Happy Stacking Q
The Windbreaker anchored offshore, unable to approach the coastline.
Even a small deep-sea vessel needed depth. With no pier, Yang Ning and a few men could only swim to shore, leaving George, Brownie, and Sealy behind to guard the ship.
Yang Ning brought Old Johnny, Brownon, and Willie onto the island.
The beach sand was unbelievably fine—whiter and softer than anything he'd seen since arriving in this world. Beyond it lay a wide stretch of pebbles that gradually grew into packed earth as they moved inland.
After walking for what felt like hours, the sight of a settlement appeared in the distance.
A town.
A surprisingly large one.
His crew quickened their pace, and Yang Ning led them straight toward it. The locals watched them with brief surprise, then immediately lowered their heads and went back to their business with dull, lifeless expressions.
It felt like stepping into the office building of his past life—people existing, not living.
"Do they also have 996 work schedules here?" Yang Ning muttered. "Or loan sharks?"
Driven by curiosity, he headed straight for the tavern—the classic information hub of every East Blue town.
Inside, a few scattered patrons drank in utter silence. No laughter, no chatter. Just the slow clink of glasses.
The bartender glanced up, uninterested.
"What'll you have?"
Yang Ning didn't like alcohol, so he accepted a simple cup of fruit wine. While sipping, he tried to pry information from the bartender.
The man avoided every question.
A tip didn't work.
A gentle tone didn't work.
A firmer tone still didn't work.
Yang Ning's patience snapped.
With a heavy clang, his machete slammed onto the counter.
The bartender broke immediately.
And the story he told was bleak.
The island once thrived on farming and hunting. Quiet. Peaceful. Ordinary.
Until a "demon" appeared.
A man who called himself the Blood King, flanked by two lieutenants—a brawler and a swordsman—and backed by over a hundred violent subordinates.
They seized the mountainous region at the island's center and began extorting the townspeople.
Food. Women. Property.
And worst of all—fresh blood.
Anyone who resisted had their families drained dry as a warning to others.
Several had tried fleeing the island.
Every escape was met with slaughter.
The town was essentially under occupation.
Yang Ning couldn't help raising an eyebrow.
Yep. This was One Piece, all right.
A classic "small island ruled by pirates" scenario.
Judging by the bartender's fear, the Blood King was likely a Devil Fruit user. In the East Blue—where knowledge was limited—Devil Fruit abilities often looked supernatural.
Outside the tavern, Johnny leaned in close.
"Captain… since this place is taken, maybe we should just leave quietly."
His meaning was clear.
Pirates didn't risk their lives saving civilians. Justice was the Navy's job—not theirs.
Yang Ning, however, immediately declared:
"Leave? Absolutely not. These people are monsters. We're killing them. All of them. We must save the innocent!"
Johnny stared at him as if Yang Ning were a newly discovered species.
Of course, Yang Ning's motives had nothing to do with justice.
He finally had targets he could kill.
His skills needed souls, not moral dilemmas.
The ordinary townspeople were too weak—killing them would feel wrong. Growing up for twenty years in a peaceful society still left him with a conscience.
Pirates, however?
Fair game.
Johnny still didn't approve—but with a blade near his throat, he "respectfully accepted" the captain's decision.
Brownon and Willie understood none of it. Willie was too focused on a loaf of bread. Brownon didn't know what "Blood King" meant, let alone "support or oppose."
And so, with a unanimous vote of three confused henchmen, Yang Ning declared war.
Not directly, of course. He was no Luffy charging in headfirst. One punch from the wrong villain and he'd be a corpse.
He wasn't here for justice.
He was here to stack stats.
So they bought supplies, loaded the ship, hid it in a secluded bay, and began hunting the Blood King's men under cover of night.
Hours later, on the outskirts of town—
"The seventh one," Yang Ning muttered, wiping the blood from his longsword.
Behind him, Brownon and Willie dug a shallow grave with surprising efficiency.
Seven ambushed patrol members.
Seven clean kills.
He and his men caused a distraction from the front while Yang Ning slipped behind and executed each one with a Soul-Sucking Strike—silent, clean, absolutely lethal.
Two green light points floated into him.
His stats jumped again.
Updated Stats
Health: 174 → 200
Then 184 → 212 (after Soul Furnace bonus)
Armor: 51 → 53
Law Strength: 48 → 50
Passive — Hellfire Curse (46):
Gain +1 Armor and +1 Ability Power per soul collected.
Skill 1 — Soul Drain Strike (7):
If an enemy dies from this ability, its damage permanently increases by 3.
Current Damage: 21
Skill 2 — Soul Furnace (13):
Killing a unit grants +4 max HP.
Current Bonus: 52
After only seven kills, his Q damage already surpassed his natural attack power—because his base attack was embarrassingly low.
He'd tested it earlier on the ship.
His crew—ordinary East Blue adult males—were 60–70% stronger than him physically.
About 20 points stronger.
Which meant the average adult male in One Piece had around 20 attack power.
Despite looking like a young man, Yang Ning's strength fell significantly below the norm. Two different worlds, two different biological baselines.
But his attack power scaled with levels.
If physical strength failed, he'd just level more.
By level 100, he'd punch harder than a sea king—at least in theory.
His Q and Kayle's Starfire Blade both cost no mana and had no cooldown.
In this world, that made them functionally broken.
Roughly calculating his stats, he realized:
One punch from him now hit with three to four times the force of a normal adult male.
It was terrifying.
The more he thought about it, the more excited he became.
His confidence swelled.
He suppressed the impulsive thought of challenging the Blood King head-on and instead guided his men back into ambush position—waiting patiently for victim number eight.
Tonight wasn't for justice.
Tonight was for stacking Q.