With his brief vacation concluded, Azrael prepared to return to Velkairos.
However, before departing, he needed to personally retrieve the materials he'd ordered previously.
The Diamond-level Lore Cardian who delivered the materials seemed puzzled about why Master Azrael required Diamond-level materials, though he refrained from voicing his confusion. While unusual, this wasn't unprecedented, after all, certain card bonds required lower-level cards, which explained such purchases. He didn't assume Azrael was a Diamond-level Lore Cardian himself.
After collecting the materials, Azrael found accommodations in the city.
As one of only four Master-level Lore Cardians in the Empire of Aetherlight, his treatment was naturally exceptional.
Listening to occasional birdsong drift through the window, Azrael took a deep breath to center himself.
"Now, let's create the [Hōgyoku]."
"After all this delay, Aizen can finally advance to Diamond rank."
He shook his head slightly at the thought. Aizen was a card the young man had created at Gold level, yet he'd unexpectedly become one of the last to reach Diamond rank.
Materials, especially high-level ones, were exceptionally difficult to obtain, leaving Azrael with few alternatives.
He wished he could simply shout, "Wind Spirit Moon Shadow, activate!" and have the materials materialize from thin air.
With a sigh, Azrael cleared his mind of extraneous thoughts and focused his mental energy on the [Evolution Orb] (Red), [Deity Remains] (Red), and [Essence of the Manifested Heart] (Red).
[Please begin to weave your story.]
[Initially, Aizen created the Hōgyoku in pursuit of power beyond his natural limits.]
[After being fed countless Shinigami souls and fragments of the Soul King's power, Aizen's Hōgyoku absorbed the Hōgyoku crafted by Kisuke Urahara. Only then did it achieve some semblance of satisfaction, the perfect Hōgyoku Aizen had sought.]
"Complete."
Honestly, after crafting so many cards, Azrael had become somewhat desensitized to the process.
He simply stored the Hōgyoku card and examined its information.
[Perfect Hōgyoku]
Rank: Diamond
Quality: Red
Category: Item
Features:
[Heart Transformation]: After fusing with the Hōgyoku, the individual continuously evolves according to their innermost desires.
[Complete Regeneration]: After fusing with the Hōgyoku, the individual's recovery ability is greatly enhanced. Even a fatal blow insufficient to kill a Hollow will fail to destroy the fused individual.
Introduction: What kind of being do you wish to become?
The abilities of the [Perfect Hōgyoku] aligned with Azrael's expectations.
After a brief mental refresh, he prepared to advance Aizen to Diamond rank.
Sensing the [Limit Breaker] (Red), [Hegemon of the Sky] (Red), and [Lonely Seeker] (Red) on the table before him, Azrael slowly closed his eyes.
Simultaneously, the Hōgyoku card in his hand began emitting golden light.
[Please begin to write your story.]
[After fusing with the Hōgyoku, Aizen remained convinced he would never be defeated by Yoriichi Tsugikuni, despite the opponent's overwhelming Bankai.]
[Only at the very end did Aizen finally realize that Kurosaki Ichigo's strength surpassed his own. After being struck head-on by Mugetsu, he managed to survive thanks to his extraordinary regenerative abilities, though he understood he'd been defeated.]
Card creation complete.
Azrael opened his eyes to find the materials and Hōgyoku card had vanished, replaced by a card radiating brilliant light. He breathed a sigh of relief.
"Success! This will accumulate valuable experience for Artoria's eventual promotion."
After briefly composing himself, Azrael stored Aizen's card and examined it.
[Throne of the Heavens·Aizen Sōsuke]
Rank: Diamond
Quality: Red
Category: Creature
Skills:
[Kidō Master] [Zanpakutō·Shikai·Kyōka Suigetsu]
[Hōgyoku Fusion]: After fusing with the perfect Hōgyoku, Aizen finally achieved his wish of obtaining power that transcends the boundary between Shinigami and Hollow. When facing mortal danger in the physical world or reaching his current limits, the Hōgyoku assists him in entering the next evolutionary stage.
Note: Maximum number of evolutions is five.
Abilities:
[Hairspray Hands], [I Am an Inventor], [The Battle of Shinigami is a Battle of Reiatsu], [Disguiser], [Lord of Hueco Mundo],
[Limit Breaker]: By breaking through natural limits, Aizen's Reiatsu slowly increases in proportion to the card holder's spiritual power.
Note: Upper limit is Master level.
Description: Gods are merely humans skilled in disguise.
Advancement: Gold Rank [5th Division Vice-Captain·Aizen Sōsuke] → Emerald Rank [Lord of Hueco Mundo·Aizen Sōsuke] → Diamond Rank [Throne of the Heavens·Aizen Sōsuke].
Bond:
When appearing with characters from the same series as [Gin Ichimaru], the effect [Traitor? Traitor.] can be activated.
After reviewing Aizen's card information, Azrael was momentarily stunned.
Compared to Emerald Rank, Diamond Rank Aizen possessed only one additional skill and one additional trait.
The [Hōgyoku Fusion] trait mirrored the original story. During the battle of Karakura Town, Aizen evolved only five times before being defeated by the orange-haired prodigy.
Therefore, Azrael wasn't dissatisfied. He hadn't expected Aizen to continue evolving indefinitely, after all, that would transcend Diamond-level capabilities entirely.
However, the [Limit Breaker] trait proved pleasantly surprising.
This meant Azrael only needed to advance to Master level to instantly acquire a turret of equivalent power.
That's right, just a turret.
After all, only spiritual pressure increased. Although battles between Shinigami were fundamentally battles of spiritual pressure, that principle applied specifically to the Bleach universe.
On Earth, multiple power systems existed beyond Shinigami abilities.
"Still, with the recovery power of [Hōgyoku Fusion] combined with various trait enhancements, Aizen shouldn't be instantly eliminated."
Thinking this, Azrael breathed with relief.
Then he immediately recalled the Diamond-level trait on the [Las Noches] venue card.
Another Possibility: When [Las Noches] reaches Diamond rank, [Throne of the Heavens·Aizen Sōsuke] will gain a completely new form.
"Aizen has already fused with the Hōgyoku, so I can't possibly fuse another one like Ulquiorra and the others, right?"
With this thought, Azrael immediately summoned Aizen.
Admittedly, Aizen's aesthetic peaked during the first and third fusion stages, but the other stages...
Azrael suspected that after being pressured by a stat monster, Aizen abandoned concern for appearances and focused solely on becoming stronger.
Unfortunately, battles in Bleach were fundamentally about style and worth fighting for.
"So, can you advance directly to the next stage?"
Azrael asked, observing Aizen in his first fusion stage.
Hearing this, Aizen carefully assessed his condition before shaking his head slightly. "No, I can only advance when facing a life-threatening crisis or when my strength reaches its absolute limit."
"Like right now."
As soon as he finished speaking, massive spiritual pressure instantly enveloped the brown-haired man, transforming him completely.
"So quickly?"
Azrael was surprised. From Aizen's explanation, he'd expected the process to take considerable time, yet he'd already advanced to the next stage within minutes.
Aizen, now enveloped in materialized, milky-white spiritual pressure, nodded. "Reaching this level isn't particularly difficult."
"However, I may require assistance for subsequent stages."
He never felt ashamed of his power.
Furthermore, the brown-haired man was curious about what awaited him.
Azrael understood immediately and summoned Kurosaki Ichigo.
"Let's relocate first, so we don't alarm the citizens."
With that, he led both of them beyond the city limits.
With the demon army annihilated, ample open space existed to the north where Azrael could safely experiment with Aizen's abilities.
Soon, with Kurosaki Ichigo's "assistance," Aizen entered the fifth stage of Hōgyoku fusion.
At this moment, countless tiny stones levitated under the immense spiritual pressure, only to be crushed into dust and scattered by the wind.
Azrael, stroking his chin, observed Aizen's new form and nodded with satisfaction. "Excellent. Approximately equivalent to Ichigo's Mugetsu state."
This was truthful, though to be considerate of Aizen, he omitted the fact that this assumed Kurosaki Ichigo didn't actually use [Final Getsuga Tenshō].
After testing basic abilities, it was time to test [Las Noches]'s power.
"Aizen, do you believe you can undergo another Hōgyoku fusion?"
Aizen understood Azrael's meaning. He carefully sensed the power within his body, a slightly puzzled expression crossing his features, his skin compressing to the sides. "I believe I can evolve further."
"?"
Azrael paused, then turned and gestured for Ichigo Kurosaki to strike Aizen again.
Unfortunately, attacks of this magnitude posed no life-threatening danger to Aizen in his fifth fusion stage.
For a moment, all three stood in stalemate.
Azrael opened his mouth and said helplessly, "We'll simply have to wait."
There was no need to force Kurosaki Ichigo into his Mugetsu state just for an experiment. After all, releasing [Final Getsuga Tenshō] would impose a mandatory seven-day cooldown period.
Who knew if something unexpected might occur during those seven days?
The sun rose and set.
Night fell swiftly, pitch-black darkness enveloping the city.
The Northern Guard Lore Cardians remaining in the city were changing shifts.
The replacement whispered to his colleague, "Did you detect Master Azrael's aura this afternoon?"
"Of course. That Diamond-level aura was so obvious it was impossible to ignore. Master Azrael was probably just testing bonds, right?"
The Lore Cardians had certainly sensed the fluctuating aura in the city that afternoon, though they simply assumed Azrael was experimenting with bonds. After all, until Azrael left the city, Aizen remained in only his second fusion stage.
Just then,
BOOM!
A terrifying roar echoed from far away, and howling wind swept across the land instantly.
The Lore Cardians standing guard on the city walls, not even bothering to straighten their disheveled hair, cried out, "Who is this?! Are there still demon remnants?!"
"This aura! Could it be Master-level?!"
Feeling pressure like a mountain crushing down upon them, the Northern Guards in the city wavered between calm and panic.
However, the aura vanished as quickly as it appeared, and soon the night returned to tranquility.
Just as the Lore Cardians on the city walls exchanged confused glances, wondering what had transpired, Azrael appeared.
He coughed awkwardly and said, "Excuse me, everyone! The commotion just now was accidentally caused by me. Please don't panic in the city."
The present Lore Cardians were stunned initially, then replied, "Yes, sir."
After Azrael departed, their tense nerves finally relaxed.
"That scared me! I thought the demon army had resurfaced."
"Tell me about it. Looks like Master Azrael's new cards aren't just Diamond-level."
Elsewhere.
Azrael couldn't help scratching his cheek. He hadn't anticipated such a commotion.
It was fair to say this so-called "new form" proved somewhat unexpected.
"Either way, this should ease Velkairos's burden even further."
Light rain pattered the ground, slightly moistening the moss between rocks.
White mist filled the air, obscuring the view of Shudoria in the rain.
With a long screeching sound of brakes, the train from Beijing slowly pulled into the Shudoria station.
As the doors opened, a stern-faced man, his features marked by scars, stepped out.
At this moment, a young man wearing the simple uniform of the Empire of Aetherlight Cardian Master Association quickly approached him.
"Are you Mr. Kim Woo-bin?"
Upon hearing his name, the man turned to address the Association staff member who'd already reached him. "I am."
"Please come this way. Master Azrael is waiting for you."
Seeing he'd found his target, the staff member smiled and walked ahead, escorting the man from the train out of the station.
"Mr. Kim Woo-bin, your Aetherlight dialect is as fluent as my colleague's. If I didn't know your identity, I'd have assumed you were a native citizen."
Upon hearing this, the man known as "Kim Woo-bin" pursed his scarred lips and said solemnly, "The Empire of Aetherlight is the Celestial Empire. We humble subjects of vassal states should diligently study its language."
"Those are outdated notions, Mr. Kim Woo-bin. Please don't say such things."
The staff member laughed heartily, uncertain whether the man behind him was sincere or merely flattering.
However, that wasn't his concern, he simply needed to escort the man safely to Master Azrael.
Shortly after, the black sedan stopped steadily at the gate of the Shudoria Cardian Master Association headquarters.
"Come, Mr. Kim Woo-bin, I'll escort you upstairs."
The staff member led Kim Woo-bin to the elevator.
Realizing he was about to meet the young man who'd saved his life, Kim Woo-bin couldn't help but feel nervous. He took several deep breaths to calm himself.
Ding,
Accompanied by a crisp beep, the elevator doors slowly opened.
"Master Azrael, I've brought him safely."
The staff member spoke respectfully, bowing slightly.
He was about to prompt the man beside him to step forward and offer greetings.
However, when he turned around, he saw Kim Woo-bin already kneeling on the ground, his entire body prostrated.
"My benefactor!"