Inside the spacious room, after the three of them stepped into the pitch-black spatial rift, the damaged space immediately began to repair itself once the external force maintaining it was gone.
Under the astonished gazes of Ace and Brook, the space in the room returned to its original state in the blink of an eye, showing no signs of abnormality. Even the floor and the low table that had been covered by the rift when the space shattered were exactly as they were before. It was as if that massive spatial rift had never happened, appearing as nothing more than an ethereal dream.
Only the frost crawling across the floor and walls remained, radiating a refreshing chill—evidence that everything that had just occurred was definitely not an illusion.
Brook stood up dazedly and took a few quick steps toward the spot where the rift had been. His skeletal hands waved through the air, only to find absolutely nothing there.
"What on earth was that?"
"Luffy's brother, what exactly just happened!"
"That person just now, who was he—"
Ace was, after all, quite experienced and had seen the sight of space shattering before. Seeing it again, aside from some initial surprise, he quickly regained his composure.
"Skeleton, I told you, he's a Soul Reaper."
"The reason I brought you here was, naturally, to go to the Underworld of the afterlife."
Ace spread his hands, looking at Brook's face, which consisted only of bare bone. Although he couldn't see the expression beneath the skull, for some reason, Ace could easily sense the other's current mood.
Smiling inwardly, he stepped forward and patted Brook's arm.
"Don't worry, you'll be considered famous in the afterlife from now on."
"The—The afterlife!"
Brook was startled once again. A spectral skull-shaped soul glowing with an eerie green light escaped from his mouth. The soul clutched its head, its mouth hanging wide in terror, vividly illustrating the concept of one's soul jumping out of its skin.
"Don't get scared by every little thing!"
Ace leaped up and delivered another punch to the top of Brook's head, knocking his soul right back in.
Brook wailed immediately, but at least he returned to normal. Looking at Brook in this state, Ace couldn't help but sigh. Where on earth did Luffy find these strange creatures? Every single one of them was such an oddball.
Ace sat on the sofa, looked at the skeleton in front of him, and personally poured him a cup of tea. He discovered that due to the cold air from the Underworld earlier, the entire freshly brewed pot of tea had gone cold, with a few bits of ice floating in it.
Whoosh!
Raging flames ignited on his hand, boiling the tea in the cup once more before he handed it to Brook.
"Skeleton, you're Luffy's companion, right? Tell me more about him."
"Please."
A light smile appeared on Ace's face, making Brook's heart stir as he regained his composure. He nodded.
"Alright."
Kenma and the other two stepped onto the smooth path formed by condensed Spiritual Pressure, advancing toward the cold, desolate world ahead.
The space behind them healed automatically, sealing their path of retreat. Shisui glanced back once before looking away. Thinking of Brook's reaction upon seeing Ace, he couldn't help but sigh softly.
"Lord Kenma, to think that skeleton could actually see Ace!"
"Ace isn't wearing a Gigai. It seems his skeletal form isn't just for show," Yakumi added from the side.
Kenma wasn't particularly surprised that Brook could see spiritual bodies.
"Brook ate the Revive-Revive Fruit. It allowed his soul to break away from the world of the dead and return to his original body. That's why he's in his current skeletal state."
"His fruit ability allows him to communicate with the Underworld, so seeing Ace's soul is no difficult feat. Moreover, Ace's current spiritual body has become much more solid through training. In Brook's eyes, he probably looks no different from a normal living person."
Hearing Kenma's words, Shisui and Yakumi exchanged glances and nodded slowly, a look of realization appearing on their faces. If that was the case, it made sense.
"So, the reason you sought out that skeleton this time was to use the power of the Revive-Revive Fruit to find the Netherworld of this world," Shisui stated with certainty.
Kenma nodded. "Correct."
"But since this is the Underworld of this world, who exactly is the ruler here..."
Yakumi's expression was somewhat uneasy. His voice grew softer and softer, trailing off before he could finish.
Kenma turned his head slightly, glancing at the worried Yakumi out of the corner of his eye, and reassured him, "Don't worry, I have a handle on this."
"Yakumi, you and Ace have been in this sea for two years. Have you ever seen a so-called messenger of death?"
Yakumi shook his head, his eyes suddenly brightening.
"Do you mean, Lord Kenma, that the Underworld of this world has no actual controller? Not even basic administrators?"
As the three spoke, they moved through the dark tunnel and reached the end of the path. At the jagged spatial rift, their figures stepped out from the pitch-black opening.
"Exactly."
In the Soul Society, the Soul King and the Soul Reapers serve as the maintainers and administrators of the world. In the Pure Land of the Ninja World, the Sage of the Six Paths is also lurking there. Only in the Underworld of this Pirate World is there no sign of any administrator.
"Besides, even if this world has beings similar to the Soul Reapers of the Soul Society, they are by no means our match. Follow me, Shisui, Yakumi."
Kenma took a step out, being the first to set foot on the solid ground of this afterlife. Shisui and Yakumi followed closely behind, stepping into this unknown territory.
Kenma scanned the surroundings, observing the environment.
In the Underworld, the world within view appeared clear and bright, yet it seemed as though a very thin, greyish mist covered everything. It was a place of dead silence; there was no sun or moon, no flowers or trees, and not a single trace of life could be seen. There was only a coldness capable of freezing the soul, yet there was no whistling wind or covering of snow.
Only cold.
Faced with the cold that assaulted them every second, the trio's bodies suddenly shattered.
Skin, muscle, bone, and internal organs crumbled into a pile of visible, crystalline ice shards, scattered across the desolate ground. A flurry of ice crystals fell away, revealing the three figures dressed in Shihakusho.
"The Gigai couldn't withstand the cold here and froze until they shattered. But this level of chill is negligible for a Soul Reaper's body."
A Soul Reaper's body is composed of Reishi. Especially for Soul Reapers with high Spiritual Power, the density of Reishi within their body tissues is incomparable to that of an ordinary soul. This bit of cold was merely slightly chilly to the three of them.
Kenma stepped forward, with Shisui and Yakumi following closely.
Before they had gone more than a few steps, they saw a cluster of nearly invisible, colorless flames standing on the ground ahead, flickering with a faint hint of blue.
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]