At the same time Raizen Kō was devouring Hollows deep within the Forest of Menos, in a distant region of the endless desert of Hueco Mundo, a Gillian with strange, asymmetrical patterns etched across its mask stood confronting another Hollow.
If Raizen Kō were present, he would immediately recognize it
It was the same mutated Gillian he had encountered when he had first arrived in Hueco Mundo.
The Hollow standing opposite it was only about three meters tall, with a gaunt, twisted frame. A pale, clown-like mask covered its inverted triangular head, and from its arms extended sharp, blade-like claws, glimmering faintly under the eternal moonlight.
Scattered across the sand between them lay the shattered remains of ordinary Gillians broken masks, severed limbs, dissolving fragments of bone and Reishi clear evidence that the mutated Gillian had just emerged from a brutal slaughter.
"You arrogant and audacious Gillian," the clown-masked Hollow sneered, his voice shrill and venomous.
"How dare you annihilate all my subordinates? Submit to me and become my loyal servant. I, Starr Mlev, shall spare your life—and I may even grant you the honor of following me to Las Noches, to kneel before the great ruler of Hueco Mundo, Lord Baraggan Louisenbairn!"
Starr Mlev stared at the towering Gillian before him, his tone heavy with forced authority.
The mutated Gillian responded with nothing but contempt.
"A piece of rotting trash dares to command me?" it boomed, its voice echoing through the desert like thunder.
"One day, this king will ascend to Las Noches, crush Baraggan beneath my heel, and seize the throne with my own hands!"
With those words, the Gillian opened its massive mouth and unleashed a roaring Cero.
Seeing this, Starr Mlev raised both hands above his head and fired his own Cero in response.
"BOOOOM!!!"
The twin beams collided violently, detonating in a blinding explosion. The desert wind howled like a furious beast, and the sand beneath them was blown into towering spirals.
When the dust finally settled, both Hollows still stood.
Neither had suffered any visible injury.
Starr Mlev's eyes widened in disbelief.
He an Adjuchas had clashed Cero with a mere Gillian… and failed to overpower it.
And worse, the Gillian was visibly wounded.
If such disgrace reached Las Noches, his already unstable status would collapse entirely.
Yet as an Adjuchas, he could not afford to show weakness.
He steadied his stance and spoke coldly:
"Foolish Gillian. How dare you defy me, Starr Mlev, an Adjuchas superior to your kind?"
The mutated Gillian paused… and then made a distinctly human gesture.
It laughed.
"Hahahahaha! You still have the audacity to call yourself an Adjuchas?"
"You're nothing more than a crippled reject whose evolution has long since stagnated barely clinging to your rank by devouring weak Gillians!"
Starr Mlev froze.
His pale clown mask visibly flushed red beneath the bone.
After turning crimson, it looked even more ridiculous.
"ROAR!!!"
A furious bellow erupted from Starr Mlev as his Reiatsu surged violently. Purple-black spiritual pressure spiraled around his body as he gathered destructive energy between his palms and hurled it forward in rapid succession.
Cero!
Almost simultaneously, he vanished in a blur of sound
Sonido!
His figure appeared beside the mutated Gillian in an instant, claws thrust toward its throat.
Yet just before the strike landed, the Gillian's massive body flickered and disappeared
Sonido!
The next moment, it reappeared above Starr Mlev, its enormous bone-like foot descending like the judgment of heaven.
BOOOOM!
White sand erupted skyward as Starr Mlev was driven straight into the desert floor.
"CLANG!"
A metallic impact rang out as Starr Mlev raised both arms to block the crushing foot. Sparks burst forth as claws and bone ground violently against each other.
"Damn you, you wretched Gillian!" Starr Mlev roared.
He unleashed his Reiatsu without restraint, finally repelling the massive foot and blasting himself free from the sand in a streak of distorted light.
Now shrouded completely in purple-black spiritual pressure, Starr Mlev raised both hands above his head, fingers interlocked.
His aura surged to its peak.
"Fallen Bite!"
His body twisted grotesquely into a black-purple grimace, and he shot toward the mutated Gillian at terrifying speed, sinking his corrosive form into its neck.
The Gillian's flesh melted instantly, as if touched by a substance more lethal than acid.
Within mere breaths, one-third of its thick neck had been eaten away.
But then
The Gillian's massive left hand reached out and seized Starr Mlev mid-attack, ripping him from its own dissolving flesh.
"Got you."
Ignoring the horrific damage to its own neck, the Gillian clenched its grip.
"Sssss!"
Even the hand holding Starr Mlev began to corrode.
A distorted, triumphant voice echoed from within:
"Hehehe… Fallen Bite spreads through my entire body surface. Grabbing me like this only hastens your death!"
Yet the mutated Gillian showed no fear.
It raised Starr Mlev high and dragged him toward its open mouth.
"You want to dissolve me?" it said coldly.
"Then let's see whether you melt me first… or I digest you first!"
"No! Don't—! You—!"
But the Gillian paid no heed.
It swallowed Starr Mlev whole.
"GAAAH!!!"
A painful roar erupted as the Gillian dropped to one knee, convulsing violently. Starr Mlev's corrosive power burned through its esophagus from within.
The desert remained silent for hours.
Finally, the mutated Gillian slowly stood up.
Purple-black Reiatsu seeped from its body, repairing its wounds inch by inch as the remains of Starr Mlev were absorbed and converted into nourishment.
A smug smile twisted across its mask.
It patted its stomach lightly.
"This pathetic amount of Reiatsu isn't even enough to make me evolve," it scoffed.
"And you dared call yourself an Adjuchas?"
Then its voice lowered, filled with pride.
"And stop calling me Gillian… Gillian."
"This king has a name."
"My name… is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez."
Elsewhere, deep within the Forest of Menos, Raizen Kō having just finished devouring his previous prey wandered slowly among the towering black trees, searching for his next target.
"ROOOAR!"
Raizen Kō paused.
"That sound… a lone Gillian?"
Following the echo, he soon spotted a towering Gillian roaring aimlessly in the shadows.
"Too bad it's just an ordinary, mindless Gillian," Raizen Kō muttered.
"But you'll serve well enough to test my strength."
Facing a Hollow one rank above himself, Raizen Kō showed not fear
Only a predatory grin.
And then he charged forward.