A Hard Man Tough as Steel

Zoro's family lineage was no less remarkable. Otherwise, how could he possess the peculiar power of Ashura Aura (Special), which allowed him to manifest an illusion of three heads and six arms while wielding nine blades?

For someone like him, awakening Conqueror's Haki was only natural.

Ashura Aura (Special) had been rated "Special" because it primarily enhanced its host's sword techniques, raising their upper limit of destructive power. Ultimately, its combat effectiveness still depended on the user's fundamental strength.

However, when Rayson saw the description under Three-Sword Style (Deep Purple)—"bite force surpassing that of an adult hyena"—he nearly burst out laughing.

But it was undeniably true. Zoro's famous finishing moves were almost without exception executed with Wado Ichimonji, one of the 21 Great Grade Blades, clenched in his mouth.

Judging solely from the astonishing destructive force displayed by those powerful killing moves, the explosive strength of his jaw muscles was staggering—far beyond what a mere hyena could compare to.

At this point, Zoro had not yet grasped the swordsman's threshold of the Realm of Cutting Steel. In terms of swordsmanship, he still mainly relied on brute-force slashes.

Therefore, his Three-Sword Style was currently judged to be only Deep Purple, roughly equivalent to the Gum-Gum Fruit's trait rank before Luffy developed Gear Second and Gear Third.

To Rayson, Zoro's most coveted trait was undoubtedly Demon Physique (Deep Purple).

A powerful body that could recover completely from even the harshest training and injuries, then grow stronger still?

Rayson's eyes lit up.

No wonder!

No wonder Zoro could endure such inhuman, overloaded training in the future without suffering any lasting damage!

According to officially revealed information, Zoro slept only three hours a day. He spent nearly all of his remaining waking hours engaged in weightlifting and training that could practically be called self-torture.

If an ordinary person dared to put themselves through that, their bones and muscles would have long since collapsed entirely, and they would have died violently.

Yet not only was Zoro perfectly fine, he grew stronger the more he trained, his physique developing to an utterly monstrous degree.

All of it was thanks to the passive enhancement of this Demon Physique.

What was more, during the future battle of Onigashima, Zoro had even briefly blocked the combined attack of Kaido and Big Mom, two of the Four Emperors!

That was a joint assault by two Emperors infused with the killing intent of two peak Conqueror's Haki users! Even though he had only endured it for a moment, he had survived, paying merely the price of fractures throughout his body and torn muscles.

Had any of the other Supernovas taken his place, they would likely have been reduced to ashes in an instant.

And after receiving herbal treatment, Zoro had still managed to fight and win with his bones shattered, taking down the Beasts Pirates' foremost powerhouse, King the Blazing Disaster!

Although the healing effects of the miracle medicine had played a part in that,

this Demon Physique (Deep Purple) had clearly been of paramount importance.

This heaven-defying constitution, capable of growing stronger even through shattered flesh and bones, absolutely possessed immense potential to reach the Gold rank!

It was only because Zoro had only recently gone to sea and had yet to temper this body to its terrifying later-stage level that it was currently Deep Purple, on the same tier as Luffy's Transcendent Physique.

Most importantly, this Demon Physique trait did not conflict with Luffy's Transcendent Physique at all.

It could even be called a perfect match!

Luffy's Transcendent Physique allowed him to consume food far beyond the capacity of an ordinary stomach, then rapidly digest and absorb enormous quantities of nutrients to nourish his body.

Zoro's Demon Physique, meanwhile, could temper his muscles and bones through countless self-destructive training sessions, rebuilding itself amid destruction.

If it possessed the massive nutritional supply provided by Transcendent Physique, Demon Physique's recovery and strengthening process would inevitably surge forward at an even more terrifying pace!

And that vast energy would in turn be enough to support Demon Physique through even more extreme, more demanding training!

Combining the two would be no different from fusing Luffy and Zoro's most outstanding physical advantages into one.

Based on this body's potential alone, wouldn't it be able to contend with Kaido of the Beasts and his beast-like physique?

Perhaps its pure potential ceiling could even challenge Charlotte Linlin, that naturally born physical freak among the Four Emperors!

Although among the Four Emperors, Big Mom Charlotte Linlin ranked at the bottom in overall combat strength and achievements due to her long life of comfort, her neglect of training, her frequent madness caused by her eating disorder, and her mind-numbing combat intelligence,

if one spoke only of raw physical strength, she was absolutely one of the most despair-inducing monsters in the world of One Piece!

Even as a child, she could severely injure adult giants with brute strength alone. Her impervious defense even surpassed Kaido's before he ate the Fish-Fish Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Azure Dragon Form!

Transcendent Physique and Demon Physique, on their own, naturally could not compare to Linlin's inborn, freakish genes.

But if the two were fused? Their limitless complementary potential might truly allow someone to completely shatter humanity's shackles in the later stages and transform into an existence capable of rivaling that naturally gifted monster.

With two physiques in one body, this was practically a ticket into the ranks of true monsters!

Intense greed burned in Rayson's eyes.

I have to get this trait...

As for how to obtain it, that was naturally very convenient: Luffy only needed to invite Zoro to join the crew. As long as he came aboard, Rayson could begin equipping Zoro's traits.

"Hey, you two."

Just as Rayson and Luffy were pointing and gesturing at the man below, the swordsman who had been hanging his head slowly raised it, revealing sharp eyes like those of a ferocious beast.

"You're loud," Zoro said coldly.

"Shishishi! This guy's got quite the personality! If we untie these ropes, we can let him go, right?" Luffy grinned broadly, completely unbothered by the beast-like sharpness radiating from Zoro's gaze.

After all, ever since he was little, Luffy had often been thrown into packs of wild beasts by his unreliable grandfather, Garp, as part of his training. He was far too familiar with that kind of look.

Those were the eyes unique to a ferocious beast.

In fact, Zoro's gaze was even sharper than those of the beasts Luffy remembered.

Although Luffy had not yet witnessed Zoro's abilities firsthand, his wild instincts told him from that fierce gaze alone that this guy was definitely extremely powerful.

Tap!

At that moment, a ladder was suddenly propped against the wooden wall. A little girl climbed up while gripping the top of the wall, raised one finger to her lips, and made an especially adorable shushing gesture toward Rayson and Luffy.

"Shh..."

The little girl motioned for them to stay quiet, then nimbly slid down the high wall and ran toward Zoro, who was bound to the post.

"Hm? What are you doing here?" Hearing the movement, Zoro spoke. When he saw the little girl approaching, the fierceness in his gaze noticeably softened.