"Check the crew members' potential?"
Gawain was slightly taken aback, then turned to look at the pirate beside him. A brand-new panel appeared before his eyes:
[Name—Wynn] [Potential—Black Iron] [Rating—Black Iron: Cannon fodder who has learned basic swordsmanship.]
Gawain then shifted his gaze to several other pirates. The system display changed, showing their potential and system ratings in real time.
Without exception, they were all Black Iron.
Gawain was not surprised by this result.
After all, by the system's standards, even Gawain, whose Swordsmanship had awakened the Godspeed trait and whose Physique had risen by a level, was still rated Black Iron.
Even if all the pirates on this ship were tied together, they might not be a match for Gawain. The gap between them was simply enormous.
"So that means I can directly check my crew's potential in the future and select the talent I need?"
Gawain realized the proper use of this Badge.
However, it was not useful for the time being, since he was still at sea.
"I can take a look and see whether the East Blue has any usable leeks besides those three."
"Truly gifted powerhouses can reach the pinnacle in just a few years."
"That also proves that the gap between people is bigger than the gap between dogs."
Gawain shook his head, then checked the potential of every pirate present one by one. In the end, he could only helplessly confirm that everyone on this ship was Black Iron cannon fodder.
However.
Even cannon fodder became an unignorable field of leeks once there was enough of it.
Besides, Gawain's Physique had already reached the brink of a breakthrough.
He had a feeling that as long as his Physique advanced another step, his combat strength might undergo a transformation, allowing him to truly shed the title of Black Iron cannon fodder.
Gawain left a small portion of the crew to steer the warship and scout the surrounding area, then gathered the rest on the deck and continued instructing them in swordsmanship training.
Naturally, no one had any objections, nor did anyone dare to.
Gawain had now established absolute authority in their hearts. No one on this ship dared to resist him.
After all.
The last person who had resisted had been eaten down to the bone.
"Hey!"
"Ha!"
On the deck.
Furious shouts soon rang out, accompanied by the clashing of steel.
Under the blazing sun, everyone once again began their brutally demanding training.
In the blink of an eye, the sun set and the moon rose.
Cool gusts blew over the sea. The exhausted pirates lay directly on the deck, letting the sea breeze carry away their fatigue.
Standing to one side, Gawain nodded in satisfaction. This was their greatest value to him.
If they could not even fulfill the most basic function of experience packs, bringing them along would be less of a help and more of a burden.
As the training ended.
Gawain gained another 12 points of Physique Experience and 15 points of Swordsmanship Experience.
Physique—LV-4: 791/800 --> Physique—LV-5: 1/1600 Swordsmanship—LV-5: 803/1600 --> Swordsmanship—LV-5: 818/1600
His Physique, already near its limit, broke through directly to LV-5.
Gawain instantly felt the changes in his body.
The muscles beneath his leather armor visibly swelled, while his bones crackled like popping beans.
It was the sound of his rapidly growing bones pressing against one another.
In just a few breaths.
Gawain's body shot upward. His previously loose leather armor became skin-tight, and his pant legs now exposed his ankles.
His entire body had grown a full size larger.
"My Physique has become stronger!"
"My strength has increased by fifty percent. I haven't tested my resistance to damage yet, but it's undoubtedly much stronger than before!"
"I wonder what would happen if I took Morgans's axe head-on now."
Gawain smiled faintly and raised a hand, closing it in an empty grip...
Bang!
The air exploded, drawing the attention of the surrounding pirates.
"Huh?"
"Did the captain's body change? I don't remember him being this big before."
One pirate rubbed his eyes. Gawain suddenly seemed unfamiliar, as though he had undergone some sort of change.
"The captain's sense of oppression is stronger. It's even stronger than when he killed Morgans!"
"Isn't that just your imagination?"
A pirate with a mohawk patted him on the shoulder and said weakly:
"You're probably just too obsessed with the captain."
"Really?"
"That's definitely it!"
Having barely recovered some strength, the group began chatting idly.
Gawain silently headed toward the captain's cabin. The changes before his eyes were merely an appetizer; an even greater improvement was still to come.
Bang!
After shutting and locking the captain's cabin door, Gawain finally checked the information in his mind:
"Detected that the host's Physique has reached LV-5. You may choose one of the following branch abilities:"
"Brute Force, Dexterity, Strength, Balance."
After a brief consideration, Gawain set his gaze on the final option.
These four branch abilities undoubtedly represented four different ways of allocating points: extreme strength, agility, constitution, and a balanced allocation among all three.
But reality was not a game. An overly extreme build could easily fail to display its intended effect when other attributes could not keep up.
Great strength required equally great constitution to support it. Incredible speed without the corresponding power to break through an opponent's defenses was merely scratching an itch, while simply stacking constitution would make him nothing but a punching bag.
Besides.
In the world of pirates, every powerhouse capable of reaching the peak of the pyramid had pushed Physique, strength, and speed to their limits.
The Marines had Garp and Sengoku, while the pirates had Kaido and Whitebeard—figures with balanced attributes and no obvious weaknesses.
Even if a balanced build might eventually lead to a situation where he seemed to have everything but actually had nothing.
Gawain was confident that with the efforts of himself... and his subordinates, he could stack himself into a hexagonal warrior even through sheer accumulation!
"I choose Balance!"
The next instant.
Gawain's body grew hot again. Countless streams of scorching blood, like molten lava, surged from his heart and flowed through every organ in his body.
The burning pain that erupted from within instantly covered Gawain in cold sweat. He hunched over, his face flushed red, nearly biting his gums bloody.
"Mm—!"
As the intense pain surged through his body, Gawain began undergoing astonishing changes.
Every pore across his body began secreting foul-smelling sweat, but before it could trickle down, his excessive body heat evaporated it.
By the time the transformation ended.
Gawain was completely drained, lying flat on his back on the floor and gasping for breath.
"Ha..."
Several breaths later.
Gawain came back to his senses and discovered that his skin was covered in a thick layer of grime. With the slightest touch, it cracked apart and revealed new skin beneath.
"This..."
"This should count as a kind of cleansing and marrow purification, right?"
Gawain smiled slightly, then felt the changes in his body.
"Wait!"
"My body feels so light!"
"It's like I used to live in shackles, but they've suddenly been removed."
"Every part of my body feels incomparably relaxed!"
He moved slightly and felt every cell brimming with vigorous vitality. Even the hidden injuries left behind from the previous owner's swordsmanship training in his youth had been completely healed.
This body seemed to have returned to its most primordial, pure state!
"Wait!"
"Since I can check other people's potential, can't I check my own as well?!"
Before you continue