Chapter 5: A Walk in the Park

Luo Ning stared. "Wow, that blast turned Brugley to mush"

The other two Brugleys froze, barely daring to breathe. Luo Ning was surprised too. He'd just fired a blast without knowing his own strength, but it felt effortless. That weird power he unleashed was clearly way beyond Brugley's limit. As a result, Brugley's body crumpled like paper.

On top of that, Luo Ning noticed he'd gained 300 freedom points. "Three Brugleys, one dead, two too scared to fight. Does that count as a win?" The extra points meant each Brugley was worth 100.

"Those prisoners were way easier pickings" Luo Ning grumbled, remembering how many it took to give him 200 points. But it made sense. The first-floor prisoners were weak, easily overwhelmed by Brugley. This price seemed fair.

Luo Ning split the new points between his physical fitness and Reiatsu, boosting both considerably. Now he headed toward the sword forest.

He encountered jailers and Brugley along the way, but they were no match for him.

When he came to the Blade Forest, Luo Ning also had hundreds of free points in his hands, and he improved his physical fitness and Reiatsu at the moment he got them.

BOOM!

Luo Ning's fist shattered the gate with ease. Beyond, a dark red forest stretched out before him.

This was the sword forest. Its crimson hue came from the blood that soaked the ground.

Screams echoed from within the forest, chilling the air.

The leaves of trees and the grass poked at the prisoners like blades and needles.

The place was crawling with poisonous insects, and guards surrounded them on all sides.

Forced inside, the prisoners couldn't rest. The insects kept stinging them, and the guards prodded them away from the edges.

Luo Ning always thought Zephyr was strange for refusing to kill pirates in their anime days.

But after he came to this deep sea prison, he realized that Zephyr is the most ruthless.

This place is a real nightmare, no matter what floor you're on.

They send prisoners in practically half dead, and escaping is next to impossible. It's only happened twice. Once, is Golden Lion, he gave up his legs to escape. The other time was Luffy, and even he needed a bunch of outside help. Plus, that Blackbeard dude showed up to cause problems, and the Marines were too busy fighting Whitebeard to send any backup.

Otherwise, Luffy and his crew wouldn't have stood a chance. Once the Marines get there, nobody's getting out.

Basically, you go in, you never come out. Zephyr's a real monster. Torture or death – take your pick, and death might be the better option.

Entering the Blade Forest, Luo Ning imagine himself immune to all poisons.

"What's this?"

The jailers who forced the prisoners here were surprised to see Luo Ning walk into the forest.

"Hey jailers down there, that's an escapee! Get him!" a voice shouted from the monitoring room.

The jailers below scrambled. Leaving the prisoners in the Blade Forest for now, they surrounded Luo Ning.

"Don't move!" they yelled, with guns pointed at him.

"Shut your mouth!"

Luo Ning was a little amused. Many jailers had shot at him just now, but it had no effect at all.

With a swift move, Luo Ning warped the jailers' guns. The barrels twisted, transforming the weapons into spiked clubs that impaled their arms.

imagining for metal control, he thought. The more outlandish the power, the harder it is to maintain, and the more it strains you.

But these abilities felt effortless now. These jailers were walking experience points, fueling his growth.

While he seemed powerful, the real challenge awaited - Magellan's group. These were just the first floor guards. Each floor below would be tougher.

Yet, Luo Ning was getting stronger with every encounter. By the time he faced Magellan on the fourth floor, the power dynamic would be uncertain.

Forget defying Magellan entirely. While Luo Ning fantasized about poison immunity, he wasn't sure his current defenses held against Magellan's strongest poisons. Time to level up that ability too.