Chapter 429

2-in-1 chapter:

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They were dozens of meters apart—yet could Kaelith still reach him with his blade?

If he had relied on sword pressure or Kidō, it would have been impossible to injure him.

Though unsure why, Yhwach instinctively dodged to the side.

A moment later, his raised right arm was sliced clean off.

Blood spurted violently!

The blue veins of Blut Vene rapidly extended, trying to stop the bleeding.

But the wound pulsed with an intense wave of sword intent—so strong that not only did Blut Vene fail, even the surrounding Reishi in the air was shredded to pieces when it drew near.

In the distance, Kaelith held his blade low, his torso bent forward, the sword stopping just a fist’s height from the ground.

“Quadruple… Empty Slash!”

Straightening his body again, Kaelith flicked his hand, returning the sheath to rest on his shoulder guard.

Originally, his layered force technique could only be used with pure physical strikes.

But after fusing with Rixiang Jimie, he could now channel that technique through his Zanpakutō.

Though it didn’t carry the same thrill as a direct punch, its element of surprise often proved effective.

Looking at Yhwach, pale-faced and missing an arm not far away, Kaelith’s eyes showed doubt.

This guy… seems unworthy of his reputation.

Throughout the entire fight, he hadn’t shown the level a Transcendent should possess.

If at first he had been holding back, testing Kaelith with probing attacks, now—with an arm gone—shouldn’t he at least look alarmed?

Could he regenerate by Hollowfying, growing back another arm?

Or was he underestimating me?

Kaelith clicked his tongue, his expression sour.

But Yhwach’s mood was even worse.

Just moments earlier, he had felt Giselle fall.

Without hesitation, he had activated Auswählen.

Yet, just like with Haschwalth earlier, his Auswählen had been interrupted again!

Not a single shred of Giselle’s power had transferred to him!

Damn it… what exactly is happening?

If he weren’t tied down in battle with Kaelith, he would have gone to uncover who dared challenge his authority again and again.

Taking a deep breath, Yhwach thought grimly.

This was no longer the time for patience.

If things continued like this, he really would lose.

If defeated subordinates couldn’t be absorbed, then he would simply take power from those not yet fallen. That shouldn’t be a problem.

Even if someone out there had a special way to block Auswählen, they couldn’t possibly stop him from killing his men at will.

At that thought, Yhwach raised his hand—

Across the battlefield, a Quincy resembling a machine suddenly collapsed, his strength surging up as blue light that streaked toward the First Division.

Another, the gorilla-like Quincy fighting with Komamura, fell in the same instant.

A masked Quincy with a smug smile and a child at his side lost his life within the blue glow.

The twin brothers, Lloyd and Royd, masters of mimicry, both dropped dead as well.

Five Sternritter, dead at once!

Flying swiftly above Seireitei with Kurosaki Ichigo in tow, Aizen seemed to sense it, turning his gaze toward the First Division.

“So, you’ve finally realized.”

“Not too late—but not early either.”

Beside him, Ichigo looked over.

“Aizen… what do we do now?”

“We continue.”

Aizen turned his eyes farther ahead.

There, flames lit up the sky.

Yamamoto, his body burning with fire, chased down Lille Barro with relentless strikes.

The latter beat his eight radiant wings furiously, dodging with blinding speed while shooting golden beams in rapid succession, attempting a kiting tactic.

Yamamoto’s speed was great, but compared to Lille Barro—with his eight wings and Blut Arterie active—he was still a step slower.

After tasting the power of Yamamoto’s Bankai, Lille Barro had abandoned any hope of victory.

All he wanted now was to stall Yamamoto, buying enough time for His Majesty.

Once His Majesty dealt with Kaelith, Yamamoto Genryūsai could be finished in mere moments.

Suddenly, he saw Yamamoto smiling strangely.

Why the smile?

Unable to catch me—has he lost his mind?

While cursing under his breath, Lille Barro hastened his retreat, firing more golden light toward Yamamoto.

Though his words belittled Yamamoto, his body betrayed the truth.

Suddenly, he felt a chill pierce his chest.

Looking down, he saw a cold blade jutting through his chest, blood trailing along its edge.

Then, another blade stabbed from behind, bursting out through his front.

Unlike the slender blade from before, this one was broad and heavy, like a massive butcher’s knife, delivering devastating damage.

With disbelief written across his face, Lille Barro turned his head to look behind him.

There stood a brown-haired man wearing glasses, a gentle smile on his face.

Beside him was a boy with spiky orange hair and a delinquent look, his expression grim.

Both wore black cloaks that masked their spiritual pressure—taking advantage of the moment when Lille Barro was entirely focused on Yamamoto, they struck from behind!

“I—”

Before he could finish, he froze.

Yamamoto had caught up, thrusting his blade into Lille Barro’s chest, the tip bursting out through his back.

The terrifying heat forced Aizen and Ichigo to immediately withdraw their swords and leap back.

Under Yamamoto’s furious gaze, Lille Barro’s body was instantly vaporized, crumbling into ash.

Retracting Ryūjin Jakka, Yamamoto let out a cold snort.

So bold when flying, so bold when shooting.

Why don’t you fly now?

He turned toward Aizen and Ichigo.

“Move! To the First Division!”

After giving the curt order, he pivoted and charged straight toward the First Division.

Watching Yamamoto’s temper flare, Ichigo scratched his head.

“When the old man gets angry, he’s actually pretty scary.”

Aizen gave no reply.

He had never truly thought much of Yamamoto.

The only reason he showed respect was because Yamamoto had been Kaelith’s teacher.

Of course, such words would never be spoken to Kurosaki Ichigo.

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At this moment, all of Seireitei was aflame with battle.

Under the command of their division captains, the Shinigami charged with courage, clashing fiercely with the Quincy.

The Quincy were shocked to find that these damned Shinigami seemed to know their fighting styles inside out.

When the Quincy unleashed a rain of arrows, the Shinigami raised shields.

When the Quincy engaged in close combat, the Shinigami countered with Kidō.

Their orderly, well-coordinated tactics, coupled with the omnipresent Hollow reishi in the air, left the Quincy nearly all locked in grueling fights.

Even the Sternritter of the Wandenreich, usually so arrogant, found themselves unable to exert more than a fraction of their strength without sufficient reishi to draw upon.

One Quincy, with round glasses and neatly parted hair, showed a restless expression.

“Jail!!!”

With a wave of his hand, he formed a spherical prison of blue light.

His opponent, Captain Unohana Retsu of the Fourth Division, was too slow to evade and was trapped inside.

Looking around at the glowing blue cell, Unohana furrowed her brows.

The prison was incredibly durable.

Even if she unleashed her full strength, breaking through it would take considerable effort.

And in that time, her opponent could slaughter all of her division’s Shinigami.

For ordinary squad members lives, she wasn’t particularly concerned.

But if Kaelith were to find out she had fought such a disgraceful battle, he would surely be disappointed.

The thought of Kaelith’s eyes filled with disappointment gave Unohana pause.

Was she feeling fear—or excitement?

Meanwhile, Quilge Opie, who had cast the Jail to trap her, didn’t rush to kill.

Like Unohana, he was lost in thought.

“What’s going on… How do these Shinigami know so much about the Quincy?”

“Could it be the Wandenreich was never completely hidden, and all these years, the Shinigami have been watching us?”

“Or… did someone from inside leak the information?”

“What, thinking about me?”

“?!”

The muttering Quilge suddenly froze in shock.

He turned toward the voice.

Out of the black shadows stepped a young woman in a white military uniform, a confident smile on her lips, stopping not far from him.

When he saw her, his eyes went wide:

“Bambietta Basterbine?!”

“Weren’t you dead?”

“Oh… what was it Haschwalth said again?”

Bambietta narrowed her eyes.

Hearing her words, Quilge suddenly understood. So that’s how it was… Haschwalth, that bastard, had claimed Bambietta was already dead just to steady the army’s morale.

That way, he couldn’t be accused of “watching her die without helping.”

In truth, Bambietta hadn’t died at all. She’d survived by selling out the Quincy’s secrets.

Thinking of this, he let out a cold snort.

“So I was right. How else could the Shinigami know so much about our abilities? Turns out it was all your doing!”

Bambietta lifted the corner of her mouth.

“My doing? Of course it was.”

“Back when I’d just been abandoned, I hated Haschwalth so much… but now, I actually want to thank him.”

“If not for him, how would I have ended up with Kaelith?”

“The good life I have now—I owe it all to him~”

Quilge’s brows knitted tightly.

From her tone, he couldn’t hear the slightest trace of sarcasm.

This woman… she really thought being cast out by the Wandenreich had been a blessing.

Damn her—just what had the Shinigami turned her into?!

He had just opened his mouth to retort when suddenly, Bambietta raised her hand and snapped her fingers.

At that motion, Quilge’s heart sank.

Not good!!

Right before his horrified eyes, several spirit arrows formed out of thin air and slammed into his “prison.”

The blue cage shattered instantly!

Though his prison was immensely durable—so much so that even a captain-class Shinigami would need hours to break through—there was a fatal flaw.

It couldn’t contain a Quincy.

All it took was one Quincy of comparable level, unleashing their full power, to destroy the cage with ease.

From the shattered prison, Unohana Retsu slowly stepped out.

Her face bore a chilling smile, like a god of death descending.

She first turned her gaze toward Bambietta.

“I don’t want to admit it, but you were a great help, Miss Bambietta.”

“If there’s ever a time I can repay this debt, don’t hesitate to ask.”

Bambietta gave a huff.

“No need. I didn’t act for your sake—I just didn’t want Kaelith to be unhappy.”

Unohana nodded slightly.

“On that point, we’re in agreement.”

With that, she turned her eyes on Quilge, whose face had gone ashen.

“Not bad at all, Quincy.”

“I, Unohana Retsu, nearly suffered Kaelith’s rebuke because of you.”

“For that sin… not even death a thousand times could absolve you.”

“Bankai.”

“Minazuki!!”

At the same time, behind Bambietta, radiant wings of light spread wide, a pentagram pillar of brilliance piercing the sky.

Vollständig—activated!

Under Quilge’s despairing gaze, the two crazed women, wearing smiles that froze his blood, charged at him together!