The End

Ahead Gogirde laughed triumphantly, while behind him, Hughes narrowed his cold eyes, the wicked smile on his lips gone.

The next second, Hughes's thick fingers gripped Gogirde's head as easily as if he were squeezing a watermelon, and with a slight force, Gogirde's head deformed.

Hughes was disappointed; he hadn't had any fun in the illusion.

The illusions are full of old tricks: like someone suddenly tapping him on the shoulder from behind in a creepy atmosphere; a bloody hand emerging from his mouth in the mirror and then grabbing his reflection; experiencing being disemboweled...

These trivial scenes, let alone thrilling, didn't even stir his emotions; they were less frightening than a mop covered in poop chasing after him.

Hughes, displeased, tightened his grip, Gogirde, like a duck being choked, stiffened, his maniacal laughter abruptly ceasing, his eyes filled with doubt. "Impossible, how can you be alright? It's fake, it must be fake."

He didn't understand, he really didn't understand, why, after all that effort, this person was still alive and well.

Hughes didn't bother to respond; with a powerful thrust, he slammed Gogirde into the ground.

"Bang!"

With a deafening roar, the ground shattered, and Gogirde instantly covered in blood and lost consciousness.

Hughes raised his foot and stepped on his neck, applying slight pressure with the sole of his foot.

"Click!"

Hughes glanced at the utterly dead Gogirde, spat on him, and knew he could Elementalization, yet he still bombarded him with magic bullets—he was hopelessly stupid.

This kind of useless person, who has power but doesn't know how to use it, is bound to die!

With Gogirde's death, the remaining magic power within his body dissipated into the world. The massive magic circle that enveloped the entire Alon Island suddenly trembled violently, emitting intense light, and channeled this magic power back to its source.

This wasn't a case of Gogirde kind and returning magic to Alon Island; he intended to detonate the entire Alon Island.

He'd rather die than let everyone else die with him!

A terrifying, deathly atmosphere began to permeate the world.

Having anticipated this, Hughes stood with his arms crossed, flames erupting from his body.

Elementalization Resumes...

Alon Island began to shake violently, the shattered ground was torn apart, and magma burst forth from the surface fissures, carrying debris and surging into the sky, dark ash obscuring the sun.

At the source of magic underground, the magic power belonging to Gogirde is condensed and compressed into a tiny point. Although small in size, it exudes a terrifying and awe-inspiring energy.

The next instant, this tiny point suddenly expanded...

"Boom!"

The loud explosion reverberated in people's ears and struck their hearts, and Hughes' eyes lit up.

"Interesting, so beautiful!"

The world seemed to be plunged into a white expanse, with only the incessant roar shaking heaven and earth. An indescribable powerful impact emanated from Alon Island, radiating outwards in a circular pattern and stirring up waves tens of meters high.

The molten lava flowed into the sea, creating billowing white steam. Countless boulders were thrown thousands of meters into the air by the shockwave from the island's explosion, before plummeting into the sea, trailing flames behind them.

Smoke and dust billowed in the air, and water vapor rose from the sea. The explosion on Alon Island lasted for a long time, until the sky gradually brightened and the aftershocks subsided.

The explosion and sinking of Alon Island happened last night.

At this moment, dozens of nautical miles away from Alon Island, two slender figures floated on the vast sea, swaying gently with the waves.

Hughes floated halfway on the sea surface, his jaw clenched, enduring the excruciating pain churning in his mind—a pain unique to him after each episode.

He recovered from his illness shortly after falling into the sea.

Reaching into the small pouch at his waist, Hughes pulled out a psychic potion and swallowed it with a pang of regret.

This time, he was essentially losing money to complete the mission. The total mission fee was only 7 million J, but he consumed eight bottles of mental potions, which was worth 8 million J.

Not to mention that some of the 7 million J mission commission had to be given to Laxus, which was practically a huge loss.

As the effects of the psychotropic drug took hold, the pain in Hughes's mind gradually subsided to a tolerable level.

He turned his head and glanced at Laxus, who was floating to his right. This kid must have something wrong with his head. The Alon Island was shaking for so long before it exploded, and he didn't even know to run.

If it weren't for him pulling this kid back at a crucial moment while he was in a trance, this kid might have already made his premature exit from the stage.

Hughes knew Laxus didn't trust him, but he still stretched out his right leg, which was covered in seawater, and kicked him.

Damn it, if something happens to this, he'll feel guilty for the rest of his life.

In his anger, the system's voice suddenly appeared in Hughes's mind:

[Detected that the host defeated the enemy pirate crew "Threads of Illusory Evil" alone; quest "Annihilate the Enemy Group 1" has been completed!]

[Note: This is a hidden quest series that can be triggered multiple times. Rewards are based on the strength of the enemy pirate crew.]

[Testing revealed that the "Threads of Illusory Evil" Pirates are at the top level of Paradise in the first half of the Grand Line.]

[Quest Reward: Ultimate Skill - Shave (Perfect Level) has been issued!]

Hughes was suddenly startled as a transparent page unfolded before his eyes.

[Ultimate Skills: Tekkai (Perfect Level), Geppo (Perfect Level), Shigan (Beginner Level), Shave (Perfect Level)]

Before he knew it, he had almost collected all Six Powers.

"Rankyaku, Kami-e," Hughes muttered to himself as he turned off the panel.

He did know which tasks he could complete to obtain one of these two Six Powers, but the task objectives were hard to find.

"However, with my current physical abilities, I've long surpassed the superhuman standard of 500 Doriki Value in the One Piece world. If I train hard for a while, I should be able to learn the Rankyaku and Kami-e!" Hughes muttered to himself.

As a seasoned One Piece fan, Hughes was naturally familiar with the training methods of the Six Powers Six Powers. This abandoned combat system was not difficult to learn; the key was whether one's physical condition was up to par.

In this regard, Hughes can confidently guarantee that with his current physical condition, he can completely dominate Lucci.

"It's decided. I'll develop these two techniques when I get back to Magnolia Town, and while I'm at it, I'll see if I can figure out the Rokushiki Ogi and Life Return, those two heavyweight moves as well."

Putting everything else aside, mastering the Life Return technique is a must; it's one of the most powerful sit-up techniques, something Hughes has been eyeing for a long time.

Hehe, it can get bigger, thicker, harder... oh, no, hardening Tekkai will do the trick!

As Hughes' thoughts wandered, Laxus's body, which had been floating like a corpse, twitched a couple of times before he slowly awoke.

Noticing this, Hughes raised an eyebrow and said in a deep voice, "Laxus, congratulations, the surgery was a success. You're a proper girl now!"

Laxus squinted, and after his eyes gradually adjusted to the light, he opened his palm and gave Hughes a hydro-electric bath.

Lightning flashed and arcs of thunder rippled across the sea. Hughes groaned in comfort, the pain in his head easing considerably. He finally understood why Director Yang had earned the trust of so many people.

Electrotherapy really works!

"Not bad, Laxus, I see you have the potential to be the Thunder King. Increase your power, who do you think you are!"

Laxus glanced at Hughes with disdain, as if he had seen something dirty.

He actually risked his life to save this disgusting thing.