As a Quincy race that, a thousand years ago, could stand toe-to-toe with the Shinigami…
No one could ignore how terrifying their influence was.
Even though they were on the verge of extinction, many people still kept a close eye on them.
Aizen was one of them.
And through his observations, he discovered that Ryuken was a truly remarkable Quincy.
Because Aizen had tested him before.
Near Ryuken's home Aizen had released dozens of Hollows.
Ryuken was a cold man. If something didn't directly concern him, even if he saw a Hollow, he wouldn't necessarily bother killing it.
But out of protection for his family, and responsibility toward his patients…
He still eliminated those dozens of Hollows.
Among them were fodder Hollows, small Gillian, and even half-finished Adjuchas-level Hollows.
Yet none of them survived even a single glance from Ryuken.
They were almost instantly killed—without the slightest chance to resist.
So in Aizen's view, Ryuken's strength had at least reached Captain-class.
Only because of Ryuken's indifferent personality did Aizen refrain from including him among the targets of the Karakura Town battle.
He hadn't expected to see him here.
Thinking of that, Aizen subconsciously adjusted his glasses. A glint flashed across the lenses.
"Let's talk?"
Ryuken glanced at him and replied flatly:
"Fine."
The two walked out of the Military Police building side by side.
Behind them, Yoruichi and the others were still puffed up with anger, blaming Cole for telling Aizen everything.
What if Aizen didn't keep his word and reported it to Yhwach?
Wouldn't that be catastrophic?
Cole didn't explain much. He lazily stretched, then called over Cang Du, Liltotto Lamperd, and the others.
After hearing Cole's orders, everyone present showed a flash of excitement in their eyes.
Then they respectfully left the Military Police building.
Time quickly reached the third day—also the third day since Yhwach declared war on Seireitei.
When the time arrived, with a single command from Yhwach…
The Sternritter, along with tens of thousands of Soldat, passed through the shadows without hesitation and invaded Seireitei.
The Shinigami lying in wait instantly changed expression.
They had never imagined the Quincy invasion method would be so different from what they expected.
It wasn't smashing through Seireitei's barrier at all…
They were simply appearing directly from shadows, catching everyone completely off guard.
Over ten thousand Soldat emerged through shadows all across Seireitei appearing in every corner.
The war ignited in an instant.
Ordinary Shinigami bared their teeth, raised their zanpakuto, and clashed in life-and-death combat with these sudden Quincy intruders.
Blood bloomed across Seireitei immediately.
Shouts of slaughter and screams rang out at the same time, echoing through the entire Seireitei.
The Captains also changed expression and drew their zanpakuto without hesitation, preparing to support their squads.
But they quickly realized
Compared to the ordinary Soldat…
The Sternritter were far more terrifying.
Often, a single Sternritter could cause massive destruction and countless deaths inside Seireitei.
The Captains could only move to intercept.
For example—Byakuya.
He stopped in place, staring coldly at the Quincy before him.
"So you really are a pack of rats… teleporting through shadows."
Opposite him stood a Sternritter.
Sternritter "F," The Fear—As Nödt.
Hearing that, As Nödt replied calmly:
"So what if it's shadows? In this war, you Shinigami won't even get the chance to be rats."
Hearing the screams of Shinigami nearby, Byakuya didn't waste time. He lifted his right index finger.
"Hadō #4: Byakurai (White Lightning)!"
A glaring bolt of white lightning blasted toward As Nödt like a laser cannon.
It was a lethal strike.
In terms of pure attack power, it was already far beyond Vice-Captain level—something even a Captain would find difficult to block.
But in the face of that attack, As Nödt merely raised his hand and fired a Heilig Pfeil.
The lightning and the holy arrow annihilated each other.
A shockwave expanded outward from the explosion's center.
But neither Byakuya nor As Nödt cared about wind of that level.
Byakuya's gaze grew heavier.
This Quincy was not as weak as he'd imagined.
And he still couldn't use bankai…
Byakuya's eyes grew even more solemn.
Without bankai, defeating this Sternritter would be a real challenge.
Byakuya drew his zanpakuto and spoke flatly:
"Scatter, Senbonzakura."
The silver blade dissolved into thousands upon thousands of pink cherry blossoms.
They were clearly blossoms, yet each petal gleamed with a silvery, razor-sharp sheen—as if it would carve someone into pieces.
With the petals dancing around him, Byakuya said calmly:
"You can't steal shikai, can you?"
As Nödt stayed silent, but inwardly felt some dissatisfaction toward Driscoll.
If Driscoll hadn't exposed the medallion tactic…
As Nödt could've lured Byakuya into using bankai, then stolen it.
And the battle would've ended much faster.
But while As Nödt fell silent, Byakuya did not.
Byakuya swept his arm.
Thousands of petals surged like a storm, blotting out the sky as they swallowed As Nödt.
As Nödt fired Heilig Pfeil wildly, piercing petal after petal.
Pink and blue.
It was as if the sky had been dyed into two colors.
In the end, Byakuya gained the upper hand.
Two petals slipped through and cut As Nödt's arm.
Blood streamed down.
As Nödt paused for two seconds, then spoke:
"It seems… I underestimated you Shinigami. Your strength isn't all in bankai."
The Wandenreich had essentially sealed itself away for a thousand years.
To strengthen their own morale, they'd been preaching since a thousand years ago that Seireitei's Shinigami were worthless.
At first, it was propaganda meant to brainwash the Soldat.
But in the end…
Even the Sternritter had swallowed it themselves.
Byakuya said coolly:
"It's not too late to run now. Otherwise, when death is upon you, you won't even have the chance."
As Nödt shook his head.
"With you alone, you can't make me feel fear."
"But today… you will see the greatest fear."
Byakuya was still thinking about what that meant when
Reishi surged around As Nödt.
Under the gathering of countless spirit particles, As Nödt's body began to transform.
A star-shaped Quincy halo appeared around his head, ringed with multiple sharp spikes. Blood seeped from beneath his eyes.
His upper body became grotesque—bone segments protruding from his chest. Black gloves covered his arms, and he wore tight white garments.
On his back formed two thorn-like ringed reishi wings.
Stitch-like seams ran from his throat down to the lower hem of his outfit.
It was terrifying—and grotesque.
His Vollständig (Complete Holy Form).
In that state, As Nödt threw his head back and released a horrifically chilling sound.
"Complete Holy Form: Kami no Kyodaku (God's Cowardice)!"
Just seeing him like this…
Fear rose uncontrollably in Byakuya's heart.
Countless horrifying visions flooded his mind.
Not visions of his own death
But the scene of Rukia reduced to a corpse…
Then visions of himself being torn apart by swarming insects, blood everywhere…
One nightmare after another flashed before his eyes.
Even with Byakuya's calm, he couldn't stop himself from sinking into fear.
And in that instant—
As Nödt seized the opening, rushed in, and stabbed forward with his sharpened hand.
Chi!
Blood sprayed.
At the same time—
Inside the Wandenreich.
Roaring shouts echoed through the realm.
"Hurry! Get in!"
"Across from us is our homeland!"
"Move faster! Don't stop here! This is the Corps Commander's order!"
All Quincy under the Military Police were forced into a pitch-black shadow.
The Wandenreich instantly became vastly more spacious, to the point that hardly anyone could be seen.
After driving several thousand Soldat into the shadow, Bazz-B couldn't help looking at Cang Du.
"Cang Du, what do you think the Corps Commander means by this? With a major enemy at hand, why send the Soldat back to the Human World first?"
He truly couldn't understand Cole's order.
Even if they weren't joining Yhwach to attack Soul Society…
There was still no need to leave the Wandenreich, right?
Did Cole seriously think those useless Shinigami could not only defeat Yhwach, but also invade the Wandenreich?
How was that possible?
That was pure fantasy.
Cang Du glanced at him.
"What a stupid question. Did you forget the battle between the Corps Commander and Yhwach?"
Bazz-B froze, then suddenly understood, looking at Cang Du in delight.
"You mean… the Corps Commander is worried about the ordinary Soldat, so he had them leave in advance to avoid what's coming?"
"Exactly."
Cang Du nodded slightly.
"If the Corps Commander and Yhwach fight, the first thing to collapse will be the Wandenreich."
"For powerhouses like us, it's manageable."
"But for ordinary Soldat, once the Wandenreich collapses, they'll die in massive numbers."
"So to prevent that, the Corps Commander had them leave first."
Bazz-B nodded as well, sighing with emotion.
"The Corps Commander is still too kind… I didn't even think of that."
He felt that if it were Yhwach making the choice, he'd never care about the Soldat dying.
He might even launch Auswählen and use them as fuel.
That was his nature—cruel, never caring about Quincy deaths.
As he spoke, Bazz-B stretched lazily and looked wistfully at the black shadow passage.
"It's been over a thousand years since we've gone back, huh?"
A thousand years was too long.
So long that the homeland in his memories had become blurry.
He decided that after this war ended, he would return to the Human World and take a look.
At the same time
Near the Military Police building.
After sensing that the ordinary Soldat had already been transferred, Cole licked his lips, bent down, and pressed his hand to the ground.
"Then… I'll start eating."
In an instant—ground, walls, buildings, streets…
Even every piece of inorganic matter in the Wandenreich…
Began turning into reishi at an astonishing speed.
Blue reishi filled the sky like countless blue fireflies, surging like a tidal wave as they converged into Cole's body.
(End of Chapter)
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