Impel Down, Sixth Floor

"Ace!"

Deep within the dark and silent Level 6 of the Impel Down prison, a massive shout suddenly erupted, shattering the stillness of the cell block.

"Has it finally begun?"

In a solitary cell on the sixth floor, a prisoner covered in blood and pinned to the wall by countless nails opened his blood-red eyes upon hearing the call for Ace. The corners of his mouth curled upward, revealing a terrifying smile.

As he opened his eyes, a powerful aura surged from his body.

"Where is Ace? Is he not locked up here?" A young man in a vest and straw hat soon passed by the cell, stopping at the entrance of a nearby one. He scanned the interior, clearly failing to find the person he was looking for, and asked the female jailer behind him with a puzzled expression.

"He is right here! I couldn't possibly have remembered wrong, wuu wuu wuu~~~" Upon being questioned by Luffy, the female jailer began to sob uncontrollably.

"It seems we are too late; Ace must have already been taken out!" Fortunately, a man with hair split into white and yellow lightning bolts stepped forward at this moment, swirling a glass of red wine as he observed the situation inside the cell.

While Luffy and his group were inspecting the cells, another prisoner—a fish-man in a red floral robe with a large sun tattoo on his chest—was also observing Luffy from outside his own cell. This was none other than the Knight of the Sea, Jinbe, one of the Shichibukai!

"You actually made it to Level 6! You must be Straw Hat Luffy, the younger brother Ace was always talking about!" After confirming Luffy's identity, Jinbe spoke directly to him.

"Yeah!"

"Mr. Ace was just taken away. If you give chase now, you might still be able to save him!" Upon hearing Luffy's affirmative reply, Jinbe said quickly, his tone filled with agitation.

"Old man, who are you?" Luffy didn't leave immediately upon hearing the news, choosing instead to ask Jinbe.

"Another remarkable big shot!" Standing beside Luffy, Ivankov, the King of Okama, recognized Jinbe and remarked with some surprise.

"Go after him! If you're too late, Mr. Ace might be taken out of Impel Down entirely!" Jinbe ignored the question, urging the other to move.

"Alright, though I don't know who you are, thanks anyway!" Seeing that the man wouldn't reveal his name, Luffy didn't press the matter. He pulled his straw hat down onto his head and sprinted back the way he came.

"Knight of the Sea Jinbe! Why didn't you ask Luffy to break you out?" After Luffy had departed, the prisoner in the solitary cell asked Jinbe in a raspy voice.

"It's you! The Undying One who has been attempting to break out every day for the past month, Chen Qiang! You're still alive! But then again, how could you die so easily?" Jinbe was clearly stunned upon hearing the voice, but he immediately recognized the speaker. He was surprised, though he quickly regained his composure, recalling the man's bizarre abilities.

It was no wonder Jinbe was surprised; this man named Chen Qiang had been locked in Level 6 for a month, yet in that short span, he had attempted to break out once every single day.

With every escape attempt, his strength grew, especially his ability to survive no matter how he was beaten. It was incredibly formidable; in this prison, no one but Magellan himself, using his poison to knock him unconscious, could subdue him.

After capturing him, the jailers had tried many methods to kill him, but all had ended in failure. In the end, they had no choice but to resort to various means to bind him.

Without exception, these restraints only held him for a single night. By the next day, he would always escape his cell. Sometimes, it seemed he only allowed himself to be restrained because he wanted to rest; otherwise, he might not even stay put for a single night.

However, for some unknown reason, the man who usually broke out daily—and kept Magellan stationed here for a month—had not attempted an escape yesterday, even after the Empress had arrived. The surrounding prisoners, who had been waiting for a show, were all speculating that he had finally died, which was why he hadn't emerged.

But it appeared he wasn't dead after all; it seemed the jailers' latest method of confinement had finally succeeded in keeping him trapped in his cell.

"Compared to my own safety, I am more concerned with saving Mr. Ace!" After identifying the man, the surprise on Jinbe's face vanished, and he spoke calmly.

"Is that so? I have a feeling Luffy will be back to save you soon! With the crew he has now, he won't be able to escape Impel Down!" Hearing Jinbe's words, Chen Qiang chuckled softly from his cell.

"Damn it, if you want to get out, don't drag us into this!"

"If this continues, the entire sixth floor will be filled with gas!"

"Help me!"

"."

Following Chen Qiang's words, the prisoners throughout Level 6 began to clamor, especially those near the exit.

"It seems Straw Hat-san has indeed run into some trouble!" Hearing the cries of the prisoners, Jinbe couldn't help but frown.

"And what about you? Mr. Chen Qiang, what is your goal in telling me all this?" After a moment of silence, Jinbe's voice rang out again, questioning Chen Qiang.

"Me? It's simple: I want out!" When asked about his intentions, Chen Qiang chuckled softly before stating his goal in a raspy voice.

"Out? Then Mr. Chen Qiang, you have asked the wrong person. I am also a prisoner here and have no power to help you escape!" Jinbe shook his head upon hearing Chen Qiang's request.

"No, no, no! You don't have the power now, but when Luffy tries to leave Impel Down later, he will inevitably release those who can help him. And you, Jinbe, will certainly be one of them, because like Luffy, you are someone who wants to save Ace!" Chen Qiang's raspy voice drifted over once more.

"Mr. Chen Qiang, why are you so certain that Straw Hat-san will save me? And even if I am saved, why would I release you?" Jinbe was filled with doubt regarding Chen Qiang's words.

"Don't you want to save Ace? As for why you would release me, it is because I believe I can be of help in the coming battles—perhaps even helping you all rescue Ace!" Chen Qiang's words were raspy and slow, devoid of any inflection.

"Fine! I promise you, if Straw Hat-san returns and releases me, I will release you. I only hope you do not break your word." After hesitating for a moment, Jinbe spoke softly.

"Hehehe! Rest assured! I will honor the agreement and participate in this war to help you save Ace!"

A long silence followed, until eventually, Luffy returned from the direction of the passageway.

Just as in the original events, Luffy released both Crocodile and Jinbe, and they prepared to begin their breakout.

"Hey! Jinbe! Don't forget what you promised me!"

"I have not forgotten." Jinbe, who had just been released, was stretching his limbs. Hearing Chen Qiang's voice, he replied calmly.

"Huh? What agreement?" Just as he was about to call Crocodile to create a path upward, Luffy heard the exchange between Jinbe and the prisoner in the cell and looked on, confused.

"It is, of course, to release me so that I may help you save your brother, Ace!" Chen Qiang spoke up again.

"The Undying One, Chen Qiang! You really aren't dead yet!" At this moment, Crocodile, who had come to the cell door upon hearing Chen Qiang's voice, looked at the man inside.

"Since you call me the Undying One, how could I possibly die so easily?" Seeing Crocodile at the cell door, the smile on Chen Qiang's face grew even wider.

"Can you really help me save Ace?" Luffy arrived at the cell door at this moment, looking at Chen Qiang, who was pinned to the wall by thick nails, and asked with a hint of disbelief.

Because at this moment, Chen Qiang was pinned by nails all over his body, and blood was flowing from him as if it were worthless; he looked for all the world like he was about to die. That such a person would claim to help him rescue Ace left Luffy quite astonished.

"It's actually him, that brat who just won't die!" Hearing Crocodile call out Chen Qiang's name from inside the cell, Ivankov was also surprised and hurriedly ran to the cell door.

"He promised that as long as he is released, he will go to save Mr. Ace! I believe he will not go back on his word!" Jinbe spoke up once again at this time.

"Alright then! Inazuma! Please let him out!" Hearing that the people on his side all knew Chen Qiang, and coupled with Jinbe's words, Luffy quickly made his decision and said to Inazuma beside him.

"Understood!" After hearing Luffy's words, Inazuma glanced at Ivankov, and seeing him nod, he did not hesitate. His hands transformed into scissors, cutting open the cell door before he approached Chen Qiang and began snipping off the heads of the nails embedded in his body one by one.

"Hehehe! I'm out again. Hannyabal, are you ready?"

After Inazuma cut off all the nail heads from Chen Qiang's body, Chen Qiang, who had been motionless against the wall, pushed off with his back and detached himself from the nails.

For a moment, large holes appeared where the nails had been, and blood gushed out continuously, but these wounds began to heal rapidly. In just one minute, not a single injury could be seen on his body.

"So amazing!"

The changes in Chen Qiang were witnessed by Luffy and the others, leaving Luffy full of surprise.

"Truly a powerful ability; even with such heavy injuries, he can recover so quickly!" Crocodile remarked with a sigh.

"I hope you do not break your word! Otherwise, I will not let you off!" Jinbe was not overly surprised by the changes in Chen Qiang, as their cells were not far apart and he already understood Chen Qiang's abilities from when he had escaped before, so he simply spoke to him solemnly once more.

"Hehehe! Rest assured, I don't want to watch Ace die like this either! How boring the sea would be without Ace!" Chen Qiang had already stood up, and upon hearing Jinbe's words, he smiled and looked back at him.