"This pair of bastards coordinating looks pretty good."
Faced with a joint pincer attack from two Arrancar, Daniel did not engage head-on; instead, he used Flash Step to leave the battlefield at the moment their attack was about to hit. The two, caught off guard and unable to retract in time, had the four scythes of the Fifth Arrancar clash with the Arrancar of the Eleventh Division.
The intense collision of spiritual pressure shattered all eight tentacles behind the Eleventh Arrancar, and he himself was involuntarily sent flying backward.
"Get out of the way, you nuisance. Stop interfering."
The Fifth Arrancar, looking at the Eleventh Arrancar who had been thrown aside, snorted coldly and immediately swung the four scythes on his back to charge at Daniel once again.
Reality isn't a game; there is no damage negation. Coordination must be precise—especially in a pincer attack. If the opponent suddenly vanishes and you have no time to retract, it would be akin to your own side attacking itself.
If both parties were comrades who trusted each other completely, they would retract in time. But with Arrancar, one never expects any fraternal sentiment. Not taking the opportunity to strike is already a sign of decent character.
"Trash! Utter trash—so you still think you can replace me?"
The Eleventh Arrancar, having just crashed heavily into the sand, was immediately joined by Grimmjow, who appeared at his side. With a disdainful glance, Grimmjow then charged toward Daniel.
"If you were to sprout an extra pair of arms and two heads, you could easily be called a three-headed, six-armed beast."
Watching the charging Fifth Arrancar—one of the Ten Espada—Daniel's mind suddenly entertained such a thought.
Among the Ten Espada, only a few people still remember their names; others only have a vague idea. Grimmjow, the Sixtieth Espada—Daniel can recall his name clearly, thanks to his incessant bluster about fighting Ichigo. As for the Arrancar before him, although his rank is one higher than Grimmjow's, unfortunately Daniel cannot recall his name at all—only vaguely remembering that he was apparently cut down later by Kenpachi Zaraki.
"With Grimmjow's pride, agreeing to face me together with others must be Aizen's order. Is this a test of my strength?"
"Kidō Binding #61: Six Staffs of Light Prison."
"Hadō #63: Thunder Roar Cannon."
Thinking thus, Daniel's movements did not pause for a moment. First, he used a binding spell to restrain the Fiftieth Espada, then immediately delivered a level 63 lightning-element breaking spell.
Boom!
The golden explosion of lightning completely covered the area where the Fiftieth Espada stood. When the light dissipated, the Fiftieth Espada's body had been shattered into fragments by the explosion, with only one of his four arms remaining intact.
"He's still alive? It must be because of his steel skin. As expected of an Arrancar."
Seeing that the Fiftieth Espada still emitted faint energy, Daniel was somewhat surprised. Needless to say, among Shinigami, Arrancar, and Quincy, only the Shinigami lack a unique ability—Arrancar have steel skin, and Quincy have their blood-activating and blood-stilling gear.
"Leopard King's Claw."
Just as Daniel was contemplating if he should deliver a finishing blow, Grimmjow charged over. He unleashed his ultimate move after reverting to his blade form—a blue martial light streak cleaving the sky—and aimed his claw from the left toward Daniel's head.
"Don't be so impulsive, little leopard."
Using the index finger of his left hand to block Grimmjow's Leopard King's Claw, Daniel gave him a gentle smile. Even Aizen can block Ichigo's Bankai with a single finger; for him, stopping a reverted Grimmjow was no problem.
In fact, he had learned that move from Aizen. Under normal circumstances, Daniel would not be so overconfident, but since he was here to meet Aizen, he naturally wanted to elevate his own style.
Admittedly, though this might seem like showing off, judging by the furious and incredulous expression on Grimmjow's face, it did feel rather satisfying.
"Aizen, have you had enough of the show? If you want to test my strength, these people won't suffice."
With those words, an incomparable surge of spiritual pressure burst forth, overwhelming all the Arrancar present. In an instant, a vast number of them collapsed or fell to their knees; only a few remained standing. Even among those, only a handful showed no reaction, while the rest trembled uncontrollably. There was no doubt that this overwhelming spiritual pressure originated from Daniel.
Crack.
The sound of bones shattering caused Daniel to glance at Grimmjow beside him. As the Arrancar closest to him, Grimmjow bore the brunt of the spiritual pressure. Yet this fellow was ruthless—even if his leg bones were shattered, he did not fall to his knees.
"This spiritual pressure is truly terrifying."
Beside him, Ichimaru Gin maintained a fox-like smile, one of the few who showed no sign of reaction under such pressure.
"You want to learn from Kizaru?"
Gin's tone made Daniel momentarily think of Kizaru.
"Aizen-sama, please come."
Sure enough, after displaying his strength, Tōsen soon emerged from the Void Night Palace, leading Daniel and Gin to meet Aizen. Along the way, most of the Arrancar kept their heads bowed, not daring to meet Daniel's gaze. In Hueco Mundo, the rule is that the strong reign supreme—and the power wielded in the Human World and Soul Society, due to factors such as lineage, is entirely different.
Aizen became the ruler of Hueco Mundo not because he could force Arrancar to break, but because his strength subjugated everyone.
"Better if they fight amongst themselves; then I'll have a chance."
After Daniel and Gin's figures disappeared from sight, the eye sockets of the Twentieth Espada's skeletal visage seemed to flicker with an unusual light, as if expecting something.
That was normal. The Twentieth Espada, Bailugang, was originally the King of Hueco Mundo, but once Aizen arrived, he usurped his throne, reducing him to a subordinate. Moreover, Bailugang is not even the Tenth Espada—merely the Twentieth. That is a humiliating fall.
For Bailugang, aside from Aizen, he considered himself unbeatable in Hueco Mundo. He wondered why some bastard called Stark from somewhere was sitting in front of him. Even when Aizen wasn't in Hueco Mundo, real power was not in his hands but that of the Thirtieth Espada.
The Tenth Espada, Koyatai Stark, appeared lethargic and disinterested—a type of person who naturally isn't keen on power. In Bailugang's view, this meant that when Aizen left, Hueco Mundo's power would remain in his grasp. In that case, he could even use that time to plot against Aizen.
In the end, reality proved that he had overestimated his chances. Not to mention, Aizen himself isn't a fool; he would never allow someone to seize power and cause him trouble. Even if he were granted power, he would never have the opportunity to gather all the Arrancar under his command.
In Hueco Mundo, aside from the very few Arrancar who attained self-awakening, the rest are products of Aizen's centuries-long reign. It can be said that Aizen single-handedly altered the ecological habits of Hueco Mundo.
Hollows come in countless bizarre forms. Before the emergence of Arrancar, only a few Hollows possessed human bodies. These Hollows never had the habit of gathering en masse—if Hollows encountered one another, the first impulse would be to devour the other. Back then, each Hollow existed in its own small group, struggling to survive.
Bailugang, this so-called king of Hueco Mundo, is merely the largest among all Hollow forces.
It wasn't until Arrancar appeared that all Hollows acquired human forms and ceased devouring one another on sight—thus leading to the present-day Void Night Palace.
"You've come to see me—are you representing the Xishao Bureau, or yourself?"
In the main hall of the Void Night Palace, after Daniel and Gin followed Tōsen inside, Aizen sat high upon his throne and waved at Daniel.
"Fagelashou—your reputation truly lives up to its name."
Looking at Aizen, whose aura was overwhelmingly imposing, Daniel once again marveled at Fagelashou's prowess.
"Of course I represent myself. I'm here to discuss cooperation."
Facing the imperious Aizen, Daniel felt a surge of emotion. The person he once regarded as extremely dangerous now stood openly, and he could confront him without pretense.
"Cooperation? How so?" Aizen asked with a smile.
"I can take you directly to the Spirit King's Palace. How does that condition sound?"
Although the Spirit King's Palace hovers above Seireitei, it is protected by seventy-two Kidō barriers, making it impossible to traverse without a King Key.
That applies to others, but on Tsunayashiro Tokinada's side, they even possess methods to transfer the Spirit King's Palace to a fake one in a place called "Gu." However, Daniel does not intend to use that method—it is no less than Aizen's method of sacrificing Kūza Town to forge a King Key, and it also requires the assistance of Dao Yuhen Auwula.
Though he wishes to go to the Spirit King's Palace, he is in no hurry to emulate Aizen. His dimensional space is already adept at opening gateways, and with the information Tsunayashiro Tokinada has on the Spirit King's Palace, it is sufficient to bypass those seventy-two barriers and enter directly.
"Oh, you have a King Key."
Aizen's brows arched. He had spent a long time searching the Great Spirit Tome Corridor for information on King Key production.
"I don't have a King Key, but I have a method to go there directly. However, before that, I must be sure of one thing: Aizen-sama, can you handle the 0th Division?"
"0th Division? It seems you know quite a bit. Rest assured, I've long prepared countermeasures against them."
Aizen replied confidently. Naturally, in Aizen's view, his ambitions are unstoppable—and how could he not prepare methods to counter the 0th Division?
"You are truly confident. No wonder later Ichigo's strength exceeded his expectations and made him lose his composure."
Perhaps due to his exceptional talent, Aizen has enjoyed a smooth journey without major setbacks. Now, his confidence is unshakable.
"Then there's no problem."
After having Aizen fight a skirmish with Hyōshūbu Ichibei, Daniel suddenly found himself eagerly anticipating that moment.
"Now, what are your terms?"
Having presented such an attractive proposition, Aizen did not believe Daniel would ask for nothing.
"My conditions are very simple. First, I hope you'll help restore Matsumoto Rangiku's soul. You should know her, right?"
Daniel immediately stated his first condition. Hearing this, Gin's gaze shifted to Daniel. He had never expected Daniel's first condition to be this.
"Matsumoto Rangiku, I see. So you're doing this for her."
Gin's reaction did not escape Aizen's notice. Being as clever as he is, Aizen immediately guessed the backstory.
"He's a hopeless romantic—unlike you."
Daniel then recounted some details about Gin's situation.
"Never thought you'd be this kind of person."
If Tōsen had despised Gin before, now there was a sense of shared grievance—both men had their own principles.
"Gin, if you had told me this earlier, I would have agreed to help you."
Aizen's words brought a slight curved smile to Gin's lips, though he said nothing. For him, as long as Rangiku could be restored, everything else was secondary—even his own life.
This time, he had come with the resolve to risk everything.
"Anything else?" Aizen continued.
"Second, I need all your research materials, including studies on Shinigami hollowfication and Hollow Arrancar transformation."
Aizen nodded thoughtfully and signaled Daniel to continue.
"That's all I need from you."
"It's that simple."
"It's that simple."
Such simple terms left Aizen momentarily dumbfounded. He had expected Daniel to make a grand demand—but it turned out there were only two conditions; to be precise, only one for him, and the other for Gin.
"I recall you have a good relationship with Urahara Kisuke. Why not go to him instead of coming to me?"
"Simple. Because he definitely won't agree, and you wouldn't care."
"Ha ha, I see. He really is that kind of person. Whatever you want, I can supply you with it at any time. When can you start?"
Aizen laughed heartily.
"If Aizen-sama wishes to go to the Spirit King's Palace now, I can take you there immediately. But are you truly ready?"
Daniel then formed hand seals. Moments later, a golden light ring appeared in the hall of the Void Night Palace. Through the ring, the group could see Seireitei's Rukongai below.
Then Daniel changed his hand gestures, and the scene within the ring shifted once more—transforming into Kūza Town of the Human World. After a moment, the ring vanished, and Daniel made no further move.
"It really must wait—at least, we need to solve Gin's problem first."
Daniel's inaction spoke volumes. Aizen understood perfectly well. A long-cherished desire was within reach, causing Aizen to hesitate. After a long moment, he spoke.
"I am ready at any time."
"You're planning to attack Soul Society?"
Once a method to reach the Spirit King's Palace directly was at hand, Aizen immediately changed his plan. He had originally intended to, after a while, dispatch someone to capture Orihime Inoue, lure Ichigo and other Shinigami into Hueco Mundo to rescue her—but now that was unnecessary.
"Their main role is to distract the Gotei 13. I do not want my battle in the Spirit King's Palace to be interrupted."
Aizen sometimes was truly ruthless. Among the many Arrancar, quite a few are extremely loyal to him; now, sending them all to their deaths doesn't trouble him in the slightest.
"If you only want to tie down the Gotei 13, I have a better plan. Yuhabah, you should know about it, right?"
"What? Has he not died yet?"
Aizen naturally knew about the Quincy' attack on Soul Society in the old days; he only did not know the actual outcome.
"Indeed. Moreover, by keeping them hidden in the shadows of Rukongai and forcing them out, the Gotei 13 will surely have no time to worry about the 0th Division."
"A three-sided war… that is somewhat interesting."
"If you wish to return to Soul Society with Matsumoto Rangiku, now you have an opportunity."
After explaining the situation of the impending three-way war in Soul Society to Gin, Daniel immediately departed.
Matsumoto Rangiku would never want to leave Soul Society for a life in the Human World, and Gin would surely follow her. In that case, Gin would undoubtedly be sentenced by the Central Forty-Six Division. However, if he could earn enough merit during the war, there might be clemency.
(End of Chapter)
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