One Piece: Surrounded at Marineford? Just kidding!

Chapter 583: The Black Dragon's Nemesis, Vidvernir!

Chen Ye ignored the system's warning.

Head straight inside!

The sound of footsteps was amplified in the open space.

After walking for a while, the view suddenly opened up. An extremely grand circular hall came into view.

The room was enormous!

The four walls were completely illuminated.

The walls, built of hard, greyish-white rock, are covered with rows of ancient symbols. Their shapes are extremely strange, resembling the claw marks of some giant bird, or the storm patterns left by a raging wind.

In the very center of the main hall stands a statue.

A 20-meter-tall eagle.

The entire statue maintains a posture as if it is about to spread its wings and break through the sky. Its thick claws are deeply embedded in the square base. In the very center, protected by the claws, lies an ancient stone box.

Chen Ye stopped in his tracks.

He didn't rush to see what was inside the box. Instead, he started walking, circling the statue along the edge of the hall. He didn't miss a single detail.

Then Chen Ye stopped directly in front of the statue. He closed his eyes.

A powerful burst of Observation Haki instantly emanated from his body. The invisible Haki transformed into countless slender tentacles, extending forward and cautiously probing into the space surrounding the stone box. There were no physical mechanisms. But Chen Ye's mind detected something unusual.

Extremely slight fluctuations.

Chen Ye opened his eyes.

A cold glint flashed in his eyes. He went straight to the stone box. He raised his right hand, his fingers steadily reaching for the ancient stone box. His fingertips just touched the lid.

An anomaly erupted.

The amber-colored eagle eyes suddenly lit up. Blinding golden light pierced the air of the hall like two sharp swords. The ancient symbols on the four walls simultaneously erupted with intense light. The symbols came alive. They peeled off the walls and rapidly converged in mid-air. A gale arose without warning. Seven enormous eagle phantoms suddenly flew out from behind the statue. They were formed from pure golden energy. Each one was over ten meters tall.

Seven phantom eagles quickly dispersed in mid-air, forming a perfect fan shape.

They blocked all of Chen Ye's paths.

The air was sliced ​​apart by the flapping of its wings, producing a piercing sonic boom. Sharpness gleamed from its talons and beak. Chen Ye's Observation Haki gave him the assessment. This level of sharpness was beyond the capabilities of an ordinary vice admiral.

Chen Ye withdrew his right hand. He didn't take a single step back. His face remained expressionless.

next second.

The golden divine power of Apollo, the sun god, erupted from within him. Blinding golden flames instantly enveloped his arms. The temperature inside the hall soared, distorting the air with intense heat. The lead phantom eagle let out a silent shriek, folded its wings, and swooped down from mid-air. Its massive golden talons aimed straight for Chen Ye's head.

It was so fast that it left only a blur.

Chen Ye took a heavy step forward, facing the swooping giant eagle. The stone slab cracked instantly. His right fist clenched, his arm muscles bulging. He threw a punch upwards, striking the phantom eagle precisely in the chest and abdomen. Golden divine power erupted from his fist, the intense heat transforming into a pillar of fire that instantly burned through the energy core.

The lead eagle convulsed violently in mid-air, exploding into countless golden particles of light.

The remaining six phantom eagles did not retreat. They quickly changed formation, splitting into two groups, one above and one below, launching a relentless attack on Chen Ye.

Above, three phantom eagles, resembling three golden spears, lashed out with piercing shrieks, aiming for Chen Ye's left shoulder, right neck, and back of the head.

Below, three phantom eagles glided rapidly along the ground, spreading their energy wings. The energy at the edges of their wings connected to form an impenetrable net of wind blades, completely sealing off the space to the left, right, and backward.

Chen Ye's expression remained unchanged.

With a sudden burst of power from his waist, his left fist, wreathed in burning flames, hooked upwards. The force of the punch shattered the head of the first phantom eagle above. His body slightly shifted, his right arm bent, and his elbow slammed backward, precisely shattering the energy body of the second phantom eagle. He then executed a perfect turn. His right leg swept out like a battle axe, golden flames carving a massive crescent-shaped blade of fire in the air.

The fire blade slashed across the ground.

The three phantom eagles below, attempting to block the retreat, were cut in half at the waist. They didn't even have a chance to struggle. Their bodies were burned into nothingness particles by the terrifying heat.

The last illusionary eagle had circled into Chen Ye's blind spot. It abandoned its attack on Chen Ye and charged towards the stone box at incredible speed, attempting to shield it with its body.

Chen Ye snorted coldly.

Without even turning his head, he locked onto the energy fluctuation and unleashed a punch from afar. The solid golden fist force spanned over ten meters, striking the back of the last phantom eagle with unerring accuracy.

boom.

The last guard disappeared completely in the center of the hall.

The entire battle lasted less than five seconds.

Chen Ye instantly annihilated all the guards in the hall with overwhelming power. The hall returned to deathly silence. Countless golden particles of light drifted down onto the hard stone slabs. The light gradually dimmed until it was completely extinguished.

Chen Ye stood still. The power of the Sun God remained undiminished.

Waited for a while.

The amber eagle eye had completely dimmed. The symbols on the wall had returned to their original lifelessness. The energy within the statue had vanished. There would be no second wave of attacks.

Chen Ye dissipated the golden power from his arms. He stepped forward to the stone box, stretched out his hands, and placed his palms flat on the heavy stone box lid. He felt the rough texture of rock in his palms.

The muscles in both arms suddenly exerted force.

The heavy stone cover was pushed open little by little.

Chen Ye lowered his head.

The stone box had little interior space. There were no hidden weapons. The bottom was covered with a thick layer of black velvet. The material was extremely special, showing no signs of decay despite the passage of time. In the very center of the black velvet lay a Devil Fruit.

A deep, dark green.

Its appearance is completely different from the Devil Fruits commonly found on the sea. It lacks the signature spiral pattern on its surface. Instead, it features layers of delicate and intricate feather-like patterns, lifelike and tightly adhered to the fruit's skin, resembling real bird feathers. The patterns are most dense at the top of the fruit, intertwining and subtly forming a small eagle's head.

Chen Ye extended his right hand and picked up the dark green fruit. At first, nothing seemed amiss!

After a while.

A very rhythmic pulse came from my palm. It was very subtle, yet exceptionally clear. Something ancient seemed to be awakening.

Chenye stared at the fruit in his hand.

Without hesitation, he activated the system directly in his mind.

"System, scan. What is this?"

The system responded immediately. A pale blue scanning beam, visible only to Chen Ye, shot from his eyes, swiftly sweeping across every line on the fruit's surface. A moment later, the system's voice sounded in his mind.

"Host, scan and analysis complete."

"This is a Devil Fruit."

"To be precise, this is a bird-shaped fruit."

"Mythical Beast Species."

"Vidvernir Form."

"This is a top-tier Devil Fruit from ancient legends."

Hearing the system say this, Chen Ye looked at the feather-like patterns on the fruit's surface and muttered to himself.

"Just as I guessed."

"The king at the top of the World Tree."

"The nemesis of the black dragon Nighogd."

"Wydvernier."

The system's voice didn't stop. It then added a crucial piece of information.

"Host, please pay attention."

"This Devil Fruit is different from ordinary Devil Fruits."

"It also possesses a very strong sense of self."

As if to confirm this warning, the fruit in Chen Ye's hand underwent a change. Its internal pulsation suddenly accelerated. The dark green feather patterns began to emit a faint glow. The light flowed along the patterns. A strange sense of intimacy emanated from within the fruit. It was actively drawing closer to the power of the sun god Apollo within Chen Ye's body.

The response was very positive, even bordering on eager.

Chen Ye frowned slightly.

Chen Ye wasn't surprised by this, because Vidvernir also represents light and the sun!

So it's not surprising that he's close to Chenye!

However, Chen Ye has no intention of eating the fruit for the time being!

He then opened the system space and threw the fruit into it. The system space interface closed instantly. The fruit disappeared.

Once again, only Chen Ye remained in the main hall.

Turn around. Prepare to leave.

But the system interface suddenly popped up automatically.

The fruit, which should have been lying quietly in the system space, did not fall into slumber. It emitted a strong, dark green light, rapidly spreading across the virtual interface of the system space, intertwining, constantly reorganizing and transforming.

Just a few seconds.

A lifelike eagle emblem appeared in the center of the interface, radiating a powerful aura.

"Host, abnormal energy fluctuations have been detected."

"It is actively identifying your soul and power."

Chen Ye stopped in the center of the main hall. He looked at the eagle pattern that was gradually solidifying on the system interface.

A flash of amber light appeared in the eagle-shaped eye area.

A gaze pierced through the system's barrier and stared directly at Chen Ye.

Chen Ye's eyes deepened.

This legendary Devil Fruit.

It is choosing its master in reverse.