The infinite sword system has been mastered, and you say this is the dragon clan?

Chapter 438 Have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?

Bartholomew suddenly had a bad feeling.

Just as he found the Argo and was about to land on a nearby island, he noticed several unfriendly gazes fixed on him from the opposite ship.

Oh no, did someone overhear me when I was bragging? That familiar feeling of suddenly finding myself in an awkward situation.

But now that things have come to this point, a hero can't just run away from the battlefield!

Just kidding. What kind of hero is he, a veteran pirate? After all, he has already signed a contract and staked his entire fortune. If he fails to complete it, he won't get any reward from Red.

Bartholomew pondered whether these Argonaut heroes could be as terrifying as that mysterious red-haired man. Besides, he himself had a card that wasn't exactly a trump card—the "key," which was enough to create an equal deterrent against the other side. Thinking of this, his courage suddenly began to rise again.

"Good day, heroes of the Argonauts. I am Barthalom Roberts."

Standing on the floating ship, he gracefully removed his hat and bowed to everyone from the bow, saying, "I have long admired your illustrious reputations on the bountiful seas of the South, and thus I have come here specifically to pay you a visit, hoping to witness the brilliance of these ancient heroes."

“Hmph, all that hypocritical politeness,” Katniss said dismissively. “I thought I had just heard someone saying bad things about Argo!”

Hercules also growled at Bartholomew.

“Heh,” Bartholomew sized up these powerful Servants, having learned his lesson this time, and began to try to maintain his composure. “Perhaps his subordinates are just ignorant and talking nonsense.”

Ah, this sentence seems familiar.

"That can't be right! Captain, we didn't—"

"Quiet!"

Only the heroic spirits are allowed to sit at the table and talk. You all shut up and sit at the table with the mortals!
Bartholomew first turned to stop his sailors from getting aroused, then said, “Heroes of the Argonauts, let me get straight to the point—I’ve come here not only to test whether your prowess matches the legends, but also for the ‘key’.”

"Tsk! You should have said so earlier. Another one trying to steal the 'Golden Fleece'," Katniss spat.

These days, there are plenty of brainless pirates. Their Argo is quite famous in the South Blue. Some unknown news has spread that every now and then, some small pirate crews come here to plunder. They wipe them out one by one.

What was the size of the Argonauts, who were so famous in Greek mythology? What was the size of you bunch of country bumpkin pirates, who are you even begging for food here?
Bartholomew remained unmoved. "I prefer to call it a challenge with equal stakes."

"bet……"

At this moment, Medea gripped her wand tightly and whispered a warning, "Be careful. The other party is saying this so openly, they must have something to rely on, and they may also possess the 'key' like us."

She didn't see any magical incantations involving levitation on that airship, meaning it was probably maintained by something like divine authority, but that Bartholomew didn't look like a god; he was most likely the holder of the key.

Medea then poked Jason with her long wand. "Lord Jason, the other side may have the 'key'. You should prepare to go."

Jason, who was just about to retreat behind the crowd, tensed up: "..."

She said I could go, but what if I don't want to go?
Katniss then kicked Jason, saying, "Hey, Captain! This is a direct challenge; it's up to you to decide whether to accept it or not."

The twins fell silent upon hearing this, seemingly observing from the sidelines. Hercules, on the other hand, looked at Jason with an "encouraging" gaze, though from Jason's perspective, that fierce look was nothing short of a threat.

Damn it, my authority as captain is nonexistent! You've completely usurped my power!
“I am Jason, captain of the Argo,” Jason said, stepping forward on the deck with a blustering but cowardly air. “What do you want to wager?”

“As expected of the renowned Jason,” Bartholomew considered Jason a great senior figure in the field of navigation. “It’s actually quite simple. You can all guess what the bet is—a key, and the challenger…”

He carefully examined the dozen or so people who were gradually emerging from the Argo, and all of them were Servants. His heart sank deeper and deeper into despair.

This is bad; this idea is tricky.

Or, why don't we just find someone decent and send them a challenge?
“Wait a minute,” Jason thought, seeing that Bartholomew seemed to want to rely on the power of the ‘key’ to choose his opponent. “We are the ones being challenged. You can make a bet and issue a challenge, but shouldn’t we set the rules?”

"For example, if you don't use the 'key,' you need to select someone else on our side besides the key holder. Or if you intend to use the key, then we can use it too, and everyone on both sides must participate... Don't blame us for deploying the entire Argo."

Jason felt a slight surge of joy after speaking. He was the key holder, which meant he was unlikely to be forced into a dangerous situation where he had to charge ahead. "In short, we guarantee that we will not be the first to use the key."

Bartholomew thought to himself, "Without the elemental power brought by the key, what's the point of fighting you ancient heroes?" "No, of course I'll use it—"

An invisible gale suddenly arose over the bountiful South China Sea, bringing with it clusters of dark clouds.

"You should have said that earlier and it would have been fine!"

Start playing!
Katniss's inflated aura of high morale and the strong blessing of the sea god spread out, causing the vast ocean to tremble and the waves to surge. She leaped up and stood on the sea surface, brandishing her spear. She commanded the waters and waves to surge and rush forward like the sea god Poseidon, and she moved forward at high speed, creating a huge wall of tsunami water!
"Hey... this overflowing divinity is almost like that of a god. What exactly is the relationship between this woman and the sea god...?"

Sensing the ever-increasing, powerful aura, Bartholomew's ominous premonition came true. "Wait a minute, are you starting already? The rules still need to be discussed and considered..."

"Are you misunderstanding something? Let me remind you, you're the challenger!"

Before Bartholomew could take his next step, Jason on the other side had already activated a power similar to the earth elemental authority of his key, causing a huge rock peak to rise out of thin air in the sea. A burly black man ran rapidly up the ever-rising rock peak, charging straight towards him!

“Fortunately, I have air superiority.” Bartholomew decided to play it safe this time, not to be defeated instantly by Shanks like before. Facing the giant waves and rocky peaks, he said, “Rise here.”

The entire ship seemed to leap away and disappear from the spot, rising into the sky the next second, with strong winds whipping up dark clouds.

But the Argonauts' offensive was far from over.

Bartholomew saw a purple-haired magician standing beside Jason, who, with a wave of his hand, revealed hundreds of magic arrays that had already been set up on the island. Countless purple and white magic light bullets rose against the current, forming a dense barrage that covered all directions.

He quickly accelerated the ship again, and the wind, protecting it, made the Svoro soar through the sky like a light bird.

But then a green-haired, animal-eared girl leaped out of the Argo and shot a radiant arrow into the sky, shouting, "—Complaint Arrow!"

"what!"

Bartholomew sensed the threat above and hurriedly looked up, only to see the clouds and rain he had summoned instantly disperse, revealing a huge circular hole in the center. Immediately afterward, a dense storm of arrows, like a shower of starlight and fire, roared down from above! He never expected that the heroes of Argonauts were so talented, possessing both melee, ranged, and aerial combat skills!
This dazzling barrage of arrows and Medea's magic projectiles below formed a clever synergy, effectively blocking Bartholomew's numerous opportunities to maneuver and dodge—after all, such a large ship was too conspicuous a target.

Bartholomew decided to push the elemental authority further. The wind element was light, unstable, and fast. He had experienced operating the authority at its highest speed before. At that time, he felt that time around him slowed down by tens or hundreds of times, and even caused his spirit base to feel a significant burning sensation several times.

Now he has decided to replicate this extreme speed, which is like the zero time of the Word of Power.

However, the injuries he sustained from being attacked by Shanks not long ago would have a significant impact... Whatever, if he didn't do this, he would really be overwhelmed by a massive barrage of attacks. He was already in poor condition, unless he wanted to be worn down by the barrage of attacks here.

hum-

The wind element expanded rapidly, and Bartholomew, along with the entire ship, entered a high-speed zone. The rapidly flying light arrows and magic bullets flew towards him but were incredibly slow. Only he could continue to escape at high speed in the sky. As expected, a burning sensation of excruciating pain arose deep within his spirit core...

Although it was faster, it came at a corresponding cost.

It's okay, as long as I can fly out of this barrage of bullets, as long as I can reach that place... it's all worth it!
"That's it!"

The ship sped along alone, traversing the scattered, slow-moving rain of light bullets, sailing freely and gracefully in this high-speed world. However, two golden lights suddenly appeared, abruptly stopping its course.

The god of Gemini appeared at the bow of the ship at some point. Castor stepped forward from behind his sister and sneered, "We are gods, and stars. You actually intend to defy the light."

Pollux lightly swung his gleaming divine sword as well, "...Poor pirate, have you ever been attacked at the speed of light?"

"This...impossible! It's gods again..." Bartholomew was utterly astonished. There were multiple gods on the Argo, and they could move freely within the high-speed domain, or perhaps...

They themselves possess the ability to travel at a higher speed than our side!

Speed ​​is power!
"Crush them!" Castor's weapon flashed, and Poluk's lightsaber danced as the brother and sister declared in unison.

Boom! The entire hull of the Svoro was as if it had been subjected to a thousand cuts of light, and was instantly dismembered and pulverized high in the sky!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"My heroes and valiant warriors of Agor, will you release me?"

A moment later, Bartholomew, who was completely bound, said helplessly.

"Mr. Pirate, where's your key? Yours should be 'Wind,' right?" Medea questioned, holding up her wand.

"Don't waste your time. I was sent here by someone. My 'key' has already been given to that person. You can't get it."

"It's actually true, there's a powerful contract binding it." Medea tried to interfere with the other party's spirit origin but failed.

Katniss was indignant. "What the hell? This is like fighting for nothing."

“Fool, no matter what, we’ve made a huge new discovery,” Castor said, arms crossed. “The person behind this pirate sent him to get the key, so that person must also have other keys.”

Medea agreed, "Yes, we were worried about the materials for making a replica of the key, but it's good to have a ready-made clue now."

Bartholomew remained silent, but the moment he lost, he contacted Shanks to inform him. If Argo were to come looking for him, it would be exactly what they wanted.

"It's so noisy. You guys always make a huge commotion during your battles. Routine greeting—is anyone injured?"

A silver-haired youth, shrouded in a black robe and carrying a snake staff, walked onto the deck.

“It’s you, Asclepius!” Medea waved her hand. “This is an important prisoner. Please treat him, as the ship’s doctor.”

Asclepius… Bartholomew’s heart skipped a beat. The Greek god of healing, celebrated by later generations? Yet another deity?
With the addition of Kayneth, blessed by the sea god; the twin gods who wield light; and the most renowned hero, Hercules, the Argonauts' lineup is truly...

"Is this an important prisoner? Did we obtain crucial intelligence?" Without hesitation, the God of Healing immediately stepped forward, for healing was his sacred duty.

“I have some information. I will use magic to make the information more detailed.” Medea noticed that this Servant’s Magic Resistance level was very low, and even the elemental authority brought by the key could not strengthen the Servant’s Spirit Origin. As a genius magician, she had plenty of methods and could pry open Bartholomew’s mouth without physical interrogation.

"Then, Lord Jason, we can continue our voyage in search of the Golden Fleece!"

“This, this is indeed a wonderful thing!” Jason wiped his sweat and agreed.

He had a feeling that things were going too smoothly and that he was being set up, but seeing the crew so happy and excited that the clues to the Golden Fleece that they had been searching for for so long had finally come to him, Jason knew that if he directly rejected them at this moment, he would most likely get beaten up.

Damn it! When will we be able to restore the captain's glory?!
"Well, everyone, we still need to be careful. Let's not let the clues we're about to get slip away!"

Well, low emotional intelligence: be careful not to get carried away and crash when you can't beat the opponent.

High emotional intelligence: Be careful not to be reckless, lest the other side get away.

……

Half a day later, Argo left the South China Sea and headed north, relying on intelligence obtained from Bartholomew.

Then, they saw in the distance a large number of demonic pillar monsters with bodies as huge as giant peaks in the sea, casting shadows that blotted out the sky and scorching rays, and a group of Servants who were bombarding them with an abnormally strong aura of spirit origin.

[Phase Two of the Plan – The Great Pirate Era Championship Officially Begins!]

In the New World, the latter half of the Grand Line, countless people have mastered Haki techniques, and those possessing Conqueror's Haki are as numerous as fish in a river! Haki is the foundation of strength!

Want to know the secrets of the final island? Want to obtain the legendary treasure? Young and brave navigators, come and sign a contract, experience the wonders of powerful training, and together uncover the truth of the legend!

After reading the subtitles that suddenly appeared in the air, the heroes on the ship, who had been completely taken aback by the new concept, were all stunned. "What is all this...?"

(End of this chapter)