When Bai Chuan was lying on the deck, his head was still spinning.
"What the hell was that thing?" The attack had been so fast that he did not even see what had been thrown at him before he got knocked down.
"Hahaha, Bai Chuan, serves you right for showing off up there. You woke someone up, didn't you?"
A crewmate mocked him, but despite the teasing words, there was obvious envy in his voice.
After all, that was flying. Some people might never reach that height in their entire lives.
"Hmph." Bai Chuan snorted coldly and could not be bothered to respond.
Still, that fall made him face reality completely. Just because he had a bit of strength did not mean he could swagger around everywhere. There were plenty of people who could put him in his place.
"Right, who threw me down just now?"
"Probably the vice-captain. He's the only one who carries a wine bottle on him."
"Is that so? Then I'll remember this. Sooner or later, I'll get revenge."
"You? You want revenge on the vice-captain? Wait another eight hundred years."
To be honest, most of the Roger Pirates did not think much of Bai Chuan. Other than his Devil Fruit ability, he seemed to have nothing. They still did not know what his power was exactly, but they assumed it was not that strong.
After resting, Bai Chuan went back to enjoying the thrill of flying, but this time he was not as loud and flashy as before. He moved carefully, trying his best not to make any noise.
"Tsk tsk, that kid's luck is really something. I want to fly too." Someone watched Bai Chuan soaring freely above, and it was hard to tell whether the tone was envy or jealousy.
"Then go buy a Zoan Devil Fruit. If you're lucky, it might be a bird type. If you're even luckier, it might even be a Mythical Zoan."
"Heh. I know my luck well enough." He rolled his eyes at his companion.
After a while, Bai Chuan got bored and landed steadily back on the ship.
That experience taught Bai Chuan a lesson: no matter what you do, you have to follow your heart, whether you truly mean it or you are just choosing to back down.
About an hour later, Rayleigh woke up. He walked over to Bai Chuan and said, "Come with me."
"Oh, okay."
Bai Chuan followed behind Rayleigh to a more open area. Looking at the equipment scattered all over the ground, it seemed like their usual training spot.
"Since the captain has handed you to me, I can't just do nothing."
"Don't worry, Vice-Captain. No matter what kind of training it is, I can endure it."
"Good. Having that determination is a start. Then we'll begin with your Devil Fruit ability."
"Alright."
"From your last fight with Bucky, I noticed your Devil Fruit should be able to restore bodily injuries, and the price you pay should be stamina."
"Really? I honestly didn't notice."
"Then you should feel it for yourself. That way, it'll leave a deeper impression."
After speaking, Rayleigh took a coin from his pocket, flipped it lightly in his fingers, then flicked it with his hand. The coin shot toward Bai Chuan's cheek.
"Hiss." Bai Chuan sucked in a breath of cold air. His cheek felt cool. When he reached up to touch it, there was blood.
But in less than a second, the blood actually flowed back in, and the wound disappeared.
"Well? Feel anything?"
"Nothing at all, Vice-Captain. Could you have misread it?"
"That's impossible. Unless the wound was too small. Stand there and don't move. I'll try again."
Then Rayleigh drew the blade at his waist and walked toward Bai Chuan.
"Vice-Captain, what are you doing? Calm down, you have to calm down, you can't do something stupid!"
As Rayleigh stepped closer and closer, Bai Chuan felt like he was watching a demon slowly closing in.
"Don't, don't, don't come over here!" Bai Chuan shouted.
If someone walked toward you with a sword, anyone would be scared, especially when it was someone you could not beat. Bai Chuan was no exception.
Because he did not really know what kind of person Rayleigh was. What he knew from the anime was only a surface-level understanding. If Rayleigh truly attacked him, there was no way he could escape.
The moment Bai Chuan's last word fell, an incredibly powerful and domineering aura erupted from him as the center.
As that aura burst out, more than ninety percent of the crew on the ship collapsed.
"Who's releasing Conqueror's Haki like that?" That was the last thought in every crewmate's mind before they passed out.
On this ship, there were quite a few people with Conqueror's Haki, at least five.
But key members like Roger, Barrett, and Gaban sobered up instantly, their drunkenness cleared in an instant.
They were all Conqueror's Haki users, so they could tell at once that this outburst did not belong to anyone on their ship.
"Now that's an unexpected discovery."
Roger and Rayleigh said it at the same time. They were in different places, yet spoke in unison.
With Observation Haki, it only took a slight sense to understand what was happening, though they did not understand why Rayleigh had approached with a sword.
Still, it had forced out Conqueror's Haki. That showed what kind of impression Rayleigh had left in Bai Chuan's heart.
"This Conqueror's is really strong."
He had only just awakened it, yet it was only slightly inferior to Rayleigh and Barrett. With a bit of training, in terms of Conqueror's Haki, no one on this ship would be able to match him except Roger.
"The captain's luck is insane. He casually picked someone up and it turns out he has a king's aptitude." Gaban teased Roger.
"And add Shanks on top of that. Now even the apprentice crew have two Conqueror's Haki users. Once those two grow up, what could possibly stop us?"
Roger glanced at Shanks, who was sleeping soundly, then shook his head. "Shanks isn't there yet."
They all felt Shanks had the makings of a king, but since he had not truly awakened it, nobody dared to guarantee anything.
"Besides, even without the two of them, aren't we already able to go anywhere?"
"That's true, hahaha."
The group laughed loudly together. As long as the few of them were still standing, the Roger Pirates would not lose.
Roger's personal strength might not be the strongest among the three great overlords, but their overall strength was absolutely the strongest.
Captains from the Golden Lion's crew or the Whitebeard Pirates could not be compared to the core members of the Roger Pirates at all.
"I didn't expect you to have Conqueror's Haki too. You really can't judge a person by appearances."
Looking at Bai Chuan after the burst, Rayleigh spoke in surprise.
After all, Bai Chuan looked gentle and weak.
"But the experiment still has to be done." Rayleigh smiled in a sinister way.
"No, help, save me!"
"Haha, go on and scream. Even if you scream your throat raw, no one's coming to save you."
/-\
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