“That’s not how you practice the sword!” Smoker said.
“You understand swordsmanship?” Lucas sheathed his blade and asked in return.
“A little!
Just a little!” Smoker said modestly, though looking at his expression, it was clearly anything but modest.
But Lucas didn’t continue asking; he still felt that what Rear Admiral Gion had told him to practice was absolutely correct.
After all, she was a Great Swordsman, and he already possessed Gale Swordsmanship, so he didn’t need guidance from this little white-haired guy, Smoker.
At this moment, Smoker was all prepared to accept Lucas’s request for advice, but Lucas had nothing more to say.
It was like he had just gotten excited and then suddenly stopped—it was very frustrating!
“Hey, since you’re asking so sincerely, I’ll give you some pointers,” Smoker said.
Hearing this, Lucas was full of questions.
What did I ask?
“As for swordsmanship, besides practicing the basics well, you also need to find an opponent, otherwise, you’ll never know your own shortcomings!
Wait for me.” Smoker said, then ran off.
A moment later, he came back holding a wooden sword.
“Come on, let’s spar.
I, this great master, accept your challenge and will give you some proper pointers,” Smoker said righteously.
Hearing this, Lucas’s heart stirred.
Gion had also said that when practicing swordsmanship, one must find an opponent, preferably one stronger than oneself.
Didn’t you see the moss-head Zoro constantly challenging his senior sister?
After setting out to sea, he even went around challenging powerful opponents everywhere.
But what if he accidentally killed the little white-haired guy with a Steel Tempest?
During this period of practice, he had become relatively capable of using the simplest Steel Tempest.
Then I won’t use Steel Tempest first, I’ll just use basic swordsmanship, Lucas thought, saying: “Come on!”
Then he slowly raised his wooden sword.
Through actual combat, he could just happen to absorb the swordsmanship knowledge Gion had taught him, bit by bit.
However, as soon as they engaged, Lucas knew he was done for.
After three strikes, he was poked in the chest by Smoker’s wooden sword.
A total defeat!
Smoker, after all, had specifically practiced swordsmanship; there was no comparison to Lucas’s half-baked knowledge.
At most, the time Gion had spent teaching him hadn’t exceeded five days.
“Again!” Lucas said.
…
Time flew by, and another month passed.
By this time, Lucas and the others had increased their laps from fifty to eighty.
“Bang, bang, bang, bang!”
Early in the morning, on a patch of grass, Lucas and Smoker were engaged in a fierce duel with wooden swords.
Neither of them used their Devil Fruit abilities, and likewise, Lucas did not use Gale Swordsmanship.
Hina, Shuzo, and Shu were watching from the side.
Lucas’s growth was astonishing.
At the beginning, he was completely no match for Smoker in swordsmanship, but now the two were able to trade blows back and forth.
Although Lucas still lost consistently, Smoker was finding it increasingly difficult.
Finally, Lucas knocked the wooden sword out of Smoker’s hand with a single strike.
“Smoker, you lost!” Lucas said.
This was the first time Lucas had defeated Smoker.
At the same time, a system notification appeared in Lucas’s ears.
[Congratulations to the host for breaking through to E-rank in overall combat power.
You can now draw once!]
[Name: Saris Lucas (Logia Forest-Forest Fruit)]
[Age: 15]
[Height: 170]
[Physical Strength: ★★☆]
[Swordsmanship: ★]
[Devil Fruit Ability: ★]
[Haki: None]
[Skills: Gale Swordsmanship (Beginner)]
[Combat Power: E]
During this time, Lucas hadn’t spent much time training his Devil Fruit ability, but the improvement in his Physical Strength, combined with relentless training, caused his passive Photosynthesis Ability to constantly improve as well, which in turn slightly enhanced Lucas’s aptitude.
Moreover, the strengthening of his Devil Fruit ability made him feel, in some inexplicable way, that his connection to the surrounding trees had also increased.
“Draw!”
As Lucas chose to draw, various ability cards flashed by quickly, finally stopping on a green skill.
[Congratulations to the host for obtaining the ability: Plant Mutation.
The host can use their ability to make certain plants grow according to their imagination, achieving a massive mutation effect.]
This ability was very practical; it directly boosted Lucas’s combat power by a large margin.
For instance, if he manipulated a vine, he could make it grow thorns or imbue it with blood-sucking or poisonous effects.
He could also control a large tree to grow into a humanoid shape, etc.
However, at the current stage, Lucas was still weak and needed continuous practice.
Lucas had long planned it out: the towering Beanstalks on Sky Island, as well as the yarukiman mangrove on the Sabaody Archipelago, the giant ancient trees of Elbaf, the Treasure Tree Adam, and the Sunlight Tree Eve.
These were all Lucas’s targets.
Among them, the yarukiman mangrove on the Sabaody Archipelago was key, because only the yarukiman mangrove could grow in seawater.
However, now that Lucas had the mutation ability, perhaps other plants would also possess the ability to grow in the sea!
These things still needed to be tested.
Secondly, the Sunlight Tree Eve—that was the largest tree in the world of the Pirate King, and it possessed the ability to breathe underwater.
It was also one of Lucas’s more important targets.
As for the Treasure Tree Adam, for defense, no tree was more suitable than it.
“Wow, Lucas, you’re amazing!
You actually defeated Smoker,” Hina exclaimed at this moment.
She had witnessed how Lucas had walked step-by-step from a novice; this speed of improvement was simply astonishing.
“What’s the big deal?
I was just careless.
Let’s spar again,” Smoker said unconvinced.
“I’m not fighting you anymore.
It’s time for breakfast.
If you want to challenge me, do it tomorrow!” Leaving these words behind, Lucas hummed an unknown tune and walked toward the cafeteria.
Lucas’s reversal of roles was extremely fast, with the full demeanor of a victor.
Previously, it had always been him challenging Smoker.
“Ah…
I’ll fight you to the end!” Smoker felt so angry, so angry.
Finally, unable to contain his frustration, white smoke surged over his body as he charged toward Lucas.
“Smoker, Instructor Zephyr said we can’t use Devil Fruit abilities right now,” Shuzo, who was from the Longarm Tribe, reminded him considerately.
Hearing this, Smoker clenched his fists and finally said: “I’ll make you pay tomorrow, black-hair.”
“I’ll be waiting for you, white-hair!” Lucas said without turning his head.
While walking toward the cafeteria, Lucas glanced to the side, where the silent Vergo was watching them.
As an undercover agent sent by Doflamingo, Vergo was very silent and difficult to interact with.
Hina had taken the initiative to talk to him several times, but Vergo was indifferent and kept his distance.
Lucas guessed that Vergo was afraid of accidentally exposing the habits he had picked up from Doflamingo, so he kept his distance from everyone.
…
After hurriedly eating breakfast, Lucas and the others gathered on the training ground.
By now, they had begun to assemble separately from the other trainees.