The two walked up to the truck. Chu Yang pointed at the driver's seat and said, "Go see for yourself."
Chadu looked at the driver's seat, his expression suddenly changing.
The driver's seat was empty!
This was a truck without a driver!
"You should leave here first, or you might get hurt by accident later."
Chu Yang pointed at the alley entrance and said to Chadu.
"What do you mean?"
Chadu asked nervously.
Chu Yang shook his head. At the end of the street, a humanoid Hollow with greenish skin had already appeared.
He no longer bothered with Chadu and went to meet it alone.
Chu Yang used Wood Release to condense a wooden sword in his hand, then wrapped it with Armament Haki.
Finally...
He took a deep breath, slowly exhaling. His breath transformed into flowing, colorful ribbons, as brilliant as the Milky Way.
This was the pinnacle of Breathing Style.
Source Breathing!
A terrifying aura spread from Chu Yang, diffusing outwards like a tide.
The Hollow's steps halted, its body trembling slightly.
This human in front of it was not a Shinigami!
It didn't feel any power belonging to a Shinigami from him.
But...
Death hung over its head like a shadow!
That terrifying aura wasn't even spiritual pressure; it was truly just an aura.
How many battles had he experienced, how many enemies had he killed, to accumulate such a terrifying aura?
For the first time, the Hollow felt fear towards an ordinary human.
Chu Yang walked faster and faster.
His figure, under the twilight sun, stretched into a lingering afterimage.
Under the amplification of Source Breathing, the wooden sword in his hand seemed to possess vibrant life.
With one swing!
Chu Yang had already appeared behind the Hollow.
Sword energy wrapped around the Hollow, shimmering with colorful light, as if immersing it in the Milky Way.
"Ah, ah, ah!!!"
The Hollow's screams were not from pain, but from fear.
It could feel the parts of its body wrapped by the ribbons of light crumbling. At the current speed, it would be completely dead in ten seconds at most.
Chu Yang thrust the wooden sword into the ground, resting his hand on the hilt, carefully observing this scene.
"Source Breathing has broken through its existing bottleneck and become a higher-dimensional power. From its effects, it's already very close to the destructive power of a Zanpakuto against spiritual bodies."
"If used in conjunction with a Zanpakuto, it will undoubtedly form a very terrifying power."
"Most importantly, Source Breathing is improving every day. At least, I'm still far from feeling its limits. If it continues to develop..."
As he pondered, the screams in his ears abruptly ceased.
Chu Yang looked up and saw a hideous and terrifying gate hanging high in the void.
The Gates of Hell opened, drawing the soul of the murderer into hell.
Chu Yang was stunned.
He had thought Source Breathing would completely slay this Hollow, but the current situation didn't seem to be that way.
"Next time, I'll have to find a stronger Hollow for experimentation, otherwise it can't withstand the torment."
Chu Yang sighed, a little regretful, then left the alley.
A moment later.
Rukia and Ichigo were drawn to the vicinity by the high-intensity spiritual pressure, and then they both saw the Gates of Hell in the sky.
They just happened to witness the soul of the murderer being dragged into hell.
Rukia's face was filled with shock.
"There's clearly no Shinigami nearby!"
"What on earth happened?"
Just as Rukia was in a panic, Ichigo noticed Chadu standing at the street corner.
He quickly ran over.
"Chadu, why are you here?"
Ichigo walked up to Chadu, but his attention was drawn to the parrot in Chadu's arms. He sensed a human soul hidden inside.
Chadu recounted everything that had just happened, then took Ichigo to see the driverless truck.
"It's a Hollow!"
Rukia appeared silently behind the two, startling them.
"Your classmate killed a Hollow."
"It's not strange for him to do that with his abilities, but..."
Rukia stopped halfway through her sentence.
She stood there frowning, her eyes revealing worry and confusion.
"Yang told me you could handle it..."
Chadu solemnly handed the parrot to Ichigo.
It was only when they were performing the soul burial for Yuichi that they learned the full story.
The next day.
At school, Rukia found Chu Yang and asked him for the details of his fight with the Hollow yesterday.
Chu Yang merely said it was similar to last time.
Although she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, Rukia's intuition told her that Chu Yang was lying.
The questioning could only go so far.
Her relationship with Chu Yang wasn't close, and if she pushed further, she couldn't guarantee that Chu Yang wouldn't get angry.
Moreover, whenever she faced Chu Yang, she often experienced an inexplicable palpitation.
This palpitation had nothing to do with romantic feelings; it was a primal fear.
Rukia didn't want to admit it from the bottom of her heart, but her fear of Chu Yang was objectively present.
Shinigami are exceptionally sensitive to spiritual perceptions.
Rukia's fear originated from Chu Yang's soul.
She speculated that Chu Yang's soul must hide a great secret.
After school.
Rukia, for once, didn't return to Ichigo's house but went to an unassuming general store.
The owner of the general store was a middle-aged man wearing a fisherman's hat, always smiling at everyone.
As soon as he saw Rukia, he became enthusiastic, starting to promote the items in his store.
"You know my current state, so don't make such boring jokes, Mr. Urahara!"
Rukia rolled her eyes at him.
"Alright, alright, I apologize." Kisuke Urahara raised his hands in a gesture of surrender, "How's the Gigai? Are you getting used to it?"
Rukia moved her body around and nodded, "So far, it's fine."
"Of course, everything in my store is good stuff." Kisuke Urahara stood up and shouted into the store, "Ururu, go get the Soul Candy from the warehouse."
"Okay, Mr. Urahara!"
A very soft voice came from inside, barely audible if one didn't listen carefully.
After a while, a little girl with twin pigtails came out with the Soul Candy and handed it to Rukia, who was waiting nearby.
"This is the Soul Candy you asked me for. You know what to pay attention to, so I don't need to say more, right?"
Kisuke Urahara said he wouldn't say more, but he still couldn't help but babble instructions to Rukia.
Rukia couldn't hold back and eagerly interrupted him, "Mr. Urahara, I came here this time for something else."
Kisuke Urahara looked at Rukia with some surprise, "What is it?"
"It's about a human." Rukia recounted what happened after she met Chu Yang, and specifically mentioned the feeling of trepidation she felt towards Chu Yang.
Kisuke Urahara was silent for a moment, then smiled, "Actually, humans like him, while rare in the Human World, are not nonexistent."
"Time always gives rise to some exceptionally talented individuals, possessing powers that even Shinigami can hardly imagine."
"For example, Kurosaki Ichigo, who is currently taking over your Shinigami duties, also possesses extraordinary potential within him."
Rukia seemed convinced by Kisuke Urahara's explanation and nodded silently.
"As for the palpitation..." Kisuke Urahara spread his hands, saying helplessly, "How could an old bachelor like me understand the sparks of love that you young people accidentally ignite?"
"You're really putting me on the spot."
Rukia sprang up excitedly like a startled cat, angrily saying, "I told you it's not that kind of thing!"