Over the next two days,
Storm stopped hunting for trophies and instead focused on digesting his recently increased attributes and abilities.
With Ivankov's very "active" cooperation,
Storm successfully adapted to his dramatically enhanced strength.
His [Physique] reached six stars.
His [Clay-Clay Fruit] reached six stars.
His [Armament Haki] and [Observation Haki] remained at five stars.
All branches of his Six Powers techniques also remained at five stars.
In Ivankov's words—
if he hadn't seen Storm clearly with his own eyes,
he would have thought one of Charlotte's greatest creations had been locked inside Impel Down.
In other words,
in Ivankov's judgment, Storm's current strength was already close to that of Charlotte Katakuri, the second-in-command of the Big Mom Pirates.
Of course, everyone knew their own limits.
Setting Ivankov's flattery aside—
Storm himself believed there was still a noticeable gap between him and Katakuri.
Putting everything else aside,
Katakuri's Observation Haki—capable of foreseeing the future—was something Storm could not yet match.
Still, Storm wasn't discouraged.
He couldn't see the future now,
but that didn't mean he never would.
Just as he once failed to understand the "art of clay"… but now—
Impel Down.
Frozen Hell.
A solitary confinement cell.
Storm flicked his right hand, scattering clumps of white clay into the air.
When they hit the ground, the clay reshaped itself into small white spiders.
The next instant, an invisible force compressed them inward.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
A chain of explosions shook the cell, blasting deep craters into the floor.
After two days of uninterrupted practice,
Storm had successfully integrated the explosive principles of Death Blink into the Clay-Clay Fruit.
Although clay itself could not explode,
it could produce explosions.
In a sense—
Storm could now be considered a half-artist.
"Tomorrow, my confinement ends…"
Storm assimilated the cell into clay and restored the shattered ground.
"So tonight—let's begin the first real test."
As night fell, a satisfied Storm left New Okama Paradise.
The moment he stepped into the forest outside,
the ground beneath him turned to clay, and his figure vanished.
Storm hadn't burrowed through the ground—
he had merged with it.
With the effects of his awakened Clay-Clay Fruit,
Storm moved freely through the walls of Impel Down itself.
Guided by the structure map he had memorized,
he silently traveled from Frozen Hell to Scorching Hell.
The hunt began.
Storm did not immediately leave the walls.
Using the camouflage effects of his Chameleon Fruit ability,
he searched the prison cells until he found his target—
the highest-bounty inmate in Scorching Hell.
The very same Zoan-type Chameleon Fruit user he had previously "educated."
Storm expanded the influence of his Clay-Clay Fruit.
In an instant, the man was seized and knocked unconscious without making a sound.
A bronze trophy appeared.
Storm ignored it.
The cell floor softened.
The prisoner was dragged underground like prey.
Seconds later, Storm emerged—
not in Scorching Hell,
but back in Frozen Hell.
A prisoner had been transferred between hells without anyone noticing.
Storm laid the unconscious man on the frozen ground.
This was the crucial step.
He took out two fruits he had "borrowed" earlier from the food warehouse.
"Please let this work."
Storm aimed the Devil Ring at one fruit and released the sealed Clay-Clay Fruit power.
Gradually, the fruit changed.
Its peel turned pale and clay-like.
Mysterious spiral patterns emerged.
When the transfer was complete—
a new Clay-Clay Fruit was born.
Storm checked his status panel.
The Clay-Clay Fruit ability he once possessed was now grayed out.
"Of course… the power was transferred."
He examined the fruit.
[Clay-Clay Fruit]
Type: Paramecia
Star Rating: None
It was genuine.
Anyone who ate it would gain the Clay-Clay Fruit.
"Preparations complete."
Storm set the fruit aside and turned to the unconscious Chameleon Fruit user.
He didn't need him awake.
Storm instinctively reached to activate clay—
then paused.
The ability was gone.
He shook his head and crushed the man's throat.
Crack.
Death was instant.
Storm pressed the Devil Ring to the corpse's heart.
The transfer was swift.
When he withdrew his hand—
a new ability appeared.
[Devil Fruit: Chameleon Fruit ★]
"Exactly as predicted."
Storm smiled faintly.
"So the Devil Ring doesn't just interact with fruits…"
"It can steal abilities directly."
Storm didn't test the power himself.
Instead, he transferred it into the remaining fruit.
The peel shimmered with shifting colors.
Tiny bumps formed across its surface.
A Zoan-type Chameleon Fruit was reborn.
[Chameleon Fruit]
Type: Zoan
Star Rating: None
"A success."
Storm exhaled.
The value of Infinite Hell was even higher than he had expected.
Few Devil Fruit users existed in the first five levels.
But Infinite Hell—
was different.
Among them were monsters.
Even—
a Mythical Zoan.
Dog-Dog Fruit, Mythical Zoan: Nine-Tailed Fox Form.
Storm resealed the Clay-Clay Fruit's power into the Devil Ring.
His awakened Clay-Clay Fruit returned.
"Nine-Tailed Fox…"
Katarina Devon's image surfaced in his mind.
"This fruit…"
"…is destined for me."
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