Passing through the seventy-two barriers, five floating landmasses, shaped like circular discs, came into view.
Upon these discs were various uniquely styled buildings, not connected by roads, but at the center stood a massive cylindrical structure.
Buzz~
The void subtly trembled, and a figure dressed in black work clothes, draped in a haori with the character 'one' carved on it, appeared on the street. It was none other than Ishikawa.
"Hmm?"
As soon as he stood still, Ishikawa's expression darkened.
Because not far in front of him, on the ground, lay three figures.
Two males and one female, all three were covered in blood and gore, with the young woman among them almost severed at the waist.
These three were not members of the Squad Zero, but rather Byakuya, Rukia, and Abarai Renji.
Seeing this, Ishikawa's face darkened, and he immediately went to their side.
He had completely forgotten!
Not long ago, the three of them, along with Ichigo, had been brought to the Soul King Palace by the Squad Zero.
Ishikawa had only thought of causing trouble for the Squad Zero earlier, but he had forgotten that his actions would also implicate the few people brought to the Soul King Palace!
However, when he reached the three, Ishikawa subtly exhaled a sigh of relief.
Although the three were severely injured and unconscious, they had clearly received emergency treatment, and even Rukia, who had the most severe injuries, had her life sustained.
Upon realizing this, Ishikawa's aversion towards the Squad Zero diminished somewhat.
After confirming that the three were not in mortal danger, Ishikawa began to survey his surroundings. From the architectural style here and the blood-red hot spring he sensed, it seemed to be the residence of the pompadour-haired man, Kirinji Tenjiro.
Ishikawa's gaze swept lightly, and he already understood what had happened here.
This was the gap in the seventy-two barriers, and also where Yhwach first appeared.
Yhwach, after materializing, was immediately intercepted by the three, but the battle ended in an instant.
Under the blessing of the Almighty, the current Yhwach was simply not an enemy that Byakuya and the other two could stop.
Subsequently, members of the Squad Zero must have arrived, and while they were fighting Yhwach, Kirinji Tenjiro seized the opportunity to provide emergency treatment to the three.
However…
At this moment, in Ishikawa's perception, he only sensed two presences.
The owners of these two presences were both located in the cylindrical building at the center of the five separate residences. However, one's presence was extremely faint, while the other's was rapidly growing stronger.
The faint presence belonged to Ichigo, and the strengthening presence was Yhwach.
And besides that, there was no other sign of life in the entire Soul King Palace. As Ishikawa's perception extended, he 'saw' fragmented bodies, and even bodies completely reduced to minced meat.
The Squad Zero…
Had been completely annihilated!!
Recalling this, Ishikawa's spiritual pressure surged around him, and he softly called out: "Hyosube Ichibe."
As his words fell, a figure suddenly materialized from the void in front of Ishikawa, but before it could fully appear, Ishikawa raised his hand and grabbed into the void.
Buzz~
With a flash of his figure, the massive form that had just coalesced knelt before Ishikawa, its neck gripped in Ishikawa's hand.
The figure did not struggle or rise, but merely looked at Ishikawa with an incredibly complex gaze.
"I was wrong."
Ichibe looked at Ishikawa in front of him and said with a complex tone, "Three years ago, when you first caused a reaction in the Soul King's body, I should have disregarded everything and descended to the Human World, finding a way to resolve your…"
Bang!
Flesh and blood splattered, and Ichibe in Ishikawa's hand instantly disintegrated into a mass of flesh, interrupting his words.
"Hyosube Ichibe."
Calling out softly again, Ichibe's form re-coalesced, appearing before Ishikawa still in a kneeling posture.
Ichibe looked at Ishikawa, his gaze growing even more complex.
Although he had already known that he could no longer eliminate this unstable factor when Ishikawa broke through the 72 barriers and brought Yhwach to the Soul King Palace not long ago, he had no direct understanding of Ishikawa's current strength.
But that instant just now made him realize how vulnerable he was in front of him!
Although he was currently in an extremely weakened state, the moment death approached made Ichibe realize that even at his peak, he would still meet the same end in front of Ishikawa.
Even…
On Ishikawa in front of him, he even felt something extremely similar to the Soul King!
"…Please stop Yhwach."
After a long silence, Ichibe slowly spoke, "Ichigo cannot stop Yhwach. If the Soul King dies at Yhwach's hands, then the Three Realms will be destroyed."
"If the Three Realms are destroyed…"
Ichibe paused, looking at Rukia and the others behind Ishikawa: "Those who are extremely important to you will also…"
Bang!
Ichibe's words ceased, and his entire body once again collapsed into a pile of minced meat.
Ishikawa looked at the minced meat on the ground without speaking, merely raising his hand and clenching it in the void. Immediately… the disintegrated minced meat rapidly coalesced, and two seconds later, Ichibe, with a look of disbelief, reappeared before Ishikawa.
Because this time, unlike the previous two, Ishikawa had not called Ichibe's name.
This made Ichibe vaguely realize something.
"What made you think I couldn't kill you?"
Ishikawa's icy voice entered Ichibe's ears, making Ichibe realize that his feeling was not wrong.
Ignoring Ichibe's reaction, Ishikawa pondered for a moment, then called out consecutively:
"Kirinji Tenjiro."
"Hikifune Kirio."
"Nimaiya Ōetsu."
"Shutara Senjumaru."
As each name was uttered from Ishikawa's mouth, his spiritual pressure surged forth, forming figures not far in front of him.
Ishikawa was not particularly familiar with the existence of the Squad Zero itself, but reviving the Squad Zero was not difficult for him.
Because he had already done something similar with Retsu Unohana before.
"You…"
After the four were revived, their expressions were somewhat dazed, but then they saw Ichibe kneeling before Ishikawa, and their faces all changed involuntarily.
But before they could figure out what had happened, the void suddenly trembled…
Strictly speaking, whether it was the Soul King Palace, or the Soul Society, the Human World, Hueco Mundo, the Dangai… all began to tremble at the same time, as if the end of the world had arrived.
This made the faces of the five Monks change, and they simultaneously looked towards the center of the Soul King Palace.
"Soul King!?"
Even without seeing the scene, everyone who felt the tremor understood one thing.
That was…
The Soul King was dead!
"How could this be?"
Inside the Seireitei of the Soul Society, the Gotei 13 members all looked up at the gaping hole above them.
"Did Ishikawa arrive too late?"
"Why would the Soul King die? Didn't Captain Commander already go there?"
"What exactly happened up there?"
"…"
"It's too late!"
Soul King Palace.
Kirinji looked towards the Soul King's inner palace, muttering to himself, "Has it finally come to this?"
"Yhwach…"
"I didn't revive you to see you all looking so desperate."
Ishikawa gave them an exasperated look, and without waiting for their reactions, turned and pointed at Rukia and the others behind him, saying, "You few go and treat them."
Hearing this, Hikifune Kirio glanced at Ishikawa and said with a wry smile, "Do you really understand the current situation?"
Actually, unlike Ichibe, the four of them didn't know Ishikawa very well. Although Ichibe said that he would threaten the foundation of this world, neither Hikifune Kirio nor the other three completely believed Ichibe's statement.
Until the moment he sent Yhwach to the Soul King Palace…
Only then did they realize that this kid was a complete madman!!
"If you're talking about the collapse of the Three Realms, then there's no need to worry at all."
As Ishikawa's words fell, the trembling that had spread to all worlds quietly ceased, as if the apocalyptic scene just now had been merely an illusion.
"Maintaining the Three Realms is not a difficult task either."
"…"
"…"
The understated words caused all five people present to fall into a state of stunned silence.
"Although even if I didn't stabilize it, the collapse would eventually stop due to Yhwach devouring the Soul King."
Yhwach devouring the Soul King is beyond doubt, because this is the only chance he has to contend with himself, so as long as he starts devouring the Soul King, the disintegration of the Three Realms will stop accordingly.
That being said, if he didn't take over, it wouldn't be long before a certain captain in the Seireitei might choose to sacrifice himself.
Such unnecessary sacrifices could be completely avoided.
However, compared to the silence of the Soul King Palace, the Seireitei was somewhat noisy.
Because the current situation was truly incomprehensible.
One second the world was on the brink of collapse, but the next second it returned to peace, and it felt even more stable than before.
"The Soul King is revived?"
"No, I seem to feel an extremely familiar presence."
"…"
Vaguely, everyone seemed to have thought of something, but this incredible conjecture made them completely unable to confirm it.
…
"Pay…"
Ichibe was the first to break the silence, a strange glint in his eyes, as he knelt down, his head striking the ground:
"Pay homage to the Soul King!!"
Hearing this, the other four also recovered, exchanging glances, all somewhat hesitant.
Ishikawa, however, gave Ichibe a strange look. This fellow, who prided himself as the Soul King's guardian and the leader of the Shinigami, truly didn't care who the Soul King was. He was willing to kneel before anyone who was willing to become the wedge.
Ishikawa even suspected that if Yhwach hadn't destroyed the Three Realms, this guy might have even knelt before Yhwach and said the same words.
"Heh heh, should I break my own limbs and let you seal me in a crystal?"
Ishikawa said with a hint of sarcasm, and without waiting for their reply, he shook his head and said, "I'm not interested in being the so-called Soul King. You probably wouldn't be at ease with a 'Soul King' wedge running around freely, would you?"
"But…"
Ichibe was about to speak when he found his body stiffen, as if he had been pressed a pause button, completely unable to move a single inch.
"Let's skip the meaningless flattery."
Ishikawa looked up at the Soul King's inner palace, a purple spiritual pressure flashing in his eyes, and a giant hand instantly materialized and slapped towards the Soul King's inner palace.
Boom!
Almost instantly, the spiritual pressure-condensed hand had already slammed into the columnar structure, but it did not completely destroy it, instead retracting immediately.
This scene caused the five people present to be slightly stunned.
But when the spiritual pressure hand returned, a figure descended from the sky, falling towards Kirinji.
That is?
Kirinji instinctively reached out and caught it, realizing that the figure was none other than Ichigo.
At this moment, Ichigo had fallen unconscious, and in his hand was a broken blade.
"It seems the absorption has begun."
Without looking at Ichigo, Ishikawa gazed at the Soul King's inner palace in the distance.
Looking out, one could see countless densely packed, eyeball-shaped black energy bodies surging out from the opening created by the hand's strike within the columnar structure.
As these black spherical bodies flowed, they all opened their eyes, like a dam breaking and surging downwards, instantly forming a pitch-black waterfall that headed straight towards the Seireitei below.
"Soul King's power!"
Kirinji's face changed: "Stop him, don't let the torrent of the Soul King's power fall into the Seireitei."
Ishikawa frowned slightly, but not because of the Soul King's power falling into the Soul Society.
But because…
He wanted to face a complete Soul King.
However, Yhwach was clearly unable to fully absorb the Soul King's power at the moment, which caused the Soul King's power to flow through his body and burst out freely.
Sighing slightly, Ishikawa's expectations couldn't help but weaken a bit.
As for the surging power of the Soul King, Ishikawa did not try to stop it. Anyway, with the current strength of Retsu Unohana and Cirucci, they could completely eliminate these residual Soul King powers.
Moreover, Ishikawa also sensed a familiar aura in the Soul Society that hadn't appeared for a long time.
"Soul..."
"Don't call me Soul King!"
Ishikawa interrupted Ichibe, raised his hand and pointed to the Soul King Palace: "And now it is Yhwach who maintains the Three Realms, not me. Your Soul King is over there."
The moment the Devour began, Yhwach had already replaced the Soul King as the new wedge and connected with the Three Realms, so Ishikawa directly exited the fusion state, allowing everything to return to its original state.
Hearing this, Ichibe was stunned. He then realized that Ishikawa's faint aura in the world had completely dissipated, replaced by Yhwach's aura.
This made Ichibe frown, but at the same time, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Because compared to Yhwach, the Ishikawa in front of him made him feel more uneasy.
Most importantly...
He vaguely guessed Ishikawa's thoughts, which made a strange look flash in Ichibe's eyes.
No matter who wins or loses next, it will be a good thing for him!
Ishikawa's failure to stop Yhwach from devouring the Soul King made the remaining four people understand, and their gazes at Ishikawa became incredibly complex.
Kirinji hesitated for a moment, then began to treat Ichigo and the other three.
Although they really wanted to stop Yhwach from devouring the Soul King, after understanding Ishikawa's thoughts, they knew that Ishikawa would never allow them to go and stop him.
Of course...
If Ishikawa didn't make a move, they wouldn't have the ability to stop him.
So, the few of them stopped thinking about what would happen next and each found a place to rest and recover.
Time passed little by little.
Finally, after nearly an hour, the turbulent energy fluctuations in the Soul King Palace returned to calm.
Upon realizing this, Ichibe and the other four immediately gathered around Ishikawa.
"Lord Soul... is it over?" Ichibe asked.
Ishikawa ignored him.
Hikifune Kirio, who was fat, also came over and tentatively asked, "Has the Soul King really been devoured by Yhwach?"
"Yes, it's completely devoured."
Unlike Ichibe's question, Ishikawa showed his signature smile when faced with Hikifune Kirio's question.
Monk: "..."
"Don't worry."
Ishikawa smiled slightly at Hikifune Kirio, then turned to look at an empty space: "Your performance has disappointed me a little."
Huh?
Upon hearing this, Hikifune Kirio was stunned, but then her face changed, realizing that Ishikawa's last sentence was not directed at herself.
The other four also reacted almost at the same time, following Ishikawa's gaze, only to find that a figure had appeared beside them at some point.
Not a single trace was detected!!
The five people's faces sank, and their bodies involuntarily tensed up.
"Don't worry?"
Yhwach's cold voice came out. At this moment, his appearance had greatly changed, his eyes were covered by several 'eyes', but there was no trace of aura leaking from his body:
"You are truly arrogant!"
Although he said so, Yhwach's several eyes were all focused on Ishikawa.
Although he had been devouring the Soul King, he also paid attention to the changes in the outside world, and he naturally knew that Ishikawa did not stop him from devouring the Soul King at all.
Originally, he thought Ishikawa was too arrogant, but after completely devouring the Soul King, he realized...
He still couldn't see through this young man in front of him!
However, Yhwach did not think that this was because the other party was stronger than him, because he had completely obtained the power of the Soul King, and was even able to easily return the Three Realms to their original state.
So, the reason he couldn't see through the other party was simply because of the strange ability he possessed.
"Pay the price for your arrogance!"
Yhwach beckoned with one hand, and a black blade condensed in his hand. Then he stepped towards Ishikawa: "You have already made me proud enough to force me to this point."
He walked slowly, even somewhat sluggishly.
Because he wanted to make this guy, who had made him feel so humiliated, slowly sink into the abyss called 'despair'.
Facing Ishikawa's strange gaze, Yhwach's several eyes shot out astonishing killing intent.
As the two approached, Ichibe and the others couldn't help but retreat backward.
Although there were no spiritual pressure fluctuations from either of them, when they got close to the two, they all felt as if their spiritual bodies were rapidly disintegrating.
Gulp—
The sound of swallowing saliva came out, so clear in this incredibly silent environment.
Everyone looked a little nervous, because they couldn't imagine how intense the battle between the two would be.
Ichibe looked around, with some hesitation on his face. He highly doubted whether the Soul King Palace could withstand the aftermath of their battle.
The two got closer and closer, and the heavy atmosphere in the air became even more terrifying.
A battle was imminent!!
However...
"Are you an idiot?"
Ishikawa's words broke the silence, making everyone, including Yhwach, hold their breath.
The heavy atmosphere around them also disintegrated.
The killing intent in Yhwach's eyes grew stronger, and without much movement, his entire being suddenly disappeared.
Buzz~
The blade cut through the void, appearing at Ishikawa's neck.
Yhwach looked at Ishikawa and said nothing, because he could see that Ishikawa, like himself, had absolute confidence in his own power, and was not aware of the gap between him and himself as he had thought.
So words were useless, he just needed to let him understand how powerful the Soul King's power was!
But the next second, the black blade froze in mid-air.
There were no violent fluctuations, no tearing of the void, and no splitting of the palace below them in half, just like a child's play, causing no ripples at all.
The only change was...
Ishikawa's right index finger and thumb clamped the black blade by his neck.
This scene was extremely strange.
It made the five people behind Ishikawa, who were fully on guard and ready to receive a terrifying impact, feel incredibly awkward.
"Alas~"
Facing Yhwach's gaze, Ishikawa sighed slightly: "I should have known not to wait for you."
The greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment.
Although Ishikawa had vaguely realized that he might not be facing a complete Soul King when he found that the Soul King's power could not be fully absorbed by him.
But Yhwach's performance was even more unbearable than he had imagined.
The system's limit was based on the Soul King, meaning that the top million value was the Soul King.
And now Ishikawa's various stats had reached the top level of 990,000. He originally thought that even if the Soul King was incomplete, Yhwach, after devouring the Soul King, would be able to reach the same level as himself.
But in reality...
Yhwach's current performance was probably only at the level of 980,000.
After breaking through 900,000, even a difference of a hundred points was a qualitative change, let alone a difference of over ten thousand between them.
"No..."
Yhwach's several eyes contracted, as if he wanted to say something, but Ishikawa no longer wanted to talk to him.
He touched the blade with his index finger, and as the black blade shattered, Yhwach's body was also torn apart.
All of this seemed so simple.
So simple that Ichibe and the other five felt as if they were dreaming, until Yhwach's incomplete body fell to the ground, making muffled thuds, did they come back to their senses.
...
...
"Are you going to watch him dissipate and disintegrate?" Ishikawa's voice came.
Ichibe's face changed upon hearing this, and he hurriedly came to Yhwach's remains. The other four also came to his side.
Ishikawa, however, did not continue to watch the few 'create the Soul King', but instead stepped to the side of Ichigo and the other three, lifted the unconscious four with spiritual pressure, and disappeared directly from the Soul King Palace.
His purpose in coming here was only to fight the Soul King, and once everything was over, there was naturally no need to stay here anymore.
...
"I'm back."
Ishikawa slowly descended from the sky, dragging the four people. He roughly glanced at the damage to the Seireitei and secretly nodded.
Hmm...
It seems that the repair work will keep me busy for a while.
Although, for Ishikawa, he no longer needed to rely on doing commissions to earn money.
But decades of unchanging life had already made him accustomed to a busy life.
He already had no opponents, and if he didn't have work to keep himself busy, Ishikawa felt that he might very well have the idea of becoming a final Boss and letting people challenge him...
"Tsk, peace without a goal..."
After putting the four people on the ground, Ishikawa couldn't help but curl his lips:
"Thinking about it carefully, it's really a bit boring."
Of course, it wasn't completely without goals.
Ishikawa looked at the system interface in his mind. Although he never thought of becoming the Soul King, Ishikawa really wanted to know if he could reach the same level as the Soul King!
It's a long and arduous journey, and I still have too few friends.
After browsing the dense friendship interface, Ishikawa secretly nodded.
Hmm, it's still not enough!!
But where else can I find other targets?
If I remember correctly, Urahara seems to have a few female Quincy there. I can try to get in touch with them if I have the chance.
Oh, and there are two others in the Soul King Palace that I can also try to get in touch with.
As for the rest, I can only wait for more female powerhouses to be born in the Soul Society, Hueco Mundo, or other places.
In short...
I still need to work harder to make friends!!
"Ishikawa!"
"Captain Commander!"
Just then, figures arrived through the air, and calls entered Ishikawa's ears, making a gentle smile appear on Ishikawa's face.
Unconsciously, he had already completely integrated into this place.
However...
The next second, Ishikawa's smile froze on his face.
The excited, emotional, or respectful calls around him also came to an abrupt halt.
"Humph~!"
A light snort came out, and Soi Fon appeared in Ishikawa's field of vision.
Immediately...
A bone-chilling killing intent followed. Retsu Unohana, with her black hair fluttering, slowly approached from afar, holding a blade. By her side were Kotetsu Isane and Kotetsu Kiyone...
And behind Ishikawa, a vast black aura approached. Cirucci floated closer, with figures following behind her.
At the same time, in various places below, gazes were faintly concentrated on Ishikawa.
...Ishikawa.
Take it back!
Peace is not boring at all.
It's better to...
—Be a little more peaceful!!!