Chapter 1: The Awakening of the Mind (Part 1)
In the world of One Piece, in the New World near the Calm Belt of the East Blue, there stood an island named Ring Tree Island, or simply, Ring Island.
At the highest and only outward-jutting rock of the island—Green Cliff—Luo Han awoke with a gentle breeze brushing past.
He rubbed his eyes, staring blankly at the azure sky. In the blink of an eye, it had been ten years since he arrived in the world of One Piece, and Luo Han still couldn't forget his past life.
In his previous life, though the pressure of reality was heavy—graduating from university in 2017 and earning only 6,000 yuan after three years—the world was at peace. Living in the society of Greater China, he could immerse himself in the sea of books and anime during his free time, enjoying the grandeur of the world without worrying about being "harmonized" by some pirate. Who would've thought that after one nap, he would wake up as a tiny baby with short arms and legs? Sigh...
"Xiao Han, hurry back! The fish scale fruits have ripened this year—we're all waiting for you." Thump! Thump! Below the cliff, Granny Mo tapped the ground lightly with her cane, squinting her bright eyes slightly as she walked toward Luo Han.
Oh right, he almost forgot—today was the island's quadrennial Fish Scale Fruit Festival.
It was about two in the afternoon.
Fish scale fruits could only be consumed by children between ten and eighteen years old. For those over eighteen, the effects were negligible. These fruits were borne from a giant divine tree on the island and contained energy that transformed one's physique, only bearing fruit once every four years.
Returning to the present…
"Alright, Grandma!" Luo Han stretched his back and flipped up as he replied.
"I've told you many times—don't sleep on Green Cliff. It's too deep and dangerous below," Granny Mo said again with loving concern.
Luo Han replied, "Don't worry, Granny Mo, you've said it so many times already. Let's go—I'll help you walk!"
They made their way to the inner edge of Ring Tree Island. A casual glance revealed the enormous divine tree that, even after ten years, still took one's breath away.
This was truly a marvel of nature. No matter how bizarre the geological formations, nature could form them all. The entire island was ring-shaped, composed of rock, about two hundred meters high, with both its inner and outer faces perpendicular to the sea—like a colossal circular stone pillar resting on the ocean. At the center was a bottomless freshwater lake.
At the bottom of the lake, there was an underwater tunnel connected to the sea, allowing seawater to flow in and form the lake.
The divine tree stood rooted at the center of the lake, with its top as tall as the island itself—completely invisible from the outside. Its wonder lay in its ability to desalinate seawater like a desalination plant, thus providing the island's fresh water.
Its roots intertwined with the island's structure, forming layer upon layer of web-like roads. Apart from the spiral rock staircase winding around the island, the islanders used these root-formed paths to move around. Their homes were caves carved into the ring-shaped rock, distributed across nine layers according to the tree roots' levels.
As they walked, Luo Han and Granny Mo arrived at the plaza on the ninth level, where the divine tree's roots grew denser near its trunk, forming a two-square-kilometer plaza.
Everyone on the island had gathered here. All the fish scale fruits had been harvested and were laid out on the long tables in the plaza.
"Xiao Han, you went to sleep on Green Cliff again, didn't you?"
"Of course he did. Ever since he learned to walk, he's gone there every day."
"Is sleeping on Green Cliff more comfortable than a woman's bed? Hahaha!"
"What nonsense are you talking about, you old fool!"
Hearing the villagers' teasing, Luo Han rolled his eyes upward, keeping a calm expression, pretending with an innocent face that he didn't understand a thing.
"Alright, Luo Han, come here and get in line!" came the gruff voice of Uncle Kate, the island's hunting squad captain.
Standing five meters tall, with bulging muscles, dark skin, and a face like a gorilla, Uncle Kate was indeed an intimidating figure.
The hunting squad was a group of trained adult males tasked with hunting Sea Kings around the island. Only men over eighteen could join, and only after passing a selection. Uncle Kate was the strongest among them—probably with power comparable to a Marine Vice Admiral. After all, this was the New World.
Luo Han quickly ran to stand at the end of the line. The group had over forty boys and girls, all between ten and eighteen.
The island had a population of about twenty thousand. Every four years, around forty children would be eligible to eat the fish scale fruit.
"Brother Han, do you think I can beat my dad after eating the fish scale fruit this time?" The chubby boy in front of Luo Han turned his head excitedly to ask.
His name was Phil Cole, the same age as Luo Han—ten years old. He liked tagging along with Luo Han and was a foodie—a true foodie who never said no to food.
Luo Han already knew what Phil was talking about.
Luo Han replied, "What are you thinking? Hmm… maybe after a few more rounds, you'll get there."
Phil said, "But I don't want to wait!"
Luo Han asked, "Why not?"
Phil: "My dad always hits my mom at night. It makes a loud smack smack smack. I tell him to stop, but he keeps saying it's exercise. I don't believe him!"
Luo Han: "Uh… you're very gifted!" So you want to beat your dad so he'll stop hitting your mom… how naive! Life is movement, huh… I'm off topic again…
Uncle Kate: "Alright, starting from the front—come get your fish scale fruit. Once you eat it, you'll be the island's new manhood! Or womanhood, haha!"
Phil quickly turned back around, eyes sparkling with anticipation as he looked at Uncle Kate. Luo Han fell silent—he was looking forward to it too.
The distribution began.
One by one, children ahead of them collected their fruits. Phil got his. Then finally—it was Luo Han's turn.
Ever since he was five, Luo Han had overheard island elders talking about things like the Navy, pirates, and the World Government. That was when he realized—he had come to the world of One Piece. A world where only strength determines survival.
That's why Luo Han needed power, and the fish scale fruit was his foundation to move upward. After all, not everyone had Big Mom-level talent.
Luo Han: "Uncle Kate, my fish scale fruit looks different from the others!"
Fish scale fruit, as the name implied, had skin covered in fish scale-like patterns and was generally bluish-green.
But Luo Han's was smooth, with kaleidoscope-like patterns all over it, bursting with colors—not looking like it at all!
Uncle Kate: "Uh… Xiao Han, yours is a bit special, but I swear it came from the divine tree—I picked it myself."
"But it doesn't look the same…" Luo Han muttered.
"Little Luo Han, we shouldn't waste the divine tree's fruit. We must be grateful—maybe yours is extra powerful!" Uncle Kate's expression suddenly turned solemn.
"Alright then." Luo Han took the unique-looking fruit and stepped aside to slice it before eating.
Everyone else began slicing and eating their fruits too. The effects took time to manifest, enhancing each child differently based on their innate potential. Their physical traits would improve maximally over the next three years of training.
Sigh… Luo Han looked at everyone else's fruit, then back at his own, frowning.
But this strange fruit… really looked like a Devil Fruit! According to his past life's knowledge, Devil Fruit powers would reappear in a random fruit after the user died.
Could it be that this odd fish scale fruit was such a case? If so… then wouldn't he…?
Feeling a wave of excitement—AAAAH!
(END CHAPTER)
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