Well, looking at his panel did not let Xia Chen gauge his strength. His panel really was a little too bare-bones.
And although a whole bunch of things on it were at the beginner level, that beginner level actually carried quite a lot of weight.
Take the beginner-level Armament Haki Xia Chen currently possessed, for example. Based on his battles over this period, he had reached a conclusion.
His current Armament Haki was about on par with Luffy's initial level two years later.
Luffy had spent quite a while training to reach that level.
Meanwhile, Xia Chen only needed to check in on islands. It felt ridiculously good!
While he was thinking, Xia Chen and the others had already arrived on the outskirts of Loguetown.
Luffy said, "I'm going to check out the Execution Platform!"
"I'm going to buy swords!"
"I'm going to buy clothes!"
"I'm going to buy equipment!"
"I'm going to buy ingredients!"
"I'm going to... not telling you!"
"Huh?"
For a moment, everyone's eyes turned toward Xia Chen.
That's a bit much, isn't it? You're even keeping your whereabouts secret?
That was what everyone wanted to say, but Xia Chen vanished before they could get the words out.
The sight left everyone grinding their teeth in frustration. Once they got stronger, they would see whether he could still pull this off!
Then they parted ways there, each heading toward their own destination.
Xia Chen darted through Loguetown, using his Observation Haki at full power to keep sensing his surroundings.
Suddenly, as he passed a certain spot, he heard a familiar name.
"You're Luffy?"
This discovery made Xia Chen stop and move closer, puzzled.
Wasn't Luffy going to the Execution Platform? This place seems pretty far from there. Has Luffy inherited Zoro's terrible sense of direction too?
But when Xia Chen saw what was actually happening, the corner of his mouth twitched.
A cigar-smoking Marine was looking down his nose at a pirate standing before him.
He was also the one who had spoken just now.
"Smoker?" Xia Chen murmured. Then he prepared to leave. He had no interest in Smoker!
But often, even if you did not look for trouble, trouble would come looking for you!
"Hey, you over there! Hold on!" Smoker's voice came from behind him.
Xia Chen turned around with a puzzled expression.
"Are you talking to me?"
"Yes, you. Have we... met somewhere before?" Smoker asked uncertainly.
He kept feeling that Xia Chen looked familiar, and he was certain he had seen him recently, but he simply could not remember where. That was why he had asked Xia Chen directly.
"I don't think so, sir. This is my first time on this island!" Xia Chen said, spreading his hands helplessly.
"Hmm..." Smoker studied Xia Chen thoughtfully.
The longer he looked at Xia Chen's face, the more familiar it seemed. After all, someone that handsome was a rare sight.
While Smoker was racking his brains, the pirate beside him who had been mistaken for Luffy grew displeased.
What was this supposed to mean? He was zoning out right in front of a vicious pirate?
Could he show a little respect for his status as a pirate?
So... he could not hold back anymore.
"Damned Marine! How dare you ignore me like this! Die!"
With that, the pirate pulled a pistol from his pocket and fired several shots at Smoker, bang, bang, bang.
But what happened next nearly made his eyes pop out.
The bullets passed straight through Smoker when they hit him, and his body turned into white smoke.
"A m-monster!!!"
The pirate collapsed to the ground in fright, his eyes filled with terror as he looked at Smoker. This was his first time seeing a human immune to pistol fire.
Smoker ignored him and merely gave a small wave.
The Marines behind him immediately understood, walked up to the pirate, and subdued him.
Even ordinary Marines were more than capable of handling a pirate of this caliber.
Meanwhile, Smoker was still searching his memories with all his might, desperately trying to remember who Xia Chen was.
A minute later~
Looking at Smoker, who was still thinking, Xia Chen could not help saying:
"Sir, if there's nothing else, I'll be on my way!"
Smoker still said nothing, remaining lost in thought.
Seeing this, Xia Chen stopped bothering with him and turned to leave.
But before Xia Chen had taken more than a few steps, Smoker's voice came from behind him.
"Demon King... Xia Chen?"
"Huh?" Xia Chen turned around in confusion and asked Smoker:
"Sir, are you talking about me?"
Looking at Xia Chen's face, Smoker could not help taking the bounty poster out of his coat. After comparing them, he asked again:
"Are you Demon King Xia Chen?"
No wonder he had looked increasingly familiar. Smoker had seen Xia Chen's bounty poster that very morning, but because the image on the poster looked rather different from Xia Chen now, he had not recognized him immediately. That had left him thinking for so long.
Xia Chen put on a shocked expression and said fearfully, "Sir, what are you talking about? How could I possibly be a wanted criminal?"
"I might look a little like him, but I'm really not him!"
"You're not trying to entrap me, are you?"
At this point, Xia Chen even put on a perfectly timed look of indignation.
Smoker gave Xia Chen a long look, then instantly turned into a stream of white smoke and charged at him.
Yet Xia Chen stood rooted to the spot, as though he had not reacted.
As Smoker's fist drew closer and closer, Xia Chen still did not dodge.
In the end, Smoker's fist stopped one centimeter from Xia Chen's face, the gust from his punch blowing Xia Chen's hair up.
"A M-MARINE IS HITTING ME!!!" Xia Chen let out a shout that rang into the sky, drawing the attention of everyone around them.
But when they saw Smoker there, they all turned their gazes away again.
They had seen nothing!
Smoker looked at the terrified Xia Chen before him without saying anything, then took a stack of Beli from his pocket. It looked to be a little over a hundred thousand.
"I'm sorry. This is all the Beli I have on me!"
With that, Smoker turned and headed elsewhere.
What he did not see was the slight curve that rose at the corners of Xia Chen's mouth after he left.
Xia Chen hefted the Beli in his hand.
"Another payday!"
If Xia Chen had not wanted to keep Smoker from discovering his identity right now and searching the whole town for him, he would have simply used Soru to leave long ago.
Still, this outcome was pretty good too!
As for why Xia Chen had not dodged, even at the very last moment before Smoker's attack reached him?