Bai Ye flipped his palm—and three swords suddenly materialized in his hand. They were Zoro's blades.
"Wha—?!" Zoro's eyes widened uncontrollably.
He'd already been shocked by the tornado. Now Bai Ye could pull items out of thin air. His emotions were a mess: first a Devil Fruit user, then now a Daoist who could summon storms and swords. This was beyond anything he'd expected in one day.
"There. All returned to the owner," Bai Ye said, stuffing the three swords into Zoro's hands.
"Don't you ever drop them again. You're a swordsman, remember?" he added with a smile.
Zoro stared at the swords in his grip, solemn. He'd finally realized the difference between not having a blade and having a blade but not using it. He nodded once, seriously: "I know."
"By the way—how did you get these swords?" Zoro asked, glancing up.
"Ah, that's a long story." Bai Ye raised an eyebrow. "I don't have time to explain now. Looks like trouble's coming."
Across the plaza a large figure and a troop of Marines were marching in. A pompous voice called out.
"Looks like some rats wandered into my execution ground!"
The voice belonged to the town tyrant himself—Helmeppo's father, Captain Morgan.
As Morgan drew near, his metal jaw and the giant ax strapped to his arm came into view. The man had presence—no denying it. He swept his gaze across them and muttered, "Helmeppo run off? That little idiot?"
"Uh—yeah, that blond guy. Bai Ye blew him away," Luffy answered earnestly, pointing at Bai Ye.
Bai Ye: …
"Is that so?" Morgan glanced at Bai Ye—handsome enough, he thought. "Never mind. I am, after all, the one who rules this base—Captain Morgan!!!"
He bellowed dramatically and peered down at the group. "Tell me your names before you die."
"I'm Monkey D. Luffy! I'm gonna be the Pirate King!!!" Luffy roared like it was the most natural thing in the world.
"Bai Ye of Wudang. Luffy's crewmate," Bai Ye answered simply. Morgan bored him; the man wasn't even worth a proper greeting. All Bai Ye cared about at that moment was Zoro.
"Hey, Zoro—there's still time," Bai Ye said softly. "You didn't fight before; you can disavow us and clear your name."
"Shut up!" Zoro snapped without hesitation. "I'm not that kind of man." He drew his three swords and planted his stance, glaring at Morgan: "Roronoa Zoro, Luffy's crewmate."
"Pirate King?!" Morgan raged. "Some brat dares say he'll be Pirate King here? Who do you think I am?!"
He lifted his massive axe above his head and swung with a deafening whoosh: "I am Captain Morgan—an officer of the Marines!!!"
CLANG!
Zoro's three blades intercepted the blow with a metallic ring. Morgan's pupils tightened. He pushed harder, but Zoro answered with a surge of power that sent Morgan flying backward into the ranks of his own soldiers.
"Captain! Can I finish him?" Zoro asked Luffy, voice steady.
"Sure!" Luffy answered without a second thought, grinning and slapping Zoro on the shoulder. "Go for it!"
Zoro smiled grimly. "Don't worry. I won't fall here."
"Alright then—let's eat first." Bai Ye chimed in.
When Zoro turned, Bai Ye flicked his wrist and two polished pills appeared in his palm.
"If we're about to fight, better prime your body to peak condition," Bai Ye said, offering them.
Before Bai Ye could explain, Luffy's arm shot out—aiming straight for the pills. "Food! I want some too!!!"
Quick reflexes saved the pills. Bai Ye grabbed Luffy's reaching wrist. "Don't take other people's things, idiot!" he snapped, and the Golden Light Mantra rippled around him.
Moments later—Luffy rubbed his jaw and muttered, sheepish and battered, "S-sorry…"
Daoist Pills — Alchemy in the Inner Landscape
While training inside the Codex's inner landscape, Bai Ye had practiced alchemy in his spare time. The landscape offered abundant spirit-energy and materials, and with Bai Ye's maxed comprehension, he'd quickly prepared a batch of base-grade pills.
Pill ranks run from nine (lowest) up to one, and then Heavenly Grade at the top. The two pills Bai Ye produced were both Nine-grade: a healing pill (mends wounds) and a blood-restoring pill (replenishes qi and blood). For Zoro's current state, these were more than enough.
Zoro accepted the pills without hesitation. After a few chews, two streams of warmth and power flowed through him. Moments later his accumulated twenty days of pain and fatigue vanished. Even his old hidden injuries eased.
He swung his blades experimentally, grinning in surprise. "These work."
He looked up at Bai Ye with something like new respect—this Daoist could do things that shook Zoro's sense of the world.
"So… this is what a Daoist can do?" Zoro muttered, pleased to be chosen as Bai Ye's comrade.
"Hey Luffy, you take the big guy—Zoro'll handle him," Bai Ye suggested, casting a look to the Marines.
"And we'll see who knocks down more soldiers."
"Alright! I won't lose!" Luffy shouted.
With that, the Straw Hat trio sprang into action—their first real skirmish as a unit.
Advance Chapters available on Patreon
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