Muret and the others' waterfall training was progressing relatively smoothly. The impact of this high-pressure water flow, just as Bellamy had imagined, was far more efficient than being beaten with iron rods. In just a few days, their understanding of Iron Body was visibly improving.
This rate of progress made even Bellamy a little envious. So, he decided to try it out himself.
However, the side effects of the Devil Fruit were somewhat beyond his expectations. After his body got wet, he began to weaken rapidly. The strength throughout his entire body seemed to be devoured by something. In just a few breaths, he was completely exhausted.
In the end, Bellamy had to be dragged out of the water by Ross.
He'd thought the curse of not being able to swim after eating a Devil Fruit was related to seawater. But he hadn't expected the curse to manifest even after being submerged in fresh water.
Drake's understanding of this matter was far greater than Bellamy's. After all, his background meant he had easy access to knowledge that was unavailable to the general public.
"Captain, with fresh water, the side effects are actually much weaker than with seawater," Drake explained. "As long as you're not completely submerged, the curse won't take effect quickly. But with seawater, even sticking a fist in will cause your strength to drain rapidly."
Since he was already explaining, Drake decided to share some more in-depth information. "Through constant adaptation and specialized training, it's possible to mitigate the effects of this curse. For example, wearing Seastone on your entire body for 24 hours a day. After a month, your resistance to the curse will increase by ten percent."
This data was the result of extensive experiments conducted by the Marines, and it was incredibly valuable.
Bellamy was very curious. "So, what's the maximum reduction you can achieve?" He knew that with the resources the Marines possessed, they definitely had more data.
"Fifty percent," Drake said, spreading out his hand. "Wearing Seastone all over your body for five years, without interruption. The side effects of the Devil Fruit can be reduced by fifty percent."
Fifty percent was significant. With half the resistance to Seastone, falling into the sea would at least give you a few minutes to struggle. That was life-saving time.
"Can it only be done with Seastone?"
"I'm not sure. I only have data on Seastone."
It seemed Drake's knowledge on the subject was limited to this. But this information was truly invaluable. At the very least, it pointed Bellamy in a clear direction. If he had to experiment on his own, it would have taken who knows how much effort.
Seastone was a controlled substance, extremely precious. Obtaining a weapon inlaid with Seastone was already incredibly difficult. To say nothing of wearing it all over your body – that was a pipe dream. Even within the Marines, few could afford such extravagance.
Bellamy immediately abandoned that idea and set his sights on seawater. But they were currently near a waterfall, some distance from the sea.
"Let's try using fresh water for now and see what happens."
The Seastone plan had to be temporarily shelved, but Bellamy kept it in mind. After all, it was a matter of life and death; he couldn't afford not to be mindful of it.
There was no seawater here, but there was no shortage of fresh water. Although using fresh water to adapt to the curse would undoubtedly be far less effective than Seastone, he didn't have a choice. If he could get his hands on Seastone, who would bother with fresh water?
So, Bellamy adjusted his training regimen.
Wake up in the morning, take three cannon shots to the body to familiarize himself with the feeling of Paper Drawing. Then, climb to the top of the waterfall and jump off, attempting to land using Moon Walk. The waterfall had a large pool at its base, so falling wouldn't be a problem, at most he might nearly drown.
After lunch, train in Iron Body and Finger Pistol. The targets were nearby trees and large rocks. Keep practicing until all ten fingers were bruised and swollen, then switch to Tempest Kick.
Tempest Kick training was the simplest: just keep kicking at the air until he found the kicking method that best suited him.
A full day, cycling through all Six Powers, with occasional pauses to contemplate Life Return. By then, it would be close to midnight. And then it would be time to prepare for rest.
Bellamy made a large wooden barrel, two-people high, and filled it with fresh water. He then fashioned a long tube to breathe through, jumped into the barrel, and put the lid on. He actually spent the night in the barrel.
Since he only slept four hours a night anyway, he might as well consider this time a bath.
Everyone expressed their opinion that they were almost used to Bellamy's madness. If the Captain ever stopped being crazy, that would be strange.
Amidst the intense training, Drake finally overcame his instinctive reactions. The method was actually quite simple: soak in water for a long time, allowing the Devil Fruit's power to enter a dormant state.
And then it was easy. If you weren't afraid of death, a few cannon shots would definitely get you started with Paper Drawing. In fact, with just one shot to the head, Drake grasped the key to Paper Drawing.
Seeing that this method was highly effective, Bellamy turned his attention to the other crew members.
If they were hit in the body, even a direct hit wouldn't be fatal with Iron Body to protect them. That being said, who would enjoy being beaten half to death? The Captain's speech was still slurred, and Paper Drawing wasn't like Iron Body. There was no big deal in not learning it.
But Bellamy didn't think so. He had a feeling that Paper Drawing was a weaker version of Observation Haki. Mastering Paper Drawing would be a great help in comprehending Observation Haki later on.
Conqueror's Haki couldn't be forced, but Observation and Armament Haki could absolutely be pushed for. Mooks in the New World almost all knew a bit of Armament Haki. If even small fries could learn it, there was no reason Ross and the others couldn't.
Observation Haki would naturally be much more difficult, but with Bellamy personally supervising, they should still be able to learn it.
Mastering the Six Powers and grasping both types of Haki, even without a Devil Fruit, would make them significant figures in the Grand Line. Their bounties would start at at least 200 million, not much less than Ace when he first set out.
Bellamy's ambition, of course, was unknown to them. But his actions wouldn't be slowed down one bit.
Regardless of their resistance, after realizing that Ross's Iron Body had become extremely proficient, Bellamy dragged him to an open space, pulled out the cannon, and fired a shot directly at him.
The cannonball hit Ross squarely in the stomach, causing him to vomit three liters of blood and immediately faint.
Muret and Mia trembled as they watched, because they were next.
"What are you looking at? He won't die." Iron Body was that well-practiced, how could he die so easily? Bellamy smiled smugly. He was very proud of himself for training a useless thug to this level.
As for Ross's own feelings? Bellamy believed that, many years later, he would surely understand his good intentions.
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