https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-168-Luffy-Has-a-Blue-Giant-Sarge-Has-a-Homebody/12610970/
Chapter 167: You're as Good as Dead!
Chapter 167: You're as Good as Dead!
Shadow's Life
Moriah stood there, stunned, his eyes filled with disbelief as he stared at Sark. "What are you talking about?"
"Sark!"
The group, led by Lily, burst into the grand hall of the castle, coming to an abrupt halt as they took in the scene before them.
They had hurried along, expecting to find an intense battle unfolding, but instead, they witnessed a seven-meter-tall monster kneeling on the ground, seemingly defeated.
"Is that Moriah?" Renee asked, blinking in surprise. "Yikes! He looks like a devil, but he's actually a big onion head."
Hawkins dragged a fat man wearing a net shirt on his upper body and casually tossed him forward. He glanced at the other two and said indifferently, "We found him on our way here. He's one of the 'Three Weirdos,' Hogback, a world-renowned genius surgeon who has become a subordinate of the Seven Warlords of the Sea."
"Oh, that adds one more to our collection. Excellent, Moriah. Since you've increased the stakes, let me introduce you to my power so you can have a clear and intuitive understanding."
Sark strolled forward nonchalantly and said, "My strength doesn't lie solely in my Haki. Let me show you my true prowess."
He stood before Absalom and lifted his leg casually, applying minimal force as he gently tapped Absalom's body.
"Puh!"
With just that slight touch, Absalom's eyes widened, and he spat out a mouthful of blood. His body curled up like a shrimp, seemingly enduring excruciating pain.
"My power lies in my fist technique, the 'Northern Dipper Divine Fist.' It's a skill that allows me to grasp the breath of all things, perceive their secret acupoints, and strike their weaknesses accordingly."
He glanced at Moriah with a sidelong glance and continued, "Steel, stone, the human body—all things in this world possess secret acupoints. And through these acupoints, the damage inflicted can be infinitely amplified by exploiting their weaknesses."
"Just like this," he said, pointing to Absalom. "I kicked him in the 'Dragon's Jaw,' 'Neck Center,' and 'New Hidden Immunity'—three secret acupoints located on the chest. The 'Dragon's Jaw' heightens skin sensitivity and amplifies pain, the 'Neck Center' induces intense bodily pain, and the 'New Hidden Immunity' causes the body's tissues to burst. I didn't use my full strength, so he's only spitting blood. Otherwise, he would have turned into a puddle of mud, knowing nothing but pain."
"And there's more," Sark added, kicking Absalom in the back of his abdomen. Instantly, Absalom's curled-up body stiffened, and his limbs involuntarily stretched out, forming a cross with his body.
"This is the 'Battle Sore' acupoint, which causes paralysis and forces the limbs to assume a cruciform position. Indeed, I possess a means of controlling people. It's far better than using shadows to force corpses to move and obey."
Sark kicked Absalom once more, and the lion freak, who was clearly badly wounded and on the verge of losing consciousness, stood upright like a zombie, his body rigid.
"I can make the living act according to my will!"
Sark bared his teeth in a sinister grin, his pale teeth looking particularly evil in the eerie atmosphere of the castle. He seemed like the true master of the castle.
Upon witnessing this, Lily's pupils constricted as she recalled their first encounter, where a casual touch from Sark had caused her body to act against her will.
"Paralysis, blindness, deafness, calming, softening, stiffening, truth-telling, paralysis, bleeding, bursting, control... Whatever I want to do, I can achieve it by striking the corresponding acupoint!"
Sark's smile grew more and more sinister. "Isn't controlling the living far more interesting than controlling the dead?"
Hearing these words, Hawkins' breath quickened.
He knew that Sark was strong, with advanced Haki and formidable physical techniques. But he had never imagined that this man possessed so many terrifying methods!
Could he really be a non-ability user?
"Besides..."
Sark rapidly tapped Absalom several times, and the seemingly dying body suddenly came back to life. The once soft and limp form visibly regained its strength.
Thud!
Absalom knelt heavily on the ground, his body drenched in sweat as if he were caught in a rainstorm. He breathed heavily, seemingly relishing the fact that he was still alive.
That feeling of being out of control had vanished.
"The damage caused by secret acupoints can also be healed through secret acupoints. Moreover, it can cure illnesses. Even if someone is at death's door due to a severe illness, striking the correct acupoint can bring them back to life."
Sark smiled. "I know how to kill, and I know how to heal."
Of course, he could heal.
The Northern Dipper Divine Fist was not just a killing technique but also a life-giving one.
However, it was not for treating external injuries but rather internal ailments. Unless a person was completely weakened to the point of being beyond salvation, he could save them.
This was why Sark wasn't concerned about the ship's doctor—the medical team on board was sufficient for treating external wounds, and for any critical illnesses, he ensured that death was not an option.
"As my shadow, it naturally possesses my martial arts; it's not some ability. As long as it's stuffed into a formidable body, it can immediately gain tremendous power!"
Sark extended his hand and clenched it tightly, his floating smile as sinister as a malevolent ghost. "Aren't you trying to resurrect Oz? You can do it with my shadow. A formidable body coupled with the damage inflicted on secret acupoints—that will be the dominant power you've always dreamed of! Aren't you tempted? Trade the lives of your three subordinates for it."
"What the hell are you babbling about?!"
Moriah's angry roar interrupted Sark.
He slammed his fist onto the ground, causing the space to tremble slightly, his eyes already filled with fury. "How could I possibly trade the lives of my companions for this? What kind of person do you take me for?! Don't underestimate me, Sark!"
"Didn't you already come to this realization long ago?"
A calm voice drifted into Moriah's ears.
Moriah looked up and saw that Sark, who had been ferocious and sinister, now wore a placid expression as he looked directly at him.
Drop...
As he lifted his head, the blood flowing from it gradually formed a large clot and dripped down his cheeks, falling to the ground in a puddle of bloody water that reflected Moriah's face.
That stupid and ugly face...
Moriah stared blankly at the face in the blood, a dazed look in his eyes.
How long has it been...
It had been a long time since he last looked in a mirror.
Ever since his battle with Kaido, since he lost his companions, he hadn't dared to look in the mirror again for fear of seeing his own face—a face that had lost its companions and was the only one left alive.
An ugly face!
After sailing the Terror Schooner into the Devil's Triangle from the West Sea, he had been here for eight years. During this time, he relied on Hogback to sew corpses, plunder the shadows of those who ventured into this place, and create an army of zombies as he waited to re-enter the New World.
Could Moriah be unaware of the zombies' weaknesses?
But he could only do this. He didn't want to lose any more companions.
An army of zombies that couldn't die—then he wouldn't have to grieve. Immortality meant that even if they were defeated by Kaido, it wouldn't matter.
But...
Was it really useful? The Shadow-Shadow Fruit ability allowed him to plunder other people's shadows and gain the same strength as their original bodies. Those whose shadows were taken couldn't touch sunlight or they would turn to dust.
They also wouldn't reflect in mirrors.
They were beings of darkness who couldn't enter the light or reveal their true forms—just like him.
He had shadows, but he didn't want to face the light or look in the mirror.
Even when it was necessary to go out, he wanted to return quickly to the darkness here.
He was no different from those without shadows; they were all just pathetic creatures curled up in the darkness.
A failed, pathetic creature.
"Has it really come to this?" Moriah muttered as he stared at the reflection in the pool of blood.
"Is death so terrifying, Moriah?"
BOOM!
Another thunderclap rang out in the sky, and the lightning illuminated the castle's windows, casting light on Sark's figure and mixing his voice with the thunder in Moriah's ears.
Sark's eyes shone with a scarlet light, and his Conquering King's Haki almost seemed to take on a physical form, manifesting as a massive black and red aura that enveloped the entire castle.
Pointing at Moriah, he thundered, "What's terrifying isn't death, but the inability to fully realize one's will!"
"You, who have lost your will, are no different from those zombies! Do you think you're still alive? No! You've been dead for a long time!"
"You died the day you were defeated by Kaido!"
"Since you've already died once, why not try again! Even if you fail, you won't die a second time!"
Sark shouted, "Don't you want to see that magnificent ocean again?!"
Moriah's eyes widened, and a gleam appeared in his pupils.
Yes...
He was no different from the dead!
So why not take another look at that long-unseen azure ocean and the surging New World?
"Just a newbie," Moriah said as he slowly stood up, his shadow spreading from beneath his feet. He opened his mouth, revealing sharp teeth, and laughed, "Hehehehe, even if I were to return to the sea, it wouldn't be up to you to give me orders!"
He spread his arms wide, and a red glow flashed in his eyes, his heart pounding. "It's not just you who's special. I don't need your preaching! I am Gecko Moria! Look closely—this is the power of gathered shadows."
"Sark, behind you!" Lily suddenly shouted.
BOOM!
The thunderclap illuminated the castle's grand hall once more, and behind Sark, a massive shadow appeared, but it wasn't a shadow...
It was a towering, expressionless man holding a book.
"That's..."
Hawkins' pupils constricted as he recognized the figure.
"Bartholomew Kuma!"
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
