Under the starlight cast by Qiu Xia, the blackish-gray gas clinging to the fragmented Devil Fruit began to dissipate as if it had met its natural enemy. Every trace of mindless, residual malice was purified beneath the celestial glow. Before long, the eerie fruit vanished, leaving behind nothing but a shriveled apple.
"It actually works. My mana can purify the curse on a Devil Fruit. I wonder if it can only cleanse the curse after the energy has been consumed, or if it can purify the fruit itself. If I encounter an ability user, could my mana purify their curse as well? It's a pity there aren't many people or Devil Fruits around here; otherwise, I'd certainly put it to the test."
The only thing of value on the island was the Devil Fruit. Now that Qiu Xia had consumed its essence, he had no reason to linger. He felled a few large trees, carved them into the shape of a vessel, and assembled them into a boat.
Once the "197" boat was complete, Qiu Xia did not set sail immediately. Instead, he used his mana to temper the vessel with Divine Manufacture, refining the boat into a Magic Tool.
The trees on this island were nearly a century old and contained traces of spiritual energy, ensuring that any Magic Tool crafted from them would not be weak.
In the Inhuman World, Divine Manufacture could refine an object into a Magic Tool in mere seconds. Qiu Xia's version of the technique was far more potent; within a few breaths, the wooden boat had been elevated beyond a standard Magic Tool into a Spiritual Tool.
Though it looked little different from before, the boat was now so resilient that even a direct bombardment from cannonballs might not leave a scratch. Of course, this referred to the cannons of this world, not those of a modern one the firepower of a technological world was on an entirely different level compared to the black powder weapons of the One Piece World.
With the boat refined, Qiu Xia hopped aboard and began his voyage. Having just arrived in the One Piece World without a map, he had no idea where he was, so he simply picked a direction and sailed. To pass the time, he began to study his newly acquired hammer ability.
He transformed the hammer in his hand into the Clear Sky Hammer, then Mjolnir, and even various high-tech heavy hammers. He didn't know what the original effects of the Hammer-Hammer Fruit were supposed to be,
but under the influence of his mana, his hammer could convert into any elemental form. Even the Clear Sky Hammer could be infused with elements or transformed into a hammer of starlight.
On the fifth day of drifting at sea, he finally spotted another vessel. The ship's bow resembled a bull's head, and the craft was massive large enough to cram a thousand people if necessary. However, Qiu Xia's Divine Sense told him there were only a few dozen people on board.
Wanting to figure out his location, Qiu Xia steered his boat toward them. The two parties met quickly. From a distance, Qiu Xia could see men sitting on the deck, guzzling wine and tearing into large chunks of meat.
The strongest presence among them was a red-haired young man. He was missing an arm, and three distinct scars marked the corner of his eye.
While Qiu Xia observed the youth and his crew, they were observing him in return. Although he was technically not even ten years old, the tempering of his divine body and the baptism he received after breaking through to the rank of Celestial Master made him look like a boy of thirteen or fourteen. His features, already top-tier, had been further enhanced, making him look even more striking than before.
"What a handsome little brother!"
"Excuse me, may I come aboard to ask a few questions?" Qiu Xia asked politely.
The red-haired youth chuckled. "Of course. Lucky, go lower a rope and let the lad up."
"No need to go through the trouble." Seeing that the redhead had agreed, Qiu Xia smiled. He tapped the tip of his toe against his boat and took off as if weightless, gliding through the air until he landed softly on the larger ship.
The redhead and his crew were stunned by the display. To be honest, jumping from one boat to another was something even an intern could do, but to do it with such effortless grace was another matter entirely. Only a handful of people on their ship could manage that level of exquisite power control.
"It's a pleasure to meet you all. My name is Qiu Xia. May I ask how to address you?" Although Qiu Xia was already certain of their identities, he still asked for the sake of formality.
"I'm Shanks, the captain of this ship. This is my first mate, Benn Beckman, and this is Yasopp..."
After introducing the crew, Shanks looked at Qiu Xia and asked, "Lad, now that you know we're pirates, aren't you afraid?"
Qiu Xia replied calmly, "Strictly speaking, you don't count as pure pirates. You're more like half-adventurers, half-pirates. Real pirates are the kind who kill, burn, and pillage."
One of the crew members laughed. "Captain, this kid says we aren't real pirates!"
"He's right," Shanks agreed. "By his standards, we aren't pure pirates honestly, even Whitebeard wouldn't count. You're an interesting one, lad."
"Pardon the intrusion, but these are some specialties from my hometown. If you don't mind, please have a taste!" Qiu Xia waved his hand, and a mountain of fruit suddenly appeared on the deck, piling up until that side of the ship was nearly full.
Shanks and the others watched with flickering eyes. Benn Beckman spoke up, "Lad, are you a user of a Space-Space Fruit?"
Qiu Xia shook his head. "No. This is the storage capacity of a Space Ring I refined myself. I keep the fruit inside the ring. This is it." He pointed to the ring on his finger.
"This tiny ring can store so much? Truly unbelievable. Lad, do you have any spare Space Rings?"
"I only have this one on me. However, if I have the materials, I can make more."
"You can actually make these?"
"To be precise, I made this one myself. You can check it out; just use your mental energy to perceive the inside." As he spoke, Qiu Xia pulled the ring off his finger and tossed it to Beckman.
Qiu Xia's actions didn't mean he was entirely without caution. Even though he knew these characters from anime, he wasn't an idiot; he maintained a degree of vigilance.
He handed the ring over so freely because he was confident in his own strength. Furthermore, having an entire world at his disposal, a single Space Ring meant little to him.
Qiu Xia felt it was a fair trade to use one ring to test the character of the Red Hair Pirates.
The pirates were taken aback by his boldness. They wondered if the kid was truly that confident in his power or if he was simply incredibly naive. Weren't he afraid they wouldn't give such a treasure back? After all, they were pirates.
Beckman caught the ring and stood dazed for a long moment. He followed Qiu Xia's instructions, extending his mental energy into the ring. He discovered a space even larger than their entire ship. Inside, there were countless fruits, various plants, and medicinal herbs.
"The space inside is massive... it's bigger than the Red Force!"
Hearing Beckman's words, the crew of the Red Hair Pirates gasped. They never imagined a tiny ring could have such vast storage. If they had a ring like this, they could carry immense resources. They could even pack the entire ship into the ring upon reaching land, removing the need for guards.
At that thought, everyone's eyes lit up as they stared at the ring. Shanks, looking serious, took the ring from Beckman's hand. He sensed the interior with his own mental energy, then promptly handed it back to Qiu Xia.
"Little brother, you mustn't show this ring to others so casually. It is far too easy to provoke the greed in people's hearts."
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