All the theoretical knowledge Menchi had come from books, but she had never read anything about a connection between Starfish Grass, Sucker Bugs, and the Spiny Sea Pork. The method Law mentioned to her also sounded downright unbelievable.
Starfish Grass was a marine plant that grew in shallow waters near coral reefs. It got its name because its shape resembled a starfish.
Sucker Bugs, on the other hand, were usually found near reefs. It is a flat, soft-bodied creature with yellowish-brown spots on its back.
The only thing these two had in common was that they lived in shallow waters, which had absolutely nothing to do with the deep-sea-dwelling Spiny Sea Pork.
With nothing to lose, Menchi decided to go ahead with the so-called poison-neutralizing method.
Once the poison sac removal failed, the originally swollen sac would deflate, and the poison inside would spread throughout the puffer's body, turning it into a deadly poison.
What Menchi had to do was feed the Sucker Bugs Starfish Grass, then attach them to the Spiny Sea Pork's body, as they would become the key to establishing a circulatory.
Feed them, place them, all done in one smooth motion.
Five Sucker Bugs clung to the area around the flattened poison sac, and before long, they began to swell.
In a process invisible to the naked eye, the poisons were drawn into the Sucker Bugs' bodies, mixed with the Starfish Grass, and then returned to the Spiny Sea Pork's body, continuously neutralizing the poison in the process.
The massive LCD screen on stage broadcasted this scene to everyone in attendance. This was something that had never been shown to the public before, so until the results were confirmed, no one could definitively say it wouldn't work.
Zizhu is a Gourmet Hunter. While he hadn't traveled the entire world, he had been to many places and witnessed countless strange phenomena. But when he saw the subtle signs of flow between the movements of the Sucker Bugs, he couldn't help but stunned.
The ecosystem had many symbiotic relationships, but right now, the Sucker Bugs and the Spiny Sea Pork's corpse appeared to have formed one of their own.
'Could there really be a way to completely eliminate the poison?' Zizhu wondered silently.
Everyone held their breath in anticipation, and Menchi never took her eyes off the Sucker Bugs clinging to the Spiny Sea Pork's body.
After about five minutes, the Sucker Bugs gradually deflated.
Seizing the moment, Menchi yanked all five off and tossed them aside, then decisively picked up her knife and began cutting into the Spiny Sea Pork's flesh.
He soon found a piece of snow-white liver, which was the only part that could be eaten raw.
Tap. Tap.
Two medical staff in white coats stepped forward, standing by with emergency equipment and the antidote.
The mustached man looked at Menchi and said, "It's not too late to back out now. After all, the Spiny Sea Pork's poison is very strong. Even with the antidote, it won't fully cure you. Even if treated in time, not only will there be lasting side effects, but there is also the possibility of death."
Menchi ignored the mustache man and stared at the Spiny Sea Pork's liver in her hand, her heart beating faster and faster.
At the end of the day, she was still just an underage girl. When faced with life and death, she will still be afraid and nervous.
She glanced at Law in the audience. Seeing how calm he looked, she forced herself to steady her nerves, sliced off a small piece of liver, and held it in her hand.
'Here goes nothing!'
Menchi tossed the piece of liver into her mouth and chewed it quickly. She didn't even bother savoring the taste before swallowing the liver.
She didn't get a clear impression of the flavor. It didn't have any fishy smell at all and her tongue was slightly numb. She wondered if it was because of the poison.
Whether this method worked or not would be clear in ten minutes.
Menchi closed her eyes and stood still, waiting for Death's verdict.
The Spiny Sea Pork's poison would show symptoms within two minutes, reach peak effect in five, and kill the victim within ten.
Law stared at the girl with a nervous expression on her face. The corner of his mouth curled slightly before he turned and slipped into the crowd, disappearing moments later. The people around were all looking at Menchi, so they did not notice Law's departure.
Two minutes is the time it takes to determine whether the poison had taken effect.
Law observed for two and a half minutes before leaving. He had a feeling that staying here any longer might lead to trouble, so he chose to slip away.
As for whether the organizer would make things difficult for Menqi afterward, it was none of his concern.
At the beginning, he could have used 1.5 million Jenny to help Menchi settle the matter, but he didn't do that. Instead, he gave Menchi a choice to solve the problem. And in the end, Menchi had shouldered it with her own courage.
'See you again if we are destined to.'
The image of Menchi as she first appeared in the original work flashed through Law's mind. He chuckled softly as he pushed his way out of the venue.
On the stage, time passed, and ten minutes went by quickly, but Menchi was still completely fine.
"It… worked?"
Everyone in the venue struggled to contain their shock.
They didn't expect this method was actually viable. With this, the Spiny Sea Pork would disappear from the black market entirely, and no one would have to risk their lives just to taste one ever again.
'But why had no one discovered this before? And how did some random kid know about it?'
As the person involved, Menchi was also overwhelmed with emotion, 'That guy's method had been real. Before he revealed it, no one in the world had known about it.'
'Just who the hell was he?'
The moment that thought crossed her mind, Menchi suddenly looked towards where Law was, but there was no trace of Law.
"Where'd he go?"
Menchi froze.
Not just Menchi, but almost everyone in the venue snapped to attention, scanning the crowd for the young man who had given her the method.
"Where did that kid go?"
The entire venue erupted into chaos.
"Everyone, please calm down!"
The mustached man rushed to the auction podium and shouted into the microphone, trying to calm the crowd.
"Law…" Zizhu furrowed his brow, silently repeating the name in his mind, committing Law's face to memory.
At that moment, Menchi moved and ran towards the outside of the venue. At this time, no one stopped her, including Zizhu.
Menchi vaulted out of the venue, darting through the bustling fish market, desperately searching for any trace of Law. but But in the endless sea of people, how could she possibly find him? Besides, Law had already left the fish market.
"I didn't even get to thank you..."
Menchi stood in the busy corridor, biting her lip in silence.
…
At this time, Law was wandering around the town of Gray Harbor with Kuro. He still had to wait for Ging to arrive, so he was now thinking about whether he should buy a fishing rod and go fishing in the reef area.
He had already forgotten what happened in the venue. He'd only gone there out of curiosity, and running into Menchi had been an unexpected surprise.
Disclosing that method would undoubtedly cause a stir, but the real issue was that he'd also given Menchi his name, so he didn't know whether his name would be included when the method became known.
Not that it mattered. Law didn't care much either way. He bought a fishing rod and headed to the reef area to fish.
Two days later, Ging arrived to pick him up in a boat.
Standing at the harbor, Law looked at the yacht-sized ship in front of him and his jaw almost dropped.
The ship is the size of an ordinary yacht, a mast-driven sailboat with no engine, let alone any proper navigational equipment.
This kind of boat might be fine for fishing near the coast, but if they want to cross the sea to reach distant islands, a single big wave could easily capsize it.
"... This is the ship?"
Law felt exhausted just looking at it, 'Hadn't Ging been supposed to be loaded?'
Ging patted the mast and said reassuringly, "It's reliable."