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

Chapter 4 I am the embodiment of darkness!

The world of pirates is about to be thrown into turmoil, but for the past few days, Bane has been keeping himself locked up at home and hasn't left the house.

On the very night he received the Dark-Dark Fruit, after some deliberation, Bane resolutely chose to eat the Devil Fruit.

The reason is self-evident; there's only one explanation: he wants to become stronger.

Whether it's the inexplicable interdimensional portal within him or the increasingly turbulent situation in the world today, if he wants to gain more benefits and live a better life, he must possess greater strength!

As it turns out, the rumor that Devil Fruits taste like dog poop was false information. Before eating the Dark-Dark Fruit, Bane had prepared himself mentally, giving himself plenty of hints about how great people don't concern themselves with trifles and how great responsibilities are bestowed upon them by heaven.

After taking a bite, I was surprised to find it was incredibly delicious – fragrant, juicy, and tender!

Originally, he thought he would just suffer a little and be done with it, but after realizing that it tasted good, Bane insisted on eating the whole watermelon-sized Dark Fruit.

And as he predicted, even after leaving the world of pirates, the Dark-Dark Fruit still possessed magical power. It seems that the world he lived in had a strong compatibility, capable of accommodating the power of various other worlds.

After consuming the Dark-Dark Fruit, Bane felt as if he were immersed in the power of darkness, with endless dark elements flowing and surging within his body.

He is the embodiment of darkness!

In reality, this was an illusion caused by suddenly receiving immense power. The Dark-Dark Fruit was indeed powerful, and the dark element energy it contained could be described as inexhaustible. However, in the past few days, after calming down from the initial surge of power, Bane also noticed some factors. That is, although the dark element in his body seemed inexhaustible, it required him to consume his physical strength to mobilize and use the power of this dark element.

Just like the Dark-Dark Fruit is a reservoir, there is a lot of water in the reservoir, but how much can be used depends on how much can be released from the tap. His body is the tap. The stronger he is, the stronger the fruit ability he can exert!

"No wonder some people say that it's not the fruit that makes a person, but the person who makes the fruit. Just like the three admirals of the Navy who are Logia-type Devil Fruit users, even without Devil Fruits, they should still be top-notch powers on the sea," Bane thought to himself.

Devil Fruits merely provide an opportunity; whether one can seize that opportunity and continuously climb higher depends on that individual.

Ultimately, people must rely on themselves!

At this moment, Bane was sitting on the sofa in his living room at home. Dark elements flowed between his fingers like water, dripping onto the floor and completely staining the already not-so-clean floor black.

As the surrounding floor was completely soaked, the coffee table that had been standing on the floor began to sink, gradually disappearing into the seemingly bottomless darkness and being swallowed up.

The instant the coffee table disappeared into the darkness, Bane clenched his fist, and with that movement, the pool of black water on the floor condensed into an energy ball radiating a dense aura of darkness, which then floated in the living room.

A moment later, Bane slowly released his grip, and the dark energy sphere dissipated, with large amounts of crushed wood chips and coffee table fragments falling to the floor from the darkness.

"After staying indoors for the past few days, I've finally managed to get a basic grasp of the Dark Fruit," Bane said with a smile, standing up.

Looking around, his house was a complete mess, as if a hurricane had swept through, even worse than the billiard hall he and his men had smashed up a few days ago.

The reason is that in the first two days after eating the Dark-Dark Fruit, Bane couldn't control this power at all. To give an analogy, it's as if a tail suddenly grew on his body. It's clearly an extension of him, but because he had no prior experience with this, he couldn't control it at all and stumbled around.

He ate the Dark Fruit the night before, and when he woke up the next morning, he farted. It was a plume of black smoke carrying a large amount of dark element that leaked out and shattered Bane's bed.

So Bane hasn't dared to go out these past few days, fearing that he might accidentally fart in the street and kill someone.

He'll be truly famous then!

Today, he has finally adapted to this power and gained initial control over the Dark-Dark Fruit's abilities, so he plans to go out for a walk, check the situation, and further consider how he should start his new life.

His original plan is probably going to be scrapped now. After all, he can now open the portal between worlds, which gives him a lot more options. If the conditions here don't work out, he could even just stay in the pirate world and cause trouble.

In short, after so many days since he transmigrated, he finally feels a little more confident.

Walking down the street and looking at the state of New Dar City, it was actually not much different from a few days ago. It seems that the Empire's success in the westward expansion has not yet had an impact so quickly.

After buying a newspaper on the street, Benn easily found his way to Sphinx Street, where he encountered many henchmen who greeted him respectfully and called him "Big Brother."

Bane, however, was engrossed in the newspaper and paid them no heed.

Turning a corner, he entered a fight gym. Bane casually slammed the newspaper on the bar table, his expression turning utterly bored. Clearly, there hadn't been any news that had caught his attention in the past few days.

"Hey, Bane, what's that been all these days? Did you get your head smashed again?" On the training platform, a burly man, even stronger than Bane and standing at least two and a half meters tall, greeted him with a joking laugh.

He took a cigar from his pocket, cut it in half, lit it, and put it in his mouth before replying with a laugh and a curse, "You think I won't come up here and smash your head in right now?"

"Hahaha, you seem to be in good spirits." The burly man laughed loudly, then asked with great interest, "Want to really come up and have a go?"

"No, what about Frant?" Bane waved his hand in refusal.

"I'm here."

Looking towards the sound, the door behind the bar opened, and a lean man carrying an exquisite combination briefcase sat down opposite Bane.

Before Bane could speak, Frant raised an eyebrow and said, "I have something new on my hands, want to give it a try?"

"What's new?" Bane asked, slightly curious.

Frant is a black market dealer in Newdale City, always dealing in all sorts of strange gadgets. Bane has helped him out of a few minor troubles, so the two have a pretty good relationship. As a black market dealer, he's well-informed, so Bane occasionally comes to him to hear all sorts of gossip and rumors, lest he get lost in the underworld.

"Let me show you." Frant raised his chin arrogantly, then quickly opened the combination lock briefcase.

There wasn't anything large in the suitcase, but rather a transparent tube resembling a biological injection syringe, through which flowed a crimson liquid like blood.

"Blood?" Bane guessed.

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

"Cough, this is a special drug that can make people's physical fitness stronger, but to be precise, it's called Rc cells," Frant said, pretending to be knowledgeable.

The name "cell" sounded somewhat familiar to Bane, but that was all it was.

"Another thing from another world?" Bane asked.

"Of course, aren't you a physical enhancement user? I figured this thing would be a good fit for you, so I just bought it on the black market to give to you," Frant said with a smile.

"You're definitely up to no good, giving this to me?" Bane said dismissively. "Tell me, what are the side effects?"

Although he had helped Frant out of trouble a few times, these people who roam the lawless zone wouldn't really be that loyal. If they were that loyal, Frant wouldn't be doing so well in the black market; he should be dead in some ditch by now.

Even though Bane saw through him, Frant wasn't embarrassed. He chuckled and said, "How can you gain power without paying a price?"

"Stop beating around the bush," Bane said, tapping the table and exhaling a puff of smoke.

Frant looked around, then leaned closer to Bane's head and lowered his voice, saying, "Didn't a portal appear in Vandir City six months ago?"

"I remember, the newspapers mentioned it not long ago. They said there's a deranged serial killer over there who likes to eat people," Bane said, then suddenly froze.

RC cells!?

Frant, oblivious to Bane's change in expression, continued in a low voice, "The official report stated that the portal had malfunctioned, but in reality, it had been breached. However, the Osalia family, who controlled Vandir City, suppressed the news, wanting to monopolize the benefits. They seized this power, RC cells, from that portal, supposedly from some kind of ghoul or monster race."

"So the side effect is cannibalism?" Bane rolled his eyes at Frant.

"That was the first version. After more than half a year of research, the Osalia family has achieved great success. The one I have has had its side effects eliminated. It won't make you eat people, but it will make you have a huge appetite."

(End of this chapter)