Chapter 1: Slave
In the dark and damp dungeon, there were rows of cells.
Each cell held a large number of Slaves, all of them men, wearing blue-and-white striped prison uniforms.
At this moment, their hands and feet were shackled with chains, and their eyes were filled with despair and numbness.
This is the Divine Trial Ground.
It is a building in the Land of the Gods, a place for the gods to watch death and slaughter.
For those gods, they loved watching these ants die the most.
After all, for those high and mighty beings, manipulating the life and death of countless people was the most fulfilling thing.
In the corner of one cell, a young man leaned against the wall, his eyes holding a light different from the others, making him seem somewhat out of place.
His name is Dante Voss, and he is a Transmigrator.
A year ago, he suddenly transmigrated to this world. Initially, he couldn't speak the language, but fortunately, a nearby village took him in.
After a long period of learning, he finally mastered the language of this world and understood that this was the world of the One Piece.
Later, he searched the surrounding forests for a Devil Fruit, hoping to reach the heavens in a single bound.
But it seemed good luck did not favor him; he couldn't find any trace of a Devil Fruit.
Having no other choice, he gave up this fantasy and began working while simultaneously exercising his body.
But he was still disappointed!
His body was not very talented. Even after exercising for several months, he was still unable to become strong, not even comparable to adult men.
Because of this, he despaired!
Without a Devil Fruit and without a better Physique, he simply couldn't rise up in this world. He even had to pray to the heavens just to survive, hoping that pirates wouldn't visit this place.
However, the heavens did not favor him either!
More than ten days ago, a group of pirates invaded the small island where he lived and began slaughtering and plundering.
They killed most of the island's inhabitants. Women were abused, the elderly were slaughtered, resistors died tragically, and the weak were tied up and sold as goods, becoming Slaves.
Dante Voss also resisted, but he was too weak.
Compared to the people of this world, his Physique was far too poor.
In this extraordinary world, he was like a sheep, easily knocked unconscious, taken away, and made into a Slave.
Just like that, he was sold to Mary Geoise and became a Slave!
Here, Slaves are also divided into several types.
The first type consists of those who are powerful or belong to unique races.
These are generally favored by the Celestial Dragons, used as mounts or pets, and kept by their side for long periods.
This type is the most pitiful!
Being near these self-proclaimed gods means enduring experiences more painful than death.
Moreover, facing the Celestial Dragons who view mortals as ants, their probability of death is very high, and they generally don't live long.
The second type is assigned as laborers to various locations to work for the World Government, constantly engaged in heavy labor.
Although most of these won't die quickly, they are either whipped daily or barely fed.
Their fate is already sealed: they will either die from exhaustion or die under the whip.
The third type is used as consumables for the Celestial Dragons or the World Government.
Generally, these people are either sent to major research laboratories to be used as guinea pigs or taken elsewhere to become entertainment materials.
And Dante Voss and the others fall into this category.
The Divine Arena is a place where casualties are high every day; many Slaves die here daily.
Here, these Slaves will become gladiators, slaughtering each other for the Celestial Dragons to watch and enjoy.
After all, if too few people die, they won't feel excited or satisfied.
This is also why the World Government established this venue.
After all, the Celestial Dragons enjoy playing the "Country Destruction Game," but such actions too heavily destabilize their foundation.
Even if they look down on mortals, they cannot continue doing this.
After all, a massive organization capable of ruling the world isn't entirely made up of trash.
For this reason, the Divine Trial Ground was born!
..."Am I just going to die like this?"
Dante Voss looked at the chains on his body and muttered unwillingly.
They wore not only ordinary shackles but also a special collar around their necks.
Knowing the world of the One Piece, he was well aware that this was an "Explosive Collar," an item that could be detonated remotely, effectively restricting a person's movement.
This item is sensitive; forcibly destroying it will cause it to explode, and leaving a certain range will also cause it to explode.
For him, who was weaker than an average person, this was undoubtedly an insurmountable problem.
He had experienced transmigration and village slaughter; he was no longer very afraid of death.
But dying in such a humiliating way—he truly resented it!
He was unwilling for his transmigration to end so absurdly and miserably, and he was unwilling that the village that had taken him in was slaughtered, leaving him unable to personally kill his enemies.
He wanted to escape, he wanted revenge, and he wanted to wash this filthy government in blood.
"Thump, thump, thump..."
Just as Dante Voss was thinking about escaping, a team of people in black suits walked in from outside.
Dante Voss looked up, remaining silent.
He knew who these people were.
After he was brought into Mary Geoise, these were the people managing the Slaves.
They seemed to be an organization specifically serving the Celestial Dragons, commonly known as Cipher pole.
The other Slaves also saw them; some showed terror in their eyes, others looked numb.
The leading man in the suit looked at the Slaves in the cell and laughed mockingly:
"You lowly Slaves, the competition is about to begin. Are you ready for your grand performance?"
Hearing his words, the Slaves' bodies trembled.
On the way here, they had all received some information, knowing that this was a place with an extremely high death rate.
The "competition" he mentioned might cause most of them to die.
The leading man in the suit laughed heartily at their appearance, then continued:
"My name is Vic, and I am the person in charge here. You are about to participate in this competition, and I am here to tell you the rules."
Vic scanned the Slaves in all the cells, his lips curling up:
"This is a competition of one hundred people, and only one person can win. In other words, only one person can survive each round!"
The Slaves widened their eyes, looking at Vic in disbelief.
Although they knew many people would die in this competition, they hadn't expected it to be so cruel.
Only one person surviving out of a hundred—that's a survival rate of only one percent!
Dante Voss's heart also sank.
Could he really survive a competition like this?
Based on his physical fitness, he had no chance of survival!
A sense of powerlessness overwhelmed him, making him feel a touch of despair.
Although he was a Transmigrator with foreknowledge, under such a vast disparity in strength, it was still difficult to shake the heavens.
The dungeon was silent for a moment, then sounds of wailing and crying immediately broke out.
The Slaves' survival instincts erupted at this moment. Many Slaves knelt on the ground, begging for a chance to live.
"Sir, please let me go. I have children at home."
"Please, I beg you, let me go. I have money, I'll give it all to you."
"Please let me go!"
...Vic watched them beg for mercy with enjoyment, the smile on his lips impossible to hide.
Afterwards, he took a pistol from his waist and pulled the trigger on the Slaves who were shouting the loudest.
"Bang! Bang!"
The dull gunshots instantly rang out, silencing the chaotic dungeon.
Two Slaves fell to the ground, blood flowing from their bodies, their lives constantly draining until they vanished.
Looking at the terrified Slaves, Vic said with indifferent eyes:
"No one can violate the will of the gods. You have only one chance, and that is to eliminate the other ninety-nine people."
Seeing that no one spoke anymore, Vic showed a satisfied look in his eyes. He waved his hand, and the subordinates behind him began tossing steamed buns into the various cells.
This was to ensure they had the stamina to fight in the upcoming competition, as a lack of strength would certainly bore the gods.
Steamed buns were thrown in, mixing with the dirt and turning black.
Most of the Slaves were still immersed in the fear of the two recent deaths and hadn't reacted yet.
But Dante Voss moved.
His physical quality was already low; if he didn't eat enough, he would be even less able to fight these people.
He quickly picked up the two steamed buns on the ground, completely ignoring the dirt clinging to them, and immediately began to gobble them down.
The other Slaves in the cell saw how eagerly Dante Voss was eating and couldn't restrain themselves.
"Get lost!"
A strong man two meters tall charged straight over and threw Dante Voss away with one hand.
"Thump!"
Dante Voss was slammed directly against the wall, but he ignored the sharp pain in his body and quickly ate all the steamed buns in his hand.
After all, food was limited in each cell, and if he didn't quickly eat the food in his hand, it would be snatched away by others.
Sure enough!
Besides the two steamed buns Dante Voss grabbed, the rest were snatched by the strong man.
The other Slaves didn't dare try to steal from the strong man, so they all looked toward Dante Voss.
But seeing that Dante Voss had already stuffed all the buns into his mouth, they withdrew their gaze.