Chapter 193: Above the Sky, What Lies Beyond?
Unable to endure Fiander staring at him with such intensity, Ichimaru Gin extended his hand to push away the other's grip. He turned sideways and forced himself to speak: "What's the point of asking me? What about you?"
"Your current strength already surpasses Captain Aizen's, doesn't it? You no longer have any reason to obey him. So why should you intervene in the affairs of this world?"
"You should understand that even without your involvement, Captain Aizen has his own plans!"
Seeing Ichimaru Gin's vigilant expression, Fiander couldn't help but laugh. "It's truly rare to see you look like this, Ichimaru!"
"Don't be so nervous. I harbor no malicious intent toward you. As for my purpose—I can't tell you that yet!"
Fiander extended his hand, and a white light flashed at his fingertips. Then he began chanting: "Caldona, release your radiance. In the name of the Tree of Life, deliver salvation's hymn. The world is filled with dust—listen to the voice within your heart!"
"Grant you new life—Law of Life: Salvation!"
Chime.
With the sound of beautiful wind chimes, Ichimaru Gin stood stunned as his entire body became enveloped by brilliant white light. After several seconds, the light dissipated. Ichimaru Gin discovered that the injuries covering his body had completely healed—not merely the physical wounds.
Even his mental exhaustion and deeper spiritual wear had been restored under the other's ability.
"This is..."
Ichimaru Gin reached out and touched his temple, looking at Fiander with complicated emotions. He pondered for a long moment before finally speaking: "You bastard, just what are you—"
Before Ichimaru Gin could finish his sentence, Fiander suddenly placed his hand on the other's shoulder once more. Then both figures flickered and materialized directly above the clouds in the present world.
"Do you know what exists up there?"
Before he could fully recover from the sudden displacement, Ichimaru Gin—whose feet now stood upon a sea of clouds—heard Fiander's voice. He followed the other's gaze, which directed itself to the space directly above them both.
"Deeper into the sky? I don't know what you mean."
Ichimaru Gin, who typically spoke with eloquent confidence, found himself unusually silent at this moment.
At this instant, there existed no obstacles whatsoever above their heads—only an endless expanse of blue sky, stretching boundlessly.
Fiander suddenly asked Ichimaru Gin again: "Then do you want to know?"
Seeing that Ichimaru Gin didn't respond for quite some time, Fiander continued speaking of his own accord. "Above the Seireitei of Soul Society, in the deep space approximately one hundred thousand kilometers distant, there exist seventy-two barriers. To pass through these seventy-two barriers, even an ordinary captain-level Shinigami would require a full week of continuous Shunpo travel."
"Beyond those barriers lies the Soul King's Palace!"
"What?!"
Fiander's words caused Ichimaru Gin's pupils to dilate. His eyes looked at the other with obvious discomfort. "The Soul King's Palace? Such classified information—how could you possibly..."
Hearing Ichimaru Gin's shocked tone, Fiander ignored the reaction and continued speaking. "Since Soul Society has the Soul King's Palace above it, what else exists in this world beyond what we can see?"
"You've lived for hundreds of years. Have you never been curious about these questions? Have you never paid attention to these unknown mysteries?"
Fiander turned his head to look at Ichimaru Gin, then shook his head. "No, I suppose not. Living in a place like Soul Society, I imagine that for you, becoming a captain of Gotei 13 already represents a tremendous accomplishment."
"In your eyes, climbing upward through the ranks is the only meaning your existence holds. That's why I genuinely admired old man Yamamoto!"
As he spoke, Fiander sighed. Although the two had been enemies, what Yamamoto had accomplished had broken customs and monopolies that had persisted in Soul Society for countless years.
It was unfortunate that even Yamamoto remained bound by certain frameworks, never breaking through the ultimate barrier. Otherwise, with his talent, he might have risen to an even higher level.
"Could it be... Could it be that your goal all along has been the Soul King's Palace?"
"You've been planning this since you first approached Captain Aizen!"
Ichimaru Gin's complexion grew ugly, because certain secrets became more dangerous the more one knew about them. At this critical juncture, the fact that Fiander was revealing this information to him clearly meant the other wouldn't allow him to simply leave.
"But that shouldn't be possible. You're merely a Menos Grande who's lived in Hueco Mundo year-round. Why would you be fixated on the Soul King's Palace?"
Suddenly, Ichimaru Gin's expression changed drastically. He abruptly remembered the words Tessai Tsukabishi had spoken before dying: "You... you outsider!"
Outsider? What did that term mean? Even with Ichimaru Gin's limited perspective, when combined with everything Fiander had done and the methods he'd displayed over the years, a certain conclusion couldn't help but form in his mind.
"You aren't... you aren't from the Three Realms, are you? Where do you originate from? Hell? The Dangai?"
Ichimaru Gin was breaking out in cold sweat at this moment, looking at Fiander with extreme wariness. Although the other party kept insisting he shouldn't be nervous, anyone would feel fear when confronting an unknown existence.
"Too narrow-minded, Ichimaru. In your view, should all worlds have been created by the Soul King?"
"Haven't you ever considered that other worlds might exist?"
Fiander spread his hands, and a whirlwind carrying a mysterious atmosphere swirled within his palms. Various strange colors flickered within the vortex, deeply captivating Ichimaru Gin's attention.
"Hah..."
Suddenly, Ichimaru Gin took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down and accept this revelation. He quickly organized his thoughts and murmured aloud: "We were wrong. Captain Aizen and I were both completely wrong!"
"From the very beginning, you weren't merely targeting the Soul King's Palace. I'm afraid your true objective is the Soul King himself—and Captain Aizen represents the most crucial component of your plan!"
Clap! Clap! Clap!
At this moment, Fiander smiled and applauded Ichimaru Gin, laughing heartily. "Magnificent! Simply magnificent!"
"To deduce the general direction with such limited information—quite impressive!"
Looking at Fiander's enigmatic smile, Ichimaru Gin sighed, then smiled himself. "Come now. Since you've revealed all these things to me, presumably you don't intend to kill me, correct?"
"So then, what do you want me to do, Fiander?"
On another battlefield, the trio of Urahara Kisuke fighting against Aizen were already covered in wounds at this moment. Even engaging in close combat, they remained unable to inflict fatal damage upon Aizen. The insignificant wounds they managed to create were healed instantaneously.
BOOM!
Finally, the blade in Aizen's hand pierced through Urahara Kisuke's body. At this moment, the white chrysalis covering Aizen's exterior had begun splitting apart. Although his body remained wrapped in the materialized milky-white Reiatsu, his head had become fully exposed.
With a pair of profound eyes, he looked down at the severely injured Urahara Kisuke. Beneath the dazzling sunlight, Aizen smiled with contempt. "You have failed, Urahara Kisuke!"
With this, Aizen's third stage of fusion with the Hogyoku had been completed.
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