"Ripley, are you really getting on my ship?"
"Of course. How many times have you asked me along the way? We agreed on this before. If something goes wrong, I can always ditch you and run back to Elbaf."
Ripley giggled. "We're going to steal a branch from the Adam Tree now, right? I know where it's kept. I'll lead the way."
"Who told you we were stealing? It's a fair trade!"
Magnus, sitting on Ripley's shoulder, jumped up and smacked her hard on the head.
"Ow!"
Ripley said with an unhappy look, "Stinky old man, don't just hit me on the head! I'm not a child anymore."
"Hahaha, sorry, sorry."
Magnus stood up on Ripley's shoulder.
"That's about enough. Wait a little."
"You're already done at this level?"
"Can't be helped. Rocks's foundation is too poor. Even with talent, if he wants to catch up to the others, he'll have to put in more effort."
That was why few pirates made a name for themselves when they were young. Unless they were freakishly gifted, talent alone could not directly become strength.
Ripley turned her head and looked back. A bedraggled figure was trailing far behind them.
Ripley was a female giant twenty meters tall. Her legs alone were over ten meters long. With a casual step, an ordinary person had to run several paces just to keep up.
After learning from Ripley that Elbaf's rainbow would not be set up for at least another week, Magnus gave up on 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 its middle level instead.
Naturally, they would be going on foot.
Mountains and hills that giants could cross with ease took considerable effort for Rocks. It was manageable for a short while, but after a long time, even Rocks—despite undergoing more than a month of Magnus's training—was beginning to struggle.
Having risen from nothing himself, Magnus understood that too much was as bad as too little. Excessive training was no longer training; it was deadly.
However, thinking of his earlier conversation with Ripley, Magnus had a new idea.
Pressure alone would not do.
He had to give them some motivation too.
In other words, a stick and a carrot.
"Here!"
Seeing Rocks stop to gasp for breath, Magnus tossed him a water flask and laughed. "Kid, are you cursing me in your heart right now? Thinking that once you grow stronger, you'll get your revenge on me?"
Rocks was startled by Magnus's words. How was this old man so sharp? He actually noticed?
Seeing Rocks's expression, Magnus knew he had guessed right and could not help bursting into laughter. "Puhahaha! I knew you were a vindictive brat. You still resent me for forcibly dragging you into the crew."
As the future overlord of the seas, how could Rocks be willing to remain beneath someone else? Magnus had never expected to subdue Rocks easily from the beginning, even if Rocks was still young.
"How about this? I'll give you an opportunity."
Magnus grinned, revealing a malicious smile. "At the end of the day, strength speaks on these seas. Do you think your current strength can defeat Ripley and me?"
Rocks froze. Thinking of Magnus's sword strike that had cleaved the sea apart, then of Ripley's strength and speed when she had attacked Magnus earlier, he could not help gritting his teeth.
Though unwilling to admit it, he really could not defeat either Magnus or Ripley right now.
"Don't look at the White Wolf Pirates. There are only three of us now, but as long as I'm here, no one will dare look down on the White Wolf Pirates."
"On these seas, without strength, you'll be bullied. Without strength, you'll be plundered. Without strength, you can't even protect yourself."
"Strength is wealth!"
"Strength is dignity!"
"Strength is everything!"
Magnus's voice was deafening, and Rocks could not help clenching his fists.
"So, I'll give you an opportunity!"
"With your current strength, you can only be an intern in the White Wolf Pirates. But being an intern is not a permanent status."
Ever since gaining the potential for Conqueror's Haki, Magnus had shaken off his former decline and begun returning to the state he had been in when he first came to this world.
Back then, there had been no system, and he did not have the potential for Conqueror's Haki. Talent determined one's limits, and no matter how hard Magnus tried, he could not change that.
But now, he had the system, and he had the potential for Conqueror's Haki.
So what if they were chosen by fate?
So what if they were protagonists?
Under equal conditions, when had Magnus ever been inferior to anyone in his life?
"Rocks, Ripley!"
Magnus looked at Rocks and Ripley and declared loudly, "From this moment on, the White Wolf Pirates have a new rule!"
"No matter who it is—"
"As long as they can defeat me head-on, they are qualified to become captain!"
"Rocks, you're only an intern in our pirate crew right now. But when you defeat Ripley one day, I'll make you an official crew member. And if you defeat me, why not let you be captain?"
"Ripley, the same goes for you. Don't rely on the Giant race's gifts and take Rocks lightly. If you lose one day, don't come crying to me!"
If Magnus had set this rule years ago, not to mention others, even he himself would have believed that he was looking for a successor.
But things were different now.
He had found crew members with unparalleled talent. He wanted them to chase after him from behind, to push him onward, so that he could never slack off.
What could be more thrilling than being the captain of the future overlord of the seas, the future Four Emperors?
Forget the Four Emperors.
So what if it was the future One Piece?
This era belonged to him, to Magnus!
At that moment, Magnus was high-spirited. Even the Haki in his body surged violently, like a dragon that had lain dormant for far too long.
It was finally about to burst out of the abyss.
Rocks was equally fired up.
He had originally thought Magnus would suppress him forever, that even if he taught him anything, he would hold something back and never give him a chance to challenge him.
But Magnus's words had directly overturned his assumptions.
Magnus was not afraid of his challenge at all!
Since that was the case, what did he have to hesitate over?
Rocks clenched his fists, looked at Magnus, and shouted with blazing fighting spirit, "Old man, you said it yourself. Don't go back on your word when you lose!"
"Puhahaha! If you can defeat me, why would you need to worry about me going back on my word?"
On second thought, Rocks realized that was true.
"Old man, keep going! I think I can keep running!"
Rocks did not feel tired at all now. As long as he could defeat Magnus, he could replace him as captain of the White Wolf Pirates.
Since that was the case, the faster he grew stronger, the better!
"Stop calling me old man all day!"
A finger descended from the sky and nearly flattened Rocks.
"Is 'old man' something you can call me whenever you want? Call me Captain Magnus! And you're only an intern right now. You have to defeat me first before you're qualified to challenge the captain. Don't forget, I'm much stronger than you now. Maybe before you can challenge the captain, I'll defeat the captain first."
"Old man, don't you agree?"
Seeing Ripley's giggling expression, Magnus immediately gave her a sharp knock on the head.
"Both you and Rocks need to show me some respect. What's wrong with being seventy? Among the Giant race, this is exactly the age when I should be striving!"
Magnus grumbled and cursed.
"Since you want to challenge me, then start running! Ripley, go carry the Black Pearl over here. We're doing weighted running!"
Magnus had originally planned to leave the ship by Elbaf's shore for Mado to watch over, but now that both Rocks and Ripley were motivated, they might as well carry it back to the giant village.
They should not trouble Mado any further.
"Yes, Captain!"
Ripley saluted Magnus, then broke into her usual cheerful grin again.
"Captain, both of us are training hard. What about you?"
Ripley looked at Magnus on her shoulder and teased, "As captain, shouldn't you set an example?"
"Cough, cough~"
Hearing Ripley's words, Magnus could not help coughing. He was already so old—how could he possibly train like a young man?
Magnus was just about to refuse.
But his system gave him no 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. How can an eighteen-year-old like you sleep without striving?
Daily mission: Training.
Mission requirements: 1,000 weighted push-ups, 1,000 weighted sit-ups, 1,000 weighted squats, and a 100-kilometer weighted run.
Reward: Restore stamina; slightly increase cell vitality!
Magnus: "..."
You had to be kidding, right?
Before you continue