Eighteen is the Age to Strive Hard!

"Ripley, are you really going on my ship?"

"Of course, how many times have you asked me that on this journey? We agreed on this a long time ago. If anything goes wrong, I'll just leave you and run back to Elbaf."

Ripley giggled, "We're going to steal a branch from the Adam Tree, right? I know where it is, I'll lead the way."

"Who said we're stealing? It's a fair trade!"

Magnus, sitting on Ripley's shoulder, jumped up and hit her head hard.

"Ouch!"

Ripley said with displeasure, "You old geezer, don't hit my head casually. I'm not a kid anymore."

"Haha, sorry, sorry."

Magnus stood up on Ripley's shoulder.

"We're almost there, just wait a moment."

"This is already too much?"

"It can't be helped. Rocks' foundation is too weak. Even with talent, he has to put in more effort to catch up to others."

This was why few pirates made a name for themselves at a young age, unless they were exceptionally talented. Talent alone couldn't directly translate into strength.

Ripley turned her head and saw a disheveled figure following far behind.

Keep in mind, Ripley was a twenty-meter-tall giantess. Her legs alone were over ten meters long. With just a single stride, an ordinary person would have to run several steps to keep up.

Since Ripley informed him that the rainbow to Elbaf wouldn't be set up for at least another week, Magnus abandoned the idea of taking the rainbow bridge directly to the giant village.

He planned to take a detour from the lowest level of Elbaf to the middle layer.

The method, naturally, was on foot.

The mountains and hills that giants could easily cross were a considerable effort for Rocks. It was fine for short periods, but over time, even with the training Magnus had put him through for over a month, Rocks was starting to struggle.

Having risen from humble beginnings himself, Magnus understood the principle of moderation. Excessive training wasn't training; it was life-threatening.

However, thinking about his previous conversation with Ripley, Magnus had a new idea.

Pressure alone wasn't enough.

He needed to provide some motivation.

It was commonly known as "the carrot and the stick."

"Here!"

Seeing Rocks stop and gasp for air, Magnus threw him a water bottle and chuckled, "Kid, you must be cursing me in your head right now, thinking that once you've grown, you'll get back at me."

Hearing Magnus's words, Rocks was startled. He thought to himself, How is this old man's reaction so sharp? He figured it out.

Seeing Rocks' expression, Magnus knew he had guessed correctly and couldn't help but burst into laughter. "Pfft, hahaha, I knew you were vengeful, kid, and still resentful that I forced you to join us."

As the future overlord of the sea, Rocks would never be content to be subordinate to anyone. Therefore, Magnus never expected to easily subdue Rocks, even the young Rocks.

"How about this, I'll give you an opportunity."

Magnus grinned, a mischievous smile on his face. "This sea ultimately speaks with strength. Do you think your current strength is enough to defeat me and Ripley?"

Rocks froze. He thought of Magnus's sword technique that split the sea in half, and the strength and speed Ripley displayed when attacking Magnus. He gritted his teeth.

Although he was extremely unwilling, he truly couldn't defeat either Magnus or Ripley in his current state.

"Don't be fooled by the fact that the White Wolf Pirates only have the three of us now. As long as I'm here, no one will dare to underestimate the White Wolf Pirates."

"On this sea, without strength, you will be bullied. Without strength, you will be plundered. Without strength, you cannot even protect yourself."

"Strength is wealth!"

"Strength is dignity!"

"Strength is everything!"

Magnus's voice resonated like thunder, causing Rocks to clench his fists.

"Therefore, I'm giving you an opportunity!"

"With your current strength, you can only be an intern in our White Wolf Pirates. But an intern's status is not fixed."

Ever since he gained the potential for Conqueror's Haki, Magnus had shaken off his previous slump and was returning to the state he was in when he first arrived in this world.

It was one thing when he didn't have a system and the potential for Conqueror's Haki. Potential determined the upper limit, and no matter how hard Magnus tried, he couldn't change it.

But now he had a system, and he also had the potential for Conqueror's Haki.

So what if he was the chosen one?

So what if he was the protagonist?

Under the same conditions, when has Magnus ever been weaker than others in his life?

"Rocks, Ripley!"

Magnus looked at Rocks and Ripley and said loudly, "From now on, our White Wolf Pirates have a new rule!"

"No matter who it is—"

"If you can defeat me head-on, then you have the qualifications to be captain!"

"Rocks, you're just an intern in our pirate crew right now, but if you ever beat Ripley, I'll make you a full-fledged crew member. And if you beat me, who cares if I let you be captain?"

"Ripley, it's the same for you. Don't get cocky just because of your Giant race talent and dismiss Rocks. If you lose someday, don't come crying to me!"

If this had been a few years ago, and Magnus had set this rule, forget others, even he himself would have thought he was looking for an heir.

But now, it was different.

He had gathered a crew of unparalleled talent, intending to have them chase after him, to push him, so that he could never slack off.

What could be more exciting than being the captain of the future ruler of the seas, the future Four Emperors?

Let alone the Four Emperors.

What about the future King of the Pirates?

This era belonged to him, to him, Magnus!

At this moment, Magnus was full of spirit, even the Haki within him surged fiercely, like a giant dragon that had been dormant for a long time.

Finally about to break free from the abyss.

Rocks' mood also became excited.

He had originally thought that Magnus would always suppress him, and even if he taught him things, he would hold back and not give him a chance to challenge him.

But now, Magnus's words had completely overturned his assumptions.

Magnus wasn't afraid of his challenge at all!

Since that was the case, what was he hesitating about?

Rocks clenched his fist, looked at Magnus, and shouted with high spirits, "Old man, you said it yourself, don't go back on your word if you lose!"

"Pfft hahaha, if you can beat me, why would you be afraid of me going back on my word?"

Rocks thought about it and realized it made sense.

"Old man, let's continue, I think I can still run!"

Rocks didn't feel tired at all now. As long as he could defeat Magnus, he could replace Magnus as the captain of the White Wolf Pirates.

Since that was the case, the faster he got stronger, the better!

"Stop calling me 'old man' all the time!"

A finger descended from the sky, almost crushing Rocks.

"Is 'old man' something you can just call me? You should call me Captain Magnus! And you're just an intern right now. You have to beat me first before you have the right to challenge the captain. Don't forget, I'm much stronger than you right now. It's possible I'll beat the captain before you even get a chance to challenge him."

"Old man, am I right?"

Seeing Ripley's grinning expression, Magnus gave her a rap on the head on the spot.

"Whether it's you or Rocks, show some respect. What's wrong with being seventy? For a Giant, that's prime time to be striving!"

Magnus grumbled.

"Since you want to challenge me, then all of you get moving. Ripley, go carry the Black Pearl over here, and do a weighted run!"

Originally, Magnus had planned to dock the ship on the coast of Elbaf and have Mado look after it. But now that Rocks and Ripley were motivated, he might as well carry it back to the Giant village.

No need to trouble Mado.

"Yes, Captain!"

Ripley saluted Magnus, then put on a grinning expression again.

"Captain, we're both training hard, what about you?"

Ripley said teasingly, looking at Magnus on her shoulder, "As captain, you should set an example, right?"

"Cough cough~"

Hearing Ripley's words, Magnus couldn't help but cough. He was already so old, how could he still exercise like the young people?

Magnus was about to refuse.

But his system didn't give him a chance to refuse at all.

[A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step!]

[Success is one percent talent and ninety-nine percent sweat. At eighteen, how can you sleep without working hard?]

[Daily Mission: Training.]

[Mission Requirements: 1000 weighted push-ups, 1000 weighted sit-ups, 1000 weighted squats, 100km weighted run.]

[Reward: Stamina recovery, slight increase in cell activity!]

Magnus: "..."

Is this a joke?