Witnessing this scene, the nobles' initial excitement and anticipation had long been replaced by boundless fear.
Just by watching that barrier of fire from a distance and sensing the occasional leakage of divine-like Reiatsu aftershocks from within, they were almost overawed to the point their souls froze, unable to breathe.
It was an absolute overwhelming on the level of existence itself.
The private armies they prided themselves on, the family accumulated strengths, the cherished Kido weapons... before those two forces, they seemed as laughable as children's toys.
A terrifying thought uncontrollably rose in the hearts of all nobles:
The combined private armies and hidden power of all us nobles put together would probably not be a match for either of those two individuals alone.
This realization chilled them to the bone.
All along, although they feared the Gotei 13, they always felt that with the combined power of the nobles, the authority of the Central 46, and the intricate network of interests, they could counterbalance it.
But now, they saw the ultimate limit individual power could reach, a terrifying existence capable of single-handedly challenging a nation and overturning the rules.
Among all the nobles, none were more fearful, more in a constant state of anxiety, than the Kasumioji Clan.
Inside their mansion, a group of clan elders surrounded the pale-faced Kasumioji Yuka, their voices sharp and trembling with fear:
"This is all your fault, all because of you! You made that wrong decision, and now you've attracted that monster Chiaki Setsuna!"
"He even dares to fight the Captain-Commander, and has even reached that incomprehensible realm beyond a Shinigami! What can our Kasumioji Clan use to resist him?"
"Are you trying to bring destruction upon our entire clan?"
"We should never have let you become the head of the clan! Sato Taishi is dead, and now you've gone mad!"
Facing the accusations and buck-passing from the elders, Yuka suddenly lifted her head. Instead of fear, her face showed an almost manic, cold smile:
"What are you afraid of? Can't you see? The Captain-Commander is stopping him! Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni, the strongest Shinigami in a millennium! Do you truly think that Chiaki Setsuna can defeat the Captain-Commander?"
As if grasping at her last lifeline, her voice turned shrill:
"As long as the Captain-Commander wins against him, no one can do anything to us! The Captain-Commander will definitely win! He'll definitely burn that arrogant fool to ashes!"
However, to the elders, her words seemed more like desperate self-consolation.
They looked at the terrifying battle in the sky, still fierce with no signs of either side gaining the upper hand, and the chill in their hearts deepened.
High in the sky, within the flame barrier, [Jokaku Enjo], the battle between Yamamoto and Setsuna had reached its climax.
Wherever the blazing white blade light passed, even space itself left scorched and distorted traces that took a long time to calm.
Each of Setsuna's strikes precisely cut into the most subtle nodes of Yamamoto's sword momentum, using skill to break through brute force.
Their battle had long surpassed the scope of techniques understood by ordinary Shinigami.
Every collision of Reiatsu triggered a Reishi Tsunami across the entire Seireitei.
Free Reishi in the air fled wildly like startled fish, colliding, and annihilating, forming visible colored turbulence and shrill Reishi screams.
The ground cracked under continuous low-frequency tremors. Even with multiple barriers protecting it, the earth groaned under the strain.
Spatial fissures that seemed capable of swallowing everything appeared and disappeared like spiderwebs inside and outside the flame barrier.
The aftershocks of the battle even penetrated the multiple layers of protection of the Seireitei, spreading throughout all of Soul Society.
"We cannot let this continue!" Ukitake's face was pale. Struggling against the discomfort caused by his disordered Reiatsu, he said anxiously, "The very space of the entire Soul Society could collapse from their fight!"
"We must stop them!" Kyoraku said in a grave voice.
All the Captains naturally understood the danger of forcibly intervening, but they were still preparing to do so.
Just as the Captains were about to join forces to apply pressure and attempt to separate the two...
"All of you, stand down!"
Yamamoto's authoritative and unquestionable voice rang out like a great bell, penetrating the fierce roar of battle and clearly reaching the ears of every captain.
"A battle between Transcendents is not something you can interfere with. Step back, maintain the barriers, evacuate the people, and observe!"
At the same time, Setsuna's voice also came:
"There are too many people getting in the way here. Fighting feels restrained, and I'm worried about dismantling the Seireitei. Captain-Commander, how about the Dangai?"
"It's spacious enough there, and sturdy enough. We can let loose and have a good fight!"
Yamamoto nodded: "Agreed. This place is indeed too cramped. The Dangai is a good choice!"
Setsuna tore with his right hand, as if rending a piece of cloth.
A massive tear was ripped open in the sky, and from within came an endless roaring sound.
Yamamoto and Setsuna exchanged glances. Without any hesitation, they transformed into two streams of light and charged straight into that terrifying temporal rift.
The tear quickly contracted and sealed shut after they entered, eventually vanishing from the sky.
All that remained was the gradually subsiding energy turbulence, the devastated earth, and a group of stunned, deeply shaken Shinigami.
"They... they really went into the Dangai? How can you fight in a place like that? Even time is chaotic there."
"Right, isn't it common knowledge that you have to leave the Dangai as fast as possible upon entering?"
"Wasn't it said that the Kototsu in the Dangai is the bane of all Shinigami? Even Captain-level Shinigami can only flee when encountering it, right? Are Captain-Commander and Captain Chiaki going to fight while fleeing for their lives?"
Ordinary soldiers and seated officers were completely unable to comprehend. They only felt that the behavior of those two had surpassed madness… it was practically seeking death.
Kyoraku, however, sighed softly:
"So-called reasoning, common sense, rules... they are merely 'simplified models' summarized and deduced to allow the vast majority of ordinary people to understand how the world operates and how to survive."
"But, for existences that have already transcended the conventional operational framework of the world..."
"Those principles that bind ordinary people, those things regarded as absolute dangers and impossibilities, are merely barriers that can be easily broken."
Inside the Dangai, everything was grotesque and bizarre.
This was not pure darkness or nothingness, but a seemingly infinite maze corridor composed of numerous purple crystals and flowing bands of light.
Setsuna felt as if he were inside a massive, abstract, and hostile creature's internal organs.
Just as they were getting their footing, the Dangai's own 'immune system' was triggered.
At the far end of the corridor, within the purple chaos, the outline of a colossal object suddenly emerged.
It was a gigantic insect resembling a train, with a head like a searchlight-like light-emitting organ, now fixedly locking onto the direction of Yamamoto and Setsuna.
This Kototsu charged towards them with a violent speed that defied the laws of physics.
Where it passed, even the chaotic space-time structure seemed plowed open by its pure mass and power.
Facing this absolute natural disaster that struck fear into the hearts of countless Shinigami, Yamamoto and Setsuna did not even assume any combat stance.
They merely turned their heads slightly, simultaneously glancing at the approaching Kototsu.
Boom!
Two vast Reiatsu, surpassing limits and overriding the conventional laws of the Dangai, like a slumbering cosmic will suddenly awakening, crushed down upon that high-speed train-like Kototsu.
The next instant, the Kototsu's massive body directly exploded, stirring up a massive storm within the Dangai.
The two did not even spare it another moment's glance, as if they had merely casually brushed a speck of dust from their shoulders.
Their gazes met again. Yamamoto looked at Setsuna with gratified eyes and said, "You are quite impressive. I have decided that you will be the next Captain-Commander!"