One Piece:Becoming the King of the World from the Rocks Era

The deep sword scars on Li Yuan's body were all inflicted by the Golden Lion in a short period. While struggling to fend off the Golden Lion's assault, Li Yuan was also trying to comprehend the Golden Lion's sword intent, aspiring to develop his own and become a great swordsman.

The Golden Lion's sword style was a straightforward one, focused on swift, ruthless, and ultimate killing. It was all about the most efficient way to kill. This was a path many swordsmen on the sea followed.

As the battle with the Golden Lion continued, Li Yuan increasingly felt the inadequacies in his own swordsmanship. 

After battling the Golden Lion for three days and nights, they finally stopped.

"Jihahahaha, how was it, Li Yuan? How do you find my swordsmanship?" 

The Golden Lion laughed heartily, seeing Li Yuan covered in blood and severely injured.

"Your swordsmanship is impressive. We'll fight again next time!" 

Li Yuan ignored the Golden Lion's smug expression and dragged his injured body back to his quarters.

In the following three months, Li Yuan grew continuously under the Golden Lion's pressure. Each time he returned from a battle with the Golden Lion, he gained much insight. When not fighting, he trained relentlessly on Beehive Island, reminiscent of the frenzied training when he first arrived.

Three months flew by, and Li Yuan's strength had grown significantly once more. Unfortunately, he was still a swordsman, just half a step away from being a great swordsman. Yet, that half-step seemed insurmountable, or perhaps the timing just wasn't right.

This time, the greatest progress from battling the Golden Lion Shiki was not in swordsmanship or the completion of the [Sword God's Body Tempering Technique] fourth layer. It was the advancement of his Observation Haki to an advanced level and the awakening of a new talent: mind-reading.

Like the Red Count Ledfield's incredibly tyrannical Observation Haki, which could read people's hearts and memories, Li Yuan's was akin to a weakened version of the Memo Memo no Mi fruit.

With mind-reading, during his clashes with the Golden Lion Shiki, Li Yuan could discern the Golden Lion's various sword techniques, attack targets, and even his short-term thoughts. 

This breakthrough in Observation Haki allowed him to gradually regain his rhythm from being constantly on the defensive. Although he still couldn't match Shiki, he could at least occasionally counterattack.

His first major advantage was the infinitely potential [Sword God's Body Tempering Technique]. The second was his far superior soul strength, which endowed him with extremely strong Observation Haki talent and swordsmanship potential.

"Next, I need to break through to a great swordsman and commence the fifth layer of [Sword God's Body Tempering Technique], focusing on tempering muscle."

Li Yuan thought to himself.

Becoming a great swordsman required an opportunity, and tempering the skin in the fourth layer of [Sword God's Body Tempering Technique] was the simplest and easiest. As the layers increase, the difficulty of tempering rises, requiring more time, but the benefits also grow stronger.

Tempering muscles would significantly enhance his defense, attack power, stamina, and physical recovery, unlike skin tempering, which only marginally increased skin defense.

"Boss, the new recruitment event is about to start."

Mali ran over to remind Li Yuan.

The Rocks Pirates' recruitment event, held every six months, welcomed pirates from all over to join. With Rocks' growing ambitions, this changed to every three months, and it might eventually become a monthly event.

"Let's go!!" 

Originally, Li Yuan didn't plan to attend, but Rocks Pirates had a rule that all officers on or near Beehive Island must participate in the recruitment event.

Thus, Li Yuan had no choice but to attend.

"It's lively. This recruitment event is much more bustling than the last one I attended."

Li Yuan stood among the officers, observing the sea of people below. There were many more than when he had participated, at least 30,000 pirates!

"This year, our Rocks Pirates have gained worldwide fame. Many pirates from all over have come to the New World to join us. The numbers will only keep rising."

The Golden Lion grinned with a cigarette between his lips, and Li Yuan could clearly see the excitement and ambition in his eyes.

"Hahaha, is that the world's strongest man?"

"It's terrifying. Just standing there makes me feel breathless."

"The officers of the Rocks Pirates are here too. I've heard each one is comparable to a Navy admiral. I wonder if that's true?"

The pirates eager to join the Rocks Pirates were buzzing with excitement at the sight of Rocks leading his officers.

As Rocks made his entrance, his terrifying Conqueror's Haki surged skyward like an apocalyptic force, intimidating the newcomers who wanted to join.

Simultaneously, the Conqueror's Haki of Li Yuan and the other officers also burst forth.

The terrifying aura of their combined Haki filled the sky with dark clouds and thunder, as if a storm were about to break.

This fearsome display featured Rocks and his officers standing together, forming a historic image of villains in the making.

This was the era of the Rocks Pirates!

The pirates, who had been buzzing with excitement, were now silent, swallowing nervously as they watched the scene unfold.

"Wow hahaha, you scum, want to join the Rocks Pirates? Want fame, treasure, power?" 

"If you do, then fight! Only the last 20,000 standing can join the Rocks Pirates."

Rocks' words brought an eerie silence over the crowd.

-S

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