Even though so many days had already passed, Oak, now reduced to a prisoner, still harbored intense resentment over the backstabbing he had suffered.
Ever since coming to this world, he had never taken such a massive loss, but things had reached this point and he could do nothing about it, so he could only comfort himself that this incident wasn't purely a loss and that there were actually some benefits, because amidst this event, he had inadvertently awakened...
"Start it!"
While Oak was sinking into his memories, the Cipher Pol Aigis Zero agents outside the cell stirred once again. The agent who had just entered from outside spoke and then pressed a button outside the cell. Accompanied by a sizzling sound, a large amount of pale red gas was injected into the cell encased within the transparent glass, and it quickly filled the entire enclosure, saturating every corner of the cell and completely swallowing Oak's figure within.
This gas was a powerful gaseous anesthetic. Even though Oak had already been reduced to their prisoner, the Cipher Pol Aigis Zero agents still felt lingering fear when they recalled the battle against him that day.
Even with only a fraction of his strength remaining, looking obviously weak, and even ending up with his movements staggering due to the anesthetic he had taken in advance, he had still put them through the absolute wringer.
One could tell just by looking at them that they were all injured from that day's battle, and not with ordinary injuries either. Without a month or two of recuperation, it was simply impossible for them to fully recover. In contrast, look at their captive: although he had been reduced to a prisoner, his entire body remained completely intact. Forget about injuries, not even a single scratch was on him. After fighting for ages, they hadn't even managed to break his defense. Therefore, rather than saying he was defeated by them, it was more accurate to say he was taken down because he was stalled by them, compounded by high-intensity combat that failed to suppress the potency of the anesthetic in his body.
Because of this, during this period of time, at fixed hours every day, these Cipher Pol Aigis Zero agents would inject a massive amount of gaseous anesthetic into the cell for the sole purpose of keeping him continuously weak. They knew very well that once they allowed him to recover, even with defenses as heavily guarded as they were now, it would be impossible to stop him from breaking out. This was an unadulterated monster; ordinary steel chains were no different from soft mud in his hands, and he could snap free of them effortlessly.
Are they starting again...
Inside the cell, Oak looked at the gas filling his surroundings and curled his lip in disdain. These lapdogs of the World Government were only capable of these underhanded tricks. If it came to a direct clash, he could beat the crap out of them.
However, while this trick was underhanded, one had to admit it was extremely effective. Though his physical defense was impervious to blades and bullets—worthy of being called a body of steel—when he was first dragged in, those Cipher Pol Aigis Zero agents had tried to take advantage of his unconscious state to inject drugs into his body, but no matter what method they used, they couldn't drive a needle into his flesh. That was why they switched to gaseous agents. Since it was impossible for him not to breathe, as long as he breathed, large amounts of this gaseous anesthetic would enter his body and keep him in a state of continuous weakness.
"Hmph!"
Oak stubbornly held his breath for a time, his face flushing crimson, until finally he had no choice but to open his mouth and nose to breathe, letting vast amounts of anesthetic enter his body along with each breath. Thus, the tiny bit of strength he had managed to accumulate with such difficulty was slowly drained away once more as the potency of the anesthetic took effect.
"If you aren't going to let me recover, I won't let you off easy either!"
Before losing all his strength and consciousness, Oak gritted his teeth and burst forth with a force from within. Accompanied by black lightning flashing inside the cell, an overwhelmingly fierce aura diffused outward.
Crack, snap~
This aura charged out of the cell at extreme speed and spread further across the entire ship.
"I knew he wouldn't be so obediently subdued by the anesthetic. Sure enough, it's like this again..."
"Conqueror's Haki!"
Meanwhile, the Cipher Pol Aigis Zero agents outside the cell seemed to have anticipated this, each of them having long since stood on high alert.
They had grown accustomed to this; before each round of anesthetizing him, Oak would put up this kind of struggle, releasing Conqueror's Haki indiscriminately to manufacture some trouble for them.
Thump, thump, thump~
This burst of Conqueror's Haki was not enough to inflict damage on high-level experts of Cipher Pol Aigis Zero's caliber, but the rest of the people on the ship certainly couldn't handle it. Consequently, amid a succession of thuds resembling dumplings dropped into a pot, all the remaining armed personnel on board collapsed, causing this armed transport ship to temporarily grind to a halt.
At last, after a moment passed, along with Oak's consciousness sinking into unconsciousness, the Conqueror's Haki vanished, and the ship—which had previously been whipped by fierce winds—returned to calm.
"What a terrifying talent! He only awakened Conqueror's Haki a short while ago, yet he's actually able to unleash it at will in such a short span of time!"
Looking at the debris-strewn lower deck of the ship caused by this aura, one of the Cipher Pol Aigis Zero agents remarked with a sigh.
Come to think of it, the reason Oak was able to awaken Conqueror's Haki—something found in less than one in a million people—was something he actually had to thank them for.
Ever since coming to this world, the original Oak had always had it smooth sailing, never encountering any danger whatsoever. Therefore, even though he possessed the aptitude of a king, without external stimuli to trigger it, he naturally had no way to awaken it. However, being backstabbed by his own country last time and cornered by these Cipher Pol Aigis Zero agents caused him to fall into extreme crisis for the very first time in his life. At death's door, he pushed his potential to the absolute limit, awakening and unleashing his Conqueror's Haki for the very first time. This was also the reason why Oak initially thought to himself that this incident wasn't entirely a loss and that he had indeed gained some benefits.
The Cipher Pol Aigis Zero agents marveled at the terror of his talent, not merely because he could awaken Conqueror's Haki—although Conqueror's Haki was a rare aptitude possessed by one in a million that was hard to come by—but because a monster with such exceptional talent possessing this aptitude didn't surprise them in the least. What shocked them was that, having awakened it such a short time ago, Oak was already capable of freely wielding this power. This was not something every person who awakened Conqueror's Haki could pull off; ordinary owners of the Conqueror's Haki aptitude still had a very long road to walk between awakening and control, yet Oak mastered it in merely this short amount of time, further verifying the terrifying nature of his talent. He was an all-around monster.
"Lately, over these past few years, it feels like the monsters on the seas are growing more numerous by the day!"
Peering through the glass at the sleeping Oak, several Cipher Pol Aigis Zero agents exchanged quiet words.
"Starting from Charlotte Linlin—whom Mother Carmel originally wanted to sell to the government—followed by Edward Newgate, Shiki known as the Golden Lion, as well as John, Ochoku, Maron, the one nicknamed Fierce Silver Axe, and the rest, monsters just keep emerging endlessly. Following behind Rocks, the biggest monster of them all, they've turned the seas upside down over the past few years!"
At the mention of these monsters of the sea, even agents as formidable as Cipher Pol Aigis Zero could not help but show fear on their faces. Especially when Rocks was brought up, they could not even stop their legs from trembling.
Mere names were enough to terrify them to this extent. If they were to cross paths with Rocks in the flesh, there was no telling whether they would directly collapse to the ground in terror.
A man's reputation casts a long shadow; Rocks's prestige over the past few years had simply been too overwhelming. During the Reverie, he had kidnapped five monarchs, broken single-handedly into the depths of Mary Geoise, and not only escaped unscathed, but also casually inflicted severe injuries on an Admiral—hailed as the World Government's highest fighting force—causing that person to succumb to their wounds and die. He had repeatedly plundered the Heavenly Tribute, shattered the Gates of Justice with a single sword stroke, and subsequently gathered together a batch of the most notorious villains on the open seas...
One deed after another, anyone who had ever learned of Rocks's exploits could not help but shiver with dread upon the thought of him.