By the second day of the training camp, less than 200 East Blue Officers remained, the fewest of all four seas.
The rest had been eliminated.
There was no time for sadness, nor was it necessary.
When the Physical Training began, Roya understood that Doll was right. Those without the strength were just wasting their time by staying; they might as well go back sooner.
"Run!"
Along the Coast, Officers with Weighted Backpacks of one ton on their backs ran barefoot, sweating profusely as they trod on the sand.
With each step forward, their feet sank deep into the sand, requiring even more effort to run.
"This looks bad."
Roya advanced at a steady pace, his breathing very even, never faltering. Constant Training had made it easy for him to adapt to this level of weighted running.
However, the other Officers weren't finding it so easy.
"Huff... huff..."
Isca, beside him, was pale and panting heavily. The weight and the beach environment were a huge burden for her.
The others were no better, each breathing heavily. As time passed, more and more people fell behind.
Maintaining a steady pace, Roya naturally found himself at the front of the pack, with no one capable beside him.
Roya knew that in the East Blue, Officers were the core leadership of the Branches, with busy jobs to handle, and they didn't have much time for Training.
With little Training on weekdays, their Bodies naturally found it difficult to adapt to high-intensity Training. In fact, if it weren't for the extra Training in "The World," it would be difficult for him to maintain his excellent Training condition.
A little light!
Roya felt a little underwhelmed.
A mere ton of weight, who was he kidding!
Krieg's great battle spear weighed a ton, and Morgan's axe weighed at least several hundred pounds. A ton was really easy for him.
Roya looked into the distance and could see the formations of the other three seas, but so far, he hadn't spotted any Marines from the Grand Line.
According to Smoker, the trainees from the G-series fortresses were the main force of the Training Camp, far outnumbering those from the four seas.
And the Marines from the four seas were the bottom of the barrel.
Although the current Training intensity was high, the fact that the Marines from the four seas were Training separately was enough to illustrate the problem.
Time to up the intensity!
"Instructor Doll!"
Roya approached Doll, took off the Backpack behind him, and said, "This is too light. Do you have a heavier Weighted Backpack?"
"I do."
Doll narrowed her eyes, took Roya's Weighted Backpack, and then took off her own Weighted Backpack and threw it to Roya.
"This one's yours now!"
"Boom!"
When Roya caught the Backpack, his whole Body suddenly sank, his calves sinking into the sand.
"So heavy!"
Roya's face turned green.
What the hell was in this Backpack? Why was it so heavy? Roughly estimated, it had to be at least five tons. He originally thought two to three tons would be enough.
Doll was very straightforward. Her Backpack might not look big, but it weighed as much as five tons. It was a special Training device manufactured by Vegapunk, specifically for use by Marine Headquarters admirals and Officers.
The annual Training Camp was also a time for Vice Admirals of the Marine Headquarters to maintain or restore their physical condition.
Doll had a teasing look on her face.
"Want to change back?"
"No need!"
Roya carried the weight and kept up with the team, his speed suddenly slowing down. The maximum weight he usually trained with was five tons, which he could barely withstand.
Island circuit weighted running, freehand rock climbing, ten-kilometer swimming...
Physical Training was the core of cultivation, and it was a key item even in the Training Camp. After a whole set of procedures, it was already dusk, and everyone was exhausted.
"You performed very well today."
Doll clapped her hands to encourage them, while tempting everyone: "When you can complete the Physical Training in half a day, you can be exposed to the Six Styles."
"Half a day?"
Everyone almost fainted.
Today's Training intensity was at least ten times higher than that of the Branch, even twenty or thirty times higher. Even Marine Headquarters Marines couldn't complete it easily.
Wanting to complete it in half a day seemed impossible.
Doll clapped her hands. "Follow me. There's still some time before dinner. I'll take you to see something interesting."
"Interesting?"
Everyone perked up and quickly got up to follow Doll. If even a Vice Admiral said it was interesting, what kind of novelty would it be?
Soon, everyone arrived at an internal Training ground similar to a gymnasium, filled with Training equipment full of technology.
Doll came to a machine that looked like a punch-force tester: "Clang, clang, clang! This is it, the Dao Force tester made by Vegapunk, specially for trainees!"
"What is Dao Force?"
The Officers were confused.
Doll smiled and explained: "Dao Force is a rough numerical evaluation of a person's combat power. For example, a regular Marine with a weapon generally has a Dao Force value of around 10."
"I see."
Now everyone understood. They looked at the Dao Force tester, eagerly rubbing their fists, wanting to see how much Dao Force they could produce.
"Hey, rookies, get out of the way!"
A group of tall figures appeared behind them.
The Officers turned around and looked at a group of burly Men with an average height of over three meters, and their breathing noticeably slowed, subconsciously giving way.
The tallest Man among them, at least five meters tall, came to the front of the Dao Force testing machine, roared in a low voice, and his muscles were expanding and growing larger, with thick blue veins like crawling blue snakes.
"Shura True Fist!!!"
With a loud bang, a fist bigger than a Sandbag slammed into the tester!
"Ding, ding, ding..."
The numbers in the display above the machine jumped rapidly like a slot machine, seemingly analyzing the power of the punch just now, and only stopped after a full ten seconds.
[433]
"Tch, only 6 points higher than a week ago."
The strong Man grunted and turned to leave with a displeased face. When passing Roya and the others, he stopped and his eyes were full of contempt.
"I am Gouka!"
"Remember the name, rookies."
Gouka turned and left, and the Marines who came with him also tested their Dao Force, which was basically above 300.
After they left, the Officers muttered in dissatisfaction.
"He's nothing special. What's he so proud of?"
"Exactly!"
"I'll try!"
"Ding, ding, ding, ding!"
[128]
Looking at the numbers on the display, the atmosphere fell into a strange silence.
"Want to try again?"
"Okay!"
[109]
[147]
[134]
The Officers gave up struggling.
"Instructor, who were those guys just now?"
"They should be from the G-3 Branch."
Doll was a little unsure. There were too many trainees, and she couldn't remember everyone, only a rough idea.
From the G-3 Branch, that meant they were Marines from the Grand Line!
This time, everyone really felt the heavy pressure. Maybe, probably, they were just there to make up the numbers.
"Hey, look here!"
Someone pointed to the other side of the machine, where there was also a screen with a list of names and corresponding rankings.
"Gouka, ranked 7th!"
"Hiss--"
Everyone gasped. The giant just now was only ranked seventh, and there were six people stronger than him!
"Look at the first place, it's actually 50 Dao Force higher than the second place!"
"Peacock, Dao Force value 512!"
"This name, wouldn't it be a woman?"
Everyone was dumbfounded.
Roya's heart stirred.
If he remembered correctly, Peacock should be the granddaughter of Vice Admiral Tsuru. He didn't expect her to participate in this Training Camp as well.
"I'll try too!"
Roya came to the front of the tester.
"Instructor Doll, can I use a sword?"
"Whatever you want."
Doll smiled and explained: "This machine tests not only strength, but also senses the force skills you use when attacking, and comprehensively analyzes your Dao Force."
"I see."
Roya nodded, his eyes like torches.
Pull the knife!
"Ding, ding, ding, ding!"
[266]
"Black Hair Bro's Dao Force is so high!"
"It's actually over 250!"
"We're not even at 150!"
The Officers were full of envy, but Roya wasn't that happy. This number was much lower than he expected.
However, his heart was inexplicably excited.
Doll patted Roya on the shoulder.
"Feeling discouraged?"
"No!"
Roya shook his head, flames burning in his eyes!
"Full of motivation!"