Chōjirō Sasakibe was a little stunned.
During the last Quincy invasion, he clearly remembered that his Bankai had been stolen by a Quincy.
After that, he tried countless times, but he couldn't sense his Bankai at all.
And now… it had suddenly returned.
Could it be that a stolen Bankai could only be maintained for a limited time?
Or had that Quincy run into an accident?
With those thoughts, Chōjirō Sasakibe excitedly drew his zanpakuto and shouted:
"Bankai!"
"Kōkō Gonryō Rikyū (Yellow Radiance Strict Spirit Detached Palace)!!!"
As his roar rang out, rolling golden lightning erupted like a flood, cascading down from the sky like a noble canopy.
Chōjirō Sasakibe grew even more excited—because this really was his Bankai.
The commotion quickly attracted a large number of Shinigami, who rushed over in alarm. But once they saw it was Sasakibe, they finally relaxed.
Ikkaku Madarame scratched his bald head, staring in confusion.
"Vice-Captain Sasakibe, wasn't your Bankai stolen? When I saw lightning from far away, I thought it was the enemy."
Chōjirō Sasakibe, who rarely smiled, actually showed a trace of joy.
"My Bankai has returned. I need to report this to Head-Captain Yamamoto-sama immediately…"
…
"Aizen…"
Jugram Haschwalth wore a blank look as he repeated the name.
As the villain who once set Soul Society into chaos, he was naturally familiar with Aizen.
But he couldn't understand why His Majesty would go see someone so dangerous.
Was he trying to subdue him?
But someone like that how could he possibly be willing to bow to another?
Even so, Jugram Haschwalth didn't ask. Instead, he lowered his head in shame.
"Your Majesty… I don't know where Aizen is."
Although the Wandenreich connected to Soul Society and Hueco Mundo, they had always acted with extreme caution to avoid being discovered.
They could gather some information, but only rough outlines.
And the Quincy responsible for scouting were arrogant in their hearts, looking down on the strong of Soul Society and Hueco Mundo alike.
So the intelligence they gathered was crude at best.
Where Aizen was hiding… only heaven would know.
"That's fine," Yhwach said with calm authority. "I know where he is."
A dark shadow spread beneath his feet, swallowing his body as it rose like ink.
Jugram Haschwalth hurriedly followed.
…
When the scene shifted, the two of them did not appear anywhere in Soul Society, Hueco Mundo, or the Living World.
Instead, they arrived in an empty, strange space.
It looked like layers of bubbles… or like shattered mirrors piled together.
At a glance, countless fragmented spaces drifted in view—some held snowy mountains, some deserts, some lush green forests.
Jugram Haschwalth's eyes sharpened at once.
"The Dangai (Precipice World)!"
This eerie, broken atmosphere was clearly a small space outside the Three Realms.
Shattered and incomplete—each fragment carried tremendous danger.
Even he wouldn't dare step into a place like this lightly.
It was a forbidden land on the scale of worlds.
Or perhaps the final graveyard of all broken space.
And once he connected it to why Yhwach had come, he immediately understood.
As someone who had once lost, Aizen obviously wouldn't dare remain within the Three Realms.
The Dangai (Precipice World) was his only choice.
Dangerous, yes—but for a monster at his level, still acceptable.
The two of them stepped into the fractured Dangai (Precipice World), and what they saw opened their eyes.
Because within these countless broken spaces, there were actually hundreds of Hollows wandering aimlessly through different fragments.
From time to time, some would be sliced apart by invisible blades.
That was the barrier of space itself.
And in certain small fragments, they could even see the outlines of human buildings.
They continued forward like this, until they finally saw the depths of the Dangai (Precipice World)—
A structure so massive it nearly occupied half of it.
Its exterior was pure white, but it wasn't built in the style of the Wandenreich.
It looked more like a gigantic research institute.
Standing at the entrance was a slender Arrancar.
Black, short, jagged hair. Deathly pale skin. Deep green eyes.
A distinctive set of dark green tear-like markings ran down his face.
He wore a long white robe, a zanpakuto hanging at his waist.
His Hollow mask fragment covered the left half of his head like a horned helm.
His expression was cold—danger radiating off him.
When he saw them approach, he turned and walked toward the institute without a hint of warmth.
"Come. Aizen-sama is waiting inside."
Jugram Haschwalth's gaze tightened.
Not only had they already been detected, they even sent someone to greet them.
It seemed Aizen's danger level was far beyond what he'd estimated.
At the very least, in sensing and spiritual networking, Aizen was stronger than him.
And even this subordinate was far from ordinary.
From this slim, cold Arrancar, Jugram Haschwalth could feel a faint sense of threat.
As if that man truly had the ability to kill him.
Yhwach remained unmoved, following behind Ulquiorra with kingly composure.
Jugram Haschwalth had no choice but to follow.
…
As they walked through the institute, they saw countless research results—Jugram Haschwalth's expression growing heavier by the second.
Because there weren't only various experimental instruments here.
There were also glass tanks filled with green liquid.
Inside each tank was a Hollow with a grotesque appearance—alive, their aura proving it.
"Strong… every one of them surpasses ordinary Quincy soldiers…"
Jugram Haschwalth grew more solemn.
Because from the Hollows in those tanks, he sensed terrifying spiritual pressure.
Some were even close to the Sternritter in level Adjuchas-class Hollows.
If those kinds of experimental products could be created in batches…
Then Aizen would be even more dangerous than he'd imagined.
Just he alone would be worth half of the Wandenreich—perhaps even the entire Wandenreich.
A true King of Hollows.
At last, they reached the deepest part.
Ulquiorra stopped and said evenly:
"Aizen-sama. I've brought them."
Hearing that, a white-robed figure busy beside a Gillian paused, set down the dissection tools in his hands, and smiled.
"Good work, Ulquiorra."
He turned around
It was Aizen.
But unlike his former arrogance, he now looked like he had returned to the attitude he once wore in Seireitei.
Gentle. Warm. Amiable.
Ulquiorra didn't speak further.
Aizen didn't find that strange—this was Ulquiorra's nature.
He looked toward Yhwach and Jugram Haschwalth, calmly removing his gloves as he spoke:
"I assume you are the Quincy King, Yhwach-dono. What brings you to the Dangai (Precipice World) to see me?"
His gaze settled on Yhwach.
Because the spiritual pressure of a king was far beyond Jugram Haschwalth's.
As for why he knew of Yhwach at all
Because he still had an intelligence network within Seireitei.
Even though he was in the Dangai (Precipice World), the speed at which he received information was even faster than the Shinigami in the Living World.
Yhwach's voice carried natural authority.
"Aizen… have you heard my name?"
Aizen pushed his glasses back into place, smiling gently.
"Of course. When I combed through the records in the Great Archives, I found something puzzling. Now it seems my suspicion was correct."
Soul Society had plenty of records on the war from a thousand years ago.
But when it came to Yhwach's death, the documents were vague—only saying he perished in a sea of flames.
Even then, Aizen had found it strange.
Because the records said that Yhwach's Auswählen (Holy Selection) could take away the power of all Quincy.
If that was true, then why did the Living World still have tens of thousands of Quincy a hundred years ago?
Was Yhwach a kind man?
Willing to die rather than carry out a mass slaughter?
But that wasn't how the records described him.
They described a tyrant—cruel, domineering, brutally ruthless.
Still, Aizen hadn't dug deeper.
His only goal had been the Soul King.
He never expected that today… he would meet the Quincy King in person.
Yhwach spoke flatly.
"Then this will be simple. Aizen… join my command."
A sharp gleam flashed across Aizen's lenses.
"The Quincy King… inviting me to join this so-called Wandenreich?"
"Yes," Yhwach said. "In destroying Soul Society, our objectives are the same."
"The same?" Aizen repeated softly.
Then he answered without hesitation.
"I refuse."
As he spoke, he picked up his scalpel and tools again, returning to the Gillian's body structure as if the conversation had already ended.
"I have no interest in destroying Soul Society right now."
"And I cannot follow a Quincy King who has chosen to walk the path of the Shinigami."
"Is that so?" Yhwach narrowed his eyes.
"And what if I intend to force you into the Wandenreich?"
Before coming, he had deliberately activated The Almighty against Aizen.
In the fragments of the future he saw, Aizen became his subordinate and helped him conquer the Three Realms.
To see that future, he had spent what little life force he had left.
So this outcome had to be achieved.
Aizen stopped again.
A thread of dangerous aura seeped out from him—no spiritual pressure, no reishi… yet it felt far more lethal.
He didn't even turn his head, speaking only in a calm, disappointed tone:
"So the Quincy King… after awakening, doesn't think first of attacking Seireitei…"
"Instead, you want to start a war with me?"
"What a disappointment."
He finally turned, looking directly at Yhwach.
"I thought you would understand what kind of power I possess."
Between the two of them, a pressure with no visible form began to spread—yet it carried the weight of death itself.
Jugram Haschwalth's shock was clear.
Because Aizen… did not fall behind in the slightest.
"This man…"
(End of Chapter)
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