Chapter 126: The Outsider on Plague Island!
Grand Line, Plague Island.
As mentioned before—this island was perhaps one of the most uninhabitable places on the entire sea.
Every inch of the land was cracked, with dark, toxic sludge seeping from the fissures. The soles of a normal person's shoes would corrode just by stepping on it.
The water sources across the island shimmered with an eerie dark purple hue, and many areas were shrouded in a thick fog that was visibly poisonous at a glance.
The only plants that survived were toxic flora adapted to the poison. Even though the island itself was a massive 'Large Island', the only place that could be called lush with vegetation was the great forest in the center, which was filled with toxic miasma.
Fish and Sea Beasts wouldn't approach, and even seabirds instinctively avoided flying over the island.
It was a true 'Forbidden Zone for Life', where normal existence was impossible.
But right now...
"Cough, cough..."
A petite young girl was walking on this island.
She hunched over, leaning on a cracked wooden staff. Her entire body, including her face, was wrapped in thick fabric to shield her from the environment.
Even so, it was evident that her body was abnormal.
Her shoulder blades were crooked and protruding, as if they had been forcibly broken and allowed to heal haphazardly.
One of her legs seemed broken, and one arm was bent at a very unnatural angle, the flesh so thin she looked like a skeleton.
One of her eyes was blind, but judging by the moistness and shape of the remaining eye, she must have been a great beauty in the past.
She avoided the dangerous poison pools and rivers, specifically skirting around the central great forest, climbing up 'Venom Sting Mountain', which had a relatively higher elevation.
"Haa... almost there. I wonder if that gentleman found the medicine Grandpa Milas needs."
She panted heavily.
With her body, this was naturally exhausting.
But she had no choice.
The group of survivors on this island had managed to live this long thanks to the help of a certain gentleman, but that was all.
Aside from her, who had arrived on the island relatively recently, everyone else's bodies were in terrible condition due to long-term exposure to the poison. If possible, they shouldn't inhale any more toxic mist.
So, she was the only one who could do this.
Of course, she knew—the protective measures on her body didn't address the root problem.
She could feel the poison slowly infiltrating her body, sending dull pain from every limb.
Perhaps this was the Celestial Dragons' intention—they wanted to see those exiled here die after prolonged, deepening suffering.
But again, she had no choice.
"I must survive... I have to go back... Grandpa and Big Brother are still waiting for me."
This conviction was the only reason she was still standing.
She had a reason to live.
"This little bit of pain... is nothing!"
Whispering to herself, she planted her staff firmly into the ground, causing toxic liquid to sputter from the soil.
She headed toward a cave not far away—the designated spot where they met that gentleman every month to receive supplies.
But just then...
"..."
The girl caught something in her peripheral vision, and her body froze instantly.
Because at that moment, she faintly saw a burst of blue brilliance erupt within the toxic fog of the massive forest below Venom Sting Mountain.
Then...
Scrape.
A massive friction sound emerged—and it was getting closer.
The girl wanted to hide, but with her physical condition, she couldn't dodge in time.
So, she could only watch as a massive shadow faintly emerged from the depths of the mist.
"Another new creature from the 'Miasma Forest'?"
Seeing this, the girl tensed up, instinctively gripping her staff tighter.
The Miasma Forest was the most dangerous place on Plague Island.
It was filled with numerous venomous creatures, mostly monsters released by the Addi Kingdom at the behest of the Celestial Dragons—only monsters with immense vitality could adapt to this environment.
If there was a slight chance of survival outside, the forest was a true death zone where survival probability was zero.
"What is that..."
She struggled to move behind a rock.
Then...
"!!!"
Her remaining eye widened as she saw the things emerging from the thick toxic fog.
It was indeed a massive monster—at least twenty meters long, resembling a twisted, deformed lizard. Its colorful blood indicated its terrifying toxicity.
And this was just the first one—beside it, three other behemoths of similar size appeared together.
The girl knew these monsters were likely the most dangerous apex predators even within the Miasma Forest.
But right now... they were all dead.
Their massive bodies were simply being dragged out of the forest by a figure in front of them.
"..."
The girl saw the figure.
It was a slender figure wearing white clothes, surrounded by strange clouds interwoven with white and blue.
What caught the girl's attention most was the Sea Beast Mask on his head.
It was a Sheep Mask.
"Oh?"
At this moment, his gaze seemed to notice the girl, and he actually waved at her from afar. "Yo~"
"Young lady, are you a survivor on this island? I got lost on the path of life, so I decided to hunt some game—"
As he spoke, under the girl's horrified gaze.
The man in the Sheep Mask took a step forward.
Then...
VMMM!
Clusters of white and blue interwoven Flame Clouds instantly appeared beneath his feet.
He stepped onto the Flame Clouds, walking upward step by step.
Even more terrifyingly—the pile of monster corpses behind him was lifted into the air along with him.
In just a few moments, he arrived in front of the girl, whose expression was frozen stiff.
"So, young lady—can you guide me back to the correct path? I can offer these prey in exchange."
He spoke casually.
"Co... Correct path?"
"Yes, I was asked by someone to look for a girl named Kori—she should have been to this island. Perhaps you..."
As the Sheep Mask man said this, the girl's face turned pale as snow.
But at that exact moment...
VMMM!
The Sheep Mask man stopped abruptly.
At the same time...
RUMBLE!
The ground in front of him suddenly collapsed, sinking to form a massive hole that separated him from the girl.
"Oho?"
The Sheep Mask man paused, looking to the side.
He didn't seem overly wary—because the strike just now wasn't an attack, but a warning.
[Gravity Field · Separation Field]
Clack! Clack!
The sound of wooden clogs hitting the ground echoed.
The next moment, a figure appeared in the direction the Sheep Mask man was looking.
"Apologies, acting so rashly is truly rude, but uninvited guest—"
It was a tall figure.
He had short black hair, a beard around his mouth, wore a light purple kimono with handguards, and a standard-issue coat draped over his shoulders.
He held a sword in his right hand and carried a bag on his shoulder. Most notably... was the scar over his eyes.
An X-shaped scar, not too old.
He was a blind man.
And at this moment, his squinted eyes seemed to sense the Sheep Mask man's existence, looking slightly toward him.
"Could I ask you to stay a little further away from her?"
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