At this moment, Vir was feeling exceptionally helpless.
Watching Sengoku, Kong, Zephyr, Aokiji, Chaton, Kuma, Tsuru, and even Moria charging toward him with murderous intent—though Vir had anticipated this scenario—he couldn't help but feel a twinge of resignation when he saw how determined they were to kill him no matter what.
Originally, he hadn't planned to reveal himself.
Using his Chiba identity alone would have been enough to maneuver freely at the top.
But then Akainu had to go and obliterate Ace's head.
If he had continued using the Chiba persona, there wouldn't have been enough time to save Ace.
Fortunately, everyone's attention had been fixed on Ace at that moment.
No one noticed him suddenly vanishing and reappearing with a different face.
So, the Chiba identity could still be used later.
It was just temporarily shelved for now.
Vir hadn't expected Ace's head to be completely destroyed.
Sure, he had once said that with this Vibro-Blade, even a missing head could be fixed.
But when Vir actually touched Ace's body, he realized he was wrong.
Dead wrong.
Repairing the body alone would be meaningless.
The thing inside was gone.
In simple terms: his soul had flown the coop!
The spirit had already left.
But Ace had only just died.
Even if it was his soul, it should still be drifting nearby.
Brook had floated all the way to the underworld and back, after all.
If he acted fast enough, there had to be a way.
He vaguely remembered stumbling upon an absurd item while browsing the system's shop.
Without hesitation—
Ignoring the bloodthirsty monsters eyeing him as if he were a delicious meal—
Vir immediately opened the system shop.
Why ignore them?
Because someone else would deal with them.
Vir searched directly for the name of that item.
Soon, a single product appeared before him.
[Soul Slayer]
Effect: This item possesses immense suction power, but it only attracts souls. Upon touching the deceased's body, activate the item according to the instructions, and it will automatically draw in their soul!
Once the soul is absorbed into the item, place it on the deceased's head. If the body has no issues, the soul will reinhabit it.
Note: After activation, you will gain the ability to see the souls of those you touch. This item can be used a maximum of two times!
Price: 3,500,000 points
Review: "Thirty is like a wolf, forty is like a tiger..."
The item was called Soul Slayer, yet its description made it sound like it was meant to retrieve souls.
Honestly, Vir didn't quite understand the logic behind the name.
He couldn't even tell what it looked like—because it came in a blind box.
You had to buy it first before opening it.
This was the perfect item for the current situation.
Its effects were downright broken, but it could only be used twice at most.
The price wasn't cheap either.
If not for the massive amount of points Old Ma had just contributed, Vir wouldn't have been able to afford it.
But for something capable of stuffing a soul back into a body, the price didn't seem unreasonable.
He bought it on the spot.
Ace's situation demanded urgency.
[Ding! Exchange successful!]
With the system's prompt, Vir watched as the item unpacked itself.
But the moment he saw it—
Only one phrase echoed in his mind:
"MOTHER OF GOD!"
Because the reality of the item was... indescribable.
What appeared before Vir was unmistakably an adult-oriented... silicone product.
This thing.
This thing—the system claimed it could... suck souls?
Suck my **!
What the hell is this?!
But the reason Vir cursed wasn't just that.
The shape of the silicone item...
It wasn't just similar—it was a dead ringer for—
Big Mom!
Not the youthful version—the current version!
This was beyond insanity!
This was like an explosion opening the door for another explosion!
The whole house was gone!
And the system had the audacity to say this thing could absorb souls?!
Are you freaking kidding me?!
Big Mom's got the Soul-Soul Fruit, so sure, it's kinda logical!
But did that make it reasonable?!
Reasonable my ass!
A silicone product!
Do you even know where the suction entry point is?!
Yeah, you know exactly where!
Granted, this was a replica—not a 100% accurate recreation.
Only the shape was identical.
For example, the size was much, much smaller.
But still—
INSANE!
ABSOLUTELY INSANE!
No wonder the ****ing system's review said "Thirty is like a wolf, forty is like a tiger..."
What a savage review! Legendary!
Damn you, System! Your whole family's **ed!
You're a real piece of work, selling stuff like this in the shop!
Where the hell did you even source this from?!
Let me guess—a 24-hour adult vending machine, right?!
Aside from "unbelievable", Vir had no words left to describe this.
He couldn't even imagine Ace's reaction as his soul was slowly sucked into this thing.
No. Just no.
The sheer amount of negative energy that would generate might drown him alive...
Honestly, Vir was floored.
Nearly struck dead by sheer absurdity.
But the item was already bought. The points were already spent.
He had to use it.
Pulling out this... soul sucking tool, Vir's expression was incredibly complicated.
The moment he lightly touched Ace's body—
Vir's vision underwent a slight change.
A faint gray hue seeped into his eyes.
The world before him transformed completely.
The once-colorful battlefield instantly turned monochrome—devoid of all color.
Realizing he had entered a state where he could see Ace's soul, Vir immediately started searching.
Looking up, he saw a familiar figure floating above him.
And that figure was staring right at him.
Ace's expression was complex.
'He came... He actually showed himself.'
'Because I died, so many people's efforts were wasted.'
'And now I've forced Vir to reveal himself to try and save me—a guy who's already completely, 100% beyond saving...'
'Why is he being so stupid too?'
'My head's gone.'
'Is it really worth it... to go this far for me?'
'I really... just caused trouble for everyone...'
But then—
Vir suddenly locked eyes with him.
Ace froze.
'What...?'
'Why is he looking this way?'
'There's nothing here.'
'Unless... unless he can see me?!'
Even Ace found his own thought ridiculous.
Vir was just a doctor.
Not a medium.
How could he possibly see his soul?
Shaking his head to dismiss the absurd idea, Ace looked back at Vir.
Only to see—
Vir flashing him a chillingly familiar smile...
Hiss—
Ace sucked in a sharp breath!
His heart sank like a stone!
Something was wrong!
Not just wrong—twelve times wrong!
That smile—it was the exact same one he gave his patients!
'He really can see me?!'
'Then... his words earlier weren't a joke?!'
'He actually has a way to save me?!'
But at that moment, a pulling force tugged at Ace's soul.
It began drifting uncontrollably in one direction.
Now, even Ace gave up hope.
He knew what this meant.
His soul was being pulled away... What could Vir do?
He had been thinking too much...