Chapter 250: Trial of Orbs, Playing with Orbs!
Sanji and Nami's small boat sailed into an open area.
Vines hung from the surrounding trees, swaying gently in the wind. It looked... quite beautiful.
"Miss Nami!"
Sanji's eyes turned into hearts, "The scenery here is wonderful! It's simply the perfect spot for a date!"
Nami rolled her eyes:
"What date? You'd better watch out for enemy traps—"
Before she could finish, Sanji suddenly found himself unable to move.
He looked down—there was nothing.
But his body simply wouldn't budge.
"What's going on?"
He struggled, only to find that the more he struggled, the tighter the restraints became.
"Ordeal of String, String Cloud."
A voice came from above.
Sanji looked up to see a giant strange bird descending from the sky. On its back rode a man wearing goggles, holding a peculiarly shaped long spear.
"Priest Shura."
The man introduced himself, "Sinners! Welcome to the Ordeal of String, with a survival rate of 3%."
As soon as he finished speaking, he thrust his spear forward!
The spear was embedded with a Heat Dial, capable of releasing high temperatures and flames during an attack!
Sanji, bound by the ropes and unable to move, took the blow head-on!
"Thud!"
The spear tip pierced his shoulder, the scorching heat burning the wound with a sizzling sound.
"Sanji!"
Nami screamed, grabbing her Clima-Tact and rushing forward.
"Don't come over!"
Sanji gritted his teeth and shouted, sweat beading on his forehead, but his words were defiant, "Miss Nami, please just watch from the side."
He took a deep breath and looked at Shura:
"As a chef, how could I possibly be afraid of heat?"
Shura raised an eyebrow:
"Chef?"
"That's right."
Sanji curled his lips into a smile, "And if I can't even defeat someone like this on my own, I'll definitely be laughed at by that moss-head and Ralph."
As soon as he finished speaking, he kicked out!
The wind from his leg howled, and the String Cloud creaked under the strain!
Shura's expression changed, and he raised his spear to strike again—
The battle had only just begun.
Ordeal of Iron.
Zoro and Robin's small boat stopped in front of a stretch of ruins.
The surrounding structures were clearly ancient, with intricate patterns carved into the stone pillars, telling tales of past glory.
Robin's eyes lit up as she approached, observing them carefully.
She jumped off the boat and walked toward the ruins, completely forgetting where they were.
Zoro didn't stop her, his hand resting on his sword hilt as his gaze swept the surroundings.
A voice came from deep within the ruins:
"Welcome to the Ordeal of Iron. I am Priest Ohm."
A man walked out slowly, followed by a large white dog.
He held a peculiarly shaped sword in his hand.
"The survival rate of the Ordeal of Iron is 0%."
Ohm said calmly, "Because no one has ever left here alive."
Zoro smiled.
0%?
He loved that number.
"Woman, where are you going?"
Ohm noticed Robin heading deeper into the ruins and frowned.
He swung his long sword, and the blade instantly extended, transforming into a massive iron wire net that swept toward Robin!
Without looking back, Robin crossed her arms—
"Two-Hand Flower: Grasp!"
Countless hands sprouted from Ohm's body, causing his sword swing to falter and allowing Robin to escape the attack range.
Ohm's pupils contracted.
Robin turned her head and smiled at him:
"I'm not interested in fighting. I just want to look around here casually.
That green-haired swordsman over there will keep you company."
With that, she continued walking deeper into the ruins.
Ohm wanted to pursue, but a figure blocked his path.
Zoro.
"Don't look around."
Zoro held Wado Ichimonji between his teeth, a dangerous smile curling at the corner of his mouth.
"Let's hurry this up. After I cut you down, I still have to go cut down your god."
Ohm's expression darkened.
"Ignorant fool. You have no idea what kind of power the supreme god, the great Enel, possesses!!"
This reminded Zoro of Ralph!
Although he had already gathered quite a bit of information from Ralph, he had deliberately avoided asking about the god.
"I don't need to know. If I knew everything, it wouldn't be interesting!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Zoro drew his sword!
Two figures collided in an instant!
Ordeal of Balls.
Ralph and Lufia's small boat sailed into a peculiar area.
Countless Cloud Orbs floated in the sky, each of them the same size, their pure white color making the place look like a scene from a fairy tale.
"Wow!"
Lufia's eyes sparkled with amazement.
"So many balls!"
A round figure emerged from behind a Cloud Orb.
It was a priest with a ball-like physique, wearing loose robes and a smug smile on his face.
"Welcome to the Ordeal of Balls!"
He spread his arms wide.
"I am Priest Satori!"
"The survival rate here is 10%! Each Cloud Orb hides something different—some have Impact Dials, some have venomous snakes, all sorts of surprises! Whether you live or die depends on your luck!"
An ordinary person would be terrified by this death game based purely on luck.
But after hearing this, Lufia excitedly grabbed Ralph's sleeve.
"Ralph, Ralph! He said every ball has something inside! Let's guess what's in them!"
Ralph smiled. "Alright."
Satori was stunned.
Guess what's inside?
This is an ordeal!
A divine ordeal!
It's meant to punish you blasphemers!
"Take this seriously!"
He shouted furiously, waving his hands repeatedly as he manipulated the Cloud Orbs to crash toward the two!
Ralph sidestepped to dodge, fully activating his Observation Haki to sense the interior of each Cloud Orb.
"This one has an Impact Dial."
He pointed to one on the left.
Lufia reached out and poked it—Bang!
A burst of impact erupted from the Cloud Orb, but when it hit Lufia, it only made her sway slightly.
"Haha! It really does!"
Lufia grew even more excited, pointing at another.
"Then I guess this one has something delicious inside!"
She reached in and felt around, pulling out two snakes.
Excited, Lufia grabbed the two snakes, swung them wildly until they were knocked out, and then handed them to Ralph.
"Look, I guessed right! Let's take them back for Sanji to cook!"
Satori's face turned green.
He frantically manipulated the Cloud Orbs to launch attacks—Impact Dials, bombs, swords... all sorts of mechanisms activated!
But these two acted like they were at an amusement park, dodging and guessing as they played happily.
When dodging grew tiresome, they simply tanked the hits.
After all, Lufia was rubber, and Ralph had Armament Haki, leaving them completely unscathed.
"That one over there!"
Lufia pointed at a huge Cloud Orb in the distance.
"That one definitely has something big inside!!"
"That one's probably a bomb!"
As soon as Ralph finished speaking, Lufia declared, "Let me try!"
Lufia dove headfirst into the Cloud Orb.
Boom!
A massive explosion blackened Lufia's face!
Lufia was blown back a few steps but soon grinned, revealing a set of white teeth.
"Ouch, ouch! But that was so fun! Let's do it again!"
Satori was utterly devastated.
This was his trial!
His meticulously designed, terrifying trial with only a 10% survival rate!
Why were these two having so much fun?!
Time ticked by.
One by one, the Cloud Orbs vanished, all "played" away by these two.
Exhausted, Satori collapsed on the ground, looking like a genuine ball.
"Gone... they're all gone..."
He muttered, "My clouds... all gone... it's over... my trial..."
Lufia clapped her hands, still not satisfied, and looked at Ralph:
"What other fun things are ahead?"
Ralph thought for a moment:
"There's a god up ahead, and a giant snake."
Lufia's eyes lit up even more:
"A giant snake? How big? Can we ride it?"
"...Forget riding it, you could even crawl into its belly for some cave exploration!"
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go, let's go!"
Lufia grabbed Ralph's hand and ran forward.
Behind them, a system prompt echoed in Ralph's mind—
[Lufia's affection for the host has increased by 2%. Current affection level: Best Friend 18%]
A slight smile curled at the corner of Ralph's lips.
18%.
At this rate, it wouldn't be long before it broke through 20%.
Thanks to Enel's sheer talent for turning Skypiea into such an entertaining place.
Ralph pondered whether he should spare his life.