"Blast Breath!!"
A thick column of compressed fire sprayed out instantly, roaring toward a giant boulder in the distance.
However, this pillar of fire wasn't like ordinary flames that merely scorched the surface of rocks. The moment it touched the boulder...
BOOM————!
Firelight soared into the sky.
The violent impact shattered the four-to-five-meter-tall boulder on the spot. The scattered fragments were scorched to near-melting point by the high temperature of the flames, resembling molten rocks ejected from a volcanic crater.
When the light of the explosion and the dust settled, the giant boulder was gone. Only a glowing red crater, melted by high heat into something resembling magma, remained where the rock once stood.
"This power seems pretty decent~"
Standing at the edge of this "magma" crater, the perpetrator of this massive destruction, Luca, simply rubbed his chin with one hand and nodded nonchalantly.
If one were to zoom out slowly...
One would discover that this secluded jungle was filled with similar scenes of devastation.
There were charred trees that looked like they had been struck by lightning, patches of jungle sliced to ribbons by countless wind blades, and pockmarked earth that had simply been bombarded by brute force.
All of this was the wreckage left behind by Luca testing his Devil Fruit abilities during his leisure time over the past few days.
After continuous practice, Luca no longer needed to focus intensely to control his Zoan transformation like in the beginning. Relying on instinct alone, he could freely switch between Human, Dragon, and Human-Dragon forms.
However, in reality, even though his "Dragon Form"—the form with the highest combat power—had grown another meter due to fruit development... Luca didn't place too much importance on it.
After all, with his current fruit mastery, the destructive power of this form still lagged significantly behind large war machines like his Gundam.
What Luca truly valued more was the enhancement to his base stats brought by the "Mythical Zoan Fruit."
The massive increase in physical strength and speed, the perverted stamina and defensive capabilities, and the powerful vitality inherent to Zoan types.
These undoubtedly greatly improved Luca's self-preservation ability.
Among them, the "Human-Dragon Form" (Hybrid Form)—which was more agile, convenient, and multiplied his physical stats several times over—satisfied Luca the more he looked at it.
A pair of golden dragon horns on his forehead; chestnut hair turning into a flame-like mane flowing behind his head.
Large areas of his skin were covered in sturdy pink dragon scales. His hands and feet had all transformed into powerful dragon claws.
Behind him, a long, dancing dragon tail swayed.
Although the tender pink color made Luca criticize it internally, the bulging, robust muscles all over his body made this "Girly Pink" look more like "Macho Pink."
His calf muscles tightened, and his feet pressed slightly.
Bang!
An explosive sound rang out, leaving a shattered dragon claw print on the ground.
With that push, Luca shot out instantly.
Then, he stopped abruptly, spun around, and whipped out a "standard" Dragon Tail Sweep.
CRACK~
A loud noise.
The large tree in front of him was snapped in half at the waist by his tail.
Rolling his dragon tail, which felt no pain at all, and sensing his stamina—which remained largely unconsumed despite spewing fire and lightning—Luca finally took a deep breath of satisfaction and slowly exited the Half-Dragon state.
Swish~
With a slight sound, Si Bei, who had been observing and sparring nearby, flickered rapidly to Luca's side.
Holding Luca's jacket with both hands, he presented it respectfully.
"My Lord, your clothes!"
Taking his [Tuxedo] from Si Bei and draping it over his shoulders casually, Luca ignored the mess on the ground and walked toward the edge of the jungle.
Actually, the reason Luca took off the [Tuxedo] to train today wasn't because the suit couldn't be used in Half-Dragon form.
In fact, whether it was because the [Tuxedo] was too overpowered or the conceptual adaptability of the [Pink Dragon Fruit] was too strong...
After days of testing, Luca confirmed that even after transforming into Human-Dragon form—where the whole suit was stretched and distorted by bulging muscles, and his body was covered in dragon scales—
The [Tuxedo]'s functions of "muscle stimulation" for strength enhancement and "fully automatic combat maneuvers" still worked normally.
It was just that since the strength enhancement was based on human muscle references, the boost was very limited compared to the power gained from the Devil Fruit.
And many of the "Combat Techniques" in the automatic tactical maneuvers were designed specifically for the human body.
So, before adjusting and modifying the combat techniques stored in the Tuxedo's system, Luca stopped wearing the jacket for training.
Hmm, maybe later I can find some martial arts manuals like Dragon Claw Hand or Grappling Arts to input into the Tuxedo's system~
Thinking of this, Luca suddenly stopped walking.
"Eh? Si Bei, among the taijutsu styles you know, are there any moves like Dragon Claw Hand or Eagle Claw Hand?"
Although there were things like "Kung Fu" and "Qi" in the Marvel Universe, why seek far and wide when he could just ask the real expert beside him?
Unfortunately, Si Bei's answer remained cold.
"My Lord, I mostly learned Orochimaru-style taijutsu. And due to Soft Physique Modification, most of the taijutsu I mastered are unsuitable for you to learn."
"Soft Physique Modification taijutsu? Can I use it with my tail?... Forget it. The Tuxedo can't control the tail anyway. If I can't input it into the system, I'd have to practice it myself specially. Too troublesome."
"Lord Luca, I don't have a tail either..."
"I remember you know Ryuchi Cave Sage Mode, right? Dragons! Isn't there any exclusive taijutsu for them? Senjutsu works too, I'm not picky!"
"My Lord, the Chakra Cell Modification surgery is not mature yet. I suggest you wait a bit before learning Senjutsu. Besides, the Snake Sages of Ryuchi Cave don't grow claws when dragonified. However, if you are interested, I can teach you some snake-style taijutsu from Ryuchi Cave. Perhaps it can be adapted to your Dragon Form's combat style."
"Uh... teaching me is a pass. I'm a researcher, after all~ Later, I'll adjust the Tuxedo's combat program, and you can just input the data directly... But wait, I can't use the Watch in Dragon Form. I still need to mod it with a thought-receiver accessory first..."
"Sigh... so troublesome. Why do I have more and more things to do on my plate!!!"
Just like that, chatting back and forth, the two stepped into the portal opened by the Spot.
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