Aren't you going to say hello?"
Xia Tali was a little surprised. These past two days, besides accompanying her to gather herbs, Luo Yan spent most of his time at the bar, and he always drank a lot.
Luo Yan shook his head, the smile on his face growing wider.
"No need. He and I don't know each other. There's no point in greeting him now; it would only be counterproductive."
"Captain, I think you're a bit like a charlatan."
Luo Yan didn't deny it; he even nodded in strong agreement, saying, "Exactly, I'm practicing how to be a charlatan."
After waiting two more days, Luo Yan and Xia Tali had a relatively relaxed time. Luo Yan spent most of his time drinking at the bar, while Xia Tali spent most of her time in the inn preparing potions. Her enthusiasm for potions exceeded Luo Yan's expectations.
That day, a clear disturbance broke out on Cocoyasi Island. Large numbers of villagers, armed with weapons or farm tools that could be used as weapons, surged towards Arlong's group. Luo Yan, trident in hand, stood on a rooftop watching the crowd. He knew the battle was about to begin, and it was time for him to act too.
"Xia Tali, just hide inside and don't run around. I'll be back soon."
Luo Yan instructed, and a large amount of black energy surged from his back, coalescing into a pair of bat wings that shot into the sky. Although it was daytime, the sun wasn't scorching, so he could still barely use the Vampire Ring.
Boom!
Before Luo Yan even reached the battle, he heard a huge explosion, raising a large cloud of smoke. He didn't rush to act, but instead hid in the shadow of a building near the battlefield, perfectly concealing himself using the Vampire Ring's dark magic.
He was waiting for Luffy to arrive precisely to take advantage of the situation. In the original story, Luffy also defeated Arlong, so he wasn't worried at all. He just had to wait, seize the right moment, and pick off the kills.
At this moment, Luffy had already been thrown into the sea, Zoro was fighting Hachi, and Sanji had already jumped into the sea to rescue him.
"Zoro's swordsmanship is really good. Should I also learn swordsmanship? No, swordsmanship doesn't fit my sequence pathway. The top priority is to learn Haki; everything else can wait."
Watching the battle, Luo Yan's thoughts wandered, considering various things, and he couldn't help but murmur aloud.
The battle between Zoro and Hachi grew more intense. Luo Yan noticed a fish-man minion lying not far from him, which made him pause.
"The formula only needs fish-man blood. Isn't this readily available? Why did I insist on waiting for Arlong to die?"
When Luo Yan saw that the auxiliary material for the Wind Favored One required fish-man blood, and one of the main materials for the Ocean Singer was a solidified fish-man heart, his first thought was Arlong. He had come all this way with the intention of plotting against Arlong. Now he realized he had fallen into a mental trap. Although fish-men were not as numerous as humans, there were still quite a few of them, so there was no need to insist on Arlong's blood.
Luo Yan's mind stirred, and he used the Vampire Ring's inherent dark magic, Dark Shackles. The shadows around him grew darker, forming a black chain that extended towards the fish-man lying on the ground, silently pulling the fish-man into the shadows.
This fish-man was already on the verge of death, his breathing barely perceptible, but he was still clinging to his last breath, making him the ideal target for a finishing blow.
If he were already dead, Luo Yan would only be able to get his blood, which was the auxiliary material for the Wind Favored One. Only a fish-man killed by him would have its heart solidify, allowing him to obtain extraordinary materials.
"Heh!"
Luo Yan chuckled, and without hesitation, plunged his trident into the fish-man's throat. The already dying fish-man didn't react at all and died on the spot. Blood gushed out. Luo Yan didn't waste it, taking out a test tube from a hidden pocket in his clothes to collect the amount he needed. Then, he immediately took out the other extraordinary materials from his small pouch at his waist, found an empty wine jar nearby, and began to concoct the potion.
After various materials were mixed, a light blue liquid formed. This liquid would occasionally swirl on its own, as if a gentle breeze was blowing through it. Luo Yan's spiritual intuition told him that this was the Wind Favored One's potion!
Without needing to pour the potion into another container, Luo Yan directly tilted his head back and drank the potion from the wine jar in one gulp. In that instant, he felt the wind, wind constantly surging from all directions, and his body seemed to become hollow, as if the wind could pass directly through him, continuously reshaping his body.
This process wasn't painful, but the wind seemed to blow directly on his soul, making Luo Yan feel his thoughts become chaotic and ethereal. He felt that with just one careless mistake, his soul would be scattered, and he would lose control on the spot and become a monster.
He could only try his best to focus his mind, resisting the wind blowing on his soul.
After an unknown amount of time, the wind gradually disappeared, and Luo Yan's thoughts slowly calmed down. The first thing that caught his eye was the fish-man's corpse lying on the ground. The left side of the corpse's chest was shimmering with specks of light, a glow that even clothes and skin couldn't conceal, an extraordinary radiance.
Luo Yan didn't hesitate, immediately cutting open the fish-man's chest and taking out the now solidified heart, placing it in his small pouch.
"Rubber Rubber!"
A shout echoed in the distance. Luo Yan looked up to see Luffy fiercely battling Arlong. Arlong was being somewhat overconfident, showing a little disdain for Luffy, and not really dodging Luffy's attacks. Luffy's punches landed on Arlong, making him continuously retreat.
Luo Yan narrowed his eyes, and without warning, a whirlwind swirled around him. His body gradually began to float.
Arlong seemed to sense danger, forcibly stopped his retreat, and sharply turned his head, dodging one of Luffy's punches. Seizing this opening, he looked back and saw a young man with light blue hair, holding a trident, arriving on the wind.
"There's an accomplice!"
Arlong was a little startled. Although he didn't yet know Luo Yan's combat strength, the mere fact that he could fly was enough to make him take it seriously.
"Huh? Who are you?"
Luffy was equally surprised by the sudden assistance. He didn't recognize this person who had arrived on the wind.
However, Luo Yan didn't answer Luffy's question, because this was a good opportunity he had found, and he wouldn't waste a single moment.
"Raging Blow!"
The muscles in Luo Yan's right arm, gripping the trident, visibly swelled, and at the same time, lightning symbols appeared in his eyes.
"Mental Pierce!"
Arlong, holding a drop of water in his hand, was about to throw it at the sneak attacker when his head suddenly throbbed. He felt as if countless steel needles were simultaneously piercing his brain, and his movements stiffened.
Puff!
The trident pierced through Arlong's chest. Arlong's pupils contracted sharply, and he spat out a large mouthful of blood. Propelled by the trident's immense force, he staggered back several steps. Before he could regain his footing, a strong wind suddenly, without warning, swept around him, carrying countless visible wind blades, all targeting Arlong.