Chapter Summaries

Lin Xuan’s Strongest Template System finally awakened in Makino’s tavern as Ace prepared to sail, and Ace challenged him for the title of big brother. Lin Xuan faced Ace as the system delivered a starter gift package, but their fight had not yet begun.

• Lin Xuan drank at Makino’s tavern while waiting for Ace to set sail, and the Strongest Template System unlocked.
• Lin Xuan told Makino that Ace had rushed to leave to avoid Garp’s return to Foosha Village.
• Luffy rushed in and announced that Ace was waiting outside to compete for the title of big brother.
• Ace entered with his pipe and said he wanted to win the title for Sabo before sailing away.
• The system finished loading and delivered a starter gift package as Lin Xuan stood to face Ace’s challenge.

Lin Xuan opened his Beginner's Gift Pack and received Kenpachi Zaraki's character template, then challenged Ace to a fight with a wooden sword. Their clash began in the clearing outside Makino's tavern, where Lin Xuan released his Spiritual Pressure and charged at Ace.

• Lin Xuan opened the Beginner's Gift Pack and acquired Kenpachi Zaraki's template, Beast Instinct, and an Asauchi.
• Lin Xuan ignored Ace's protest and took a decorative wooden sword from Makino's tavern for their fight.
• Lin Xuan and Ace faced off outside as villagers gathered to watch.
• Lin Xuan released his Spiritual Pressure, frightening the villagers and intensifying Ace's unease.
• Lin Xuan charged at Ace with his wooden sword, while Ace rushed forward and swung his water pipe at Lin Xuan's exposed ribs.

Lin Xuan overwhelmed Ace with Spiritual Pressure, and the system rewarded him with points and a Kenpachi Zaraki skill unlock. After Ace charged him again, Lin Xuan knocked him through crates and into a palm tree, then confirmed he was still alive as the system reported 5% template integration and another exclusive skill awaiting claim.

• Lin Xuan struck Ace with a wooden sword, sending him into rum barrels, and the system awarded him 500 points for an overwhelming victory.
• Lin Xuan opened the system shop, found its wares too expensive, and unlocked a skill through the reward option.
• Ace charged Lin Xuan with his iron pipe, but Lin Xuan’s Spiritual Pressure sent him through crates and into a coconut palm.
• Lin Xuan checked that Ace was alive, while Luffy excitedly asked what had happened.
• The system reported 5% template integration and a Kenpachi Zaraki exclusive skill awaiting claim, and Lin Xuan wondered what the skill would be.

After claiming Kenpachi Zaraki’s sword pressure, Lin Xuan used a mysterious drink to heal Ace and helped him choose to flee Foosha Village. Garp hurled an enormous iron ball at the escaping boat, and Lin Xuan unleashed his spiritual pressure to meet it with a wooden stick.

• Lin Xuan gained the ability to see and wield Kenpachi Zaraki’s sword pressure after claiming his reward.
• Lin Xuan healed Ace’s injured shoulder with a bottle of Modified Nutrition Express, restoring his strength.
• Garp’s warship arrived, and villagers urged Ace to abandon his plan to go to sea.
• Lin Xuan stood between Ace and the villagers, and Ace freed his boat and sailed away.
• Garp ordered Bogard to bring an enormous iron ball and hurled it toward Ace’s boat and Lin Xuan.
• Lin Xuan released immense spiritual pressure and swung a battered wooden stick at the incoming iron ball.

Lin Xuan’s immense strike saves Ace from Garp’s cannonball, and Garp decides to take Lin Xuan to Marine Headquarters. As Bogard warns that Lin Xuan needs training before his power gets out of control, Luffy suddenly grabs Lin Xuan and urges him to run.

• Lin Xuan’s strike splits Garp’s iron ball and sends Ace’s boat flying through the blockade.
• Garp questions Lin Xuan about his attack, while Bogard recognizes his raw destructive talent and urges Garp to recruit him.
• Garp grabs Lin Xuan and decides to take him to Marineford, ignoring Lin Xuan’s protests.
• Bogard warns Garp that Lin Xuan needs systematic training to control his power and avoid turning pirate.
• Lin Xuan reflects on his crude strength and imagines unlocking more of the Kenpachi Zaraki template.
• Luffy grabs Lin Xuan by the waistband and tells him to run.

After Lin Xuan agreed to join the Marines to protect Luffy and Ace, Bogard explained that his powerful slash lacked the coating and intimidation used by Grand Line fighters. Lin Xuan intuitively described the will behind Garp’s punch, and Bogard prepared to demonstrate a true slash.

• Garp caught Luffy trying to flee and struck him, while Bogard examined the sword scar Lin Xuan had left in the pier.
• Bogard invited Lin Xuan to Marineford and said he could someday contend for the rank of Admiral, and Lin Xuan agreed to join the Marines so he could protect Luffy and Ace.
• Garp erupted over Lin Xuan’s lack of interest in justice, but Bogard restrained him until he accepted Lin Xuan’s decision and began celebrating.
• Bogard told Lin Xuan that his slash lacked the coating and intimidation needed to face powerful Grand Line fighters, and explained that Garp could hit Luffy through his rubber body.
• Lin Xuan described Garp’s fist as carrying the will to hit him, astonishing Bogard with his understanding of Haki.
• Bogard stepped to the edge of the pier to demonstrate what a true slash was.

Bogard began teaching Lin Xuan about Haki after recognizing the instinctive force behind his swordsmanship. Lin Xuan used an Insight Talisman to grasp the principles of Armament Haki, then told the skeptical Bogard that he had found the way to activate it.

• Bogard tried to demonstrate his swordsmanship, but Garp interrupted by throwing a liquor barrel that destroyed the driftwood he had targeted.
• Bogard asked who had taught Lin Xuan to slash with such presence, and Lin Xuan said he had taught himself by following his instincts.
• Bogard praised Lin Xuan as a prodigy and explained Observation Haki and Armament Haki, including how Haki could strike Logia users.
• Lin Xuan used his Insight Talisman and suddenly perceived how willpower could be solidified and controlled as Haki.
• Mistaking Lin Xuan's silence for confusion, Bogard offered a practical lesson, but Lin Xuan interrupted to say he had found the Haki valve.

Lin Xuan used an Insight Talisman to master Armament Haki in minutes, astonishing Bogard, who reported his feat to Garp. While Garp rushed to see Lin Xuan for himself, Lin Xuan used an Awakening Talisman to develop Observation Haki and began testing his new perception by hunting a fish.

• Lin Xuan hardened his arm with Armament Haki after Bogard's brief explanation, leaving Bogard stunned by how quickly he had learned it.
• Bogard ended the lesson and returned to Party's Bar, where Garp was celebrating Lin Xuan and Luffy complained that Lin Xuan would never arrest him.
• Bogard told Garp that Lin Xuan had mastered Armament Haki on his first attempt in less than five minutes, and Garp shattered his mug in surprise.
• Garp hurried out of the tavern to see Lin Xuan's ability for himself.
• Lin Xuan used an Awakening Talisman at the pier and sensed the movements and intentions of life around him through Observation Haki.
• Lin Xuan threw a pebble into the sea and killed a grouper, then sensed a Tiger Shark approaching the bloodied water.

Lin Xuan’s Observation Haki advanced, and he narrowly dodged Garp’s surprise attack, sending the Marine Hero crashing into the sea. Garp realized Lin Xuan had awakened Observation Haki and was stunned by how quickly he had mastered it.

• Lin Xuan’s perception settled into intermediate Observation Haki, and he considered using the [Awakening Talisman] to test whether he possessed Conqueror’s Haki.
• Lin Xuan sensed Garp charging at him and dodged the Marine Hero’s black-coated fist through instinct and Observation Haki.
• Garp’s momentum carried him off the pier, and he smashed through a reef before plunging into the sea.
• Garp surfaced and demanded to know how Lin Xuan had anticipated his Soru attack.
• Lin Xuan claimed a moving image had appeared in his mind, and Garp recognized the description as advanced Observation Haki.

Lin Xuan displayed advanced Observation Haki while dodging Bogard’s sword, prompting Bogard to wonder whether he also possessed Conqueror’s Haki. When a Lord of the Coast attacked, Lin Xuan unleashed that power and killed it with a glance.

• Bogard tested Lin Xuan with his Starlight sword technique, but Lin Xuan dodged ten strikes using precise predictions.
• Bogard identified Lin Xuan’s ability as intermediate Observation Haki, and Garp questioned whether he had trained before.
• Bogard suspected Lin Xuan might possess Conqueror’s Haki, while the Awakening Talisman flashed in Lin Xuan’s vision.
• A Lord of the Coast lunged at Lin Xuan, but he remained calm and told it to scram.
• Lin Xuan unleashed Conqueror’s Haki, and the Lord of the Coast’s brain was destroyed as it hung frozen in midair.

At Marine Headquarters, Sengoku ordered Garp to intercept the pirate Terej after he attacked the Goth Kingdom. Tsuru then presented Zephyr’s proposal to send promising recruits on live combat missions in the Four Blues, leaving Sengoku to weigh the risky plan.

• An adjutant reported that Terej had devastated the Goth Kingdom’s port defenses and escaped before Marine reinforcements arrived.
• Sengoku condemned the Marines’ failure, while a Vice Admiral explained the difficulty of catching a powerful pirate in the Haki-poor East Blue.
• Tsuru reminded Sengoku that Garp was in the East Blue, and Sengoku ordered him to intercept Terej along the Goth Kingdom route.
• Tsuru gave Sengoku a file from Zephyr describing a promising recruit and proposing live combat exercises for Marine trainees.
• Tsuru explained that Zephyr wanted recruits to spend six months training and six months suppressing pirates in the Four Blues, backed by thirty percent of Marine Headquarters’ logistical resources.

The Navy’s leaders learned that Garp had found Lin Xuan, a sixteen-year-old East Blue swordsman with mastery of all Three Types of Haki, including Conqueror’s Haki infusion. Sengoku ordered Garp to bring him to Marineford, but Garp revealed that Lin Xuan had already sailed away on his own.

• Sengoku approved Zephyr’s plan to train recruits and discussed promising candidates, including Sentomaru, a twelve-year-old who had mastered Sky Walk.
• Sengoku angrily criticized Garp’s East Blue inspections, but Garp called to report that he had found a remarkable swordsman in Foosha Village.
• Garp said Lin Xuan had shattered a Lord of the Coast’s cranial nerves with a sword slash infused with Conqueror’s Haki.
• Sengoku ordered Garp to escort Lin Xuan to Marineford and asked to speak with him.
• Garp admitted that Lin Xuan had left ahead of the warship aboard a single-masted sailboat.

Lin Xuan drifted lost at sea after leaving home, then spotted a pirate ship attacking Roronoa Zoro and hurried toward it. As Zoro reached the edge of his strength, he deflected a cannonball and remembered his promise to become the world's greatest swordsman.

• Sengoku ordered Navy forces and Smoker to find Lin Xuan and bring him to safety.
• Lin Xuan completed his daily ten-thousand-swing task, but realized he had no idea how to navigate.
• Lin Xuan sensed a pirate ship approaching and used a plank as an oar to drive his damaged boat toward it.
• Lin Xuan saw that Roronoa Zoro was fleeing the Black Axe Pirates under cannon fire.
• Zoro struck an incoming cannonball aside with Wado Ichimonji, then remembered his promise and resolved to fight on.

Lin Xuan arrived while Black Axe Buck attacked the battered Zoro and proved his strength by splitting a cannonball with his wooden sword. After slaughtering more than half the pirates, Lin Xuan drove the survivors to flee, leaving Buck to face him.

• Black Axe Buck ordered his pirates to fire a cannon at Lin Xuan and warned Zoro to stay out of the fight.
• Lin Xuan charged at the cannonball and split it in midair with his wooden sword before landing on the pirates’ deck.
• Buck ordered his crew to attack, and Lin Xuan killed or incapacitated more than half of them in ten breaths.
• The surviving pirates panicked and began dropping their weapons or jumping into the sea, while Buck threatened to cut down anyone who fled.

Lin Xuan defeated Black Axe Buck and effortlessly beat Zoro, then told the swordsman about the Gotei 13 and left him determined to grow stronger. He entered the cabin and found Nami and Carina stealing treasure, leaving them terrified as he reached inside his clothes.

• Lin Xuan cut through Buck's cannon, Buck, and part of the pirate ship with a golden flying slash, killing Buck and severing the bow.
• Zoro challenged Lin Xuan, but Lin Xuan stopped his attack with one finger and shattered his two swords with a single blow.
• Lin Xuan returned Wado Ichimonji to Zoro and claimed to be the captain of the Gotei 13's 11th Division, inspiring Zoro to vow to join and defeat him.
• Lin Xuan smashed open the cabin door and found Nami and Carina stealing treasure beside an iron chest.
• Nami and Carina tried to threaten Lin Xuan by claiming Buck was outside, but Lin Xuan approached them and reached inside his clothes.

Lin Xuan subdued Nami and Carina, claimed their labor for his ship, and found the ominous Demon Sword Murakumo in Buck’s chest. When Zoro grabbed the sword after hearing its warning, it began draining the flesh from his arm.

• Lin Xuan showed Nami and Carina Buck’s broken axe, identified himself as a Marine recruit, and stopped Carina’s attack without being harmed.
• Nami returned to protect Carina, and Lin Xuan ordered both girls to work aboard his ship as prisoners instead of killing them.
• Carina revealed a rosewood box containing a sinister sword, which Lin Xuan seized and subdued with his spiritual pressure.
• Carina handed Lin Xuan an old parchment identifying the blade as one of the twenty-four Great Grade Swords, Demon Sword Murakumo, and warning that it drained those who lacked resolve or spiritual pressure.
• Zoro staggered into the cabin and grabbed Murakumo’s hilt, causing the sword to wither the flesh of his right arm.

Lin Xuan subdued the Demon Sword Murakumo, demonstrated its power by cutting a sea beast in half from a kilometer away, and discovered that intimidating Zoro had greatly increased his Kenpachi template progress. He decided to let Zoro live so he could challenge him again, and Zoro approached Lin Xuan with renewed resolve.

• Lin Xuan kicked Zoro away from Murakumo, then seized the demon sword despite Nami's warning.
• Lin Xuan overwhelmed Murakumo's resentment with Spiritual Pressure and subdued the sword.
• Lin Xuan tested Murakumo with a casual slash that split a Lord of the Coast and carved a long trench through the sea.
• Lin Xuan checked his system and learned that Zoro's severe injuries and psychological intimidation had raised his template progress to 7.8%.
• Lin Xuan decided to spare Zoro so he could grow stronger and provide future challenges.
• Zoro struggled to his feet, gripped Wado Ichimonji, and walked toward Lin Xuan with renewed resolve.

Lin Xuan forced the wounded Zoro to work off his debt aboard the ship while taking Nami and Carina along, then began practicing with a wooden sword. Meanwhile, Trejer pursued the Cat Burglar and learned that Lin Xuan was nearby, setting up a clash with the rookie Marine.

• Zoro threatened to return for Lin Xuan and his sword, but Lin Xuan made him carry a chest and clean the ship in exchange for a chance to learn how to heal his withered arm.
• Trejer killed Barton after learning that the Cat Burglar still had his treasure map key, then ordered his pirates to chase her north and target a rookie Marine.
• A Marine adjutant reported Trejer’s pursuit to Smoker, who dismissed Lin Xuan’s danger and ordered the adjutant to warn Garp that his adopted son was near Shimotsuki Village.
• Aboard the sailboat, Lin Xuan made Zoro mop the deck while Nami and Carina watched from the cabin doorway.
• Lin Xuan reflected on the strain of using Kenpachi Zaraki’s power, picked up a rough wooden sword, and began practicing as Zoro watched.

Lin Xuan completed ten thousand sword swings, then caught Nami trying to steal money from his cabin and learned she and Carina had stolen a Devil Fruit from Trejer. As Trejer and another possible threat approached, Lin Xuan refused to return the fruit and prepared for trouble.

• Lin Xuan completed ten thousand precise sword swings, slightly increasing his Kenpachi Zaraki template proficiency, and Zoro questioned whether he was truly a beginner.
• Carina told Lin Xuan that Nami was missing, so he went to the captain’s cabin and found Nami picking the lock on his chest of Beli.
• Lin Xuan confronted Nami and Carina about why Trejer was pursuing them, and Nami revealed the Devil Fruit they had stolen from his ship.
• Lin Xuan realized Trejer was likely approaching and refused to give the Devil Fruit back, sensing malice coming through the darkness.

Lin Xuan traveled to Shimotsuki Village to train with Koshiro and learn how to cut steel, but challenged the dojo master instead. Their first clash blew the roof off Isshin Dojo, leaving their fight underway.

• Lin Xuan said he had only a fifty-percent chance against Trejer because his sword might not withstand the Chain Chain Fruit user's steel-hard body, then chose to visit Shimotsuki Village for training.
• Lin Xuan arrived at Shimotsuki Village with the injured Zoro and sensed a powerful presence in the bamboo grove.
• Lin Xuan reached Isshin Dojo and confronted Koshiro, demanding to test whether Koshiro's softness or his own hardness was stronger.
• Koshiro raised a bamboo sword to protect his students and dojo as Lin Xuan attacked with Murakumo, and their clash blasted the dojo roof into the sky.