Chapter 109 - 2

Chapter 2: Two YearsFeeling his mind blank again, Rex quickly shook his head and slapped his cheeks hard, trying to wake himself up quickly.The world of the Pirate King has never been a safe place.After slightly recovering his senses, Rex quickly looked around.He found himself in a dense forest, currently safe, surrounded by two wooden beer barrels large enough to fit a person inside.Rex picked an unknown giant tree, instinctively scrambled up to the treetop, sat on a branch against the trunk, and carefully sorted through the information in his mind.Original owner: Ducati Sack.Age: 16.Background: Born into a pirate family in the East Blue, underwent rigorous training from childhood. By the age of one, he already had physical fitness not inferior to an adult pirate. Recently, his parents and their pirate crew were wiped out by the East Blue overlord, Krieg...After digesting the information in his mind, Rex only felt speechless.It is now 1519. Krieg is currently recruiting heavily in preparation for entering the Grand Line, and the protagonist Luffy will set sail in about two years. So, is this going to be a "follow the ship" plot? Followed by the cliché of encountering Krieg and killing his enemy, then exploring the path to kingship with a bunch of chuunibyou youths???Rex did not rush to decide which faction to join, but he immediately ruled out going solo.Being alone in another world and recklessly charging around is just like lighting a lamp in a latrine — asking for death.Actually, Rex was more inclined towards the Marinefaction.Although he would be restricted by that bunch of pigs, compared to pirates or the Revolutionary Army, being a Marine allowed him to become stronger openly and honestly. Plus, the Marines are the strongest in the early stages; that goes without saying.If he were to be a pirate, he would have to join the Straw Hat crew. They are the only crew worth entrusting his life to.As for joining the Revolutionary Army, Rex was least willing. It's not that he had any prejudice against the Revolutionary Army, but because anyone who has studied history knows that when it comes to revolution, you either succeed or you die trying.Although destiny lies with Luffy, and the leader of the Revolutionary Army is his great father, it's exhausting! Haven't you seen Koala waiting alone in an empty room? Engaging in revolution requires determination, and he, a little virgin, doesn't want to spend his life in celibacy.Since he's here, he should have a wife, right? He should have strength, right?Everyone is their parents' treasure; no matter where he goes, he must protect himself well and not let anyone bully him!"!!!" Speaking of strength, Rex remembered he had a starter gift pack. He immediately stood up from the tree trunk, first touching various parts of his body. Hmm, the "assets" were indeed not small.Rex stood there for a while, hand over his crotch, dumbfounded, and then felt speechless at himself! If it were really on his body, how could he not have felt it all this time?After a moment of senility, he summoned his brain back, leapt down, and ran to the place where he had just seen the beer barrels.There was a small wooden box there, the same style as the one containing the "protagonist fruit" from Shanks."Snap~" Rex carefully pried open the lid of the wooden box, revealing an orange-red, flame-patterned fruit with a rich texture.It was heavy and juicy, making Rex swallow his saliva.Is this a Devil Fruit? Is it really poop-flavored??In his past life, he was very curious about how bad Devil Fruits tasted, and also curious about what poop tasted like, but he lacked the "Lao Ba" spirit and never tried it.Now, though... Rex held the Mera Mera no Mi in one hand and rubbed his chin with the other, contemplating whether to eat it or not."Ahem!" A throat-clearing sound came from Rex's throat.The Mera Mera no Mi is actually insanely strong. Not to mention Elementalization, just the ability to control fire—how many chuunibyou youths dream of possessing such power?Fire is meant to be played with flair!In my past life, Ace really left me speechless. Why use the Mera Mera no Mi in a way that looks so unintelligent, like "Fire Fist"?Fire has no physical form, yet he insisted on using Fire Fist to clash head-on with Magma Fist. It would be a miracle if he won!Although Ace died inexplicably—not ruling out that Oda did it to buff Luffy—the power of the Mera Mera no Mi is unquestionable!In the world of the Pirate King, I won't consider too much science (it doesn't stand up to scrutiny anyway), but I can borrow many things from my past life.Fire! For now, I won't consider whether this world has plasma or not, but the laws of combustion should be more or less the same.For the Mera Mera no Mi, I should develop it in two directions: temperature and types of flames.---Rex was quickly organizing his thoughts.The Mera Mera no Mi, to put it simply, is the ability to control fire and transform into fire.In my past life, fire—not to mention anything else, just acetylene flames and oxy-acetylene flames—could reach thousands of degrees, even four or five thousand degrees. And what is the temperature of Akainu's magma? 1500°? Or 1200°?More or less, that's about all the temperature it has.The Magma-Magma Fruit can only be said to have a higher lower limit than the Mera Mera no Mi, but the upper limit is incomparable!Having made up his mind, Rex opened his mouth wide and bit down hard on the Mera Mera no Mi.A four or five thousand degree flame! If the temperature is high enough, magma would be burned to ash! What if I could even create Marco's Undying Fire...Let's see who still thinks the Mera Mera no Mi is something even dogs wouldn't eat? Clearly, that manga artist Oda doesn't know a damn thing about the Pirate King, or the Mera Mera no Mi!"It's because the Mera Mera no Mi is too powerful that I ate it, haha!! It's definitely not because I was curious about what poop tastes like!"After muttering to himself, Rex began to savor the taste.Feeling the stimulation on his taste buds, Rex fell into deep thought on the spot.The texture was not bad, crispy and juicy. But as for the texture of poop, the internet says it should be sticky and cling to the teeth. This is not like that! Bad review!As for the taste, a peculiar fishy smell went straight to his brain. It was bitter and astringent, feeling like all the ingredients and flavors he disliked in his past life mixed together."Phew! Truly disgusting."Rex evaluated objectively, then stuffed the remaining fruit flesh and stem into his mouth and swallowed it whole."Boom!!" Wisps of blazing fire suddenly erupted from Rex's body.The feeling was very strange, as if a new organ had grown on his body, and he could manipulate this new organ at any time.He didn't feel anything abnormal, as if he himself was fire.Consequently, Rex clenched his right palm, and a ball of fire wrapped around his fist, burning more and more fiercely.Suddenly, Rex narrowed his eyes, stepped forward with his left foot, slightly bent his knees, aligned his waist and stance, then his feet drove his hips, his hips supported his waist, and his waist drove his arm as he threw a punch: "Fire Fist!!!"A loud roar echoed in the forest, followed by an outrageously large pillar of fire plowing through the ground, instantly obliterating a patch of forest."Hoo~! Ha~! Hoo~" Rex's breathing was a bit rapid.However, he knew he had wronged Ace; the power of Fire Fist could be said to be quite good, and the range was wide.Most importantly, it's cool!!!It really feels awesome! One punch blasts out and sweeps away everything!This kind of thrill cannot be compensated for by any technique!Talking about power is too shallow; how can a cultivator like me be so shallow! Being cool is a lifelong commitment!!Rex's face was flushed with excitement, resembling a young maiden who had just been nourished.Using the fruit ability for the first time felt really great. This punch was already approaching the level of Ace in the anime, but the endurance needed improvement. One can't be a "three-second man," right? Can't let oneself get wilted after just two or three Fire Fists.Although his current physical fitness is already extremely strong, it depends on who you compare it with.For monster physiques like Ace and Luffy, Rex could only say he would catch up. After all, his body still had a lot of room for growth; he was, after all, a natural talent.Having preliminarily experienced the fruit ability, Rex already had a preliminary positioning of his current strength and future goals.Suddenly, Rex's eyes flickered: "Old man! You dropped your pen here! And a Hatsune Miku 'life-size figure'! If it's yours, come and claim it quickly, otherwise I'm taking it!"Rex's incredibly sincere voice echoed in the forest.Meanwhile, Rex's fists were tightly clenched, flames lingering, his gaze scanning the surroundings evenly, observing very carefully.A moment later, the forest remained silent, with no response.Rex could only sigh helplessly.Suddenly, Rex's expression became incredibly serious, as if speaking to himself and to the past: "From today on, I am just Rex, and Krieg will definitely die."Having said that, Rex exhaled a heavy breath of turbid air, his gaze fixed firmly on the end of the sea, like a reef, not recovering for a long time.More than ten minutes later, Rex's body twisted slightly, then he performed Elementalization, turning into a ball of blazing fire, and with a "boom," flew straight into the depths of the forest.It was clear that he was a new driver, flying very clumsily.And Rex stayed in this forest for two years.