Dr. Kuroha

Since we have arrived at Drum Island, how could we not pay a visit to the hidden powerhouse, Dr. Kureha?

Along the way, thanks to Antonio constantly asking for directions, we finally arrived at a castle clinic atop a Drum Snowy Peak. It seemed she was doing quite well for herself; it was called the Witch Clinic, and the price list posted at the entrance was enough to scare off countless people.

A common cold started at one hundred thousand Beli, not to mention other serious illnesses, but the final line promised: "Guaranteed to cure all ailments, guaranteed to heal."

Brook walked straight inside. There were no patients, only a tall, thin, white-haired old woman drinking alcohol. Much like Shakky's Rip-off Bar, she didn't open for business for three years, but one opening would sustain her for three years.

Dr. Kureha looked at Brook as he walked in, her eyes hazy with drink. Her brow furrowed; he didn't seem like a living person—no heartbeat, no body heat.

"Dr. Kureha, I hope you can cure all ailments."

Brook smiled slightly and sat down in front of Dr. Kureha. Antonio also found a seat and sat down nervously, while the Memory Seahorse and Wuzhu stayed on the back of the Qilin Lion.

"What illness are you looking to cure?"

Stung by the cold Underworld Ghost Qi radiating from Brook, Dr. Kureha sobered up instantly, her expression turning grave as she looked at the pale Brook.

"I want to know, can I still have offspring in the future?"

Brook's tone was flat, as if he weren't talking about himself at all, completely indifferent.

"Are you suffering from kidney deficiency or infertility? Or did an enemy cripple your little ancestor?"

Dr. Kureha's sharp-tongued remark made Brook's expression stiffen. As expected of an old witch; she clearly had nothing to fear, daring to speak to anyone like that.

"Neither. I am a user of the Yomi Yomi no Mi. In fact, I have already died once. My soul escaped from the underworld, and my body turned into this!"

Brook didn't hide anything; this wasn't information he needed to keep secret.

"There's such a Devil Fruit? That really is too miraculous!"

Dr. Kureha marveled at the wondrous power of the Devil Fruit while pulling out a tube and handing it to Brook.

"What is this for?"

Brook took the tube and looked at her in confusion. It wasn't medicine or a drink; it was empty. Was she going to draw blood for a test?

"Aren't you trying to verify if you can still have offspring? Go on, go to the Toilet Avier and fill a tube with essence. I'll help you observe it! Don't tell me your little ancestor is already unusable?"

Dr. Kureha hit the nail on the head, checking from the root to see if the substance was still the original substance.

Antonio, standing to the side, immediately turned his head away, pretending he didn't exist, though the slight twitch of his lips betrayed him as he stifled a laugh. Brook also wore an awkward expression.

"Nonsense, my Heaven-Propping White Jade Pillar, Sea-Supporting Purple Gold Beam, Adamantine Staff, and Compliant Iron Rod are famously formidable. You might have to wait a while; I might not be out for several hours. Antonio, go grab something to eat first and come back later!"

Brook decisively sent Antonio away to avoid the boy feeling inferior upon learning of his captain's prowess.

"Several hours? I'll give you ten minutes at most. I'm in a hurry to get off work!"

Dr. Kureha's words made Antonio rush out while stifling his laughter, leaving Brook with a darkened face as he glared dangerously at the sharp-tongued witch doctor.

In the end, Brook walked slowly into the Toilet Avier with a gloomy face.

"Cheer up. With a mood like that, how can you produce high-quality essence? Though, it's possible there's nothing at all, considering you're a dead man!"

What was this? This was truly heart-wrenching!

Brook rushed into the toilet in despair, recalling the 150TB of study materials in his mind and reminiscing about the brilliant lessons from those teachers, gradually finding his rhythm.

Following the slow-motion movements of his left and right hands, repeating the process—like a train entering a tunnel or a rocket launching into space—Brook finally finished just in time, walking out with the essence and handing it to Dr. Kureha.

He chose to grab a bottle from Dr. Kureha's liquor shelf to numb himself; perhaps one could drown all sorrows in drink.

"Private reserve fine wine, twenty thousand Beli a bottle. Thanks for your patronage!"

After saying this, Dr. Kureha took the essence into her medical laboratory to conduct research, exploring whether the remains of a dead man still possessed any vitality.

After drinking several bottles of strong liquor, Brook discovered that he couldn't seem to get drunk. Any alcohol was consumed and assimilated by his Underworld Ghost Qi. It turned out that besides being immune to all poisons, he had even lost the ability to get drunk.

If I cannot enjoy wine or women, what is the point of living in this immortal body?

Brook wanted to howl at the sky. Even if eternal life could bring all sorts of colorful experiences, he didn't want the "colorful" life—he just wanted the "carnal" one!

Brook silently shed a cold tear, leaving Wuzhu, the Memory Seahorse, and the Qilin Lion looking on in confusion. Was their cold-hearted captain actually crying?

Forget it, forget it. Even without offspring, at worst he could just do as King Wen did and adopt dozens or hundreds of foster children. Otherwise, he would have no emotional anchor after living for so long.

As time passed, Antonio returned at some point, bringing several portions of food for Brook and the pets.

Inside the medical laboratory.

Dr. Kureha observed Brook's essence under a microscope. There were still many tadpoles swimming around!

However, once the temperature rose, they quickly lost their vitality, and at low temperatures, they were highly destructive, damaging other cells. In this case, it was essentially equivalent to being sterile.

No other egg cell could withstand this underworld low temperature, and without that cold environment, Brook's tadpoles lost their vitality on their own.

She tested several other types of cells, but none could withstand the low temperature required for the tadpoles to survive.

This conclusion left even Dr. Kureha helpless. She recorded the data and walked out to tell Brook.

"Cannot withstand low temperatures? So it's basically impossible for me to have descendants?"

Although Brook had been prepared, he was still struck hard. He was actually going to be the end of his line—what use was this iron rod to him now?

"And you shouldn't go around harming other women either. The low temperature of your essence might cause them injury!"

Dr. Kureha's words stabbed Brook once more, leaving him feeling cold to the core. Was he to be stripped even of his right to be a man?

"Does that mean I'm destined to be a eunuch for the rest of my life?"

Brook's voice trembled; this was nothing short of a man's greatest humiliation!

"If you manage to kill a woman every single time, you could technically continue, but that would only work if your woman were powerful enough. However, where in this world would you find so many women stronger than a Vice Admiral or an Admiral?"

The current overlords of the New World were almost exclusively men; there were practically no female powerhouses!

"So, in other words, as long as my woman is strong enough to withstand it, I still have a chance to enjoy the perks of being a man and have offspring, right?"

Brook asked anxiously, as this concerned his entire future.

"Theoretically, yes, but such monster-like women simply don't exist in this world. You'd be better off just washing up and going to sleep!"

To produce an egg capable of withstanding Brook's cryogenic essence—just how strong would such a woman have to be? Forget about whether such a female powerhouse even existed; even if she did, she certainly wouldn't be someone within the reach of a man of Brook's caliber!

.Provided by Great God Great Karma Fire, One Piece: Hell Brook