One Piece: The Playboy Emperor Starts by Leaving Totto Land

"Don't overthink it. My father was from the same hometown as Vegapunk. I've heard stories about him from my father."

Stussy didn't question it further, fully convinced by Ethan Sugawa's explanation. She nodded in realization.

"So that's how you knew. I thought you were like me a member of the World Government."

It wasn't an unreasonable assumption. Vegapunk was an ultra-classified secret, known only to the highest levels of the Navy and the World Government. No outsider should've been aware of him.

Having misled Stussy successfully, Ethan pressed further.

"Tell me everything you know about the World Government's technologies and about Vegapunk."

"The World Government didn't trust me completely, so I wasn't allowed to know much."

Stussy thought for a moment and explained, "After I joined the World Government, I was assigned to the Scientific Defense Division to assist in a special research project."

"Clone research?" Ethan guessed.

"Exactly." Stussy nodded. "My genetic lineage has already been extracted by Vegapunk. It probably won't take long before they produce my clone."

In the original timeline, the Stussy of CP0 the one who would later be known as the Underworld Empress was actually her clone.

Ethan's expression darkened. "Aside from cloning, what else are they developing?"

"The cyborg project is nearing completion. In a few years, they'll move to human trials."

After thinking for a moment, Stussy added, "Oh, and they've also begun research into artificial Devil Fruits…"

Ethan's eyes immediately lit up with interest.

Over the past few days, aside from healing and training, he had been closely studying the mysterious seeds in his dantian.

According to his 'Appraisal Master' ability, the three seeds granted by his Devil Fruit seemed to represent a unique constitution.

In order to understand their purpose, he had activated his appraisal skill to examine the sprouting seed.

Sure enough, new information appeared before him.

[Primordial Soul Flower (Unbloomed): Once it blooms, the user will awaken a Primordial Soul, greatly enhancing mental power and enabling the user to tame a second devil.]

"A Primordial Soul? And I can tame a second devil?"

Ethan was stunned.

"Does this mean I could also eat a second Devil Fruit?"

It was common knowledge that Devil Fruits were vessels for devils. If someone ate two, the devils inside would clash, causing instant death.

Aside from Blackbeard, who possessed an extraordinary body capable of housing two devils, no one else in history had survived consuming a second Devil Fruit.

But now, with the Primordial Soul, Ethan could theoretically control two Devil Fruits.

Although his soul flower had not yet bloomed, he needed to start preparing.

He had to select the right second Devil Fruit in advance.

Now that he had Stussy as an informant, he set his sights on artificial Devil Fruits.

"If Vegapunk was able to perfectly replicate Kaido's Azure Dragon Fruit, perhaps he could also fuse multiple fruits into a new, unique Devil Fruit."

Ethan's heart raced.

The strongest Devil Fruits in the world had already been claimed. With his current strength, he wasn't capable of seizing them yet, he needed to find another way.

Artificial Devil Fruits, despite their flaws, offered the fastest route to gaining powerful new abilities.

But simply replicating existing Devil Fruits wasn't enough to satisfy Ethan's ambition.

He wanted to merge different abilities, combining the strengths of various fruits to create a god-tier Devil Fruit, potentially on par with Nika's mythical fruit.

His gaze burned as he asked eagerly, "Have they made any breakthroughs in artificial Devil Fruits?"

"Not yet. Every attempt so far has ended in failure."

Stussy shook her head. "But I heard that Vegapunk's team is now focusing on Zoan-type Devil Fruits. They're selecting suitable test subjects to launch a new round of research."

"Selecting Zoan users?" Ethan's eyes narrowed.

"Teacher Kaido is in danger!"

He recalled that Kaido had once been captured by the Navy. It was during that time that Vegapunk extracted Kaido's bloodline factor and later created Momonosuke's artificial fruit.

Even though he now knew Kaido would eventually get caught, Ethan had no intention of warning him.

"Kaido won't die anyway, and that incident will lead to his meeting with King. It's a blessing in disguise."

After weighing his options, Ethan gave Stussy a serious order.

"From now on, I want all updates about the artificial Devil Fruit project reported to me immediately."

When the time was right, he planned to raid the World Government's Scientific Defense Division and claim all their technologies for himself.

"But first, I need to focus on rapidly improving my strength to prepare for the eventual assault on the World Government."

After issuing his future commands, Ethan once again pinned Stussy beneath him, beginning another round of conquest.

Soon, the sounds of heavy breathing, soft moans, and the rhythmic creaking of the wooden bed filled the room.

[You have delivered 100 critical hits to Stussy. Gained +100 experience in the Navy's Six Styles: Moonwalk.]

[You have delivered 1,000 critical hits to Stussy. Gained +200 experience in the Navy's Six Styles: Tempest Kick.]

[You have delivered 10,000 critical hits to Stussy. Gained +500 experience in the Navy's Six Styles: Iron Body.]

[...]

Over the next few days, Ethan remained in the room, conquering new territory like a tireless general on the battlefield.

His proficiency in the Navy's Six Styles soared, all six reaching Level 5 mastery.

At that moment, several new system prompts appeared in his vision.

[Iron Body and Paper Art have both reached maximum proficiency. Fusion available.]

[Moonwalk and Shave have both reached maximum proficiency. Fusion available.]

[Finger Gun and Tempest Kick have both reached maximum proficiency. Fusion available.]

"Fusion?"

The Navy's Six Styles, as a CP9-developed transitional skill set, had limited potential. They were relatively easy to master.

But now, the system offered to fuse these basic techniques a perfect way to repurpose them.

Without hesitation, Ethan chose to fuse all three.

In an instant, three brand-new combat techniques were transmitted into his mind.

[Bronze Body, Iron Bones: Skin as tough as bronze, bones as strong as steel. Defense comparable to a Yonko. Can withstand most slashes and elemental attacks.]

[Phantom Step: Light as a feather, moving at twenty times normal speed. Can instantly appear within a 100-meter radius.]

[Sword Control Art: Can control a flying sword with the same precision as his own limbs. The sword can move autonomously, attack, and even execute sword techniques.]

These three skills perfectly addressed his previous weaknesses.

If he had learned Bronze Body, Iron Bones earlier, he might not have been severely injured by Sengoku.

Now, he was confident he could hold his ground against an admiral for several rounds.

With Phantom Step, he no longer had to worry about becoming an easy target in his giant form.

And the Sword Control Art would allow his attacks to become far more unpredictable and difficult to counter.

After sorting through his gains, Ethan's gaze drifted to the sleeping Stussy.

"Aside from the Navy's Six Styles, I've yet to acquire her vampire bloodline and her blood control techniques. Looks like I'll have to keep working on that."