Pirate: Hades! ( One Piece)

## Chapter 282: Candidate for the World's Strongest Swordsman

The Battle Pyramid was bustling, with the number of registered competitors reaching fifty thousand.

Attracted by the Battle Pyramid's prize money, a large number of pirates and lone wolves who arrived later registered inside the Battle Pyramid.

The prize money of the Battle Pyramid held considerable appeal for them as well.

Before the Sword Tournament began, some swordsmen also used the Battle Pyramid platform for sparring and preparation, getting ready for the upcoming Sword Tournament.

Others aimed to make a name for themselves and prove their strength through this.

However, these were mostly swordsmen with weaker strength.

The truly powerful swordsmen had not yet made their move.

Meanwhile, various media outlets, based on existing intelligence, selected the strong contenders for the title of World's Strongest Swordsman.

Shiki "The Golden Lion", former Rocks Pirates core cadre, division captain, and now the Captain of the Flying Pirates.

"Demon" Roger, Captain of the Roger Pirates, the man who refused the invitation from the Rocks Pirates and survived.

Captain John, a veteran core cadre of the Rocks Pirates, and Captain of the John Pirates.

Aside from his well-known fondness for wealth, he was also one of the top swordsmen on the Great Sea.

Great Pirate Wang Zhi, Captain of the Five Peaks Pirates.

Due to occupying the former Rocks Pirates core base, Honeycomb Island, it seemed this was the reason for the consistently high evaluation of him on the Great Sea.

"The Lone Red" Redfield, a powerful lone wolf on the Great Sea.

There was very little news about him, but he was highly regarded on the Great Sea, after all he was a strongman personally invited by "Pluto" Hades.

According to information, the Paradise Card Group would also release a batch of new cards based on the performance of the many powerful swordsmen during the Sword Tournament, which was highly anticipated.

These five were everyone's top choice.

Except for Baron Omatsuri Redfield, they were all Great Pirates who shook the Great Sea.

They were also personally invited by Hades, placing them at the forefront of all swordsmen.

Of course, there was also Rayleigh.

Based on the unspoken rule that the first mate's strength must be weaker than the captain's, Rayleigh was ranked lower.

Besides these Great Pirates who enjoyed great fame on the Great Sea, there were other powerful swordsmen.

Attracted by the Sword Tournament, powerful swordsmen from around the world had basically emerged, including some powerful swordsmen who had already gone into seclusion, powerful swordsmen who had made a formidable name for themselves on the Great Sea.

As swordsmen, they should always move forward bravely, especially on such a grand stage.

Even if it was just for fame and fortune, who wouldn't want to be famous throughout the world?

Through the combined effort of numerous media outlets, and based on some intelligence, they still unearthed quite a few powerful swordsmen whom they believed could contend for the title of World's Strongest Swordsman.

In the previous era, when information spread slowly, almost all attention was drawn to the Rocks Pirates.

Very few people paid attention to what powerful swordsmen existed on the Great Sea.

Even if there were sparring sessions between swordsmen, they mostly took place in secluded areas and rarely caused a big stir.

Furthermore, there were those already recognized powerful swordsmen, famous within a kingdom or a sea area.

The first was Yoriichi Tsugikuni, only thirty-two years old, a powerful swordsman who was invincible in the West Blue.

The age at which he became a Great Sword Master was unknown, but according to the collected intelligence, Yoriichi Tsugikuni's combat strength was terrifying.

Besides his powerful and strange Sword Intent, what made Yoriichi Tsugikuni formidable was his Observation Haki.

It was also an extension of Observation Haki into the microscopic world, based in the domain of time.

But unlike "Future Sight", his "Transparent World" seemed to be able to see everything, able to see the rise and fall of his opponent's lungs and the flow and contraction of their blood vessels.

At the same time, in his eye, time seemed to slow down, meaning others' actions would slow down.

In the battle of strongmen, this ability was even more terrifying than Future Sight.

His ability was not a secret.

When he appeared on Paros Island, the intelligence about Yoriichi Tsugikuni was exposed.

The second was Bylear, forty-five years old, a Nation-Protecting Grand Swordsman of a powerhouse nation in the North Blue, and the future teacher of "Hawk-Eyes" Mihawk.

He was very famous in the North Blue.

As an existence guarding a kingdom and deterring a vast sea area, his strength was beyond doubt.

The third was Zoffy, the Army Fleet Admiral of the Kronos Kingdom, currently fifty-eight years old.

The national strength of the Kronos Kingdom was unquestionable.

Zoffy's participation also showcased the strength of the Kronos Kingdom.

As a swordsman, he also wanted to advance further.

Moreover, the World Government was aware of his intelligence.

Since he was not a hidden combat strength, Hades did not stop him.

Besides these, other swordsmen either had strength that was not recognized, or they were still hiding, waiting to erupt after the Sword Tournament began.

However, in the minds of most people, the title of World's Strongest Swordsman would ultimately fall to these Great Pirates.

Some were powerful, and their reputation had long been deeply ingrained in people's hearts through countless battles and achievements.

The tournament's prize pool had become even richer over the past six months.

A Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit, specifically the Gargoyle Fruit provided by the World Government.

The Kronos Kingdom had collected a large amount of rare and uncommon precious ore through various channels, including Wano Country.

In the hands of top bladesmiths and sword makers, these could definitely forge Famous Swords of Great Grade Sword quality.

On the seventeenth floor of the Battle Pyramid, a swordsman with deep green hair, wearing a kimono patterned with flowers, looked at the many precious metals in the prize pool, practically drooling.

As a top bladesmith from Wano Country, he had forged the "Blade of Hell" Enma and "Wado Ichimonji", two Famous Swords that could be ranked among the Twenty-One Great Grade Swords.

Even just by looking with his naked eye, he could see the preciousness of these materials.

Many ores were unknown to him, and some were ones he knew about but had never had contact with.

Because he was from Wano Country, he had fled Wano Country with some people over a decade ago, came to a small island in the East Blue, drove away the mountain bandits and pirates, and established Shimotsuki Village.

"Father, stop looking. Isn't this why you came?"

A young swordsman in his teens, wearing glasses, said with a hint of disdain.

It was truly embarrassing to see his Father making such a foolish face in public, as if he were looking at a group of peerless beauties.

Quietly stepping back a few paces, in the eyes of others, who would have thought that what he was looking at were just some stones?

It was truly mortifying.

Wiping his saliva, who would have thought that he was also a Great Sword Master?

However, for him, being a bladesmith was his main profession.

As for being a swordsman, it was merely a side job.

Moreover, his strength was not dominant among Great Sword Masters; he had only just stepped through the threshold.

This was partly due to his energy being divided by bladesmithing, and additionally, he was only thirty-nine years old.

For these precious bladesmithing materials, he had brought his son all the way from the East Blue by sea transport merchant ship to the North Blue, and then traveled via Giant Island Turtle to Paros Island.

(end of chapter)