappear immediately, but it slowly subsided with each note. Brooke remained standing on the snow-covered cliff, playing with complete focus, without interrupting the banquet.

Ace sat at the head of the table by the campfire, raised his rum, and leaned back in his chair. Brooke's music had a calming effect on the soul, perfectly filling the void left by the Eclipse.

This function is perfect for the group of people who are currently undergoing long-term intensive training.

Just as the atmosphere was beginning to relax, a muffled thud came from the makeshift laboratory next door, and the wooden door was kicked open from the inside.

Black smoke billowed into the square, and Chopper and Indigo ran out, coughing. Both were covered in soot, and sparks were still flying from the hem of Indigo's white coat.

"Another failure! This is simply an impossible task!" Indigo took off his charred glasses and plopped down in the snow. "No matter how I change the formula ratio, as long as I remove the toxins from the SIQ stock solution, the active ingredient that stimulates gene mutation will die immediately. The two are like conjoined twins; there's no way to neutralize them!"

Chopper walked up to Ace with droopy ears, his blue nose covered in soot: "Ace, I'm sorry. The genetic mutation mechanism of the potion is too complex; existing common herbs simply cannot suppress its toxicity. My medical reserves are far from sufficient."

It lowered its head after speaking. Indigo had repeatedly changed the formula ratios and tried every common herb available, but it still couldn't separate the toxicity from the active ingredients. Continuing to experiment using the original method would only yield the same result.

Ace put down his glass and reached out to ruffle the fur under its hat: "Medical research can never be successful on the first try. If our current knowledge is insufficient, then we should look for more ancient medical texts."

"But where can we find it?" Chopper asked, looking up at him.

Ace turned to Karina, who was wiping her sniper rifle: "Does your intelligence network have any records of the South Sea Trino Kingdom?"

“The Kingdom of Trino?” Karina put down her gun, rummaged through her purse and pulled out a stack of intelligence files, quickly finding the corresponding record. “Got it. The Kingdom of Trino is also known as the Bird Kingdom. It’s a remote, primitive island in the South China Sea.”

She continued looking down, then quickly looked up: "In the center of the island stands a giant tree that pierces the clouds, and hidden within it is an ancient library of medicine and botany. Much pharmacological knowledge that has been lost to the outside world may still be preserved there."

"Ancient Medical Library?" Chopper's eyes lit up, and his breathing quickened. "Is it full of rare medical texts?"

"It's pretty close," Ace nodded. "Since the research has hit a bottleneck, there's no point in continuing to push it. Let's go to the South China Sea, find the medical books in the library, and see if we can find any pharmacological knowledge you need."

Chopper looked again at the dossier in Karina's hands, and his earlier frustration lessened considerably. The ancient library contained precisely the knowledge that he and Indigo currently lacked. Once the appropriate pharmacological records were found, the stalled research could resume.

Sabo stepped closer: "The Eclipse is ready to be refitted. Shall we all set off together this time?"

“No.” Ace glanced at the large area of ​​terrain on the island that had been damaged by the special training. “The Eclipse has limited space. With your current strength, you simply can’t move freely on the ship.”

He stood up and said to the others who remained, "The rest of you will stay on the floating island and continue your unrestricted special training as usual. If you encounter any problems that you cannot solve, or if you receive crucial intelligence, please contact us at any time via the radio channel. I am taking Chopper and Indigo to the South China Sea. The Eclipse is easy to navigate and the round trip will not take too long."

"Understood, Captain." Sabo nodded with a smile. Everyone was in a crucial stage of digesting Haki, and there was indeed no need to interrupt their training for a short voyage.

After arranging the matters for those remaining behind, Ace looked towards the southern night sky. Besides helping Chopper find ancient medical texts, he also planned to travel to Batrilla Island to confirm a personal matter.

“Let’s verify our previous speculation.” Ace finished the rest of his rum. “If it’s true, let’s retrieve that knife that’s been dormant for twenty years.”

The next morning, the roar of the thrusters echoed from the Eclipse's lower decks. The black warship rose into the sky against the rising sun, piercing through the clouds and heading towards the South China Sea, watched by Sabo and his crew, along with the mutated beasts on the island.

Chapter 123 Arrival in the Bird Kingdom: Giant Birds and Primitive Tribes

With strong winds pounding against the hull, the Eclipse left the Wilmès Islands in the East China Sea and, under the control of Eclipse, ascended into the stratosphere, 10,000 meters above the doldrums, and flew at high speed toward the South China Sea.

The black hull cut through the oncoming airflow, leaving the Wilmèjo Islands far behind. It didn't need to circle the coast or pass over the Inverted Mountains; it only needed to maintain an altitude of 10,000 meters to head straight for the South China Sea above the doldrums.

The vast majority of the crew stayed on the floating island for special training, leaving the massive warship much emptier, with only the occasional sound of the wind on the deck.

The research on the SIQ serum had completely stalled. Instead of having Chopper and Indigo continue their pointless formula deductions, Ace had them leave the lab and relax during the voyage.

Chopper lay on the ship's railing, holding an oversized pink marshmallow. He looked down from high above, the sea stretching between the clouds, receding as the Eclipse sailed forward.

High above, the usual spray of waves from a ship was invisible; the blue sea was sliced ​​into pieces of varying sizes by white clouds. Chopper looked down at the sea for a while, then gazed at the nearby clouds, biting off more and more of the cotton candy in his hand, which was soon mostly gone.

"So beautiful! Looking down from here, the ocean looks like a sapphire, and even the clouds look like soft cotton candy!" Chopper said, taking a big bite and a satisfied smile spreading across his face.

With dark circles under his eyes, Indigo slumped in a beach chair. "Giving my brain a rest is really important. Luckily, the Eclipse can fly, so we don't have to slowly squeeze through the Reverse Mountain; we can just cross the Calm Belt directly. Dr. Chopper, once we get those ancient books, we'll definitely be able to concoct the perfect enhancement potion!"

"Even if you praise me like that, I won't be happy, you jerk!" Chopper cupped his face, but his body was already twisting with joy.

Ace lay on the chair at the bow, eyes closed, listening to the two men's movements, a smile appearing on his face. Most of the crew on the Eclipse were used to fighting, and since Chopper, the mascot and ship's doctor, joined the ship, the daily voyages had indeed become much more lively.

At this moment, a notification sounded from the control panel at the bow of the ship.

"Captain Ace, the Eclipse has reached the target area in the South China Sea. A large island and numerous signs of life have been detected below. Should we begin the descent?"

Ace opened his eyes, got up and walked to the ship's side: "Erosion, slow down, activate the gravity adjustment system, and descend gently."

The bottom thrusters emitted reverse airflow, and the Eclipse pierced through the thick sea of ​​clouds. As the altitude decreased, the vast expanse of the South China Sea gradually came into view. Dozens of nautical miles away, a large island covered with primeval forest also came into view.

As the massive ship pierced through the clouds, only billowing white vapor remained around it. When the bow reappeared above the sea of ​​clouds, the island was fully revealed ahead. Surrounded by azure waters, the island was covered in forests, and from a distance, almost no other scenery could be seen.

At the center of the island grows a colossal tree that pierces the clouds, its trunk exceeding several kilometers in diameter, its canopy covering nearly half the island. Ancient traces of human intervention can still be seen on its thick trunk.

This is the bird kingdom of the South China Sea—the Kingdom of Trino.

The ancient medical and botanical library described in the intelligence report is hidden inside this giant tree.

"Chopper, stop eating and come out to look at your library." Ace pointed to the giant tree.

Chopper immediately dropped the wooden stick and ran to the ship's side. He looked in the direction Ace was pointing and his eyes widened: "Wow! Is there really a library in that tree?"

“Of course. But before we go in to find the books, it seems we should greet the island’s owner first.” Ace looked up at the tree canopy that blocked out the sky.

When the Eclipse was still a few nautical miles from the island, three giant birds suddenly emerged from the dense foliage. Their wingspans were comparable to the Eclipse's, their enormous beaks were sharp as knives, and their eyes were filled with hostility towards the intruders.

The treetops shook violently from the impact, and leaves fell from the heights. The cries of three giant birds carried across nautical miles to the deck, their outstretched wings blocking out large swaths of sunlight, their sharp talons aimed straight for the black hull.

The three giant birds clearly saw the black warship hovering high in the sky as a threat. They let out sharp cries, spread their talons, and swooped down on the Eclipse from three directions.

"It's a strange bird! Ten times bigger than the Laban I saw on Winter Island!" Indigo was so frightened that he hid behind Chopper and hugged its short legs. "Captain Ace, quickly use Conqueror's Haki to stun them, or the ship will be torn to shreds!"

"Shut up." Ace didn't use Conqueror's Haki, but a crimson-gold light rose from the surface of his body.

Vermilion Bird - Divine Fire Resonance.

The aura of the Vermilion Bird spread out. As the king of birds among the mythical beasts, this aura possessed a bloodline-based suppression and soothing effect on most birds.

The three giant birds that were swooping down on the Eclipse suddenly froze, the ferocity and hostility in their eyes quickly fading. They stopped their attack in mid-air, retracted their talons, and let out gentle cries before circling the ship. Their enormous wings spread out, shielding the Eclipse from the cold high-altitude winds.

The moment they came into contact with the crimson-gold light, the claws that had been reaching for the ship's hull stopped in mid-air. The three giant birds flapped their wings to halt their advance, and when they looked at Ace again, their previous intention to attack had vanished, leaving only awe of the Vermilion Bird's aura.

Chopper understands animal language, but the change before his eyes left him stunned for a long time. Just a moment ago, those giant birds were shouting and tearing apart the intruders and protecting their nest.

“I am the king of birds.” Ace looked at the giant bird flying around the warship and ordered the control panel, “Erosion, hover in the open space in the middle of the canopy. We’re disembarking.”

Surrounded by three giant birds, the Eclipse descended towards the giant tree, finally landing beside a broad branch. That branch was wider than an ordinary square, enough for everyone to step on.

Ace, along with Chopper and Indigo, jumped off the boat. As soon as their feet touched the branches, noises came from the surrounding woods and tree hollows.

"Gibberish! Ulabah!"

Hundreds of short, ball-shaped primitive natives rushed out. They were dressed in simple animal skins and carried spears and blowguns, surrounding the three. The spear tips were coated with a dark green poison; once blood was drawn, the consequences were easy to imagine.

The natives surrounded them from different directions, those in the front raising their spears and those behind gripping their blowguns, leaving no opening for the three. Their hostility towards the outsiders alighting from the black warship was undisguised.

These primitive people, long subjected to plunder by foreign pirates and conflict with the giant birds, had no trust in outsiders whatsoever. They aimed their weapons at Ace and his companions while remaining wary of the giant birds circling overhead. Clearly, a long-standing misunderstanding and hatred had accumulated between the island's humans and the giant birds.

The giant bird didn't leave after Ace and his companions disembarked; it continued to circle and call out above the treetops. Whenever the natives heard its call, they gripped their weapons even tighter. Caught between the foreign pirates and the giant bird, and with the bird always wary of anyone approaching its nest, the hostility between the two sides hadn't formed overnight.

"Who are these people? Why are they pointing poison guns at us!" Indigo retreated repeatedly, hiding behind Ace's trench coat again.

Ace glanced at the hostile natives and heard the anxious cries of the giant bird in the sky. Instead of using force to clear away the obstruction, he turned to Chopper, who was also somewhat nervous.

“Chopper, it seems we need to resolve the racial conflicts here before we can find the book.” Ace patted its hat, handing over the task of communication to it. “Go, our personal ship doctor.”

Chopper first looked at the native holding the poisoned spear, then glanced up at the giant bird that was still crying. It could understand both languages, and at the moment, only it could figure out the misunderstanding.

Chapter 124 The Interspecies Translator, The Opening of the Ancient Library

Neither side had laid down their weapons on the thick branches.

The leading native had his face painted with greasepaint, and his right leg was wrapped in a ring of blackened herbs. He pointed his spear at Ace, then at the giant bird overhead: "Get away from the Divine Tree! You came with that strange bird; you must be pirates trying to steal things too!"

The blowguns from all around rose higher. Indigo covered his head and shrank back, but Chopper stood in front of Ace.

"Please wait a moment!" Chopper spread his short arms. "We're not here to take over territory; we just want to find medical books and herbs that can cure diseases!"

The tribal chief looked at the talking reindeer and lowered his spear slightly: "You're not bandits, so why are you with these strange birds? They've been attacking the village and injuring many of our people!"

Chopper looked up and cried out a few times at the three giant birds. The largest bird landed a little lower, and the wound on its wing split open with the movement, revealing a blackened arrow shaft stuck inside.

“It says that foreign pirates often steal bird eggs and kidnap baby birds, which is why they attack people who come near the nests.” Chopper turned to the native and repeated, “You moved to the treetops to avoid the pirates, and the place you lived in was originally their nest. They thought you were going to hurt the birds too.”

The indigenous chief was stunned: "But they also steal our food!"