The True Face of the Vengeful Spirit

In the darkness, Robin's voice drifted over: "That creature's body structure is extremely bizarre. My ability has absolutely no effect on it."

Robin's ability relied on sprouting limbs from key points on an opponent's body to bend joints backward or snap bones—a lethal technique against any ordinary person. That it had no effect on this "vengeful spirit" was truly unexpected.

It seemed this enemy was not to be underestimated. Buggy tensed his nerves, waiting for the creature's next move.

A bewitching green light, like a will-o'-the-wisp from a graveyard, suddenly flared to life, then transformed into a streak of green radiance as it closed in.

Buggy's pupils constricted. The green light vanished in an instant, only to reappear right before his eyes. A crackling sound echoed through the air, like the snap of a whip's tip cutting through the atmosphere.

He felt countless whip-like lashes raining down upon his head. In his desperation, he shielded his face with his hands, but through the gaps in his arms, he felt stinging impacts striking his face from every direction.

Yet, there was no pain as he had imagined. Wait...

As if realizing something, Buggy threw his hands wide. He activated the Chop-Chop Fruit, detaching his hands and feet to tightly entwine the dark shadow surrounding the green light. He desperately wrapped his limbs around the creature's slippery body.

"Kachoo!" The green light emitted a strange sound, and then something splattered from its body. A salty, pungent fluid sprayed onto Buggy's face. His vision went black instantly; he couldn't even see the two green lights anymore. It felt as if his face had been coated in glue, which was incredibly uncomfortable.

"Kachoo-kachoo-kachoo-kachoo—"

Like the satisfying combo sounds in an arcade game, the creature unleashed a barrage of slashing air currents at Buggy's body. They passed right through him, shredding the trees behind him in large swaths.

Unable to see a thing, Buggy swung his fists, smashing them into the creature's body in the most direct and violent manner possible.

The dark clouds in the sky were gradually blown away by the wind, and the full moon and scattered stars were hung back in the heavens. Their light filtered through the mottled shadows of the trees, faintly illuminating the scene in the forest.

Covered in black ink, Buggy exhausted a great deal of strength to finally pin the creature to the ground. If not for the fact that its slashes were ineffective against him, he likely would have met his end here today.

"An octopus?" He wiped the ink from his face, staring with dark lines on his forehead at the creature he had suppressed. Before him was... something that looked like an octopus!

The captain of the mighty Buggy Pirates had been pushed to such a state by an octopus. If word of this got out, he might as well kiss his reputation as a great pirate of the East Blue goodbye.

Robin relit an oil lamp, dispelling the darkness. She examined the octopus with great interest. Its greenish tentacles looked like vines, and the two thicker tentacles at the bottom, which served as legs, were even more exaggerated—they looked less like tentacles and more like human legs. The octopus had a protruding mouthpart on its face, and its eyes reflected a green light under the glow of the lamp.

Robin looked it over with wonder and concluded, "This should be a Land-Walking Octopus. Legend has it that these octopuses originally lived in the deep sea, but after being hunted and driven by sea beasts, they broke through their biological shackles and successfully moved onto land. I've heard they live much longer than sea turtles. This is my first time seeing one in person."

"I don't care if it's a land-walking or sea-swimming octopus, I, the great Buggy, am having raw octopus slices today!" Buggy pulled a dagger from his sleeve.

"Wait, Mr. Red Nose." Robin stopped him. "A Land-Walking Octopus shouldn't possess such powerful attack power or speed. I suspect its strength and speed might be connected to these ruins. I think we shouldn't kill it rashly."

Hearing Robin's words, Buggy rubbed the blade of his dagger against his other hand, producing a chilling rasping sound. He grinned, his teeth looking even whiter against the ink-stained backdrop of his face. "Brother Octopus, do you want to taste what octopus slices feel like?"

"Kachoo..." The large octopus couldn't break free from Buggy's grip. Its two green eyes stared in terror at the dagger in his hand, and it hurriedly shook its large head in a human-like gesture.

"You really don't want to?" Buggy pressed the cold blade against the edge of the octopus's large head and stabbed it into the mud. "But it's very delicious, you know..."

"Kachoo!!!"

Cold sweat broke out on the octopus's face in a human-like display. Realizing its attacks were useless against Buggy, it lost all fighting spirit. Its green tentacles scrambled frantically against the ground, trying to break free from Buggy's hold. The arrogant air it had displayed earlier was completely gone.

"So it's just a bully that fears the strong." Buggy gripped one of the octopus's tentacles tightly. The creature's strength wasn't as great as he had imagined; even if it was a mutated species, it was, at the end of the day, just a strange octopus.

However, the truth of the matter was now clear. The animals had retreated due to their sensitivity to territorial boundaries, and Robin's Flower-Flower Fruit hadn't worked because the creature was a soft-bodied animal.

So, it wasn't Chris and those mountain bandits causing trouble; the so-called vengeful spirit was actually just this creature whose eyes could glow green in the dark.

"Don't scare it anymore." Robin smiled as she approached the octopus, trying to look harmless. "Little Octopus, how about we resolve this peacefully?"

"Kachoo!" The octopus seemed startled and spat a large amount of ink at Robin. Three pairs of arms sprouted from Robin's body instantly, crossing in front of her to intercept the spray with the backs of her hands.

Her arms dissolved into petals that scattered in the air, and she continued to smile. "Hehehe~ are we still having octopus slices later?"

After ten minutes or so, Buggy and Robin finally had the octopus completely tamed. The creature was a total coward, and under the combined intimidation of Buggy and Robin, it surrendered obediently.

The octopus walked on its two sturdy, leg-like tentacles, with its remaining tentacles curled protectively around its "legs." A rope resembling a dog leash was tied around its head, with the other end held by Buggy.

Robin held the oil lamp and scanned the parchment, then glanced at the octopus. "Little Octopus, lead the way properly. I actually don't really like eating octopus slices."

"Kachoo." The octopus let out a dejected sound and resigned itself to its fate.

With the octopus leading the way, the two walked for an unknown amount of time until they finally saw dense light ahead.

A massive circular altar was built in the forest. In the center of the altar stood a broken stone statue. Under the luster of the moonlight, its silhouette was faintly visible.

It was a statue that only had its lower half remaining. The break above the waist was jagged and uneven, while the lower half was carved with the patterns of a cloth skirt, ending in thick, sturdy legs. It appeared to be a man, and the upper half of the statue did not seem to be nearby.

Buggy scanned the surroundings. The altar covered less than a hundred square meters, and he could see the end of it at a glance. The ground was paved with stone bricks, and there wasn't a single shiny gold object in sight. Was this really the ancestral ruin?

Robin touched the stone statue and said with some surprise, "This statue must be several hundred years old, yet it's still so well-preserved..."

Buggy walked up and nodded in agreement. "Aside from the missing upper half, there are no signs of natural erosion on this statue. The carvings are clear. If it really is hundreds of years old, that's some terrifying preservation technology."

Buggy pulled the octopus over. "Octopus slice, do you know what's going on here?"

"Kachoo, kachoo."

He couldn't understand a word it was saying...

Buggy asked Robin, "There should be some kind of mechanism here, right, Miss Robin?"

Robin looked up at the full moon in the sky and said calmly, "Yes, we arrived just in time."