Nearly a thousand years ago, the Quincy flourished throughout the western regions of the human world. Under the leadership of their progenitor, Yhwach, they established an empire of immense power and influence.
But conquest of the West alone was never enough for him.
Because Yhwach knew the truth of his origin.
His power did not begin in the West.
It originated from the being revered as the Soul King.
Though raised in the western lands, Yhwach understood that his existence was deeply tied to the East to Soul Society itself. In his eyes, his separation from that place was not destiny, but exile.
And he rejected exile.
At the height of his power, Yhwach led the Quincy into open war against Soul Society.
Thus began the first great Quincy invasion.
At that time, Soul Society's eastern domain the Seireitei and its surrounding regions stood as the spiritual center of the world. Compared to the western branch of Soul Society, the spiritual density there was far greater. Powerful souls gathered naturally in the East, and countless formidable Shinigami were born from that environment.
Yet even so
Yhwach's forces overwhelmed them.
Leading the Sternritter, his elite Quincy army, Yhwach advanced relentlessly through Soul Society. Entire districts fell beneath the shadow of the Quincy invasion, and the balance of the world teetered on collapse.
The Gotei 13, still far more brutal and ruthless than in later generations, was forced into total war.
And at the center of that war stood one man.
Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni.
To oppose Yhwach and the Quincy, Yamamoto united the original Gotei 13 a force feared even within Soul Society itself.
Then, the two monsters finally clashed.
The battle between Yamamoto and Yhwach became a catastrophe that scarred Soul Society permanently. Flames consumed entire regions, spiritual pressure tore apart the landscape, and countless combatants vanished in the aftermath.
In the end
Yhwach suffered his greatest defeat.
The Quincy King believed death had already reached him.
But at the final moment, Yamamoto hesitated.
Completely annihilating Yhwach would have required unleashing even more of Ryūjin Jakka's power. Soul Society had already been devastated by the war, and further destruction might have reduced entire regions to ash.
That brief hesitation…
Created a path for survival.
The surviving Sternritter seized the opportunity, rescuing the heavily wounded Yhwach from the battlefield.
And Yamamoto did not pursue them.
Perhaps he believed the Quincy King's wounds were already fatal.
For any ordinary being, they certainly would have been.
But Yhwach was no ordinary being.
Through his unique ability to distribute and reclaim fragments of his soul, he forcibly sustained himself. By absorbing power back from surviving Quincy, he prevented complete death and barely stabilized his existence.
Still
Survival was all he achieved.
Before entering a deep slumber, Yhwach entrusted key responsibilities to his most loyal subordinate:
Jugram Haschwalth.
Under Haschwalth's leadership, the remnants of the Quincy disappeared from Soul Society's sight.
Using advanced Quincy techniques, they established a hidden realm within the shadows cast by Seireitei itself a concealed empire invisible to the Shinigami.
There, over centuries, they rebuilt.
Palaces rose.
Cities expanded.
An entire kingdom was forged in silence.
The Wandenreich.
It was an audacious strategy, but undeniably effective. Soul Society hunted Quincy across the world, never realizing that the greatest concentration of surviving Quincy existed hidden within their own shadow.
Time passed.
Some Quincy perished over the centuries.
Others were born and brought into the Wandenreich.
But one thing never changed
Their hatred for the Shinigami.
Every Quincy understood that another war would eventually come. And for that inevitable conflict, they prepared tirelessly gathering intelligence on the Gotei 13, studying captains, analyzing Zanpakutō abilities, and refining their own powers.
Then, unexpectedly, a crisis emerged.
At one point, Soul Society detected traces of the hidden spiritual territory.
In response, several of the Gotei 13's most powerful captains personally investigated.
Yamamoto Genryūsai.
Unohana Retsu.
Kyōraku Shunsui.
Ukitake Jūshirō.
And Shigure Sōsuke.
The confrontation that followed nearly exposed the Wandenreich completely.
Fortunately for the Quincy, only a small number of captains had entered the hidden territory. More importantly, Soul Society lacked a full understanding of the Quincy techniques sustaining that realm.
Recognizing the danger immediately, Haschwalth made a decisive choice.
Retreat.
The Quincy abandoned portions of the unstable shadow territory and withdrew before Soul Society could launch a full-scale assault.
Though humiliating, it was the correct decision.
Had they remained, the remnants of the Quincy might have been exterminated entirely.
Afterward, fearing further exposure, the Wandenreich gradually shifted its operations westward, distancing itself from direct proximity to Seireitei while maintaining secrecy.
Compared to the eastern branch of Soul Society, the western spiritual organizations lacked overwhelming military strength. Hiding there became far easier.
Thus, the Quincy endured.
And they waited.
Eventually, after centuries of slumber, Yhwach regained his heartbeat.
For the Quincy who guarded him, this was a moment of immense hope.
The return of the heartbeat signified recovery.
It meant their Emperor was awakening step by step.
So they continued waiting.
Ninety more years passed.
For ordinary humans, such a span was unimaginable.
For Quincy who had already waited nearly a millennium
It was insignificant.
Then, on that day
The sleeping Emperor opened his eyes.
The moment Yhwach awakened, every Quincy within the castle felt their power tremble violently. Reishi surged uncontrollably through the air, flowing toward a single source.
Toward him.
Even those who tried to resist found it impossible to halt the process.
Their souls resonated instinctively with their king.
Then a voice echoed through the depths of the Wandenreich.
Cold.
Absolute.
Majestic.
"My children…"
"For the restoration of your Emperor…"
"For the future of the Quincy…"
"Offer up your strength."
WE ARE CURRENTLY ON CHAPTER 361
ON PATREON.
JOIN MY PATREON TO READ ADVANCED CHAPTERS BEFORE PUBLIC RELEASE OR PURCHASE THE BOOK FOR LIFETIME ACCESS!
Patreon.com/HACKDWORLD