The commotion drew the attention of the current head of the Ryūdōji clan, Ganryu Ryūdōji. Despite centuries of wandering the Dangai, Ganryu possessed an air of nobility that set him apart from his followers, a pride that clung to him even in his reduced circumstances.
"Lord Ganryu."
Ganryu was startled by Ailin's appearance. The Ryūdōji clan were exiles, banished from the Soul Society. Ganryu, driven by revenge, had been researching the Plus souls, hoping to harness their power against the Seireitei.
He'd spent years scouring the Dangai, collecting the lost memories of Plus souls swept away by the Kōtotsu. By condensing these memories into "Yearning Beads," he could control the Plus souls within the Valley of Screams.
His plans were nearing completion. He couldn't tolerate any interruptions. And Ailin's presence was undoubtedly an interruption. Seeing that Ailin was alone, Ganryu simply glanced at him before addressing his six followers. "Kill him. And from now on, any intruders are to be executed on sight."
"Yes, sir!"
Ailin was taken aback. He hadn't intended to interfere with Ganryu's plans, initially. But remembering their true objective, the potential threat they posed to the Soul Society, he'd resolved to eliminate them. He just hadn't expected them to be so… eager to decide his fate.
Without a word, golden ripples appeared and Zanpakutō emerged.
Swish!
A chorus of screams echoed through the Valley of Screams as Ganryu and his followers were impaled and pinned to the stone pillars by a flurry of blades. They hadn't stood a chance against Ailin's King's Treasury.
Having dealt with them, Ailin walked towards the deepest part of the valley.
"This is it, then."
He stared at the empty space before him and took a deep breath. A golden ripple appeared, and the hilt of an ordinary Zanpakutō materialized. He drew the blade. Its surface bore the marks of age and use.
"Long time no see, old friend."
Despite possessing countless Zanpakutō thanks to Unlimited Blade Works, this one held a special place in his heart. It was his first, his truest Zanpakutō. Even Unlimited Blade Works itself paled in comparison to its significance.
This Zanpakutō had been forged from the memories of his past self. After being struck by Shūkurō Tsukishima's Fullbring, "Book of the End," he had been sent back in time. His past self, believing he was fighting Tsukishima, had poured all his energy into this single blade, developing two powerful techniques based on the abilities of a manga protagonist from his previous life.
Then, he copied Tsukishima's Book of the End, cut himself with it, and successfully inserted himself into his past self's memories, ensuring Tsukishima couldn't gather any intelligence on him. Upon returning to his present, he had reforged this Zanpakutō, naming it after himself.
Taking another deep breath, Ailin called out its name.
"Strive with all your might – Ailin!"
"One-Sword Asura!"
BOOM!
His spiritual pressure surged, surpassing even his Hollowfied state. One-Sword Asura was a simple, yet devastatingly powerful ability. It allowed him to condense all his spiritual pressure into a single minute, amplifying his power exponentially.
He felt confident that even Ichibei Hyōsube wouldn't survive a minute against him in this state. Sensing the immense power coursing through him, Ailin didn't hesitate. He swung his Zanpakutō at the empty space before him.
Hum…
RUMBLE!
Although his blade struck nothing, the space before him trembled. Then, the ground beneath him, and everything around him, disintegrated into dust.
BOOM!
A massive shockwave rippled outwards that obliterated the Valley of Screams. The three worlds – the World of the Living, the Soul Society, and Hueco Mundo – seemed to tremble. But only a few sensed the disturbance.
In the Soul King Palace, Ichibei Hyōsube opened his eyes and looked towards the three worlds with a puzzled frown. He'd felt a surge of immense spiritual pressure, but couldn't locate its source.
"Could it be… Yhwach?"
Ichibei's brow furrowed. A thousand years ago, Yhwach had ascended to the Soul King Palace to negotiate the fate of the World of the Living.
The negotiations had failed, and Ichibei had used the Soul King's right hand to seal half of Yhwach's power. Yhwach had then fallen to the Soul Society, where he was defeated by Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, the founder of the Gotei 13.
Even if Yhwach had spent the last millennium recovering, his spiritual pressure shouldn't have reached that level. In Ichibei's memory, only the Soul King possessed such power.
Shaking his head, Ichibei closed his eyes, dismissing the thought. Whatever the future held, it wouldn't affect him.
…
In the Valley of Screams, Ailin sighed, looking at the undamaged space before him. He was strong, undeniably so. But not strong enough to tear through the Soul Society's dimensional barrier.
"Then…"
"Bankai!"
"One-Sword Rakshasa!"
One-Sword Rakshasa was the Bankai of Ailin's Zanpakutō. Its ability was to condense all his power into a single, devastating strike, similar to Ichigo Kurosaki's Mugetsu, which focused all his spiritual pressure into one attack. However, unlike Mugetsu, which was a one-time technique, One-Sword Rakshasa could be used repeatedly, as long as Ailin's spiritual pressure recovered.
Sensing his power, Ailin swung at the space before him. This time, he felt immense resistance, as if time and space itself had solidified. His blade, however, carried the force of his will, the determination to break through.
Crack!
A black fissure appeared on the edge of his blade. Ailin sensed immense danger emanating from the crack, as if it could erase him in an instant. But he didn't hesitate. He poured all his power into his Zanpakutō, pushing it further, widening the fissure. Now that the space had been breached, the resistance lessened.
Rip!
The sound of tearing fabric echoed as Ailin sliced through the dimensional barrier, revealing the chaotic, multicolored currents of the dimensional sea beyond.
"I did it!"
Ailin's heart soared. He'd cut through the world. He used the remaining momentum from his attack to Shunpo through the fissure before it closed.
…
In the Seireitei, Ailin, sitting beneath the golden osmanthus tree, opened his eyes. A flicker of exhaustion crossed his face, but his heart was filled with elation. His first step had succeeded.
He was truly grateful to Tsukishima and his past self. They had given him the power to break free from the Soul Society. After realizing he couldn't push Hollowed Lin to the fifth stage of fusion within a reasonable timeframe, he'd decided to test his current limits. After all, leaving the Soul Society required the ability to break through its dimensional barrier.
The recent Reigai incident had revealed the existence of Kageroza Inaba's Zanpakutō, Raiku. Raiku, a fragment of Ōko Yushima's original Zanpakutō, Sumitsukigasa, possessed spacetime abilities.
Its spatial aspect manifested as the ability to memorize and recreate spaces. Its temporal aspect allowed Inaba to create copies of himself.
Having located Raiku within Unlimited Blade Works, Ailin had used its abilities to create a copy of himself from another point in time. This copy had then entered the Dangai, searching for the weakest point in the Soul Society's dimensional barrier. He had found it in the Valley of Screams.
There, he had unleashed his full power, obliterating the valley. And using his Bankai, One-Sword Rakshasa, he had cut through the world, stepping into the dimensional sea beyond.
However, after entering the dimensional currents, the link between Ailin and his past self had weakened. He could barely sense his other self's presence now.
"It seems… the world outside isn't so dangerous after all."
Ailin was overjoyed. His past self, powerless after using One-Sword Rakshasa, had survived the dimensional currents. This meant that when Ailin himself gained the power to break through the barrier, he could safely leave the Soul Society.
…
In the Seireitei, after the Reigai captains had been defeated, Byakuya Kuchiki took charge, ensuring the Gotei 13 continued its duties, assigning the Sixth Division to assist the other squads. He even funded the reconstruction of the buildings damaged during the Reigai uprising.
In the Ninth Division, Rukia, inspired by the Soul Society's ancient "noble rules," began drafting a legal code applicable to all Shinigami and nobles.
In the Eleventh Division, Captain Zaraki, lacking worthy opponents, spent his days sparring with his squad members. While Retsu Unohana, the Fourth Division captain, was absent, they now had Orihime Inoue, whose healing abilities surpassed even Unohana's.
Even with her Bankai, Minazuki, which transformed her spiritual pressure into blood capable of healing and regeneration, Unohana could only heal those who were still alive. Orihime, however, could resurrect even the completely obliterated, as long as she knew where they had died. By using Santen Kesshun at the site of their demise, she could reassemble their bodies and bring them back to life.
Aizen hadn't been exaggerating when he'd said her powers touched upon the realm of the divine. Even the Soul King likely couldn't achieve such feats of resurrection. But Orihime could.
In the Twelfth Division, Mayuri Kurotsuchi, engrossed in a new research project, remained secluded in his laboratory.
Ten days later, the captains returned from the World of the Living, only to learn they had lost fourteen days, thanks to the Kōtotsu's manipulation of the Dangai. Had it not been for Captain Ailin, they would have been greeted by their Reigai counterparts.
After imprisoning Aizen in Muken, Captain-Commander Yamamoto convened a captains' meeting. He glossed over the details of their defeat against Aizen. It was a humiliating loss. The entire Gotei 13, even with Yamamoto's intervention, had been defeated by a single man. They had even relied on a human, who sacrificed his powers, to fight for them.
Fortunately, Ailin had ultimately defeated Aizen, saving them from complete disgrace. But Yamamoto's earlier decision to have Kisuke Urahara restrain Ailin prevented him from claiming Ailin's victory as the Gotei 13's own.
The meeting focused on two main topics: the mastermind behind the Reigai incident, and the impending return of Yhwach, the Quincy progenitor, in two years.