Fate In Bleach (488)

Chapter 488 - Saved

During Sōsuke Aizen's rule over Las Noches, there were two prohibitions.

First, the Espada were forbidden from firing Cero Oscuras within Las Noches.

Second, Espada ranked four or higher were forbidden from releasing their Resurrección beneath the dome.

The primary purpose of these two rules was to protect the "dome" of Hueco Mundo.

The sky in Hueco Mundo had no stars, only a dreary grey expanse.

After Aizen took control of Hueco Mundo, he grew unaccustomed to its sky and constructed a dome above Las Noches to replace it.

However, no matter how realistic Aizen's techniques were, the dome he created had limits to the power it could withstand.

Among these limitations, the Espada's "Cero Oscuras" and the Resurrección release of Espada ranked four or higher would cause damage to the dome.

The difference was that a "Cero Oscuras" fired by Espada ranked below four would only damage the dome if aimed skyward.

But the immense spiritual pressure released by the Resurrección of Espada ranked four or higher could damage the dome simply by existing.

After Sōsuke Aizen was imprisoned in the Muken, this damaged dome went unrepaired.

Now, under the immense spiritual pressure of Ulquiorra's Resurrección, the star-like dome fractured beneath numerous black cracks and shattered.

Boom!

Blue light flashed. Quilge Opie was blasted out of Las Noches by the Lanza del Relámpago thrown by Ulquiorra, subsequently exploding in mid-air.

Rumble!

Perhaps because it exploded in the air, the fiery blast didn't form a mushroom cloud but rather expanded outwards violently like a giant fireball, reaching a hundred meters in diameter.

It looked as if a second sun had appeared in the sky.

Boom!

Powerful shockwaves radiated outwards from the center of the explosion, incinerating everything they touched in their invisible path.

Swish!

Ulquiorra, in his released state, shot out from Las Noches, standing in the void and looking up at the fiery explosion in the sky.

Bang!

As the explosion dissipated, a charred figure plummeted from its very center, crashing onto the sand below.

Quilge Opie rose from the ground.

At this moment, Quilge Opie's body bore multiple injuries. His left arm was bent at an unnatural angle, clearly fractured.

His neck was twisted sharply to one side; for an ordinary person, such an injury would be fatal.

However, appearing on Quilge Opie, these injuries didn't seem particularly severe.

His spiritual pressure showed no signs of wavering.

Crack, crack...

Several threads formed from spiritual pressure rapidly mended Quilge Opie's arm. Then, Quilge Opie grasped his head with both arms and forcefully snapped it back into place.

"Hmm, it seems the strength of 'Blut Vene' still needs improvement."

"This is something I must report back to His Majesty."

Blut Vene was a technique created by Yhwach after his return to combat the Shinigami.

It involved injecting spiritual pressure into the blood vessels to enhance one's capabilities.

Blut Vene was divided into Blut Vene Anhaben (Defensive) and Blut Vene Arterie (Offensive).

Blut Vene Anhaben could enhance a Quincy's defense, making their bodies resistant even to attacks from captain-level powerhouses.

Blut Vene Arterie greatly increased a Quincy's attack power, significantly boosting their offensive strength.

Ulquiorra was very strong; after releasing his Resurrección, he could even rival Ichigo Kurosaki in his dual-blade Shikai state.

And dual-blade Ichigo was stronger than single-blade Bankai Ichigo.

If even Ichigo in his single-blade Bankai could break Quilge Opie's defense, then Ulquiorra in his Resurrección naturally could as well.

Blut Vene Anhaben was the Quincy's strongest defense.

If an opponent couldn't break through Blut Vene Anhaben, then no matter how numerous, they couldn't harm the Quincy.

But once Blut Vene Anhaben was breached, the Quincy's own safety would be greatly threatened.

Quilge Opie naturally understood this.

"Silence is golden, eloquence is silver..."

"It seems if we don't show our true abilities, we will be underestimated."

"Thus-"

"Allow me to show you the final form of the Quincy!"

"Vollständig-"

"Biskiel!" (Justice of God)

Boom!

In an instant, blue spiritual pressure erupted from Quilge Opie's body. This powerful spiritual pressure formed a pair of Reishi wings behind him. Additionally, a disc-shaped blue halo floated above Quilge's head.

"Sankt Zwinger!" (Holy Fortification)

...

"Subjugate her—Tiburón!"

In a canyon within Hueco Mundo, the Tres Espada Tier Harribel, covered in blood, unleashed her powerful spiritual pressure, completing her Zanpakutō's Resurrección.

"La Gota!" (War Drop)

The giant sword in her hand swung out a torrent of water, slashing towards the green-haired woman opposite her with immense force.

Boom!

But unfortunately, such an attack yielded little effect.

"Vollständig—Gadreel!" (God's Lightning)

Rumble—

Streaks of lightning flashed within the canyon. Vast amounts of lightning descended from the sky, centering around Candice Catnipp.

"Electrocution!"

Boom boom boom boom boom boom...

Ahhhhhhh...

Under the endless lightning, the Hollows Harribel was protecting within the canyon were instantly killed.

Even Harribel herself had little ability to fight back under Candice Catnipp's assault.

The compatibility between their abilities was simply too poor.

Speaking of which, Harribel's luck was indeed not very good.

In the war between Hueco Mundo and the Soul Society, she encountered Toshiro Hitsugaya, whose abilities strongly countered hers. The water controlled by Tiburón was directly frozen into ice under Hitsugaya's control.

In this Quincy invasion, the attacker here possessed the Schrift "T" - "The Thunderbolt".

Water conducts electricity. Under Candice Catnipp's lightning, Harribel needed to expend vast amounts of spiritual pressure to insulate herself from the electricity.

Under these circumstances, no matter how strong Harribel was, she could only exert less than seventy percent of her strength in the fight against Candice Catnipp.

...

"Ah, looks like we've run into trouble, Lilynette."

On a desert dune somewhere, Coyote Starrk rubbed his hair, speaking to Lilynette Gingerbuck.

Around the two of them, nearly a hundred Quincy had suddenly appeared.

Above these Quincy floated a girl with long black hair, wearing a white short dress.

Giselle Gewelle!

Although appearing female, her actual gender was male.

"Hunt him down, Los Lobos!"

...

"Quite lively, isn't it."

Ailin remarked softly.

Using Bakudō Number 58, "Kakushitsuijaku," Ailin quickly sensed the four most intense battle points within Hueco Mundo.

Among them, the Sexta Espada Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez was at a disadvantage against Meninas McAllon but could still hold on for a while.

The Cuatro Espada Ulquiorra Cifer held the advantage against Quilge Opie.

However, under Quilge Opie's Vollständig ability "Sankt Zwinger" (Absolute Subordination to Reishi), Ulquiorra had been ambushed and lost half his body.

If not for Ulquiorra possessing "High-Speed Regeneration" second only to Sōsuke Aizen's, allowing him to expend spiritual pressure to restore his body, he likely would have been killed by Quilge Opie earlier.

Now, Ulquiorra was trapped within Quilge Opie's Schrift ability, "The Jail." Even after releasing his Segunda Etapa and significantly boosting his power, he couldn't break the Reishi prison confining him.

However, Ailin had already sensed Ichigo Kurosaki's spiritual pressure there. He figured that with Ichigo present, a mere Quilge Opie wouldn't cause much trouble.

As for the Primera Espada Coyote Starrk, under the onslaught of Giselle Gewelle's "Cero Metralleta," Giselle couldn't even get close to Starrk. His own ability, "The Zombie," was completely ineffective against Starrk.

If Giselle dared to use "Blut Vene Anhaben" to withstand Starrk's Cero, Starrk could continuously use Cero Metralleta to control him until death.

Barring unforeseen circumstances, if Giselle Gewelle didn't flee, he would inevitably be killed by Coyote Starrk.

Thus, the most dangerous situation seemed to be with the Tres Espada Tier Harribel.

Having grasped the overall situation in Hueco Mundo, Ailin no longer hesitated, flying rapidly towards Tier Harribel's location.

When he had sensed her earlier, Harribel's spiritual pressure had already begun to weaken.

If he delayed any longer, Harribel might very well follow her original fate and be captured by the Quincy and taken to the Wandenreich.

Swish!

Flying at full speed, Ailin created one sonic boom after another, the thunderous sound trailing far behind his silhouette.

In just over twenty seconds, Ailin arrived at the canyon where Candice Catnipp and Tier Harribel were fighting.

At that moment, the scene before Ailin's eyes was Harribel, her limbs broken, hoisted high by Quincy under Candice Catnipp's command.

Swish!

Candice Catnipp felt a light breeze pass by. In the next instant, Harribel, bound to the wooden cross, had vanished.

"Who?"

Candice Catnipp's expression changed drastically, and she shouted aloud.

Candice Catnipp was currently in her Quincy: Vollständig state, arguably her peak strength.

But even so, she hadn't been able to clearly see what had just happened.

She only knew that Tier Harribel, the current Queen of Hueco Mundo whom she had defeated, was gone.

Fortunately, although Candice Catnipp couldn't sense Ailin's spiritual pressure, she was very familiar with Harribel's, having just fought her.

Quickly, Candice Catnipp sensed Harribel's spiritual pressure and turned to look towards the canyon.

"Who is that?"

In Candice Catnipp's sharply contracting pupils, she saw a figure wearing a white captain's haori gently placing Harribel on the ground.

Under the pale moonlight of Hueco Mundo, Candice Catnipp saw the number on the back of Ailin's haori.

Five!

"Fifth Division Captain, Ailin!"

...

"How do you feel?"

Placing Harribel on the ground, Ailin asked her softly.

"It's you, Lord Ailin."

After the war between the Seireitei and Hueco Mundo ended, Harribel, as one of the top powerhouses in Hueco Mundo, naturally learned who the Shinigami was that defeated Lord Aizen.

Therefore, in Ailin's presence, Harribel maintained a humble demeanor.

"It's alright. That person held back."

Harribel gave a bitter smile.

As the nominal Queen of Hueco Mundo, Harribel naturally possessed her own pride.

Even if her abilities were countered, the fact that she survived solely due to the enemy's mercy left Harribel deeply ashamed.

However, seeing Ailin appear, the worry in Harribel's heart finally eased.

In the past two years, as the nominal Queen of Hueco Mundo, Harribel had naturally had considerable contact with the Seireitei.

Most importantly, Harribel had accepted the Seireitei's explanation regarding the balance of souls across the three realms. She consistently controlled the Hollows in Hueco Mundo, deciding how many to release into the World of the Living based on the total soul count reported by the Seireitei.

When Hueco Mundo was attacked, Harribel knew she couldn't resist.

The former Tres Espada Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, whom Harribel had sent to the World of the Living, had gone to seek help from Substitute Shinigami Ichigo Kurosaki.

And she herself had sent news of the Hueco Mundo invasion to the Seireitei.

Although asking the Shinigami for help was a humiliation for Hollows, Harribel had no choice but to do so to maintain the stability of the three realms.

No one wished for the world's destruction!

Even the Quincy of the Wandenreich led by Yhwach felt this way.

Yhwach's desire to destroy the world and create a new one was influenced by his own ability.

Yhwach could fragment his soul and bestow it upon others. Those who received Yhwach's soul gained the power to destroy Hollows and were called "Quincy."

After these people who received Yhwach's soul died, everything about them returned to Yhwach's body, absorbed by him.

Having absorbed the souls of countless deceased Quincy, Yhwach was affected by their innumerable memories of fearing death and not wanting to die.

Thus, he desired to create a world where living beings no longer feared death.

And such a world was the original world.

The living and the dead danced together. In such a world, the living would no longer fear death, because even after dying, it was merely a change in existence; they could still interact with the living, coexisting in the same chaotic world.

Honestly, if the Quincy of the Wandenreich knew their Emperor wished to create such a world, perhaps quite a few would rebel against him.

Of course, because Yhwach possessed "Auswählen," the ability to reclaim the powers of Quincy, those like Haschwalth who wished to stop Yhwach could only exert subtle influence, making Yhwach mistake the "future" he saw—the one where he was killed—as a dream, thereby preventing him from changing that future.