Lin Huang grew more and more fond of the exquisite, art-like [star abyss] the more he looked at it.
In the courtyard, he held the star abyss, swinging it freely;
In the Spiritual World, his Menos Grande body also felt the pulse of the long sword form.
Suddenly, a melodious female voice rang in his ear:
"My abilities go far beyond this. As long as Master practices diligently and continues to improve your strength, star abyss... will surely give you the greatest surprise."
Hearing this, the smile on Lin Huang's lips could no longer be suppressed, and he swung the star abyss in his hand more and more joyfully... Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, another three months passed.
Shino Academy, Fourth Year Class 2, Kido class.
A group of students were facing specially made wooden dummies, looking serious as they tried to chant and cast.
"Ye lord! mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams unleash but slightly the wrath of your claws!"
"Hado 33: Sōkatsui!"
Indeed, in just over three months, Lin Huang and Ichimaru Gin, these two experts at skipping grades, had skipped another two grades, entering courses that normal students would only encounter in their fourth year.
At this moment, most of the older students were still struggling to practice how to completely shatter the wooden dummies with a full incantation of Sōkatsui.
Thanks to their innate spiritual pressure that far exceeded their peers, Lin Huang and Ichimaru Gin had already been able to abandon the incantation a month ago, releasing a Sōkatsui whose power was superior to others' full incantations.
Thus, while everyone was buried in hard practice, the two in the front row simply raised their hands casually.
"Hado 33: Sōkatsui."
Two pale blue fireballs the size of human heads instantly erupted from their palms, precisely blasting the specially made wooden dummies in front of them to pieces!
After completing this trivial exercise, the two walked aside on their own, holding wooden swords to practice Zanjutsu.
Although it was called practice, Lin Huang was actually in a state of an old man playing with a child.
In terms of talent alone, Ichimaru Gin and Lin Huang were on par, or Gin might even be half a step ahead.
But Lin Huang's essence, after all, was a peerless Menos Grande who had survived endless slaughter in Hueco Mundo and crawled out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.
What he learned at the Shino Academy was nothing more than systematically refining those crude and efficient killing techniques from the past.
While Ichimaru Gin was an entirely unpolished jade.
Therefore, in what seemed like a balanced sword fight, Lin Huang fought very casually.
However, Ichimaru Gin lived up to his name as a child prodigy. From being suppressed by Lin Huang with one hand at the beginning, in just a few months, he could now barely withstand the offensive of Lin Huang's single-handed swordplay.
During this practice, Lin Huang keenly noticed that a hint of new understanding had been added to Ichimaru Gin's Zanjutsu; his aura became more condensed, and his spiritual pressure also became a bit thicker.
He knew in his heart: at this moment, Ichimaru Gin must have already grasped the Shikai of his Zanpakuto, [Shinsō]... Time flew by, and another two months passed.
Lin Huang and Ichimaru Gin completed their third grade skip, successfully entering the Fifth Year class, which marked the highest grade level of the academy.
And the subsequent progress was even more astonishing.
Lin Huang seemed to have taken only half a month to completely master the courses that Fifth Year students needed a full year to finish.
Four days later, Ichimaru Gin also completed his Fifth Year studies and successfully skipped into the Sixth Year.
By now, in less than half a year since enrollment, Lin Huang and Ichimaru Gin had skipped five grades in a row, reaching the Sixth Year.
The Sixth Year was the final academic year of the Shino Academy; after graduating from here, one could officially become a Shinigami.
Over these past few months, Lin Huang's greatest gain was naturally the complete spirit particle infusion, turning the asauchi into his own Zanpakuto and successfully mastering the Shikai [star abyss].
In terms of combat skills, his Zanjutsu techniques had been systematically perfected and refined; he had dabbled in Hakuda, mastered Shunpo, and learned about seventy to eighty percent of the Kido below number forty.
When the two officially entered the Sixth Year, the lineup of instructors responsible for the four arts of "Zanpakutō, Hakuda, Hohō, Kidō" also welcomed heavyweight figures:
The Zanjutsu instructor was a gentle woman wearing a shinigami uniform and glasses, with long hair draped over her shoulders.
It was the then-lieutenant of the Eighth Division, Yadōmaru Risa.
The Hakuda instructor was a vibrant young girl with short light-green hair, the then-lieutenant of the Ninth Division, Kuna Mashiro.
The Shunpo instructor was none other than Fèng-Shāolíng, also known as Suì-Fēng, who had not yet become the captain of the Second Division and was currently serving as the direct guard for the Commander-in-Chief of the Onmitsukidō, Shihōin Yoruichi.
The Kido instructor was Hachigen Ushōda, the vice-captain of the kidō corps, a dark-skinned, round-bodied man with pink hair and a mustache.
Standing before the bulletin board, Lin Huang stared blankly at the list of the four instructors for the Sixth Year.
Among these four instructors, three were future members of the "Masked Army."
And the one he was most interested in was naturally the one who looked the most honest and simple but was likely the most fierce in a fight, Hachigen Ushōda.
In the Battle of Karakura Town in the original work, it was this Hachigen Ushōda who stepped in and, with his peak Bakudo, completely dealt with Baraggan, who possessed the power of aging.
That miraculous use of Bakudo remained fresh in Lin Huang's memory to this day.
Therefore, when he saw this person's name on the instructor list, he was certain that this trip to the Shino Academy was definitely worth it!
From the distribution of the instructor lineup for this final year of students, one could also catch a glimpse of the power struggle between the major factions in the Seireitei.
The four instructors came from the Gotei 13, the Onmitsukidō, and the Kidō Corps respectively.
Clearly, they were there not only to teach but also to select fresh blood for their respective organizations.
Not all students who graduate from the Shino Academy enter the Gotei 13.
Those with outstanding Kido talent are mostly absorbed into the Kidō Corps;
While those with exceptional Shunpo and assassination skills might be selected for the Onmitsukidō... A few days later, on an open lawn at the southern end of the Seireitei.
Suì-Fēng, dressed in a tight-fitting outfit that showed off her efficiency, stood with her hands behind her back.
Two figures were already standing quietly beside her, Lin Huang and Ichimaru Gin, both wearing Shino Academy uniforms.
Clearly, even when faced with the harsh assessment standards proposed by Suì-Fēng, Lin Huang and Ichimaru Gin felt no pressure and completed the task excellently, which allowed them to arrive early and composed.
It wasn't until half an hour later that the main group of students could be seen arriving one after another, panting as they used Shunpo.
Suì-Fēng's cold gaze swept over the disheveled group of students, and a look of contempt appeared on her face without any concealment.
"Too slow!"
Suì-Fēng's flat voice carried disdain.
"With such clumsy Shunpo, I'm really curious what kind of pity the instructors in charge of the assessment had to let a bunch of mediocre talents like you advance to the Sixth Year!"