"Absorbed over a thousand souls... so you've reached the level of a Menos Grande already?"
Vladimir raised an eyebrow and looked him over carefully.
A Hollow is a monster formed when a soul falls and corrupts. Its defining traits are the white bone-like armor covering its body, and the hollow hole that appears somewhere on its form.
Beyond ordinary Hollows, the more souls they devour, the stronger they grow, eventually evolving into the Menos Grande class.
The Cero is a technique unique to Menos Grande—concentrating high-density spiritual pressure into a beam of light to blast enemies apart.
Doflamingo had possessed the ability to fire Cero the moment his Hollowfication began. Now, after absorbing over a thousand souls, he had fully matured into a Menos Grande.
However, even among Menos Grande, there is a hierarchy: the lowest class is Gillian, followed by Adjuchas, and the highest and most powerful are the Vasto Lorde.
Judging by the spiritual pressure he gave off, Doflamingo was merely at the lowest tier—a Gillian. He didn't even possess one-tenth of Aizen's power.
Most Gillian share a common appearance: massive beings forty to fifty meters tall, with black bodies and long, white, beak-like masks.
But Doflamingo was different.
"An anomaly among Gillian?" Vladimir shook his head as he watched him.
"Maybe because you transformed directly from a human into a Hollow? Or perhaps it's the effect of the Hōgyoku?"
He walked right up to Doflamingo, extended his right hand slowly, and then pressed down hard.
THUD!
In an instant, it was as if an invisible force had slammed into him. Doflamingo was pinned flat to the ground, completely unable to lift his head.
ROAR!
Doflamingo writhed in fury, his ferocious eyes fixed intently on the human standing before him.
"Your power has increased, but your intelligence has devolved down to the level of a wild beast."
Vladimir chuckled softly. He flipped his hand, took out the Hōgyoku, and placed it directly on top of Doflamingo's head.
"Let me help you achieve Resurrección. After all... you're still quite useful to me."
As he spoke, Vladimir closed his eyes. He channeled his own power into the gem, guiding and controlling it.
Doflamingo seemed to sense what was happening. He stopped struggling and remained still, pressed flat against the earth.
Suddenly... CRACK!
Fissures appeared across the white bone-like armor and spread rapidly everywhere.
The next moment — BAM!
The white shell shattered completely. The ten-meter-tall body of the Menos Grande disintegrated and dissolved into particles of spiritual energy that drifted away.
"Eh?!"
Doflamingo had returned to his original form: his pink feathered coat, his garish patterned trousers, and the sunglasses perched on his nose.
He let out a long, satisfied sigh, then slowly straightened up to his full height.
"So... this is my new power?" He clenched his fist experimentally, feeling an explosive force surging within him.
"Fufufu... Incredible strength! But... I feel like my true power is being sealed away?"
He laughed lowly, then knelt on one knee before Vladimir.
"Emperor Vladimir... if you hadn't stepped in, I fear I really would have become nothing more than a monster."
Hearing this, Vladimir replied calmly: "Your true power is sealed within your blade."
"My blade?"
Doflamingo blinked, then reached toward the long sword at his waist.
The moment his hand touched the hilt, he understood exactly what this weapon was.
It was the embodiment of his Hollow powers. By speaking the release command and performing Resurrección, his full strength would be unleashed!
Moreover, he had instinctively mastered a unique ability for spatial movement: Sonído!
"I see... So this is what it means to be a Hollow? Fufufu... To think there was such a way to grow stronger. This is an entirely different kind of power compared to Devil Fruits!"
Doflamingo couldn't help but laugh. For the first time, he realized he was capable of reaching this level of strength.
He felt certain that in his current state, he could easily crush his former self.
He might not yet match the elite officers of the Supreme Rulers, but he definitely possessed combat power on par with a Marine Admiral.
"Don't get ahead of yourself," Vladimir said evenly. "Earlier, Aizen promised you that if you survived, you would be granted the title of Espada. I will honor that agreement. Doflamingo, I hereby grant you the rank of the Espada within the Arrancar Army under Aizen's command. You are Number 10 — Heavenly Yaksha."
"As you command!"
"But compared to the top-ranked Espada, your current strength is far too weak."
Vladimir shook his head.
"The top-ranked Espada...?" Doflamingo's mind raced.
"You do not need to know who they are. Those at the top possess power close to that of the Supreme Rulers' elite officers. You are still very far behind them."
Vladimir spoke with absolute seriousness, making it all up as he went along. "Now that you have just obtained this new strength, I have a mission for you."
Doflamingo was deeply shaken.
He never imagined that aside from the Supreme Rulers' direct subordinates, Phantom also commanded an Arrancar Army—and that the strongest among them possessed power rivaling the elite officers!
How terrifying!
Just how deep were Phantom's foundations? How many hidden cards did they hold?
Taking a deep breath, Doflamingo bowed even lower. "Please give me your orders, Emperor Vladimir."
"Every faction that came to the auction this time brought a number of Devil Fruits with them. As long as they start fighting each other, as long as blood is drawn and eyes turn red... Devil Fruits will be scattered everywhere, ripe for the taking."
Vladimir paused, his tone becoming distant and mysterious. "You know what needs to be done, don't you?"
"Fufufu... In short, make them suspicious of one another and force them to attack each other?"
Doflamingo let out a strange cackle. "Leave it to me!"
He stood up immediately, eager to obey, and began planning exactly how to stir up the greatest chaos possible.
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