This fruit in his hand looked exactly the same as the one he had eaten before.
"Doctor,"
Bright could not help asking, "Did you make another replica of the Azure Dragon Fruit? Only this time, it contains different Lineage Factors?"
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
Vegapunk sprawled lazily in his broad chair, speaking with his eyes closed. "The fruit you ate was one of a kind."
"You can replicate as many Lineage Factors as you want, but copying an ability even once is already the limit of what I can do."
What did that mean?
Had he run out of materials to replicate the Azure Dragon Fruit? Had there only been enough from the beginning to make a single copy?
Or had Vegapunk broken the rule that Devil Fruits were unique, but still been unable to overstep that boundary too far?
Devil Fruits really were mysterious.
What exactly were these so-called abilities?
In what form did they exist inside the human body? Why could simply eating a fruit grant someone all kinds of miraculous powers?
Why, after an ability user died, did the ability separate from the corpse and reincarnate in some random fruit somewhere in the world?
Bright was incredibly curious about the secrets of Devil Fruits.
Unfortunately, Vegapunk, perhaps the only person in the world who understood those secrets, had no intention of explaining them to him.
Vegapunk said, "This fruit's function is to add new abilities on top of the previous fruit's effects. Or rather, it activates dormant Lineage Factors within your body."
Bright understood somewhat. To put it in gaming terms, if the replicated Azure Dragon Fruit ability was the base game, then this fruit was a mod.
"Give it a try, kid." Vegapunk sat up, his eyes brimming with eager anticipation. "It should satisfy you."
Bright nodded. There really was no reason to hesitate.
He had mentally prepared himself. He still vividly remembered the taste of the last fruit.
Opening his mouth, Bright bit off more than half of this fruit in one bite.
To his surprise, although it still tasted awful, it was much more palatable than the previous fruit.
Bright did not dawdle. He took another bite and swallowed the remaining small portion.
"Is that enough?" he asked.
"That's enough."
Vegapunk nodded. "Now, all you have to do is wait for it to mature gradually."
"Can't I see the results yet?" Bright was somewhat disappointed.
It felt like getting an ultimate weapon in a game but lacking the stats to equip it. It was frustratingly urgent.
"I told you, the fusion of Lineage Factors isn't the same as an ability! Don't expect immediate results!"
Vegapunk replied irritably, "You can think of it as your body gradually growing a new organ. Creating something from nothing naturally takes time."
Bright said in understanding, "I see. And after the organ forms, I'll still need to train it, right?"
"Even people like Kaido and Charlotte Linlin never stopped training or fighting when they were young," Vegapunk said as if it were obvious. "It should take several days to take effect."
"You can go back first and think carefully about what kinds of bloodlines you need. We'll meet again in a week."
Bright nodded.
He really did need to think this through carefully.
"Then, Doctor, how many more bloodlines do I need to choose?" Bright asked the crucial question.
"Hmm..."
Vegapunk held out both hands, then bent the thumb and index finger of his left hand one after the other. "Oh! Eight. That should be about the limit, right?"
There could actually be that many?
On the way back, the excitement in Bright's heart still had not faded.
With eight slots remaining, that meant that including Kaido's Lineage Factor and the one he had just obtained, he could possess ten types in total!
Bright even felt that it might be a little too overpowered.
But on second thought, they were only abilities possessed by living creatures. Compared to Devil Fruit abilities, they were still far inferior.
Still, that was enough. If quality was lacking, he could make up for it with quantity, right?
Rear Admiral Hag, who had been following Bright the entire time, frowned. Why did this fish-man seem so happy today?
Had Doctor Vegapunk said something to him?
They returned to the prison in silence, and Bright immediately began his routine training.
Time passed bit by bit like this.
Four days later, Bright felt that the time should be about right, so he decided to test it.
To see whether the fruit he had eaten four days ago had actually worked.
He chose the dead of night, lying quietly on his side in bed after turning off the lights.
As for the method of testing, it was simple. After mentally preparing himself, he bit down hard on his tongue.
His sharp teeth, capable of easily crushing steel, tore several bloody holes into his soft tongue.
Every muscle in Bright's body tensed. His tongue was full of nerves and extremely sensitive; that bite hurt so badly it felt as though his heart were being torn apart.
If the prison had not been under constant surveillance, he truly would not have wanted to bite his own tongue.
Blood kept seeping from the wounds, and Bright could only swallow his own blood.
Fortunately, the bleeding was not too severe, and he could barely endure it.
But the bleeding did not last long before Bright felt that the wounds had stopped bleeding.
Then, as time passed, the pain gradually faded as well.
After around two hours, the deep wounds on his tongue had initially healed. Three hours later, they had fully recovered.
It had worked.
Bright was certain of it.
The first bloodline ability he had chosen came from an ultra-ancient sea cucumber, and the ability it provided was regeneration.
Although taking several hours just to recover from bite wounds on his tongue did not seem particularly powerful, according to Vegapunk, that sea cucumber possessed such formidable regenerative power that even if an enemy bit off more than half of its body, it could regrow itself as long as it was not dead.
Bright's goal in life was to survive well in this chaotic world. He simply could not refuse a regenerative ability.
The activation of his first Lineage Factor left Bright thrilled.
Perhaps he would become an incredible powerhouse in the future?
In the darkness, Bright could not help smiling.
But rather than fantasizing, he should seriously consider what other abilities he needed.
First would naturally be basic attributes such as defense, strength, and stamina, right?
Although fusing Kaido's Lineage Factor with his own bloodline meant that his potential in those areas should already be astonishing, why could they not become even greater?
Basic attributes were the most important.
Then he could consider bloodlines that worked well with abilities, such as flames, lightning, and violent winds.
Hmm, he could not only consider things related to combat. Perhaps he could also solve his inability to swim?
Bright thought seriously for three days.
The appointed time arrived.
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