Chapter 179: Zanka no Tachi East, Rising Sun Blade!
The smoke and dust from the explosion dissipated, and Aizen's figure was revealed in everyone's sight. What was most striking was the Hōgyoku visible on Aizen's chest.
"Hōgyoku..."
"Has it started fusing with Aizen's body?"
As a scientist, Kurotsuchi Mayuri looked at this scene with a heavy expression on his face.
But what was even more shocking was that he'd used his body to withstand Captain Byakuya Kuchiki's high-level Kido. Except for damage to his clothing, there was almost no damage to his body's surface, which undoubtedly made everyone feel extremely heavy-hearted.
This situation already meant that captain-level combat power could no longer cause effective damage to Aizen. With the blessing of Hōgyoku, his body was not only immune to high-level Kido—ordinary blades might not be able to cause effective damage to him either.
"As the Captain of the 11th Division, reputed to be the strongest in combat among Gotei 13, Zaraki, your strength seems to be a little... lacking!"
Aizen lifted his arm upward, deflecting Zaraki in the air with terrifying arm strength. After spinning him around in the air, Aizen turned around, looked at Zaraki Kenpachi with cold eyes and said.
Zaraki Kenpachi backed up a few steps in the air before he could stabilize his body. The corners of his mouth curled up as he sneered. "Tch, still not enough. That attack just now wasn't even enough to warm me up!"
"Is that so?"
Looking at the captains walking forward to protect Kurosaki Ichigo one by one, Aizen said very calmly, "I know your thoughts very well. You pin all your hopes on Kurosaki Ichigo, but... too naive!"
"In my opinion, the so-called Gotei 13 is only supported by Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni. You who can't even see the future clearly—what qualifications do you have to exercise the name of the so-called Court Guard?"
Having said that, Aizen's tone began becoming cold and severe. His entire aura changed instantly, and a sense of transcendence gushed from his body.
"Kurosaki Ichigo." Unohana Retsu called out as she walked up to Ichigo.
"Is there anything I can do, Captain Unohana!"
Although his strength had greatly improved, when facing Aizen, Ichigo still felt a kind of lack of confidence in his heart. It was the psychological shadow left after being nakedly crushed by Aizen in Soul Society.
"You're the only one among us who wasn't affected by Kyōka Suigetsu. We're going to do our best to create a suitable opening for you, and all you have to do is seize that opportunity and defeat Aizen."
"And time is very tight now—not only here with Aizen, but also at the Captain-Commander's location. I think there must be a very serious situation occurring!"
Unohana Retsu frowned, her anxious expression self-evident.
"Captain Yamamoto?"
Hearing what Unohana Retsu said, Kurosaki Ichigo also felt the dryness of moisture in the air. After only a few minutes, he felt parched and his lips were cracked.
"The Captain-Commander's Zanpakuto is the strongest and oldest fire-type Zanpakuto in Soul Society so far. After its Bankai, it will emit tremendous heat and affect the Human World."
"If the battle cannot be resolved in a short period of time, the water in the entire world may slowly evaporate over time."
"If there are such serious consequences, Captain Yamamoto shouldn't use it in the Human World!"
Hearing Unohana Retsu describe the horror of Ryūjin Jakka, Kurosaki Ichigo's expression changed instantly.
"Because of this, Central 46 has strictly prohibited the Captain-Commander from using Bankai in the Human World, because... once he uses Bankai, it proves that the Captain-Commander..."
"Has encountered an irresistible and powerful enemy—an opponent with the power to subvert Soul Society!"
As the scene shifted, Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni, who had completed his Bankai, was holding a blade that was slightly steaming like charcoal.
His body exuded a suffocating scorching sensation. Just getting close to him made breathing difficult.
"Zanka no Tachi, East..."
"Kyokujitsujin..."
Fiander focused intently on the blade in Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni's hand. A sense of urgency constantly emerged in his heart.
In fact, there was no need for this kind of danger warning. He, who understood the plot, was very clear about the opponent's Bankai ability. Ryūjin Jakka after Bankai didn't fail to release flames—rather, it converged all its flames onto the blade.
It neither burned nor emitted explosive flames, but simply erased everything it touched without a trace.
At this time, within the transformation pillars, the solid ice covering the buildings began emitting large amounts of steam. This was the performance of ice evaporating after encountering high temperature.
If it weren't for Fiander's Reiatsu being superior to his opponent's at this moment, what was emitting now would not only be steam—all the solid ice would melt in an instant, turning to water and dissipating.
"What are you wary of? Haven't you been waiting for my Bankai? So... are you ready?"
Suddenly, Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni gripped the handle with both hands simultaneously. His words contained extremely violent killing intent.
"Ready? Prepared for what?"
Fiander pretended to be relaxed in his words, as if he wasn't shaken by the other's statement.
"Of course... prepared to die!!"
"Haa!"
Following Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni's angry shout, his entire body transformed into an afterimage, flashing through the sky at such high speed that it was impossible to detect his opponent's movements with the naked eye alone.
Fiander's consciousness began extending. A massive field of awareness centered on him began capturing Genryūsai's figure.
Ten seconds later, the other party appeared above Fiander's head. The tall leaping figure raised his Zanpakuto above his head with both hands and looked down at Fiander below with a pair of flame-filled eyes, like an enraged guardian deity.
Before the blade arrived, a chilling sharpness had already locked onto Fiander's body, as if announcing his opponent's death in advance.
"You're truly worthy of the name, worthy of being called the strongest Shinigami in a millennium. If it were me from a month ago, perhaps I really would fall here."
"But..."
I am the only one in this world who has transcended the boundary of life and death. We are no longer at the same level of existence!
At this point, Fiander's eyes changed. If Fiander had maintained the emotions of an ordinary creature the previous second, then from this moment, an indescribable presence emerged from his body. This kind of aura—even Aizen had never witnessed before.
In his previous life, Fiander, as the king of mortals who unified the world, had started young, but his personality was exceptionally resolute. He'd embarked on a path of opposing the gods throughout the world with his mortal body.
In the end, he was not tolerated by most of the gods in that world, causing that world to be destroyed. All the relatives and friends around him had fallen in the planet's nuclear explosion.
If it weren't for the blessing of his only best friend, the goddess of eternal winter, Nakua Stella, who bestowed the godhead of winter when she fell, Fiander himself would likely have had his soul torn apart in the process of traveling through the space-time tunnel.
He wouldn't even have had the chance to come to Hueco Mundo and become a Menos Grande. So in this life, he'd restrained his edge and was willing to hide under Aizen's command, all to achieve his ultimate goal.
As for dignity and personality—compared to those who'd fallen in that incident, they weren't worth mentioning to Fiander.
"Have you ever seen a true god, Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni?"
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