Bankai Training, Regrets

Stepping onto the fifth staircase, Liu Hao felt an unprecedented resolve. In the first four trials, he had transcended his lingering attachments to the past, broken through the illusory predicament, and confronted another side of his inner self. At this moment, although his Reiatsu was somewhat depleted, his mental state was more complete and clearer.

As the footsteps landed, the surrounding scenery changed in an instant.

This time, there were no familiar scenes, no projections of memories, and not even specific plots. What appeared before Liu Hao was a deep and boundless starry sky—similar to the Starry Sky Domain when his Imperial Sword Shikai, yet fundamentally different.

The stars here are more distant and more silent. There are no swirling nebulae, no streaking meteors, only eternally still starlight, like millions of silent eyes, quietly watching in the void.

And in the very center of this starry sky, stood a figure.

No, that wasn't a "person," but a shadow—an outline made of pure darkness. The outline was exactly the same as Liu Hao's figure, even down to the slight tilt of his shoulder when standing.

"Having gone through so much," the shadow spoke, its voice identical to Liu Hao's, yet carrying an ethereal, almost superhuman quality, "Is there anything you'd like to say?"

Liu Hao stared at his own shadow, remaining silent for a long time. His gaze wandered across the starry sky, as if searching for answers among those distant stars.

After a long silence, he slowly spoke, "Right now, besides believing that this world is real, I'm also thinking... why I came to this world. Where is my original world? Will I ever have a chance to go back?"

The shadow let out a barely audible chuckle, "Who knows? Now that you're here, why even think about going back? In that world, you probably have nothing to miss."

"Perhaps that's just human nature," Liu Hao said softly, a hint of self-mockery in his voice. "We only cherish what we've lost, and we take what we've gained for granted."

"So what do you want to do when you go back now?" the shadow asked.

Liu Hao was silent for a moment. "What else can we do? Make up for some regrets, I guess."

"Regret?" The shadow's outline swayed slightly, as if in thought. "Then what do you regret?"

This time, Liu Hao remained silent for an even longer period. The starlight in the sky seemed to dim slightly, as if waiting for his answer.

"To be honest," he finally spoke, his voice filled with unprecedented candor, "I don't know either. In my original world, I actually lived each day in a daze, with no goals other than working and making money."

"Yes," Shadow chimed in, "So what are you reluctant to part with?"

Liu Hao smiled wryly, "I don't know either. Maybe it's just living in a daze—unlike now, where I'm constantly training with my mind on edge so I won't be killed for no reason."

"Is that so?" A hint of mockery suddenly appeared in Shadow's voice. "I have a feeling you're thinking about... a woman?"

Liu Hao's face instantly turned bright red. "You're talking nonsense! When have I ever thought about women! Don't frame an innocent person!"

"You? A decent person indeed." Shadow said disdainfully, "Everyone knows your filthy thoughts."

"Who knows! It's just you!" Liu Hao retorted, but his voice clearly lacked confidence.

The shadow seemed to see right through him. "Every time you steal Unohana and Isane Kotetsu, your eyes practically devour them. You think they didn't see it? They're all aware of it. If you didn't think Orihime Inoue and Masaki Kurosaki were key figures, you would have already been planning how to make your move. Oh, and Rangiku Matsumoto and Momo Hinamori —can you honestly say you haven't had your eye on them?"

Liu Hao's face turned even redder, almost as if it were bleeding. "Stop talking! Really! What are you trying to achieve by saying all this?!"

"Yeah, we've gone off-topic." Shadow's tone returned to calm. "But what exactly is it about the past you're so attached to? I can sense you're thinking about women, but... you don't seem to have much luck with them!"

These words were like a bucket of cold water poured over Liu Hao's head.

He sighed, a hint of helplessness in his voice. "Sigh, I was just thinking... I came into this world without ever having held a woman's hand, it's a bit of a regret."

"Aren't there women in this world?" the shadow asked, puzzled.

Liu Hao shook his head. "How can they be the same? The women in this world, to put it bluntly, are women who live ordinary lives, and they each have their own merits compared to the women back home."

"Then why don't you just go find someone in the World of the Living? Aren't you afraid you won't find someone with a similar personality?" Shadow suggested.

"That's true." Liu Hao said thoughtfully.

The shadow was silent for a moment, then said, "Actually, the woman is just an excuse. What you really can't bear to leave... is your hometown. After all, here, you belong entirely to a foreign land."

That statement hit the nail on the head.

Liu Hao fell silent. He looked up at the starry sky, and those distant stars seemed to transform into the lights of his hometown in his memories. Those crowded streets he used to complain about, those repetitive daily routines he used to tire of, now became incredibly precious.

"It's normal to miss your homeland when you're in a foreign country," Shadow's voice softened. "You're still afraid, afraid that you'll never be able to return home."

"Sigh..." Liu Hao sighed deeply, "Yes. This is not my hometown after all. Although I once longed for this kind of ability and power that transcends ordinary people, it is still not my home, so it is inevitable to feel some regret."

The shadow seemed to think for a moment, then said, "So you regret not being able to go home. But how do you know you won't be able to go back in the future?"

These words were like a bolt of lightning, piercing through the gloom in Liu Hao's heart.

"Can we go back?!" He turned his head sharply, his eyes flashing with an unprecedented light as he stared intently at the shadow.

The shadow replied helplessly, "If you don't know, how would I know? I was just asking a question."

The flame of hope, barely ignited, was extinguished by a bucket of cold water. The light in Liu Hao's eyes dimmed. "I see..."

But he quickly rallied. "If I become as powerful as Soul King, perhaps I can leave this world and search for my original world!"

After saying that, he sighed again.

"Now that you've figured it out, why are you sighing again?" Shadow asked.

Liu Hao hesitated for a moment, then said in an almost shameless tone, "I'm thinking... what will happen to the remaining girls if I just go back like this? If only I could take them all with me. Sigh..."

Upon hearing this, the shadow's outline visibly swayed, as if shocked by this shameless remark.

"Could you be any more shameless?" Shadow's voice was filled with obvious disgust. "What does it matter to you what other people do? I've noticed how shameless you are after you unleashed your repressed personality!"

"Uh... not really," Liu Hao scratched his head, becoming even more shameless, "After all, even if I suppress my personality, I've thought about working hard in the future to get those girls, okay?"

Shadow said disdainfully, "Your shamelessness is truly exasperating. But I think Unohana might not mind just taking a knife and cutting you down."

"Hehe, it's nothing," Liu Hao chuckled slyly. "To please her, fighting her is only right."

The shadow said helplessly, "Don't you feel regret now?"

"Just work hard, and it'll be fine," Liu Hao continued with a sly grin. "At worst, I'll figure out a way to bring them away with me."

The shadow seemed defeated by this shamelessness, remaining silent for a long while before saying, "Alright, stop displaying your shamelessness. These aren't all your regrets; stop deceiving yourself."

These words instantly turned Liu Hao's expression serious. The playful smile on his face vanished, replaced by a deep gloom.

"Why are you dwelling on my regrets?" He stared at the shadow, his voice low and dangerous.

The shadow did not back down; instead, its outline became even more solid. "So that you may know yourself."

"I know exactly what kind of person I am." Liu Hao's voice was filled with unwavering determination.

"Is that so?" Shadow's voice grew even more serious. "Then why don't you say it?"

"Why must it be said aloud to be considered true?" Liu Hao stared intently at the shadow, his eyes sharp as knives.

The two faced off in the starry sky, the starlight twinkling in their silence, as if they too were waiting for the outcome of this confrontation.

In the end, Liu Hao was the first to give in. He looked away and sighed deeply, "There are some things I might overlook, and some things I don't say don't mean I've forgotten. Regret... there are just too many."

"So what are you going to do?" Shadow pressed.

"What can we do?" Liu Hao smiled wryly. "We still have to improve our strength and try our best to avoid regrets in the future."

"Is that so?" The shadow's voice carried a hint of skepticism. "For example, how would you deal with Kenpachi Zaraki?"

"Tch," Liu Hao reverted to his indifferent tone, "Just replace Unohana, I'll take her place."

"Is that all?" the shadow persisted. "Don't forget, Unohana and Kenpachi Zaraki desperately want to fight again. Even if you stop them, how will you stop Yachiru Kusajishi's disappearance?"

This question left Liu Hao speechless.

Yachiru Kusajishi – Kenpachi Zaraki's Vice-Captain, the always smiling little girl. She is a remnant of Kenpachi Zaraki's "Sword Demon" era, the materialization of his Zanpakuto. In a future battle, in order to help Kenpachi Zaraki awaken his true power, she chose to disappear.

"Um..." Liu Hao scratched his head, "Once our strength improves, we'll try to materialize Yachiru Kusajishi. Like Koyatai Starrk and Lilynette."

"What if your strength isn't up to par?" Shadow pressed on, "Then will you never let Kenpachi Zaraki be unsealed? Just so you won't have regrets yourself, are you going to impose those regrets on others?"

These words struck Liu Hao's heart like a heavy hammer.

He fell silent.

The stars in the sky seemed to dim at this moment, and the entire space fell into complete silence. Only Liu Hao's faint breathing echoed softly in the void.

After a long silence, Liu Hao finally spoke slowly, "Do they regret it now? When Yachiru Kusajishi disappeared, Kenpachi Zaraki himself realized it, but he just didn't want to admit it."

This time, it was the shadow's turn to fall silent.

Liu Hao raised his head, staring directly at the silhouette of the shadow. "What exactly do you mean by this challenge? Are you making me confront my own regrets?"

"Who knows?" Shadow's voice regained its ethereal quality. "Anyway, since you're here, I was dragged out to chat with you."

Liu Hao narrowed his eyes. "So, even if I don't talk to you about anything, I can still get through?"

"Who are you asking?" Shadow suddenly adopted an almost rogue-like tone. "I'm just here to chat. Going out is your business; if you don't even know, how am I supposed to?"

These words made the veins on Liu Hao's forehead throb. He gritted his teeth and said, word by word, "So you won't care what I do?"

"Do as you please." The shadow even made a "please" gesture, a posture exactly like Liu Hao's usual unserious manner.

Liu Hao glared at the shadow, then his right hand formed a light sword made entirely of Reishi. He raised the sword and swung it down fiercely at the surrounding starry sky.

A flash of sword light tore a black rift in space. But the rift healed quickly, the starry sky remained unchanged, and nothing changed.

Unwilling to give up, he unleashed several more sword strikes. Each time, space was briefly torn apart, creating a black hole that swallowed everything, but it would quickly return to normal. The staircase passage never appeared.

"Looks like you haven't passed this test yet," Shadow said in a cheeky tone, mimicking his previous manner.

Liu Hao stopped attacking. He stood there, the lightsaber in his hand slowly dissipating, turning into specks of Reishi that merged into the surrounding starry sky.

He lowered his head and remained silent for a long time.

Finally, he raised his head, his face devoid of the previous laughter, shamelessness, or anger, leaving only an almost somber calm.

"Sigh, alright." He sighed deeply, his voice carrying a resigned acceptance. "I admit it. I want to become stronger, not just for self-preservation, but also to find my lost comrades. Although they are gone, my Zanpakuto has the ability to control time. I've thought about... using that ability to interfere with the past and save them."

The shadow listened quietly, its outline trembling slightly in the starlight.

Liu Hao continued, "Ogawa, Ishida, Sanae... those companions I survived with in Rukongai. And Kaien Shiba, Shiba Miyako... those people I couldn't save even after I gained the ability. I keep thinking, if I could be stronger, if I could discover the truth sooner, if..."

His voice began to tremble. "If I could have charged forward without hesitation like Ichigo Kurosaki, instead of always analyzing, weighing options, and waiting for the 'best moment'... would they have survived?"

The starry sky was silent, except for Liu Hao's voice echoing in the void, carrying with it a long-suppressed pain and self-blame.

The shadow finally spoke, its voice gentler than ever before. "Look, how can thinking like this be accepting regret? It's like wanting to become stronger and return to the original world; that's wanting to solve everything 'perfectly'."

It paused, then continued, "That's why you did some 'unnecessary' things. Like Kaien Shiba, like Isshin Shiba, and you even wanted to save Masaki Kurosaki and Katagiri Hae. You thought these things were the most 'perfect,' but you never considered that—there is never anything perfect in this world."

These words struck Liu Hao like a thunderbolt, leaving him stunned on the spot.

He reflected on everything since arriving in Soul Society. Those careful choices, those "just right" interventions, those decisions that always came at the "critical moment"... It turned out that behind all of this lay his obsession with creating a "perfect future."

He feared that too many changes would lead to unknown disasters; yet he couldn't help wanting to correct those "regrets" and create an ideal ending.

This contradiction—the desire to control everything yet the fear of losing control—is precisely why he has never been able to truly integrate into this world.

Because he always positioned himself in a special position—a "player" who knows the future, rather than a "participant" living in the present.

"I..." Liu Hao opened his mouth, but found himself speechless.

The shadow watched him silently, waiting.

After a long time—perhaps a minute, perhaps an hour, in this Starry Sky Domain, where time lost its meaning—the shadow finally spoke again.

"Leave. Whether you understand it or not is your own business. That's all I can say."

The moment the words fell, the outline of the shadow began to fade, like ink drops falling into clear water, slowly dissipating.

The surrounding starry sky began to fade, the stars went out one by one, and darkness surged in from all directions.

When the last star disappeared, Liu Hao found himself standing before a new set of steps—the sixth set of steps.

He raised his head, habitually gazing upwards. The throne remained at the edge of the void, Imperial Princess still stood beside it, holding the Imperial Sword.

But this time, when his gaze met the Imperial Princess's, he saw an emotion he had never seen before in her eyes—a hint of disappointment that was almost imperceptible.

The disappointment was faint, so faint that it might just be Liu Hao's imagination. But even this slight possibility of disappointment stirred up a complex and indescribable emotion within him.

He passed the trial of the fifth step—at least superficially. But did he truly "pass"?

He confronted his inner regrets, acknowledged his obsessions, and even voiced those deeply buried thoughts. But the shadow's last words, the hint of disappointment in the Imperial Princess's eyes... all reminded him that there were some things he hadn't truly let go of.

Liu Hao stood before the sixth set of steps, not in a hurry to move forward.

He glanced back at the steps behind him—the five sections of the path he had already traversed, representing five different trials, five mental hurdles.

Then he turned back and looked at the sixth step in front of him.

The Starry Sky Trial has ended, but the Trial in one's heart may have only just begun.

He took a deep breath, adjusted his breathing, and suppressed the surging emotions in his heart.

Regardless, the journey must continue. The Imperial Path is long, with nine stages and nine steps. And he has already traversed more than half of it.

Liu Hao raised his foot, preparing to step onto the sixth step. But just before his foot landed, he looked up one last time at the throne high above, and at the figure holding the Imperial Sword.

The Imperial Princess remained standing there quietly, her expression returning to its usual solemnity and calm, as if the slight disappointment she had felt moments before had never existed.

But Liu Hao knew that it wasn't an illusion.

He withdrew his gaze, his eyes becoming even more resolute.