Aizen Begins His Attack on the World of the Living

Just as Liu Hao, carrying Nel on his back and leading Ichigo Kurosaki, along with Pesche, Dondochakka, and their group, were speeding towards the iconic pale tower deep within Las Noches—

At the top of the tower, inside the vast hall that Sōsuke Aizen had transformed into a temporary throne.

Wearing a modified white Captain's Haori's haori, Sōsuke Aizen did not sit on the high-backed chair that symbolized power. Instead, he stood calmly on the edge of the throne platform, looking down at the orange-haired girl below who had been brought up by Starrk, her face still showing fear and unease.

He wore that gentle, aloof smile that seemed to last forever, and his brown eyes behind his glasses were as deep as an abyss, revealing no emotion whatsoever. His voice was mellow and pleasant, as if welcoming a long-lost distinguished guest. "Welcome back, Ms. Orihime Inoue."

Orihime Inoue instinctively took a half step back, her hands clasped nervously in front of her. Her azure eyes were filled with vigilance, fear, and a hint of barely concealed confusion. She didn't understand why Aizen would specifically send someone to bring her here.

Aizen's gaze seemed to pierce through people's hearts. He tilted his head slightly, his tone carrying just the right amount of gentleness, like an elder caring for a younger person. "What's wrong? Your expression... you seem to be in pain, very uneasy."

He took half a step forward, his voice becoming softer, carrying a strange allure. "Smile, Miss Inoue. You see, even this false 'sun' of Hueco Mundo, once obscured by dark clouds and its light dims, the 'residents' living here also become gloomy."

"And you are special." He gazed into her eyes, his words warm yet carrying an undeniable will. "You just need to smile, stay here peacefully... for a while. You don't need to do anything, you don't need to worry about anything. Just wait quietly."

He turned slightly to the side, his gaze seemingly piercing through the thick walls of the tower, directed towards the distant direction known as the World of the Living.

"After... we return triumphantly from Karakura Town, having dealt with some 'minor chores'," he said calmly, as if recounting an insignificant daily event, "Perhaps then, everything will be different."

"Karakura Town... Karakura Town?!" Orihime Inoue's pupils contracted sharply, her voice trembling with extreme shock and fear, "You... you're going... to... Karakura Town?! Why?! That place is..."

"Yes, destroy the Empty Throne, take its core of the Spiritually Dense Land, and create... the 'Oken' that leads to a higher realm." Aizen smiled, stating a terrifying plan that would shake the entire Soul Society with a matter-of-fact tone. He didn't explain much, as if it were just a simple, predetermined step that didn't require discussion.

Having said that, he ignored the look of terror that drained from Orihime Inoue's face, and gracefully turned to face the empty wall behind the throne. He slowly raised a hand, his fingertips seemingly containing the power to tear through space, and gently slashed forward—

Sizzle!

A massive crack— Garganta —with pitch-black edges and an unstable, eerie light flickering inside, was easily "torn open" in the solid wall by him! At the other end of the Garganta, the familiar yet distorted, blurry light and shadow of the World of the Living city could be vaguely seen.

"Yes." Aizen's voice returned to its usual calm as he gave the order.

"Yes, Lord Aizen." Kaname Tōsen and bowed slightly. He raised his arm, palm facing the void before him, and chanted softly, "Bakudo #77: Tenteikūra!"

An invisible Bakudō spell, yet containing powerful Reiatsu fluctuations, spread out instantly from Kaname Tōsen, like ripples caused by a stone thrown into a calm lake. Its range was so vast that it almost covered the entire Las Noches and even faintly extended into the outer Hueco Mundo space!

The next moment, a gentle yet oppressive male voice clearly echoed in the minds of all the Soul Reaper, Arrancars, and even beings with a certain degree of Reiatsu perception within the Las Noches —whether it was Liu Hao, Ichigo Kurosaki, and Nel who were moving swiftly; Retsu Unohana Isane Kotetsu and Isane Kotetsu who were treating the wounded or resting; Mayuri Kurotsuchi who had just finished his "research exchange" with Szayelaporro; Byakuya Kuchiki who was with Rukia, Uryū Ishida, and others; Renji Abarai and Yasutora Sado who were lying in the ruins panting and receiving basic treatment—

"You intruders, can you hear me?"

"It's Aizen!" Ichigo Kurosaki suddenly stopped in his tracks, looking at Liu Hao in astonishment.

Liu Hao remained calm, nodded, and sharply gazed towards the tower. "It seems he's planning to make a move. His target... is indeed Karakura Town."

On the other side, beside Retsu Unohana Renji Abarai and Yasutora Sado, Vice-Captain Isane Kotetsu changed, and he exclaimed in a low voice, "Captain! This is... Tenteikūra! Aizen, he..."

Retsu Unohana's healing Kidō continued to glow, her face still bearing that gentle smile, though a hint of coldness flashed deep within her eyes. "An expected announcement."

Having just "harvested" a large amount of "experimental materials" and "technical ideas" from Szayelaporro, Mayuri Kurotsuchi was quite satisfied but also somewhat Mayuri Kurotsuchi for some reason. Upon hearing the voice in his mind, he merely snorted disdainfully and continued fiddling with his newly acquired "toy," as if Aizen's words were nothing more than background noise.

Beside Byakuya Kuchiki, Rukia nervously grabbed her brother's sleeve. "Brother! What is Aizen planning to do?!"

Byakuya Kuchiki remained composed, his icy face expressionless, his voice clearly reaching Rukia's ears. "Invading the World of the Living, seizing the Spiritually Dense Land, creating the Oken. Liu Hao had already warned us of this."

"What?!" Rukia and Uryū Ishida, who was standing next to her, were both taken aback. They were unaware of Liu Hao's detailed prediction.

At this moment, Aizen's voice, transmitted through Tenteikūra, continued to echo in everyone's minds, revealing his entire plan.

"First, please allow me to express my personal... respect to those warriors who successfully defeated my Espada." His tone lacked sincerity, sounding more like a procedural opening. "Your strength and effort have indeed exceeded my initial expectations."

"Then, enough of the pleasantries." His voice suddenly turned cold, carrying a decisive air of absolute control. "Next, we will officially launch our... attack on the World of the Living."

Upon hearing this, the Captain-level Soul Reaper — Retsu Unohana, Byakuya Kuchiki, Mayuri Kurotsuchi, and Liu Hao, who knew the inside story—did not show much surprise on their faces. Liu Hao's previous analysis and warnings had already prepared them mentally for this.

However, for the younger generation such as Ichigo Kurosaki, Rukia, Uryū Ishida, Renji, and Chad, this was nothing short of a bolt from the blue!

"An attack on the World of the Living?! Aizen's going to target Karakura Town?!" Ichigo Kurosaki panicked instantly, grabbing Liu Hao's arm tightly. "Liu Shu! What do we do?! Inoue is still in his hands, and now he's going to destroy Karakura Town! We..."

"What's the rush!" Liu Hao slapped his hand away impatiently, glared at him, and said with a hint of exasperation, "You brat, when will you ever be able to behave yourself! Do you think the Gotei 13 are just sitting around doing nothing? We predicted something this big when he defected! We had contingency plans ready long ago!"

Elsewhere, Rukia looked anxiously at Byakuya Kuchiki: "Brother! Aizen is going to attack the World of the Living! We have to go back quickly!"

Seeing his sister's flustered state, Byakuya Kuchiki gently placed a hand on her shoulder. The cold touch carried a strange, comforting power. "Rukia, calm down. This was exactly what we expected. The Captain-Commander has his own plans."

Amidst the ruins, Renji Abarai, whose injuries had just been stabilized by Retsu Unohana, struggled to sit up. "Captain Unohana! That bastard Aizen is going to attack the World of the Living! We have to hurry..."

"Renji, be quiet." Retsu Unohana yet authoritative voice interrupted him, the healing light in her hands remaining steady. "Don't panic. Everything is going according to plan."

Uryū Ishida, however, was more concerned about Inoue's safety. He asked urgently, "What about Inoue?! Aizen went to attack the World of the Living, will he take Inoue with him?!"

As if in response to his question, Aizen's voice came again at the right time, answering some of his doubts, but also bringing new unease.

"As for Orihime Inoue..." Aizen's voice held a hint of amusement, "I left her in the 'Fifth Tower' of Las Noches. If any of you are still interested in rescuing this comrade, feel free to come and 'take her back.' However..."

He paused deliberately, his tone becoming nonchalant, yet even more chilling. "Now, she's... useless to me."

"Useless? What does that mean?!" Renji Abarai growled in confusion.

"What?!" Yasutora Sado frowned, a sense of foreboding rising in his heart.

Aizen's voice rang out leisurely, as if he were recounting a pre-arranged chess game. "Her ability, 'The Rejection of Phenomena,' is indeed astonishing, even far exceeding the comprehension of ordinary humans and even Soul Reaper. It is precisely because of this that those high-ranking figures in Soul Society have deeply realized the 'importance' and... 'danger' of this ability."

"Therefore, when news of Orihime Inoue's 'kidnapping' reached Soul Society, it unsurprisingly triggered a 'sense of crisis' among the higher-ups. This sense of crisis naturally... led Soul Society to shift its defensive focus inward, strengthening its vigilance against Seireitei itself, while relatively 'neglecting' its attention to the World of the Living, especially to Karakura Town, a special Spiritually Dense Land."

His words carried a hint of sarcasm, as if mocking the shortsightedness and passivity of Soul Society's decision-makers.

"Of course I know, Liu Hao... you must have foreseen this, and may even have already warned me." Aizen's voice betrayed neither praise nor apprehension towards Liu Hao. "But so what?"

"The 'betrayal' of three Captains (himself, Gin Ichimaru, and Kaname Tōsen) of the Gotei 13 has already shaken its foundation. And now, in order to rescue you, four more Captains (Retsu Unohana Byakuya Kuchiki Kenpachi Zaraki, and Mayuri Kurotsuchi) and... you, Liu Hao, this unfathomable yet subtly 'uncontrollable factor' with a delicate stance, have been successfully 'sealed' within Hueco Mundo."

As soon as he finished speaking, something chilling happened—

Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!

Four muffled sounds of spatial locking echoed almost simultaneously from different directions around Las Noches! These were the locations of the four Garganta passages that the Soul Society reinforcements had forcibly opened to enter Hueco Mundo! At this moment, these passages seemed to be forcibly interfered with, distorted, and sealed off from the outside by a more powerful, pre-programmed spatial force! The Reishi light membranes at the entrances of the passages fluctuated violently, then quickly dimmed, solidified, and finally disappeared completely, returning to Hueco Mundo's original stable yet closed spatial structure!

"Captain!" Isane Kotetsu's face was deathly pale, his voice filled with panic, "The Garganta we opened when we came in... it's all been interfered with and sealed off by an abnormal spatial force! We can't open it again!"

This means that these Captains and Soul Reaper who entered Hueco Mundo have lost their usual means of returning directly to Soul Society or the World of the Living for a short period of time! They are truly "trapped" in Hueco Mundo!

"Tch!" Mayuri Kurotsuchi clicked his tongue in extreme annoyance. He stopped what he was doing, looked up at the direction where the Garganta was blocked, his purple-painted face filled with irritation. "What's the rush? A bunch of ignorant fools! Don't forget why I was sent here!"

He pointed to his head, as if emphasizing his intelligence. "Although in Soul Society, only that unpleasant guy, Kisuke Urahara, has ever thoroughly researched and successfully analyzed the stable structural technology of the Garganta... But! Before setting off here, that bastard! had already 'sensibly' and 'voluntarily' 'handed over' the relevant technical data and core parameters to the Research and Development Institute!"

He gritted his teeth, as if uttering the words "Kisuke Urahara" and "handover" made him feel incredibly humiliated. "That's right! That's what infuriates me the most! To actually Mayuri Kurotsuchi Kurotsuchi-sama, to use the technology developed by that traitor to open the way back! It's utterly shameful!"

But his words also brought a glimmer of hope to everyone—the director of the Research and Development Institute was here and had mastered the key technology to open the Garganta, so returning to the World of the Living was not impossible, it just would take time.

Aizen's voice seemed to indicate he knew everything. He continued, his tone one of complete composure. "In this way, the Soul Society's high-end combat power will be greatly weakened. Their reactions to our actions will become slower, and their defenses will have weaknesses. This... is the perfect time for us to act."

"First, we will destroy Karakura Town, extract its core of the Spiritually Dense Land, and complete the creation of the 'Oken.' Then... armed with the power of the Oken, we will launch another attack and seize the Soul Society, whose defenses are now weak!"

His final words turned to the Soul Reaper still trapped in Hueco Mundo, tinged with a condescending indifference. "As for you 'guests' stranded in Hueco Mundo... after I've dealt with everything in the World of the Living and Soul Society, I will naturally... take my time to 'entertain' you."

He seemed to be saying this intentionally to someone, "I wonder, Liu Hao, who is so shrewd and calculating, did you... also foresee this scene before you?"

With that, Aizen's "declaration" seemed to come to an end. Then, he gave his final order, "Ulquiorra, Las Noches is yours."

As he called out, the space on one side of the tower hall suddenly shattered like glass! A figure clad in a black Arrancar uniform, with pale skin, black tear-like markings, and a cold and calm Arrancar, stepped out from the broken space. It was the Espada, Ulquiorra Cifer.

(Note: Ulquiorra was previously caught off guard by Grimmjow, who used the "Negación Bandit," a forbidden artifact given to the Espada by Aizen to punish subordinates, to inject into the Hollow Hole in Ulquiorra's chest. This temporarily sealed him in a separate dimension, preventing him from escaping. This also explains why Grimmjow was able to take Orihime Inoue away. The Negación Bandit was originally a spatial cage used to permanently seal those with low Reiatsu, but for Espada with such high Reiatsu as Ulquiorra, although it could only hold them for a while, it could not be maintained for long, and he forcibly broke through and escaped.)

Ulquiorra knelt on one knee, bowed his head, and replied, "Yes, Lord Aizen."

Aizen said no more, and together with Gin Ichimaru, who always wore a mysterious smile, and Kaname Tōsen, who had a solemn expression, they turned and stepped into the dark and deep Garganta that led to the World of the Living. The Garganta slowly closed behind them, as if a giant beast had swallowed their figures, leaving only an empty echo and an increasingly heavy atmosphere.

After the Garganta completely closed, Ulquiorra slowly stood up, his emerald green eyes, like those of a cold-blooded animal, staring emotionlessly at the isolated and pale-faced Orihime Inoue not far away.

Other parts of Las Noches.

"Liu Shu! What do we do now?!" Ichigo Kurosaki looked towards the tower, sensing the spatial fluctuations around him that were being sealed off, and asked anxiously, "Aizen has gone to the World of the Living! Inoue is still inside the tower! It seems our way back is blocked too!"

Liu Hao took a deep breath, suppressing the slight unease that arose in his heart from Aizen's final provocation. His gaze swept over the anxious Ichigo, Nel with a worried expression on her shoulder, and Pesche and Dondochakka, who were also looking over. His voice returned to its usual calm and steady tone, even carrying a hint of reprimand. "What are you yelling about! You panic like this over the smallest thing, what kind of behavior is this!"

He glared at Ichigo Kurosaki before continuing, "Didn't I just say? We've already planned and prepared for all these things, including the possibility of us being temporarily trapped in Hueco Mundo, and Aizen's true objective! The Captain-Commander and Kisuke Urahara have naturally made corresponding arrangements in the World of the Living and Soul Society as well!"

"Now, what we need to do is not to stand here anxiously, but to proceed step by step at our own pace!" Liu Hao pointed to the fifth tower where Orihime Inoue was imprisoned, his tone resolute. "The first step is to rescue Inoue from Ulquiorra! Ensure her safety!"

"Then," his gaze fell on the direction where the Garganta was sealed, and then seemed to pierce through the void to look at the World of the Living, "We need to find a way to break through the seal of this Hueco Mundo, or use Director Mayuri Kurotsuchi's technology to return to the World of the Living!"

"Finally," Liu Hao's eyes flashed with a sharp light, "Go to Karakura Town and make a... final stand with Aizen!"

"All plans, all predictions, must ultimately be validated by strength and action! Panic solves nothing! Do you understand, Ichigo?!"

Ichigo Kurosaki was jolted by Liu Hao's words, his panic gradually replaced by determination. He nodded forcefully, gripping Zangetsu tightly. "Understood, Liu Shu! Let's go save Inoue first!"

Nel hugged Liu Hao's neck tightly, her little face full of seriousness. "Yes! Rescue Inoue- kun!"