Whether it was the Elders or the God Knights who finally dared to approach,all of them gasped in shock when they saw the two men, staring in disbelief at the completely unscathed Orin.
Even the legendary Garling-sama had his clothes slightly torn, but Orin looked completely fine his outfit immaculate, his condition pristine, not a single visible wound on his body.
"What's with those looks?"
Orin rolled his neck, feeling his energy reserves dwindling.
Sure enough, dealing with a powerhouse on the level of Captain Roger came with serious pressure.
After all, the age gap was real.
Even if he was invincible among his peers, facing a monster like this exposed the limits of his foundation.
Just using "Surgery: Micro Warp" to heal his wounds and repair his clotheshad drained him considerably.
Especially that one move…
Even now, Orin still felt sick.
He had awakened Observation Haki from a young age and was used to seeing the world with clarity and transparency.
To suddenly be "blinded" like that was utterly disorienting.
"I just had a little sparring match with Garling-sama. As expected of the most dazzling royal of the Celestial Dragons in the God Valley Incident his swordsmanship and Conqueror's Haki Infusion are terrifying."
Orin extended a hand to receive the cape he had taken off earlier from a female Celestial Dragonand draped it over his shoulders again.
Seeing the stunned faces of the Elders and the God Knights, he paused briefly then realized what they were thinking.
Of course…
Garling, in his prime, held a status comparable to peak Shanks of the Four Emperors. He was one of the true titans of the seas.
The visual impact of this scene was no different than if someone in the original story told the worldthat a 19-year-old Supernova had effortlessly overpowered Emperor Shanks—
That was Kid's dream.
"Don't look at me like that… Actually, Garling-sama had the upper hand. I only look unscathed because of my Devil Fruit powers."
Orin didn't mind admitting it.
After all, if your raw power can't compare, then it can't compare. It's one thing if your subordinates hype you up, but in front of real powerhouses, acting tough is just disrespectful.
"I was barely managing to hold my ground…"
Hearing this, the surrounding God Knights finally relaxed and nodded in understanding.
Now that sounded more like a human.
Otherwise, it would've been too creepy.
Earlier, after the Elders had left, Garling expressed a desire to spar with Orin,to test his true strength and Orin had no reason to refuse.
He casually tossed his heavy cape to a blushing female Celestial Dragon, one of the Knights,then put away his ultimate weapon—the "Black Gun."
In smooth battles, he used Observation Haki.
In adversity, his fists.
In desperation—he pulled out the Black Rifle.
But facing someone like Garling, the current reigning "World's Greatest Swordsman," Orin naturally wanted to hone his swordsmanship.
So—
The already cracked sky…
Shattered.
Orin's Conqueror's Haki Infusion was surprisingly suppressed.
The weight of this fight was no less than young Orin confronting peak Shanks.
Trying to maintain combat power while their Haki clashed at full force? Even your average Vice Admiral wouldn't stand a chance.
This was a true peak-level showdown!!!
Regular God Knight members didn't even qualify to spectate.
If they hadn't held back their power, just one stray slash might've flown all the way to Mary Geoise and sliced the Holy Land into pieces.
And upon hearing Orin's explanation, the Knights suddenly remembered—
According to intel, Orin did seem to have such an ability: as long as he had energy left, he could instantly warp his body back to its original structure after battle.
But just being able to fight Garling this long was already proof of his strength!
"...By the way, Orin,"
Saint Saturn glanced at the utterly destroyed battlefield, deciding not to press further. He raised his hand and took out a small chip.
"Imu-sama has approved. From now on, you're a special member of the God Knights. You may act independently and are no longer bound by direct orders."
That was just putting it nicely.
In reality, it was an honorary title.
To the Holy Land, it was no different than keeping another Celestial Dragon who didn't do any work. No one really expected Orin to serve them loyally.
Realizing what this meant, a group of female Celestial Dragons and Knight members who had witnessed both battles began to whisper among themselves:
"Eh? Orin-sama only just joined the Knights?"
"Come to think of it, I did hear rumors that someone was going to be fast-tracked in."
"Say… if we had a child with a Celestial Dragon like Orin, would the child still be a Celestial Dragon?"
That question—
Actually left even Garling and the Elders stumped.
Technically, as an auxiliary Celestial Dragon, Orin had no hereditary rights.
But if he paired with a female Celestial Dragon, then by definition, the child would meet the requirement of having both parents be Celestial Dragons.
And if the mother was from the Celestial Dragons' main line—
Who would dare say the child lacked "divine" blood?
After much thought, they finally gave an answer:
"Probably, yeah."
...
Holy Land — Mary Geoise.
Countless royals and nobles had gathered for the World Government's once-every-four-years Summit.
The MVP among them was undoubtedly a rare new face—
King of Development: Dotor Keek.
"King Keek, it's an honor to meet you..."
"You've truly raised a fine grandson!!"
"I'd say Orin's success can't be separated from King Keek's excellence!!!"
"..."
"Ah… ahahahaha!!!"
The old man clasped his hands behind his back, and couldn't help but smile smugly as he heard nothing but flattery around him.
This... is charisma!!!
Little did he know—
The kings sucking up to him were all, in some form or another, living off of Orin. Some of their countries' core industries were built on Orin's underground enterprises.
Why else would they be flattering the old man like this?
"Fufufufufu… Been a while since I've been back."
Neither the cold Mihawk nor Crocodile wanted to deal with anyone.
But Doflamingo was strutting around arrogantly.
"Surprised I don't see my old kin here. Good—better if they're all dead…"
Doflamingo crossed his legs, controlling his soldiers in heavy armor with threads, a vengeful smile spread across his face.
Now that he had joined Orin's forces, he would eventually build enough strength to get revenge on those bastards of the Holy Land!!!
He couldn't reclaim his Celestial Dragon identity— so he would tear them off their pedestal!!!
That desire had long since consumed him. And then Orin returned—
With a cheerful smile, he held up the identity chip of a Celestial Dragon like a trophy.
Doflamingo felt like the sky had collapsed:
"Just now? Got in a fight with the God Knights… And got myself Celestial Dragon status."
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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