Chapter 435

2-in-1 chapter:

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Yamamoto, Senjumaru, and Kirinji all let out muffled grunts as the ground beneath their feet split apart in layers.

The monk gave a loud shout, stomping hard on the floor, releasing a hemispherical barrier of spiritual pressure.

Yhwach’s spiritual pressure crashed against it, spreading glowing cracks across the barrier’s surface, but in the end it held.

“Kaelith, this guy’s gotten so much stronger!” Ichigo called out loudly, looking in his direction.

Yamamoto’s expression was resolute as he gripped his Zanpakutō tightly.

Only Kaelith’s eyes suddenly lit up.

“This guy’s finished!”

Aizen glanced at him in confusion.

Right now, Yhwach’s strength had clearly risen by several levels. If there were ranks among Transcendents, Yhwach at this moment might stand above even Kaelith.

So powerful and so fierce—how could anyone conclude he was “finished”?

Seeing Aizen’s look, Kaelith laughed.

“Sōsuke, battles in the Shinigami world are, at their core, battles of style. Once you lose that style, that sense of presence, no matter how strong you get, you’re only one step away from losing.”

Aizen shook his head. He must have lost his mind to expect any sensible analysis from Kaelith.

After absorbing the Soul King, Yhwach’s figure flickered, suddenly appearing in front of Kaelith. He didn’t use a spirit weapon—he simply drove his fist straight at him.

Seeing the move, Aizen narrowed his eyes. Yhwach was aiming to use Kaelith’s own most practiced technique against him after growing stronger.

A grudge-holder indeed.

Facing Yhwach’s punch, Kaelith laughed.

“Good one!”

He didn’t raise his arm to defend but, without hesitation, swung his own fist forward.

Vwoom—!

A strange fluctuation of power twisted violently where their fists collided.

Large sections of space shattered, revealing the Dangai beyond.

The monk clicked his tongue at the sight. The spatial stability of the Soul King Palace was far greater than Seireitei’s, and even in his earlier fight with Kaelith they hadn’t managed anything so flashy.

Yet now, a single clash of fists had broken space apart. A few more of those and even the great pathways might be erased.

After the first exchange, both stepped back.

Then Yhwach grinned and swung again.

Kaelith also laughed and hooked his fist forward.

Boom—!

This time, the massive shockwave shattered the entire Inner Ward of the Soul King Palace.

The airborne structure exploded into debris, sending everyone within flying out through the dust.

Aizen flickered into the highest position above them all, scanning the battlefield quickly.

He saw Kaelith burst out from the smoke—but not under his own power. Yhwach was pressing him, driving him forward.

The two left a long contrail through the air before crashing into Tenjirō Kirinji’s Zero Division estate.

The great circular estate floating in the sky split apart down the middle with a thunderous crack.

With a rumbling roar, the two massive halves began to fall.

Kirinji, in a state of utter dismay, used Shunpo to flash beneath one half, lifting it above his head to hold it up.

The other half was caught by Kirio Hikifune.

Beneath the Zero Division estates lay the living quarters of commoners. If such a massive structure fell, the Zero Division would lose all standing.

Still pressing Kaelith, Yhwach drove them both down until they smashed into the Grand Approach of the Soul King Palace.

Boom—!

In the billowing dust, Yhwach swept his hand and cleared the air.

A short distance away, Kaelith rolled and stood up from where he had landed. One of his arms was twisted unnaturally, broken by Yhwach’s punch.

Even in his Transcendent state, stacking the strength of three parallel-world selves and adding a quadruple force strike, he had been overpowered.

Taking a beating from the “final boss” was part of the experience, but was it fair to say that Sōsuke and the others had badly misplayed this one?

With a snort, Kaelith thought to himself that once this was over, he would make Sōsuke pay dearly.

Looking at Yhwach in the distance, Kaelith leaned forward into a sprinter’s stance.

At this point, Yhwach was stronger than him. In the face of such overwhelming power, the mass-surround tactic he had considered earlier was unlikely to work.

But aside from that, he had an even stronger, unbeatable tactic—

the Sit-up Strategy.

Also known as “outlasting the old man.”

Yhwach might be strong, but he had been dormant for a thousand years, and from the nasal hair and gaunt cheeks on his face it was obvious his body was far from peak condition.

Kaelith, on the other hand, had a naturally gifted body and near-limitless regeneration.

If he fought Yhwach endlessly, until heaven and earth aged and the edges of the universe wore thin, eventually Yhwach would burn out and die right where he stood.

Thinking of this, Kaelith couldn’t help letting out a hero’s laugh.

“Ke-ke-ke… Yhwach, I’m going to play with you…”

Yhwach looked at his grinning opponent, his expression momentarily puzzled.

He didn’t understand what madness Kaelith was spouting, but he smiled faintly. Original content can be found at novel•fire.net

“Kaelith, stop resisting. The end of all things is near.”

“Huh?”

Kaelith paused. At first he thought Yhwach was simply speaking in riddles, but soon he realized something was wrong.

Above the Soul King Palace, the monk lifted his hand and moved it through the air a few times, his face growing grim.

Earlier, when Kaelith and Yhwach had shattered space, he thought it was only because their punches were too strong.

Only now did he realize that wasn’t the whole reason.

The space of the Soul King Palace itself was becoming fragile.

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Soul Society:

In Seireitei, Shinigami patrolling to ensure all Quincy had been cleared suddenly stopped in their tracks.

They were startled to find the ground shaking violently beneath their feet.

“An earthquake!”

“That’s impossible… how could there be an earthquake in Seireitei?!”

The violent tremors shattered and collapsed the walls and houses around them in an instant.

Shinigami struggled to keep their footing as chaos broke out.

In the midst of it, Kisuke Urahara rose into the air, calling out loudly:

“This is Kisuke Urahara, First Division Deputy Adviser!”

"Everyone, split into squads and rescue those who are buried!"

"The injured and those who have been rescued, gather immediately in the nearest open area!"

Hearing Kisuke Urahara’s orders, the Shinigami began moving at once.

Looking at the scene before him, which resembled the end of the world, Kisuke’s expression was grim. There was no doubt that in the Soul King Palace, the being who maintained the balance of the Three Realms had fallen. Without the Soul King as the keystone, the Three Realms would lose their support and collapse in on themselves at incredible speed. If Kaelith and the others did not act quickly, there would be no future left for anyone.

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In the World of the Living, Ryūken Ishida directed his company’s employees to evacuate in an emergency. An unprecedented earthquake swept through Karakura Town. No—it was not only Karakura Town. All of Japan, and perhaps an even wider area, was crumbling.

Looking toward Uryū Ishida, who was loudly giving orders to the people nearby, Ryūken’s eyes revealed a trace of resolve.

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Sensing the reverberations coming from the Three Realms, Kaelith’s expression finally changed. When Yhwach had spoken of destroying the Three Realms and returning the world to chaos, he had not felt much of a sense of reality. But now, seeing the realms truly trembling and space itself fracturing, he realized that the old man was serious.

He tore off his haori, ready to fight Yhwach to the death.

At that moment, Aizen’s figure appeared beside him.

"Kaelith, use that."

"That?"

Kaelith was momentarily taken aback, then showed a look of realization.

"If I use that, then you…"

"Don’t worry," Aizen said with a slight smile. "I’ve already prepared myself."

Seeing that Aizen was not joking, Kaelith nodded. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

Yhwach raised the corners of his mouth as he looked at him. Now that the Soul King was dead, he was the one who controlled the keystone of the Three Realms. Under his direction, the realms had less than half an hour before they completely collapsed. In that short time, what could these two possibly do? The only way Kaelith could hope to defeat him now was to exhaust him with limitless stamina and recovery. But even if he won like that, nothing could be restored. By then, the world would already have been remade in his own image. Kaelith would either lose everything and join him, or lose everything and become a lonely avenger. Either outcome made no difference.

Kaelith… in this new era, there is no vessel that can carry you.

Just as the thought formed, Yhwach froze. He frowned, looking at Kaelith standing there with his eyes closed. For some reason, a strong sense of danger suddenly came from him. Using the power of The Almighty, he tried to look into the future to see what Kaelith was planning. But every time he looked ahead, all he could see was darkness.

What did this mean? Could it be the process of everything returning to chaos after the collapse of the realms?

In his confusion, Kaelith slowly opened his eyes. At some point, his pupils had turned gold. His short black hair began to grow rapidly under the influence of some unknown force, falling past his waist in moments. The spiritual pressure around him surged at an unimaginable rate. Then, once it reached a level beyond comprehension, it suddenly vanished.

Yhwach fixed his gaze on him, ready for anything. Suddenly, Kaelith vanished from sight. Yhwach’s pupils shrank.

Impossible—he had been watching him the entire time!

In the next instant, Kaelith’s grinning face appeared right before him.

Boom!

With his arm drawn back like a fully loaded bow, Kaelith’s punch tore through Yhwach’s body, blowing half of it into a cloud of blood. He then spun, his long hair whipping through the air, and smashed a high roundhouse kick into Yhwach’s head, shattering it completely.

The headless, half-destroyed body toppled toward the ground, but before it could land, Yhwach’s voice echoed in the air.

"By the power of The Almighty, I grant my body restoration!"

A flash of light enveloped his remaining half, and in an instant his form returned to normal. He spun on the spot, flickering several times in succession to retreat out of Kaelith’s range.

Looking at Kaelith, whose long hair streamed in the air like a descending demon god, Yhwach could not help but feel utterly shaken.

What had just happened? What in the world had just happened?

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Ichigo hovered in midair, staring at the two figures locked in relentless combat. "Kaelith… he’s so strong."

At his words, Aizen, standing nearby, gave a light laugh. "That technique… you could use it too."

"Me?" Ichigo looked surprised.

Aizen nodded. "It’s a secret art passed down through generations of the Shiba family. Each generation’s user manifests it differently in name and ability, depending on their Zanpakutō. The version used by Isshin Shiba is called ‘Final Getsuga Tenshō.’ Although you haven’t learned it yet, considering your Zanpakutō’s abilities, its final form would likely be similar to Isshin’s. Kaelith and I were both interested in this technique, and we exchanged with Isshin for the method to train it. What you are seeing now is Kaelith’s ultimate technique. Its name is… Final Annihilation."

Hearing this, Ichigo looked down at the blade in his hand.