“It was just a fluke…”,“Also, Zephyr-sensei, you recognize this blade, don’t you?” Gern’s voice was calm, but his gaze was fixed on Zephyr’s every subtle expression.
Even with Zephyr, Gern didn’t dare to gamble at this moment…
Hearing Gern’s words, Zephyr didn't answer the question but slowly placed the tray on the table.
After a moment of silence, he walked directly to black blade eight desolations, then reached out and gripped the hilt, lifting it, his expression extremely serious as he carefully examined the blade’s edge.
“Rocks’s blade, how could I not recognize it.” Zephyr’s tone was flat, yet tinged with a hint of complexity.
Hearing this, Gern’s fingertips tightened slightly, but his face remained unperturbed.
Zephyr casually swung Eight Desolations, the blade cutting through the air with a faint hum.
Then, he suddenly chuckled, “Rocks is dead. You picked up his weapon at God Valley, didn’t you?
At that time, after Roger and Garp severely wounded Rocks at God Valley, the God’s Knights escorted the Celestial Dragons away.
The World Government also directly left him alone to face the subsequent Buster Call that would destroy the island, leaving him to fend for himself…
Don’t worry! You never saw Rocks the entire time, so what does this have to do with you?”
“It has a lot to do with it!” Gern’s expression stiffened, thinking to himself.
“Rocks was personally unearthed and buried by me, and this blade was given to me by him personally. Do you think I’m nervous or not?!”
But on the surface, Gern merely said indifferently, “Sensei, does this really not matter?”
“Sigh.” Zephyr sighed, his gaze returning to the blade.
“Rocks’s blade isn’t something just anyone can use.”
Before he finished speaking, Zephyr suddenly wrapped Armament Haki around Eight Desolations’s blade.
However, the moment the Haki touched the blade, an anomaly occurred.
“Buzz!” The blade trembled violently, dark red patterns suddenly lit up, and a violent repulsive force erupted from the blade, Zephyr’s Armament Haki was actually forced away!
At the same time, the hand holding the blade released it as if electrocuted, and Eight Desolations fell to the ground with a “clang,” its tip embedded in the floor, swaying slightly.
“This…” Gern watched this miraculous scene, his pupils slightly contracting.
Since acquiring Eight Desolations, he hadn’t let anyone else use it, never expecting it had this function!
“The Supreme Grade Swords - Twelve Supreme Blades, each one is an extraordinary existence, and each had its own name during its forging.
Only this one doesn’t…” Zephyr said slowly, with a hint of relief in his tone.
Gern listened to Zephyr’s words, silent for a moment, then stood up and pulled out Eight Desolations. The familiar sense of resonance surged through him again as the hilt entered his hand.
“Sensei, aren’t you going to ask me why I hid him?” Gern asked in a low voice.
“Isn’t that nonsense?” Zephyr shook his head, sat back down in his chair, and took a bite of the bread from his tray.
“If I picked up Rocks’s personal blade, and it was a Supreme Grade Swords - Twelve Supreme Blades, I’d hide it too!”
Gern: “Zephyr-sensei, your sudden answer makes me look like a fool.”
“However…” Zephyr paused, his sharp gaze fixed on Gern.
“What I’m actually interested in is, why did this blade choose you?
After all, a blade can be picked up, but whether it can be used is another matter.
Moreover, this is a Black Blade forged by Rocks using his own Conqueror's Haki, the only masterpiece of that man’s life.
It is also the only Black Blade in the world forged with Conqueror's Haki.”
“Forged with Conqueror's Haki?!” Hearing Zephyr’s words, Gern subconsciously looked down at Eight Desolations, the patterns on the blade gradually subsiding.
“No wonder you were able to perfectly guide my Conqueror's Haki back then…”
Then, Gern recalled the trade Rocks mentioned that day at God Valley, his eyes subconsciously darkening.
“Perhaps it’s…,” Gern slowly raised his eyes and said softly, “because of the wisdom of the working people.”
Zephyr: “…”
No, this blade was indeed obtained by Gern through his own labor!
Funeral services are also labor! Although it was quite easy.
Gern’s answer was absurd, but Zephyr couldn’t detect any hint of a lie, as if his disciple was answering truthfully.
“Forget it.” After a while, Zephyr walked to the window, looking out at the surging waves in the distance.
“Regardless, that one strike of yours has made the world remember your name.
But remember, fame is a double-edged sword.”
Gern gripped the hilt tightly, his gaze firm: “I understand, Zephyr-sensei.”
“Mm. Now, let’s talk about your Conqueror's Haki.” Zephyr suddenly changed the subject, his sharp gaze directly on Gern.
“Why were you able to use Haki Infusion directly back then? And what was that strike, 'God’s Fall', all about?”
“Haki Infusion…” Gern was stunned. To be honest, he was still a bit confused.
The reason he unleashed that strike at the time was entirely because that movement kept appearing in his mind, and then his body just moved.
“When your Conqueror's Haki awakened, your performance wasn’t like a novice.” Zephyr’s voice carried a hint of solemnity, and that scene reappeared before his eyes.
Gern stood with his blade, Conqueror's Haki sweeping across the battlefield like a raging tide, even suppressing Golden Lion.
That kind of almost max-level Conqueror's Haki, even the current Sengoku and Garp might not be able to achieve.
Recalling it now, Zephyr still felt a lingering fear.
“I’m not very sure…” Gern shook his head, then looked at Eight Desolations in his hand and suddenly said, “How about we try again?”
“Try!” Zephyr subconsciously nodded.
Receiving Zephyr’s nod, Gern forced himself to calm down, then felt the black blade eight desolations in his hand.
Then, then… it was eerily quiet…
“Ahem? Haki Infusion! God’s Fall! Haki Infusion!” Gern wildly swung the blade, the blade cutting through the air with “swish swish” sounds.
But the purple-black lightning from that day was nowhere to be seen, only silence remained…
“How about you try the most basic Conqueror's Haki intimidation?” Zephyr frowned.
“Okay.” Gern nodded, then stared wide-eyed at Zephyr for a full three minutes.
“Hmm. It’s confirmed.” Zephyr took a deep breath, even a slight smile playing on his lips.
“I really thought you had awakened max-level Conqueror's Haki.
Now it seems you’re just like everyone else who just awakened… a rookie.”
And Gern, who had just experienced that world-dominating power not long ago, now felt like a stumbling infant.
A huge sense of disparity washed over him like a tide, making it a bit hard to accept.
“Zephyr-sensei…” His voice unconsciously carried a hint of grievance.
“Don’t look at me with those pitiful eyes!” Zephyr waved his hand impatiently.
“I don’t have Conqueror's Haki! Go back and find Garp yourself!!”
“Okay~_~”
“And! That strike of yours that hit Golden Lion…” Looking at his dispirited disciple, Zephyr stopped at the door before leaving, his tone suddenly serious.
“It was entirely due to the residual Rocks Haki within your blade combining with your Conqueror's Haki to lock down and suppress Golden Lion,
as well as him losing his focus and forgetting to defend due to his inner fear.
Combined with your max-level state during your awakening, it was the result of multiple factors that created that strike.
Don’t you dare actually think you can deal with this level of existence on your own!”
Zephyr was truly worried Gern would get carried away!
For instance, thinking he could seriously wound Golden Lion with one strike, then go around the seas looking for Whitebeard and Roger to challenge.
“I understand, Zephyr-sensei.” Gern nodded seriously.
“Also, that Golden Lion fellow won’t let this go.
After you go back, stay quietly at headquarters for a while. I’ll apply for your leave with the Fleet Admiral.”
“Leave?!”
“That’s right. This is a good opportunity for you to re-familiarize yourself with Conqueror's Haki. And wasn’t that blade forged by Rocks using Conqueror's Haki?
Since it acknowledges you, perhaps you can also use Conqueror's Haki to slowly shape it into your own.”
“Zephyr-sensei, please don’t say things that can be easily misunderstood with such a serious expression.”
...
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