Seeing that Emperor Barragan did not continue to argue, Minato paid him no further attention.
A pair of eerie bone-white eyes lightly glanced down at the subordinate officers outside the main hall of Las Noches below, and a calm voice spoke.
"You should all have noticed our changes by now, right?"
His voice was utterly flat, yet as it traveled down from the lofty peak, it rang clearly in everyone's ears like spreading sound waves.
Caught off guard by his sudden question, the people below all froze, somewhat bewildered.
Minato paid them no mind and merely continued calmly.
"We are no longer human. To a certain extent, the changes we have undergone are all a gift from Lord Aizen."
"He gave us the opportunity to evolve and reach a higher level."
As he said this, his eyes lowered slightly, and he spoke in an even tone.
"We... will be the pioneers of a new era—the Hollows..."
As his words slowly settled over the scene, although the subordinate officers of Las Noches below remained reverent toward the Espada above, they could not help breaking into hushed discussions as though a pot had exploded.
The subordinate officers of Las Noches were all formidable ninjas in their respective ninja villages.
Though they amounted to little in Las Noches, where the gap in strength was so immense, none of them were fools.
Although Minato had not finished speaking, given their renowned reputations throughout the major ninja villages, they naturally understood what he was trying to say.
For that very reason, two completely opposing voices rose from within the crowd of subordinate officers.
However, Minato ignored their tense discussions and continued speaking on his own.
"A new era is about to arrive, one that will be built by Las Noches with our own hands. Under