Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 209 Kuzan: I want to build a new navy too!?

The infrastructure on the main island of Melvure is not yet complete; to be precise, it is still far from finished.

Shiki's palace complex was requisitioned, and with some of his original infrastructure, it was barely enough to live in.

But there is still a large gap in the rest.

So at this time, Melvure was in a very chaotic state, with a feeling that it was all construction sites as far as the eye could see.

A large number of construction robots are working here, and at the same time, many laborers can be seen busy on the construction site.

Following Binz, as they passed a construction site, Kuzan stopped, looking at a group of laborers in the distance with a surprised expression. "What's going on there? Slavery?" he asked.

It could indeed be described as enslavement.

Several naval soldiers held long whips and occasionally swung them in the air, creating a loud cracking sound to intimidate the surrounding laborers.

If someone is caught slacking off, the whip will strike without a word, leaving the person with bloodied skin and screaming in pain.

This is inhumane! That was Kuzan's first thought. How could they do this?

Before Kuzan could even find fault, Binz explained, "You could say that. Those people weren't exactly good people. They were all originally members of Shiki's Flying Pirates crew. After Admiral Bane occupied Melvieu, he recruited them all and made them laborers. This plan was called 'labor reform,' which allowed them to alleviate their crimes by contributing to the development of Melvieu. After five years, they could be considered for regaining their civilian status. Of course, this only applies to the ordinary pirate henchmen. The pirate prisoners with more serious crimes have already been sent to Impel Down."

"Is he a pirate?" Kuzana's initial dissatisfaction vanished instantly, and he even nodded in approval, saying, "Then it's alright. Bane, that guy, really has some ideas."

Can pirates still be considered human?

Instead of killing them, they were given a few lashes while they were moving bricks. That's already a very merciful treatment, isn't it?

As a former Marine Admiral, Kuzan has no sympathy for pirates.

"Yes, the construction of Melvure already requires a large workforce. Having these pirates do the work is a contribution to justice. And it's not just them. In a few days, Impelton will also send the first batch of prisoners for labor reform, numbering around 7,000. If these prisoners perform well and prove that this model can be successfully implemented, we will then cooperate fully with Impelton, importing about 50,000 pirate labor reform prisoners from there each year. This will greatly supplement the labor force that Melvure lacks," Binz said with a smile.

The development of Melvure is a long construction period. After all, the Sky Tree Project is enormous, and there is no upper limit set. In other words, it is possible to build hundreds of floating islands.

This is clearly not something that can be accomplished in one or two years. Bane also plans to build this place into the main base of the pirate world. In the future, when they conquer the other world, this place will serve as a core transit station to continuously supply the resources of this world to the front line of the other world.

"Impelton???" Kuzan was quite shocked by the plan. Bane really treated the pirates as "one of his own"!

Deeply moved by this experience, Kuzan and Binz once again went to Melville to conduct an on-site investigation and learn more about the situation there.

In another area, Kuzan saw a continuous stretch of tent camps housing a large number of refugees, roughly estimated to be around fifty to sixty thousand.

Moreover, this was by no means the end, because Kuzan saw the elevator over there, which was also systematically bringing refugees up from below. If he wasn't mistaken, the camp would be replenished with as many refugees as those granted Melvure resident status today.

Seemingly noticing Kuzan's gaze, Binz explained, "The New World has been in utter chaos lately, with wars of all levels and intensities erupting everywhere. It's not just pirates causing trouble; many nations are also fighting each other. The seas aren't filled with pirates, but rather with these homeless refugees. Our transport ships, whenever they return from purchasing sufficient supplies from various islands, will carry back a large number of refugees, as long as there's still capacity."

"Life is tough these days," Kuzan nodded in agreement.

He had seen this situation many times on his way from the New World to Melvure, so he knew that the chaos in the New World was very serious. These refugees were unfortunate, but at the same time, being able to arrive in Melvure alive was also a kind of luck.

"Isn't helping these refugees rebuild their homes a kind of justice?" Binz clicked his tongue and then said, "It's just a pity that our current carrying capacity is not enough. Once more infrastructure is in place, we can absorb these refugees more efficiently. We can provide them with asylum, and they can provide us with considerable productivity and stable logistics. If this virtuous cycle continues, the future of Melvure will definitely be very promising."

Kuzan nodded, about to say something, when he suddenly froze, a more terrifying scenario flashing through his mind.

Previously, when Binz mentioned that Melvure planned to accommodate millions or even tens of millions of people, he thought it was a bit far-fetched, wondering how many years it would take to achieve. However, if such a large-scale absorption of refugees from the New World were to occur, tens of millions might still be a long way off, but a million people could actually be achieved in two or three years or even less, provided that Melvure's supply could keep up!

What does a naval base with a population of one million represent?

This means their manpower is very stable!

And it's quite reliable!

As long as financial and material resources keep up, with the continuous population explosion, G-6 naval base may be able to mobilize hundreds of thousands or even more troops at any time in the future. And the personnel of these troops all come from the same place, which is quite frightening!

At this point, Kuzan seemed to have realized what Zephyr and Bane were up to!

They're going to build a new navy?!

Kuzan finally understood why his teacher, Zeffa, insisted on inviting him to visit Melvure. Even when his mentor, Zeffa, mentioned it, Kuzan couldn't grasp the reality of it and would even find their idea absurd.

But now, Zephyr hasn't said anything yet. Binz has just taken him around the island, and he has already instinctively realized these things. What does this mean?

This means that there is indeed a possibility of realizing a "new navy" here!

"You guys are really crazy," Kuzan said, regaining his senses and sounding shocked.

"Crazy?" Binz, clearly oblivious to Kuzan's change in mindset, said with some confusion, "Isn't this a good thing? I think it's very meaningful."

"Absorbing refugees and building new homes is indeed meaningful," Kuzan said, looking at Binz. "But that's not what I'm talking about. I'm referring to your underlying plan. Binz, although our teacher hasn't explicitly told me, I can now sense that you want to break free from the shackles of Mary Geoise, break free from the rules of the World Government, and establish a new navy, right?"

Binz's expression stiffened instantly, while Kuzan seemed not to need his answer. He stood there, looked around, and after a moment said softly, "No need to answer. All of this is enough proof."

With that thought in mind, Kuzan lost all interest in lingering there. He was now eager to see his teacher and hear his thoughts and ideas.

He had a feeling that his trip might not have been in vain, and that his heart, which had been confused for many years, might find a completely new answer here!

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

He thought that leaving the navy would mean losing his dreams and motivation, but he never expected that there would be a wider new world here!

Melvure Research and Experimentation Center!

This is the first phase of the Melvure infrastructure project to be completed, which involved a large-scale expansion and renovation of the original research base built by Shiki, occupying nearly one-sixth of the main island of Melvure.

Thanks to ample funding and Dr. Genus’s personal design and construction, the research equipment here is top-notch, in no way inferior to Eigerard. In fact, Vegapunk considers it even more advanced than his Eigerard!

With ample financial resources and top-tier research leaders at the helm, Melvure had already recruited a large number of research talents from the private sector. Nearly a thousand researchers were working diligently at the research base.

Kuzan was led into this large research base by Binz, because Zephyr was handling some matters inside.

Passing by a test range, Kuzan stood outside looking at the new weaponry inside, his expression quite complex.

A researcher wearing a white lab coat, who appeared to be of very ordinary physical strength and fitness, was holding a Type 96 machine gun that Kuzan couldn't understand, and was firing wildly at a target in the distance.

With Kuzan's keen eyesight, he could naturally sense the terrifying nature of this new type of weaponry!

This thing is far superior to the standard firearms of the navy, hundreds of times better. An ordinary navy officer using this weapon can single-handedly provide the firepower suppression that would normally require an entire tactical squad of the navy!

"What kind of weapon is this?" Kuzan couldn't help but ask Binz beside him.

"This is a new type of weapon developed by Dr. Genus. I'm not quite sure of its exact name yet, but people here call it the 'Crooked Handle Light Machine Gun'," Binz introduced with some pride.

Just as Kuzan was marveling at this, a group of researchers came running out from the far end of the corridor, knocking on the doors of various laboratories like they were calling to friends: "Quick, quick! The Genus I battleship is about to be launched for testing in the simulated sea area. If you don't want to miss it, hurry up and go see!"

"What is the Genus One battleship?" Kuzan asked Binz, looking completely bewildered.

Binz excitedly exclaimed, "That's an unnamed warship! Although Dr. Genus repeatedly warned us not to call it 'Genus One,' and he called it outdated junk, in my opinion, it's a powerful new type of warship far superior to our Navy Headquarters' standard warships. Our teacher should be there; let's go quickly!"

(End of this chapter)