"Oh dear, oh dear." Askin stopped, scratching the back of his head, a helpless expression on his face.
He suddenly felt trouble brewing, as he recognized the two people in front of him.
One was the Captain of the Second Division, Yoruichi Shihouin, and the other was Tsugikuni Ai, the daughter of the current Captain-Commander.
Each of them was a formidable foe not to be underestimated.
Askin hated fighting strong enemies. Although his 'The Deathdealing' ability made him practically immortal, theoretically, he shouldn't have to worry about anyone.
But the problem was that adapting to The Deathdealing was an extremely passive process.
He needed to be constantly hit to become immune to an opponent's techniques.
What kind of abilities would Yoruichi Shihouin and Tsugikuni Ai possess?
Askin narrowed his eyes, and almost at the same moment, he unhesitatingly turned and ran.
His actions were sudden.
Behind him, Yoruichi Shihouin stood with her hands on her hips, a slight smile on her lips, just about to provoke Askin and explain their identities.
However, when she saw Askin fleeing without a fight, she was stunned for a second.
Immediately after, her eyes sharpened, and she coldly commanded:
"Chase him!"
In an instant, Yoruichi's figure vanished like a ghost.
Known as the 'Goddess of Flash', she instantly appeared in front of Askin, her fist wrapped in golden lightning, striking directly at his chest.
Bang!
Askin reacted extremely quickly, crossing his arms in front of his chest, barely blocking the punch.
However, the immense force from the punch still made him involuntarily retreat a few steps, and several cracks appeared on the ground beneath his feet.
"Tsk… that's heavy."
Just as he was about to express a few thoughts and continue his escape, a sharp whooshing sound suddenly came from behind him.
It was Tsugikuni Ai pursuing him. Askin didn't pay it much mind, but for some reason, the moment he turned to glance, he caught sight of the blade in her hand.
An unspeakable sense of crisis welled up in his heart.
"W-wait a minute!"
He just stretched out his hand, retreating repeatedly, wanting to beg for mercy, because he felt that this thing could instantly kill him.
But Tsugikuni Ai ignored him, severing his palm with a single strike, and even slightly injuring his neck.
At the same time.
Taking advantage of Askin's turn, Yoruichi seized the opportunity and threw another punch.
"Boom—!"
A loud bang, like a clap of thunder, and Askin's body flew horizontally like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into the distant ruins.
In the blink of an eye, smoke and dust rose, and gravel flew everywhere.
"Cough, cough…"
From beneath the ruins, Askin struggled to get up from the ground, the smoke making him cough repeatedly.
He clutched his neck tightly with one hand, his gaze fixed on the two individuals in front of him, whose methods were extremely ruthless and whose speed far surpassed his own.
His eye twitched instantly.
"Aren't you two beauties a bit too ruthless?"
"We don't have any enmity, do we? Do you really need to go straight for my vitals right from the start?"
Yoruichi stood with her hands on her hips, letting out a cold snort:
"You are an enemy, nothing more."
After speaking, seeing that the opponent had not lost the ability to resist, she gave Tsugikuni Ai a knowing look and, once again, attacked from two sides, rushing forward.
Upon seeing this, Askin couldn't help but feel a headache.
What he hated most in his life were these unreasonable brutes who wouldn't give him time to analyze their reishi.
The Deathdealing required precise calculations to be most effective; otherwise, even he would be affected.
This was also why he chose to flee immediately.
He took a deep breath, feigning a retreat, and then threw a few poison orbs.
The poison orbs flew slowly through the air, their speed extremely sluggish, clearly only effective in close-range combat.
Therefore, Yoruichi and Tsugikuni Ai simply dodged with a slight movement, easily avoiding the poison orbs' attack.
Immediately after, Askin was hit again by Yoruichi's punch, the burning sensation of the lightning making him grit his teeth.
"That really hurts…"
Askin muttered softly, his body constantly retreating amidst the flurry of punches.
At the same time, Tsugikuni Ai's slashes came like a storm, causing his blood to splatter, and his palms and shoulders to fall off.
While enduring the burning of the lightning and the pain of his muscles and bones being torn apart,
he rapidly absorbed and analyzed Yoruichi's reishi, gradually becoming immune to her attacks.
Soon, after a painful struggle, Yoruichi's punches could no longer harm him.
"Ha!" Askin cheered up, a triumphant smile appearing on his face, thinking he finally had a chance to counterattack.
He had just raised his head, ready to provoke Yoruichi Shihouin and use her body to block Tsugikuni Ai, so that both of them would be poisoned.
The next second, a completely different punch came again.
A sword also, at that moment, directly pierced his lung, causing him to stiffen in place for a second.
Because of this one-second stiffness, he couldn't parry.
And so.
This punch, entwined with azure and gold, struck his jaw squarely like a mortar shell!
Bang!
Askin's face instantly deformed, and his body once again flew uncontrollably backward, crashing heavily onto the ground!
Plop.
After rolling a few times on the ground and spitting out two teeth, Askin was dumbfounded.
How could she change her moves mid-fight?
He had just managed to become immune.
How many more moves does this dark-skinned girl even have?
Also… Is there something wrong with the sword in Tsugikuni Ai's hand?
He had clearly become immune to multiple slashes, yet his limbs were still severed with a single strike.
Fortunately, he was a Quincy; if he were a Shinigami, the first strike would have killed him instantly.
What a troublesome opponent.
Askin rubbed his jaw, the playful look on his face gradually disappearing, replaced by a solemn expression.
Being passively beaten was his style, but passively waiting to die was not.
Let's get serious.
He needed to quickly deal with Tsugikuni Ai, take or break her Zanpakuto.
Otherwise, once his head was severed or his heart pierced…
The consequences would be unimaginable.
…
Meanwhile, at the location of the Soul King's Left Hand.
Tōshirō Hitsugaya cleanly eliminated Sternritter W—Wind (Winding) with a single strike, using an unavoidable low temperature.
Then, his serious gaze fell upon a hooded figure slowly emerging not far away.
His intuition told Toushiro that this Quincy was very strong.
Combining the opponent's appearance, Toushiro immediately recognized his identity and quickly notified Jūshirō Ukitake.
When Ukitake arrived, he immediately saw Toushiro engaged in a fierce battle with the Soul King's Left Hand.
The surrounding buildings were controlled by an invisible force, transforming into giant hands that constantly descended, closed, and shifted, with deafening roars, intending to crush Toushiro to death.
Ukitake felt the Soul King's Right Hand within him stir restlessly.
He drew his Zanpakuto.
Immediately after.
He seemed to understand something.
"So that's it."
He finally understood why the Soul King's Right Hand had transferred this power to him back then.
It was probably to deal with what was happening today.
Of course, due to the changes in the future, its effect might have changed, but the core solution to the crisis of the Three Realms would not.
Taking a deep breath, Jūshirō Ukitake decided to follow the will of the Soul King's Right Hand within him and immediately released his Bankai.
A moment later.
"Captain Hitsugaya, leave the rest to me!"
Ukitake Shunpoed forward, his voice firm and strong.
Toushiro was startled, completely unexpected that Captain Ukitake would be so courageous.
He had called him to team up.
The control over nerves was too unsolvable; even his own ice could be controlled by it.
Fortunately, there was low temperature that could freeze nerves, allowing him to barely contend.
Now, would Jūshirō Ukitake alone truly be enough?
With these thoughts, Toushiro continued to watch, and the next scene dispelled his doubts.
He saw a domain similar to a Tai Chi symbol appear beneath Jūshirō Ukitake.
He stood in the black domain, holding two swords, the omamori tied to the blades constantly flickering.
Any nerves approaching the domain were as if frozen in time and space, completely stopped in mid-air or on the ground, unable to touch him at all.
These nerves gradually turned black, as if swallowed by darkness.
Then, yin and yang reversed, the blackened nerves instantly turned white, and the white nerves began to move, in turn eroding the Soul King's Left Hand.
"Ah!"
A piercing scream rang out, and an overwhelming torrent of white lines instantly submerged the Soul King's Left Hand.
Like a tsunami, it was at the center of the
"sea," struggling fiercely, yet always unable to break free from the cage it had built.
Gradually, it fell into a half-dead state, its five fingers drooping powerlessly, completely paralyzed and motionless.
Not far away, due to the drastic reversal of the situation, Tōshirō Hitsugaya was stunned.
His shocked gaze fixed on Jūshirō Ukitake, he asked in surprise:
"Captain Ukitake, what exactly happened? Why did it become like this?"
This was too strong.
As for "defection," that was a characteristic of Shikai, only its range and applicability were enhanced with the advancement of Bankai.
What surprised Toushiro was the time-space stagnation…
This was a technique that even his own Hyōrinmaru struggled to use.
Jūshirō Ukitake exhaled and explained:
"As you can see, my Bankai fully releases the power of stagnation belonging to the Soul King's Right Hand within me, allowing me to fix all matter around me."
"I couldn't use it before because I was still seriously ill, and if I did, my three-year-old lungs wouldn't be enough to keep me alive."
"But it's different now."
"And my other ability is a power belonging to my soul itself: to absorb, assimilate, and release others' techniques."
"You must know that this is the Soul Society; even nerves are composed of reishi."
"Therefore, all matter that is fixed can become mine."
Toushiro frowned upon hearing this, his confusion not entirely resolved:
"But your Zanpakuto release command?"
"You mean 'All waves be my shield, all lightning be my blade'?" Ukitake turned and looked at Toushiro, smiling, and said,
"It's merely symbolic. You know, since the birth of Zanpakuto, there has never been a Zanpakuto that could use two abilities simultaneously."
"Unless there's a foreign object within the soul, but even then, the power of the Soul King's Right Hand couldn't possibly be lightning or water."
At this point, Toushiro understood. He nodded, then his gaze returned to the Soul King's Left Hand.
By this time, the Soul King's Left Hand had regained a bit of vitality, slightly raising a finger, seemingly still wanting to struggle.
But the next second, it drooped powerlessly again, as if completely subdued.
It murmured to itself:
"I… I have met my other half…"
"Is this… my destiny…"
"Stagnation…""
Logically speaking, stillness and advancement belong to the same grid, and neither can affect the other.
However, Jūshirō Ukitake's inherent power is reflection.
1 = 1, but 1+1…
One can only say that the Soul King's left hand was not wronged in its defeat.
...
Above the Soul King Palace,
The passage of time led Yoriichi to draw his sword and activate Bankai.
Yhwach's expression deepened slightly.
At this moment, he finally understood why The Almighty had failed.
He had specifically chosen a future where Yoriichi had not drawn his sword, but he never expected that it would now be ruined by Hell.
"Brat!"
Yhwach roared coldly, his three eyes suddenly opening, but what met his gaze was a pitch-black expanse.
"Are you the one chosen by the Soul King?"
"To stop me?"
"Don't be ridiculous, mere Hell!"
Yhwach's voice suddenly rose; he could not tolerate his The Almighty being suppressed by Hell.
In his perception, Hell was merely an abandoned, decaying world.
How could it possess such immense power?
Yoriichi manipulated the authority of Hell.
Extremely dense reishi condensed into a sharp katana in his hand, easily shattering the longsword in Yhwach's hand.
He watched Yhwach retreat repeatedly, keeping his distance, and roughly understood why Ichibei Hyosube was instantly killed...
Yoriichi's voice was calm:
"Mere? Yhwach, you are too arrogant. Your contemptuous nature dictates that you will not take anyone seriously."
"If you had investigated my past, you would know that I have never appeared in the future foreseen by the Soul King."
As he spoke, an arrow made of reishi shot forward without warning.
Yhwach snorted at the sight.
He was about to say, "Preaching to the choir," but in the next second, his body instinctively reacted, quickly sidestepping and narrowly dodging.
The arrow pierced the wall of the Soul King Palace and disappeared into the vast clouds.
Yhwach's voice was impatient:
"Never? What an arrogant brat. Do you think that by using Hell to interfere with my The Almighty, you can be 100% victorious?"
"Don't forget, I am the King of the Quincy. All Quincy, upon death, have their techniques and experience returned to me."
"I possess the achievements of millions of lives. You, a mere two-hundred-year-old Shinigami, even if you use Bankai to summon Hell, how long can you sustain it?"
Yhwach re-materialized his reishi weapon. He swung it fiercely, creating a gust of wind, but this attack was easily blocked and neutralized by Yoriichi.
A hint of gloom flashed in Yhwach's eyes.
No flaws.
Time, perhaps, was Yoriichi Tsugikuni's only weakness at present.
Just as his The Almighty needed to rely on sight.
Yoriichi did not answer. He knew that further words were useless, and with a cold expression, he continued his pursuit, aiming to suppress Yhwach in Hell in the shortest possible time.
But as Yhwach said, he possessed the lifelong efforts of millions of people; in terms of technique, being superhuman was merely his threshold.
Therefore, even at a disadvantage, Yhwach persisted, quietly waiting for Yoriichi's Bankai to end.
Unfortunately.
One minute... two minutes...
Time passed minute by minute, until five minutes, and Yoriichi's Bankai showed no signs of disappearing.
Yhwach's heart gradually sank, and the sword in his hand also dimmed slightly.
Because there was not much normal reishi left in the domain.
He roughly estimated that it could only support him in battle for another five minutes at most.
Five minutes... too short.
No.
Although he didn't know why Yoriichi Tsugikuni's spiritual pressure seemed inexhaustible,
He absolutely could not sit idly by.
So, he activated his three eyes and immediately chose the future where the Soul King Palace would fall.
Boom--
With a loud bang, the ground began to tremble violently, and the entire Soul King's Inner Palace uncontrollably plummeted downwards.
The buildings groaned under the pull of gravity, and shattered stones and debris scattered everywhere.
Yhwach seized this chaotic moment, his figure flashing, and directly left the area.
The sky outside was still dim, black chains covering the firmament, like a giant net enveloping the entire world.
Clearly, this was still Yoriichi Tsugikuni's Bankai domain.
However, at least more usable reishi became available.
He had thought that with this reishi, he could definitely make Yoriichi Tsugikuni release his Bankai and restore his The Almighty by holding out for another ten minutes.
But unexpectedly, just then, Yoriichi's voice came coldly:
"A meaningless act, Yhwach."
He also left the Soul King Palace, and the blade in his hand swung out, a black sword pressure slashing forward with an aura of destruction.
"Although I don't know how you made the main Soul King Palace fall, in my domain, you only have one option: to flee."
"You have no chance whatsoever, from the moment you chose to invade the Soul King Palace."
All futures were seen by the Soul King.
To this day, Yoriichi also roughly understood the reason why the Soul King had silently done all this.
--To decisively kill Yhwach.
He wasn't sure what he had done to make the Soul King "hate" him so much, but it was all a ploy, including sending five people to their deaths to inflate Yhwach's self-confidence.
Yoriichi sighed lightly, a complex expression flashing in his eyes.
Immediately after, he saw Yhwach catch his slash and, with an extremely natural motion, push the attack towards his own domain.
With a "boom," the domain trembled violently, and a few chains shattered, but they recovered instantly.
Seeing this, Yoriichi marveled that he was indeed the King of the Quincy, capable of finding a way to break free even in such a desperate situation.
Unfortunately, it was all in vain.
As the battle continued, the distance between the two constantly narrowed, and the surrounding Omotesando gradually began to shatter.
Yhwach also seemed to know that he had no time to wait for Yoriichi Tsugikuni's Bankai to end.
Thus, he began to wantonly destroy buildings, shattering the layout of certain areas, attempting to make the entire Soul King Palace fall to the lower world.
The ground and even the air began to tremble violently, and Yoriichi frowned.
...
Inside the Seireitei, Rukia had just used Bankai to successfully deal with a Sternritter member who had launched a surprise attack.
Before she could catch her breath, she heard some strange movements from the sky.
Some white rocks rained down, hitting the Soul-Concealing Membrane.
Crackling.
Continuous.
At first, she didn't pay attention, thinking it was just the commotion caused by someone's battle.
But then, she suddenly looked up and realized something was wrong.
"These..." Rukia thought of a possibility, her pupils widening as she murmured,
"They couldn't be from the Soul King Palace, could they?"
Just then, Renji appeared beside her with Shunpo.
He saw Rukia exhaling white mist, her face still showing traces of coldness, and was about to ask if she was alright.
Unexpectedly, Rukia spoke first:
"Renji, you've come at the right time. Do you know where Brother Byakuya went? Do you think these stones are falling from the Soul King Palace?"
Renji looked up, and he belatedly realized, his pupils also widening.
"This... this..." His voice became stammering, because he did indeed know Yoriichi Tsugikuni's whereabouts.
In the morning, he was also part of the Human World team.
"Just say what you have to say." Rukia saw Renji's confused state and raised an eyebrow slightly, displeased, saying,
"You are at least a Seat Officer, why are you so impatient?"
"Oh, right, what happened over there just now? Was that giant also a Sternritter?"
Renji took a deep breath, regained his composure, and recounted his experiences to Rukia, explaining in detail what had happened that morning.
Several hours had passed since the war began.
Most of the enemies located within the Seireitei had already been dealt with, including the Sternritter members who were once Shinigami.
That giant just now was Sternritter M - Miracle, Gerard Valkyrie.
He possessed the ability to grow larger in size and power the more he was injured.
This ability seemed quite insurmountable, because even if he was killed beforehand, he would become even stronger through repeated deaths.
Zaraki Kenpachi even chopped him into pieces, but he recovered instantly.
Until, they discovered the Quincy Cross within his body.
That was his core.
Destroying this core, even something as strong as the Soul King's heart, would instantly be fatal.
Rukia nodded, saying thoughtfully:
"I see. It seems the opponents you encountered were truly strong, requiring five Captains to defeat them together."
"Fortunately, you still won in the end."
"Let's get back to business."
"You said my Brother Byakuya went to the Soul King Palace this morning, right?"
"Why?"
"Knowing there were so many enemies, why was he still summoned?"
Renji was unaware of this.
He stammered, planning to take Rukia to Kuchiki Byakuya, as Captain Kuchiki might know some details.
However, before he could act, the shattered stones from the sky suddenly increased.
Rukia sensed a familiar spiritual pressure fluctuation.
From the perspective of distance, it was rapidly plummeting.
Immediately, her eyes widened, and an ominous premonition surged in her heart.
--The Soul King Palace is falling!
...
At the same time, Yamamoto Genryusai sensed Yhwach's spiritual pressure fluctuation.
He slowly raised his gaze, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes, gripped Ryujin Jakka, and rose from his seated position, preparing for the final showdown.
Of course, this was also to protect the Seireitei from being crushed into ruins by the falling Soul King Palace.
He admonished Kurosaki Masaki behind him:
"You may leave, brat."
"After all this time, the one named Gremmy hasn't come, which means the one I killed was his true body."
"How arrogant, contacting Yhwach right in front of me... Go reunite with your husband."
"I won't keep you here."