Conqueror's Haki Infusion, Mastered!

Marineford Era 1498.

In the center of a deserted island, a man with his upper body bare stood alone.

His deep eyes held an innate air of disdain, his perfectly handsome face was filled with seriousness, and his messy, long black hair was casually tied back.

Gently setting down a small mountain peak, Austin wiped the fine sweat from his brow.

To train his control over his strength, he had been throwing mountain peaks recently.

The specific training involved throwing massive boulders, the size of small mountains, from one side of the island to the other, then using Warp to appear on the other side, catch them, and throw them back.

They couldn't be too close or too far.

Moreover, if the Conqueror's Haki Infusion on his hands wasn't controlled properly, the entire massive boulder would shatter, forcing him to start over.

Austin was attempting to train his innate monstrous strength and his Conqueror's Haki, which was constantly evolving as he grew, using this method.

And the results had not disappointed him.

He could truly feel his mastery and proficiency over his own strength increasing.

"One more time!"

Wiping his sweat, Austin took a slow, deep breath, his aura continuously rising.

As his Conqueror's Haki poured out, Austin gathered his strength briefly, assuming the charging stance for Fish-Man Karate's Tangluo Wa Seiken.

He had learned this from his shipmate, the Fish-Man Sanbel.

As his mental power concentrated, The Conqueror's Haki field that had been radiating outwards began to slowly contract.

The intensely concentrated Conqueror's Haki now emitted waves of black and red lightning, which then slowly wrapped around his fist.

Finally, it even transformed into black and red lightning radiance.

Crack, crack, crack...

Only when further compression was impossible did Austin finally complete his charge.

He threw a punch!

In the center of the deserted island, the largest and only remaining mountain peak, under this terrifying black and red lightning, crumbled into dust, inch by inch.

As the punch landed, The once vast mountainous terrain was now replaced by a ten-meter-deep crater!

What immense power!

Austin's face broke into a smile. The feeling was so exhilarating it made his scalp tingle, even more intoxicating than massage and pleasure!

Conqueror's Haki Infusion, after several months of arduous training, had finally been mastered.

In high spirits, Austin's next training session was simpler: mastering and developing the abilities of the Warp Fruit.

The training involved combining his Warp ability with combat experience, as well as attempting to Warp other objects.

Only after exhausting himself completely would Austin occasionally take a break to fish or read the newspaper.

These were also hobbies he had cultivated since childhood.

"Speaking of which, the time should be almost here."

The day of Captain Roger's execution.

He wouldn't miss it for the world.

Having finished his training for the day and in a great mood due to mastering Conqueror's Haki Infusion, Austin ate more than usual.

While stuffing food into his mouth, Austin also flipped through recent news, searching for reports about the Roger Pirates.

"Come to think of it, the Captain has become the Pirate King, his bounty should increase, right?"

"Beru beru beru..."

Austin was somewhat curious.

But the sudden ringing of a Den Den Mushi interrupted his thoughts.

It was Sammy calling.

Sabaody Archipelago, Lawless Zone - Island 17.

In a noisy and lively tavern, pirates from all corners of the world gathered, boasting, playing cards, and exchanging information...

As the gateway to the New World, Sabaody Archipelago was often filled with all sorts of people.

Newcomers from Paradise hoping to advance into the New World, human traffickers looking to fish in troubled waters, bounty hunters who lived by their bounties...

Of course, there were also the failures eliminated from the New World, attempting to score points in the lower leagues.

And Trebol and his companions, whose spirits were broken in the New World and who returned searching for their king, were typical examples.

Inside the tavern, in a lavishly decorated reception room, a tense standoff was underway.

On the guest seats, next to a burly man in golden armor, a grotesque man with sunglasses held a plum blossom cane. He flicked his snot and laughed shamelessly.

"Beh-heh-heh... Ms. Sammy, the people are ready, of course. It's just that the ship is still on its way. You don't mind, do you?"

"What? You took the money and told us the people aren't here yet?"

Sammy's subordinate heard this and found it utterly absurd, unable to help but question him.

Because most people who conduct such business are not good sorts, the rules of the underworld's human trafficking have always been: money first, goods delivered.

Trebol's method, taking the money first and promising the people later, was essentially like passing gas.

To put it another way, I'm robbing you blind, what are you going to do about it?

Sammy, who could run a large business, naturally had her own enforcers before Austin joined, they just weren't very presentable.

Facing such an outrageous individual, even Sammy, a businesswoman usually adept at hiding her emotions, couldn't help but show a hint of anger. She immediately ordered her subordinates to surround the two men.

"If you don't produce the people, no one is getting their money back."

After all, she was the boss, the owner. At the very least, Sammy exuded a strong presence, her beautiful phoenix-like eyes glaring at the two men in front of her who showed no reaction.

"Beh-heh-heh... It seems, Ms. Sammy, you intend to double-cross us?"

Even with a gun pointed at him, Trebol didn't seem nervous. He just grinned, his arrogant expression seeming to say, I've got you cornered!

"You're the ones double-crossing us!"

Sammy's chest heaved with anger, and she was about to order her subordinates to attack when she realized they had already made their move.

Suddenly, the ground began to churn, and the entire reception room started to shake.

Inside the room, Sammy's numerous fierce-looking thugs, facing the sudden "earthquake," couldn't even hold onto their clubs and pistols.

They could only grab their companions in panic, but the result was that they, along with their companions, could only fall to the ground and be swallowed by it, leaving only their heads above ground to breathe.

Seeing her subordinates suddenly sink into the ground, Sammy's face turned ashen with fright. However, she quickly reacted.

"Are you... Devil Fruit users?"

"Beh-heh-heh, you guessed right, but there's no prize!"

"Madam Sammy..."

Just then, a scantily clad woman suddenly burst in. Seeing the two sides already engaged in combat, she looked panicked.

Sammy looked at her subordinates with a grim expression, a bad feeling growing in her heart.

"What happened, Airi?"

The woman named Airi, from the red-light district, gritted her teeth and said with a hint of a sob:

"A lot of troublemaking pirates have come into the district. The tavern, restaurants, and casino have all been attacked. We're no match for them!"

"Several managers have already been killed for resisting!"

As soon as she said this, Sammy's already panicked face turned even paler. She immediately looked at Trebol, who was wearing a smile.

Just as the conflict erupted, her businesses were attacked.

How could this possibly be a coincidence?