For the past three days, as he sailed across the sea, Su Chen had been absorbing the souls of the dead along the way to strengthen himself.
However, since the souls of humans and animals do not last long after death—and with only the template of Ulquiorra to rely on—the fusion rate was still quite low.
The range of his soul absorption ability wasn't that wide, so even on the open sea, where battles and deaths were frequent, his fusion rate increased only slightly.
Otherwise, he could have simply gone to Rogue Town or Wano Country, absorbed the souls of Gol D. Roger or Kozuki Oden after their deaths, and become invincible instantly.
But even if they had been powerful men capable of hearing the "Voice of All Things," their souls wouldn't remain after twenty years of decay.
Each new fusion required far more souls than the previous one — the difference between x10, x20, and x30 was enormous.
Like in a game, the experience points needed for each new level multiplied exponentially.
During this time, Ulquiorra's template gradually merged deeper into his being.
A half-skull helmet appeared on Su Chen's head, tear-like markings stretched beneath his eyes, his pupils turned emerald green, and his skin became deathly pale.
He looked like a silent reaper.
He wore a high-collared white jacket with black trim, long sleeves, white hakama pants tied with a black sash, black socks, and white shoes.
Among the captured slaves, there were naturally some tailors. He had made them craft his clothing to match the image forming in his mind.
At this point, one could say Su Chen had reached at least the level of the "Fourth Espada" — Ulquiorra himself.
If he wished to rely solely on spiritual pressure, his zanpakuto, and the full form of his released state, the "Black-Winged Demon," he would need an even higher degree of fusion.
At that level, he would be equal to a Captain of the Soul Society — comparable to a seated officer under the great Shinigami like Yamamoto or Aizen.
Those were the same tiers as the Admirals and Yonko in the pirate world.
Even at only 60% fusion, he possessed the strength of a high-ranking Captain — enough to dominate the entire sea of pirates.
If Ulquiorra and Yamamoto represented 80% and 90% fusion respectively, then 100% would make him something akin to the Soul King — a god-level existence.
With the growing integration of Ulquiorra's powers, Su Chen's spiritual perception sharpened greatly.
He could now sense the island ahead — a place rich with the lingering souls of the dead and the emotions of the living.
Of course, on an island full of pirates, death was common.
His ability to read emotions wasn't much weaker than the "Voice of All Things" used by Gol D. Roger or Kozuki Oden.
Emotions never lied. Faces could be faked, words could deceive — but the soul never could.
"Who is this boy?" the pirates whispered. "Which family dares send a kid like him alone to this island without a crew or a flag?"
Not long after Su Chen landed, a few wicked pirates approached, intent on robbing him.
He had left the White Skull Pirates' ship the previous night and taken a small boat to avoid attention from both the Marines and other pirate crews.
The pirates sneered at him:
"Traveling alone, huh? Either you're an idiot or you're way too confident!"
But before they could act, green light flared from Su Chen's eyes —
Bullets shattered midair, the pirates' heads exploded like bursting melons, and their bodies dropped lifeless to the ground.
From start to finish, Su Chen didn't utter a single word.
He showed no mercy to killers like them — monsters who had torn apart families for greed and sport.
Violence was best answered with violence.
"Interesting guy," one pirate muttered from the shadows, smiling darkly.
"If no one else dares mess with him, that means he's dangerous."
In another part of the island, hidden among the buildings, several figures watched.
One of them — a red-haired man with goggles and a savage grin — slammed his metal fist into his palm.
"So that's the one who killed a few pirates so easily? Guess he's not just some weakling."
Next to him stood a tall man wearing a strange mask with small holes, long dark hair flowing behind him.
His muffled voice came from beneath the mask:
"To do that so calmly, he's definitely strong. Probably not weaker than you, Eustass."
"Hah! Let's find out," the red-haired man — Eustass Kid — said with a cruel grin.
He raised his hand, and metal weapons all around the area trembled and flew toward him, forming into massive steel blades.
"What I need now is a bigger bounty," he said coldly. "If he's strong, that just means more food and gold for me."
"Easy, brother," said Killer, his masked partner. "Your bounty's already a million Berries. Don't draw too much attention yet."
Kid snorted. "Whatever. After this island, we're heading to the Grand Line anyway."
He turned and strode toward Su Chen's direction.
Killer shook his head helplessly.
His brother was too arrogant — strong, yes, but reckless.
Still, deep down, Killer knew Su Chen wasn't someone to be underestimated.
There was something terrifyingly calm about him — no pride, no hesitation — only quiet, absolute power.
Elsewhere, a massive white bear dressed in spotted clothes — Bepo — looked up at the sky beside his captain, Trafalgar Law.
"This night's going to be interesting," Law murmured. "The South Blue won't be quiet for long."
He adjusted his transparent bubble mask and disappeared into the darkness.
Above them, lightning flashed and thunder rolled across the sea.
The stars gleamed bright and cold, heralding the chaos to come.
Meanwhile, Su Chen stood silently near the grand auction house at the island's center.
The place was filled with pirates, criminals, and human traffickers.
A perfect stage for a massacre.
Over the next few hours, he planned to slaughter them all —
and with each soul devoured, his fusion rate would climb closer and closer to 70%.