At the same time, the New World, near the waters of the Dressrosa Kingdom.
Acier's Laboratory.
After ending the call, Bazel returned to the pirate ship to prepare for departure.
But he was informed by Tom that Acier had been waiting for him for a long time.
"Acier? Is it about that machine?"
Tom nodded, "Seems like it. Acier said he's hit a snag, as he lacks souls for experimentation."
'Souls…'
This was something Bazel had actually been considering for a long time.
The most crucial point of the Desire-Capturing Machine was capturing desires, which could also be seen as consciousness entities.
The method of creating artificial Devil Fruits was simple in theory, but difficult in practice.
Capture an animal's soul, then stuff it into a fruit through special means.
After that, it's a 50% probability.
Success or Failure.
The key step is difficult right at the beginning.
How do you capture things like souls or consciousness entities?
That stuff isn't something one can just grab by wrapping their hand in Armament Haki.
To grab a soul, first they have to 'see' the soul.
Only by 'seeing' it can they catch it.
To put it simply, their cognition must include the concept of a soul or consciousness.
Then they use special methods to get them into their hand.
During these days of sailing, the main reason Bazel hadn't inquired about the machine's progress was largely because he was mastering this aspect of his own consciousness.
The development of a Devil Fruit's abilities, on a reasonable and rule-compliant basis, will head in different directions depending on the user's cognition and imagination.
Spirit Serpent Head.
This snake head was originally part of the manifestation of disaster.
Although the Naraku's Poison has 'poison' in its name, if one look deeper, this aura is less like snake venom and more like an alternative form of soul consciousness.
The living dead revived by Naraku's Poison only retain some of their combat instincts from life.
After being transformed into Yamata's Phantom, they become complete soul products.
According to Bazel's development stage.
The ability Yamata's Phantom still has potential for further development.
But this time, it's not about evolving forward, but regressing backward.
Yamata's Phantom: Awakening.
By fully awakening Yamata's Phantom, control over elements is achieved.
But what Bazel is trying to do now isn't to further strengthen the awakening, but to make the Phantom Serpent Spirits fall completely asleep.
Dream Invasion!
What Bazel wants to do isn't the literal meaning of entering dreams.
When people fall asleep, they often lose awareness of their bodies. If he makes a bolder conjecture, it can be seen as the soul sneaking into some unknown spiritual realm when the physical body enters a dormant state.
The dreams humans have might be the experiences of the soul in that realm!
Similarly…
Bazel plans to use the characteristic of dream invasion to make the Phantom Serpent Spirits burrow into the 'spiritual realm' that doesn't exist in the cognition of the living!
Then, from inside, retrieve what the artificial Devil Fruit needs… soul consciousness.
Then, through the machine created by Acier, achieve the fusion of the two.
Thereby creating truly high-purity artificial Devil Fruits!
But…
This is easier said than done. Actually doing it gives even Bazel a headache.
Walking into the laboratory, Bazel got straight to the point.
"I need more time."
"Acier, do you know about hypnosis?"
Acier didn't understand why, but still nodded yes.
"Human potential is limitless, and part of that potential needs to be activated through self-suggestion."
"The cognition formed by self-suggestion can be seen as the subconscious."
Bazel pointed at his own heart, then moved his finger to his temple.
"If the subconscious within the soul can successfully carve the suggested cognition into the body and tell the self, 'I can do a certain thing', then there's a high probability that thing can be accomplished."
"My new ability is still in the budding stage of a new phase."
Snapping his right fingers, a semi-transparent Phantom Serpent Spirit slithered out from his sleeve.
Its eyes were completely different from its awakened state, looking half-closed and drowsy.
"After it falls completely asleep, it might be able to provide what you need for your experiments."
"Falling asleep and all… it feels very strange. Is it your special move?" Acier asked, puzzled.
"Just consider it the power of my Devil Fruit. It might be easier for you to accept it that way."
Bazel couldn't be bothered to explain the functions of the subconscious and suggestion further.
He himself was proficient in Rokushiki and Life Return, plus one of the Yamata no Orochi's heads represented the ultimate power of body control.
The reason the Dream Invasion move had progressed so quickly was closely related to Life Return and body control power.
Combat instinct is memory formed by the body through long periods of battle and slaughter.
The subconscious is the tool for the mind to hypnotize the body.
As long as the body cooperates actively, this ability should be completed soon.
"The research on the Desire-Capturing Machine can be paused for now. It's not too late to restart it after my new ability is fully developed."
Bazel comforted the haggard-looking Acier.
"Don't put too much pressure on yourself. You can't become fat in one bite. Handle things one at a time, there will be a day of success."
"You need rest, Acier."
"If you really can't stay idle, you can think about how to create and control island clouds. This subject is what's truly troubling us right now."
"The foundation of Takamagahara is sturdy and controllable island clouds."
"As long as we can construct sturdy island clouds above Wano Country capable of supporting an island, I'll handle the problem of the connecting path between above and below."
Bazel wasn't just making empty promises.
If Acier could really create island clouds, the path connecting Wano Country and Takamagahara could be solved soon.
The Sunstone of the Giant Tribe is the fastest method among them.
Just like the underworld and the living world in Elbaf, use the Sunstone to draw a rainbow route for ships to sail.
This way, not only can the safety of Takamagahara be guaranteed, but the coolness factor would also be absolutely maxed out.
"Bazel, are you talking about island clouds? I suddenly thought of a good place."
Just then, Hanafuda's voice came from the doorway.
"Have you heard of the weather country, Weatheria?"
'Weatheria?'
Bazel only had to think for a moment to recall the origin of this weather country.
'The place where Nami stayed during the two-year timeskip in the original work.'
"I've heard of it. What about them?"
Hanafuda handed over the newspaper in his hand, squinting and smiling:
"They seem to have run out of research funding. They're looking in the newspaper for countries in need of meteorological help. Of course, the kind that pays."
"How about we trick them into coming here and then recruit them?"
Bazel didn't answer immediately, lowering his head to search for content related to Weatheria in the newspaper.
Finally, in a small corner of the last page, Bazel saw the news.
[#Weatheria: We are a country specializing in meteorological science. We can help any country needing rain, sunshine, strong winds, or any other weather-related needs. Payment negotiable. Den Den Mushi number: 03####]
"Are you trash, Hanafuda? That's a group of middle-aged and elderly single dogs."
Bazel turned the newspaper around, pointing at a group of men wearing wizard hats in the corner of the news.
"Why trick them? We should use reason and emotion to persuade them."
Hanafuda's eyes widened, "We're pirates! You're not actually planning to pay, are you?!"
"Pay?"
Bazel laughed, "Who are you looking down on? When have you ever seen me have Berry in my pocket?"
Hanafuda: "…"
'Why can this guy be so proud?'
"Don't even talk about me. Go ask all the members of the Beasts Pirates. If the Berry in their pockets can add up to 10,000 Berry, I'll be impressed."
"Now that you mention it…"
Hanafuda suddenly knelt, a shadow appearing as his background.
"Our Beasts Pirates seem to be the poorest pirate crew. Kaido-sama doesn't care, you don't care…"
"The Berry in my wallet were all spent last time at Fish-Man Island."
"The future of the Beasts Pirates is worrisome…"
"No, no, no, Hanafuda, you have to look at it from another angle. The future of our Beasts Pirates is very bright."
Bazel smiled and took out a Den Den Mushi, dialing Weatheria's contact number.
Buru Buru Buru~
Kacha…
"This is Weatheria. Do you need help?"
"We do need help. May I ask where your country is currently located?"
Hearing business was at hand, the Den Den Mushi's expression suddenly became somewhat ingratiating.
"Yahaha, esteemed guest, hello! No matter where you are, we can come to you!!"
"You don't need to pay any extra travel expenses!!"
"That's truly wonderful. We are in Wano Country, in the New World. How long will it take you to arrive?"