Sky Island Ruler

"Devil Fruit?"

"That's right, Devil Fruits. As treasures of the sea, they grant those who eat them extraordinary abilities beyond ordinary people. The price is that they'll be hated by the sea for the rest of their lives and lose the ability to swim. In other words, once you eat a Devil Fruit, you gain power far beyond that of ordinary people—power that makes everyone else fear you."

Ye Mu kept some things to himself, only telling Enel the most basic information.

"So the fruit I gave you is a Devil Fruit?"

A trace of greed appeared in Enel's eyes, just as Ye Mu had expected. He saw it all.

"Here, take it. I can't be sure what ability it has, but as long as it's a Devil Fruit, it can't be weak, right?"

Suppressing his heartache, Ye Mu handed the fruit in his possession to Enel. He was taking a gamble—a gamble on what kind of person Enel really was.

It seemed Ye Mu had won the gamble. When Enel saw Ye Mu return the Devil Fruit to him, a trace of disbelief flashed through his eyes. He slowly accepted it from Ye Mu, his gaze shifting back and forth between Ye Mu and the fruit in his hand. In the end, as if he had made up his mind, his clenched fist slowly relaxed.

"Let's keep going. We're not far from where I found the Devil Fruit."

"Mm."

A faint smile appeared on Ye Mu's face, and he followed behind Enel as they walked forward.

Soon, a golden city glimmering with light appeared in Ye Mu's field of vision. Beyond it was a huge green vine, and at its base stood a building resembling the gates of hell, carved with all kinds of demons.

Ye Mu felt as if his legs had become rooted to the ground. As an ordinary man, when had he ever seen so much gold? At that moment, he almost felt like rushing over and melting all that gold into his own body. But to avoid embarrassing himself in front of Enel, he forcibly restrained his desire. He was torn beyond words.

Fortunately, Enel, who was holding the Devil Fruit, spoke up at that moment.

"That fruit is inside that gate. Let's go over together."

"Mm."

Ye Mu's voice trembled slightly. This was the moment that would decide his fate.

Ye Mu placed one foot in front of the other, slowly walking toward the pitch-black gate. Once he drew closer and the light improved, the gates of hell no longer seemed quite so terrifying.

Only then did Ye Mu realize that the interior was vast and empty, with an extremely high ceiling. It seemed everything inside had been removed long ago. The only thing remaining was a vine resembling a rainbow bridge that ran through the entire building. At the highest point, right in the center, a Devil Fruit covered in flame-like patterns hung there, shining with dazzling light.

Ye Mu felt as if his eyes were about to leap out of their sockets. Forgetting all about his image, he hurried toward the vine.

The Devil Fruit was very high up, but fortunately, there was the enormous vine. After rubbing his palms together, he began climbing along it toward the Devil Fruit.

Ye Mu's body seemed genuinely weak. After only a few steps, he was already breathing heavily. But he didn't dare slow down. The thing before him would determine his future.

Fortunately, everything went smoothly.

But just as Ye Mu finally reached out and was about to touch the flame-like Devil Fruit,

the earth suddenly began to tremble, and a hoarse, hissing sound echoed all around them.

Enel, who had been watching Ye Mu from nearby, instantly paled. As if he had remembered something, he shouted toward Ye Mu on the vine, "This is bad! Get down, quickly! The Sky Island Ruler is back!"

"What are you talking about?!"

Ye Mu, standing high above, couldn't hear what Enel was saying clearly. But soon, he saw it.

Outside the windows of the building, a thick, colorful figure was constantly weaving back and forth. Its enormous body crushed countless ancient ruins.

After a series of deafening crashes, a gigantic, multicolored python emerged through the thick smoke.

The python was impossibly long. Its tail vanished from sight, and there was no doubt that its body alone was wider than dozens of Ye Mus.

The giant python's two lantern-like eyes stared through the window at Ye Mu atop the vine, as if looking at a thief who had stolen its treasure. Its forked tongue flickered in and out, as though it could swallow Ye Mu whole at any moment.

"Hey, hey, big guy, are you kidding me?"

Ye Mu was practically on the verge of tears!

He finally understood what Enel had meant: the Sky Island Ruler, the giant python guarding the Golden Land.

Ye Mu met the giant python's gaze. From its eyes, he could read a warning: put down what he was holding, or it would eat him.

But how could Ye Mu possibly put it down? His entire future depended on this fruit.

With that thought, he immediately shouted toward Enel in the distance.

"Hey, Enel! Eat the Devil Fruit in your hand, then run in the direction we came from!"

"Th-then what about you?"

Enel had been scared senseless as well. He asked helplessly, unsure what to do.

"Don't worry about me. You run first. I absolutely won't give up this Devil Fruit."

With that, Ye Mu looked at Enel, who was still hesitating in the distance, and shouted loudly,

"Don't worry. I promise I'll make it back alive. I still have to return to the Blue Sea and become the One Piece! I absolutely won't die here. Hurry up and run..."

After hearing Ye Mu's words, Enel's mind churned with countless thoughts. In the end, he hardened his heart, turned around, and fled in the direction they had come from.

"Remember, you must eat the Devil Fruit. Otherwise, you won't escape this place!"

Ye Mu shouted after the fleeing Enel.

After all, if the Sky Island Ruler chased after Enel after eating Ye Mu, Enel would have no chance of escaping.

After giving his warning, Ye Mu finally turned his attention to the giant python before him.

However, the Sky Island Ruler seemed completely uninterested in the fleeing Enel. Its gaze remained fixed on Ye Mu.

"Damn it, what are you staring at?"

Ye Mu gathered his courage and refused to show the slightest fear before the Sky Island Ruler. In any case, he absolutely would not give up the Devil Fruit in his hand. With that thought, Ye Mu steeled himself, grabbed the Devil Fruit, plucked it free, and slid down the vine.

"Bang..."

Ye Mu's body slammed heavily into the floor, leaving him feeling as if every bone in his body had shattered.

But he had no time to worry about his injuries. The Sky Island Ruler had seen Ye Mu pluck the treasure it had guarded for so long, and it flew into a rage. Shaking its enormous head, it charged at Ye Mu and directly tore the roof off the building.

Ye Mu struggled to his feet and narrowly dodged the Sky Island Ruler's charge. Even so, the shockwave sent him flying, making his already aching body hurt so badly it felt as though it were being torn apart.

When the Sky Island Ruler saw that such a tiny creature had actually dodged its attack, its fury grew even greater. It opened its enormous jaws and lunged at Ye Mu, intending to swallow him whole.

Ye Mu stared at the Sky Island Ruler's mouth, which was as huge as a truck.

Completely powerless to resist, Ye Mu was swallowed whole by the Sky Island Ruler. Then, with a gurgle, he slowly slid down its throat and into the Sky Island Ruler's belly...