A beam of light pierced the heavens, tearing through clouds as if the earth itself were hurling defiance into the sky. It rose higher and higher, the shockwave ripping apart the firmament, until the light reached thousands of miles above the ground.
Only then did the young man's punch lose momentum.
Pfft—
A mouthful of blood burst from Aizen's lips. The two figures finally separated, their silhouettes flashing apart in midair. Aizen's body staggered backward, blood trickling down his chin, staining his white robe crimson. When he looked up again, his calm face was shadowed with shock.
He stared at the boy standing motionless in the air, expression shifting subtly. The last time they clashed, he had also been blown away by that same fist. But compared to now, that strike was nothing.
Back then, before merging with the Hōgyoku, losing to Su Li had been tolerable. But now—after becoming one with the Hōgyoku, his spiritual pressure and physique had multiplied beyond measure—yet that same boy had once again sent him flying, this time into the clouds themselves.
Unacceptable.
Aizen's gaze deepened as he watched the heat ripple around Su Li's body. The glow of Ultra Instinct pulsed like molten silver.
So this is the true power of that state… far greater than before.
It seemed the one who had grown stronger was not only him. The boy too had evolved, hiding his true power until now.
Aizen wiped the blood from his lips, gripping Kyōka Suigetsu tightly. His eyes sharpened with a rare seriousness.
Across from him, Su Li flicked the blood from his hand and met Aizen's gaze. His own eyes carried a calm gravity. He had entered the complete state of Ultra Instinct—one random strike in this form could have crushed Ichigo at his fully Hollowfied peak—yet now, that same power only made Aizen bleed.
Aizen's body, having evolved with the Hōgyoku, had reached monstrous levels. His Reiatsu shook the air itself.
The next moment, both moved.
Boom!!
Two beams of light exploded forward, colliding midair with power so vast the world itself seemed to quiver. Even the clouds recoiled, fleeing from the battlefield as if fearing to disturb this clash of gods.
Swish!
A blinding slash cut across the sky, sword pressure roaring like thunder as Aizen's blade swept down. The force of it could have split heaven itself.
Su Li tilted his body slightly, slipping past the edge of the slash, his hand casually brushing the blade's flat.
Clang!
The steel scraped past his shoulder as the air behind him detonated in a violent burst of sword pressure.
At that instant, Su Li's fist flashed forward, driving toward Aizen's face.
Aizen's eyes narrowed. He had no intention of dodging. Not this time.
His body, fused with the Hōgyoku, was harder than steel. He wanted to see whose fists were stronger—his, or Su Li's.
Boom!!
Their fists collided with a sound that tore through the sky.
Crack—
A thin fracture echoed through the air.
Aizen's pupils contracted sharply. The pain came a moment later, radiating from his hand. He could feel it—his knuckles had split open.
But he didn't flinch. His gaze instead froze on Su Li's arm—now jet black, as if cast from obsidian.
Su Li calmly withdrew his fist. Armament Haki—he had used it before, but never in combination with Ultra Instinct. Together, the two forces turned his fist into something beyond steel.
Harder than anything alive.
Su Li exhaled softly, eyes steady, before striking again.
The black fist surged forward, breaking the sound barrier as it slammed into Aizen.
Boom!!
Aizen's body rocketed backward, vanishing into the clouds.
Far below, Yamamoto Genryūsai, still kneeling amid the battlefield ruins, suddenly stirred. His old eyes burned with light.
"What a fist!" he roared, voice trembling with excitement.
"Eh?" a soft voice replied beside him. "Master Genryūsai, your eyes are still that sharp?"
"Lie, tend to the others first. The old man's fine," Yamamoto said, not even turning his head as he watched the heavens above.
The woman beside him—Unohana Retsu—hesitated, then nodded quietly and moved toward the other wounded.
"Captain Unohana, please! Treat me first!" Omaeda wailed, hopping in place as tears streamed down his face. "I'm in pain! I'm dying!"
Several injured Shinigami nearby fell silent, black lines twitching on their foreheads.
Kyoraku Shunsui sighed. "Somehow this guy always ruins the mood."
"I admit he's got spirit," Yumichika drawled, brushing his eyelashes. "Just not the kind I respect."
Sui-Feng said nothing. She only stared upward. Even from the ground, she could see faint flickers of light far above—two figures suspended in the sky, still facing each other.
High above, Aizen's arms were grotesquely twisted. The blade in his hand had shattered, reduced to fragments. The boy's blackened fist had exceeded even his expectations.
He recognized that technique—the strike Su Li had just unleashed carried the essence of Yamamoto Genryūsai's Ichikotsu no Hō—the "One Bone."
Ultra Instinct. Armament Haki. One Bone.
The convergence of three forces—no wonder his defense had failed.
Even with the Hōgyoku's power reinforcing him, his hands had nearly been crushed.
Aizen's eyes flickered. "Your strength... exceeds my imagination."
Crack—
Bone snapped back into place, his arm regenerating in seconds.
Su Li's face remained calm, unmoved. He had expected that. Aizen's regeneration was inevitable.
"I can do this all day," Su Li said evenly. "You can test every move you want."
Aizen stared at him, his expression shifting. Then, suddenly, fury flared in his gaze.
"Why?" His voice rose, sharp and heavy. "Why do you people insist on kneeling beneath others? Bound by worthless ideals—guarding that hollow palace as if it's divine!"
"There are no gods in the sky!"
His voice thundered through the clouds. "Su Li! Join me! Together we can enter the Soul King's Palace and rebuild the world! That is the true path for beings like us!"
His shout echoed across the heavens.
Su Li only smiled faintly, voice quiet and cold.
"What I guard... has never been the Soul King's Palace."
Aizen froze slightly, confusion flickering across his face.
Su Li's gaze sharpened. "Soul Society is my home," he said. "You threaten my home... I destroy you. That's all."
Aizen's eyes darkened, rage returning—but before he could speak, Su Li slowly turned his head.
"And," he added, voice lowering, "I told you already—your Kyōka Suigetsu doesn't work on me."
Aizen's pupils dilated.
The boy looked behind him calmly. There was nothing there.
Then—
A blade tip emerged out of thin air, stabbing straight toward his brow.
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