stonecrandall Chapter 8: The Momentum Erupts Again
Chapter 8: The Momentum Erupts Again
Chapter 8: The Momentum Erupts Once Again
"888...889...890..."
In the courtyard of the mountain stronghold, Mu Chong swung his heavy wooden club repeatedly, his head already covered in sweat, his arms trembling slightly, but his movements showed no sign of stopping, his youthful face full of determination.
"Damn, this stick is really heavy! How much gravity did Uncle Yixiao add to it? It's so much heavier than yesterday. I'm so sad..."
With each swing, Mu Chong muttered a complaint: "I've been doing this for seven or eight days now, when will it ever end?"
"996..."
"Meow……"
Just as Mu Chong was about to finish his training for the day, a meow came from the direction of the main gate, followed by a white cat rushing straight towards him.
"Damn it, you stupid cat, don't come any closer... don't come any closer... ouch, oh my god..."
boom……
The wooden stick fell to the ground with a loud thud. Mu Chong lay on his back, a white cat perched proudly on his chest, chewing on a newspaper.
"You stupid cat, I'll fuck you! I was just a few more away from finishing, you stupid cat... Huh? Is this a newspaper?"
"Meow……"
The rage that had been simmering inside Mu Chong vanished the moment he saw the newspaper. Two years had passed since he'd last been here; finally, news from the outside world?
Just as Ikko observed, due to the island's remoteness, many news-delivering gulls assumed there were no living creatures there and almost never stopped when passing by. If Ikko hadn't used his Devil Fruit ability to keep that news-delivering gull there, this newspaper wouldn't have ended up here.
"This……"
Mu Chong took the newspaper from the white cat's mouth, ignoring the dust on his clothes, and stood up, staring blankly into space.
Mu Chong didn't know how to open the newspaper; rather, he didn't know how to face the information that was about to arrive, and he wasn't ready to face this great era.
"Tch, what am I thinking? What the hell am I afraid of? To be scared by a newspaper? Mu Chong, are you out of your mind? Hahaha..."
"Meow……???"
The white cat beside him tilted its head, looking at Mu Chong who was talking to himself with a puzzled expression. Why did he seem to have gone stupid?
Da da da……
"Brother Mu, I can sense your fear. Is it this newspaper? Or the information recorded in the newspaper?"
At this moment, Uncle Yixiao slowly walked into the courtyard, as composed as ever, and stood in front of Mu Chong, asking softly...
"Ah, Uncle Yixiao, it's nothing..."
Mu Chong looked up and smiled, then stared at the newspaper in his hand and fell silent again.
boom……
Suddenly, the tip of a wooden stick struck Mu Chong in the chest with a loud thud. The force wasn't great, but it still caused him pain.
Mu Chong suddenly looked up at Xiao, who was holding a wooden stick with one hand, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes.
"Young Master Mu, I can sense the hesitation and fear deep within you right now. So, there must be something in this newspaper that you don't want to face..."
Yixiao paused here, then, "looking" at the evasive look in Mu Chong's eyes, continued...
"A year ago, on that stormy night, a severely injured young man fearlessly pointed at the sky and cursed, seemingly possessing a spirit to defy the heavens. Just recently, a young man faced the sea and uttered the bold words that he wanted to challenge all the strong in the world. That will of a strong man still fills me with admiration..."
As the sound of laughter continued to reach Mu Chong's ears, the heart at the tip of the staff beat stronger and stronger, thumping loudly.
"Now a mere newspaper has made you tremble, Brother Mu. You have disappointed me greatly. If you cannot maintain the heart of a strong person, then my teachings end here. You are not worthy of power..."
bang bang bang...
Mu Chong's heart was pounding faster and faster, his body was trembling uncontrollably, and the expression on his face, hidden by his lowered head, was constantly changing.
"Tch, hehehe... Yeah, what am I afraid of? Hehehe..."
As Mu Chong responded, Yi Xiao gently removed the tip of the stick, leaned on it again, and stood back, quietly waiting for the boy in front of her to react.
"Hehe, hahaha, hahaha..."
Laughter erupted without warning from Mu Chong's lowered mouth, growing louder as the aura emanating from him intensified.
"What does it matter to me what happens outside? I just need to be myself and do what I want to do. Whether the outside world is just beginning or has already ended, whether it's familiar or unfamiliar, I just need to follow my heart, leave my legend on this sea, and let the whole world know that I, Mu Chong, was here. Who cares about One Piece or anything like that? As long as I'm strong enough, what can this world do to me... Hahaha..."
"Meow……"
"White cat, I suggest you come behind me... Hmm? Looks like it's too late..."
Seeing Mu Chong's growing momentum, Yi Xiao wanted to warn the white cat standing next to him, but it was too late.
boom……
"Meow……"
With a scream from the white cat, a terrifying aura, dominating the world, erupted from Mu Chong's body, instantly surging across the entire mountain and rapidly spreading towards the island, its power undiminished.
The force of the attack caused a fierce wind to rise, and everything suffered varying degrees of damage, leaving behind a scene of utter devastation.
Standing opposite Mu Chong, Yi Xiao's eyes flashed with deep disbelief. The aura that Mu Chong was exuding now seemed more mature and profound than the one he had displayed at the beach, like a newborn baby who had suddenly grown up.
Furthermore, grown-up infants also possess a certain degree of lethality.
"What exactly did Brother Mu overcome deep within his heart? I sensed it deeply from this aura; it was a feeling of having the world in his grasp, no, of being independent of the world and forming his own. What immense power that must be..."
Yixiao's Observation Haki was very strong, so he could clearly sense the will expressed by Mu Chong, which made him frown even more deeply.
call……
Suddenly, a gentle breeze blew by, and Mu Chong's imposing aura vanished without a trace in the next instant.
"Tch, this newspaper isn't very good quality, it's already torn?"
Mu Chong looked at the remaining scraps of paper in his hand, and the scattered pieces of paper of varying sizes on the ground, and said with a pursed lip.
"I'm quite surprised that Brother Mu didn't faint this time..."
His smiling face regained its composure, and he quipped...
"Hahaha, Uncle Yixiao, you really wanted to see me make a fool of myself, huh? Well, not as you wished..."
Mu Chong clasped his hands together, making a helpless expression, then paused, and asked...
"By the way, where's the white cat?"
"Hmm? If I'm not mistaken, it should be over there..."
Yi Xiao raised his hand and pointed to the corner of the wall on the left.
"Hey, hahaha, why is this silly cat sleeping anywhere? Look how dirty it's made itself..."
As he spoke, Mu Chong walked towards the white cat's location.
Yi Xiao stood motionless, her face calm and expressionless, revealing no emotion. Her pale eyes stared intently at Mu Chong's retreating figure.
Da da da……
The next moment, a smile appeared on Yi Xiao's face, and he moved his feet and walked in that direction, as if nothing had happened, or rather, he didn't care.
A gust of wind blew by, and the scraps of paper on the ground tumbled and rolled. One piece of paper, about the size of a palm, stopped rolling a few times, revealing all the information on it.
The year 1518 of the Haiyuan Calendar is clearly visible at the top corner of the paper.
The bottom half of the picture catches the eye: a person wearing a wide-brimmed hat, beneath which is a slightly immature face with faintly visible freckles, black hair, and a string of beads-like ornaments around their neck...
At the torn end of the paper, only the number five remained, blurred and indistinct.
The information on this piece of paper is quite complete, resembling a wanted poster.
But does it matter? And who cares?