Toby

"Giant Tiger Pounce!"

Vast crimson energy poured from Chen Qiang's body. At the same time, blood flowed rapidly from the bodies of the guards who had just died, gathering around him. Thin streams of blood then rose into the air, forming a gigantic crimson tiger.

"Roar!"

With a roar, the newly formed crimson tiger sprang from behind Chen Qiang and slammed into the magnificent palace before them.

"Boom!"

A deafening impact rang out, and the palace's magnificent entrance collapsed. Just as the giant tiger charged inside, a bright red gem shot out from the palace's second floor and struck the tiger on the head. A violent explosion scattered it. If the blast hadn't stopped the tiger, it might have brought down the entire palace.

"Undying Chen Qiang, that's no way for a guest to behave!"

After the red gem stopped Chen Qiang's tiger, a burly man appeared in the gaping hole where the second-floor wall had been blown away. He looked down at Chen Qiang and spoke.

"I'm no guest. I just can't stand you. And why are you dressed like a woman?"

When Chen Qiang saw the man on the second floor, his eyes were immediately drawn to him. His outfit was so bizarre that Chen Qiang didn't know what to make of it.

Before, when the man had been hidden in the shadows, Chen Qiang had only been able to make out his burly build and the suit he was wearing. It was only after the man stepped fully into view that Chen Qiang could see what he had on.

The man's suit was divided into squares, each one set with a sparkling gem. It looked incredibly ornate. On top of that, he wore gem-studded rings on his hands, and a heap of jeweled ornaments on his ears and around his neck!

That was why Chen Qiang was so stunned by the man's outfit. The man wasn't really wearing clothes so much as an entire suit made of gems.

"I'm Toby, ruler of Copperfield. Undying Chen Qiang, you're causing trouble on my turf. Have you considered the price you'll pay?"

The man had clearly heard Chen Qiang's earlier remark about him. The faint smile on his face vanished, and his expression darkened.

"So this city is called Copperfield? That's news to me. But it doesn't matter. This place is destined to disappear from the world anyway, so its name is irrelevant!"

Chen Qiang paid no attention to the man's attitude. Instead, he smiled and taunted him. As he spoke, he used their contract to alert Lin, telling her to wait until he was fighting Toby, then enter the palace and find the people from the Defu Slave Ship. She was to capture them and ask where the villagers were.

Since they had signed a Symbiotic Contract, Chen Qiang only needed to glance back at Lin for her to understand. She nodded as he turned away, ready to charge in at any moment.

"If you want to destroy this place, you'll have to prove you have what it takes!"

As the emperor of this city, how could Toby tolerate someone acting even more arrogantly than he did? Without hesitation, he attacked Chen Qiang.

"Poison Gem!"

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"

Dark green gems shot from Toby's hands toward Chen Qiang. Before Chen Qiang could react, the gems exploded right in front of him. Thick clouds of poison burst from them, quickly enveloping him.

"Tiger Roar!"

"Roar!"

Chen Qiang reacted quickly. Just as the poison was about to engulf him, a crimson tiger's head appeared, shielding both him and Lin. It roared toward the sky.

As the saying went, clouds followed dragons and winds followed tigers. The moment the giant tiger roared, a fierce gale rose around Chen Qiang, quickly sweeping away the poison and sending it toward the cave's ceiling.

"Now, go!"

After clearing the poison from the area, Chen Qiang called out to Lin. Then he charged at Toby, long saber in hand.

At his words, Lin immediately disappeared from the spot. She rushed through the hole Chen Qiang had blasted open and into the palace.

"Hmph! A cheap trick. You lot, grab that little girl. I'll deal with him!"

A huge red gem appeared and blocked Chen Qiang's charge. Toby had also spotted Lin entering the palace, so he ordered his subordinates to go after her.

"Yes, sir!"

The subordinates obeyed and quickly left, chasing Lin into the palace.

"Explosive Gem!"

Ignoring his men after giving the order, Toby kicked the gem in front of him. Chen Qiang hadn't realized what was happening and was just about to cut it open when he collided head-on with the enormous red gem.

"Boom!"

The moment Chen Qiang touched the gem, it exploded violently, blasting him back onto the ground. The new clothes he had changed into on the slave ship were torn to shreds.

Luckily, Chen Qiang reacted quickly and protected his pants in the instant before the explosion. Otherwise, he would've ended up completely naked.

"Why are the clothes in this world so flimsy? When I watched the anime, I never saw their clothes getting destroyed all the time! Why is it different for me? What a rip-off!"

Chen Qiang grumbled as he tore off the strips of clothing hanging from his body and tossed them aside. Then he charged at Toby again.

While Chen Qiang was fighting Toby, a man in a black trench coat opened an unremarkable door near the slave market and went inside.

"Chief of Staff, we've confirmed it. The noise earlier came from Undying Chen Qiang fighting Toby."

As soon as the man in black entered, he reported to the person seated at the head of the room: a man dressed in aristocratic clothes and wearing a gentleman's hat, with a burn scar across his face.

If Chen Qiang had been there, he would have recognized the man at once. He was none other than Sabo, another brother of Luffy and Ace.

"Undying Chen Qiang? What's he doing here?"

Sabo sounded surprised when he heard the report. He immediately stood up, looking anxious.

"No, I have to go save him. I can't let him fall into Toby's hands."