Explaining Yhwach's Goal

Liu Hao's words echoed in the clinic, each word like a heavy lead weight, striking everyone's heart.

"The future? You mean... the future? Liu Hao!" Isshin Shiba was the first to react, his voice filled with disbelief and shock.

"Yes." Liu Hao nodded calmly, turning his gaze to Ryūken Ishida. "Ryūken Ishida, you should have accepted Katagiri Hae by now, right? In the future, she was chosen by Auswählen, collapsed weakly on her sickbed, struggled for three whole months before passing away. And you... filled with hatred for Yhwach, endured immense grief, and dissected her corpse."

He paused, his voice growing even lower. "Unfortunately, your son secretly witnessed this."

Liu Hao continued, every detail terrifyingly clear, as if he had witnessed the scene firsthand. "You hate the Soul Reaper now, but you still step in to eliminate Hollows out of a sense of responsibility. But the future you... will hate the Soul Reaper even more, and in the end, you won't even bother to attack a Hollow."

"Why?" Sōken Ishida couldn't help but ask, his voice filled with confusion and a hint of unease.

Liu Hao's gaze shifted to the old Quincy: "Because his father... that is, you, Sōken Ishida, died at the hands of a Hollow. And the Soul Reaper responsible for monitoring the Quincy only arrived at the scene after his death. His son also nearly died in that incident... And you, Sōken Ishida, your body was taken away by Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi of the Twelfth Division for... research."

These words struck Ishida and his son like a heavy hammer blow.

Ryūken Ishida's face turned deathly pale. He abruptly looked up at his father, his eyes filled with indescribable complex emotions. Sōken Ishida closed his eyes, took a deep breath, as if processing this cruel "future."

Even Masaki Kurosaki was too serious to speak. She looked at the Ishida father and son, then at Liu Hao, and finally at Isshin Shiba, her eyes filled with confusion and worry.

"Wait, Liu Hao!" Isshin Shiba suddenly interrupted, his voice urgent and serious, "Tell me first, how do you know about the future?!"

The question was finally asked.

Liu Hao turned to Isshin Shiba, his expression calm. "By the way, I haven't told you yet... My Zanpakuto possesses the power of time. During my first Shikai, I glimpsed the River of Time. So I know your future."

"Have you glimpsed the River of Time?!" Isshin Shiba frowned deeply. "So you want to change the future?!"

"I only glimpsed a branch of time; I don't exist in that future," Liu Hao said, shrugging.

These words were like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, stirring up towering waves.

The four people stared wide-eyed at Liu Hao in disbelief. The air in the clinic seemed to freeze; the sounds of traffic outside the window and conversations in the distance all became distant and indistinct.

Only Liu Hao's calm voice continued, "Don't look at me like that. I don't know why I'm not here. But since I still exist... I want to change some people's tragedies. For example, Kaien Shiba and Shiba Miyako, and Masaki Kurosaki and Katagiri Hae."

"I see..." Isshin Shiba muttered to himself, a series of events piecing together in his mind. "No wonder Kaien made Miyabi resign from the Third Seat and take a position within the squad. Did you reveal Aizen's experimental subject to him beforehand? No... Kaien isn't that kind of person. At most, he would have told Miyabi to be more cautious, or even gone on missions himself, right?!"

Liu Hao laughed, "He wouldn't listen to me, so I beat him up, and then he listened."

"What?!" Isshin Shiba feet, the chair scraping loudly on the floor. "Back then, you'd only just joined the Fourth Division, right? And you were already stronger than Kaien back then?!"

"It's alright," Liu Hao shrugged. "My abilities are somewhat effective against him. Look at Tōshirō, he only managed to fight me to a standstill because my abilities countered his."

"Tch," Isshin Shiba, sitting back down with a look of disbelief. "I don't believe a single word you say about your abilities."

Liu Hao didn't argue, but simply turned his gaze back to the Ishida father and son. "Alright, I've told you what happened today. How you decide the future is up to you. After all... I've done my best."

Ryūken Ishida remained silent for a long time before finally raising his head, his eyes behind his glasses sharp as knives. "You just said that all Mixed-Blood Quincy are chosen by Auswählen, right?"

"Yes, what's wrong?" Liu Hao asked.

"Then my son... should also be one of the chosen ones." Ryūken Ishida's voice was calm, but his clenched fist betrayed the turmoil within him. "You just said that he 'seems not to be dead, and hasn't even lost his power.'"

Liu Hao nodded. "Him? Well, although he's not as talented as you, he's still a pretty good kid."

He paused, as if recalling something. "You Quincy all possess your own abilities, something called 'Schrift.' I don't know how you develop them, such as the Quincy's the Almighty, or some other, various kinds of abilities. Your son's ability is called 'The Antithesis.'"

"However, he was able to use this skill voluntarily only after Yhwach inscribed the Schrift 'A' on his soul." Liu Hao's expression turned serious. "In fact, this ritual was a trap set by Yhwach to seize your son's soul and power in the future. He is also the only Mixed-Blood Quincy who survived Yhwach's Auswählen."

Ryūken Ishida's eyes sharpened. "He was tricked by Yhwach into believing he was 'the only one who could surpass him,' and then, through drinking blood, had Schrift inscribed on his soul?"

"That's right," Liu Hao confirmed.

Ryūken Ishida fell into deep thought. After a long while, he slowly spoke, "If my son hadn't drunk Yhwach's blood, he wouldn't have been affected by the Auswählen, would he?"

"I don't know about that," Liu Hao shook his head. "I don't know if you know the origin of Yhwach?"

This question made the atmosphere in the clinic tense again.

"Is there a problem with his origins?" Ryūken Ishida asked.

Liu Hao took a deep breath and began to tell the ancient and terrifying story:

"Yhwach possesses some of the Soul King's abilities. He claims to be the Soul King's son, but I don't know if that's true or not. All I know is that he inherited the Soul King's the Almighty, omnipotence, and the Quincy Power, and is also the progenitor of all Quincy."

"It is said that Yhwach was blind, deaf, mute, and even immobile as an infant. Despite this, he survived—because he possessed the ability to 'Soul Distribution' at birth."

Liu Hao's voice echoed in the clinic, each word carrying a heavy sense of history:

"When someone touches him, he will part his soul to fill the void in the toucher's soul, gradually healing their psychological or physical defects. However... all those who have touched Yhwach do not live long."

When the person who came into contact with him died, Yhwach's previously separated soul would return to his body, thus healing him. In this way, the infant Yhwach gradually regained his sight, hearing, and all other abilities.

"After his body was healed, Yhwach discovered that he had been revered as a god by those who had been healed by his touch. They called him 'Yhwach' —meaning 'Son of God' in an ancient language."

After finishing his explanation, Liu Hao looked at Ryūken Ishida: "Is there a problem with this?"

Ryūken Ishida remained silent, but his expression grew even more grave. As Quincy and a descendant of a pureblood family, he understood the meaning of those words better than anyone else.

"If he doesn't continuously give away and take back souls," Liu Hao continued, his voice growing deeper, "He will revert to being someone who can't see, hear, speak, or even move. Therefore, he needs to maintain his strength through war, through killing, through constant 'giving' and 'taking back'."

These words left everyone in the clinic deeply shocked.

Masaki Kurosaki covered her mouth tightly with both hands, her eyes filled with unbelievable fear. Isshin Shiba's expression also became extremely serious. As the former Captain, he understood the horror of "needing to constantly devour others to maintain one's own existence" better than anyone else.

Sōken Ishida closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, the previous gentleness was gone, replaced by a heavy realization. "So his goal... is to return this world to chaos?"

"Yes," Liu Hao nodded. "I think he's more like one of those Void variants that suddenly started devouring humans before the birth of the Soul King, only more advanced, more... purposeful."

"Um, um..." Masaki Kurosaki cautiously raised her hand, her voice filled with confusion and curiosity, "Who is the Soul King? And what about that Hollow that existed before the Soul King's birth...?"

Liu Hao looked at her, his gaze softening slightly. "The Soul King is currently the Linchpin to stabilizing the Three Worlds. According to legend... countless years ago, the world was a place where life and death were nonexistent, a world where there was neither progress nor regression. Even becoming a Void was part of the Reishi cycle."

He began to tell the older, grander story:

"But later, the Hollows gradually began to devour humans, and the cycle completely stopped. If this continued, all souls would eventually become a single, Menos Grande, and the world would fall into complete stillness. And it was at this moment... that the Soul King was born."

"The Soul King used the Quincy Power to destroy the Hollows, causing the world to begin its cycle once more. Later, someone—more accurately, the progenitor of the Five Great Noble Clans —used the Soul King's power to divide the world into Three Worlds, which are today's World of the Living, Hueco Mundo, and Soul Society. It seems that Hell was also created at that time."

This narrative was like opening a door to ancient history, immersing everyone in the clinic in its grand story.

Sōken Ishida muttered to himself, "So that's how it is... No wonder the family tradition always emphasizes 'cycle' and 'balance'..."

Ryūken Ishida, however, thought of something deeper, "If Yhwach is truly the inheritor of the Soul King's Power, then his goal might not be as simple as 'returning to chaos.' What he wants... might be to become the new Soul King, or... to become an existence beyond the Soul King."

Liu Hao gave Ryūken Ishida an approving look. "You're very perceptive. Indeed, Yhwach's ultimate goal was to devour the Soul King and become the new World Wedge. But what he didn't expect was... that becoming the Linchpin meant eternal bondage. He wanted freedom, but ultimately trapped himself in the cage he created."

Another silence fell.

Outside the window, the sky gradually darkened, and the afterglow of the setting sun shone through the blinds into the clinic, casting long, warm shadows on the floor. But the atmosphere inside the clinic contrasted sharply with this warm sunset—heavy, serious, and filled with anxiety about the future.

After a long silence, Sōken Ishida slowly spoke, his voice aged yet firm. "Mr. Liu Hao, thank you for telling us this. No matter how absurd or unbelievable these words may sound... my intuition tells me that what you are saying is true."

He stood up and bowed deeply to Liu Hao: "This information is an invaluable warning to the Quincy, to the Ishida Family, and to everyone who might be chosen by the Auswählen..."

Ryūken Ishida also stood up. Although his expression remained cold, the initial hostility and wariness in his eyes had vanished. "I will investigate, I will prepare. If Auswählen really happens... I will not let Ye Hui, nor my child, become a sacrifice."

Looking at them, Liu Hao felt a complex mix of emotions. There was relief, a sense of understanding, and... a touch of worry.