"Um..."
Upon hearing this, both the willow tree and the Hundred Arms Giant fell silent. After a long while, the willow tree said calmly:
"I can only say there's a very good chance!"
"We've been in this world for quite a while now, but the number of people who can truly reveal the nature of our island is pitifully small!"
"Most people, even if they find this place, will only see an ordinary island, and they are not qualified to be tested by us!"
"None of the previous trial participants possessed his strength; in fact, most of the time we had to go easy on him to give him a chance to see the king!"
"But this person is different; he has a certain..."
At this point, Liu Shu paused, seemingly considering the best way to express himself, before finally saying:
"There is a power that I feel is even stronger than the King!"
"!!!"
"How could that be? Willow, have you lost your mind after staying here for so many years? How could you say such a thing?" the Hundred Arms Giant said bluntly.
He would believe Xia Chen if you asked him to, otherwise he wouldn't have given the last fragment to Xia Chen without even fighting.
But to make him believe that there is a power in the world stronger than the king? That's impossible!
In his eyes, the king was the most powerful, without exception!
Cerberus nearby, retorted, "Willow, you might fool Hundred Arms, a weakling who's never fought this human, but you can't fool me!"
"It's not like I haven't fought him before; I've never felt any power from him greater than that of a king!"
The Cerberus was fine when it didn't speak, but as soon as it did, the willow tree shoved its face in a curse:
"Was he on the same level when he hit you as he was when he hit me? Have you ever been hit by a meteorite that big? If not, shut up!"
"It was only at the very last moment when he used his technique that I sensed a power that filled me with immense fear; it was an indescribable strength..."
Hearing Willow Tree's resolute words, Cerberus and the Hundred Arms Giant fell silent. In terms of perception, Willow Tree was definitely the strongest among the three, and far superior to them.
Since that's what it says, then...
The three of them couldn't help but turn their gazes towards the direction of their king's palace, each remaining silent, their thoughts unreadable...
--
Meanwhile, Xia Chen arrived at his final destination on the island after some time.
Xia Chen stood quietly before the magnificent palace, curiously looking around.
The palace was not the magnificent, golden structure one might imagine; instead, it was entirely black.
The palace was made of some unknown material, and it occasionally shimmered with a dark luster, but it did not give people a gloomy feeling.
On the contrary, the moment you see it, you feel its immense grandeur and domineering Haki!
After looking around, Xia Chen's gaze fell on a huge door in front of him.
The door was also made of an unknown material, and it was carved with some things that Xia Chen recognized.
That's right, it's the Cerberus he just fought, the willow tree, and a Hundred Arms Giant.
The three figures, positioned on either side, jointly guard a man seated on a throne in the center.
The man's face is obscured, but the sculpted form alone exudes an indescribable aura of Haki.
In an instant, Xia Chen thought of many things through this carving.
For example, the boss he should have encountered in Gale Valley was, without a doubt, the Hundred Arms Giant mentioned above. But for some reason, he didn't encounter it.
The identity of the Haki man guarding the center is thus revealed: Hades, the King of the Pluton!
At the same time, Xia Chen also saw a recessed pattern in the center of the door, and that pattern corresponded to...
With a thought, Xia Chen saw a small black sword emitting a faint green light appear before him.
As soon as it appeared, it suddenly burst into golden light and then slowly floated towards the door.
It eventually landed on the pattern in the center of the door, the two fitting together perfectly, as if they were originally one.
Immediately afterwards, the door suddenly burst forth with a strong black light. It was only because Xia Chen had good eyesight that he was able to avoid being constantly flashed by the golden and black light; otherwise, his eyes would have been damaged.
As the light gradually faded, the door slowly disappeared like grains of sand.
Seeing this, Xia Chen raised an eyebrow. It was the first time he had ever seen a door open like this—there wasn't even a door anymore!
Xia Chen stood still for a few seconds before taking a step forward.
Upon entering the palace, one is greeted by a boundless sea of bones, with countless bones spread across the ground.
It contains the bones of many organisms, and from various parts of the body!
Just then, a miraculous scene unfolded: the door that had vanished reappeared.
Most people would feel a little panicked if they were in a situation where their escape route was blocked, but Xia Chen didn't feel that way.
Because... he had a backup plan!
The reason he paused outside was to create a Clone. With his ability to switch places between his Clone and his main body, he remained completely calm!
Xia Chen looked ahead, where the only other thing in this place besides bones stood.
A high platform!!
There was a throne on the high platform, and a dark figure on the throne, but there was no movement at all!
With his exceptional skills and boundless courage, Xia Chen leaped onto the Flying Nimbus without hesitation, instantly appearing on the high platform.
Although there are steps leading up to this platform, the problem is...
Does he look like the kind of person who would obediently walk up? Wouldn't that make him look like a subject of Pluton? What kind of image would that be?!
Shaking off these thoughts, Xia Chen turned his gaze to the dark figure on the throne before him.
This was a humanoid creature, covered in armor and wearing helmet, making it impossible to see its appearance.
At this moment, there was a black sword in front of him, and the figure had his hands on the hilt. Xia Chen immediately recognized that this was an enlarged version of the sword he had obtained before!
However, Xia Chen was a little puzzled at this moment, because he did not sense any aura from the figure in front of him.
What Xia Chen was referring to was not the aura of life, but rather the aura emanating from this thing, this object!
This ability is thanks to his Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils; even a stone or a tree has its own unique aura in his eyes.
But Xia Chen felt nothing at all, not even a trace!
Just as Xia Chen was pondering why this was happening, the figure in front of him suddenly moved...