Chapter 3

The next morning.

Cui Ze woke up from a nightmare, instinctively making a "reverse cross" on his chest, grateful to be alive for another day, and continued to pray for his deceased teacher, Kaido.

After quickly finishing breakfast, Cui Ze put on the [Gas Mask], hung the green [Bamboo Tube Plug] around his waist, and stood below the cellar door, activating the [Beast Breathing] technique.

"Beast Breathing, Seventh Form: Spatial Perception!"

Using the ability of spatial perception, Cui Ze quickly surveyed the streets near the third hideout.

"No large groups of zombies are active! I can go out!"

Cui Ze, who was familiar with the surroundings, voluntarily exited the "Spatial Perception" effect. He silently pushed open the cellar door, crossed the backyard, and came to the town's streets, which were now a wasteland, planning to start today's "zombie hunting" operation.

Before taking action, Cui Ze looked up at the sky to observe the intensity of the aerial battlefield.

For some reason, Cui Ze felt that today's battle in the sky was not as intense as the previous days.

"It should be a good thing..."

Cui Ze muttered, quickly shifting his attention away from the sky.

Yesterday, he was tricked by the [Fishing] skill, spending a lot of resources but only obtaining the [Tanjou Nezuko's Bamboo Tube Plug], a bizarre item. With all his "Victory Bait" depleted, Cui Ze needed to replenish his bait today.

The weak Xiao Ze needed to seize every chance to survive!

"Is today's lucky goddess the airport?"

Pulling up his personal attribute panel and giving it a quick glance, Cui Ze pouted.

"Luck D... tch!"

Closing the light screen, he picked up a nail hammer and began his journey to kill zombies.

Thanks to the combat experience from the past three days, Cui Ze was now adept at dealing with slow-moving, hearing-sensitive zombies. As long as he didn't provoke the large, mutated zombies—like the "big monsters" gathered in the town's central square—ordinary zombies were easy prey for him, one hammer at a time!

Today's aerial battlefield was indeed much less intense than the previous three days.

By mid-morning, Cui Ze had already killed five zombies, obtaining five F-grade "Victory Bait," and had not been interrupted by the aerial battlefield even once!

Cui Ze felt that the goddess of luck had become flat.

But every time he checked the light screen, he saw that the goddess of luck was still the evil, large-breasted D!

Feeling increasingly proficient with the [Beast Breathing] technique, Cui Ze took a piece of dried meat from his pocket, put it in his mouth, and chewed it slowly to replenish the energy he had expended in battle.

As for the [Tanjou Tanjiro's Rice Ball] he fished up last night, it had already been consumed as breakfast this morning.

After three days of intense battles in the aerial battlefield, the zombie density in the town was already low.

After Cui Ze's thorough "finishing" of the zombies, the streets near the third hideout were almost completely cleared. He needed to find a new location to clear zombies to replenish his "Victory Bait."

If all the zombies in the town were killed and the aerial battlefield still hadn't ended,

Cui Ze would need to consider venturing deeper into the island, entering other human (zombie) settlements...

Fortunately, the zombie resources in the medieval town were still abundant, so he didn't need to worry about this for at least a few more days.

Finishing the last piece of dried meat, Cui Ze climbed to the top of the nearest building, took out an old brass monocular, and extended it to survey the rest of the town.

"Beast Breathing, Spatial Perception" was a good skill, but Cui Ze couldn't rely on it all the time. At least, he couldn't afford to be that "luxurious" right now.

However, as soon as he extended the monocular, it pointed towards the outskirts of the town, and the circular lens reflected a strange white area.

"Is that... smoke on the ground?"

Frowning, Cui Ze took the monocular away, rubbed his eyes, and looked again. He immediately saw a half-body flying at the front of the smoke.

It was a young man with only half a body, short grayish-white hair, a fierce face, and a white Marine recruit T-shirt covering his muscular, well-built torso, with nothing below it!

"Smoke... the Marine Admiral from the original story, the Logia-type Smoke Fruit user, Smoker?"

Cui Ze observed carefully and found that the young man rapidly roaming the wilderness outside the town, clearing zombies and zombie beasts, was indeed Smoker in his recruit days.

There was no one else in the sea who would smoke two cigars at once!

"Smoker is followed by a considerable number of Marine recruits... If that's the case, then the one fighting Kaido in the sky is not a 'Great Pirate,' but the Marine Headquarters Admiral—Black Arm Zeppeli?!"

Cui Ze's mind raced, and he looked up at the sky, finally realizing this fact after three days.

"So, it's a Marine Admiral!"

...

It's worth noting that Zeppeli only fought Kaido by accident.

He would have to be insane to bring a group of rookie recruits to challenge a Pirate Emperor!

The zombie island that Zeppeli and his Marine recruits were clearing was previously owned by a "Paramecia-type Virus Fruit" user, an evil biologist named Muzan!

Coincidentally, this biologist had another identity—Kaido's young friend and fellow member of the extremely rare "Oni" race in the sea!

When Muzan noticed the arrival of the Marines, he immediately contacted Kaido, who was deep in the New World, via a Den Den Mushi.

However, by the time Kaido arrived from Wano, Muzan had already been arrested by the Marines. Then...

This blue dragon had a great fight with Zeppeli!

"Kaido! Surrender! The deep-sea prison Impel Down is your final destination!"

Zeppeli, with his feet on the Moon Step, stepped on the air, his neatly cut purple hair standing up like metal, and a deep, black luster covered his two thick arms, from the knuckles to the wrists, without a single spot left uncovered by the Armament Haki.

Black Arm Zeppeli, known for his incomparable dual Haki and breathtaking combat skills, was a legend in the sea!

"Ha ha ha! Old man Zeppeli, what nonsense are you spouting?!"

In his Blue Dragon form, Kaido let out a loud, unmasked laugh, with every scale on his terrifying beast face radiating a clear sense of mockery.

"As if you can take me down—Roaring Thunder!"

Boom!

The Blue Dragon suddenly opened its massive mouth, and the earth-shattering dragon roar transformed into a series of thick, white lightning bolts, weaving a seemingly impenetrable net of heavenly thunder that rushed towards the Marine Admiral at lightning speed.

In an instant, the dazzling lightning net flew to Zeppeli's front.

A sharp red light flashed in Black Arm Zeppeli's eyes, and he raised his right fist, covered in Armament Haki, and delivered a straightforward punch. The immense power and heavy Haki instantly shattered the lightning net, with the fragmented lightning dissipating in the air.

At this stage, Zeppeli was not the future cripple with a severed right arm, but still at the peak of his power!

It is well known that every true strongman at the top of the sea has a terrifyingly long peak period!

"Kaido, Muzan has already been arrested by the Marines! If it weren't for his rare Devil Fruit ability, he would have been executed by now!"

Zeppeli looked in the direction of the Blue Dragon, but before he could finish his half-hearted attempt at persuasion, he was interrupted by a torrent of sobs.

"Ah! Muzan! My poor fellow! How could you be captured by these useless Marines? Sob, sob, sob!"

Kaido's grief came quickly, with large tears falling from his dragon eyes.

"The key is that you haven't given me my payment yet!"

Payment?

Zeppeli, standing opposite, had a strange expression. He tugged at the corner of his mouth, as if finding it hard to speak.

"Kaido, he is your long-time friend and fellow member of the Oni race..."

"Exactly!"

Kaido, like a chameleon, suddenly stopped his tears and winked at Zeppeli.

"So he raised the price!

"Two Ancient Devil Fruits! I won't let them go!

"Heat Breath! Hiss—"