Basic Explanation of the Navy Six Powers

Moonwalk allowed one to move through the air through rapid vibrations, while Blue Walk unleashed leg attacks similar to slashes. Paper Pistol hardened the fingers, turning them into weapons.

These were all fairly easy to understand. Aside from Moonwalk and Blue Walk, they required specific methods of physical enhancement.

The remaining three abilities—Tekkai, Paper Arts, and Paper Pistol—were lower-level forms of Armament Haki. Mastering them could greatly increase one's chances of comprehending Armament Haki.

When Mu Chen heard this, it was the first time he had encountered such a claim. But on reflection, it made sense. There was also Control, which was likewise a lower-level form of Life Return. After learning Control, one could also have a chance of comprehending Life Return.

Mu Chen did not know much about Life Return, but from Zefa's explanation, he understood that it was a very special ability. Any part of the body—internal organs, fingernails, hair, and so on—could be infused with one's consciousness and made to transform or shift.

Not only that, high-level Life Return could squeeze the cells within the body to sustain a person's vitality. Those cells would eventually enter a state of suspended animation, but even then there would be no issue. As long as one ate more food, the nutrients could be replenished immediately.

Thinking of this, Mu Chen suddenly had an idea. If he learned the Eight Gates in the future and opened the final Gate of Death, could he use Life Return to avoid dying?

After all, the cells in a human body remained alive for a period of time after death. If he used Life Return then, squeezing those cells and converting them into vitality, could he survive?

Although that idea might be achievable, it was still far too distant for Mu Chen. He stopped thinking about it. "Mu Chen, step forward." Zefa directly called out the pondering Mu Chen. If he wanted to learn Tekkai, he had to learn how to take a beating!

Mu Chen was dumbfounded. What was this supposed to mean? "Since you were able to defeat Jia Ji, it proves you're a genius. I'll explain it to you once. Now, carefully sense the energy within your body, then use it to strengthen your muscles and skin."

Mu Chen was even more confused. What did that even mean? Sense the energy in his body? How was he supposed to sense it?

Just as Mu Chen was thinking, Zephyr punched him directly in the stomach.

"Teacher Zephyr, aren't you supposed to have some martial virtue?"

Mu Chen bent over in pain, his face twisted in agony. Why was Zefa as reckless as Garp? Garp had treated him like a punching bag, and now Zefa was treating him like one too. "Hahahaha, this is killing me! Mu Chen, you'd better work hard! Back then, I only learned Armament Haki after Teacher Zefa beat it into me!"

Jia Ji wore a delighted grin. Watching Teacher Zefa bully Mu Chen felt absolutely amazing.

"Jia Ji, you're still laughing at him? A newcomer kicked you unconscious. What the hell are you good for?"

"Get out here. Let me punch you and see whether your Armament Haki has improved!"

Without another word, Zefa called Jia Ji out. The sight immediately made all the Marines burst into laughter. "Hehe, Jia Ji, as expected, Teacher Zefa really does favor you!"

Jia Ji's face was full of bitterness. "Teacher Zephyr, please show mercy!"

Jia Ji immediately coated his stomach with Armament Haki. One punch sent him flying far away before he slammed hard into the wall, leaving a huge crater in it. The poor Jia Ji passed out again.

Mu Chen's eyes widened. Damn, Zephyr was seriously strong. That punch had not even used Armament Haki, yet it had such power. If he used Armament Haki, the force would be unimaginable.

That was how Black-Fist Zefa got his name.

The following lesson involved the two of them beating each other up—except they were not allowed to fight back. Poor Mu Chen received some special attention from Zefa.

"Mu Chen, since you made a bet with me, you'll naturally receive special treatment. If someone needs to beat you up, then let me train you!"

"Teacher Zephyr, you just want to beat me up, don't you?"

Mu Chen's face darkened. That had definitely been Zefa's true feelings.

At noon, Mu Chen looked at the bruises covering his body, blue and purple everywhere. He felt utterly dead inside.

After lunch, Mu Chen would rather die than return to the training grounds. What kind of life was this? Slacking, slacking—no matter what anyone said, he was not going back. As a result, Mu Chen lay in his dormitory until dusk. During that time, Zefa surprisingly did not come looking for him, which was rather strange. After all, he had already slacked off for more than four hours that day. Over the next seven days, Mu Chen was basically bullied by Zefa every morning, while Zefa usually ignored him slacking off in the afternoons. It was as though he and Zefa had formed a special understanding: want to slack off? Fine, then don't blame me for training you hard in the morning. That was the impression Zefa gave Mu Chen.

Still, Mu Chen's gains were substantial. Not only did he have over ten thousand Slacking Points, but after being beaten by Zefa, he had basically mastered Tekkai and Paper Pistol.

Mu Chen did not even know whether he was truly talented. He had learned Paper Pistol and Tekkai in only seven days, which was extremely fast even in the entire Elite Training Camp. Borsalino and Sakazuki had needed ten days at the fastest, while he had taken only seven.

At that moment, Mu Chen was on Garp's warship at the harbor, preparing to steal Garp's senbei. Then he heard someone walking across the deck toward him.

Without hesitation, Mu Chen hid in a corner and did not make a sound.

"Garp, are you really going?"

Mu Chen recognized the voice as Admiral Sengoku's. He could clearly hear the anxiety in Sengoku's voice.

"Sengoku, I have to go. Now that there's news of Dragon, of course I have to go. He's my son."

Mu Chen was stunned. Dragon? Luffy's father was Garp? "What if you leave and the Golden Lion takes this opportunity to come to Marineford?"

"Let him come. Are you, Admiral Sengoku, useless?"

"You dump everything on me. Don't say another word. I've made up my mind."