Aizen stood with his Zanpakutō in hand.
His glasses had long since shattered, revealing a pair of clear, piercing eyes. Without the lenses to soften them, his gaze had become unimaginably sharp, like a sword that had remained sheathed for years, only to finally be drawn and reveal its dazzling edge.
Yhwach narrowed his eyes, his expression growing serious. The man before him radiated an overwhelming sense of danger, like a blade capable of piercing through any obstacle, or a venomous serpent that had finally raised its head to strike with lethal precision.
"Do you truly understand this world, Yhwach?"
Holding his Zanpakutō, Aizen suddenly lifted the blade and sliced away the long bangs hanging over his forehead, along with the strands of hair by his ears. With just a few clean cuts, his entire appearance changed.
His slightly messy black hair fell naturally over his forehead, giving him a crisp, commanding look. He no longer resembled the refined, scholarly captain from before. Instead, he looked like a ruthless ruler who had hidden himself in the shadows until the moment he chose to stand before the world.
There was arrogance in his bearing. Carelessness. Absolute confidence. And beneath it all... an overwhelming sense of danger that made one's scalp tingle.
"Understand... this world?" Yhwach frowned, momentarily caught off guard by Aizen's sudden transformation.
"That's right." Aizen took a step forward.
With each step, his spiritual pressure climbed higher, higher and higher. Within only a few steps, it had surpassed the limits of an ordinary Soul Reaper and reached a realm no Shinigami should have been able to attain.
Ripples of spiritual particles flowed around him, forming a black, robe-like mantle that draped over his body with an almost divine appearance.
"It seems... you still don't understand." After stopping ten paces in front of Yhwach, Aizen fixed him with a cold stare.
"What exactly are you trying to say?" Yhwach asked in a deep voice.
"Nothing complicated. I simply ask that you don't interfere with what comes next. In exchange... I'll let you watch the greatest spectacle you'll ever witness."
A strange smile spread across Aizen's face. The eerie grin and unreadable expression immediately put Yhwach on guard.
Without the slightest hesitation, Yhwach raised his right hand. Blinding light erupted as countless streams of radiant energy burst outward, blooming like an enormous flower of light before crashing toward Aizen.
'Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!'
The brilliant rays tore through the air and slammed into him. Each one of those attacks possessed enough power to kill a captain-class Soul Reaper instantly.
Yet the moment they reached the rippling spiritual barrier surrounding Aizen's black robe... they vanished, without causing so much as a ripple.
"So I told you already," Aizen spoke calmly. "You don't understand this world, Yhwach. And because of that... you have no idea what kind of power I possess now."
He casually swung his Zanpakutō, and a razor-sharp slash shot forward. Yhwach immediately raised a hand and unleashed a wave of spiritual power to intercept it.
Boom!
The collision exploded with tremendous force. To Yhwach's surprise, he was pushed back fifteen full steps by that single slash.
"So you really were hiding your strength." Yhwach's expression hardened as he prepared himself in earnest.
Aizen narrowed his eyes. "This is a war between two kings. You and I... are merely spectators. So I'd appreciate it if you stopped doing such foolish things. Stand here and watch the performance with me. Just don't try to attack me again."
Aizen paused, his eyes turning ice-cold as killing intent seeped into his voice. "Otherwise... I can't guarantee I won't kill you."
Yhwach's body tensed, his gaze sharpening. But this time, he didn't attack. He simply stared at Aizen.
"Then I'll see for myself... what you're really planning."
Their brief exchange came to an end. Yhwach ultimately chose not to make another move, having just realized something astonishing: the injuries Aizen had suffered from that earlier attack had completely disappeared. There wasn't a single wound left on his body.
The sight sent a chill down Yhwach's spine.
'High-Speed Regeneration.' A Hollow ability... appearing on a Soul Reaper. And not just any Soul Reaper, but one Yhwach had never truly paid attention to before.
It was almost impossible to imagine that such an unassuming, low-profile captain had hidden his true strength, and his ambitions, so deeply.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
At that moment, another series of earth-shaking explosions erupted nearby. Massive pillars of dust and shattered stone shot into the sky as the shockwaves ripped through everything in their path. Violent winds swept across the battlefield.
Amid the flying rubble and swirling dust, a figure was blasted backward through the air, coughing up mouthfuls of blood.
"Chengdui..." Qin Yi's cold voice, layered with its metallic echo, cut through the chaos. "How exactly do you plan to fight me?"
Everyone's attention focused on him. Like a bolt of lightning, Qin Yi appeared above King Chengdui in an instant.
Before Chengdui could recover, Qin Yi brought his sword down once again.
Boom!
Another deafening explosion shook the air. King Chengdui was smashed straight into the ground, sending another towering column of dust skyward.
At that moment, frustration nearly drove him mad as he discovered an unbelievable truth: against Qin Yi, every one of his techniques had become useless. His Zanpakutō's abilities might as well not exist.
Whether it was Bankai or any other technique... nothing worked. The sword called 'King of Hell' completely nullified all of his powers. Even 'Great Imprisonment' had become utterly ineffective.
The only option left to him was a direct clash of strength.
But what infuriated him even more was that he couldn't win even that. The longer the battle continued, the stronger Qin Yi became. His attacks grew fiercer, sharper, and more relentless.
"I'm far stronger than you. And I can become even stronger. I know far more than you ever will. Compared to me... you're nothing but an ignorant dog. A foolish... pathetic dog."
The relentless taunts drove King Chengdui into a frenzy. Roaring in rage, he burst out of the crater and charged Qin Yi once more.
Three seconds later,
'Slash!'
Qin Yi's blade flashed like lightning, and blood sprayed through the air.
King Chengdui froze, his eyes widening before the slash sent him flying across the battlefield.
His heart trembled. Because... that strike had been even stronger than the last.
(End of Chapter)
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