Boarding, Rewards, Bounties Issued

The sparring match had ended, yet everyone remained unable to shake off the visual impact created by Can Yue and Zoro.

Can Yue's strength, Zoro's bold spirit, and the mutual respect between swordsmen—the battle seemed to have been etched into the townspeople's minds like a living painting.

Just then, someone suddenly shouted.

"Stop standing around! Go chase Can Yue, or you'll regret it!"

"Huh? What the hell does that mean?"

"Damn it, Can Yue, my husband, don't go! Come back and... and have fun with us!"

"What are you waiting for? If you don't chase Can Yue now, you'll regret it later!"

In an instant, dust billowed everywhere, and the scene was as grand as a cavalry charge.

Can Yue frowned slightly as he watched a group of women surge toward him from behind, then instantly leaped onto a rooftop. He left only a crowd of women below, whining and babbling about something.

"Hahahaha!" Luffy suddenly burst out laughing before announcing, "The unexpected interruption is over! Party 2.0 officially begins!"

"Yeah!!!"

As the sky gradually darkened, Luffy had already blended in with all the children in town, pulling faces and singing horribly off-key songs with them.

Zoro was competing in drinking with a group of old men, and his unbeatable tolerance for alcohol drew wave after wave of cheers.

Can Yue, meanwhile, sat atop the tallest building in town, drinking alone. Of course, below the building stood a group of beautiful yet ravenous women, emboldened by alcohol to say all sorts of shameless things.

Can Yue resisted the urge to destroy them with a single blow. He raised his head to look at the "half moon" in the night sky and fell silent.

Just then, an enormously long arm grabbed Can Yue by the collar.

Cold sweat instantly appeared on Can Yue's forehead.

"I... I've got some nerve!"

Can Yue was instantly yanked into the air by Luffy. Just as the two were about to collide, Can Yue spun two and a half times in midair and kicked Luffy into a garbage dump over a hundred meters away.

"Wow, Can Yue, my husband, you're so cool!"

As he landed gracefully, another wave of cheers erupted.

Amid the strange cries of the women, Can Yue instead rushed toward the pile of garbage where Luffy had landed.

He grabbed Luffy by the ankle—the only part sticking out—and flew toward a small forest in the distance.

A moment later, cries rang out. "Ah! That hurts! Go easy on me!"

Painful cries rose and fell, weighing heavily on the men's hearts and making the women's faces flush slightly.

After some time, Luffy's agonized shouting finally stopped. The townspeople also forgot about the farce and went back to enjoying themselves.

In the forest, Luffy, bruised and swollen, suddenly dropped his usual childish behavior and looked seriously at Can Yue.

In a solemn tone, he said, "Can Yue, be my partner. Come with me, find ONE PIECE, become the Pirate King, and then make that dream come true!"

Can Yue naturally knew that Luffy had another dream besides becoming the Pirate King. Though he guessed it might have something to do with changing certain aspects of the world, he could not be sure.

"What dream?"

Luffy smiled faintly, his lips moving as he began to explain.

"So, Can Yue, what do you think?" Luffy looked at him expectantly.

Can Yue was silent for several seconds before nodding. "Sure."

The fundamental reason Can Yue agreed was that raising his fusion level required experiencing major events in this world.

And as the chosen child of the Pirate World, Luffy would inevitably attract a series of troubles in the future.

Simply put, it would make leveling up easier.

Of course, Can Yue did not dislike this naive and straightforward fellow for the time being.

Although his personality resembled Sesshomaru's, Can Yue had been human before crossing over, not a demon, so he did not hate humans.

Hearing Can Yue agree, Luffy shouted excitedly, "Great! Let's keep enjoying the party!"

Before they knew it, the first rays of dawn tore through the curtain of night, and a new day arrived.

A group of grown men and young women lay scattered all over the ground.

Can Yue, Luffy, and Zoro had already arrived at the docks.

Luffy grinned widely and said, "Hehehe, the Straw Hat Pirates are officially established!"

Can Yue and Zoro looked at the rising sun above the horizon and both smiled faintly.

Then, the two reluctantly boarded Luffy's shabby little boat—a vessel less than three meters long.

"Set sail!"

As the three sailed onward, their gazes were fixed ahead, though no one knew exactly what each of them was thinking.

Can Yue recalled why Luffy had invited him aboard in the forest last night and could not help smiling.

Then he slowly sank into thought and began sorting through his thoughts.

After boarding, the system reward was issued.

Major Pirate King event completed: "Meet Luffy and Zoro, join the Straw Hat Pirates; defeat Captain Morgan."

Reward: Fusion level increased. Current Sesshomaru fusion level: 40%.

As the fusion level had broken through a whole-number threshold, the power of Poison Flower Claw and Time Whip increased. Skill obtained: Azure Dragon Break.

The system granted an additional skill, a unique power of the Pirate King world: Armament Haki.

After receiving the reward, Can Yue suddenly felt that a body of knowledge about Armament Haki had appeared in his mind.

As if it were muscle memory, Can Yue could casually use Armament Haki to strengthen any part of his body.

Yet due to the effects of his own Demonic Aura, his Armament Haki seemed different from the knowledge in his mind.

Stronger, more abundant, and far more lethal.

After experiencing Armament Haki, Can Yue began considering his next step.

By now, he had roughly figured out how the Template System bound to him operated.

As long as he defeated a BOSS recognized by the system, he would receive the corresponding rewards.

The most important rewards, naturally, were those that allowed him to break through fusion-level thresholds.

Ordinary roleplaying could raise his fusion level, but when it reached close to a whole number—for example, when 39.9% needed to break through to 40%—he needed system rewards to unlock it.

After unlocking it, his strength would be further enhanced. Besides improving his existing abilities, he might also gain new skills unique to the Pirate King world, such as the Armament Haki he had just learned.

That made what he needed to do in the future very clear.

Normally, he would play the role of Sesshomaru. Of course, Can Yue did not need any acting skills for that; their personalities were simply too similar.

As his roleplaying gradually raised his fusion level and it reached a whole-number threshold, he would need to defeat BOSS-level figures to increase it further.

Of course, not every villain could be considered a BOSS.

In Can Yue's view, there was no need to worry over whether a particular character was an important villain.

He only needed to kill his way through them all!

By staying with the Straw Hat Pirates, major villains would naturally come rushing over one after another to get beaten up.

The chosen one, Luffy, was no joke. He definitely had the physique of a villain magnet.

There would be plenty of people to fight in the future. He would definitely hit the mark.

"Heh, that saves me time."

Thinking of this, Can Yue became even more certain that joining the Straw Hat Crew had been the right choice.

His thoughts ended, and Can Yue gradually returned to reality.

"Can Yue, why were you able to hurt me with your fists last night? I'm a Rubber Human," Luffy suddenly asked.

Can Yue considered it for a moment but did not answer directly. Instead, he asked Luffy and Zoro, "Do you want to learn?"

"Yes! Teach me!" Zoro, who had been silent until then, reacted extremely quickly and immediately asked to learn.

Luffy also quickly joined in.

In truth, Can Yue had not known Haki last night. He had been able to hurt Luffy because he used Demonic Aura. Perhaps the two powers had some similarities; Demonic Aura could also affect Devil Fruits.

But what he intended to teach the two was naturally not Demonic Aura.

Thus, aboard that narrow boat only three meters long, the prologue to a legend quietly began.

At Marine Headquarters' Pirate Bounty Management Department, a Vice Admiral was presiding over a meeting.

The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the bounties for Can Yue, Luffy, Zoro, and several other recently notable pirates.

"According to reports from our investigators, the current information on these three is as follows.

Straw Hat Luffy: A Devil Fruit User, likely a Paramecia. His ability allows him to stretch his body like rubber.

Pirate Hunter Zoro: He once captured pirates with bounties worth several million on his own and is a master of Three Sword Style.

As for that White-haired Man, all we know is that he killed Captain Morgan with a single slash.

What is terrifying is that the aftershock of his attack cut down trees dozens of meters away. Such strength must not be underestimated."

Of all the officers present, only Can Yue's displayed strength was treated with any real seriousness. After a brief discussion, the person in charge announced the final decision.

"Straw Hat Kid Luffy: bounty of 10 million.

Pirate Hunter Zoro: bounty of 9 million.

White-haired Swordsman Can Yue: bounty of 20 million!

If there are no objections, we will continue discussing the other pirates..."

As the meeting ended, the Bounty Posters of Luffy and the other two were sent across the world by News Coos.