Chapter 54: [The Purity System - Open Beta v1.0]
The attacks on the nobility, though they didn't cause many casualties, led to further escalation due to the sensitivity of the targets. Under intense pressure from other noble houses, the Gotei 13 was forced to divert a large portion of its strength to protect them. This made the Soul Reapers increasingly reactive, bordering on chaotic.
The cause of this wasn't Ichigo Kurosaki—the "Strongest Creature on Earth" who had defeated Captain Zaraki and was still strolling through the Seireitei with his hands in his pockets. Instead, it was the "Martial Artists" who had come along as spectators.
As the saying goes: Whether it's a mule or a horse, you'll know once you take it out for a walk. The "Martial Artist" class received its most thorough testing in this "Ryoka Arc," which had been "mo-modded" beyond recognition, providing Mo Yu with a massive amount of useful data for optimization.
Recently, every existing Hollow in Karakura Town had been rounded up by Rukia in her "Demon Muscle Man" form. Of the fighters created this way, approximately 960 survived. They had moved out en masse, arriving in the Seireitei and throwing themselves wholeheartedly into their journey of "eating hot dog snacks."
Since official ranks for Martial Artists hadn't been set, Mo Yu adopted the casual terms Kisuke Urahara once used to bullshit Ichigo.
The weakest Slime-rank fighters numbered about 500. These were the ones just re-classed from Hollows; their moves were flashy but meaningless, and their "Ultimate" was just firing a Qi blast (a Bala).
The slightly better Goblin-rank fighters numbered about 300. These individuals had optimized their power through combat with others; their moves had evolved from mere flashiness into practical, personal techniques and styles.
The remaining hundred or so were the Skeleton-rank fighters. These were the "on-site spectators" who had witnessed the world-shaking duel between Ichigo and Fisher. Almost all of them had reached the realm of the Absolute Realm. Though their percentages weren't high, they all possessed unique "finishing moves."
In actual combat, even a Slime-rank fighter could generally handle five ordinary Soul Reapers at once. This honestly caught Mo Yu off guard until he realized the problem wasn't the Martial Artists—it was the Soul Reapers.
The named Soul Reapers in the original story have high "Style Points," but they don't represent the average level. The Seireitei is filled with "wild" commoners from the Rukongai. They have spiritual talent but lack formal development. They either trained on their own or in various dojos in the slums.
Though they passed the Gotei 13 exams, their combat effectiveness was lopsided and weak. Their greatest skill was infusing spiritual power into their blades and swinging with random Taijutsu. They could only hope to slowly pick up Shunpo or Kido later—if they ever did. If the graduation standard for the Spiritual Arts Academy is mastering the four arts (Zankensoki) and slaying Hollows independently, these "wild" Soul Reapers are lucky to survive a hunt even in a squad.
The Gotei 13 is well aware of this. Academy graduates take on combat missions; the wild ones handle patrols, logistics, and cleaning up battlefields. Even their "combat" missions are mostly suppressing "riots" in the Rukongai.
The Slime Martial Artists, being re-classed monsters, were fundamentally non-human and on a different level. 1-vs-10 was their baseline. Even when they encountered Academy elites, their win rate was remarkably high.
Unlike regular Hollows, those "humanized" by the Hogyoku were roughly 30% weaker in terms of raw durability and physical stats. However, as a price, their intelligence increased significantly—a factor that proved decisive in battle.
Gaolang Wongsawat, the "Thai God of War" from Kengan Ashura, once said there is an insurmountable wall between unarmed and armed combat. But that's a mortal realization. As Kengan fighters started "cheating," even guns became useless. Here, it was the same. Against elite Soul Reapers, these Slime fighters played a high-stakes game: they'd lunge forward, tanking several cuts just to get into a "clinch" range. Once the rhythm turned into close-quarters infighting, the elites couldn't keep up. The fighters were "dirty," aiming specifically for wrists and joints, willing to take a wound to disable the enemy's sword hand. Once that happened, the elites' failure rate skyrocketed.
During this process, Mo Yu noticed something interesting. Many enemies were Soul Reapers capable of Shikai. But some arrogant ones didn't release their blades immediately. In the clinch, their blades were knocked away by the Martial Artists, and they instantly lost 80-90% of their combat power, becoming worse than "mobs."
Mo Yu even experimented by using the "Hand of God" to steal the Zanpakuto of a seated officer who was shouting "I want to fight ten!" That officer, lacking Taijutsu skills, was thrashed by a Slime fighter so hard it was pathetic.
The Bleach world isn't an Eastern Xianxia world; a Zanpakuto isn't a "Spirit Sword" that grows legs and flies back to its master. Some Captains have ways around it, but most Soul Reapers don't. A Soul Reaper's greatest strength is their stylish ability, but their greatest weakness is the blade itself.
Mo Yu shook his head. This weakness is a bit ridiculous. Even though a Shikai is the power of the soul, losing the medium (the blade) instantly cripples them.
However, while Slime fighters had high win rates, their "wipe-out" rate was also high. They often got "carried away" by their Hollow instincts, forgetting about strategic retreats, and were eventually mobbed and dragged down by groups of Soul Reapers. Goblin-rank fighters were better, managing their instincts to a degree. The Skeleton-rank fighters, meanwhile, were the main force driving the chaos in the Seireitei; ordinary seated officers were no match for them, and even Lieutenants found them troublesome.
Lieutenant Rangiku Matsumoto of the 10th Division was feeling this pressure firsthand.
"Keke! Reishi War God, GO ALL OUT, DAMMIT!!!"
A Martial Artist's "Ichigo Kurosaki tattoo" materialized from illusion to reality, cooperating with the fighter to rain heavy punches. Matsumoto, using her seasoned experience and Shikai, was trading blows evenly. Backed by several other Soul Reapers, she soon managed to suppress the fighter.
"Nonsense! You think you can defeat me with such low Purity? It's a fool's dream! Behold the Purity of a Martial Artist! POWER, COME FORTH! INJURIES, BEGONE!!!"
That roar, which triple exclamation marks couldn't contain, resulted in a rapid surge of strength and quick healing. Matsumoto's scalp went numb; this was the third time it had happened. The other Soul Reapers were being physically dragged down by the exhaustion of the grind, and Matsumoto herself was gasping for air. Finding no opening for victory, she was eventually forced to make a messy retreat.
To Mo Yu, this was normal. It was a "Version Stomp."
In the original Bleach anime, the early-to-mid combat system revolved around Reiatsu, with Shikai and Bankai as the core. But in the final war arc, this system collapsed. Soul Reapers were rubbed into the dirt by the Quincies' Schrift abilities. The reason was simple: Yhwach bestowed Schrifts that were essentially a form of Fullbring. In the Bleach world, while all power comes from the Soul King, Fullbring is naturally a "higher" and more "unreasonable" tier of power than Reaper or Quincy energy.
A Martial Artist's Purity was a low-level Fullbring. Every activation only slightly modified the user's reality—no instant miracles. But in combat, it was profound. If the will was strong and persistent enough to stack Purity over and over, the cumulative effect produced impossible results.
Sudden power spikes and high-speed regeneration were basic. Even taking a hit that emptied the "HP bar" didn't necessarily mean death!
Uryu Ishida was the prime example. Mo Yu switched perspectives to the Senzaikyu (Repentance Cell), the special prison for those facing execution.
After receiving Yhwach's blood, Uryu hadn't made a "King's Return" with a new Schrift. There was a reason. Under the state of "Heavenly Balance" (alternating between his inner Male and Female), his soul's battle intent was incinerating. He was still in a visceral fist-fight with Death. In this endless struggle, he instinctively rejected the Schrift, using it as fuel to reshape everything through Purity—a cataclysmic metamorphosis.
Internal changes aside, the external shift was obvious: Uryu's body was becoming stronger. Not just muscles, but veins, nerves, and bones were being reinforced. Clearly, what Uryu hated most about his previous fight was his "weak body" that collapsed after only reaching 30% Absolute Realm. Through his struggle with Death, he craved power, and Purity answered, rewriting his body again and again.
Ichigo was a natural "cheat," so his Purity path had little reference value. Uryu, however, relied on Purity to upgrade himself. His path was a vital source of data. Combining this with data from other fighters, Mo Yu finally finalized the "Purity System Open Beta v1.0."
The goal of the Beta was to unify and perfect the competitive advantage of the system. Specifically, it defined the performance of each stage.
Rukia's "Demon Muscle Man" attacks on the minor nobles were experiments in this.
Being bathed in that "Muscle Light" was equivalent to being touched by the Hogyoku—a preliminary planting of the Purity Fullbring. But unlike before, where Purity was freeform, this version had an Innate Tendency and a Base Initial Strength Value.
Unless the host's will was exceptionally strong, the Purity would follow this tendency, constantly rewriting the strength of the host's bones, senses, nerves, and organs based on their will. The initial strength boost acted like a "Newbie Gift Pack." Even a commoner would feel the change immediately—much like the "marrow cleansing" in a cultivation novel.
Of course, this only happened upon initial infection. Subsequent growth depended entirely on the host's will.
Based on the data, the greatest advantage Slime fighters had over Soul Reapers was physical stats—strength and speed. Uryu's data proved that to advance in the Absolute Realm, a robust body was mandatory. Thus, Mo Yu defined the Physical Body as the Foundation of Purity.
However, seeing the minor nobles' reaction, Mo Yu decided that in the next update, he'd lower the initial strength value. The rapid growth of muscle fibers was tearing their skin directly—it was a bit too "rough."
With the foundation set, Mo Yu moved on to defining the specific manifestations and tiers of the Absolute Realm!
End of Chapter
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