"Blood Cut!"
Boom!
The bloody slash swept through like a tidal wave.
The metal dummy standing in the center of the field was easily severed by the sharp blade.
Ron narrowed his eyes slightly as he surveyed the wrecked Training Arena.
The practice field at Naval Headquarters in Marineford is not built with ordinary materials.
Every brick here is made of a highly precious special alloy, capable of withstanding the full force of a colonel's attack.
Even a Rear Admiral would only leave a shallow dent in it.
However, under his blade, these dummies used for testing combat power were as fragile as butter.
Just a few months ago, he could only leave a simple scratch on the dummy, even when using all his strength.
While his increased strength is certainly a factor, the most important reason is that Crimson Cry has become sharper.
The current Crimson Cry's sharpness rivals that of a typical Ōwazamono.
"There has been such a significant change in just one evolution. If it continues to evolve, I fear that the Supreme Sword (Saijō Ōwazamono)will be rendered worthless compared to Crimson Cry."
Ron returned the knife to its sheath. After half a month of integration and adaptation, he has developed the fruit of evolution to a deeper level.
In other words, he now possesses another opportunity to activate the power of evolution.
As for how to utilize this precious evolutionary opportunity?
Ron had already figured that out.
Strengthen his body!
No matter how good a foreign object is, it is still just a foreign object; one's own power is what truly belongs to oneself.
He attempted to endow the power of evolution to every part of his body directly, but it failed miserably.
Although his power of evolution can grant the ability to evolve to all things, the structure of the human body is quite complicated.
Achieving a perfect level of evolution throughout the entire body is a challenge that cannot be accomplished with a single endowment of evolution power.
Unless he can develop the ability of the Devil Fruit to a higher level.
But for now, he can only grant the power to evolve to a specific organ or viscera, not even to a large area of cells.
"Food passes through the stomach and intestines, breaking down into nutrients and being distributed throughout the body. If I have a strong stomach that can break down any food I consume, wouldn't it only be a matter of time before I grow stronger?"
Ron rubbed his chin. Although he wasn't 100% confident, he felt about 70% sure.
When he first watched the anime, the scene that stood out to him the most was Luffy, who recovered from serious injuries simply by eating and drinking.
It's certainly impossible for a normal person to achieve such a feat.
Unless they possess a special bloodline or race.
However, if he has a robust stomach, he might be able to convert the nutrients from food into energy rapidly and deliver it throughout his body.
Ron's eyes flickered, and without hesitation, he granted the power of evolution to his stomach.
The flesh and blood are weak, but the machine soars?
What he needed to do now was to enhance his physical form.
No matter how powerful a human being is, it is difficult to resist the passage of time. After a hundred years, they will still turn into a handful of ashes.
Even someone as strong as Whitebeard will be plagued by illness in old age, relying on foreign objects to extend their life and living with difficulty.
But if a person's body evolves to its ultimate form, can they become truly immortal?
Curious to discover the result, he decided to give it a try.
As the power of evolution flowed into his stomach, an indescribable hunger surged within him.
The intense appetite made Ron's eyes turn red; he felt like he could eat a Sea King right now.
Shave!
His figure flickered quickly as he rushed toward the cafeteria of the headquarters.
Ordinary workers have a much larger appetite than average people, while those who truly stand at the pinnacle of the world can consume dozens of times more than an average person in a single meal.
The Naval Headquarters, where Marine high-ranking officials reside, naturally has exceedingly high standards for food quality.
With red eyes, Ron arrived at the cafeteria, feeling as if he were in a frenzy of hunger, and immediately ordered high-protein meat from the Sea Kings.
It wasn't mealtime yet, and the chefs in the cafeteria were resting.
Soon, what he ordered was brought out.
Ron grabbed a piece of meat the size of a head, chewed a few bites, and swallowed it.
The food entered his stomach and intestines, rapidly breaking down into various nutrients, which were then delivered throughout his body.
"Eat! I want to eat!"
Having devoured his daily meals in the blink of an eye, Ron looked at the chef behind the glass as if he hadn't eaten in three days.
Seeing his eyes, the cafeteria chef trembled and hurried to the back kitchen to prepare more food.
He felt that if he delayed, he might end up being eaten by this ravenous individual.
In the once-calm cafeteria, the atmosphere became tense with Ron's arrival.
Dozens of chefs were sweating profusely as they prepared the food, with the flames on the stove never extinguished.
They were so busy that their hands and feet were sore, yet they dared not stop.
Who knew if the colonel, reincarnated as a starving ghost, would be so hungry that he might consume them all?
"It feels so good!"
Ron indulged his appetite, and the plate of food was cleared within minutes of being placed on the table.
A steady stream of meat was converted into energy and transported to every cell in his body.
He felt like his body was an insatiable glutton, an unstoppable machine, growing stronger every second.
Although the speed of this strengthening isn't as rapid as the feedback he gets from Crimson Cry's slaying and blood absorption, it is more stable and gradual.
As long as he keeps eating, his strength will continue to grow.
Besides, he doesn't have to pay for food in the Naval Headquarters cafeteria.
"Training all day and starving to death—it's time for a good meal!"
"I heard that a few Sea Kings were brought in this morning. The meat of the Sea Kings is an excellent tonic. I can train tomorrow after I'm full."
After a day of training, the sailors were stunned by the scene that greeted them upon entering the cafeteria.
A colonel wearing a general's cloak, looking both refined and iron-willed, sat in the cafeteria, indulging himself.
The leftover bones filled half the canteen.
Dozens of chefs, on the verge of exhaustion, were busily working in the back kitchen, their faces pained, not daring to stop.
"This..."
"When did such a person arrive at the headquarters?"
"This looks like Colonel Ron. Has he been starving for days?"
A few sailors stared, momentarily at a loss for words.
This guy has probably consumed all the supplies prepared for the entire Marine canteen, right?
Now the question is, with everything eaten clean, what will they eat?
"Is there any meat from Sea Kings today?"
A new sailor asked hopefully.
"Damn it! Go fish in the sea yourself."
The old sailor next to him rolled his eyes, wishing he could eat the chef just like that.
Is there any food left?