One Piece: Ulquiorra Template

Chapter 23: A Warlord Falls

He wasn't surprised. Clashes between powerful individuals often reshaped the environment. The battle between Aokiji and Akainu for the position of Fleet Admiral had transformed Punk Hazard into an island of ice and fire.

In the worlds of Fairy Tail, Naruto, and Bleach, battles could create moons, obliterate countries, or even reshape entire continents.

Moria had ultimately lost. If he had been like Luffy, capable of imbuing his entire body with Haki before activating his Gear Fourth, he could have maintained his 1000-shadow form for an extended period, as Jinbe had noted.

He had relied too heavily on his Devil Fruit powers. While Admiral Kizaru also heavily utilized his Pika Pika no Mi (Glint-Glint Fruit), it was a Logia-type Devil Fruit, far more potent than the Kage Kage no Mi (Shadow-Shadow Fruit). No, the Kage Kage no Mi was a formidable ability in its own right. The problem was Moria's lack of ingenuity and skill.

Donquixote Doflamingo and Emporio Ivankov had taken seemingly mundane Devil Fruits, the Ito Ito no Mi (String-String Fruit) and the Horu Horu no Mi (Hormone-Hormone Fruit), respectively, and turned them into world-altering powers, capable of manipulating strings and hormones to devastating effect, even creating a Birdcage that could encompass an entire island. There were no useless Devil Fruits, only incompetent users.

Even Big Mom's children, many of whom possessed Paramecia Devil Fruits related to food, had achieved power levels rivaling Logia users.

"Mr. Ian, are you alright?" Brook rushed towards Ian, concerned, but stopped as Ian slowly rose from the ground.

He had reverted to his normal appearance, sensing the change in his fusion rate with the Ulquiorra template. It had dropped from 38% to 35%. While absorbing all the ghosts on Thriller Bark would have boosted his fusion rate to 40%, allowing him to achieve his first Resurrección, Murciélago...

He hadn't reached that level yet, and he had used a significant portion of his power, resulting in a 3% decrease and overall exhaustion. This was the best possible outcome.

In the world of Bleach, if a Soul Reaper's Zanpakuto was destroyed after activating Bankai, or an Arrancar's core was shattered during a forced Resurrección, they would be permanently stuck in that state.

However, even if he had reached 40% fusion, he suspected achieving Murciélago would still be difficult. He might be able to manifest his Zanpakuto, but no more.

After all, the top four Espada, including Ulquiorra, were all Vasto Lorde-class Hollows, while the remaining six were the strongest Adjuchas, bordering on Vasto Lorde level.

His Dimensional Template System granted him powers based on the Ulquiorra template, and 40% fusion likely equated to a Strong Adjuchas, or a standard captain-class Soul Reaper. In the One Piece world, this would be comparable to a Calamity, a Sweet Commander, or one of the top three Whitebeard commanders.

The strongest individuals in those categories – Marco, King, Katakuri, and even Marine Vice Admirals like Gion and Chaton – were Admiral candidates, possessing power rivaling an Admiral but falling short of true Admiral level.

Therefore, the rain of black energy blades that descended from the sky during Murciélago was still beyond his reach. He was too weak.

Ian approached Moria's massive body and used his soul-sensing to assess his condition. He discovered that Moria was in a vegetative state, a deep coma, although with his resilient physique...