The surging swamp entered the crack, plunging into the boundless sea of swamp.
At the fissure leading to Level 3, a tendril of swamp slowly flowed out, silently landing on the ground and coalescing into a human form.
After several days of assimilation, the swamp sea leading to Level 4 was nearly complete. Level 3, aside from the discomfort caused by the hunger and scorching heat, felt relatively freer to Wilder compared to Level 2.
The environment of Starvation Hell inherently prevented many creatures, including guards and Visual Den Den Mushi, from staying there for extended periods. Consequently, the chances of being discovered were significantly reduced.
This was also why Wilder was able to nearly complete the swamp assimilation project leading to Blazing Hell within a few days. Without strict surveillance, his actions became somewhat more unrestrained.
Wilder's purpose for entering this time was to completely open the passage to Blazing Hell. Level 4 and below were his true target locations.
"If I remember correctly, that man's office is located in Level 4, Blazing Hell." Remembering this, Wilder's face showed a serious expression for the first time.
Need to be careful.
Cautioning himself gravely, Wilder's hand released a surge of swamp into the crack.
No matter what, no one would stop his progress!
Ambition and madness spread within his heart, Wilder's expression turning somewhat ferocious. Inside the crack, the vast sea of swamp expanded and grew at a visible rate.
"Nyahahaha!"
His unique laugh, filled with arrogance and dominance, echoed. The passage to Level 4 was completely open at this moment.
Wilder licked his dry lips, a gleam of excitement flashing in his eyes.
Without the slightest hesitation, his body silently transformed into a puddle of swamp, looking like mud left on the ground after a heavy rain.
He flowed into the opened fissure and soon disappeared completely.
…
"Crack!"
Level 4, Blazing Hell, in a certain location.
An irregular crack appeared silently on the ceiling.
The swamp, which was Wilder's transformed body, flowed out from the crack, falling to the ground like a silken thread.
"Sss…!"
A wisp of white smoke instantly rose.
"Fearsome temperature."
A deep voice sounded. The swamp that had landed on the ground gradually twisted and bulged, forming a human shape.
"Inside a cell?" Wilder, dressed in a prisoner's uniform, couldn't help but frown. Waves of heat blew in from outside the cage. The entire cell appeared grayish-white, a result of prolonged exposure to intense heat.
Just standing here for a moment, Wilder found himself drenched. Sweat soaked his clothes, and the terrifying temperature made his body feel uncomfortable and weak.
Compared to this… the heat of Starvation Hell was like a joke.
The sudden intense heat made Wilder's mind a bit unfocused. The scorching, hot air made him feel like his body was about to explode.
"When did you get here, you bastard?!?!" A voice filled with a mixture of uncertainty, suspicion, and anger suddenly rang out from behind Wilder.
"Hmm?" Wilder, who was trying to adapt to the high temperature, stiffened. Then, with an expressionless face, he turned to look at the speaker.
"Hey! I'm talking to you!" Wearing the same prisoner's uniform, with Seastone handcuffs on his hands, the figure was five or six meters tall, nearly twice Wilder's size. His furious expression and wary stance clearly showed he wasn't welcoming Wilder as a guest. Of course… perhaps it was fear.
"Nyehehehe… Is this how you treat a guest?" A deep chuckle, filled with unrestrained intent, escaped Wilder. He looked at the other man, the exaggerated smile on his face a clear attempt to mask the true fluctuations of his heart.
Wilder knew he wasn't a good actor, but some things only improved with practice, right?
"Nyehehehe…"
The exaggerated smile, instead of giving a friendly first impression, appeared rather reckless to the prisoner opposite him.
"You…!" The prisoner gritted his teeth, his eyes turning fierce. He clenched his massive fists, and with a stomp of his feet that surprisingly caused a booming sound, he charged towards Wilder.
Facing the oncoming giant fist, Wilder's face still wore that exaggerated smile, a low, suppressed chuckle escaping his lips.
His shoulders trembled with excitement.
The massive fist generated a strong gust of wind, causing Wilder's hair to flutter slightly. His smile gradually became eerie.
"Thud!"
The huge fist landed squarely on Wilder's face. His head shattered under the force of the blow. A cruel, gleeful smile appeared on the prisoner's face, but it quickly froze.
"What is this…!" Trembling pupils focused on the swamp, somewhere between black and brown, slowly writhing on the neck where the head had been. The scattered swamp, pulled by its strong viscosity, returned to the neck, and a head gradually reformed.
"Mon… monster! You're a Devil Fruit user! Your handcuffs…" Before he could finish speaking, Wilder's right hand suddenly rose. On the not-yet-fully-formed face, a blurry, eerie smile appeared. A torrent of swamp surged from Wilder's right hand, instantly forming an irregular fluid mass about a third the size of the cell's ceiling. Then, before the other man's terrified eyes, it descended upon him.
"Aaaah!"
The thick, sticky, and incredibly adhesive swamp gave the struggling prisoner no chance to escape, no matter how hard he tried.
With a look of terror and despair, the prisoner's body sank deeper and deeper until he was completely engulfed by the swamp. His desperate cries were simultaneously swallowed by the muck.
"Nyehehehe…" Wilder lowered his head, his shoulders trembling slightly.
"Nyehehehe, finally succeeded…"
The Bottomless Swamp!
After countless attempts to break through, the infinite capacity characteristic was finally fully unlocked.
Wilder raised his head, the excitement in his eyes still undiminished. Through this experience, he had gained a preliminary grasp of the Bottomless Swamp.
Hundreds of swamp assimilations had also, without him realizing it, deepened Wilder's understanding of the swamp's characteristics. Infinite capacity had finally progressed from initially being able to open a small swamp crack on his own body to hide a toothpick, to now being able to unleash a small-scale Bottomless Swamp.
"Although I still can't achieve a true Bottomless Swamp, that's ultimately just a limitation of my own. If I continuously improve the swamp, increase its range, then… nyehehehe…"
Within its range, all would be hell!
Wilder's lips curled into a silent smile, a glimmer of anticipation in his eyes.
He turned and walked towards the door, unlocked it, and stepped out of the cell. The swamp behind him had disappeared at some point, and along with it, the prisoner within the cell.