Kensei Kenzuru and Nelliel returned to the base with the selected Adjuchas and went back to Aizen's laboratory.
Yoruichi was lounging on a sofa, reclining as she flipped through a leisure magazine she had brought along.
Before Kensei could speak, another wave of unstable, chaotic spiritual pressure emanated from the experiment table, followed by Aizen casting a Kidō spell.
"Failed again?"
Kensei sat down beside Yoruichi and nudged her with his elbow.
"Need me to say it?" Yoruichi gestured with her chin towards Aizen. "Just look at your chief scientist's expression."
Aizen stood before the experiment table, her expression as usual, but Kensei could still see the slight furrow in her brow.
The Hollow restrained on the table, resembling a beetle in form, ultimately remained stuck in a half-Hollow, half-Shinigami state under the Hōgyoku's influence and could not proceed further.
"Stuck at fifty percent?"
Kensei moved closer to Aizen, looking at the pitiful half-finished product on the table.
"You could say that." Aizen recorded new data in her hand. "When a Hollow's soul structure reaches the halfway point of transformation, it produces a natural rejection, preventing complete transformation."
Yoruichi yawned. "Your own Hollowfication went smoothly back then. Why does the reverse not work?"
The lab fell into brief silence. Aizen frowned in thought. Yoruichi's words, though carrying a mocking tone, did contain a certain logic.
Aizen pondered the differences between her own Hollowfication and the current experiment. Her gaze swept past Kensei beside her, and her pupils suddenly contracted slightly.
During her own Hollowfication experiment, she had used the highly purified Hollow factor from Kensei's body. Moreover, she had had numerous... deep exchanges with him before, and important factors remained within her body.
"What's wrong?" Kensei noticed Aizen's distraction. "Thought of a solution?"
Aizen didn't answer immediately, instead rapidly analyzing in her mind:
Hypothesis one: If it was the purified Hollow factor that played a role, then conversely, extracting Kensei's Shinigami factor should have the same effect, breaking the current bottleneck in the Arrancar experiment.
Hypothesis two: Kensei's bodily fluids possess some kind of catalytic or neutralizing effect, enabling different powers to merge stably.
This deduction gave Aizen a somewhat complex feeling.
On one hand, this involved her most private interactions with Kensei. On the other hand, discovering such a unique experimental variable made her heartbeat quicken slightly.
"Sōsuke?" Kensei watched Aizen's changing expression and reached out to touch her forehead. "Didn't fry your brain from too much experimenting, did you?"
Aizen swatted Kensei's hand away, a light of rationality appearing in her eyes.
Her resolve firm, she stared at Kensei, her voice carrying absolute calm. "Kensei, sacrifice yourself for science."
"Huh?!"
Kensei immediately retracted his hand, defensively crossing his arms over his chest.
"Relax. Just need some bodily fluids." Aizen's gaze fell on Kensei, making his back tingle. "Same as before. Draw some blood."
"Scared me."
Kensei let out a long sigh of relief. So it was that kind of bodily fluid. He thought it was something else.
"This is a scientific hypothesis that needs verification." Aizen skillfully drew blood from Kensei. "Just now, I was thinking that research on Hollows could also proceed from another angle."
After storing the collected blood sample, Aizen brought up the experimental data on Gillian and Adjuchas. "Compared to Gillian, Adjuchas have intelligence, but it's limited—much like the gap between you and me."
Kensei's face darkened. This Sōsuke actually dared to look down on his intelligence!
"The Hōgyoku can realize the holder's inner desires, but if the subject has doubts, its effectiveness is diminished."
Aizen looked at the glowing Hōgyoku in her hand. Previously, she had considered whether she needed to create two Hōgyoku and fuse them as Kensei had mentioned. But after using it, she could confirm that, aided by the Fragment of the Soul King and Kensei's bodily factors, this was the complete Hōgyoku, and its capabilities exceeded expectations.
"So you need a Hollow with intelligence surpassing that of an Adjuchas, one that desires to evolve towards a Shinigami?"
Yoruichi put away her magazine, looking at Aizen with a strange expression.
"At least it shouldn't harbor a rejecting mentality towards this evolution." Aizen's gaze was profound. "Moreover, the soul strength of a Vasto Lorde can better withstand the Hōgyoku's power. Theoretically, it could break through the current limits."
Kensei thought for a moment. Although most of the Espada were Vasto Lorde-class, that didn't mean they weren't scarce.
Currently, Vasto Lorde available for experiments seemed to be Baraggan and the not-yet-split Szayelaporro Granz. Aizen could experiment on those two however she liked; no heartache even if they broke.
"While a Vasto Lorde is the most ideal experimental subject currently, capturing one at present is overly troublesome."
Aizen stroked the Hōgyoku. Vasto Lordes possess strength comparable to Captain-level, and not just average Captain-level. Engaging in combat with that level would indeed make capture alive very difficult.
"Are you looking for a Vasto Lorde?"
Nelliel, having finished her patrol, walked into the lab. Hearing Aizen's words, she tilted her head and asked.
"Do you know where to find one?" Aizen looked at this native of Hueco Mundo. "Preferably one convenient to capture."
Nelliel lowered her head in thought for a moment and reported a few names. "Baraggan has a Vasto Lorde under him, though its strength isn't that great. There's also one called Arturo Plateado. I'm not too clear on his specific strength."
"That can be considered, but there's no need to rush." Facing a Vasto Lorde, Aizen needed to make full preparations. "Right now, I need to verify my previous hypothesis first. If successful, there will be no need to use them for experiments."
Nelliel looked at the Hollow on the experiment table, already half-transformed into humanoid shape, interest gleaming in her eyes.
-----------------
On the throne of Las Noches, Baraggan maintained his posture of supporting his face with one hand. Below knelt a crowd of Hollows, none daring to make a sound.
"Trash."
Baraggan's voice was low and deep, lowering the already frigid temperature of Hueco Mundo by several more degrees.
"After so many days, with so many of you..." Baraggan slowly raised a hand, a dark light shooting from his bony fingertip and randomly striking one of the Hollows. "...you tell me you've found nothing?"
The Hollow, struck by the light, rapidly decayed. After a few seconds, it aged and died, dissolving into reishi.
"Your Majesty," a Vasto Lorde under Baraggan's command forced itself to reply, "although Hueco Mundo is vast, given the size you described, it should be quite conspicuous. Presumably, that nameless one fears Your Majesty's great power and is hiding."
Baraggan's fingertips lightly tapped on the throne's armrest. His fury calmed somewhat.
Although this subordinate's words had a certain sycophantic suspicion, they did contain truth. After all these years, if Ikomikidomoe's power had greatly increased, it would have surely come knocking long ago.
It seems this Vasto Lorde is quite the strategist!
"Hmm, you make a reasonable point." Baraggan's voice was low but no longer carried the earlier oppressive, devouring feeling. "But we cannot let our guard down. Reduce the search force by half. This time, focus the efforts underground."
"As you command!"
The crowd of Hollows below felt as if a great burden had been lifted. Although they still had to search, keeping their lives was already fortunate.
"What about Harribel's side?"
"Your Majesty, the newly dispatched members for the pursuit have not reported back yet."
Baraggan very much wanted to frown, but his entirely skeletal body couldn't manage it. After pondering for a while, he waved his hand. "Dispatch two more teams."
Since he was now the king of all Hueco Mundo, all Hollows should bow under his command and heed his orders.
As for resisters, they merely needed to be utterly crushed to demonstrate his majesty.
***
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