Reentering Hueco Mundo

Inside Soul Society, Tōshirō returned with the World of the Living Rescue Squad. Ye Yang slipped into the First Division and walked to Yamamoto's captain's office. He heard Yamamoto's voice from inside, "Captain Ye Yang, come in."

Ye Yang slowly pushed open the door to the captain's office. "Captain-Commander..."

"Is there something you need, Captain Ye Yang?" Yamamoto asked unhurriedly.

Ye Yang walked up to Yamamoto. "Captain-Commander Yamamoto, I've come to discuss something with you, regarding Orihime Inoue. You should know that Orihime Inoue wouldn't betray you given her personality."

Yamamoto sighed softly, "How could I not know that? But the safety of Soul Society is the most important thing, so we need to carefully consider the matter of rescuing Orihime Inoue."

Ye Yang then said, "This matter cannot be delayed. Does the Captain-Commander know about Orihime Inoue's abilities? Do you know what use Aizen would have for capturing a human like her?"

Yamamoto looked doubtful; he really hadn't thought of that. "You know?"

Ye Yang then explained Orihime's abilities and Aizen's purpose in capturing her, "If Aizen achieves his goal, then this final battle will break out ahead of schedule."

"What!" Yamamoto exclaimed in surprise. He never expected that his decision would cause the great battle to start ahead of schedule. In principle, the more time the Soul Society had, the greater their chances of winning.

"Captain-Commander, how about this? I'll go to the World of the Living first. Ichigo Kurosaki will probably go to Hueco Mundo your advice. I'll go with him then. I know Hueco Mundo pretty well. What do you think?" Ye Yang asked.

Yamamoto: "Are you going by yourself?"

"Who else? I know Hueco Mundo the best. Besides, even if we face Aizen head-on, we might not be at a disadvantage. As for reinforcements, let the Captain-Commander discuss that further; the matter is urgent. I'll be going now."

Yamamoto nodded, and then Ye Yang stepped out of the First Division and opened the Senkaimon.

In the World of the Living, Ye Yang quickly entered Urahara Shop, only to find Urahara already waiting in the basement. "Ye Yang? What brings you here?" Urahara asked, expecting Ichigo to arrive first.

"What's wrong? Can't I come?" Ye Yang asked back. "Huh? Hasn't Ichigo arrived yet?"

Urahara asked in surprise, "How did you know Mr. Kurosaki would come?"

"How could I not know? Given Ichigo's personality, he would definitely go to Hueco Mundo to save Orihime. And the only person he can turn to for help is you, isn't that right?" Ye Yang chuckled.

Urahara chuckled, "You really can't hide anything from Ye Yang. But what's the purpose of your visit?"

Ye Yang remained silent. Then he noticed two other people present: Yasutora Sado, who had appeared before, and Uryū Ishida, a Quincy who now seemed to have regained his Quincy powers.

Chad said to Ye Yang, "Captain Ye Yang."

Before Ye Yang could answer, they sensed a powerful Spiritual Pressure — Ichigo's —appearing in front of Urahara Shop. Ye Yang and Urahara simultaneously murmured, "Finally here."

Urahara said softly, "I'm going to pick up Mr. Kurosaki." After saying that, he walked straight out. A moment later, Urahara brought Ichigo with him.

Ichigo followed Urahara here and, upon seeing Ye Yang, asked in surprise, "Ye Yang? What are you doing here? Didn't Soul Society say they wouldn't help?"

Ye Yang didn't explain anything, he just pursed his lips. "Just take it as my own wish. You guys will definitely suffer if you go to Hueco Mundo, especially since you're an indispensable fighting force in the final battle."

In reality, Isshin already knew that Ichigo would definitely go to Hueco Mundo to rescue Orihime. Since Ichigo knew nothing about Hueco Mundo, Isshin asked Ye Yang to protect Ichigo's safety. Moreover, Aizen's headquarters was there, and Ye Yang might gain something if he went there. That's why Ye Yang came here to enter Hueco Mundo with Ichigo.

Ichigo bowed slightly to Ye Yang and said, "Thank you."

Only then did Ichigo notice that Ishida and Chad were also there. "You guys..."

Chad walked up to Ichigo: "Of course I'll go to Hueco Mundo with you."

"But your power..." Ichigo said worriedly. Chad's power would only kill him in Hueco Mundo, and Ishida had long since lost his Quincy abilities. How could he go to Hueco Mundo with him?

"Ichigo!" Chad called out, then punched Ichigo's Zanpakuto, instantly causing a massive Spiritual Pressure storm. Chad had been working hard to become stronger for the past month. With Urahara's reasonable arrangements and Renji's help, Chad's strength had undergone a tremendous change in the past month, and he was now strong enough to help Ichigo.

"Do you still think our strength is not enough? Ichigo, trust us. Don't carry everything on your own. Let your comrades carry it with you!" Chad's eyes were filled with determination.

Ishida then said, "My power has been restored, and it's even greater than before. Would you like to give it a try?"

Seeing the unwavering determination in his two companions' eyes, Ichigo was filled with confidence for the mission. As long as his companions were there, that was enough. Wasn't it the same when they rescued Rukia last time? They accomplished seemingly impossible tasks beautifully, and this time would be no different. They would definitely rescue Orihime!

Next, Urahara opened the Garganta and explained, "The black hole through which the Arrancar Menos Grande travel is called the Garganta. There are no paths inside, only vortexes formed by turbulent Reishi. So please use Reishi to pave a path and proceed in the dark until you reach Hueco Mundo."

Ichigo then gave Urahara some instructions, let his family and friends know he was safe, and then Ye Yang, Ichigo went inside, and the Garganta disappeared.

Problems arose when they entered the Garganta. Although Ichigo extremely strong Spiritual Power, he was not good at controlling it. The task of paving a path with Reishi was practically a death sentence for him, and the path he paved was a complete mess.

Chad, following behind Ichigo, nearly fell off, but luckily managed to grab the edge. Ichigo complained, "Damn it! Paving a road with Reishi sounds simple, but I'm terrible at this kind of delicate work!"

At this moment, Ishida caught up and said, "Seriously, it's just creating a foothold, is it really that difficult?"

Ichigo bulged instantly. "Didn't I tell you, I'm not good at this?" Ichigo pointed to the long, thin white board at Ishida's feet and asked, "What's that? It's too cunning for one person to use."

"It's just the application of the Hirenkyaku; you can't use it with your Spiritual Pressure control," Ishida retorted without hesitation.

At this moment, Ye Yang caught up from behind and asked, "What are you arguing about? Why aren't you leaving?"

Ichigo became even angrier when he saw Ye Yang. "What's wrong with you?" Ichigo pointed to the road Ye Yang was walking on. Ye Yang's path was a smooth and wide road, a world of difference from the Ichigo had made. Ichigo's path was like a country lane, while Ye Yang's path was like a highway.

"What? Isn't this simple?" Ye Yang retorted.

Are you saying I'm stupid?

"Otherwise what? If you can't even do something this simple, strong Spiritual Pressure is important, but the ability to control Spiritual Pressure is also essential. Chad, you should stay behind me to avoid any danger," Ye Yang said softly.

Chad trusted Ichigo, but after looking at the two paths for a while, he chose to stand behind Ye Yang. The gap between them was too big, and he didn't want to fall before even reaching Hueco Mundo.

Although Ichigo was furious, he didn't press the matter further and instead asked, "Then, Ye Yang, do you know how to control Spiritual Pressure?" Ichigo's eyes were filled with anticipation. Although his Spiritual Pressure was powerful, he didn't know how to use it. If he could use his Spiritual Pressure correctly, his strength would definitely reach a new level.

Ye Yang White Ichigo's thoughts. "These things can't be rushed. You've achieved your current strength in less than a year, which is already a record in Soul Society history. It's precisely because of your excessively rapid growth that your control over Spiritual Pressure is so poor. Only through long-term accumulation will your control over Spiritual Pressure improve. Don't think about any shortcuts."

Chad was immediately disappointed. Ichigo then said to Ishida, "Ishida, I heard from Urahara that you and your father made a promise: he would help you regain your Quincy powers, and you would sever all ties with the Shinigami."

Ishida nodded. "Yes."

Ichigo asked, "Then why did you still come to Hueco Mundo with me? Doesn't that break the promise too?"

"Tch, he only said he would sever ties with the Grim Reapers, but Ichigo, you are both a Grim Reaper and a human. Besides, we're going to rescue our human comrades, so we haven't broken any promises," Ishida said calmly.

"Isn't this it?" Ichigo asked.

"No, this was just taking advantage of a loophole in the agreement. Alright, let's not talk about that anymore, let's hurry on our way, Hueco Mundo is just ahead, let's get going."

The group quickly moved forward, and upon entering Hueco Mundo, they found themselves in what seemed like a maze. Two Arrancar blocked their path, but they were merely low-level enemies and were quickly dealt with by Ishida and Chad.

After they were dealt with, the labyrinth quickly collapsed, revealing the true Hueco Mundo: a crescent moon hanging in the sky, an endless silver desert, a few trees nearby, and a massive palace in the distance.

"Is this Hueco Mundo?" Ichigo looked around and said slowly.

Ye Yang also took a look. Nothing had changed since he left, except for the addition of that palace. He figured that must be Las Noches, where Aizen was.

Ichigo and the others quickly noticed it too, "Is that the Las Noches they were talking about? It's huge!"

Chad: "Yeah, it's so huge that we don't even feel any distance anymore. We have no idea how far it is, or how we're going to get there."

"Of course, we'll run!"