"And then?" Drake questioned once more.
"And then what?" Daolang blinked, looking utterly bewildered.
"I mean the final data from your fifteen-year investigation! What exactly did you unearth? Are there any concrete leads?"
"About that... the data..." Daolang stammered, his weathered face flushing crimson as he fumbled for words, looking entirely at a loss.
Witnessing the old man's absolute embarrassment, Drake's eyes widened to the size of saucers. "You've got to be joking. Don't tell me you unearned absolutely nothing after fifteen years?"
"Ahem, cough... Well, the adversary executed the operation with supreme operational security. Throughout these fifteen years, they haven't left a single electronic footprint or behavioral marker..."
"This..." Drake was thoroughly dumbfounded.
So the grand total of a fifteen-year underground investigation was merely verifying that the enemy's objective was his mother? What kind of low-tier detective script was this?
By this stage, Daolang couldn't even bring himself to lock eyes with Drake. It was an absolute, defining humiliation. Even his own son's true identity had to be mapped out and delivered to him by Mitian. Across these long years, his administrative tracking had essentially yielded a net zero.
Drake fell into a heavy silence, closing his eyes as his analytical models ran through the parameters. He possessed zero data regarding the identities of these phantom operatives, but he had a solid grasp of Daolang's combat metrics. Even if the old man's physical output hadn't reached its current peak back then, he was far from a weakling.
The number of global factions capable of locking down a powerhouse of his tier was exceptionally limited. A shadow syndicate possessing that caliber of operational mass should command a massive reputation across the annals of the New World.
Perhaps it wasn't that the adversary had ceased all field operations; rather, they were executing their maneuvers in broad daylight, masked by their institutional status. There was a high mathematical probability that the mastermind was one of the prominent, sovereign factions ruling the global landscape!
After a long, dense timeline.
"Phew..." Drake let out a long, slow breath, his eyes snapping wide.
The sheer volume of unsealed personal history was immense. He had historically operated under the assumption that his vessel was entirely decoupled from any biological lineage in this world. Now that the data had inverted, a trace of initial disorientation lingered in his mind, but it was quickly eclipsed by a deep sense of purpose.
A family... I actually possess one too.
"Leave the matter of mother to my vanguard," Drake stated flatly. "I will personally penetrate their network and bring her back—assuming her biological signatures are still active."
"But if they have already liquidated her... I shall ensure the supreme architects of that strike liquidate their own bloodlines to pay the debt!"
A lethal crimson gleam erupted from Drake's eyes. An unprecedented surge of raw, unbridled power flooded his entire motor network, thick plumes of an unsettling, eerie red energy violently venting from his skin.
"This is..." Drake felt a sudden, burning heat ignite within his physical core, as if a specialized, primeval force was continuously welling up from the deepest recesses of his soul.
The sensation was profoundly bizarre. The energy clearly belonged to his own biological vessel, yet it felt entirely separate from his mastered arsenal.
"What on earth..." Staring at the cataclysmic transformation unfolding before his face, Daolang's eyes nearly popped from their sockets.
Regarding the precise classification of the specialized crimson energy enveloping Drake's frame, the old man possessed absolute data. It precisely mirrored the ultimate signature technique Red Hair had brandished across his entire career.
Deep within his consciousness, Drake immediately called out to the interface. "System, diagnose this operational state!"
[PING! Host has successfully awakened Top-Tier Conqueror's Haki: Conqueror's Domain!]
"Conqueror's Domain? What kind of utility is that?" Drake was completely blindsided. He had never unearthed a single record suggesting that a psychological presence could form a physical domain.
However, running a quick correlation, he deduced that this structural awakening had likely been triggered by Luffy's recent breakthrough, allowing his own vessel to passively siphon an alternative, reality-bending force.
Top-Tier Conqueror's Haki! This was undoubtedly the exact methodology Red Hair utilized to dominate the sea.
But from the system's incoming transmission, he knew the mechanical definition would yield a far more advanced analysis.
Conqueror's Domain.
[Conqueror's Domain represents the absolute, terminal zenith of Conqueror's Haki. Within this operational state, the presence transforms into the solitary, definitive manifestation of a true Sovereign.]
[The domain enables the user to fluidly weaponize the surrounding environmental factors to reinforce their baseline metrics, while unlocking the capacity to completely mobilize 100% of the internal Conqueror's Haki reserves for active combat application.]
[Once the user achieves absolute comprehension of the Conqueror's Domain, every fraction of hidden sovereign potential buried within the soul is brought online.]
[When Conqueror's Haki is refined to this absolute limit, the resulting destructive output comfortably scales into the tier of a global cataclysm.]
"Oh?" Drake's eyes flashed with a sharp light, his anticipation spiking.
This specific methodology—where his combat metrics executed a massive vertical leap while he stood completely static—was an incredibly pleasant user experience.
The tactile feedback of the Conqueror's Domain was nothing short of miraculous. He felt as though a limitless reservoir of kinetic mass was saturating his muscle fibers, forcing every single biological subsystem to stabilize at its peak performance threshold. The global layout of the surrounding perimeter felt completely tethered to his thoughts; every minimal gesture collected sufficient authority to command the spatial energy of the void. He felt a profound, intuitive certainty that he could sunder the world itself with a single strike.
This was an operational parameters his vessel had never encountered.
The infinite well of raw spirit, the specialized presence that had historically been restricted to knocking out low-level fodder—all of it could now be fluidly manipulated at his whim. The unexpected efficiency of the system was staggering.
This was the true reality of Conqueror's Haki.
He had historically assumed that Advanced Conqueror's Haki infusion represented the definitive, correct deployment of the force. Looking back at that evaluation, his strategic vision had been incredibly narrow. How could the absolute aura of a born sovereign be restricted to a simple weapon coating? He had undeniably been far too casual in his baseline assumptions.
"System, break down the core mechanics of this Conqueror's Domain," Drake commanded.
[Conqueror's Domain is the ultimate, high-level application of a Sovereign's spirit. By aligning your intent with your motor actions, you can seamlessly draw upon every fraction of latent energy buried within your physical vessel.]
[A standard application of Conqueror's Haki relies solely on utilizing one's unbridled spirit to psychologically intimidate the environment. However, its operational utility is strictly capped, merely inducing neurological collapse in low-tier targets with weak mental fortitude.]
[Conversely, the absolute realization of the force—the Conqueror's Domain—yields an active destructive output that comfortably anchors itself as the world's strongest capability.]
[This force possesses the necessary mass to shake the heavens and earth, cleanly breaking past the structural constraints of the One Piece world.]
[The individual standing before your perimeter, Red Hair Shanks, represents the supreme living blueprint of this methodology.]
A wave of absolute clarity washed over Drake's mind. This was the definitive reality of Top-Tier Conqueror's Haki. And Luffy had just successfully navigated the variables to master this identical force.
High above, Luffy was launching a frantic, unrestricted bombardment against Red Hair. Every single punch carried the absolute limit of his physical mass, channeling an immeasurable concentration of raw power. Every soul in the clearing recognized that this was the definitive force of a true King.
"Luffy..." Drake murmured, staring up at the young captain who was actively trading balanced blows against Red Hair across the heavens, his mind reeling.
Luffy's pure talent was completely out of bounds. Even though Drake himself commanded a spatial arsenal deep enough to execute a global apocalypse, he still found the sheer velocity of Luffy's growth parameters profoundly terrifying. Within the brief timeline it took to execute a single defensive pivot, Luffy had cleanly unsealed the absolute reality of Conqueror's Haki.
Had Drake been forced to grind for this breakthrough via standard system experience points, his metrics would have trailed a substantial distance behind this tier. His independent Haki reserves were nowhere near this level of refinement.
Yet because of Luffy's instantaneous vertical leap, his own vessel had received an immediate, automatic promotion.
Drake understood the strategic implications of this link perfectly well. As long as the timeline permitted Luffy sufficient breathing room to stabilize his form, setting aside alternative variables, he would easily surpass every single powerhouse anchoring this ocean in a remarkably short window.
The Conqueror's Domain was a force that actively warped the spatial matrix.
Before long, Luffy would firmly establish his seat among the absolute strongest entities on the planet, and his own metrics would concurrently touch the absolute zenith of the global hierarchy. Because the system's baseline mandate would continuously scale his power to comfortably outperform Luffy. For an older brother who harbored an intense, protective dedication to his younger sibling, maintaining a distinct superiority in combat mass was an absolute requirement.
Outperforming the younger brother was the fundamental axiom of a protective monster.
"Aaargh!! Shanks!"
High above, Luffy poured the absolute totality of his power into a monumental fist, sundering the heavy layers of cloud cover as a screaming hurricane of energy hurtled toward a perfectly serene Red Hair.
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