Ronan moved alone through the dim jungle.
The vegetation here was so enormous it was suffocating—just the serrated edge of a random blade of grass could cut open an ordinary person's skin.
But to Ronan, this place was a vast treasure vault.
"The land's energy is abundant… even the air carries a faint sweetness."
He stopped before a purple lingzhi growing out of rotten wood.
It was as large as a washbasin, its surface flowing with patterns like a nebula, releasing a subtle, strange fragrance.
"Purple Cloud Lingzhi—at least eight hundred years old."
A sharp glint flashed in Ronan's eyes as he carefully harvested it and tucked it away.
"In my old world, this would be priceless beyond gold. And here it grows like weeds."
He pushed deeper in. With keen perception and mastery of medicinal principles, his gains were plentiful.
On a cliff face, he found a blood-red ginseng shaped like a coiling dragon—Thousand-Year Blood Dragon Ginseng, a sacred tonic for qi and blood.
In the center of a swamp, he plucked several ghostly blue lotus blossoms that radiated cold—Icefrost Snow Lotus, perfect for balancing the scorching heat of dinosaur blood.
"That should do it."
Looking at the bundle of spirit medicines filling his arms, Ronan smiled in satisfaction.
"With these, plus apex predator essence… this medicinal bath's effects will probably exceed even my expectations."
...
Meanwhile, deep on the other side of the jungle—
ROOOOAR—!!!
A tyrannosaurus over fifteen meters long bellowed in fury.
Its massive tail swept through the trees, snapping several thick trunks clean in half.
And yet, its eyes were filled with fear—locked onto a tiny green-haired human standing in front of it.
"Big body you've got," Zoro said coldly, Wado Ichimonji clenched between his teeth.
"Hope you can take a few cuts."
Facing this prehistoric apex predator, he didn't retreat for a second. If anything, he stepped in closer.
Enraged, the tyrannosaurus lunged with its jaws wide, a stench of blood and rot blasting forward. Dagger-like fangs gleamed—sharp enough to crush steel.
"Three-Sword Style: Tiger Hunt!!"
Zoro surged forward instead of back, moving like lightning as he met the charge head-on.
CLANG—!!
His blades struck the tyrannosaurus's hardened scales and threw off sparks like metal colliding.
But the beast had underestimated Zoro's power—especially the monstrous strength forged by his body-hardening training.
"Get… down!!"
Zoro's arm muscles bulged as he roared, forcing the tyrannosaurus's momentum to a halt.
Then all three swords slashed at once.
A terrifying cut tore through the scales along its neck—blood erupted in a violent spray.
The massive tyrannosaurus let out a dying wail and crashed to the ground, kicking up a storm of dust.
On the other side, Sanji had found his own prey—
A triceratops covered in heavy bone armor, its head crowned with three long, sharp horns.
"MOOO!!"
It charged like a heavy tank, the ground trembling violently under its hooves.
"That armor looks like a pain to kick through."
Sanji kept one hand in his pocket. At the instant the triceratops was about to ram him, he sprang into the air, drawing an elegant arc.
"First Cut!"
His dress shoe slammed into the triceratops's thick skull-plate with a dull impact.
The beast only shook its head. It didn't fall—if anything, it became more savage and drove forward again.
"Oh?" Sanji's eyes flickered with approval, then chilled. His right foot began spinning at high speed, friction building heat until a faint red glow appeared.
"If it's hard… then I'll smash it."
"Mutton—Full Force—Shatter Kick!!"
BOOM!!
That kick landed squarely on the triceratops's brow.
The terrifying internal force passed through the armor and shook straight into its brain. The multi-ton beast didn't even have time to scream—it rolled its eyes and collapsed unconscious.
...
When Ronan returned to the rendezvous point with a massive pack of spirit medicines, even he raised an eyebrow at what he saw.
A clearing had already been cleaned out completely by Luffy.
At the center stood a gigantic wood tower more than ten meters high—dense stacks of oil-rich, top-quality pine.
And perched at the top of that tower was an enormous stone bowl, as large as a small swimming pool.
It had clearly been carved from a single block of granite. Its cut surfaces were smooth as a mirror, carrying a sharp, lingering blade intent—undeniably Zoro's work.
Beside the stone bowl lay two mountains of flesh.
One was a tyrannosaurus with a massive slash across its neck.
The other was a triceratops with its forehead armor shattered.
Even unconscious, the two prehistoric rulers radiated oppressive ferocity from their hulking bodies.
Sanji stood at the rim of the stone bowl, checking the inside for smoothness.
Seeing Ronan return, he waved. "Hey, Ronan! Is it fine like this? This rock was insanely hard—Moss-Head ruined a bunch of slabs before he finally got it shaped."
"It's fine. Better than I expected."
Ronan leapt up onto the rim and inspected it. "With this thickness, it'll withstand long hours of high-temperature boiling."
Zoro leaned against the tyrannosaurus's body with his swords in his arms, trying to look cool—though his breathing was a little rough.
"So? These two good enough?"
Ronan glanced at the two beasts still giving off heat, felt the surging vitality within them, and nodded with satisfaction.
"Tyrannosaurus and triceratops—one offense, one defense. Violent bloodlines. Excellent. More than enough for us."
"Heh." Sanji hopped down, lit a cigarette, and shot Zoro a provoking look.
"Ronan, you tell him. Mine's bigger, right? That triceratops is definitely heavier."
Zoro snapped back instantly. "Hah? You blind, Curly-Brow? My tyrannosaurus is obviously bigger!"
"Bullshit! Triceratops have denser bones!"
"Mine's longer!"
As the two started to square up again, Ronan felt his head split into two.
"Enough! Is this really the time for that?" he said, rubbing his temples.
Just then, Luffy burst out of the trees, dragging the last massive log behind him. He flung it onto the pile like a javelin.
"Ronan! Look! Enough wood now?! I chopped down all the trees around here!"
"Good work, Luffy."
Ronan stared at the fully prepared setup, his gaze gradually sharpening.
Everything was ready.
All that remained was the spark.
"Sanji. Do it."
Ronan stepped between the two beasts and gave orders in a low voice.
"Draw their brow blood and heart blood. Brow blood gathers essence, heart blood gathers life."
"Only those two. Nothing else. Pour it all into the stone bowl."
"Got it."
Sanji instantly switched into top-class chef mode.
He produced a sharp kitchen knife from his waist and moved like lightning, cutting precisely into the beasts' brows and chests.
Their hides were thick and tough, but under Sanji's technique, the blade slid through like tofu.
SPLASH—!
Scalding red blood surged out like a fountain. Sanji caught it in several massive wooden barrels, then poured it into the stone bowl, one after another.
The blood was thick as mercury, radiating dense energy and a faint metallic tang.
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