Ask for Guidance

"That's enough." Shakuyaku spoke with a serious expression. "However, it would be best to rescue them without being noticed. Avoiding a fight whenever possible is ideal. After all, if our identities are exposed, Amazon Lily might be dragged into this as well."

Lu Ge said, "In that case, we'll first need to find out where Hancock and the others are being held and learn the scope of their activities. Then I can take them away without anyone noticing."

Rayleigh said, "Leave this to me!"

Lu Ge nodded. He was still very confident in Rayleigh's strength.

In truth, even if he went alone to rescue the three Hancock sisters, he was absolutely certain he could succeed. The only reason he had brought Rayleigh along was that he was worried he couldn't safely dismantle those explosive Slave Collars.

Rayleigh, on the other hand, was capable of dismantling them with his bare hands. Bringing him along would ensure that nothing went wrong.

Mana asked, "Where are Hancock and the others being held?"

Shakuyaku said solemnly, "The Holy Land, Mary Geoise."

Robin's pupils contracted when she heard this. "Isn't that where the World Government headquarters is located? Is it really all right to go there and rescue people?"

"Don't worry. It'll be fine." Lu Ge smiled and rubbed Robin's head. "We'll rest for tonight and set out for Mary Geoise tomorrow."

After chatting about quite a few more details, it was time for dinner.

After eating his fill, Lu Ge sought out Rayleigh alone and asked him about his experience using Conqueror's Haki Infusion. "Uncle Rayleigh, I heard that there's another technique in the use of Conqueror's Haki called Conqueror's Haki Infusion. I wonder if you've mastered it?"

Rayleigh looked at Lu Ge in surprise. "You've already become the world's greatest swordsman, yet you still haven't mastered Conqueror's Haki Infusion?"

Lu Ge said, "I'm indeed still somewhat lacking in my use of Conqueror's Haki."

He had tried using Time Is on My Side to master the Conqueror's Haki Infusion he knew of, and he had made some progress. However, its power remained limited, and he couldn't fully master it or achieve the effect he expected. Therefore, he wanted to find out from Rayleigh where exactly the problem lay.

Rayleigh pondered for a moment before saying, "Conqueror's Haki Infusion is rather troublesome to explain. How about I demonstrate it myself and let you experience it firsthand?"

Lu Ge was overjoyed. "That would be wonderful."

Rayleigh did not waste any time. His eyes narrowed, and an incomparably immense pressure erupted in an instant. Lu Ge clearly felt as if the gravity in the area had grown heavier, and his movements were slightly hindered. He couldn't help but marvel inwardly. As expected of the Pirate King's right-hand man. His strength is truly formidable.

Although the pressure couldn't knock him unconscious, the fact that Rayleigh could restrict his movements with Haki alone showed how profound his attainments in Haki truly were.

"Feel it carefully. Conqueror's Haki Infusion means taking the pressure released by Conqueror's Haki and no longer releasing it as pressure. Instead, you condense it onto your hand or a weapon, wrap it around it, and then strike with all your might."

As he spoke, Lu Ge suddenly felt the immense pressure disappear. It all gathered around Rayleigh's right fist, and then Rayleigh punched forward. A violently raging blast of wind shot into the sky. Although it did not produce any terrifying scene of destruction, the clouds thousands of meters above were instantly scattered by the punch.

It was easy to imagine that if this punch had been aimed forward, all the buildings here would have been completely destroyed, as though ravaged by a tornado.

Lu Ge's eyes lit up. "So Conqueror's Haki can be blasted out like the force of a punch? Then what if it's infused into a sword and activated through sword energy?"

He immediately released his own Conqueror's Haki and tried to wrap it around the katana in his hand. Unfortunately, knowing something was one thing, while actually doing it was another. The same obscure sensation he had experienced when teaching himself returned.

He immediately activated Time Is on My Side. Unexpectedly, this time, all the insights regarding Conqueror's Haki Infusion surged into his mind in one go. He was delighted, but also full of doubt. "Strange. When I taught myself, it felt obscure and difficult to master. Why did I master it so easily after seeing it just once? What exactly is the principle behind Time Is on My Side?"

Lu Ge immediately opened a door and arrived at the seaside with Rayleigh. He tried wrapping all of his Conqueror's Haki around his katana before swinging it. In an instant, a storm of sword energy swept forward. The sea ahead erupted into towering waves, revealing a huge vacuum trench.

"Hmm? Is this—Kamusari?!" Rayleigh was startled when he saw this. The terrifying power of the technique was astonishingly similar to one his former captain had once used. At that moment, Lu Ge seemed to transform into his former captain, leaving Rayleigh dazed for a while.

After briefly regaining his senses, Rayleigh looked at Lu Ge with an extremely serious expression. "Are you sure you couldn't use Conqueror's Haki Infusion before?"

This sword strike, which resembled Kamusari, could only be performed by someone who had mastered Conqueror's Haki to its peak and combined it with superb swordsmanship. It was not something a beginner could possibly wield!

Seeing the suspicion in Rayleigh's eyes, Lu Ge merely smiled. "I only knew some of the theory before. However, after watching you use Conqueror's Haki Infusion, everything I didn't understand before became clear. I didn't expect combining Conqueror's Haki Infusion with swordsmanship to unleash such tremendous power. Thank you so much this time, Uncle Rayleigh."

Rayleigh nodded silently. Considering that Lu Ge was already the world's greatest swordsman, it seemed there was nothing too surprising about him combining Conqueror's Haki with his swordsmanship to produce a strike resembling Kamusari.

Afterward, Lu Ge continued asking Rayleigh about Observation Haki and Armament Haki. He gained a great deal from the exchange, and all three types of his Haki improved noticeably.

For example, with Observation Haki, if he activated Time Is on My Side, he could now even foresee scenes from the future.

Of course, as someone who possessed the Time-Time Fruit, he could already clearly foresee the future. This ability was therefore somewhat redundant, but it was enough to prove that his Haki had improved significantly.

The two then talked about swordsmanship. Although Rayleigh did not specialize in it, he was still considered an expert swordsman. After Lu Ge asked him about some basic swordsmanship insights and filled in a few gaps in his own technique, his swordsmanship improved considerably as well.

After returning to his room, Lu Ge used Time Is on My Side to study and hone himself repeatedly. His strength underwent another qualitative leap.

Having perfectly mastered Conqueror's Haki Infusion, he could be said to have truly entered the ranks of the strongest individuals in this world.