Brand-new posters were put up.
Ever since the Enies Lobby arc ended, more and more people had begun paying attention to Adventure King.
At first, it was mostly adventurers who followed it, but gradually even ordinary citizens fell in love with the comic.
To say nothing else,
the captain alone was incredibly likable.
He combined humor, passion, face blindness, perseverance, and foolishness into one character.
So after work, everyone was more than happy to spare some time to read about Luffy's adventures.
The comic had not yet gone on sale, but the poster alone had already sparked anticipation.
The previous arc centered on fighting the World Government and Water Seven.
This time, however, the theme revolved around horror and comedy.
On the poster, Usopp was covered in garlic, while the others held various tools for exorcism.
After staring at it for a while, one fan asked in confusion, "Is this a gourmet arc? Why are they carrying garlic?"
The person next to him in line burst into laughter.
"Idiot. That is a foreign exorcism item. It is like our Liyue peachwood bark scraps. Got it?"
The man immediately blushed.
He had never left Liyue, so how would he know such things?
Before long,
the comic officially went on sale, and the scene was extremely lively.
Inside the courtyard.
Venti and Mona were already flipping through the new arc.
At the beginning of the story, Luffy and his crew entered a fog-shrouded sea, where they encountered a strange skeletal gentleman.
He was very elegant, and equally lecherous.
After some conversation, everyone learned that the skeleton was named Brook, an adventurer who had eaten the Revive-Revive Fruit.
Unfortunately, when his Devil Fruit activated, his body had already decayed.
Thus, he remained nothing but a skeleton.
Looking at the eccentric skeleton, Mona could not help laughing. "He can even play the piano. What an interesting skeleton."
"Indeed. Adventuring through the mist is truly fascinating. Everything is unknown."
Venti was full of praise for this arc.
The imagination behind this comic was astonishing. Every chapter was something he could never predict.
Su Han was truly remarkable.
Luffy and his companions soon encountered danger during their adventure. Strange ghosts attacked them.
And that was only the beginning.
After landing on the island, they witnessed numerous horror elements.
For instance, zombies in a graveyard.
And grotesque stitched-together monsters.
Though it sounded terrifying, their appearances were unexpectedly comical.
After a series of events,
the Negative Ghosts appeared.
Whether it was the powerful swordsman or the cyborg, they all collapsed to their knees.
"If there is a next life, I want to be a snail."
"Today, I am utterly useless."
"If there is another life, please let me be a shell."
Watching Luffy and the others defeated by the ghosts, Mona laughed until tears streamed down her face.
Venti was no exception.
But everyone could tell that the ghosts in this arc were far more than mere comic relief.
As the adventure continued,
Luffy and his crew uncovered the truth. The island was actually the base of one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, and the reason shadows were stolen...
Was to create powerful zombies.
One touching moment followed.
The whale they had encountered at Reverse Mountain turned out to be Brook's companion.
When the foreshadowing was revealed, Venti could not help exclaiming, "My goodness, so Laboon is Brook's friend."
He had guessed that the whale would reappear in the finale, but he had never expected a story spanning decades to converge through Luffy and his crew.
The sense of immersion deepened instantly.
Whether it was reclaiming their shadows or helping Brook reunite with his companion,
this battle had to be won.
However, when the true fight began, Luffy and the others realized just how powerful a Warlord truly was.
His abilities were troublesome, and each of his subordinates was more frightening than the last.
An invisible man.
A girl who controlled Negative Ghosts.
And a grave-robbing doctor.
Interestingly, the most seemingly useless member of the crew, Usopp, shone brilliantly here.
He was already a pessimist by nature.
Thus, the Negative Ghosts had no effect on him at all.
"Hahaha. This is the power of a professional. Charge, Usopp!"
"I knew Usopp would have his moment to shine."
"This is too funny. Being overly negative equals invincible. How can you even lose?"
Laughter echoed through the streets and alleys.
This arc of Adventure King was simply too entertaining.
Inside the Adventurers' Guild,
missions were temporarily paused. Everyone held a copy of the comic, enjoying their leisure time.
When Lan saw Usopp's unexpected brilliance, she could not suppress a laugh.
"Su Han really is something. To design a scene like this, it is truly amusing."
After the brief laughter,
the story shifted to Zoro's duel against Ryuma and the legendary sword.
Their swordsmanship clashed magnificently.
They were evenly matched, but in the end, Zoro defeated his opponent with a powerful slash and obtained a formidable weapon.
The black blade, Shusui.
The first half of the arc ended there.
No one paused. They immediately turned to the second half.
After all, with the giant demon Oars being so powerful, how could he possibly be defeated?
With Luffy's current strength, even Gear Third alone would not be enough.
Size itself was power.
The enemy's body was as massive as a mountain.
Defeating him would not be simple.
As Lan and the others speculated, a brand-new form of Luffy appeared.
His body took on a strange blue hue, and his physique became incredibly muscular.
Under the explanation of a certain female adventurer, everyone understood what had happened.
Luffy had been forcibly infused with one hundred shadows. Since Moria could use shadows to fight, they could make use of them as well.
Nightmare Luffy debuted at his peak.
With a single punch, he could send Oars flying.
Yet borrowed power remained borrowed. When the shadows disappeared, the enemy still had not been defeated.
Zoro and the others then launched desperate support attacks.
In the end, with one final strike from Luffy, they barely defeated the villain Moria.
When the shadows returned to their rightful owners, the battle finally came to an end.
Just when everyone thought the story was over, another Warlord appeared.
He held a Bible in his hand, his body enormous. With a single slap, he made the ghost girl from before vanish.
The sense of oppression was enough to inspire despair just by looking at him.
"If you were to travel, where would you like to go?"
Kuma's arrival left Zoro and Sanji without the slightest hope. Fortunately, he had not come to kill them, but merely to make them taste pain.
Faced with the possibility of death,
Sanji offered to sacrifice himself, only to be knocked unconscious by Zoro.
"Let me do it instead. But choose another place."
"No problem."
Kuma calmly regarded Zoro and agreed to his request.
In the past, fans labeled Zoro as directionally challenged, moss head, and a training fanatic.
Now, however, they regarded him with solemn respect.
A man who faced death without fear in order to protect his companions was the true vice-captain of the Straw Hat Pirates, Zoro.
The moment Kuma's hands pressed into the paw pads,
Zoro truly experienced Luffy's pain.
It was torment like hell itself, nearly pushing him to the brink of death.
Even so, Zoro did not fall. He remained standing.
Seeing the large pool of blood on the ground and Zoro's body covered in wounds,
Lan could not help covering her mouth.
"He is truly so strong."
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