The Truth of Evolution

For the next few hours, Cangya stayed inside the cave.

He had no desire to become a recluse in Hueco Mundo.

To truly understand the concept of Arrancar, he needed to familiarize himself with the basics of being a Hollow.

He chose to "cultivate in seclusion" to hone his power as a Vasto Lorde and unlock the full potential of his newly acquired innate ability.

The Evolution Database provided the basics, while his own thinking filled in the gaps.

First, Hollows were not the mindless soul devourers described by Soul Society.

In fact, the Hollows shown in "Bleach" were quite different.

The more he learned, the more interesting complexities he discovered, complicating the path he had originally intended to take.

Countless questions swirled in his mind: Why did Hollows have masks?

Why did they devour other souls to fill the emptiness in their own?

What was the nature of that emptiness, which kept growing along with their craving for souls?

Why did most Hollows become more humanlike after reaching the Adjuchas level?

And most importantly, what exactly was the "heart" that triggered a Hollow's birth?

He had many theories, but none could be confirmed.

Eventually, he gave up on exploring the heart's true purpose and turned his attention to the evolution of Hollows.

Every evolution after Gillian emphasized suppressing the primal instincts that had driven them to become voracious seekers of souls. Arrancar were largely similar to Soul Reapers.

He closed his eyes, his mind filled with countless theories.

After several minutes of thought, he opened his eyes, a light of new understanding shining in them.

He felt like a hermit who had attained enlightenment.

"I see. Menos Grande don't grow stronger and evolve by devouring other Hollows. The main objective is to strengthen their consciousness so they can suppress their primal instincts."

Failing to do so would cause them to regress to the Gillian level.

The theory made perfect sense and didn't seem false or absurd.

"Then Arrancar..."

When he realized the true purpose behind tearing off the mask during Arrancarization, a sneer appeared on his lips.

Aizen had been right about creating Arrancar by "breaking down the boundary between Hollows and Soul Reapers."

But there was more to the process; otherwise, there would be no naturally born Arrancar like Ulquiorra Cifer and Tia Stark.

"Let me test my theory and my new ability."

He turned to his drowsy companion and patted her mask. "Come with me."

"Hmm... Where are we going?"

"To cause some chaos, my little friend. Let's play with the fates of some unfortunate souls."

"..." Apache looked at him as though he had lost his mind.

How would one imagine the power of Pressure?

The power to completely suppress someone, leaving them utterly unable to fight back.

The power to crush someone under absolute pressure, as though squashing a bug.

Cangya's aspect of death manifested in a similar way, yet was worlds apart.

It truly was an astonishing ability.

He went out in search of an opponent to test its effects on.

Lo and behold, he found four enormous Hollows hibernating in an underground cave. They were Menos Grande.

Unlike Adjuchas and Vasto Lordes, Menos Grande were taller than ordinary houses.

Each was covered in black skin and wore a long-nosed mask with three holes.

Despite their enormous size, they were considered foot soldiers in Las Noches, as both their strength and primal abilities were inferior to those of Adjuchas. They were commonly known as Gillians.

All the Gillians shrieked upon noticing the intruders.

"They'll eat us alive!" Apache said, trembling. "Let's run!"

She was afraid the four Gillians would attack her with Ceros.

Cangya merely smiled and held out his hand toward the Gillians. "Atmospheric Pressure."

A wave of blue Reiatsu surrounded the imposing, enormous Hollows, and the wind howled like a wolf.

The atmosphere was everywhere, just like Reishi in Hueco Mundo.

In the vast world, the air itself weighed hundreds of thousands of pounds.

Normally, the pressure inside the human body counteracted atmospheric pressure, while bodily tissues absorbed the remaining net force.

Pressure disrupted this perfect balance to bring about pure destruction.

A Gillian's physical structure was far tougher than a human's, but could it withstand nearly a ton of pressure from all directions?

The answer came in the form of breaking bones.

Flesh ruptured and blood splattered. As expected, the four Gillians, each four stories tall, were reduced to a heap of misshapen flesh.

"That's amazing..."

The sheer power of his innate ability shocked even him.

[Aspect of death (Pressure): Pressure crushes everything with absolute authority. With the power of Pressure, you can amplify any aspect of the physical body, whether the surrounding environment or a part of an enemy's body.

The Reiatsu consumed will increase according to the resistance encountered and your understanding of this ability.]

For someone who had always lived under his grandfather's constant mental oppression, it was a fitting ability.

As long as physical entities existed in his surroundings, he could amplify an aspect of them.

In theory, he could increase anyone's heart rate and destroy their heart.

It was a way to kill instantly, but depending on the individual, it required an enormous amount of Reiatsu.

The ability was not perfect, however: energy consumption was its greatest drawback, followed by the conditions for using it.

Using it on the Gillians just once had consumed nearly a quarter of his Reiatsu.

If he tried to control a more powerful Hollow, it would be even less efficient.

If an opponent used stronger Reiatsu to resist his, the ability would fail.

"If I want to make full use of this ability, I need to expand my knowledge."

He regretted skipping physics class to spend quality time with his mathematics professor—his girlfriend.

Apache stared at the Gillians in terror, a chill running down her spine.

The incomprehensible power filled her with both awe and fear. This Hollow she had stumbled upon was a terrifying killing machine.

"What did you do...?" Apache asked in a whisper, the shock still on her face. "Is this a Vasto Lorde's true power?"

"Hmm?" He tilted his head and smiled innocently. "Even if I told you, you wouldn't understand. Besides, not every Vasto Lorde has such a terrifying ability."

"You little bastard." Apache had never wanted to pierce someone with her horns as badly as she did now.

His innocent mockery really annoyed her. "I'll—" She suddenly stopped, her eyes turning toward the distant hills as a primal fear gripped her.

Cangya chuckled. "You sensed it too?"

Apache nodded slowly. "My perception is much stronger than that of other Adjuchas."

Her perception had developed because of her cowardly way of life, but she was proud of the achievement.

Survival in Hueco Mundo depended on several factors.

Faster, stronger, smarter—she surpassed her kind in two of those respects.

"Commendable." The young man, who thought only of his own interests, grinned. "They're right on time. Apache, why don't you hide in a corner somewhere and let me deal with them?"

The newly arrived Hollows made no attempt to conceal their Reiatsu, which was slightly stronger than Apache's.

Apache ignored his order and stood rooted to the spot.

"Who do you think you're talking to? I'm no coward. Watch me tear them to pieces with my Cero!"

After eating that Hollow, her Reiatsu had fully recovered.

Even if she was no match for a male Adjuchas, she could still destroy weaker Hollows with a Cero beam.

"You're finally showing some backbone," Cangya murmured, gently stroking her Hollow mask. "I like seeing that kind of determination from you."

"Hmph. Don't treat me like a pet."