Julian had been sailing the Sea for five days. It was already March, and Alice's belly had begun to show. It had been over half a month now. Every day, Julian massaged her, pounded her legs, and kneaded her muscles. He was looking forward to the child's birth, but he absolutely could not raise the kid using this pirate world's methods. If the child turned into some great filial son, it would be too late for Julian to cry.
And among the few notable figures in the pirate world, there were already three such great filial sons. Whitebeard's godson, Blackbeard, had personally orchestrated the Summit War. During its later stages, after Whitebeard punched Akainu into a fissure in the ground, Blackbeard emerged, intending to kill Whitebeard and take the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. He had not expected Akainu to be so useless. Although Akainu had punched two holes through the old man's chest and even blown off part of his head, Whitebeard still retained plenty of fighting power. Akainu himself had also had his kidneys blown apart by Whitebeard and been punched back into the fissure. If there had not happened to be a rocky ledge below to catch Akainu, he would have fallen into the sea and drunk his fill of seawater.
Blackbeard had jumped out to harvest the Devil Fruit ability, only to nearly get chopped to death by Whitebeard. Later, he called Whitebeard "Dad," and Whitebeard could not bring himself to strike. In the end, he was killed by the Blackbeard Pirates' combined barrage.
The second was Kaido's daughter, Yamato. After turning six, she directly called Kaido by name and even called herself Kozuki Oden. She joined someone else's pirate alliance to fight her own father. After Luffy and Kaido both passed out, Yamato ran over to catch Luffy and cheered him on, praising his work. Yamato even shouted, "Kaido fell into the magma beautifully!" She willingly became that little idiot Momonosuke's Guardian King, working for that beast.
The third was Big Mom's daughter, Chiffon. She helped her husband Bege and Luffy kill Big Mom. Big Mom was Chiffon's biological mother.
The fourth great filial grandson was Luffy, who punched old Garp until his head bled. Julian could only exclaim that filial piety truly made people powerful enough to reach the heavens.
After breakfast, Julian continued his daily training. On the open-air deck of the fourth level, he practiced Body Techniques and further developed his Devil Fruit abilities. The first ability he developed was still the Earth-Earth Fruit. Red Gravity Mud spread over more than two hundred meters, forming a spherical barrier: the Gravity Barrier.
Within that gravity sphere spanning over two hundred meters, gravity was five times stronger than outside. And two hundred meters was not even Julian's maximum output. The Fire Dragon Fruit granted him tremendous stamina recovery and a powerful physique.
Julian could now proudly say, "I can fight for five days and five nights." This barrier could also rotate, search, and constantly repair itself, just like Doflamingo's Birdcage. If someone touched it, it would possess swamp-like suction, immediately sticking them to the mud wall. Once they got inside, they could not get out.
Julian could also activate the Earth-Earth Fruit and make the ground itself full of adhesive force, draining his opponent's stamina until their hands became too heavy to lift. It was an absolutely shameless trick.
Julian's Gravity Mud was troublesome red soil. Once it wrapped around someone, they could forget about escaping. Even Admirals would find such a move troublesome.
Julian could also instantly turn that mud into magma. This was a move developed by combining the Fire Dragon Fruit's flame abilities with the Earth-Earth Fruit. It was immensely destructive. Under Julian's control, all kinds of molten lava could turn into magma dragons. Julian was not afraid of flames or magma. The Flame Dragon truly deserved to be one of the top-tier creatures.
Julian was now developing two Devil Fruits at once while keeping up his Body Techniques as well. Flame Dragon Exploding Fist, Ten Times Flame Dragon Exploding Fist, Fire Dragon Lightning Fist, Flame Dragon Lightning Fist—these were combat techniques he had trained in Beastman Form.
His hands were wrapped in two enormous magma dragon heads. Julian was now experiencing Akainu's joy. Those magma dragon heads flew from his wrists, imitating Akainu's Great Eruption and Hell Hound. "If Akainu can use it, then I, Julian, can use it too. My name is even more imposing than his. I have abilities he doesn't. Isn't that infuriating?"
Julian threw another Flame Dragon Exploding Fist at the Sea. His right fist surged forward, and an enormous molten Flame Dragon shot toward the ocean. Then came a thunderous explosion, with aftershocks spreading across two kilometers of sea.
Julian said, "Flame Dragon Nuclear Fist." Combined with the balanced offense and defense of Kun Fist, Julian could confidently say, "No one can defeat me on my home ground." Julian continued training Flame Dragon Exploding Fist. Every strike sent a molten flame dragon blasting forth—a divine skill for frying fish. Julian then unleashed Flame Dragon - Earth Burst Heavenly Star. Balls of flame and mud flew from his hands into the sky, gradually gathering into a huge molten sphere that continued expanding: twenty meters, forty meters, eighty meters, two hundred meters. That scorching magma sphere rose high into the sky, eight hundred meters above them. All the crew below shouted, "The captain is mighty! The captain is invincible!" Several female nurses stared at Julian with sparkling eyes. This was not even Julian's maximum-output Earth Burst Heavenly Star. He could raise it to four hundred meters, or even eight hundred meters.
At that moment, a flock of News Birds began frantically taking pictures of Julian. There were photos of Julian's Fire Dragon Form using Flame Dragon Exploding Fist, as well as his Beastman Form using Flame Dragon Roar. Now there were photos of Earth Burst Heavenly Star in Beastman Form. Julian's Hybrid Form was an ability he had only just developed.
This form was faster. His body shrank from the Giant Fire Dragon's height of over a hundred meters in Fire Dragon Beastman Form to a Beastman Form standing twenty-eight meters tall. The Flame Giant Dragon Form also walked on two pairs of dragon claws, but the Beastman Form had greater speed and more flexible moves.
This form possessed the Flame Dragon's strength along with a human's agility and techniques. Its fighting style leaned toward that of a human. The Fire Dragon Form leaned toward that of a beast, favoring close-quarters combat like a wild Flame Dragon. It loved brawling, and its intelligence would decline.
The Beastman Form could also control flames. Its appearance was not much different from the Flame Giant Dragon Form. Furthermore, as Julian developed both Devil Fruits, he could now focus on two things at once, seamlessly linking techniques from both Devil Fruit abilities together. Julian estimated that his strength had definitely reached the level of an elite Vice Admiral. If he trained Armament Haki as well, he could basically walk sideways across the Grand Line.
Julian controlled the two-hundred-meter magma sphere and rapidly dropped it. Like a meteor, it plunged into the sea before instantly exploding. The explosion immediately raised enormous waves from the surface, some reaching two hundred meters high. Julian jolted and ran into the cabin to avoid the seawater raining down from the sky. He could feel his body rapidly recovering its stamina, but the consequence of such intense training was hunger.
Before noon, Julian was already starving unbearably. After saying that, he went to eat. Julian activated Beastman Form again and carefully admired himself. His entire body was wrapped in red flames, with red skin and covered in red scales. He had two enormous foreclaws, bone spikes at his elbow joints, and every muscle was clearly defined beneath layers of red scales. His face bore three sharp spikes, a pair of dragon horns rose from his head, and a pair of bat wings with barbs extended from his back. His feet were clawed, while his belly had a ring of yellow skin like Charizard's, right around his navel.
The Fire Dragon Beastman Form looked unbelievably cool, and its flames seemed capable of accelerating stamina recovery. It was difficult to imagine how terrifying Teacher Kaido's strength was with four elements. Julian's Flame Body could not compare to Kaido's Azure Dragon Body.
Julian said, "Kaido's Thunder Bagua really can increase the chance of someone's Devil Fruit awakening. Luffy got hit by one club strike, approached death, and then the Nika Fruit awakened. To awaken a Zoan Devil Fruit, though, the prerequisite is unwavering willpower and no fear of life or death."
Julian's Dao heart was extremely firm, with no problems at all. Kaido's Devil Fruit was very likely in a half-awakened state. Luffy's Gear Five and Lucci's Leopard Form could serve as references: Flame Clouds wrapped around their backs, making them look incredibly impressive. Teacher Kaido doubted himself because he was not Joy Boy and could not change the world. How could the soul of the Azure Dragon Fruit acknowledge him? In his memories, Kaido often said to King, "King, am I really the one who can change this world?" Secondly, Kaido often cried and tried to kill himself. Someone with a stable Dao heart should be like Luffy, not constantly crying and doubting himself.
Kaido's body, Haki, and strength were all among the world's best. He was only lacking that final step. His Drunken Dragon Bagua Form, Immovable Wisdom King Bagua Form, and Five Great Wisdom King Forms were all monstrously powerful.
Another possibility was what Kaido himself had said: the strongest experts on the Sea all trained Haki, so he had not focused much on developing his Devil Fruit. Kaido had always wanted to become a powerful man like Roger. Kaido had personally said that Roger never ate a Devil Fruit, yet relied on Haki to become one of the strongest men on the Sea. He had also said that Haki transcended Devil Fruit abilities.
If the problem was his Dao heart, Julian said, "All I need is a speaker. Isn't that the Drum of Liberation? Then I'll pair it with a Slave Song. Who would dare say you aren't Joy Boy? Once I help Kaido awaken the Azure Dragon Fruit, getting a little of his blood definitely won't be a problem. Then perhaps I can create an awakened Artificial Devil Fruit. Julian also hoped that by avoiding these pitfalls, he could awaken his own Devil Fruit."
Julian also wanted to use Kaido's Lineage Factor to replicate several awakened Artificial Devil Fruits in Azure Dragon Form. Julian said, "If Punk Hazard still has Kaido's Lineage Factor, there will be no need to draw blood from Kaido. But that Mythical Zoan Artificial Devil Fruit in Azure Dragon Form must be eaten by an adult."
If a child ate it, they would grow up to look like Kaido, because it contained Kaido's Lineage Factor. That little idiot Momonosuke had been artificially aged, and at twenty-eight, he looked very similar to Kaido. He no longer looked like that idiotic bird Kozuki Oden.
Many people believed that the Fish-Fish Fruit Mythical Zoan Azure Dragon Form was a fish that awakened and became a dragon. Fish-Fish was merely a category; Azure Dragon was its form. Dragon-Dragon Fruits were Ancient Zoans of the dinosaur type, not Mythical Zoans like divine dragons.
Gion had already begun working odd jobs at a tavern. At Marine Headquarters, Fleet Admiral Steel Bone Kong held a newspaper about Flame Dragon Julian. It included a photo of Julian controlling a Flame Dragon and punching the Sea, an incredibly spectacular scene. The final image showed Julian using molten lava to unleash Earth Burst Heavenly Star. Due to the angle of the photograph, the magma fireball looked more than five hundred meters wide. The massive magma sphere flew through the sky, radiating overwhelming pressure.
Julian was already very famous. He was the Sea's first Dual Devil Fruit User. The News Birds delivered their report and photographs of Julian to Morgans. Pictures taken in the morning became news that very afternoon. Morgans gave Julian's report the headline: The Strongest Flame Creature, Flame Emperor Julian.
On Onigashima in Wano Country, Kaido saw the newspaper and said, "Flame Dragon Julian. I've decided that if I ever see him, I'll teach him a lesson. What does he mean, strongest creature? I, Beast King Kaido, am the world's strongest creature!" Beside him, Scourge Queen happily said, "Boss Kaido is the strongest creature of land, sea, and air!"
At Whole Cake Island, Big Mom also picked up the newspaper and shouted, "Mamamama! Another strong man has appeared on the Sea! I want his bloodline so badly! That way, I can definitely give birth to powerful descendants again! Mama, mama!" Twenty-five-year-old Katakuri, Katakuri, said awkwardly from nearby, "Mother's illness is acting up again. Whenever she sees someone strong or powerful, she thinks about having children." Katakuri looked at the siblings before him: Fish-Men, members of the Three-Eye Tribe, and the Long-Hand Tribe. The fifth child, Opera, barely looked human anymore. The third sister was a snake woman, while the eighth sister, Brulee, was Katakuri's favorite younger sister. Though her appearance was hard to describe, she was kind and gentle at heart. He then looked at his fourteenth sister, Smoothie, a Paramecia Squeeze-Squeeze Fruit user nicknamed the Juicer.
Katakuri looked at his other sisters again. His eighteenth sister, Galette, was already fourteen years old. Her figure was extremely voluptuous, and she was very beautiful as well. She was a Butter-Butter Fruit user. Katakuri helplessly shook his head. Big Mom had thirty-nine daughters and forty-six sons—truly remarkable. Other crews relied on recruitment, but her crew consisted of her own children. Still, the facts proved that among all her children, only Chiffon had a rebellious streak. She firmly supported her husband Bege in killing Big Mom. However, blood relations really were more stable than other connections.
Yamato declared, "I am Kozuki Oden." After Whitebeard saw the newspaper about Flame Dragon Julian, he burst into laughter. "Gurarararara! Another little monster has emerged on the Sea." Little Marco called out from the side, "Dad, when are we going to search for the secret treasure?" Whitebeard smiled. "Having you sons is enough for me. Who wants that boring thing?"
Little Marco was still a young man in his twenties, with the same pineapple hairstyle. His Phoenix Fruit had not yet been developed into a Medical Fruit. Whitebeard still had a head of blond hair. Marco said with great emotion, "Dad, shall we hold a banquet tonight?" Whitebeard replied, "Get the banquet started!"
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