I, Kizaru, only came to the chat group after I became invincible

Chapter 450 Lavala in the Sky!
"Wow! It's even more spectacular up close!" Chopper exclaimed through his helmet.

Indeed, only when they truly approached the temple could they appreciate its grandeur. The temple stood approximately fifty meters high, and over a hundred meters in length and width, constructed entirely of that mysterious black stone. Most astonishingly, the joints between the stones were almost flawless, as if the entire structure had been carved from a single massive rock.

“This construction technique…” Sanji carefully examined the joints of the stones. “Even modern techniques would struggle to achieve this level of precision.”

“And look at these carvings,” Sauron said, pointing to the patterns on the temple walls. “They’re still so clear after 800 years of seawater erosion.”

The temple's outer walls are carved with intricate patterns and inscriptions. These carvings depict various scenes: people at work, scenes of sacrificial ceremonies, and murals that appear to record significant events.

“Robin, can you read these words?” Nami asked.

Robin carefully examined the ancient characters, frowning as he pondered.

“This script is very ancient, older than most ancient scripts I’ve seen,” she said slowly. “But some symbols are similar to those of other ancient civilizations I’ve studied.”

“Should we go inside the temple and take a look?” Franky pointed to the temple entrance. “There might be more clues there.”

The temple's main entrance is a massive arched entrance, about ten meters high. The doors are gone; they were likely made of wood and have long since decayed in the sea over 800 years. Through the entrance, faint light can be seen filtering in from inside.

“Let’s go in and take a look.” Luffy swam towards the entrance first. “Maybe we’ll find something even more interesting inside!”

Upon entering the temple, everyone was awestruck by the sight before them. It was a massive circular hall, approximately eighty meters in diameter. In the center of the hall was a circular stone platform upon which sat a colossal stone statue.

The statue depicts a tall human figure with arms raised high, as if supporting a heavy object. The statue's facial expression is solemn and sacred, and its eyes convey an indescribable sense of power.

“This must be the ‘God of Power’ they worship,” Robin speculated.

More importantly, the walls of the hall are covered with dense text. This text is more detailed and complete than that on the outer walls, and clearly records important information.

“The written records here are much richer!” Robin excitedly swam towards the wall. “If we can decipher them, we’ll definitely understand the true history of Lavala!”

The group dispersed and searched the hall carefully. Besides the main statues and written records, they made several other discoveries.

“There are some strange stones here.” Sauron found a pile of scattered stones in the corner. “They don’t look like building materials.”

Borsalino swam over to examine them and found that these stones were indeed quite special. Their color was lighter than the black stones of the temple, and their surfaces had natural textures.

“These look like fragments of household items,” he analyzed. “Maybe bowls, jars, or something like that.”

"It hasn't completely corroded after being preserved on the seabed for so long; the material is indeed special." Franky was also very curious.

Just as everyone was exploring on their own, Robin suddenly let out an excited sound.

“I found it!” she exclaimed, pointing to a passage of text on the wall. “This contains a detailed record of Lavala’s history!”

Everyone immediately gathered around Robin. She pointed to the ancient writing on the wall, her eyes gleaming with excitement.

“Although the script is ancient, I can roughly decipher the content,” Robin began translating. “It records the origins of Lavara and so on, which is quite interesting.”

"What's so interesting?" Luffy asked eagerly.

“It says here that the inhabitants of Lavala don’t possess any innate superhuman strength,” Robin read the ancient text carefully. “Their ‘superhuman strength’ actually has other causes.”

"Other reasons?" Nami asked, puzzled. "What reasons?"

Robin continued translating the text on the wall, his expression growing increasingly surprised.

“I see.” She suddenly understood. “The secret of Lavala isn’t that the people there have any special abilities, but rather that the place itself is special.”

"What's so special about it?" Sanji asked curiously.

“The records here say that everything on Lavala Island is much lighter than normal,” Robin translated. “It’s not that people are stronger, but that what they have to lift is lighter.”

"Everything's gotten lighter?" Chopper exclaimed incredulously. "How is that possible?"

“The text says it’s because the soil of Lavala Island contains a special mineral,” Robin continued reading. “This mineral can reduce the weight of objects, making everything as light as a feather.”

"So that's why there's the legend of 'tearing steel apart with bare hands'?" Zoro understood. "If steel became very light, ordinary people could indeed tear it apart easily."

“That’s right!” Robin nodded. “To outsiders, the residents of Lavala seem to possess superhuman strength, but it’s actually due to the unique nature of their environment.”

"What's the name of this mineral?" Franky, as a shipwright, was very interested in this magical material.

“It says ‘pumice’ here,” Robin translated. “The entire island of Lavara is made up of land containing pumice.”

“Pumice.” Borsalino said thoughtfully. “This can indeed explain many phenomena.”

“But,” Nami questioned, “if Lavara was originally on the surface of the sea, why is it now sunk to the bottom?”

“The answer to that question is also here.” Robin pointed to another passage of text on the wall. “This records the destruction of Lavala.”

Everyone fell silent, waiting for Robin to unravel this 800-year-old mystery.

“According to records, Lavala was indeed originally a normal island, floating on the sea.” Robin began translating this crucial piece of history. “The island's inhabitants lived harmoniously, utilizing the properties of pumice to build a prosperous civilization.”

"What happened next?" Luffy asked impatiently.

“A sudden disaster.” Robin’s voice grew heavy. “The written records say that one day, ‘a terrible force descended from the sky.’”

"Power descending from the sky?" Sanji frowned. "What does that mean?"

"The description here is a bit vague, but the general idea is that some kind of powerful attack descended from the sky," Robin continued translating. "This attack was incredibly powerful, directly blasting Lavala Island in half."

"Bombard it from the middle?" Everyone was shocked.

“Yes,” Robin said with certainty. “The attack split the entire island of Lavala in two.”

"And then what?" Chopper asked nervously.

“The island of Lavala suffered two drastically different fates after its split,” Robin said, pointing to the intricate patterns on the wall. “One part, which is what we see here now, contained less pumice and was relatively heavier, eventually sinking to the bottom of the sea.”

“And the other part?” Franky pressed. Robin paused, then gave an answer that shocked everyone.

"The other part, because it contained a large amount of pumice, was extremely light, and actually," she took a deep breath, "flew into the sky."

"It flew into the sky?!" Everyone exclaimed in unison.

"Is this even possible?" Nami exclaimed incredulously. "How could an island fly into the sky?"

“Theoretically, it’s possible if the pumice stone’s effect is strong enough,” Robin explained. “Just like a balloon can rise because it’s lighter than air.”

"So now half of Lavala is in the sky?" Sauron tried to understand the concept.

“According to the records, that should be the case,” Robin confirmed. “And the text also says that the part of the island that flew into the sky still exists today.”

"Wow! An island in the sky!" Luffy's eyes lit up. "That's so cool! I want to see it!"

“But the problem is, how do we find it?” Sanji asked realistically. “The sky is so vast, it could be anywhere.”

“And 800 years have passed, it may have drifted to a very far place by now,” Nami added.

"Is there any other information here?" Borsalino asked Robin. "Like, details about that attack?"

Robin continued studying the writing on the wall, his expression growing increasingly serious.

“The records here are strange regarding that attack,” she said slowly. “The text describes the attack as coming from ‘Golden Light.’”

"Golden light?" Franky asked, puzzled. "What does that mean?"

"The description here is poetic, but it seems to say the attack emitted a golden light," Robin translated. "And it was powerful enough to split an entire island."

Borsalino's heart skipped a beat upon hearing the description "golden light." As a user of the Glint-Glint Fruit, his attacks would indeed emit a golden glow. However, he quickly dismissed the idea—he hadn't been born 800 years ago, let alone come here.

"What kind of attack could have such power?" Zoro wondered.

“Perhaps it’s an ancient weapon?” Chopper guessed. “I’ve heard that there were some very powerful weapons in ancient times.”

“Possibly,” Robin nodded. “There were indeed some incredibly powerful weapon technologies in ancient times.”

"Who was that person who attacked Lavara?" Nami asked. "Is there a written record?"

Robin carefully searched the text on the wall and finally found the relevant information in a corner.

“There are some scattered records here.” She frowned as she read. “It seems to say the attacker is the ‘Guardian of the Sky’?”

"The guardians of the sky?" Brook repeated the title. "It sounds mysterious."

“The written record is blurry, probably because the situation was too chaotic at the time, and the recorder was unable to leave complete information,” Robin explained. “But one thing is clear: this attack was intentional, not a natural disaster.”

"So, someone deliberately destroyed Lavala?" Sanji's voice was filled with anger. "Why would they do that?"

“The cause is unknown.” Robin shook his head. “But judging from the written description, the residents of Lavala are innocent victims.”

Everyone fell silent for a moment, digesting this shocking information. A prosperous ancient civilization had been destroyed by a mysterious attacker, half sinking into the sea and half soaring into the sky.

"What happened to those residents who took to the skies?" Chopper asked worriedly. "Are they still alive?"

“Here are some relevant records,” Robin said, pointing to another passage. “When Lavala split, some of the island’s inhabitants did indeed fly into the sky with a portion of the island.”

“Eight hundred years have passed, and their descendants may still be living on that Sky Isle,” Franky speculated.

“If the effects of the pumice persist, that is indeed possible,” Borsalino analyzed.

"I want to find them!" Luffy suddenly shouted. "Since there's still a part of Lavara in the sky, let's go find it!"

“But Luffy,” Nami said worriedly, “we don’t even know where he is.”

"There's always a way!" Luffy said optimistically. "If we can find Lavara in the sea, we can definitely find Lavara in the sky!"

"Are there any other clues here?" Zoro asked Robin. "Like, the possible location of that Sky Island?"

Robin carefully searched through all the text on the wall, hoping to find more useful information.

“There’s a very interesting record here,” she said, pointing to a small print. “It says that when Lavala split, the part that flew into the sky flew towards the ‘eternal sunset.’”

"An eternal sunset?" Nami pondered. "The West?"

“Most likely the West,” Robin nodded. “And it also says here that the Lavara of the sky ‘follows the wind’s path.”

“Following the wind’s path.” Franky said thoughtfully. “So it moves with the wind?”

“If that’s really the case, then its location isn’t fixed.” Sanji realized the complexity of the problem. “Over 800 years, it could have drifted to anywhere in the world.”

“But it’s not without clues,” Borsalino said slowly. “If we can understand the wind patterns in this area, we might be able to deduce its approximate location.”

“Besides, Sky Island is so unique; if it really exists, there should be some eyewitness accounts,” Robin added. “We can gather that information.”

"It's decided then!" Luffy announced excitedly. "Our next goal is to find Lavala in the sky!"

“Before that, let’s record all the information here,” Nami suggested. “These ancient characters are precious and might be helpful in our search.”

“That’s right,” Robin agreed. “I need more time to translate and understand these words.”

And so, the Straw Hat Pirates spent several hours in the underwater Lavala Temple, carefully recording and studying these precious ancient documents.

When they finally returned to the Thousand Sunny, everyone was thrilled by their discovery. A mysterious ancient civilization, a split island, half underwater and half in the sky—such a legendary tale ignited everyone's passion for adventure.

(End of this chapter)