After being injured, the Gillian became even more frenzied. It lifted its feet and began to run, trying to crush these ants.
However, with its sense of direction distorted, it couldn't get close to Shinji and the others at all.
BOOM—
The Gillian's massive body crashed into an even larger stone pillar, causing a shower of sand and rock to fall from above.
Kensei appeared at the Gillian's side and thrust out the dagger in his hand.
A wind thread slashed through the air, and one of the Gillian's giant, bone-white claws was severed by the sharp wind.
The Gillian went completely berserk, once again gathering a Cero in its mouth. It didn't lock onto any target but began to fire wildly.
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM—
The Ceros flew in all directions, which actually limited the effectiveness of Shinji's directional distortion ability. To avoid being hit, everyone used Shunpo to dodge.
Just then, Jin'emon Tsubaki and Nozomishin Ōmaeda, instead of retreating, advanced, appearing at the Gillian's feet from the left and right.
Jin'emon bent his knees into a lunge, his Zanpakutō already sheathed.
Whoosh—
His figure vanished, instantly reappearing on the other side.
Katori Style: Shunpo Iai!
Pfft—
The Gillian's left ankle was sliced clean in two.
"ROOOAR—" The Gillian let out a pained cry.
Nozomishin Ōmaeda swung his spiked club, smashing it against the Gillian's right leg.
The combined attacks caused the Gillian to completely lose its balance and fall forward.
Kana Azashiro was standing right in the path of its fall. Her left hand gripped the scabbard at her waist, her thumb pressed against the guard.
Just as the Gillian was about to crush her, a flash of sword light suddenly erupted.
THUD THUD THUD PFFT PFFT PFFT—
The sounds of a mask shattering and a blade tearing through flesh mingled together.
The Gillian's massive mask and head were torn apart by dozens of thrusts.
CRASH—
The Gillian's remains slammed into the ground, causing it to tremble slightly.
Kensei went forward to check, and after confirming the Menos was completely dead, he began to boast, "Menos Grande aren't that big a deal after all."
Kana Azashiro excitedly waved in Katori Sora's direction. "Professor, we took down a Gillian-class Menos!"
Whoosh—
Sora and Akane used Shunpo to appear beside the group.
Sora smiled. "You all did very well. Being able to work together to hunt a Gillian is more than enough to prove you have the strength to graduate early."
Sora felt that the reason they could handle the Gillian so easily was primarily due to Shinji Hirako's ability to distort direction.
It had been the key factor.
At their current level, they still couldn't take a Menos's Cero head-on.
If the Gillian's sense of direction hadn't been distorted, making its Ceros miss, it would not have been so easy for them to deal with it.
The look of surprise in Akane Saitō's eyes had not yet faded. She never thought these six un-graduated students could actually defeat a Gillian-class Menos Grande!
"The students of the academy are getting stronger and stronger..." Akane lamented. "To be able to defeat a Gillian-class Menos is proof of your excellence. I will give you an outstanding evaluation."
Her words brought a sense of relief to the six.
If not for their inexperience causing them to slow down in the reishi turbulence, they wouldn't have been swept into the 'Valley of Screams.'
This had indirectly caused Akane to lose some of her memory, so they had been quite worried they might receive a failing grade because of it.
Sora took some flesh and blood samples from the Gillian's corpse, intending to take them back as research material.
After a short rest, the group set off again.
However, they hadn't gone far before Sora sensed the spiritual pressure of another Menos Grande.
At this distance, the others were completely unaware.
"Miss Saitō, we're about to encounter another Menos Grande... I feel something is not right," Sora's spiritual sense detected an anomaly in the shadows.
Logically, they were now not far from the expeditionary force's encampment. These Menos should be staying away from this area.
Gillian-class Menos were individuals formed from the fusion of many normal Hollows. They usually had chaotic consciousness and lacked clear, calm minds, but they did possess some intelligence and animal-like instincts for self-preservation.
The presence of so many Shinigami from the expeditionary force in this area should have made them instinctively feel danger and keep their distance.
Yet, Sora and his group had encountered them repeatedly in this area, which made him feel something was very wrong.
This situation made him consider a possibility—these Gillians were being summoned by an Adjuchas-class Menos!
Adjuchas-class Menos had the ability to command Gillians.
"Another Gillian?" Akane couldn't help but frown. "Encountering one could be a coincidence, but if we're running into them one after another, then something abnormal is likely happening. We need to get to the expeditionary camp as soon as possible and report this anomaly!"
"Leave this one to me. You all speed up," Sora said.
"Yes, sir!" The six students pushed their speed to the maximum.
After they sped up, the distant Gillian noticed their spiritual pressure and began to gather a massive Cero in its mouth.
Clang—
The sound of a blade being drawn rang in everyone's ears.
Then, a stream of light cut through the stone forest.
Even the massive stone pillars that supported the desert of Hueco Mundo could not block its path.
The stream of light tore through all obstacles, including the Gillian's head.
The Gillian's skull, along with half of its mask, was sent flying.
The red Cero that was gathering in its mouth stopped abruptly.
Losing control, it exploded violently inside the Gillian's mouth.
BOOM—
By the time the Gillian's spiritual pressure fluctuation vanished, Sora's own rapid advance had not been delayed in the slightest.
The other seven stared wide-eyed at the scene before them, their pace unconsciously slowing.
"Keep up!" Sora reminded them.
They snapped back to their senses and quickly increased their speed.
"So strong—the professor took down a Gillian-class Menos in a single blow!" Kana said excitedly.
"It seems I'm still far behind... I need to work even harder to catch up to the professor's footsteps!" Kensei Muguruma shed his self-satisfied attitude.
Just now, after defeating a Gillian with his companions, he had started to feel quite pleased with himself.
Now, his professor had shown him a higher peak. While utterly shocked, the sight also sobered him from his complacency.
"Are you really a Professor from the Spiritual Arts Academy?!" Akane's face was filled with disbelief.
Had the requirements for being an academy Professor become this high?!
To be able to take down a Gillian-class Menos with a casual blow!
This was no small fry. Even a high-ranking seated officer like herself would need to coordinate with other Shinigami to defeat one.
Yet Katori Sora could slay one with ease. The sight had left her completely stunned.
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