One Piece: Honey Badger Speedruns the World

One second. Two seconds.

A deathly silence enveloped the entire hall.

The anticipated scene of the soul being extracted from the body, foaming at the mouth and collapsing to the ground did not occur.

Goss remained standing there, hands in his pockets, staring blankly at the woman who resembled a demon.

He felt no fear, not even a ripple of his breathing, as if the old woman's deadly curse had merely been a passing breeze.

"..."

The woman's giant hand, which was suspended in mid-air, froze.

A crack appeared in those eyes that were flashing red light, revealing the original brutality and coldness.

The Soul-Soul Fruit's power... is ineffective?!

This means that the little one in front of him has no fear of him whatsoever!

Aren't you scared?

The woman's voice suddenly turned somber, no longer the frenzied high notes of before, but a deep, suppressed tone, like the calm before a storm.

"You're not afraid of me?"

boom--!!!

There was no warning whatsoever.

An aura many times more terrifying than the simple "killing intent" from before suddenly erupted from the old woman's massive body.

It's no longer a Devil Fruit ability targeting the soul, but rather Conqueror's Haki, which stands at the pinnacle of this ocean.

The air seemed to freeze in that instant.

The floor cracked inch by inch, and the surrounding hard candy pillars groaned under the strain, turning into powder.

Goss, who was at the heart of the storm, suddenly narrowed his eyes.

That pressure felt like an entire mountain range pressing down on your spine without reservation.

Every cell in his body was screaming for him to kneel down and submit to the creature before him.

His knees were slightly bent, and his bones made a sickeningly loud cracking sound.

The difference in strength was too great; Goss felt his vision go black and he felt dizzy.

Is this the true strength of the Four Emperors?

Can you really crush my will and instill fear in me just by using Conqueror's Haki?

Goss clenched his teeth, his facial muscles tensed, and his eyes became colder and harder than ever before.

If I kneel down now, I will completely lose the right to bargain and will only become an appendage of the old lady.

In this dog-eat-dog world, the only way to stand up and talk to these monsters is... to prove that I'm a monster too.

Push it back!

hum! ! !

Centered on Goss, a dark red shockwave suddenly erupted, like a thunderclap from a clear sky, sweeping wildly in all directions!

The two forces collided violently in mid-air.

Sizzle—sizzle—

Black and red lightning suddenly exploded, illuminating the dimly lit hall with flickering light, and the violent airflow blew away all the Homies in the vicinity.

"Conqueror's Haki... Haki?!"

Katakuri, who had been standing to the side, gripping his trident and ready to strike at any moment, suddenly had his pupils shrink to the size of pinpoints.

He stared in disbelief at the seemingly frail figure from behind.

At this age, facing her mother's domineering and intimidating presence, she not only didn't faint, but was able to struggle and fight back.

Although still strongly suppressed, even though they are all Conqueror's Haki, there are differences in quality.

Possessing the "qualifications of a king"? This newcomer... is more than just a pirate who has just set sail.

"oh?"

A fleeting look of surprise crossed the woman's eyes.

"He's a kid with the potential to be a king... no wonder he's so tough."

The powerful collision lasted for several seconds.

Although Goss was clearly at a disadvantage and cold sweat was beading on his forehead, he remained rooted to the spot, refusing to retreat an inch.

The middle-aged woman narrowed her eyes. She realized that she couldn't suppress a man with a domineering aura just by relying on her imposing presence.

That being the case...

Her gaze shifted and landed on the crocodile on the ground, which was already paralyzed with fear and had its eyes rolled back.

"Since your bones are so hard, I'll try something softer."

The middle-aged woman withdrew her domineering aura, revealing a sinister smile on her face:

"Since you're unwilling to pay the price, then I'll take the lifespan of your companion!!"

Her enormous hand reached past Goss and aimed directly at Soton on the ground.

"Life or Slave?!"

"Lifespan or slavery?!"

A demonic whisper exploded in Thornton's ears.

"Waaaaah... I don't want to die... I don't want to be a slave... Captain, save me..."

Thorton had long been disoriented by Conqueror's Haki, and now, facing the Yonko's death threat, his fear had reached its peak and he was completely unable to control it.

Logically, faced with this level of fear, his soul would instantly leave his body and be completely devoured by the old woman.

The woman suddenly grabbed with her hand, making a pulling motion.

Come here!

however.

Quiet.

An eerily quiet silence.

Thornton remained lying on the ground, trembling, tears and snot streaming down his face, crying out for help.

However, his soul remained unmoved.

The white substance that should have floated out seemed to be locked inside the body by some more powerful force, completely disobeying the old woman's commands and showing no sign of leaving the body.

"...?"

The older woman missed her chance.

She froze. An unprecedented look of confusion crossed that enormous face.

How is that possible?

This crocodile was clearly terrified! His mental defenses had completely collapsed!

Why can't the Soul-Soul Fruit take away his lifespan?!

Undeterred, the old woman waved her hand again, increasing the output of her Devil Fruit power: "Come out here!!"

Still ineffective.

Thornton was still crying, but his soul seemed to be welded to his body.

Just as the old woman was wondering if her Devil Fruit power had failed, her powerful senses suddenly detected something unusual.

She suddenly raised her head and stared intently at Goss, who was standing in front of her.

Goss was straightening his collar, which had become somewhat disheveled from the clash of their powerful auras.

His expression remained indifferent, even carrying a hint of detached calm.

In the old woman's vision, she saw an extremely subtle, invisible line connecting Goss and the crocodile on the ground.

And the seemingly independent soul within that crocodile... its essential fluctuations were actually completely of the same origin as Goss's!

As a user of the Soul-Soul Fruit, Linlin is extremely sensitive to soul-related abilities.

In that instant, Charlotte Linlin, the Queen of Souls, understood the logic behind it.

"That's...your soul?"

For the first time, the woman's voice carried a hint of genuine shock.

This crocodile is no ordinary creature.

The soul within this crocodile essentially belongs to Goss!

The rule for determining the Soul-Soul Fruit is: the soul can be extracted as long as the owner of the soul feels fear.

Thornton was indeed terrified because he possessed an independent consciousness.

However, the true source of this soul—Goss—was standing there calmly, his heart undisturbed, even rationally calculating the old lady's reaction.

Since the main body has no fear, then the soul of the clone cannot be taken away!

"you……"

The old woman's gaze towards Goss completely changed.

She went from seeing a promising newcomer to seeing an outcast who was completely incomprehensible and even remarkably similar to her in terms of ability.

Imbuing inanimate objects with souls... Isn't this something only my Soul-Soul Fruit can do?

Moreover, his soul strength was so high that he could ignore the fear of his clone?

This was the first time in Big Mom's decades-long pirate career that she had encountered such a strange thing.

The woman remained silent for a long time, looking into Goss's calm, unwavering eyes.

For some reason, the anger in her heart transformed into an even stronger desire to bring this outcast under her control.

"Mama mama mama..."

The woman slowly withdrew her hand, her laughter low and complex, carrying a chilling excitement:

"I see."

"Not just the body, but the ownership of the soul is also in your hands...?"

"Goss, you are more dangerous and more useful than I thought."