Throne Of Supreme

Chapter 229: The Power of the Floating Fruit

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After a moment, Aoki withdrew his hand and stood up.

The Golden Lion's body had become gaunt, his skin dry and bloodless, resembling that of a severely malnourished patient. His breathing grew even weaker.

Aoki turned his attention inward, examining the changes within himself.

His physical attributes remained unchanged.

As he had learned before, "Devour" primarily focused on gaining abilities. Unless the ability was tied to the physical system, it would not affect his physical condition.

Still, a new ability had been added.

Aoki glanced at the system interface. The skill bar under "Infinite Dragon Beast" remained the same, with its four skills intact.

Yet, he could clearly sense that he had gained something unique.

Looking down at the ground, Aoki willed his body to move, and his feet slowly lifted off the ground.

The Float-Float Fruit's ability allowed him to control anything he touched, making it float. However, it had no effect on living beings aside from himself.

To test it, Aoki gently touched the large tree beside him.

The ground trembled slightly, and the soil around the tree's roots bulged into uneven lumps.

In moments, the tree uprooted itself and hovered midair.

Aoki observed it closely.

Crack! Crack!

The branches snapped one by one, and in the blink of an eye, the tree transformed into a massive, thick spear.

A thoughtful expression appeared on Aoki's face.

The Float-Float Fruit's ability was intriguing.

However, it came with limitations. "Control" consumed energy. Actions like uprooting a tree, snapping its branches, and maneuvering its movements required strength.

But once the tree was suspended midair, as long as it remained stationary, the energy consumption ceased.

Remarkably, he didn't even need to concentrate to keep it afloat.

In fact, the Float-Float Fruit's ability operated in two distinct steps:

1. Assigning the "Floating" Attribute – Granting the object the property to defy gravity.

2. Controlling Movement – Maneuvering the object as desired.

Both actions consumed strength.

However, once the "floating" attribute was assigned, it became permanent until disrupted, requiring no further energy to maintain.

"No wonder the Golden Lion was able to keep an entire island afloat in the sky for twenty years," Aoki mused.

The island, imbued with the "floating" property, remained airborne on its own. It wasn't as if the Golden Lion was actively holding it aloft.

Of course, the "floating" attribute wasn't truly permanent. Three conditions could nullify it:

1. If the ability user actively removed the attribute.

2. If the user lost consciousness or their instincts ceased entirely.

3. In the event of a violent storm.

This last condition was one of the Float-Float Fruit's most glaring weaknesses.

During the Battle of Edd, the Golden Lion had cornered Roger, driving him to the brink of defeat. However, a sudden storm destroyed the Flying Pirates' fleet and turned the tide of the battle.

To avoid such a calamity again, the Golden Lion had learned from the experience, hiring a large team of meteorologists to predict and evade storms.

"But my floating ability seems to differ slightly," Aoki muttered.

He glanced at the massive wooden spear hovering before him, which darted back and forth with ease.

Abilities gained through "Devour" often deviated slightly from the original versions, frequently at the cost of some potency.

For Aoki, the most significant drawback of his Float-Float Fruit ability compared to the Golden Lion's was the limit on the number of objects he could control simultaneously.

The Golden Lion could make an entire island float and still be far from his limit. In contrast, Aoki doubted he could achieve even a tenth of that capacity.

However, his abilities seemed more stable.

If the power of the Float-Float Fruit could be likened to drawing runes:

The Golden Lion could inscribe far more runes, but they were more prone to destroy. Aoki, on the other hand, could craft fewer runes, but his were significantly more durable.

The original Float-Float Fruit had many abilities but lacked strength, whereas Aoki's version was fewer in number but far more powerful.

"It seems I won't have the chance to create a floating island," Aoki muttered, shaking his head. Still, he was not disappointed.

To him, this change was more of an enhancement.

The Golden Lion could make an entire island float, but he could not swing the island around as a weapon.

In combat, the total quantity of objects that could be controlled mattered little. Sacrificing quantity for stability was a trade-off Aoki deemed worthwhile.

Unlike the Golden Lion, Aoki had no intention of dragging a team of meteorological experts wherever he went.

The first change to his Float-Float ability was the enhanced stability. While this change had both advantages and disadvantages, the second change was purely a weakening—the loss of the ability to awaken the fruit's full potential.

The power of the Float-Float Fruit in Aoki's possession would grow stronger only as his "Infinite Dragon Beast" class advanced. It could not be improved or altered in any other way.

These were the two primary changes that came from absorbing the Float-Float Fruit's power.

Overall, Aoki found the changes acceptable.

On the bright side, he was not vulnerable to water, avoiding the greatest weakness of traditional Devil Fruit users.

A crack formed on Aoki's back, and a pair of small bat wings emerged before detaching and falling into his hands.

"First the sunshade hat, and now the bat wings are retiring," Aoki remarked.

Although the bat wings didn't directly enhance his attack or defense, they had played a crucial role for him in the past.

However, ever since he had acquired the "Infinite Dragon Beast" profession, the bat wings had started to fall short.

In his dragon-man form, the wings' flying speed dropped significantly. In his ultimate form, they became entirely unusable.

This limitation was one of the reasons Aoki had placed so much importance on the Float-Float Fruit.

In terms of both speed and flexibility, the Float-Float ability was vastly superior to the bat wings.

Aoki slowly descended, landing beside the unconscious Golden Lion.

He raised his hand, and the soil churned, covering the Golden Lion's body in a mound of earth.

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System Notifications:

[Killed Golden Lion Shiki, gained 4,500 experience points and a Revenge Chest (three stars).]

["Burying the Legend" completed. Rewards distributed.]

[Congratulations on your upgrade!]

[Congratulations on your upgrade!]

[Congratulations on your upgrade!]

[Congratulations on your upgrade!]

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A smile spread across Aoki's lips.

Four levels in one go!

With the Golden Lion's 4,500 experience points and the 5,000 points from the mission, Aoki had earned nearly 10,000 experience points in total.

He opened the system interface with a thought.

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[System Interface]

Name: Aoki

Strength: 72

Constitution: 72

Intelligence: 73

Agility: 72

Occupation: Hunter, King of the Others, Martial Artist, Doctor, Infinite Dragon Beast

Items: Revenge Chest (three stars), Wonderful Tree Species

Infinite Dragon Beast:

Quality: ★★★★

Level: lv26 (1312/2600)

Skills: Spirit of Vengeance III, Devour, Dragon Breath, Ultimate Form III (0/100)

Mission: End of the World Government

Free Skill Points: 6

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The harvest was bountiful.

Aoki ignored the three-star treasure chest and the strange tree species for the moment, focusing instead on the skill points he had gained.

With six free skill points available, he had the option to learn a new skill.

"It's a pity I couldn't upgrade the reward to a four-star treasure chest," Aoki mused.

After some deliberation, he made an unprecedented decision—to save his skill points instead of using them immediately.

Neither "Spirit of Vengeance" nor "Devour" directly boosted his combat abilities. Learning a skill now would not significantly impact his strength.

It would be wiser to wait for a suitable opportunity and choose the right skill at the right time.

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