Roya's home.
Sunlight poured directly from the deep blue sky, casting golden reflections across the second-floor corridor and balcony.
Roya sat quietly in the corridor on the second floor, holding Engetsu in one hand and a cotton cloth in the other, gently wiping the blade.
Roya rarely polished his sword. Caring for Engetsu was unnecessary—under its flames, the blade almost never accumulated blood, so cleaning was hardly ever needed.
Looking at Engetsu in his hands, Roya murmured to himself:
"With the Soul Sword growing stronger, even Engetsu, a weapon among the 21 Great Grade Blades, can no longer withstand the abilities of the flames and Getsuga Tenshō?"
If one looked closely, the edge of Engetsu was no longer exactly as it had been when Roya first obtained it. There were slight, almost imperceptible deformations.
The changes were so subtle that they were nearly invisible, which was why Roya had only just noticed.
"The abilities of a Soul Sword—Ryūjin Jakka and Getsuga Tenshō—are techniques of a Shinigami's Zanpakutō. Engetsu is not a Zanpakutō. Using it to perform Zanpakutō abilities, the material of the blade itself is insufficient to bear the strain."
"Although I can still use it now, once the Soul Sword reaches Stage Four, the Getsuga Tenshō and the flames will intensify even further. By Stage Five, when Ryūjin Jakka is fully unleashed, the blade's material will no longer be able to withstand such power."
Roya gently set down the cotton cloth, lost in thought.
Ordinary sword strikes, used a thousand or ten thousand times, would not damage the blade. But a Soul Sword's ability channels energy directly into Engetsu, releasing it through the sword itself. This is completely different from the sword techniques of this world.
"If only I had a Zanpakutō…"
The thought suddenly appeared in Roya's mind. He couldn't help but laugh softly at it, then pushed it aside and stood up.
If a weapon of the 21 Great Grade Blades couldn't handle the Soul Sword's ability, there was always the Supreme Grade Blades. Moreover, in the current state, Engetsu was still fully usable.
Whoosh!
Roya grasped Engetsu and leapt down from the second-floor corridor. In midair, he swung his sword sharply. Eight afterimages appeared in an instant, merging together to form a massive sword energy, which then crashed to the ground.
Boom!!
The courtyard floor exploded, forming a deep fissure that ran across the entire yard.
Roya sheathed Engetsu without a second thought about the destroyed courtyard and walked straight into the house. He barely considered how to approach tomorrow's physical test—it was unnecessary. If he himself could not pass it, no one in the elite camp could.
---
Marine Headquarters.
A small square had been set up, filled with various training equipment. About a dozen ordinary Marines were organizing part of it.
In addition to the ordinary Marines, three senior Marine officers were present: a Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral and two Marine Headquarters advisors.
The Marine Headquarters advisors assisted Fleet Admiral Sengoku and the Admirals, handling or providing various records and data. Though officially they were Marine officers, in a world ruled by strength, their actual influence was limited.
The square was divided into several zones.
The Vice Admiral and the two advisors stood in one area, along with the elite camp recruits who were about to undergo the physical test.
Roya had been slightly surprised that others besides him had applied for graduation, but soon understood. Smoker and the others had been in the elite camp for over two years—it was only natural they would apply.
Besides Roya and the others, the area contained a strange instrument.
Bang!!
An elite camp recruit stepped forward under the guidance of a Marine advisor and struck the instrument with a powerful punch.
The device flashed briefly, then displayed some numbers.
"Pass."
The Marine advisor nodded, recorded the numbers, and called out:
"Next, Shu."
Another recruit, Shu, stepped forward and repeated the same action.
This instrument was clearly designed to measure strength.
"Truly a product of Vegapunk, five hundred years ahead in technology. Any invention is incredibly practical—it saves so much effort," laughed Vice Admiral Yamakaji, smoking a cigar as he watched the recruits.
The other Marine advisor smiled, "Yes, but unfortunately it does have limits. It cannot fully test extreme strength."
"To measure power below the level of a Rear Admiral is already impressive."
Yamakaji chuckled again.
The recruits took turns testing their strength. Soon it was the last two: Smoker and Roya.
Smoker went first. The results left the Marine advisor visibly astonished. Observing the numbers and recording them, he glanced at Smoker again.
"Not bad. An elite camp recruit trained by Zephyr, and his strength is already close to that of a Marine officer?"
Then the advisor called out:
"Next, Roya."
The recruits who had finished, including Smoker, looked on with keen interest. They wanted to see just how strong Roya was.
Roya approached the strange instrument.
At first, he thought it measured spiritual power, but quickly realized it only measured physical strength, not spiritual energy.
Spiritual energy reflects overall combat power, not just attack force. A Marine soldier armed with a firearm might have a spiritual power of ten, whereas values above five hundred are considered "inhuman."
Roya didn't know his exact spiritual power, nor his precise strength. His training involved push-ups under a ten-ton load; he barely noticed the difficulty anymore.
His physical ability was already countless times that of an ordinary person.
"What is the maximum limit of this device?"
Roya examined the instrument, curiosity flickering in his eyes, then asked the Marine advisor nearby. Though it didn't measure spiritual power, it still piqued his interest to see how high his strength could register.
"Just go ahead and measure it."
Since Roya was last, Marine advisor Carl was already thinking ahead to the next test. His tone carried a hint of impatience.
In truth, Carl didn't even know the instrument's absolute limit. It had only recently been brought to Marine Headquarters. He only knew its limit was around the level of a Marine officer, but he wasn't sure whether it was Rear Admiral or Vice Admiral level.
Smoker's recent reading had already approached Rear Admiral level, which had surprised Carl. Despite his experience and record-keeping, he found it hard to believe a recruit could reach that strength.
As for exceeding the device's maximum… Carl had never even considered that possibility.
"Fine."
Seeing the advisor's impatient demeanor, Roya shrugged calmly and stepped directly in front of the instrument.
Fist clenched.
Armament Haki activated.
He threw a punch…
Boom!!!
A deafening explosion echoed. Under Carl's stunned gaze, the strength-measuring device was completely obliterated by Roya's punch.