"Luffy, let me ask you something."
Ronan locked eyes with him. "If you want to become Pirate King, don't you need the strength to suppress every powerhouse on these seas?"
"Whether it's the Seven Warlords, or the Marine Admirals."
"Of course!" Luffy answered without hesitation, fists clenched until they cracked. "I'm gonna punch all of them flying!"
"Then tell me this…"
Ronan pointed toward the battlefield in the distance—the land the giants had flattened.
"With your current strength, could you take a full-power strike from those two giants without a scratch?"
"Or put another way—have you really stepped into the top tier of this sea yet?"
Luffy fell silent.
He was confident, but he wasn't stupid.
"I'm still far from it," Luffy admitted honestly. That was his clarity.
"Good."
A satisfied curve appeared at the corner of Ronan's mouth.
"Since you understand that, then right now, right in front of us, there's an opportunity—one that can cause a qualitative leap in our strength, even let us cross an entire tier in one go!"
"An opportunity?"
Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji's eyes lit up instantly, like hungry wolves spotting prey.
"What kind of opportunity?" Zoro's hand unconsciously drifted to his sword hilt.
Ronan looked at the three of them, exhaled slowly, and spoke each word with weight.
"The opportunity to bring the Thirteen Guardians' Iron Body to full completion."
"Full… completion?" Zoro repeated. His physical body was already formidable, but what Ronan called "completion" was clearly on another level.
"That's right."
Ronan spread his arms, as if embracing the island itself.
"The spirit medicines here, and the primal life essence contained within the bone marrow of these ferocious beasts…"
"These are peerless, top-grade catalysts you simply can't find elsewhere. If we use them for a deep marrow cleansing and bone refinement…"
His voice dropped, rich with temptation.
"We can cultivate a true—Indestructible Body!"
"Indestructible?!"
Those four words struck like a hammer against their chests.
"That's the ultimate realm where qi and flesh are perfectly fused," Ronan explained.
"Once achieved, qi circulates through the entire body, every cell packed with dense energy."
"We'll become some of the humans with the strongest physical potential in this world!"
"Strongest body…" Luffy's eyes sparkled. "That sounds awesome!!"
"Yes. The strongest."
Ronan pressed on, painting a picture impossible to resist.
"When that happens, unless it's a top-tier expert with overwhelming Armament Haki, ordinary blades and weapons won't even leave a white mark on our skin."
"Immune to fire and water. Poison ineffective. And even—"
He glanced at Zoro. "You'd be able to take a giant's slash head-on without budging."
Then at Sanji. "You'd move freely thousands of meters under the sea, ignoring water pressure."
Finally, his gaze returned to Luffy.
"As long as the qi within us doesn't disperse, all physical attacks—and most energy-based ones—will be meaningless."
"We'll become true—living weapons!"
"SO COOL!!"
Luffy was practically drooling, eyes blazing.
"I wanna train! I want that indestructible body!"
"Indestructible…"
Zoro murmured the words again, his voice carrying a faint tremor from sheer excitement.
As a swordsman, he pursued ultimate offense—but he knew better than anyone how vital a strong body was.
With an unbreakable physique, he could carry even more domineering sword intent… unleash slashes beyond human limits.
"Ronan," Zoro growled, fingers digging into his sword hilt, eyes burning like a starving beast.
"What do we need to do?"
Luffy and Sanji stared at Ronan just as intently.
Luffy might be carefree, but his desire to grow stronger was almost instinctive.
Ronan surveyed the three of them, drew a deep breath, and the qi within him subtly surged with his breathing, producing a faint rumble like distant thunder.
"Then we accelerate the third stage of the Thirteen Guardians' Iron Body—Tempering a Single Breath Within."
His voice turned solemn.
"Our qi has already formed, but it's still only drifting between skin, flesh, and organs."
"To trigger a true transformation, we must borrow external force—using the heavenly treasures of this prehistoric island to forcibly impact our meridians."
"What we're going to do is ignite our qi and blood, break open the Ren and Du meridians, and form a full Great Circulation within the body."
Ronan traced a circle in the air with one finger.
"Once the Great Circulation is established, qi will flow endlessly, like surging rivers."
"As long as that breath remains unbroken—even steel, flames, or Haki won't be able to breach our defense."
"That is—Indestructible."
"Ren and Du meridians? Great Circulation?"
Luffy tilted his head. He didn't understand the terms, but he caught the result.
"So basically… I'll be super hard, right!"
"Exactly." Ronan nodded, then began assigning tasks.
"Luffy, your task is the simplest—but also the heaviest."
He pointed at the towering ancient trees around them.
"Go cut wood. We need an enormous amount of fuel to maintain extreme heat."
"These trees are rich in oil and burn at extremely high temperatures. The more the better. Pile it up—I want a bonfire that can burn for a full day and night!"
"Oh! Leave it to me!"
Luffy pulled his straw hat down, arms stretching out to grab two distant trees at once.
"Gum-Gum—Whirling Axe!!"
"Zoro. Sanji."
Ronan turned to them. "You have two tasks. First—find a massive piece of fire-resistant rock and carve it with your blades into a giant stone cauldron big enough to hold the four of us."
"Second…"
A cold glint flashed in Ronan's eyes.
"Go hunt the strongest creatures on this island. Not ordinary beasts—but the apex rulers at the top of the food chain."
"We need the blood from between their brows, and the bone marrow from their spines, as catalysts. The life essence of these prehistoric creatures is the best material for marrow cleansing."
"The strongest creatures, huh?"
Zoro grinned savagely. "Sounds fun."
"Perfect. I also want to test how destructive these legs are now."
Sanji exhaled a smoke ring, eyes sharp.
"If it's for a catalyst, then we naturally choose the freshest and most ferocious ingredients."
"Good. Move out."
Ronan waved his hand.
"I'll search for spirit medicines on this island. One hour from now—rendezvous here."
Whoosh—!
Several figures shot off in different directions, vanishing into the untamed jungle.
...
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