"I want you to show us around your country's royal palace!"
"Huh?"
"Nani!!!"
"What?!"
Not only the Straw Hat crew, but even Vivi had an expression of disbelief.
You clearly had a mischievous look on your face, but the terms of the deal were so simple.
"Um… Mr. Zhong Chen, are you sure you didn't make a mistake?"
Zhong Chen smiled and said,
"That's right! That's it, what did you guys think it was?!"
"However, since it's a trade, we naturally need to give something in return."
"How about this: I'll help you solve your country's drought problem!"
"You only get one chance for this deal!"
Hearing that Zhong Chen claimed he could solve the drought problem, Vivi stood up in shock.
"You can really solve the drought problem?!"
"Mr. Zhong Chen, you might not know, but our country's drought problem is actually because…"
Before Vivi could finish, Zhong Chen interrupted, "It's because Crocodile used Dance Powder, right?!"
"You even know that?"
"Mr. Zhong Chen, who exactly are you?!"
Hearing Vivi's question, Izayoi Sakuya, standing behind Zhong Chen, said with a serious expression,
"This is one of the founders of the Great Demon Federation, Regent Zhong Chen!"
"Great Demon Federation?"
"Nami, do you know this country?"
Luffy asked Nami with a puzzled look, while Nami shook her head, indicating she hadn't heard of it either.
"Forgive my rudeness, but I've never heard of such a country!"
Vivi asked Zhong Chen with a puzzled expression.
"Haha! It's normal for you not to know. We've only just emerged, but our country isn't far from here!"
"Not far from here?!!!"
Vivi had originally thought the Great Demon Federation might be a small country in one of the Four Seas, but she never expected it to be near Alabasta.
"That's right! Princess Vivi, do you want to make this deal? It's very beneficial for you!"
Zhong Chen leaned back on the sofa and said with a smile.
"May I ask why you want to help me?"
That's right, in Vivi's heart, this was Zhong Chen helping her, after all, visiting the royal palace was hardly a demand.
"No reason! Is it okay if I just find you pleasing to the eye?"
Hearing Zhong Chen's words, a blush involuntarily appeared on Vivi's face.
"You're joking!"
"I'm not joking. Perhaps you don't know my situation here!"
With that, Zhong Chen explained in detail to Vivi and the others the purpose of their trip and their personnel configuration.
"So, there are more than two hundred children here now? And they're all from some academy on an internship?"
Seeing Nami's expression, as if asking, 'Are you sure you're not messing with me?', Zhong Chen calmly nodded.
Seeing Zhong Chen confirm it, everyone present fell silent. They never imagined there was such a country.
To send the Regent himself to lead an expedition just for children to intern.
Then how great must the king of this country be!
If Zhong Chen knew their thoughts, he would definitely say, 'You're overthinking it.'
His great Majesty the King is currently sleeping soundly not far from you.
"Do you have any more doubts now?"
"Mr. Zhong Chen, I have one last question?"
"Ask away! You certainly have a lot of questions!"
Hearing Zhong Chen's teasing, Vivi's small face also blushed, but she still asked,
"Aren't you afraid of Crocodile? You know he's one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea!"
Zhong Chen couldn't help but burst out laughing when he heard Vivi's words:
"Hahaha! Crocodile? That little thing isn't even worthy of me making a move!"
Hearing Zhong Chen's confident words, Luffy, who had fought Crocodile before, looked at Zhong Chen in shock.
"You're really not afraid? He's not a simple guy!"
Hearing Luffy's words, Zhong Chen didn't answer him, but simply raised his right index finger slightly.
In an instant, everyone present, except Sakuya and Tina, was pressed to the ground by an extremely terrifying aura, unable to move.
"This… how is this possible?!"
"So powerful!!!"
"Is this what a true powerhouse is?!"
"He's even more oppressive than Mihawk, this man…"
Just as Zhong Chen was about to retract his hand, he suddenly felt something.
"I'm the man who's going to become the King of the Pirates! How can I be overwhelmed by a mere aura? How can I become the King of the Pirates like this! Ah ah ah ah!"
Suddenly, an incomparably domineering aura surged from Luffy's body.
Unfortunately, this aura was insignificant compared to the aura emanating from Zhong Chen, and seeing this, Zhong Chen lowered his finger.
Everyone felt their bodies suddenly lighten, and the pressure on them instantly dissipated.
"Oh my! He's awakened Conqueror's Haki!"
Zhong Chen said softly to Luffy, who was panting heavily.
"Conqueror's Haki?"
Seeing the confused few, Zhong Chen slapped his forehead, remembering that they hadn't encountered Haki yet.
He then explained in detail to them what the three types of Haki were.
Simply put, Conqueror's Haki is a rare type that appears in only one in a million people.
Armament Haki is like putting on a layer of armor and being able to attack Logia Devil Fruit users.
Observation Haki is a type of perception-based Haki, and when trained to its highest level, it can briefly allow one to see into the future.
"So that's it, I wondered why I couldn't hit that sand crocodile, turns out I need Armament Haki to touch him!"
Luffy sat cross-legged on the ground with an 'I see' expression, while Zoro asked with a serious look,
"Then were you using Conqueror's Haki just now? It was indeed domineering!"
Zhong Chen was slightly stunned when he heard this, then said with a smile,
"No, to be precise, I actually don't know Haki!!!"
"Huh!!!"
Everyone present looked at him in shock when they heard Zhong Chen's words.
Good heavens, you just made the three types of Haki sound so amazing.
And you looked like a super master, and now you're telling us you don't know Haki!
"Is there anything strange about that?!"
Zhong Chen said calmly.
To be honest, Zhong Chen, who had just arrived in this world, was indeed a little interested in Haki, but after a bit of research, he gave up.
The three types of Haki were useless to Rimuru and the others; Demon Lord's Haki was infinitely stronger than Conqueror's Haki.
As for Armament Haki and Observation Haki, they were just so-so. They really couldn't compare to magic power and thought acceleration and other skills.
Although Zhong Chen didn't have the aforementioned skills, he had cultivation, a dimensionality reduction attack, if you will.
In the end, Zhong Chen could only organize the three types of Haki into teaching materials and hand them over to Shizue to handle.
"For me, whether I have Haki or not makes no difference! Anyway, no one is my opponent!"
Zoro's heart trembled when he heard that.
"So this is what a true powerhouse is…"