Ronan reached out with his right hand and gripped the icy-cold shaft of the spear.
"Up!"
He shouted low and exerted force with one arm.
He steadily lifted the iron spear, which weighed over a hundred jin.
The heavy pull in his hand gave Ronan a long-lost sense of reassurance.
In both his past and present lives, this was his first true heavy weapon—not some fragile wooden stick that could snap at any moment.
"Good spear!" Ronan praised.
Then he took a step back, aligning his waist and stance. His spine surged like a great Dragon as power instantly coursed through his arm and into the spear.
"Bang!"
With a flick of Ronan's wrist, the spear shot forth like a black Dragon emerging from the sea. Its tip trembled violently in the air, producing a sharp crack like thunder!
It was a sonic boom caused by the spear shaft vibrating at extreme speed and compressing the air!
Whoosh—whoosh—
Ronan immediately began to swing it.
The spear seemed weightless in his hands as he shook, hooked, thrust, stabbed, and lifted it...!
Those few simple movements stirred up a fierce gale.
The cramped blacksmith's shop was instantly filled with flying dust and debris, all swept up by the wind from the spear.
The heavy iron spear tore through the air with a chilling "whooo" sound, like a fierce tiger growling low.
"Such... such an incredible weapon!"
Luffy's eyes had already turned into stars, and his mouth hung wide open. "That's so cool, Ronan! I want to play with that too!"
Zoro's pupils narrowed slightly, but his attention was not on the weapon itself. It was on the aura Ronan displayed while wielding the spear.
The seamless harmony between man and spear, the terrifying explosive force contained in every strike—it made the fighting instinct in his body surge wildly.
"So this is your true strength?"
Zoro's hand unconsciously brushed over the hilt of his sword, Fighting Spirit blazing in his eyes. "Ronan, once we deal with the Black Cat Pirates, we have to spar properly."
Ronan planted the spear and stood tall, slinging it behind his back. He looked at Zoro and revealed a meaningful smile. "Exactly what I had in mind."
His inner calculations clicked away:
Zoro was the future World's Greatest Swordsman. With such a top-tier sparring partner delivered right to his doorstep, combined with the Combat Mode's threefold Cultivation Multiplier, he was practically a walking experience bank. It would be a waste not to farm him.
"That weapon is so heavy..." Usopp swallowed, staring at the thick spear shaft with a pale face.
"Forget being stabbed by the tip—even getting casually smashed by that shaft would probably leave someone with broken bones and torn tendons..."
Nami watched Ronan swing the hundred-jin iron spear as easily as if it were a toothpick and could not help commenting:
"What a bunch of energetic monsters... Still, those five thousand Belly seem pretty well spent."
The coastal slope.
This was the only route leading to Syrup Village.
Steep rock walls stood on both sides, with a sloping dirt path in the middle. The terrain was narrow, making it an ideal ambush point that was easy to defend and hard to attack.
At that moment, the morning sun shone brightly.
Usopp was sticking his butt out, sweating profusely as he poured barrel after barrel of oil onto the slope.
The yellowish-brown grease flowed down the incline, gleaming slickly beneath the sunlight.
"Hehehe..."
Usopp wiped away his sweat and looked proudly at his handiwork.
"Ronan, don't underestimate this simple trick. This is my carefully designed 'Super Slippery Hell'!"
"As long as they charge over here, they'll slip and fall flat on their backs. Then we'll crush them in one go!"
Ronan stood at the top of the slope with the Zhangba Iron Spear on his back, looking down at the scene below. He shook his head helplessly.
"Usopp, this can only delay them for a little while."
Ronan spoke bluntly. "Against real pirates, especially desperate outlaws, this little trick will only cause them some trouble."
"They can use their companions' bodies to pave the way, or simply destroy the terrain."
"What? Use bodies to pave the way?" Usopp had clearly underestimated the pirates' cruelty, and his face went pale.
"However..."
Ronan changed the subject and looked toward the Pirate Ship bearing the black cat emblem, which was gradually becoming clearer on the distant horizon. His gaze sharpened.
"As an appetizer, it's enough to disgust them."
"They're here."
Zoro, who had been silently watching the distance, suddenly spoke. He tied on his dark green bandana, and his eyes instantly turned cold as ice.
Luffy lowered his Straw Hat and stood at the front, the sea breeze fluttering his red vest.
Ronan heavily planted the iron spear into the ground, producing a muffled sound.
The blood and energy within him slowly began to accelerate, and the [Perseverance] system was already poised to activate.
"Now that I have an iron spear in hand, today..."
Ronan looked at the large ships drawing ever closer, a fervent smile belonging to a warrior curling at the corner of the mouth.
"I'll use the Black Cat Pirates to christen my Xing Yi Thirteen Spears!"
The morning sea breeze swept past the steep rock walls, producing a low, mournful howl.
Sunlight tore through the thin mist and spilled across the sparkling sea, yet it could not warm the slope that was about to be stained red with blood.
A massive Pirate Ship, like a black beast, slowly lowered its sails and approached the shore with an overwhelming sense of oppression.
The enormous black cat figurehead at the ship's bow looked especially ferocious in the shadows.
As the gangplank crashed down, a tall, eerie figure was the first to descend.
He wore a dark blue top hat, strange heart-shaped glasses perched on his nose, and lightning-shaped sideburns on his chin.
He performed a strange moonwalk, maintaining that absurd yet unsettling rhythm even across the pebble-strewn beach.
It was Jango, the hypnotist and vice-captain of the Black Cat Pirates.
Behind him, the pirates poured down from the ship like a tide. Their faces were savage as they waved curved blades and axes, greedily staring at the quiet village atop the slope.
Jango glanced at the sky and remembered Kuro's cruel methods. He could not help shuddering.
"We need to get into the village quickly. If Captain Kuro gets tired of waiting, we're all dead!"
He suddenly waved his hand, pointing at Ronan's group of five, who stood ready on the slope, and barked an order:
"Men! Crush these pests blocking our way! Advance on the village! That rich young lady is waiting for us to harvest her!"
"Ooooh—!!"
Dozens of pirates let out beastlike howls.
It was their thirst for slaughter and treasure. Violent red light gleamed in their eyes as they charged up the narrow slope like starving wolves released from a cage, wildly swinging their weapons and fighting to be first.
For a moment, shouts of battle rose to the heavens as dust and stones flew everywhere.
Ronan stood at the top of the slope, calmly watching the pirates swarm upward below like ants.
Behind him, Usopp was so nervous that his palms were sweating as he stared fixedly at the pirates' feet.
"Come on... come on... just a little closer..."
Just as the dozen or so pirates at the front stepped into the seemingly damp patch at the center of the slope—
"Sliiip—!"
An unexpected change occurred!
The previously solid dirt slope had become as slick as ice.
The leading pirates slipped, instantly losing their balance and crashing heavily onto their backs.
"Ow!"
"Damn it! What happened?"
But that was only the beginning.
The pirates behind them could not stop in time and slammed into the fallen men ahead like toppling dominoes.
"Bang! Bang! Clang!"
The sounds of weapons hitting the ground, bones colliding, and terrified curses intertwined.
Dozens of pirates rolled into a tangled heap on the grease-covered slope like a pot of boiling meat soup, rising and falling over one another, yet unable to get back on their feet.
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