Back in his "cozy" little nest within the relic—
What's that? Why the quotation marks around "cozy"?
Isn't it obvious?
The entire "nest" was built from the bodies of Desert Statues. How could that possibly be cozy?
Sure, the Desert Statues' bodies were made from a special kind of stone.
But still—at the end of the day, they were corpses.
Zhao Xuan had originally planned to take the two Land King Crystals he'd just acquired, leave the relic space, and trade them at the Ability Users' Guild for some energy fluid.
But then—
He suddenly remembered something.
That was—
He…
It seemed! maybe! Possibly! probably! might have! just perhaps!
never actually tested the Spirit Cacti that grew inside this relic!
From the abnormally strong physique and awakened Armament Haki of that Ironhide Boar, Zhao Xuan had guessed that the Spirit Cactus might enhance physical strength and promote the awakening of Armament Haki.
But—
A guess was still just a guess.
"If this thing really can help awaken Armament Haki… then its value would be…"
Zhao Xuan's eyes gleamed with sudden excitement.
He quickly walked up to one of the Spirit Cacti he had casually brought back earlier and cut off a section.
Instantly—
A refreshing fragrance wafted through the air.
Just smelling it made his mind feel clear and invigorated.
"Good stuff! Just from the scent alone, you can tell this cactus isn't ordinary!"
Overcome with excitement, Zhao Xuan peeled away the outer layer of the cactus and took a big bite of the flesh inside.
The pulp melted the moment it touched his tongue.
As it slid down into his stomach—
A wave of warmth bloomed in his belly, quickly spreading throughout his entire body.
Everywhere the warmth flowed, Zhao Xuan felt as though every cell in his body was cheering, leaping with joy.
The process didn't last long.
When the warmth faded, Zhao Xuan immediately opened his status panel to check.
One glance—and his brow furrowed.
"Physical stats did increase, but that's it. Nothing related to Armament Haki… unless I need to activate it while the warmth is still working?"
Muttering to himself, Zhao Xuan took another bite.
Warmth surged again.
This time, instead of standing there foolishly, he immediately circulated his Armament Haki.
When the warmth faded again, he looked at his panel once more.
Physique—improved.
But Armament Haki proficiency—unchanged.
"Huh? Did I guess wrong? Maybe the cactus doesn't actually promote Armament Haki awakening? Maybe that Ironhide Boar awakened it purely through talent?"
He shook his head violently.
"No, no, no! Impossible! It can't be! It's just a third-tier Ironhide Boar—no real intelligence! Without some sort of external trigger, how could it possibly awaken Armament Haki?"
"There's definitely something off here!"
Zhao Xuan narrowed his eyes, straining to recall the moment he had seen that Ironhide Boar devouring the Spirit Cactus inside the relic, searching for anything he might have overlooked.
"Wait… wait… wait!"
His eyes suddenly lit up. "If I remember correctly—that boar ate the cactus whole! Skin, needles, everything! Don't tell me…"
A bold idea flashed through his mind.
He quickly crouched down, picked up the cactus peel he'd tossed aside earlier, and examined it carefully.
And then—
He noticed it.
Within the layer of sharp cactus needles, there was energy too—
Energy completely different from the one contained in the cactus pulp.
"There's no mistake! No mistake at all! Absolutely no mistake!"
Staring at the cactus needles in his palm, Zhao Xuan's eyes shone brightly.
"These needles must be the key—the very reason that Ironhide Boar awakened Armament Haki!"
Without a second thought, Zhao Xuan opened the relic's portal and returned to his small apartment in Tongcheng.
After washing the sand-covered cactus peel clean, he took a deep breath—
Then stuffed the needle-covered peel straight into his mouth.
He chewed twice and swallowed.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
At the three-second mark—
A strange warmth burst from his stomach.
It lasted only a moment—
But during that brief window, Zhao Xuan felt the Armament Haki within his Qi Core begin to stir.
Without his control, the Haki surged out on its own, flowing through his body along with the warmth before returning to the core.
When the warmth faded, Zhao Xuan immediately checked his status panel—
And there it was—his Armament Haki proficiency had increased by two points!
Zhao Xuan suddenly broke into wild laughter.
"Hahahahahahahahaha!"
His laughter was radiant—
his grin, triumphant—
his joy, unrestrained and mad.
——
——
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