Chapter 393

2-in-1 chapter:  

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Seireitei, Fifth Division, a certain secret room.

Kaelith was kneeling on the ground, his pure eyes blinking innocently, his entire demeanor radiating obedience and purity.

Only the steadily smoking clothes on his body ruined the atmosphere of innocence.

Not far away, Aizen sat elegantly in a chair, sipping tea.

Blowing gently on the tea leaves, he took a sip, eyes narrowing slightly.

Kaelith immediately spoke:

“Sōsuke, is the flavor not to your liking? To be honest, I have some experience in tea brewing—why don’t you let me—”

“Sit.”

Aizen cut him off with a flat tone.

Kaelith immediately sat back upright, showing an innocent smile.

Aizen slowly finished his cup, then set it down and looked at the person kneeling.

Kaelith was kneeling atop a specialized device Aizen had developed—an apparatus capable of drastically increasing gravity on anything placed atop it.

Originally intended for precision instrument testing, it now served an unexpected purpose as a punishment tool.

The problem was: Aizen had already cranked the gravity to maximum, yet Kaelith had knelt there for two hours without reacting.

For any normal person, even kneeling under standard gravity would have gone numb by now, let alone under several times the gravitational pressure.

A body like that, why did Mother Nature make it… truly an annoying talent.

With a hint of irritation, he spoke:

“When did you return?”

“Just about—”

Kaelith instinctively began to answer.

But the moment he started, he noticed Aizen’s cold gaze.

“...It’s been over half a year since I came back.”

Aizen let out a short scoff.

“XXXX year, September 3rd—you left the Soul King Palace and returned to the Soul Society.”

“On that day, after making contact with the 12th Division’s data collection team, you departed the Soul Society and headed to the Human World.”

“There, you met with Isshin Shiba’s son, Kurosaki Ichigo, and over time, instructed him in training and combat.”

“During that period, you primarily stayed at the residence of the Quincy, Bambietta Basterbine.”

“Gin Ichimaru, Sajin Komamura, and others visited the Human World to catch up with Isshin—you knew this, yet deliberately avoided them and never once revealed you had returned from the Soul King Palace…”

Under Kaelith’s dumbfounded gaze, Aizen sat there calmly listing off every action he’d taken in the past six months.

Kaelith began sweating profusely from his forehead.

“I’m terribly sorry! I was wrong!!!”

Without hesitation, he dropped into a deep dogeza.

Seeing his posture, Aizen let out a barely audible sigh.

“Enough. Get up.”

He pressed a button nearby and disabled the gravity suppression.

Kaelith, as if receiving a pardon from heaven, quickly stood up with a smile.

After thinking for a moment, he added:

“You know, you could leave the gravity on. It’s kind of like a massage. Feels nice.”

“?”

Aizen took a deep breath.

His blood pressure spiked a little.

Once both were seated, Aizen asked:

“Tell me—why were you avoiding everyone?”

Kaelith leaned back in his chair, his expression slightly complex.

“Because… I felt kind of embarrassed.”

“Embarrassed?”

Aizen’s face showed genuine surprise.

For a brief moment, he even wondered if this was a fake Kaelith.

“Embarrassed” coming from Kaelith’s mouth was borderline terrifying.

Seeing Aizen’s reaction, Kaelith looked irritated.

“Sōsuke, what’s that look supposed to mean? Your brother here has pride too, you know!”

“…”

Aizen remained silent for two seconds.

Under his gaze, Kaelith shook his head:

“During all those years at the Soul King Palace, I grew rapidly. From the time I first faced the Monk with no way to resist, to now being able to confront him head-on… I’d say, even among the elite, I’ve become outstanding.”

“But even so, I’m still missing the most crucial thing.”

“Even with all this power, I haven’t figured out how to deal with Yhwach.”

“According to the Monk, Yhwach may control some incredibly powerful world-rule ability—something so absurd it even surpasses his power to control names.”

“When it comes to rule-type powers, even if you are the one with the highest stats, it can’t guarantee victory.”

“Thinking about how I spent all those years training, yet still haven’t found a winning method—it makes me feel like I’ve failed everyone counting on me.”

“So I just kept putting it off… until now.”

After hearing all that, Aizen tilted his head slightly and smirked in ridicule.

“That’s it?”

“…Huh?”

Kaelith blinked, unsure how to interpret Aizen’s reaction.

Under his stare, Aizen replied with a faintly twisted smile:

“So that’s what it is—in Lord Kaelith’s eyes, everyone in the Soul Society are simply people he must protect and carry on his back. If he can’t protect everyone, then he’ll let them down—be laughed at by them…”

“So right now, should I kneel and pray to Lord Kaelith, beg him to grow stronger quickly, so I can survive the coming catastrophe?”

Hearing the gradually chilling tone in Sōsuke’s voice, Kaelith felt a shiver run up his scalp.

“Sōsuke, I didn’t mean—”

“No. Everything you’ve said and done proves that’s exactly what you think.”

Sōsuke pushed up his glasses and stood.

He looked down at Kaelith from above.

“Kaelith, it’s been a long time since we sparred, hasn’t it?”

“How about it—shall we give it a go, for old time's sake?”

“Sparring?”

Kaelith showed a complicated expression.

It wasn’t that he looked down on Sōsuke. The man was, after all, someone who stood at the pinnacle of the Shinigami.

But… Kaelith’s base stats right now were absurdly high.

At his current level, even Yamamoto would need to use Bankai to face him head-on.

Sōsuke, who excelled at battlefield strategy rather than direct combat, would likely struggle in a straight-up fight.

Seeing his reaction, Sōsuke said nothing—he simply turned and walked outside.

Seeing this, Kaelith got up and followed.

Under his gaze, Sōsuke opened a Garganta leading to Hueco Mundo.

Soon, both were standing atop the silver desert sands.

Facing Kaelith, Sōsuke spoke:

“Come. Show me how far you’ve come over the years—whether you now possess the strength to protect everything.”

As he spoke, he had already drawn Kyōka Suigetsu.

Seeing that Sōsuke wasn’t joking, Kaelith didn’t waste words. He simply nodded.

Regardless of Sōsuke’s existing strength, as a close friend, he deserved to see the results of Kaelith’s training over the years.

“I’m coming, Sōsuke!”

Under Sōsuke’s gaze, Kaelith’s expression turned serious.

He leaned forward slightly, assuming a combat stance.

The next instant, his figure vanished from the dunes.

Sōsuke’s pupils contracted slightly.

So fast.

Though he had mentally prepared for Kaelith’s strength to have grown far beyond expectation, actually witnessing such ridiculous speed still caught him off guard.

He raised his blade, trying to guard against Kaelith’s attack.

But before he could even bring it halfway up, a terrifying force had already bypassed his defense and struck his side with explosive impact!

Sōsuke’s body was launched horizontally, triggering a shockwave as he slammed into the silver dunes.

A massive explosion erupted as silver sandstorms blasted skyward, scattering like bullets in all directions.

Some Hollows wandering several kilometers away didn’t have time to escape the blast radius and were instantly perforated by countless grains of sand—falling silent on the spot.

Kaelith exhaled slowly, retracting his fist.

That strike should’ve been enough for Sōsuke to understand his current strength.

But at that moment, Kaelith suddenly felt something and looked down.

At some unknown point, several chains had silently emerged from the sand, snapping around his ankles with a snap!

Then, two black bands flew over, binding his arms.

Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!!

Black spikes rained down from above, pinning into the bands.

Each spike carried suppressive force on par with high-level Bakudō in the seventies.

Hundreds of these stakes—forming an impenetrable prison!

“Bakudō #99, huh…”

Kaelith was slightly surprised.

When a Shinigami masters Kidō, they can skip the incantation and cast just by name.

But just now, Sōsuke hadn’t even spoken the name— it was pure silent casting!

To silently cast Bakudō #99—just how deeply had he mastered Kidō?

Next would be Kurohitsugi, right…

Kaelith was familiar with this combo of Sōsuke’s.

But to his surprise, the spiritual pressure now flooding the air didn’t resemble Kurohitsugi at all.

Under his watch, the terrifying Reiryoku condensed and formed a multi-headed dragon towering hundreds of meters high!

Its destructive aura was comparable to a mere mortal standing before King Ghidorah.

The multi-headed dragon let out a thunderous roar and surged toward Kaelith.

Deafening explosions followed, the light illuminating the entire realm—everything else seemed to lose color.

Within the dunes, Sōsuke slowly stood, his fingers forming a hand seal:

“Hadō #99…”

“Goryū Taimetsu.”

At the corner of his lips, a thin line of blood trickled.

Kaelith’s punch earlier, though it didn’t contain layered force, had enough added weight from sheer velocity to reduce an Adjuchas to dust.

Watching Kaelith being consumed by Goryū Taimetsu, a subtle smile formed on his lips.

He couldn’t stand how smug this guy acted—but even he had to admit, Kaelith had truly grown strong.

No wonder he’d dared show such an attitude toward him.

At that thought, Sōsuke’s smile faded.

From the deep crater formed by Dragon annihilation, Kaelith's figure gradually emerged.

The surrounding silver desert had been scorched into molten magma by Aizen’s attack.

And this wasn’t an ordinary desert—it was formed from the “remains” of countless Hollows after their deaths.

Its melting point was far beyond that of ordinary sand.

Yet even such a terrifying attack hadn’t left any visible wounds on Kaelith.

The only casualty was his haori.

Kaelith glanced at his scorched haori, casually pulled it off, and tossed it aside.

Then, after a moment’s thought, he removed the upper half of his Shihakushō as well.

Looking at Aizen standing not far away, he grinned:

“Though I knew you’d already mastered that move, I didn’t expect its power to be this overwhelming.”

Aizen didn’t respond.

Under Kaelith’s gaze, he gripped his Zanpakutō and flashed forward.

Watching Aizen coming straight at him for a head-on clash, Kaelith couldn’t help but laugh wryly.

Even the Monk had to think twice before going toe-to-toe with him—Aizen going for a frontal attack like this was anything but wise.

Thinking it over, Kaelith drew Rixiang Jimie as well.

Seeing the path of Aizen’s sword, Kaelith didn’t hesitate and struck toward his flank.

After fighting countless high-level matches in simulated space, he could now instinctively identify the weak points in most opponent’s attacks and exploit them directly—even without targeted simulation.

But halfway through his strike, a strange premonition hit him.

Kaelith twisted his wrist, switching from offense to defensive withdrawal.

At that very moment, Aizen’s body suddenly released a terrifying aura!

What had appeared to be a simple, peak-level Shinigami strike suddenly surged in speed—approaching Kaelith’s own level.

And the power it contained exceeded even peak-level Shinigami strength!

Clang!!!!!!

Kaelith used Rixiang Jimie to block the strike.

As their blades clashed, a shockwave of white energy exploded outward.

The desert underfoot erupted in layers, as if packed with dozens of tons of explosives.

“Huh, Sōsuke, what was that…”

Kaelith’s expression turned puzzled.

He was sure Aizen hadn’t used any multi-layered force techniques.

Was it a new technique he had developed?

No—that couldn't be. If such a technique existed, Kaelith should’ve been able to sync with it, but he had no impression of it at all.

While he was still pondering, Aizen’s movements accelerated again.

Bang bang bang bang bang!!!

In an instant, they exchanged dozens of blows.

The sheer frequency of high-powered collisions produced an effect close to multi-layered impact. The surrounding reishi destabilized rapidly.

Sand was pulverized into reishi particles, releasing an overwhelming energy that turned the battlefield into a literal hell.

At that moment, even an Adjuchas-class Arrancar would’ve been torn to shreds if they wandered into range.

Kaelith’s expression shifted from surprise, to bewilderment, to growing excitement.

Interesting… very interesting!

What method had Sōsuke used to suddenly become this powerful?!

He bared his teeth in a manic grin.

His previously controlled fighting style transformed into one of total abandon.

He casually threw Rixiang Jimie aside, clenched his fists, and with crazed laughter, launched a storm-like assault at Aizen!

Facing Kaelith’s explosive assault, Aizen remained expressionless, countering each strike with precise technique.

But as Kaelith's speed and power steadily increased, a trace of helplessness flickered in Aizen’s eyes.

Bang!!!!!!

With one punch landing squarely on Kyōka Suigetsu, Aizen finally lost control of his stance and staggered back several steps.

Then—splurt—he coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Kaelith froze mid-swing, his half-executed punch halted just in time.

He rushed over to Aizen.

“Sōsuke, are you okay?!”

That sudden spit of blood—it had the full flair of a wuxia film, and it genuinely alarmed him.

Aizen waved him off.

He raised a hand and used spiritual pressure to wipe the blood from his mouth.

Looking at Kaelith, who stood nearby with a face full of concern, Aizen was a bit speechless.

That surge of power just now had come from the Soul King fragments he’d been secretly collecting.

By fusing them, he’d gained a kind of external force.

The Soul King’s power, combined with his own insight and combat experience, allowed him to display power that exceeded the peak—despite not having broken through that limit himself.

Unfortunately, while the results were impressive, his body couldn’t withstand such overwhelming strength.

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