Chapter 608: The Boiling of the Sea, The Transformation of Hollow Crystals
Grand Line, New World.
In a certain sea area.
A pirate ship was sailing across the sea.
The pirate captain who originally dominated this ship, a bald-looking man, watched the man occupying his captain's chair with fear.
Seeing this man reading the newspaper intently, the captain's eyes couldn't help but dart around nervously.
"Interesting. Isn't that Aloof Iori Yagami?"
"But I'll save this man for next time, now..."
Whoosh!
As the newspaper was discarded, the man reading it raised his head.
The three slowly spinning tomoe in his eyes belonged to none other than Uchiha Madara, a Hunter now famous across the sea.
Due to his blazing red pupils and his Shura-like aura, he was known as the Blood Shura.
Today's Uchiha Madara is regarded by the people of the sea as a lone wolf among Hunters.
He is so powerful, yet he has not committed any great evil.
Even the Marines have not easily offered a bounty for him.
"How long will it take to arrive?"
Seeing the man in front of him fix his menacing eyes on him, the pirate captain felt as if his heart was being squeezed.
He quickly lowered his head, not daring to look at Madara, and answered cautiously. "Lord Shura, we encountered a storm this morning. I've asked the navigator; it will take at most a day and a half to get there."
Hearing the captain's answer, Madara nodded.
"Go down."
"Y-yes..."
The captain nodded and bowed, slowly exiting the room.
It wasn't until he walked out and closed the door that the captain finally breathed a sigh of relief.
It's just that his face didn't look well.
He felt like his life was counting down.
His name is Showa, and he also had a bit of a reputation in the New World.
He is a pirate with a bounty of over 300 million Berries, he didn't do very well in the sea.
But as long as one was cautious and not too arrogant, life could still be prosperous.
However, the unexpected arrival of Uchiha Madara directly shattered his peaceful life.
The Blood Shura! Even the terrifying two Apostles were defeated by him.
He was so unlucky to meet him.
At this moment, Showa touched his smooth head and felt that his future was bleak.
The next destination for his ship was Death Island!
That place was the base camp of the Extremely Evil Fleet, and the legendary God of Evil was there.
The Blood Shura definitely didn't go there to drink tea. Was he going there to challenge the gods?!
Regardless of Madara's purpose, Showa felt terrible being taken along.
He could already imagine how the vicious pirates of the Extreme Evil Fleet Group would try to torment him.
However, he dared not disobey Uchiha Madara's order.
There was a difference between dying now and dying later.
Sigh! People can't control themselves in the sea.
Showa was going to become humbled. If he survived this time, he would definitely give birth to a son.
After this crisis, he felt that he must at least leave a descendant behind.
Otherwise, he felt like his life would have been in vain.
'I hope the Extremely Evil Fleet won't embarrass me!'
He sighed and left with his worries. Even the news about the martial arts conference in the newspaper could not make him feel troubled.
As the ship headed towards Death Island, all parts of the world also received the urgent newspapers sold by World Economic News.
For a time, words such as martial arts conference and martial arts frequently appeared in people's discussions.
The Dark Curtain's big move truly caused the entire sea to ripple once again.
From ancient times to the present, people have always had a strong passion for being first and strongest.
And now, the final winner of the martial arts competition will receive the title of Ultimate Martial Artist.
This title is like the World's Greatest Swordsman, representing the strongest way of martial arts.
One can imagine the kind of fame the first person to win the title of Ultimate Martial Artist will gain.
Even if there are no other benefits, this title alone is enough to interest many people.
What's more, this martial arts conference is not just a small fight; it truly involves interests.
In the Dark Curtain's official announcement:
Except for criminals such as pirates and illegal Magic Pattern Users, all others are welcome to participate in the first martial arts tournament.
The reason why there is no distinction between forces, unlike the Kendo Tournament, is because the first martial arts tournament is special.
In the process of the public announcement, the top twenty in the martial arts tournament will be eligible to cooperate with the Dark Curtain.
The Dark Curtain will provide funds, resources, venues, and other support, and these twenty people will serve as the power base to form a Martial Arts Association.
This Martial Arts Association will be a loose organization, similar to the Kendo Association, and will be dedicated to the study of various physical arts.
To put it bluntly, the purpose of this martial arts conference is to elect the top leadership of the Martial Arts Association.
Although the purpose is very simple, it has attracted the enthusiastic attention of many forces.
In the martial arts competition, as long as you are among the top twenty, you can become an Elder of the Martial Arts Association.
People with discerning eyes have already realized that the high-level personnel selected this way are likely to be very complex.
If mutual cooperation works well, it will form a huge interest group.
If it doesn't work well, it will become a contradictory body that fights openly and secretly.
However, no matter what the outcome is, once the Martial Arts Association is formed, it will definitely be extremely influential in the entire world in the future. This fact is sufficient.
Nowadays, many forces in the sea are gearing up.
The Martial Arts Association is special. The members from all power classes can retain their previous identities.
This means that this association may become a window for negotiation between powerful forces.
Well, the premise is that one can make it into the top twenty.
Of course, if you can't even get into the top twenty, you should be embarrassed to be called a big influence.
Especially since the number of members sent by the most powerful forces has been secretly set within a reasonable range.
People all over the sea are looking forward to this martial arts competition.
Ordinary people are watching for entertainment, while the strong are fighting for fame and fortune.
The World Government, the Marines, various Hunter Groups, Magic Pattern Guilds, Kendo Associations, and even various powerful countries in the world have begun preparations.
There is still one month to prepare for the conference.
This time is enough for people to make arrangements.
While information about the martial arts tournament continued to spread, the Soul Society in the world of the dead was experiencing a different event.
The major martial arts tournaments making so much noise in the living world are irrelevant to this place; no amount of clamor can affect it.
Currently, the ranks of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads (Thirteenth Division) of the Soul Society have begun to gradually fill up.
At the same time, the strength of the members of the Thirteen Divisions is growing rapidly.
This stems from the contribution that Aizen, the captain of the Fifth Division, made to the Soul Society not long ago by overcoming a technical problem concerning Hollow Crystals, a special resource from Hueco Mundo (the world of the dead), allowing them to be transformed into usable materials.
(End of this chapter)