The hulking man looked at Kong Tai, took a step forward, and without hesitation, tilted his head back, revealing the collar on his neck.
Kong Tai had said it was fine, so it would be fine. He believed in Kong Tai wholeheartedly.
Kong Tai stared at the hulking man, a flicker of admiration in his eyes.
Then his gaze dropped to the collar around the man's neck, and he reached out and grasped it.
A flowing armament haki, tinged with a crimson hue, instantly enveloped his fist. Then, it spread outwards from his fist, engulfing the entire collar in an instant.
"The highest level of armament haki application."
Shiteles stared at Kong Tai's hand, his eyes wide with shock.
He knew Kong Tai was strong, but he didn't know just how strong.
His understanding of Kong Tai was that he was a peak great swordsman capable of clashing swords with Golden Lion and Admiral Kizaru.
And also, that he was a user of a space-type Devil Fruit.
He didn't know anything else.
The only ones in the Marines who had fought Kong Tai were Kizaru and Merasen.
The former was an Admiral, and the latter was his senior, an elite veteran Vice Admiral.
Neither of them would likely share the specifics of their fights with Kong Tai.
Therefore, within the Marines, aside from the two involved parties, the only ones who knew Kong Tai's true strength were Fleet Admiral Sengoku, Chief of Staff Tsuru, and perhaps, Navy Hero Garp, who entered and exited the Fleet Admiral's office as if it were his own.
"Seventeen years old, and armament haki has reached this level."
Shiteles looked up at Kong Tai's young face, his heart filled with awe. "Truly remarkable!"
There was only one adjective he could think of to describe Kong Tai now.
That was "monster."
Kong Tai was unaware of the Vice Admiral's thoughts, and even if he were, he wouldn't have paid them any mind.
In this world filled with miraculous powers, monsters were plentiful.
Take Monkey D. Luffy, for instance, who would only set sail two years later. In just over two years, he went from a small village in the East Blue to the pinnacle of the world.
The true pinnacle, in terms of both fame and combat power.
So, his current achievements were not something to be proud of.
His journey at sea had been smoother and far more powerful than Luffy's.
And he had a cheat.
His encounter with Mihawk a few days ago had taught him that in this world, every peak existence had no obvious weaknesses.
If not for the invincible defense inherent in his spatial domain, without using his spatial abilities, he wouldn't have lasted even a single day, let alone two, fighting Mihawk.
To become the strongest in the world.
This applied to both defense and offense.
He still had a long way to go!
At the very least, he could feel that his armament haki could still improve.
Although his observation haki had awakened a special ability, it couldn't be used in combat, so it still needed training.
He needed to train it at least to the point where he could briefly glimpse the future.
However, he wouldn't be too self-deprecating. He was only seventeen, just becoming an adult, and his body was still growing.
He had a premonition.
When he turned eighteen, his body would at least double from its current state.
At that point, his strength, stamina, and armament haki, which was closely related to his physical body, would all reach a peak.
He believed that by then, he would truly be the strongest in the world.
"Alright, enough idle chatter."
Kong Tai, still holding the collar on the hulking man's neck, squeezed it with force.
*Crack—!*
He snapped the collar in his hand, then pulled the broken collar off the man's neck and flicked it to the right.
*Boom—!*
As the collar flew to Kong Tai's right, it rapidly expanded the moment it left his hand and then exploded in a burst of sparks.
Hearing the explosion, everyone turned their heads to stare at the sea enveloped in thick smoke in the distance.
Surprise filled their eyes.
They hadn't expected this thing to be so powerful.
The force of the explosion was no less than that of a cannonball.
Thinking that this thing had been worn on the hulking man's neck all along, their gazes towards the man couldn't help but reveal a hint of sympathy.
"Poor fellow."
"Life with that collar on must have been unbearable!"
The hulking man stood in place, raised his hands, and touched his neck. His fingers brushed against the chafing marks, and he paused slightly.
Then, his entire hand covered his neck, feeling the warmth on his skin.
"It's really off."
"He's really taken off this slave collar that brought him so much humiliation."
With that thought, he lowered his hand, turned to look at Kong Tai, and bowed deeply once more.
He couldn't articulate full sentences, so he could only express his gratitude through this action.
Kong Tai looked at the hulking man, and for the first time since boarding the ship, a genuine smile finally appeared in his eyes.
This time, he didn't reach out to help the man up. Instead, he turned and headed towards the central deck of the ship.
"Let's go! Let's see the true hell on earth together!"
Kong Tai gazed at the door to the ship's cabin at the rear of the deck. The smile in his eyes vanished instantly, replaced by coldness.
The deck of the cruise ship didn't have multiple levels of buildings like a typical cruise ship; there was only a cabin at the stern.
Instead, below the cruise ship's deck...
*Thump-thump-thump!!*
Everyone followed Kong Tai into the cabin and descended the wide staircase.
They ignored the two guards on either side of the door, who were pale and slumped over, having fainted.
*Bang—!*
Kong Tai kicked the door open directly.
Inside the door was a corridor. The floor of the corridor and the walls on either side were decorated in a resplendent and magnificent style.
Even the doorknobs of the rooms on both sides were made of pure gold, colored a rich yellow.
It exuded opulence.
Along the corridor inside the door, two more guards lay on the ground, their eyes equally pale.
However, unlike the two guards outside, the ones inside wore noticeably more refined clothing, which, like the surrounding environment, also spoke of luxury.
Kong Tai led the way, moving forward.
The others quickly followed.
As Kong Tai advanced, a faint, almost imperceptible killing intent began to emanate from him uncontrollably.
Behind Kong Tai, Guina sensed his killing intent and quickly stepped forward, grabbing Kong Tai's hand.
She looked up at Kong Tai's profile, her eyes filled with concern.
"It's fine."
Kong Tai suppressed the murderous thoughts in his heart and stopped before a room door. He turned to look at Guina and patted her head.
Guina didn't heed Kong Tai's words. She still held his hand, not letting go, and gripped it even tighter.
Kong Tai withdrew his hand, looked at Guina, and met her determined gaze. He paused for a moment.
Then, he turned his head, looked at the door in front of him, reached out, and his palm touched the golden doorknob, hesitating for a moment.
Then, without hesitation, he twisted it down and pushed forward, opening the door.
He didn't want Guina to be exposed to such darkness.
But then he thought that if she were to encounter such scenes in the future, she would eventually have to face them. It was better for her to understand the true cruelty of the world from an early age.