One Piece: The Salted Fish Fruit

"Awoo!" Luffy opened his blood-red maw and completely enveloped it!

One second later!

"Mebby Meat! Meat!"

"Idiot! You can't eat bones!" A slap landed on Luffy's head, knocking out the half-chewed bone.

"Here! Eat slowly, there's plenty more!" Mabi hurriedly took out a pile of fruit and meat and placed it in front of him, urging him to devour the food. Mabi looked at his hungry appearance. How long had he been starving? Wasn't his storage space always full of food? Even if he was frugal for three days, he shouldn't have eaten it all.

"Luffy! Are Nami and the others all inside?"

"Mmm! Smash them all!" One hand was raised! The other hand was filled with fruit and stuffed it into his mouth, swallowing it without even chewing until it disappeared into his stomach!

"Whoosh!" Luffy, who was desperately trying to get food, disappeared in front of Maple in an instant while holding a piece of roasted meat.

"He got eliminated again?" Mabi looked at the empty space. She could watch Luffy for a long time, but she didn't even notice the fluctuations, as if Luffy didn't exist.

“Nilco?” Maby asked doubtfully. As for understanding spatial abilities, Nielco was more professional, and she was only using his knowledge.

"This is a protective mechanism for this island! Once activated, it will periodically take all living things within its range into that space for refuge, saving time in searching for passages!" Neilco replied, floating beside Mabi. After learning more, he understood how the device worked.

"Then why didn't we go in! And why were we judged as intruders!" Mabi wondered. If they were collecting living creatures, why did they all disappear, while only the defense mechanism left behind by her was activated and attacked to eliminate her?

“I think this animal hide was made from the leather of those demons and is now attached to you. You already have some demonic characteristics, which is why the defenses of this research institute identified you as an intruder and attacked you. After all, judging from the information left behind, the demons I was working on to extract also had some involvement here, so those defense systems were built to protect you. As for why this place was destroyed and not opened, we can only continue to explore.” Nielko looked at the dilapidated buildings around him with a sad expression in his eyes. He was just a small operator, far inferior to the researchers working in these places. However, eight hundred years had passed, and everyone had been destroyed by an unknown force. Even his own country had no information left behind.

"Don't worry, Neil! Just like Luffy, you people with the surname D still exist, right? I'm sure many of you survived back then thanks to your technology, though you're now scattered all over the world." Maggie comforted him, looking at his floating soul. After all, anyone would be at a loss if they woke up to find their homeland destroyed.

“I know! I will definitely find out the history from back then! Collect everything useful from Mabi’s place! I will inherit their legacy! I will definitely restore their legacy!”

"Alright! But let's get Luffy and the others out first! If we keep spitting them out like this, they'll be trapped inside forever." Maggie said helplessly, looking at the messy food on the ground. Even if she opened it up, they would disappear after a while, never able to escape this vicious cycle.

"Open the door and I'll go in to investigate! If there's nothing on the outside, there must be something inside. Let me see if I can shut down the whole device!" Neilco nodded in agreement.

···

"Don't rush! Don't rush! There's more to come!" Mabi shouted as she held onto the door frame to keep it stable, watching the crowd rush out for the food. She hadn't expected to find other pirates besides her crew. They must have given up all of Luffy's food, which was why they'd been starving for three days. Luckily, she'd only taken food according to her crewmates' enormous appetites; otherwise, it wouldn't have been enough for everyone present.

"Haha! Mabi, I still need to tell you that only the great genius Usopp can handle this kind of desperate situation." Usopp came out, patted Mabi's shoulder, and shouted with his nose in the air.

"Get lost! You're starving and still bragging! Go eat something!" Mabi laughed and scolded, kicking him towards the pile of food before turning back to look into the space. Countless dilapidated buildings were scattered among them, symbolizing the former prosperity, while the white bones in the distance highlighted the adventurers who had entered and never found a way out over the past few hundred years.

Seeing Nami with her glasses, two small buns, and a fresh and clean look, she teased.

"Hey! Nami! Your two little braids now make you look like a girl, much cuter than before!"

"Boom! Boom boom!"

"You bastard! You actually think I wasn't a girl before!" Nami, with two small buns tied behind her head, raised her steaming fist and roared through gritted teeth at Mabi, who was slumped in the door frame, before turning around and leaving like a proud peacock.

"Tsk tsk! Mabi, you're courting death!" Mia shook her head and clicked her tongue, then ignored Mabi lying on the ground and went over to pick up a few pieces of fruit to share with her companion.

"Does Mabi want me to treat you?" Angelia knelt down in front of Mabi, her white dress tucked between her legs, and asked softly.

"Ugh!" Mabi groaned in pain!

"You pervert! Bring more food later! As a cook, it's dereliction of duty to let your companions go hungry!" Sanji felt extremely distressed and pained by his own dereliction of duty as he watched the people around him frantically exhaling smoke while eating. He was equally indifferent to Mabe, who had been beaten up and was now lying there, completely unconcerned about the people around him who had bullied Nami.

Suddenly glancing at the orange figure beside her, she instantly forgot everything else, bent over, and shouted with hearts in her eyes, "Miss Nami, let me help you prepare a nutritional meal!"

"You pervert! I want wine! Give it to me later!" Zoro shouted, taking a bite of the fruit Mia tossed to him.

"Zoro! You can't drink alcohol when you're hungry!" Chopper shouted at Zoro after hearing this. His firm and serious gaze made Zoro feel uneasy, and he turned his head away in defeat, ignoring Chopper.

"Tch! So verbose!"

"Alright, take a break. See if there's anything interesting on this island and pack it all up!" he instructed his companions. Now, only Robin and Neilco were still inside doing their research.

"Buzz! Buzz!" Mabi, who was holding onto the door frame, felt the door frame shake as if something was about to break free from her control. Could it be that this thing hadn't been repaired for eight hundred years and had become dilapidated? Remembering the two people still studying inside, she shouted inside.

"Nelco! Robin!"

"Ah! Ah! Ah! It's here! Mabi, let's hurry! I think I released something incredible!" Nielko shouted as he flew rapidly towards them.

"What is that?!"

"A demon! The nascent form of a Devil Fruit! This place actually seals away a demon to provide energy for this space to operate!"

Upon hearing Nielko's words, Mabi's expression changed drastically. She had learned from her casual conversation with the two souls that each of those demons possessed the ability to destroy an island, and each demon could be considered a fully awakened Devil Fruit user! They could only be annihilated by being killed or rendered unconscious, and then turned into Devil Fruits as byproducts by the altar.

"Sanji, grab Nami and get off this island right now! Zoro, take Mia! Luffy, take Robin and get off! Angelia, take Chopper and Jack and get off! Usopp, get off by yourself!" Looking at his companions and the people around them, he assigned each person to take with them and then shouted to another group of people who were confused and didn't understand what was going on.

"And those brothers over there, you should quickly take your weaker members and leave this place!"

"Haha! No need for all that trouble!" Luffy laughed loudly when he heard Maggie's voice. Although he didn't know what was going on, he knew that Maggie had discovered something dangerous and that's why she had asked her crew to leave.

"Damn it! Don't use that move!" Zoro and Sanji shouted in unison as they turned around.

"Too late! Rubber rubber! Slingshot!" Stretching out an arm, he pulled on the distant building, enveloping everyone present except Maby and Angelia who was flying in the sky, aiming at the passage Maby had cleared!

"Hahaha! We're finally out!" A series of excited shouts mixed with fear came from inside the tunnel!

Ugh! These people are probably in for a rough time!

"Mabi, I'm leaving first!" Angelia shouted as she floated in the air, holding Jack and Chopper.

"Okay, I'll be right there!" Mabi nodded as she watched the ground shaking more and more violently. This place was still a long way from the shore, and it would be difficult for Luffy's slingshot to reach the shore easily. She needed to delay them here for a while so they could leave.

"Boom!" Mabi retreated far away and watched as the door frame in front of her was propelled into the sky by an unknown force, and countless shattered buildings were flipped upwards by this force.

“Mabi, go and put the door away! I need it!” Neilco shouted in Mabi’s mind.

"No problem! Step into the air!" His body stepped into the air as he chased after the thrown door frame, grabbed it, and looked back at the chaotic ground below. From the surging dust and smoke, he could clearly see two waves of air rolling around, which were signs of life inside.

"What is this now? What on earth did you guys do back then? How could you produce so many terrifying weapons and raise these creatures!" Mabi broke out in a cold sweat as she looked at the horrifying signs below. She had encountered three things related to their ruins, each one more terrifying than the last. First, there was the altar that was so bored that it punched through an entire island. Then there were the traces left in that small world full of terrifying beasts. Now, there was an island guarded by laser robots. The people here were even using the original form of Devil Fruits as batteries!

"I also want to know what's going on in my country!" Nielco was extremely frustrated because he was of low status and knew nothing about the situation.

"Whoosh!" A fireball with a diameter of about ten feet flew out of the dust and mist and rushed towards Mabi.

"Sever the Void!" Draw your sword and strike!

Chapter 81 Terrifying Demonic Creatures

"A magma fireball? But it doesn't seem like one!" he wondered, looking at the fireball hurtling past him.

"Humans! Die!" A deep roar came from below, and a huge figure appeared in mid-air accompanied by heavy stomping sounds and a thick cloud of dust.

"What the hell is this monster? A magma demon? Isn't that thing with Admiral Sakazuki?" Staring at the humanoid monster, tens of meters tall and composed of layers of black rock suspended in the air, white flames roared through the countless cracks in the black rocks. The surrounding air swirled violently, as if existing in another world. Even though Maby was hundreds of meters away, she could still feel the intense heat emanating from its body baking her.

"Human! Die!" A deep roar emanated from its body, and its blue-green flame eyes radiated a chilling killing intent. Even in this scorching environment, Mabi felt as if she were beneath a thousand feet of ice on Winter Island, where the cold was biting to the bone.

"This is a huge mistake! I wonder if I can get rid of this thing! Even if I can't, I need to stay away from my companions." Mabi thought to herself, tightening her grip on the long sword as she looked at her clothes, which were beginning to char.

"Lava Fireball!" The black arm swung, and countless black rocks separated from it, instantly igniting layers of orange flames that hurtled towards Mabi.

"Damn it! Don't dodge! Salted Fish Barrier!" A spatial barrier hundreds of meters in diameter was instantly formed by pushing out a palm. Countless burning fireballs attacked and exploded, scattering sparks in all directions and igniting the surrounding fragile flammable materials! Stop them all! Behind him was the retreat route of his companions. He absolutely could not allow its attack to pursue his companions!

"Instant Void! Void Severing!" After blocking, he looked at the opponent who was about to swing his burning arm again. Countless fireballs formed and expanded from above, and he instantly appeared behind it, drawing his sword and slashing diagonally!

"Clang!" The crisp sound of hard objects colliding rang out.

Diamonds! This isn't the ability of Whitebeard's previous division commander! What on earth is this thing?! But now is not the time to think. I'm stomping my foot and slashing horizontally at the opponent's neck with my sword! Taking him down is the only way to go!

"Sever the Void!"

"Clang!" The sharp slashing force exploded at its neck, and the powerful blast wave only caused its neck to tilt slightly, scattering some crystalline fragments! The fragments rippled and then returned to normal!

"Humans! Damn it! Kill them!"

"Damn it!" Mabi cursed, staring at the other party's cold eyes! She dodged the opponent's fist, which was inflicted with fire damage, and tore off her clothes, which were already flaming. The close-range high temperature was too much for the soft fabric to withstand.

"Sever the Void!" He swung his sword to shatter the lava fireball thrown by the opponent, and then closed in again. With his current ranged attack power, it was difficult to damage its tough body. He could only use close-range shattering attacks!

"Salted Fish! Shatter the Void!" Breaking through layers of flames, all the muscles in his body tensed, and his hands gripped the hilt of the sword tightly. Spatial abilities were attached to it, and all the power was gathered at the tip of the sword to meet the opponent's giant fist head-on!

"Ding!" A crisp explosion resounded throughout the heavens and earth, carrying far into the distance. Visible layers of air rippled outwards from the blade tip and fist surface! The clouds in the sky instantly burst open, revealing the sun that had been obscured. Countless earthen and stone buildings on the ground were scattered, creating a chasm tens of meters wide that stretched far into the distance! Mabi's strength dissipated instantly, and with the powerful recoil from the explosion, she was sent flying far away, blasting through layers of buildings before crashing into them!

"Pfft! Hehe!" Mabi, lying in the pile of rocks, spat out blood and laughed as she looked at the opponent's body, which had been shattered by a heavy blow and was falling downwards. She channeled all her spatial abilities into the opponent's arm, unleashing an explosion powerful enough to destroy any matter, even a body made of diamonds, and shatter it.

"Damn it!" Lying on the ground, Mabi suddenly felt an abnormal flow of air around her. She slammed her hand down and lunged towards the direction of the slow airflow. Looking back, she saw a black arm slamming into the spot where she had just been lying! The immense force instantly created a crater tens of meters in diameter! The soil and rocks beneath the arm were assimilated into black rock, solidifying to form a newly shattered humanoid creature. White flames peeked out from the cracks, burning and igniting everything flammable around them.

"Humans! Damn it!" A deep voice came from the other party, and with a wave of his arm, a flame several meters in diameter covered with orange-yellow flames and carrying a temperature high enough to burn the air appeared in front of Maby in an instant!

"Shock the air!" The back of the blade flips, vibrating the air and striking out, creating a circular indentation on its surface. Using the reaction force, the body shoots out like a bullet, far away from the opponent's body.

"Damn it! I hate elementalization!" Mabi cursed under her breath as she quickly jumped to dodge the opponent's heat-filled attack, leaping away from the direction her companion had gone.

Mapi had already explained that the opponent had used their elemental splitting ability to deflect the shattering force of her attack and then solidify it again. This technique had already been tested on Ace; the ability to shatter space only works on solid objects. Against Logia-type users, simply transforming into a particle state was enough to deflect the shattering attack. Now, with her fragile Haki, it would be difficult to allow the opponent to solidify and deliver a fatal blow!

"Salted Fish Imprisonment!" Mabi unleashed an invisible circle with her hand, enveloping her opponent within it. However, the imprisonment only lasted a few seconds before the opponent's immense power burst it open, allowing him to continue sniping at Mabi with his burning arm! He was determined to kill Mabi and bury her here!

"Nilco! How's it going! Is that guy at the altar any good?" He swung his sword, cleaving through a giant fireball in front of him, and asked the soul on his arm.

"No! The altar can only refine demons that have been stunned or are unable to move. These intact demons will be directly pierced and shattered by the opponent!" Upon hearing Maby's question, Neilco immediately refused. The altar's figure was too large. Although it had some attack and restraint abilities, it was simply not enough to survive in the face of a demon with such strong single-target attacks.

"A diamond-hard surface! A fireball burning at high temperatures! A body of elemental particles! And the ability to instantly condense and solidify! Who the hell could bite into this!" Mabi dodged the fiery shockwave of the opponent's attack in a flash, casually brushing off her burning hair as she cursed.

"Damn it! Since I can't escape! I can't fight! I don't believe this guy can remain elemental forever! I'll see if I shatter it first or if I fall down first!" Mabi cursed under her breath, turned around and launched a sudden attack on the relentlessly pursuing demon! She watched helplessly as the demon's body shattered again, her whole body tensing up as she sensed the surrounding air currents, wary of another sneak attack.

···

"Hey! Luffy! Why did you stop? Hurry up and move!" Usopp shouted as he turned around after boarding the ship and saw Luffy standing below.

Luffy raised his hand and fired an air cannon at the incoming fireball, sending it flying far away.

"Why isn't Mabe coming over yet!" Luffy said calmly, looking at the battle scene that burned half the sky in the distance, under the shadow of his yellow hat brim.

“With her freakish ability to escape, it’s hard for the enemy to stop her if she wants to.” Zoro also stopped and broke through a stray fireball, saying that they had all witnessed Maple’s ability to teleport thousands of meters, and she could leave the battlefield in an instant if she wanted to.

“That’s why that pervert can’t leave right now!” Sanji kicked his foot and replied, adjusting his posture.

"···"

Hearing these words, her companions naturally understood the battle Mabi was about to face, so they stopped, turned around, and disembarked.

"Let's go, everyone!" Luffy took the lead and ran back along the route they had taken.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Usopp turned and ran into the cabin, clutching a cannonball the size of a human head. Seeing his companions far away, he shouted and hurriedly followed.

"Captain! We!" The pirates who had left with Luffy and his crew nearby saw the young woman who had rescued them run back and shouted to their female captain!

Maureen stood there straight, a scimitar at her waist, looking at her pirate ship not far away and Luffy and the others who were running back without hesitation. Feeling reassured, she shouted, "Those who are weak, stay and watch the ship! All the crew members who are ready to fight, come with me! We can't just stand by and watch our benefactors get into battle!" After saying that, she took the lead and floated away into the distance.

"Yes, sir!" he shouted, observing his captain's actions.