**Chapter 8: Fishing for the [Ancient Zoan·Dragon-Dragon Fruit·Pachycephalosaurus Form]! The Beasts Arrive!**

Maybe it was the effect of the **Special Rice Ball** (questionable)…

It didn’t take much effort for Troy to persuade Ulti to use the sweet saliva of the demonized girl from the **Bamboo Tube** in an attempt to heal the massive wound on her mouth.

Originally, Ulti planned to test the healing effect of the **Bamboo Tube Plug** on Page One first. She thought that if the “medicine” in the **Bamboo Tube** could really heal her injuries, she’d immediately pour the rest all over her little brother's head!

However, once Ulti learned from Troy what the "medicine" inside the **Bamboo Tube** actually was...

She instantly dropped that idea!  
Never mind whether this stuff was logical, reliable, or effective...

“Pouring another girl’s saliva onto my brother’s half-cracked skull” — what kind of bizarre reality was that?

Troy, unaware of Ulti’s internal thoughts, held the **Bamboo Tube** and walked up to the bars of the jail, gesturing for her to bring her mouth closer.

Ulti seemed to imagine some sort of sacrificial ritual. She closed her eyes and gently puckered her lips.

“Don’t pout! Just stay normal!”  
Troy, a bit annoyed, lifted the lid of the **Bamboo Tube**, dipped his finger in, and brought out some “medicine.”  
Thinking about where this “medicine” came from, Troy, for some reason, instinctively rubbed his thumb and index finger together. As he did, a string of saliva stretched between them...

A string of saliva...

*Cough!*  
Troy quickly snapped out of it, acting like nothing happened, and carefully applied the “medicine” to the jagged scar on both sides of Ulti’s mouth.

His mind instantly cleared.

Troy carefully spread the “medicine” from the **Bamboo Tube** over the cracks on Ulti's lips, being as gentle as possible to avoid causing her pain.

At some point, Ulti opened her eyes and stared at the cautious human male right in front of her, applying the "medicine."  
Despite being a young demon girl, Ulti felt a warmth from this man she’d only met for less than half a day, a warmth that surpassed even her father’s…

“All done! It might not show much effect right now, but who knows? Maybe it’ll work!”  
Troy, satisfied, withdrew his fingers. More than half of the **Bamboo Tube**’s medicine was used up.

He looked up, ready to ask Ulti to move back, but was met with her dazed eyes.  
“Hey, little split-lip girl, are you falling asleep while standing?”  
Troy playfully flicked Ulti’s forehead.

“Snap out of it! The ‘healing treatment’ is over. How does it feel?”

Like a startled cat, Ulti jumped back, clutching her forehead, and stammered, “Wh-what?”  
“I’m asking if your split lip feels any different,” Troy chuckled, pointing to his own mouth. “Does it itch, hurt, tingle... anything that feels like it’s healing?”

“No feeling— huh?”  
Ulti shook her head but then slid her hand down her face and suddenly felt a dry, cracked sensation near her lips. She was surprised.

“It seems like it’s really working…” Troy was also surprised.  
Was the healing effect of the **Bamboo Tube Plug**’s “medicine” really this exaggerated?  
Did it just heal a split-lip girl that quickly?  
Did I stumble upon some miraculous healing elixir?

After a brief moment of shock, Ulti frantically began peeling away the dead skin around her lip, completely ignoring the pain.

Large flakes of gray-white skin fell off like snowflakes, revealing smooth, unscarred skin underneath.

Feeling the long-lost smoothness around her lips, Ulti’s eyes filled with tears, and large droplets fell uncontrollably.

“Crying” was a sign of weakness that Ulti had abandoned on the second day her father threw her into the lab.

The strong-willed demon girl never thought she’d cry again.

“Right! Little Pei!”  
Ulti hastily wiped her tear-streaked face, then grabbed the bars of the cell with both hands and frantically begged Troy.  
“Little Pei! His injuries are even worse than mine! Can you give me what’s left in that tube?”

Troy handed the entire **Bamboo Tube** to Ulti.

She took it as if it were a priceless treasure and immediately turned to pour every last drop of the “medicine” onto Page One’s cracked green skull.

Nezuko, you’re amazing!

Before long, a thin layer of skin formed over Page One’s skull. Though he still looked terrifying, it was nothing like the gruesome sight it had been before.

Watching the siblings clinging to each other, crying their hearts out, Troy felt deeply gratified. Much of the murderous tension he had accumulated over the past few days melted away.

“This is my last bit of food. Make sure to ration it out for the next few days.”  
Troy emptied his remaining dry rations and water and left them for Ulti and Page One.

“If I get the chance, I’ll come back to check on you two.”  
The sobbing in the cell suddenly stopped.

Ulti, her face covered in tears, turned around, and Page One also looked over. They stared at Troy with reluctance.  
“Are you leaving?”

“Yes.”  
Troy nodded lightly.

“Now that you have food and water, staying in this cave will be safer for you. It won’t be long before someone comes to rescue you—either the Navy or Kaido.”

Troy had no intention of saving Ulti and Page One.

He had his own survival to worry about. If he dragged two kids along, they might all end up walking the road to the afterlife together.

Besides, with all his secrets, Troy wasn’t suited for teaming up with others.

“My name is Ulti, and my little brother’s full name is Page One,” Ulti asked. “What’s your name?”

“Trist Fate—tch!”  
Troy clicked his tongue. Why bother hiding from these two kids?  
“Forget it. Trist Fate is my future alias. My real name is Troy.”

“Troy… Troy…”

Ulti repeated his name a few times as if she wanted to etch it into her heart. Page One did the same.

Just as Troy was about to leave, Ulti seemed to think of something, and her gaze became firm.  
Ulti suddenly called out to him.

“Troy! There are two Devil Fruits my father left in this cave! You can take one!”

Troy spun around, his eyes blazing like fire in the dark.

…

Following Ulti’s directions, Troy dug out two wooden chests from the depths of the cave. He opened them one by one, revealing two strangely shaped, brightly colored fruits with intricate spiral patterns on their skins.

Troy had a guess about the abilities of these two fruits and Ulti confirmed them.

**Zoan-Type·Ancient Zoan·Dragon-Dragon Fruit·Pachycephalosaurus Form!**  
**Zoan-Type·Ancient Zoan·Dragon-Dragon Fruit·Spinosaurus Form!**

The problem was…

Neither Troy, Ulti, nor Page One had ever seen the **Devil Fruit Encyclopedia**. While they knew the exact abilities of the fruits, they couldn’t tell which was which.

“Which one will you choose, Troy?”

Ulti and Page One curiously watched Troy, waiting for his decision.

The carefree siblings didn’t seem worried that Troy might run off with both fruits.

“I have no idea... I’ll just pick one!”  
Since Troy’s **Fishing** skill wasn’t a detection ability, he couldn’t tell the difference just by looking at the fruits.

After a bit of eeny-meeny-miny-moe, he picked the fruit on the left.

“First time fishing for a Devil Fruit! Never thought I’d get the chance so soon!”

Pretending to slip the fruit into his pocket, Troy immediately activated **Fishing** as soon as the fruit touched the pouch.

A Devil Fruit with no restrictions—corresponding to an EX-level ability!

Troy couldn’t wait!

Using his finger as the rod and his will as the line.

“Lady Luck is smiling! Let’s reel this in!”

**[This Fishing's reward type: Talent Perk]**

**[EX-level Talent Perk: Primal Body (Blank·Ancient Zoan·Blank)]**

**[Talent Source: Zoan-Type·Ancient Zoan·Pachycephalosaurus Fruit]**

**[Perk Description: A body considered perfect for a natural creature.]**

**[Perk Effects: 1. Before reaching A-rank stats, strength, agility, and endurance attributes will receive long-term significant upgrades. 2. Resistance will be greatly enhanced, drastically reducing damage taken and significantly increasing vitality, stamina, and recovery. 3. Gains the trait “Iron Head”: A law-level iron forehead, the hardest thing in the universe, immune to all forms of damage.]**

**[Perk Evaluation: The kind of body only a true monster could possess!]**

“How terrifying…”

Troy muttered as he reviewed the new information on his display.

“Hey, kid, were you talking about me? Gahaha!”

Accompanied by wild, rough laughter, an extremely tall and burly figure stepped into the cave.

He had a pair of monstrous horns growing from his head, long black whiskers like a dragon's on both sides of his upper lip, and his scarred upper body was bare. A vivid orange-red dragon scale tattoo covered his left arm, and on his right shoulder, he carried a massive spiked club called the "Bajrakai," which stood as tall as a person.

The Commander of the Beasts Pirates, Kaido, the strongest creature, had arrived!

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(End of chapter)