The blessing ability panel displayed before Moses' eyes showed six grayed-out abilities at the very bottom:
[Breathing], [Medicine], [Taming], [Weapon Handling], [Precision], [Throwing].
January 10th.
One morning.
Closing the projected panel, Moses pondered the blessings that had appeared in gray—visible but not yet fully manifested:
"Ten days to manifest the [Throwing] blessing isn't too slow. But I still need to suppress that urge to fully materialize it prematurely."
The manifestation of blessings required either truly mastering the ability or technique, or having experienced an extraordinary possibility in one's own history.
Both appearance and materialization depended on a certain trigger—be it a sudden flash of insight or relentless practice leading to mastery. However, Moses could, to some extent, interfere with whether a blessing fully materialized.
This was possible thanks to his perfect symbiosis with the "Light Sphere," allowing mutual completion.
Blessing abilities could be self-manifested through acquired learning, but under current circumstances, even if materialized, they would only reach the lowest F-rank.
Even if a blessing didn't materialize, the experience wouldn't vanish—it would continue accumulating.
The only difference was the lack of the blessing's inherent attribute bonuses.
For now, he didn't particularly need them.
Soul Crystal: [0]
The absence of Soul Crystals was another factor, and the methods to obtain them...
At present, it was better to wait until he had saved enough Merit Points to achieve everything in one go.
Especially with the [Precision] blessing—Moses had strong reason to believe this was a Type II blessing, one that couldn't grow through acquired training.
Rather than a skill-based blessing, it was more like an innate talent, a special blessing tied to probability and conceptual mastery.
The others, however, were Type I blessings, capable of growth through training.
"For now, there's no need to materialize these blessings. Continuing to dig deeper, accumulate, and build a foundation is good enough. Who knows? When they manifest on their own, they might start at a much higher level."
This was an instinctive feeling.
And one confirmed by the "Light Sphere" in his consciousness.
His life's experiences and history weren't static. Every spark of inspiration, every moment of realization—none of them would fade away. Instead, they would keep accumulating in his personal history.
They wouldn't disappear. Like fine wine, they'd only grow richer with time.
Outside the treehouse, in the snow.
Standing quietly beneath an old tree.
The rise and fall of his breath, the slow expansion and contraction of his abdomen—each inhale and exhale spaced over ten seconds apart. His mind emptied, relying on instinct to expand and retract his Observation Haki perception.
Outwardly, sensing the vastness of nature, the immensity of heaven and earth.
Inwardly, sensing the unique sound emanating from himself—the pulse of life itself.
No profound revelations came. Only the slowing of his heartbeat, the deepening silence around him.
A unique perspective of perception.
With each breath, he seemed to synchronize with the wind and snow of nature.
Entering meditation.
Inside the treehouse, Kureha held Bear Cub by the window, quietly watching Moses standing beneath the snow-covered tree. He seemed to blend seamlessly into the snowy landscape, as if he naturally belonged there.
"Strange. Why does this kid have that mystical aura those swordsmen groups always go on about?"
"Some kind of enlightenment?"
Kureha wasn't a swordsman. By her own admission, she was just an ordinary medical professional with some basic self-defense skills. As for those lofty concepts like "breath of all things," "hearing the voice of all creation," or "mind reading," she maintained a scientific attitude of neither believing nor spreading rumors.
As she watched, Moses suddenly opened his eyes, shook his body, and sneezed. At this, Kureha raised her voice and scolded:
"If you know it's cold, why are you still standing there? Get your ass back inside!"
Moses grinned, long accustomed to Kureha's sharp tongue. Clenching his numb hands, he trudged over on his short legs.
Opening the door let some warmth escape, earning more curses from Kureha as he hurried to the fireplace to warm up.
Leaning against the iron fireguard, Moses stretched out his hands toward the flames.
It was rather miraculous how the treehouse had a functioning fireplace despite multiple modifications, especially since the tree itself was still alive. In terms of vitality, it was pretty impressive.
Afternoon.
Knock, knock, knock!
A series of knocks sounded at the door.
Kureha wasn't on the first floor but upstairs in her drug development lab—a place where she conducted mysterious research on things like longevity medicine, Lineage Factor, and other such projects. Moses usually avoided going there since he wouldn't understand any of it anyway.
When no response came from inside, the visitor knocked again.
At his desk, Moses sighed as he looked up from his book. Their hidden treehouse deep in the mountains rarely had visitors, except for that quack doctor they'd met once—a title Kureha had given him. And that quack would have been shouting by now.
"Who is it?"
Moses spoke warily, though with a hint of resignation. "Who are you looking for?"
As he spoke, he moved to the corner where weapons were kept and picked up his axe, simultaneously activating his Observation Haki.
Then, laughter erupted from outside. Moses set the axe back down as an all-too-familiar voice boomed:
"Moses, your grandpa's here! Open up!"
A dark line formed on Moses' forehead as he wordlessly went to open the door. A burly figure filled the doorway, and the next moment, Moses felt the world spin around him.
A massive hand gripped Moses by the torso, lifting him high, while another hand began ruffling his hair.
"Trying to crush my skull, you bastard grandpa?"
Moses' sharp, childish retort made Garp freeze mid-action, awkwardly releasing his grip.
The awkwardness lasted only a moment before Garp's face darkened again. "What did you just call me, you brat? Bastard?"
Moses spread his hands helplessly. "Doctorine calls you that. I'm the bastard grandson, you're the bastard grandpa. We're both bastards."
Garp's mouth twitched as he was about to speak when Kureha descended the stairs, giggling, "Did I say something wrong? Just admit you're a bastard."
As Garp's eyebrows spasmed violently, Kureha snatched Moses from his hands and casually tossed him to the ground, making Garp's eye twitch again.
"The kid's only two years old. Can't you be gentler?"
Kureha glanced at Moses, who was unfazed and busy preparing tea, and shrugged indifferently. "That brat's tough as nails. What? Feeling protective now? Didn't see you holding back earlier."
The two bickered as soon as they met. Moses brought over two cups of tea, first handing one to Kureha, then offering the other to Garp under his jealous gaze.
Kureha sipped her tea with a smirk, watching Garp. "First time getting tea from your grandson. Does it taste good?"
Garp's brows raised, and he was about to smile when Kureha added, "This kid serves me tea every day, you know."
Garp observed Moses' obedient demeanor and thought of the wild monkey Ace, whom he'd left at Dawn Island's Mt. Colubo. After some hesitation, he asked, "Moses, want to go to the East Blue? Your little brother Ace misses you."
Kureha's expression shifted slightly, but she stayed silent. Moses, however, shook his head, surprising Garp as he replied, "I'm still frail. Maybe in a year or two. I'm too young now, and the journey's too long—I might not make it."
Garp nodded without much thought. "Fair enough."
After all, two years ago, Moses had looked like he might "die young." Even now, his aura carried an odd fragility.
Garp agreed wholeheartedly.
Meanwhile, Kureha's lips twitched. Frail? That was the funniest thing she'd heard all year.
Frail, yet he could carry 15 pounds of weight over mountains without breaking a sweat?
Frail, yet he hunted his own prey—even if just bamboo rats?
Frail, yet he could endure hours in the snow?
Rolling her eyes, Kureha pinched the top of Moses' skull and turned to Garp. "The seas aren't calm lately. You have time to wander around here?"
Moses' eyes gleamed as he listened quietly—this was one of the rare chances to hear unfiltered news.
Newspapers were edited.
Rumors were twisted.
But Garp spoke the truth.
"Tch, what of it? The state of the seas is what it is. Pirates are like fish scrambling to the New World. And the New World? Right now, it's one supreme power with several strong contenders. That bastard Roger started the Great Pirate Era, and while pirates multiplied, only the monsters from his crew stand at the top.
Oh, right—Wano Country in the New World seems to be in turmoil. Heard Kaido's about to clash with the samurai or something. Their leader was on Roger's ship too... what was his name? Kozuki Oden or whatever. Eh, just take it as gossip. Not something to spread around."
Kureha chuckled, sipping her tea. "Roger, huh? Gol D. Roger. What a rowdy brat. Even dead, his influence lingers."
"D, huh? Speaking of which, you're a D, he's a D, and even that little brat Moses is a D. What exactly is D?" Kureha said before shaking her head disinterestedly. "Never mind, that's got nothing to do with me. I'm just an ordinary doctor, after all."
Garp glanced silently at Moses, noticing the "curiosity" in the boy's eyes. Though he'd spent little time with Moses, he knew well enough how sharp the kid was.
According to Kureha, Moses had never cried or fussed since infancy, always sensible—exceptionally clever and precocious beyond his years.
So.
"Moses, tell your grandpa—what do you want to be when you grow up?"
Garp himself wasn't sure why he asked: "Want to join the Marines with your grandpa?"
Kureha's gaze shifted over. As the saying goes, the child is father of the man.
The boy was filial and loyal, but somehow he'd picked up a razor-sharp tongue and a certain disregard for life. Useful traits for a doctor, perhaps, but troubling to see in one so young.
And then there was that whole D business...
Maybe she should let the boy go to East Blue with Garp to meet his younger brother. Being around peers might do him good.
She shot another look at Garp. The man was a scoundrel himself—clearly no role model for raising children.
She sighed.
Just then, Moses' voice piped up cheerfully: "I want to study medicine! I'll learn Doctorine's skills! I'm gonna make an immortality elixir so Doctorine can live forever!"
"Oh, and I guess I could reluctantly let you have some too, Grandpa."
Garp's brow furrowed. He clenched a fist, blew warm air onto it, and laughed through gritted teeth:
"You little brat, don't change the subject! This old man wants no part of your 'immortality'!"
WHAM! His fist came down on Moses' head, leaving a visible bump. "And what's this 'reluctantly' nonsense? Are you saying I rank below this old hag?!"
Meanwhile, Kureha's smirk froze as her face darkened. Without warning, her foot shot up—THUD!—connecting squarely with Garp's chin. The impact sent him crashing through the wooden ceiling, his body dangling comically into the room below.
Kureha's smile turned venomous. "Watch your damn mouth, you bastard. Grandfather or not, I'll give you a lesson you'll never forget."
Garp pushed against the ceiling—CRACK!—wrenching his head free from the splintered wood. Landing heavily, he rubbed his face clean of debris with a resigned expression.
"Still as fiery as ever, aren't you?"
Turning to Moses, he added, "Don't you pick up these bad habits. You'll never find a wife this way."
"So... does the Marine Corps provide wives, Grandpa?" Moses blinked innocently.
Garp's face stiffened.
Moses continued: "I don't ask for much—just the most beautiful woman in the world. How about it, Grandpa?"
Garp's complexion turned pitch black, his jaw twitching violently. Through clenched teeth, he growled: "The Marines don't hand out wives! There's no 'most beautiful woman in the world' either! Maybe you shouldn't join—I'd hate to see you get killed for false advertising."
If he dared claim the Marines provided wives, Tsuru would skin him alive.
She was, after all, in charge of all female Marines.
Moses grinned and said, "You should've said so earlier. Wasted my breath. I thought the Navy was so great, turns out they don't even assign wives."
Garp's face turned green with anger, his lips trembling as he watched Moses' cheerful expression with upturned lips and bared teeth. His gaze grew somewhat dazed, as if seeing a familiar figure.
Taking a deep breath, he sighed dejectedly and waved his hand. "Let's talk about joining the Navy another time. I just happened to be passing by today. Now that I've seen you and know you're healthy, that's enough. I'll visit you again next time."
"Oh, and think carefully about what I told you. That brat Ace is quite curious about you and really wants to meet you."
Just as abruptly as he had arrived, Garp finished speaking, drained his tea, patted his butt, and hurried off.
Kureha looked at the hole in the ceiling, then at Moses, before wordlessly going to fetch wall repair tools. "Miscalculation. No wonder that bastard ran off so fast—he didn't want to fix my ceiling."
Moses grinned as he handed Kureha the repair tools. Though he had no skill in the task, helping out gave him some sense of participation.
Old saying, new book sprout, seeking collections! Recommendations! Follow-up reads! Investments!
About Soul Crystals. Basic introduction below.
PS: [Soul Crystal]: Obtained through killing, Soul Crystals come in different qualities and can be used to enhance attributes and blessing abilities. (Soul Crystals are refined and forged from the spiritual essence of life.)
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Soul Crystals can be fused/decomposed
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Same quality uses a 5-based system (e.g., F- → F), while progressing between qualities uses a 10-based system (e.g., F+ → E-).
5 F- grade Soul Crystals synthesize into 1 F grade Soul Crystal.
5 F grade Soul Crystals synthesize into 1 F+ grade Soul Crystal.
10 F+ grade Soul Crystals synthesize into 1 E- grade Soul Crystal.
Example: 10,000 F- grade Soul Crystals can only synthesize into 8 E grade Soul Crystals.
100 million F- grade Soul Crystals can synthesize approximately 1.2 C grade Soul Crystals.
PS: 10,000 F- grade Soul Crystals equal the refinement from 10,000 F- grade lives.
PS: Spiritual essence is the foundation or essence of life's existence, representing the inherent potential and possibilities of each living being or object. Spiritual essence is the unique and latent core element of every life or entity.
PS: The quality of Soul Crystals obtained is proportional to the target's strength.
PS: Naturally precipitates from the corpse of a slain Soul Crystal prey after hunting.