Pirates: Martial Arts Masters on the Straw Hat Ship

"Luffy, let me ask you something."

Ronan stared into Luffy's eyes. "To become the Pirate King, don't you need the strength to suppress all the powerful figures on this sea?"

"Whether it's the Seven Warlords of the Sea or a Marine Admiral."

"Of course!" Luffy answered without hesitation, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked. "I'm going to knock them all out of the house!"

"So what do you think...?"

Ronan pointed to the battlefield in the distance, which had been razed to the ground by the giants. "Now, facing a full-force attack from those two giants, could you emerge unscathed?"

"Or rather, has your skill truly placed you among the top tier in this vast ocean?"

Luffy fell silent.

Although he is confident, he is not stupid.

"I'm still far from good enough," Luffy said honestly, showing his self-awareness.

"very good."

Ronan's lips curled into a satisfied smile:

"Since you're so aware of this, then a golden opportunity is right before us—an opportunity that could fundamentally change our strength, even allowing us to leapfrog a whole new level!"

"Opportunity?"

Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji's eyes lit up instantly, like hungry wolves seeing meat.

"What opportunity?" Zoro's hand unconsciously reached for the hilt of his sword again.

Ronan glanced at the three men, slowly exhaled, and said, word by word:

"It is an opportunity to cultivate the 'Thirteen Protectors' Horizontal Training' to its highest level."

"The Thirteen Protectors...at their peak?" Zoro repeated. Although his physical body was powerful, it was clearly still far from the "peak" that Ronan spoke of.

"That's right."

Ronan opened his arms as if embracing the enormous island, "The medicinal herbs here, and the primal life essence from the marrow of those ferocious beasts..."

"These are all top-tier medicinal ingredients that are extremely rare and hard to come by! If we could use these resources for a deep 'marrow cleansing and bone tempering'..."

Ronan's voice deepened and became alluring: "It will allow us to cultivate a truly indestructible body!"

"Indestructible?!"

These four words seemed to possess a magical power, striking heavily into the hearts of the three.

"That is the ultimate state of perfect fusion of 'qi' and 'physical body'."

Ronan explained, "Once mastered, the Qi flows throughout the body, and every cell is filled with high-density energy."

"We will become some of the most physically gifted humans in the world!"

"The strongest physical talent..." Luffy's eyes sparkled. "That sounds so cool!!"

"Yes, the strongest."

Ronan continued to invest heavily, painting an alluring blueprint:

"At that time, unless you are a top-tier expert with overwhelming Armament Haki, ordinary swords, spears, and halberds will not even leave a white mark on your body."

It is impervious to water and fire, and has no effect on poison gas. Even…

Ronan glanced at Zoro: "He can even withstand a giant's slash without moving an inch."

He glanced at Sanji again: "He can even move freely at depths of several thousand meters, ignoring water pressure."

Finally, looking at Luffy, he said, "As long as the 'ki' within us doesn't dissipate, all physical attacks and most energy attacks will be ineffective against us."

"We will become true—humanoid weapons!"

"Sogonis!! (That's amazing!)"

Luffy's mouth was practically watering, and his eyes were gleaming with intense light. "I want to train! I want that indestructible form!"

"Is Vajra...indestructible?"

Zoro repeated those four words, his voice trembling slightly with extreme excitement.

As a swordsman, he pursues the ultimate attack, but he also deeply understands the importance of physical strength.

If one possesses an indestructible body, one can bear a more domineering sword intent and unleash strikes that surpass the limits of the human body.

"Ronan, what should we do?" Zoro's fingers gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, his eyes burning with the fervor of a hungry wolf about to be released from its cage.

Luffy and Sanji both stared intently at Ronan.

Although Luffy is usually carefree, he has an almost instinctive desire to become stronger;

Ronan glanced at the three of them, took a deep breath, and his inner energy surged slightly with each breath, emitting a faint thunderous sound.

"Then let's accelerate the process of the third stage of our Thirteen Protectors' external training—'internal cultivation of breath'."

Ronan's voice became low and solemn: "Our current 'qi' has been generated, but it is still only floating between the skin and internal organs."

"To achieve a true qualitative change, we must rely on external forces—namely, the rare and precious materials on this ancient island—to forcefully impact our meridians!"

"What we need to do is to ignite the Qi and blood in the body, open up the Ren and Du meridians, and form a large circulation within the body."

Ronan extended a finger and drew a circle in the air:

"Once the Great Circulation is formed, the Qi within the body can be generated continuously, like a surging river."

"As long as this breath remains, neither steel, fire, nor even overwhelming force can break through our defenses. This is—Indestructible Vajra!"

"The Ren and Du meridians? The Great Circulation?" Luffy tilted his head. Although he didn't understand the technical terms, he understood the final result: "In short, it makes you super hard, right!"

"That's right." Ronan nodded and then began to assign tasks.

"Luffy, your mission is the simplest, but also the most arduous."

Ronan pointed to the towering ancient trees around them, "Go and cut down the trees. We need an enormous amount of fuel to maintain the high temperatures."

"The trees here are rich in oil and burn at extremely high temperatures. The more the better. I need a pyre that can burn for a whole day and night!"

"Oh! Leave it to me!" Luffy adjusted his straw hat, stretched out his arms, and grabbed two large trees in the distance. "Gum-Gum—Boomerang Axe!!"

"Zoro, Sanji."

Ronan turned to the two men. "You have two tasks. First, find a huge piece of fire-resistant rock and carve it into a massive stone cauldron large enough to hold all four of us. Second..."

A cold glint flashed in Ronan's eyes: "Go hunt the strongest creature on this island. Not an ordinary beast, but the apex predator."

"We need the essence of their brows and the bone marrow from their spines as a medicinal guide. The life essence of these ancient creatures is the best material for cleansing the marrow and rejuvenating the bones."

"Hey, the strongest creature, huh?" Zoro grinned, a bloodthirsty smile spreading across his face. "Sounds interesting."

"Perfect timing, I also want to test the destructive power of these legs now."

Sanji exhaled a smoke ring, his eyes sharp. "Since we're going to use it as a medicinal ingredient, we naturally need to choose the freshest and most potent ingredients."

"Very good, let's get started."

Ronan waved his hand. "I'm going to search for the medicinal herbs on this island too. Meet me here in an hour."

"Whoosh—!"

Several figures instantly dispersed and disappeared into the wild jungle.

……