When Carl arrived at the institute, he was met by a familiar face—Caesar.
However, Caesar didn't recognize Carl. Seeing Vegapunk and Carl enter, he frowned and snapped,
"Vegapunk, where have you been? Who's this guy? Do you let just anyone into this research institute?!"
Vegapunk's face darkened, and he was about to shout, but Carl had already raised his hand.
Buzz!
Caesar was instantly pulled towards Carl by gravity until Carl grabbed his neck, lifting him into the air.
Carl's grip was like iron, and Caesar's face turned purple as he struggled to speak.
"H-How is this possible? My powers...!"
Vegapunk, though annoyed by Caesar, couldn't bear to watch him die. He called out,
"Caesar! Do you know who he is? He's the sole heir of the Figarland family, Saint Carl!"
Caesar's eyes widened in shock. He realized too late that he had crossed someone on the same level as Saint Saturn.
Despite disliking Caesar, Vegapunk didn't want to see him killed. He quickly pleaded,
"Saint Carl, Caesar didn't know who you were and offended you. Please, forgive him!"
Carl glanced at Vegapunk, then released Caesar, letting him fall to the ground gasping for air. Caesar, still in shock, truly felt the presence of death in that moment.
Vegapunk thanked Carl profusely, but Carl waved him off and continued walking past Caesar, who lay on the ground, too stunned to move. Eventually, Caesar gathered himself, his lower body transforming into gas as he hurried after them, rubbing his hands nervously.
"Shishishi... Saint Carl, I apologize for my disrespect earlier."
Without even glancing at him, Carl replied calmly,
"Keep laughing like that, and you won't have a mouth to laugh with anymore."
Terrified, Caesar instantly stopped laughing and clamped his hands over his mouth.
As the three continued walking, Carl paused in front of a room. The institute had many such rooms, each a small laboratory, but this one caught Carl's attention. Through the glass, he saw a woman with short, curly blonde hair. She was curled up, floating in a petri dish.
Noticing Carl's interest, Vegapunk explained,
"Saint Carl, she is the result of my research, clone number one, Stussy."
Carl nodded, observing her closely.
"She resembles a woman I once saw with Whitebeard in the Valley of Gods. That woman was called Stussy too."
"Exactly, No. 1 is her clone. I created her while I was still with MADS. Back then, she was just a frail child, so I kept her in this nutrient solution to enhance her body and speed up her growth."
"Interesting...."
With a hint of amusement, Carl stepped into the lab. He peered at Stussy through the glass, though her body was curled up in a way that nothing inappropriate was visible. Even if it had been, Carl wouldn't have cared—his interest in her was purely pragmatic. He knew she wasn't just a clone, one day, she would become a key player in the underground world, wielding significant power.
Without turning to Vegapunk, Carl asked,
"When will she wake up?"
"Very soon," Vegapunk replied.
"I plan to awaken her within the next few days. If she can live a normal life, it will prove the success of the cloning experiment."
Carl's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Can you clone a body for me and Garling? Once we age, we could replace our old organs with fresh ones from our clones. Wouldn't that make us immortal?"
Vegapunk responded sincerely, his tone as scientific as ever.
"Extending life through organ transplants is possible, but true immortality is beyond reach. The aging process can't be stopped entirely."
"Then why not study the transfer of consciousness and simply replace the whole body?"
"Consciousness is far too complex," Vegapunk explained.
"At most, I can erase memories, but transferring consciousness is beyond my capabilities. Moreover, cloning someone like you or Garling is nearly impossible."
Carl raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
"Your bloodline factor is too strong. We once captured a pirate named Kaido, whose body was the strongest of all the experimental subjects. I extracted his bloodline factor and attempted to clone him, but every attempt ended in failure."
Carl's eyes gleamed with curiosity.
"Even with more time, you wouldn't be able to clone him?"
Vegapunk shook his head firmly.
"The stronger the bloodline factor, the harder it is to replicate. Kaido's clones never resulted in a viable life form. With weaker subjects, I might have succeeded, but those wouldn't be true clones. They'd be vastly different, and their intelligence would be much lower."
Carl smirked, his interest piqued.
"So, between Kaido and me, whose bloodline factor is stronger?"
Vegapunk responded without hesitation.
"Yours, of course. The Figarland bloodline is among the most powerful in the world. Additionally, you possess two other unique bloodline factors within you. Cloning you is beyond impossible."
Carl shrugged casually.
"Too bad..."
But behind his nonchalant demeanor, Vegapunk and Caesar noticed the faint, ominous black glow that had briefly appeared on Carl's hand.
If Vegapunk had told him cloning was possible, it wouldn't have been long before Carl made sure there were no other versions of himself walking around. There was only room for one Carl in the world.
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+86 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg
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