Next up is the ranking of the Espada. Starrk and Lilynette unsurprisingly became number one. In Zero's opinion, their Reiatsu and Reiryoku after being released were too strong, even if their abilities were slightly inferior.
The second is the great scientist Szayelaporro, who had not yet split off from his brother at this time. His Reiatsu was slightly stronger than Baraggan's, and his ability to Copying Slime was also disgusting.
He was far smarter than Baraggan, capable of constantly evolving himself through science, and was the first person Zero recognized the power of science; therefore, Zero placed him second.
Due to the unique nature of his abilities, Baraggan is virtually unbeatable in direct combat, thus placing him third.
The fourth spot went to Ulquiorra. Currently, his Reiatsu after his Resurrección is even stronger than Baraggan's, but his Respira ability is destined to counter Ulquiorra's strengths in High-Speed Regeneration and speed, which puts him one place lower.
Fifth on the list is Picaro. After having a large amount of Reiryoku extracted from him, he has become much weaker. After his Resurrección, his Reiatsu dropped from 10 units to Six and a Half Carriages, while in his normal state it is less than 4 units.
Originally, there would be hundreds of locust souls after the Resurrección, but now Resurrección are only about a hundred, and their intelligence seems to be slightly low; they are still thinking about games with cruel punishments.
Sixth is Grimmjow, the only one who refused to be modified by the Arrancar, because he chose not to be modified after learning that he could evolve to that level on his own.
The seventh is Dordoni. Feeling that he could not evolve into Vasto Lorde, he immediately underwent Half-Arrancarization transformation, which unsurprisingly greatly increased his strength.
Then there are the three who were just selected.
The Royal Palace of Las Noches has a spacious conference Hall with additional meeting rooms; the difference is that the conference Hall is open to mid-level Menos Grande, while the meeting rooms are reserved for Menos Grande.
Before there was a clear distinction between statuses, the other Half-Arrancars, who were also mid-level Menos Grande, naturally felt resentful when they saw Dordoni enter and challenged him. This was one of the reasons why Dordoni accepted becoming Half-Arrancarization.
However, such situations where unclear status leads to discontent will no longer occur in the future. If they do, then the only recourse is to let them settle their differences and fight to the death in the Arena.
There was a throne on the high platform of the conference Hall, with ten other seats on both sides. The remaining area was spacious enough for hundreds of people to stand without feeling crowded.
A meeting was being held at this time, with all Espada gathered. The Half-Arrancar stood behind the seats of the Espada, and upon closer inspection, most of the Half-Arrancar stood behind their loyal Espada.
"Lord Nangong, that Vasto Lorde has escaped. She refuses to come back with us, and we've been left behind..."
"Is that so? Then step back!"
A Half-Arrancar was kneeling when he finished reporting the situation. All the Espada's eyes were on him, and he was under immense pressure. Only when Zero One waved for him to leave did he feel relieved.
"It seems our policy propaganda isn't enough! Many hidden Menos Grande are afraid of us. If that's the case..."
After a moment's thought, Zero ordered, "Ulquiorra, go and bring back that Vasto Lorde."
"Yes."
Ulquiorra agreed softly... Since the Half-Arrancar we sent weren't working, we'll send out our top combatants and bring Vasto Lorde back by force.
In Hueco Mundo, might makes right. The only reason these Menos Grande are sitting here quietly is because Zero has the biggest fist.
In the thirty years since his defection, Zero's mastery of Bankai has entered a new phase. This was mainly due to his experience of being killed by the 'Zanka no Tachi', which strengthened the connection between Zero and Blood Drink, bringing them to a near state of oneness...
This meeting was mainly to assign tasks to the Fracción the Espada, so that each of them could lead their subordinates to form ten squads. Even Ulquiorra, who always went his own way, was forcibly assigned to several relatively quiet subordinates.
"God created the world, then abandoned it; the Soul King reclaimed the world, but gave you only a desolate wasteland that could no longer be called a world."
"Gentlemen, this world is nothing but dust floating on a sea of blood. It lacks the phenomena of a normal world. When the time is right, we will have a new world. Let us wait patiently... Meeting adjourned!"
At the end of the meeting, Zero's words simply made the Menos Grande understand why they had gathered.
As for the so-called God abandoning the world, it was all something Zero heard in the Soul Society. He didn't know the specifics, and he only mentioned it to set a goal for everyone present.
The Half-Arrancar were filled with fervor; most of them were warmongers, otherwise they wouldn't have reached the intermediate Menos Grande rank.
The Espada have diverse thoughts. Zero's existence constrains them, but it also gives them a goal to strive for. Some hate this way of being, while others like it.
Ignoring their thoughts, Zero had moved to Control Room that even few Espada knew about, a place that could monitor all areas within Las Noches.
Not only Las Noches, but also many places in Seireitei are under surveillance, infiltrated by the Spirit Worm developed here.
Upon seeing Zero arrive, the dozen or so people responsible for surveillance stood up and bowed. They were none other than Maki, Kuzō, and others who had rarely appeared since arriving in Hueco Mundo; they were all Zero's former Vassal.
Spies are just a few, after all. Most of the Vassal remain loyal to Zero. Those who hesitated slightly when they first heard about coming to Hueco Mundo were all abandoned by Maki in Seireitei when he fled.
Zero walked over, staring at one of the screens displaying feedback, and asked, "How is it? Did that guy detect the surveillance?"
"No, this new 007-Type Parasitic Spirit Worm is so tiny that even the host cannot detect it, let alone an outsider..."
Maki began to explain to Zero the role of the new generation of Spirit Worm, whose vitality was extremely tenacious and could withstand the Reiatsu of Captain-level being at close range.
The New 007 primarily infiltrates the bodies of Soul Reaper by Soul Reaper drink water, then travels to their eyes and parasitizes them. Soul Reaper can see, they can also see, and they absorb the faint Reiatsu within the Soul Reaper's bodies, sending the images and sounds back to Hueco Mundo.
Unfortunately, the New 007 can only infiltrate the bodies of the Third Seat. The Reiatsu inside Soul Reaper bodies of the Captains and Vice-Captains is too strong, making it difficult for the New 007 to infiltrate them.
Even if it manages to infiltrate, it will soon be forcibly erased from the body by the internal Reiatsu of Captain-level.
"Nangong, you've come at the right time. Something interesting is happening here."
Kuzō interrupted their conversation, gesturing to one of the dozens of screens under surveillance. He then clicked to enlarge the image, which turned out to be inappropriate for children.
Zero peered closer and saw three lewd-looking Grim Soul Reapers groping an orange-haired girl...
Before Zero could even marvel at the girl's exaggerated pectoral muscles, one of the Soul Reaper had already extracted the Reiryoku Core from the girl's chest Hakusui and handed it to Aizen, who had arrived.
Aizen was slightly surprised. "Huh? This vigorous Reiryoku, could it be the legendary Soul King Fragment? What an unexpected gain!"
Aizen held the Hōgyoku, a failed creation of his, in one hand, and took the Reiryoku Core handed to him by his subordinate in the other. It was oval-shaped and only about one centimeter in diameter.
Aizen learned about the fragments of the Soul King from the Great Spirit Book Gallery. It was possessed by Kakyō, the wife of Tsunayashiro Tokinada, and its power was very strong and unique.
The three subordinates were confused, but they could sense that Aizen was overjoyed... Zero was also observing Aizen's actions through the eyes of these three.
Aizen tossed the sphere of Reiryoku containing Soul King Fragment into the Hōgyoku, and nothing happened. With a furrowed brow, Aizen left the spot.
As for the girl on the ground, they abandoned her there, and it was already merciful of them not to finish her off.
Aizen frowned in thought: ' The Hōgyoku just expressed its meaning, yet we still need at least fifty of those things? Are you kidding me?'
'These fools have been plundering Reiryoku every year for decades, but they've only encountered Soul King Fragment once. Where am I supposed to find one...?'
Aizen's subordinates have already worked very hard; every year, hundreds of Reiryoku awakeners in Rukongai have their Reiryoku plundered by them.
Each year, among those plundered, there may be a few exceptionally talented individuals who, upon growth, might reach the Captain-level, but even with such a small number, the Hōgyoku shows no signs of being satisfied.
Only after consuming the fragments of the Soul King did it send out a few thoughts to communicate with Aizen, before falling silent again.
This convinced Aizen that the Hōgyoku was a failure and could never be filled.
Zero had seen everything from beginning to end. He asked Kuzō, "What was that thing in that guy's hand? Was there any record of it?"
Kuzō apologized, "I'm sorry, we haven't gathered any relevant information yet. These three have only been collecting the Reiryoku of the Pluses and then giving it to Aizen."
"Then continue to monitor him, and find a way to install fixed Spirit Worm in the places where he goes to the toilet."
"Yes."
After giving the order to continue monitoring, Zero glanced at it absentmindedly again, his mind preoccupied with the object in Aizen's hand and the so-called Soul King Fragment:
' Aizen wouldn't be playing with that black ball without any basis. Based on my experience, since it's about stealing Reiryoku, the black ball in Aizen's hand likely has some kind of ability, such as collecting Reiryoku to make himself stronger...'
'So that black sphere is a good thing! But what about the "fragments of the Soul King" he mentioned? Could the Soul King really crush himself and scatter them everywhere...?'
The benefits of developing the surveillance Spirit Worm were immediately apparent; Zero obtained crucial intelligence: Aizen, who had tricked him several times, must also want to become stronger, and perhaps that black sphere was the key.
After Aizen left, his three subordinates also left, so neither Rei nor Aizen knew that just after they left, a silver-haired boy of about ten years old ran out of the bushes and walked to the girl's side.
At his age, with his ability to conceal his Reiatsu, he was like a snake in the shadows, able to evade all enemies.
The boy noticed that the orange-haired girl's Reiryoku had disappeared and her soul was extremely weak. He began to think of ways to infuse her with some of his own power in order to save her life.
"Whatever they took, I will get it back for you."