Chapter 135: Extracting the Power of the Demon Fruit
Ian sheathed the Enma sword, letting out a long sigh as he tried to calm himself down.
The sights and experiences along the way had driven Ian to impulsively strike out at the Celestial Dragon just now. Only after killing the opponent did he suddenly realize that his situation was somewhat dire.
Beating a Celestial Dragon and killing a Celestial Dragon were two different concepts. The former might still have room for negotiation, but the latter...
For now, what was fortunate was that Ian had been sneaking in secretly, always wearing a mask. Even the slaves hadn't seen his true face, so his identity hadn't been exposed yet.
As long as he left here quickly, he might not be traced.
With that thought, Ian bent down and picked up the two small boxes on the floor.
These two small boxes were ornately decorated, and inside them were naturally the two Demon Fruits that the South Sea Pear Blossom Kingdom had tributed to the Celestial Dragons.
Demon Fruits were precious things to ordinary people, but to the Celestial Dragons, they were merely items for amusement. The Musgarud family had casually requested these two Demon Fruits, and their purpose was simply to satisfy their idiot son's curiosity—to see what would happen if someone ate two Demon Fruits at once.
If Ian hadn't shown up, the slave brought to the entertainment room would likely have been force-fed both Demon Fruits and exploded to death...
Gently opening the boxes, Ian saw the appearance of the two Demon Fruits inside.
The first box contained a pear-shaped fruit. This fruit was blue, with the same spiral patterns typical of Demon Fruits on its surface. The second fruit, however, resembled a strawberry—a large strawberry at that. This fruit was golden, and its spiral patterns were somewhat unusual; the patterns on its surface were three spirals combined together!
So when Ian saw this strawberry-like Demon Fruit, he immediately judged that this was probably the rare fruit!
In fact, it was completely impossible to determine what type of Demon Fruit it was based solely on its appearance. The common feature of Demon Fruits was the spiral patterns on their surfaces. Each appearance represented a corresponding ability, and no two identical Demon Fruits could exist in the world simultaneously—this was one of their characteristics: uniqueness.
Claims like bananas being Zoan, pineapples being Logia, and melons being Paramecia were completely unfounded. The most typical example might be Trafalgar Law's Surgery Fruit. That fruit was clearly Paramecia, but its shape was like a red heart. So judging a Demon Fruit's type by its appearance was simply unreliable.
Because of this uniqueness, scholars on the Grand Line had compiled a Demon Fruit Encyclopedia, recording the appearances and corresponding abilities of Demon Fruits that had appeared in history. However, it seemed that new types of Demon Fruits were constantly being born, so for fruits not recorded in the encyclopedia, they were generally named based on the abilities obtained. Before eating these unnamed fruits, their abilities couldn't be known.
The pear-shaped fruit might have been recorded in the Demon Fruit Encyclopedia, so it could be identified as a Zoan fruit. This strawberry-like Demon Fruit with its unusual appearance might be one not recorded in the encyclopedia. However, because it was rarer than Logia, it was judged to be the even rarer Zoan Mythical Zoan type.
Of course, this was just a possible inference. What it actually was would only be understood after someone ate it.
Ian reached out and picked up the golden strawberry-like Demon Fruit, intending to examine it closely. However, to his surprise, the system in his mind suddenly issued a warning.
"Detected conflicting energy system. Consumption by the host is not recommended!"
Ian was stunned. What was this about? He quickly asked the system.
"This item contains a special energy system. It can be obtained through consumption, but it will conflict with this system!"
Ian looked at the Demon Fruit in his hand, feeling a bit confused. To be honest, this was the first time he had actually held a Demon Fruit in his hands. Back then, Ace's Flame-Flame Fruit hadn't passed through his hands either, so he hadn't expected such a statement.
So he asked, "What consequences would the conflict cause?"
"Consequence One: This system's energy system prevails—no change! Consequence Two: The unknown energy system prevails—this system disappears! Consequence Three: This system's energy system and the unknown energy system neutralize—both disappear!"
Damn! Ian was startled by the three consequences listed by the system. He hadn't expected the consequences to be so severe.
For the first one, if the card system prevailed, there would indeed be no change. But the second was troublesome. If the Demon Fruit's power replaced the card system, it would mean Ian truly became a Demon Fruit user. While he would gain the corresponding ability, he would likely also become a land-lover.
The most severe was probably the third—the possibility that both energy systems would cancel each other out, leaving him with nothing at all!
Thinking even deeper, if this card system were considered a kind of Demon Fruit ability, then if Ian ate another Demon Fruit, it would be like having the power of two Demon Fruits inside his body!
Then the third scenario might have a one hundred percent chance of occurring, and Ian would end up like someone who ate two Demon Fruits—exploding to death!
With that thought, Ian couldn't help but shiver. Fortunately, he had originally planned to give this Mythical Zoan fruit to Kuina, so he hadn't bitten into it the moment he got it. This had indirectly saved his life!
"Not eating, not eating! I won't eat it!" Ian said to the system.
However, the system then said, "Cannot be consumed, but this system can extract some of its energy."
"What do you mean!?" Ian felt that communicating with the system was quite troublesome. Couldn't it have just said this from the start?
"This system can extract part of the energy from this special item to enhance the host's qualifications!" the system replied.
When it said that, Ian remembered that back when he was learning about the system, it had told him that Ian, as the host, could essentially be seen as a card. However, he was an initial one-star card, so every time he leveled up, he gained fewer attributes.
Back then, the system had said that special items could be used to increase the star rating of Ian's host card! Ian just hadn't expected that these so-called special items would actually be Demon Fruits!
He had always thought they would be items from the system shop...
Hearing the system say this, Ian became interested. He was well aware that the attributes he gained when leveling up had a one hundred percent bonus, which was different from the character cards he drew.
So he put down the Mythical Zoan Demon Fruit in his hand and picked up the pear-shaped Demon Fruit, asking the system, "Can this Demon Fruit also be extracted?"
"Yes!" the system replied. "However, this extraction has a limit. At most, it can extract and enhance the host's qualifications four times!"
Four times? That meant his host card could be upgraded to a five-star level? That wasn't much different from the star upgrades of cards.
"Does one enhancement require one such Demon Fruit?" Ian asked.
He needed to confirm this point. Otherwise, if the first enhancement only needed one fruit but later required more, where would he find too many Demon Fruits?
Fortunately, the system's answer relieved him. One enhancement only needed one Demon Fruit!
"Then, extract this fruit!" Ian said to the system, holding the pear-shaped Demon Fruit in his hands.
The Mythical Zoan Demon Fruit was precious, so it was better to leave it for Kuina to use. She could only eat one Demon Fruit anyway. As for the pear-shaped Demon Fruit in his hand, Ian couldn't sell it—it would be traced—so it was better to use it to enhance his own qualifications.
With Ian's confirmation, the pear-shaped Demon Fruit in his hand slowly began to turn into a wisp of green smoke, gradually disappearing.
After the Demon Fruit completely vanished, the system promptly sent a notification sound.
Ian's base attributes increased. Originally, when he leveled up, his strength and speed each increased by five points, totaling ten points per level, which was within the range of a one-star card. But now, each level would grant him ten points in strength and ten points in speed, totaling twenty points in attribute growth—the leveling effect of a two-star card.
Since Ian was now at level eleven, the system also made up for his attributes, causing his stats to rise significantly.
As his level continued to increase in the future, Ian's gains would become even greater.
Putting away the remaining Mythical Zoan fruit, he discarded the original boxes and found a small box in the treasure vault to store it. Then he took off his clothes, wrapped it up, and strapped it to his back.
After doing all this, Ian turned his gaze to the Berry bills and gold treasures in the vault.
They say that people don't get rich without windfall wealth, and horses don't get fat without night grass. Ian now truly understood the meaning of this saying. Although coming here to seize the Demon Fruits was a risky venture, seeing so much money made him feel that even if things went wrong and he was hunted, it would be worth it!
With so much money, if he relied solely on capturing pirates for bounties, how many years would that take!?
Rubbing his hands together, Ian rushed toward the treasures.
However, he didn't notice that the blood flowing from the Celestial Dragon's idiot son he had just killed was slowly seeping toward a spot on the floor marked with the Celestial Dragon crest... (To be continued...)