The Pirate Princess Becomes Queen

Chapter 126 Sword Master Ryoma

"Alright, where's your shadow? Cheer up, muster your courage, and I'll go with you to find your shadow, Lab, think of Lab!"

Whenever Vivi mentioned Laboon, Brooke would become extremely frustrated. He repeated it seven or eight times, until finally the tall, thin skeleton dared not even look at Vivi anymore.

"For Labu! I must reclaim my shadow! Yohohoho!—" He drew a rapier from his cane, and then his legs moved like a windmill, running towards the east side of the mansion at an exaggerated speed.

Vivi also rode on the duck's back, waved her hand, and chased after it!

By the time she caught up with Brook, the user of the Yomi Yomi no Mi (Revive-Revive Fruit) was already fighting a skinny zombie with sunken eyes, dressed in a white kimono, wearing wooden clogs, with a tattered blue scarf wrapped around his neck.

The kimono-clad zombie had a "dragon" character embroidered on each of its left and right sleeves, and held a long, black sword. Judging from its aura alone, it was clear that it was a master swordsman. However, the occasional "yohohoho—" laughs made it look less imposing.

The controller inside the kimono zombie is Brook's shadow.

Vivi did work as a doctor in Wano Country for a while, and the legend of this swordsman still circulates in Wano Country today. He is none other than Shimotsuki Ryuma, the swordsman who slew a dragon and stopped the World Government from coveting Wano Country! Ryuma has undoubtedly been dead for hundreds of years, and his soul has dissipated, but this body is indeed that of the swordsman.

Vivi was also a master swordsman, and she could tell at a glance that Brook was no match for him. Although Shadow used the exact same swordsmanship as him, Shadow possessed the body of the swordsman Ryoma, which led to an overwhelming situation in the battle.

The same move, when used by the shadow through the body of the swordsman Ryoma, is 30% stronger than the original Brook's. How can anyone fight against that?

Ryoma had internalized his understanding and use of swordsmanship as instinct, deeply imprinting it into his body. Although Brook's shadow did not understand those advanced sword techniques, it still managed to defeat the main body by relying on its physical instincts.

Vivi nodded to herself, and with a wink, Duck Karu rushed forward... to collect the attributes!

While letting the duck pick up attributes, she encouraged Brooke: "Brooke, think of Laboon, think of the poor little whale, fifty years! Do you know how it spent those fifty years?"

Brook was almost beaten to death, his white skull covered in cracks, but thinking of his former whale companion, he shouted and was revived with full health, continuing to fight the shadow controlling Ryoma's body.

Karu the duck was picking through the food.

Vivi watched and laughed.

This battle was relatively small in scale, and the number of light spots collected was not large, which was incomparable to the previous chaotic battle at sea.

However, while there were many light points collected before, their quality was not very good. What use were skills like "bragging," "drinking," "logging," "eating pancakes," and "meteor hammer"? This time, Brook's battle against Ryuma was different. The quality was very high, no less than that of his battle against Shiki. Moreover, more than 70% of them were abilities related to swordsmanship.

With Zephyr's guidance, Vivi's swordsmanship has moved beyond the stage of using "slashing" in one move and "fierce strike" in the next, which was a mixed and unrefined style. After practicing a set of steady and balanced naval swordsmanship, she can integrate the essence of various schools of techniques into her own swordsmanship.

Brook may be lecherous, but his swordsmanship is actually quite good. After all, he was a well-known swordsman back in the day. However, he has long passed his prime. Having lost his body, he is now just a skeleton, and he can no longer use many techniques that require strength. Zoro later needed "Ichi-Gorilla" and "Ni-Gorilla" to increase his muscle strength. Without muscles, Brook can no longer return to his former level. In addition, after being a recluse for so many years, he has become mentally impaired and his performance in battle is very poor.

Gecko Moria could hold his own against Kaido back then, but now? He's just a complete loser.

Brook was in a similar situation. In terms of swordsmanship level alone, he might be similar to Vivi, or even a bit higher, but in actual combat, too many problems were exposed.

His swordsmanship has a strong personal style, and Vivi can only learn from it at most.

I obtained all of these skills through battle: "Nightfall Melody - Straight Through", "Prelude - Soldier Breaker", "Lullaby - Round Dance", and the most powerful "Requiem - Arrow Tail Slash".

The simplest move is "Nightfall Melody. Straight Through," which is a sudden thrust after accumulating power.

"Prelude: Breaking the Weapon" targets the enemy's weapon, essentially a swordsmanship version of "disarming." This move requires the user to be stronger than the opponent. Let Brook try using "Prelude: Breaking the Weapon" on Yamato? One spiked club and he'd be completely disoriented... In short, it's a move for easily defeating weaker opponents.

Vivi had watched Brook's favorite move, "Requiem: Arrow Tail Slash," several times. It was a powerful sword-drawing technique, using a dash to quickly swing the sword. However, this was only for easily defeating weaker opponents. Against Kaido or Yamato, drawing your sword, quickly slashing twice, then dashing to the other side to sheathe it and strike a pose? That would be utterly suicide...

Only "Hypnotic Dance" is somewhat useful to Vivi. She also has hypnosis skills, but she has never been able to integrate them into combat. Brook's Music Hypnotic Sword Technique is definitely worth learning.

She possesses Conqueror's Haki, so she doesn't need a skill like group hypnosis to clear out mobs, but her approach is still quite good.

Brook fights his own shadow, and the light spots that fall out are 70% swordsmanship and the rest are music-related abilities.

This guy's musical talent far surpasses his swordsmanship. Vivi can understand his swordsmanship, but she can't understand much of Brook's musical skills, even though she has a level 4 musical talent herself.

Aside from the intricate musical knowledge and Brook series of sword techniques, one can occasionally glean a few abilities belonging to the swordsman Ryoma; these are the gems.

First up is the "Frost Moon Style Sword Technique!"

This swordsmanship is not exactly the same as the naval swordsmanship. Both are probably used to build a foundation, but compared to the steady and methodical naval swordsmanship, the Shimotsuki-ryu swordsmanship is more aggressive. The swordsman Ryoma has already mastered this swordsmanship to the point that it is second nature.

Even though Brook's shadow is now controlling the body, and the shadow doesn't know any Shimotsuki-ryu swordsmanship at all, he can occasionally use some of the martial arts skills that the swordsman Shimotsuki Ryoma used in his lifetime, relying on the instincts in his body.

Weiwei looked at them one by one.

In addition to the basic "Shimotsuki-ryu swordsmanship", there is also the passive ability "Shimotsuki-ryu swordsmanship: Iron Slash" and the powerful swordsmanship ultimate technique "Shimotsuki-ryu swordsmanship: Dragon Slash"!

Chapter 127 Learning Makes Me Happy

"Frost Moon Style Sword Technique: Cutting Iron" is not an intuitive ability; strictly speaking, it is a state of mind cultivated through inner cultivation.

When I'm thinking about it, I can cut through iron; when I'm not thinking about it, I can't even cut paper.

The terms "iron" and "paper" here are used in general terms; it doesn't mean that cutting through a piece of iron is the end of the story. Garp can flatten a mountain with one punch, while this swordsman can only cut through a piece of iron? The difference is so huge, what's the point of training? They should all become boxers!

"Slaying Iron" requires more of a unity between man and sword, which is equivalent to the highest level of "a sword is not such an inconvenient thing" that Vivi boasted to Zephyr before.

The "Iron-Cutting" technique found on the swordsman Ryoma was his insight from his lifetime. If Vivi wants to reach a similar level, she also needs her own understanding; other people's experiences are just a reference.

Ryoma used "Frost Moon Style Sword Art: Dragon Slayer" purely out of subconscious reaction. He had only used it once in most of the day, and luckily, it was picked up by a duck.

This move is more powerful than the Golden Lion's "Wave Slash" on its own. "Wave Slash" is, as the name suggests, a move that cuts through the seawater. It was the Golden Lion's signature move during the naval battle, where he used a sword to cut through the seawater and drag enemy ships into it.

"Slaying Waves" targets terrain, while "Slaying Dragons" targets people, which are flying targets.

To reach the level of the Golden Lion, "Slashing Wave" requires a lot of Haki, while "Slashing Dragon" places more emphasis on technique and the way power is applied.

Weiwei felt she had learned a lot and kept nodding in agreement, enjoying the pleasure of learning.

Brooke reminded her to go find salt, but she made an excuse that she had no sense of direction and wouldn't budge.

Quickly defeat the swordsman Ryoma with salt? Are you kidding me? Anyone who dares use salt will face my wrath! Where's the samurai spirit? Using salt in a duel? She absolutely will not allow it. Fight on, keep fighting, don't stop!

"Yohohoho—" After Brook was knocked down for the fourth time, he couldn't hold on any longer. He saw Vivi standing alone in the distance, holding two knives and gesturing with them.

He decisively asked for help: "Hey ho ho ho—hey beautiful, can you come and help me?"

Weiwei thought for a moment.

She felt that the opportunity for a swordsman to practice his moves on her was rare, and she was also a little itchy to fight.

This time, she didn't hold back and let the duck continue picking up the attributes dropped by the other party. She drew her second-generation Kitetsu and faced off against the swordsman Ryoma.

"Yohohoho—" The shadow controlling the swordsman Ryoma's body was just like Brook, immediately launching into lewd remarks: "Beautiful lady, may I take a look at your...?"

"Dragon Slayer!" Vivi put her newfound knowledge to use, raising her hand to unleash a slash, and the faint phantom of a crimson dragon appeared within the blood-red blade patterns.

"Yohohoho—that's impressive! This move looks familiar... I think I can counter it..." The swordsman Ryoma held in his hand was Shusui, a famous sword among the 21 Great Grade Swords, which was on par with the Second Generation Kitetsu.

He raised his hands high above Qiushui and swiftly slashed with his sword at an incredibly precise angle, severing the crimson dragon phantom she had created from its neck in one strike. Judging by the effect alone, this move seemed more like a "dragon-slaying" technique.

Holy crap? That's amazing! You've never used this move before!

Weiwei quickly called out, "Stop! Stop for a second. I just thought of something, it's very important, let me think about it first..."

In a normal battle, who would fight like this with her? Even if she were to become a disciple of Hawkeye or Shiki, they wouldn't play along. But this isn't a normal battle. The shadow controlling Ryuma the Swordsman is a goofball, just staring at her dumbly.

Vivi got the information about this move from the duck. It was indeed a move she hadn't used before. It was closely related to "Dragon Slayer" and was considered a derivative move. This move was called "Frost Moon Style Swordsmanship: Press Cut"!

She quickly glanced at it once, mentally simulated it twice, and roughly learned the basics.

"Alright, I'm fine now, let's continue fighting! Watch my Frost Moon Style Swordsmanship: Press Cut!"

......

Vivi was trying her best to extract the remaining value from the swordsman Ryoma's body. He was a true swordsman, even though he had been dead for hundreds of years and now only had a corpse left. Every seven or eight moves, she could find something new to gain.

Some we can find, some we can't, but that's okay, we have time! We can take our time!

She picked up attributes to improve her swordsmanship, and the improvement was even greater during intense battles. She had already experienced the exhilarating feeling of leveling up after just a couple of fights, like Luffy.

With the help of her top-notch sparring partner, her swordsmanship quickly broke through level 5. Previously, she needed three-tenths of her strength to unleash a "wave-slashing" move, but now she can unleash the same blade aura with only two-tenths of her strength, a remarkable improvement.

Learning makes people happy. Seeing herself steadily improving, she was having a great time playing. Brooke wanted to fight for her for a while, but she was unhappy!

While Vivi was happily learning, the entire island was filled with shouts of battle. Crocodile was caught up by Drought Jack, and the two engaged in a fierce battle on the island.

Mr. 1 was lucky enough to be rescued by Lola, and then acted as her bodyguard, protecting the "boss lady" as she went to meet up with Crocodile.

Mr. 2 Bon Clay fared much worse. He fought a chaotic battle with a bunch of members of the Tea Beard Pirates. He fought Bellamy for the first three minutes, and then was ambushed by Kinrami, the "real fighter" of the Beasts Pirates. In the end, Bon Clay gritted his teeth and, despite being seriously injured, used "Okama Kenpo: Burst Swan" to kick Kinrami to death.

Mr. 3 hid alone in a cave.

Mr. 4 and Ms. Merry Christmas were rather unlucky. They encountered the menacing Cracker, and before they could exchange more than a few words, they learned that their employer was Crocodile. The pair were overwhelmed by a swarm of Cookie Warriors and died meaningless deaths.

The men of Baroque Works were either dead or wounded. The women, Ms. Twofinger, Ms. Golden Week, and Ms. Valentine, had no intention of fighting to the death. Realizing the Sea Beast Pirates were no match for them, they decisively split up and ran! They'd rather have as many escapees as possible.

The whole island was in chaos. As Gecko Moria's stronghold, the dilapidated mansion was also affected by the battle. Rob Lucci followed Nico Robin's blood trail and eventually caught up with her at the main building of the mansion.

This strongest member of CP9 in 800 years is really itching to get back to work.

Once the fight begins, there's no holding back.

Whether it's a bounty hunter, a pirate, or a zombie, anyone who encounters him is doomed!

First, he used the "Six Styles: Finger Pistol" to strike a strange zombie stitched together from a monkey and a spider, and finally, with a "crack," he snapped the enemy's neck.

Seeing that the spider zombie had not lost its ability to move, he used a move called "Six Styles: Tempest Kick" to cut the enemy in half.

Just as he was feeling smug, a grayish-white ghost suddenly passed through his body. In that instant, he felt his will, which was as strong as steel, collapse. He wanted to die! He wanted to just stay a nobody forever!

He tried to muster his fighting spirit again, but as soon as he looked up, he saw three ghosts rushing towards him.

With her pink twin ponytails, a crown on her head, and a burgundy umbrella in her hand, Perona floated in mid-air like a ghost. As Rob Lucci's resistance weakened, she revealed an extremely smug smile.

Chapter 128 Moonlight Moria

Fifteen minutes later, Rob Lucci was handcuffed with Seastone and taken deep into the mansion to Gecko Moria, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

"Hah ah ah ah ah! -- Lord Moria, I've caught a very strong guy! This is the guy!" Perona floated in mid-air like a ghost, saying in a boastful tone.

The moonlight, hidden in the shadows, revealed Moria's large face.

His appearance was somewhat like that of a demon in the traditional sense, with sharp horns on both sides of his forehead, and his ears and teeth were like those of a vampire, all pointed. There were long stitches from his jaw to his neck.

He leaned back in his seat and, upon hearing Perona's words, peered over.

This guy's body proportions can only be described as "freakish". He has a small head, a long neck, a fat torso, long arms, but short legs. From Rob Lucci's perspective, all you can see is a big, protruding belly.

He was incredibly unlucky to encounter Perona, who ate the Ghost-Ghost Fruit and could create negative ghosts. How strong are these negative ghosts? Actually, no, because they are products of negative emotions, so extremely negative that their speed is limited. Their destructive power is also low, so they are quite restricted. As long as one is prepared, one can easily dodge them with a speed slightly faster than normal.

Rob Lucci's misfortune lay in his ignorance of the enemy's abilities, which led him to fall directly into their trap. The fact that the enemy had inadvertently placed sea stone handcuffs on him made him so frustrated that he felt like vomiting blood. He hadn't even been able to unleash 20% of his full potential before being captured.

"Gecko Moria! I am a member of the World Government, let me go!" He took a deep breath and said with great force.