Ionia at night reveals the beauty of its natal land, with blue streams flowing through the land and leaves swaying and rustling in the wind.
In the night, clusters of light shine in the sky, and branches swaying in the wind can be seen on the ground.
It was the Blooming Spirit Flower, a flower that bloomed in Ionia. Due to the war Noxus launched against Ionia, this flower had not bloomed for many years.
Now that the war is over, the traumatized land is beginning to heal, and the flowers of hope are blooming again.
Sitting beside the stream, Orlan picked a nearby flower, used the flower as a cup, and filled a cup with stream water.
Under the silver glow of the crescent moon, darkness gradually engulfed everything around, and only the faintest starlight cast a layer of silver-gray on the foggy night.
"Now that you're here, come out."
Orlan stared into the distance, where a figure was approaching in a floating manner. To be precise, it was not a human figure, but a ghost.
The figure looked tall and slender, with his upper body naked and his muscular body exposed.
His arms were bandaged, and the cold of the night seemed to have no effect on him.
Below the waist was a loose, torn burqa.
It was flapping in the wind at the moment, and the most important thing was that an exquisite rope was tied around his waist, with a terrible plaster mask hanging on it.
Most of his face was also hidden by the red mask, but he did not look friendly. He now held a sword in each hand - one of the fine steel reflected the moonlight, and the other was a fierce red.
"Sure enough, this environment is on your side. Long time no see, Yongen."
Under the cruel mask, the ice-blue pupils were very obvious, and Yongen's expression was not relaxed, and he even had a frown on his face, but the mask blocked Oran's view.
"Olan? No, there's something wrong with you."
Yongen's tone was very cold, almost treating Orlan as a stranger.
A petal fell from the treetop, and Yongen's body moved at this moment. The red blade swung out a full moon in the sky, but Orlan did not dodge or panic.
He could feel that Yongen's blade was not aimed at him.
The sharp blade passed over his head, and Yongen's blade seemed to become a paintbrush, writing a special article in the air.
The writing style was very peculiar, not any style that Orlan was familiar with, but as he retracted the blade, a chaotic breathing sound appeared beside Orlan, and a strange dark figure appeared here.
"Olan, where did you get this thing? It's like Azakana. No, Azakana is even more powerful than it.
It seems to have merged with your soul. It's something I haven't seen before, a new kind of demon?"
Azakana is a predatory spirit in the world of Valoran. It feeds on the sadness and other emotions of others, stimulates people's negative emotions, and eventually devours the other person completely.
Yongen encountered this creature for the first time after his "death", and it was also at that time that he killed the first Azakana.
The mask on his face is the face of Azakana, and Yongen cannot take off this mask.
But now he can see other Azakana through this mask.
They haven't turned into true demons until they devour their host.
Yone began hunting these insidious monsters in an attempt to understand what he had become. Each demon's true name brought him closer to understanding the unknown, and he became something of an expert in this area.
The aura of Orlan was even stranger, even weaker than that of Yazakana, yet he was more mysterious.
"Soul? I ate a very special fruit that gave me unique powers. Apparently, this is the consciousness of that fruit."
It has been confirmed that animal-type devil fruits have consciousness.
There are still some unknowns about the superhuman and natural systems, but judging from the current situation, it is similar.
Those who fail to awaken the animal system will become stupid and dull beastmen, probably because their bodies are taken over by the consciousness of animals.
"You really dare to try something dangerous. No, this thing is not dangerous to you. With your willpower, it will never affect you."
This was Yongen's conclusion. Not to mention an original demon like Fiddlesticks or a powerful individual who had already mastered his own power, this consciousness was countless times weaker than Yazakana and could only be used by others to use their own power.
If Azakana is a beast that may devour its master, then the fruit consciousness is like a simple tool. Unless the holder uses it too aggressively and causes an accident, it will have no effect.
"But my advice is still to kill it. Once Azakana is killed, its power will still be yours.
Demons cannot be trusted."
"Indeed, then let's do it."
Their eyes met, and both of them confirmed each other's intentions. Two long swords condensed in Oran's hands. They were the crystallization of soul power and the spiritual world, which was the foundation.
As Oran stabbed behind himself with a sword, the strange shadow also let out a strange roar and then dodged to the side.
At the same time, Yongen's body also moved, and both swords came out together, as if the swinging blades cut through Orlan's body.
"My knife saw your real name, ***."
A strange note came from under Yongen's mask. It was more like a whisper at the soul level than a language. This was the power Yongen gained after killing the first Azakana.
Once the true name is revealed, the mystery is finally broken.
The black shadow rushed forward suddenly, and its appearance kept changing in the process, eventually appearing to be extremely similar to Oran.
The clanging sound of steel clashing was heard, and a pair of black swords pierced out from the shadow's palms like fangs, colliding with Yongen's two swords.
Looking at Orlan who was attacking him together, the black shadow finally chose to escape. It did not have the clear consciousness of Azakana, and all it had was an instinct.
But Yongen clung to its body like a ghost. At this moment, Yongen was still standing in the same place as before, with his eyes closed, as if he was meditating.
The one chasing after him was Yongen's special spirit, who had been fighting with Azakana for many years. This situation was not complicated for Yongen, and he quickly subdued the opponent.
"Olan, this is your power. You have to give him the final blow yourself."
"Thanks, but I have a question. If I come into contact with the same thing again, or if someone else comes into contact with it, how do I remove it?"
Orlan turned the blade in his hand and stabbed it into the shadow's forehead, leaving Yongen with a question.
Anyone who eats two fruits will definitely die. This is the consensus on the sea. Now it seems that this is a battle of consciousness. Since one consciousness has been eliminated, the position has been vacated.
"The power of the Barrier Breaker is not suitable for you. Unless you want to die first, you won't be able to learn it even if I teach you. With your abilities, as long as you exist in this dream world, you should be able to deal with it.
It doesn't matter if you can't handle it. This thing is very weak and you can tame it as long as you are not too greedy.
Doing this is just adding another layer of insurance.
Even if you need help, I'm not the only one who can help. The Titans and the Kinkou also have this ability."
Yongen stabbed Orlan again from another angle, and finally the black shadow turned into a mask, the shape of which was very similar to an open book.
"The recent harvest is quite good. The Spiritual Blossom has bloomed again. It seems that the pain caused by Noxus here has almost disappeared."
"The scars will disappear, but the wounds will not. But this may be a good thing for Ionia. Change is needed here. The balance of the past can no longer keep up with the pace of the world."
"Speaking of which, why can't I use this power here? According to you, this power should be within the soul."
"Consciousness resides in your soul, and the other part is in your body. If you want to use its power, you have to wait until you wake up from the dream."
Yongen's spirit dissipated, returning to his original body and coming to Orlan's side. He then continued to ask, "You only told me half of the story about my brother last time.
I think you have almost mastered the swordsmanship, so it's time to tell me the rest."
"Of course, he didn't kill Elder Suma. Elder Suma's actions could be considered suicide. He promised to help the girl sever the Rune Sword, but he died from the shattered blade. That's why there were traces of Wind Control Sword Technique on his body."
After hearing this result, Yongen's spiritual body stiffened noticeably. Suma's death had an unimaginable impact on the two brothers.
The word "suicide" also had a great impact on Yongen.
"Are you sure?"
"It's hard to verify, but this is the truth. That girl is a Noxian vanguard officer named Riven. I don't know where she is now."
There are only two parties involved in this matter, Suma and Riven. Now that Suma is dead, even if Riven can be found, many things may not be explained clearly. The only evidence is the mark on the rune sword.
"Do you want me to help you pass on some information? I still have a way to contact people in my company, and maybe I can let you see the evidence."
"No need. Yongen is dead. Let them walk the rest of the way on their own. Knowing the result is enough for me."
Open-minded and melancholy, it was the first time that Yongen felt so conflicted. He even had some disrespectful thoughts that the respected Elder Su Ma seemed to be a little unskilled.
After starting to hunt the Azakana, Yongen also gained a better understanding of human nature, and there was no trace of lies in what Orlan said.
"As agreed, I will now pass on all my sword techniques to you. The way of the hunter, living towards death, severing the past, sealing away all thoughts, this is the final secret of my sword technique. How far you can learn it depends on you.
But I still have to say one more thing: don't go astray, Sidiliel."
Under the cover of night, two figures crossed each other in the forest of Ionia
At dawn, Ionia welcomed a new day. Downstream of the stream, countless chopped petals gathered at the bend of the stream.
On the sea, Orlan woke up again. For the first time, he brought out something tangible from his dream other than knowledge and memory - a mask.
As soon as he thought about it, a book appeared in Orlan's palm. Compared with yesterday, this control became more delicate.
"Perhaps this is the most unlucky fruit in this ocean? I wonder if this fruit will ever appear again in the ocean."
After sealing the mask in the book, Orlan threw it behind him. The moment it left his hand, the book disappeared again and returned to the book world in the consciousness of the person with the ability.
A pool of silvery liquid gel lay flat on the table, but Kate was nowhere to be seen, and it looked like the exchange of vigil had been completed.
After picking up the quilt that had been kicked aside and covering Leliana with it again, Orlan tiptoed out of the cabin.
When the hatch was opened, Zack opened one eye. Seeing that it was Orlan, he didn't say anything, but became alert again.
"Oran? Are you awake?"
On the deck, Kate was looking around with a telescope. She was a cat with fur, so she could see a lot of things even in the dark. After all, this was a new world, and she had to be careful.
"Where are we?"
"We should be at Fishman Island by daybreak. Feld said we'll dive from there."
On the return trip, they did not take the BIG MOM Pirates' ship. After all, the BIG MOM Pirates were not a navy, and their sphere of influence covered the entire ocean. Shortly after the tea party ended, Charlotte Linlin received news that their territory had been invaded.
This kind of thing is not uncommon in the New World, and there is only one way to deal with it - fight.
If this had not been Charlotte Lingling's first tea party, Charlotte Lingling would not have sent all her children out to pick them up. In the end, Umit used his connections to arrange a ship to take them back.
"Looks like it's almost time. By the way, Kate, how's your swimming ability?"
"Not bad. Wait Orlan! What are you doing?! You're a esper now!"
Seeing Orlan moving in front of the guardrail, as if he was about to jump into the sea, Kate came up and grabbed him.
"Devil Fruits are landlubbers. Vegapunk and Caesar have already tried this, so you don't need to try it again, right?"
"I do want to try it, but I'm not planning on jumping into the sea. There's a swimming pool on the boat. Come with me. I just want to stretch my legs after waking up."
Becoming a landlubber is a recognized weakness of the Devil Fruit. While eating the fruit to gain convenience, one also has to think about how to deal with this risk. If one cannot even understand one's own physical condition, one is undoubtedly unqualified.
So Orlan had to try, but jumping into the sea would be irresponsible to his own safety. He was not a merman, and this was a new world. If he was swept away by an undercurrent, he would be dead.
This ship is not an ordinary small wooden boat, it should be considered as a yacht, equipped with its own swimming pool. There is no one in the swimming pool at this time, so it is a natural testing ground.
Just to prevent accidents, Oran came to find a trustworthy lifeguard.