The iron rod slammed against Ares's muscles with heavy, muffled thuds.
Thud. Thud. Thud…
Each strike left his bronzed skin glowing red, his blood surging through his body.
His metabolism kicked into overdrive.
And the searing pain repeatedly shocked his nerves, triggering fragmented flashes in his mind—visions of a modern city skyline, bustling streets filled with cars, all zipping past on wide roads.
Then came a flash of a hospital sign: "Guangwei City First Neuro-Oncology Hospital."
In the next image, he lay restrained on a hospital bed.
A nurse replaced the IV bag with a fresh bottle of medication.
The images flickered rapidly, like a slideshow, ending on the nurse's terrified scream.
"A patient drank the IV fluid!!"
Chaos followed.
Snapping back to reality, Ares wasn't sure how many times his arm had swung, how many blows he'd landed.
"Am I Ares... or Li Yang?"
"My father's dying wish was to forge a blade surpassing the Supreme Grade swords. But my smithing skills could never match his."
"I have to change. I'll forge myself into that blade!"
"If I can't... then I'll forge someone else into one."
These visions weren't new. Every time something jarred his brain, they returned—intensely vivid, painfully real.
Over time, they made him more tolerant of pain.
But it wasn't just training that hardened him.
His sculpted chest now blushed red, and he turned the iron rod on his eight-pack abs—each muscle slab larger than a normal man's thigh.
Thud. Thud. Thud!
He pounded himself like steel at a forge.
Only through relentless hammering can one become a legendary blade.
Pain? He was used to it. Maybe even addicted.
Inside Skull Castle…
Wang Zhi, now cleaned up and dressed in his gleaming golden armor, stepped out of his room and made his way to Ares's quarters.
Captain Rocks had entrusted Ares to him, so he'd arranged the newcomer's room right next to his own.
He knocked.
"Hey! Ares! You up?"
No response.
He called again. Nothing.
Finally, Wang Zhi pushed the door open and peered inside. "He's not here?!"
"Don't tell me he's out training again? This early?!"
He sprinted toward the training hall.
Thunderous, booming thuds echoed through the space.
He stared, stunned, as Ares hammered away with an iron rod nearly as thick as his own arm.
Wang Zhi stood over four meters tall—taller than Ares by a hair—and even he was shaken.
"He's not human…"
"Insane!"
The rod slammed into Ares's body with bone-jarring force, each swing slicing the air.
Wang Zhi winced. His scalp tingled.
He'd thought swimming behind a ship was already nuts, but this? This was pure madness.
"Even Kaido's tough... but this guy's next level."
"If I tried that, I wouldn't last an hour."
He stepped forward, voice incredulous. "Ares, doesn't that hurt?!"
"Yes," Ares replied flatly, without even pausing.
Wang Zhi stared. "That's your 'hurts' face? You look like you're brushing your teeth."
He eyed the rod suspiciously. "Is that even real? Or just a prop?"
But no—those metallic crashes were very real.
"At this rate, you're gonna wear that thing down to a toothpick," Wang Zhi muttered.
Then he remembered last night's feast and rolled his eyes. "No wonder you eat so much…"
The image was burned into his brain—Ares had devoured enough for over a hundred men. A true bottomless pit.
"Strongest eater in the entire Rocks Pirates. No contest."
He sighed. "So, how long are you planning to train?"
"Until it's time to eat."
Wang Zhi's eyebrow twitched. "Why did I even ask…"
Then Ares looked at him seriously. "Captain said that battle tempers a man into a sharp blade. Is there any other way to turn myself into a sword?"
He shifted the rod to hammer his thigh muscles.
Wang Zhi stroked his long black beard, deep in thought. "When it comes to swordsmanship, the best in the Rocks Pirates is definitely Shiki."
"But seriously…"
"You're really trying to turn yourself into a sword?"
He couldn't help the chill that ran down his spine. He'd never heard anything so ridiculous.
People aren't metal. Flesh and blood can't be forged like steel.
"Not just any sword," Ares said. "I want to surpass the Supreme Grade swords. I'll become a blade beyond comparison!"
His voice rang out like steel, firm and resolute.
His next strike sent a shockwave rippling through the air. His muscles quivered, waves rippling like water.
Wang Zhi flinched.
"Damn... I'm in pain just watching this."
"I'm out. Call me when it's time to eat."
He turned and fled. Any more of this and he'd lose his appetite.
After he left, Ares kept swinging the rod, murmuring to himself:
"Shiki the Golden Lion…"
"Maybe he knows another way to forge myself into a blade beyond even the Supreme Grade swords."
"I'll ask him when I'm done training."
The hammering continued.
Endless. Thunderous. Relentless.