Daily Sparring (4)

When Liu Ziyun's strike, which nearly cleaved Shinji Hirako in two, landed, the entire Underground Training Ground fell into a deathly silence. Blood gushed from the horrific wound on Shinji Hirako's chest, spreading across the ground to form a glaring dark red pool. Shinji Hirako's breathing was weak and rapid; each inhale was accompanied by the sound of churning blood, and each exhale felt like his life was slipping away.

But Liu Ziyun knew he had held back—the knife, though seemingly vicious, had precisely avoided all vital organs, causing only significant blood loss and intense pain. For a Soul Reaper had undergone Hollowfication and possessed superhuman vitality, this injury, while severe, was not fatal.

Liu Ziyun around, his empty eye sockets "looking" at Hachigen Ushōda standing at the edge of the training field. His voice was as calm as if he had just casually swatted a fly. "Little Fatty, come and carry him away. It's a good opportunity for you to practice your healing skills—didn't you say you weren't good at healing? Now's your chance."

Hachigen Ushōda paused for a moment, then rushed toward Shinji Hirako. Although the former Assistant Kidō Chief of the Kidō Corps was obese, he was unusually agile. He knelt beside Shinji Hirako, his hands quickly forming hand seals, and pale green light emanated from his palms, covering the wounds.

"Kidō Arts Technique: Return to Origin Restoration!"

Under the green light, Shinji Hirako's horrific wound on his chest began to heal at a visible speed. The broken muscle fibers reconnected, the ruptured blood vessels closed again, and the lost blood returned to his body as if time had reversed. But Hachigen Ushōda had said—his treatment was indeed not skilled enough, and the wound healed at different speeds, sometimes even relapsing.

Liu Ziyun "listened" to all the sounds during the treatment process—the rapid breathing of Hachigen Ushōda, the suppressed groans of Shinji Hirako, and the faint humming of the Reishi flowing through the wound. He could "feel" that Hachigen Ushōda was struggling to maintain this healing Kidō, clearly lacking practical experience.

"Perfect," Liu Ziyun thought. "Let him practice more. Healing will be a crucial skill in real battles later."

Meanwhile, the others at the edge of the training field finally snapped out of their shock.

Hiyori Sarugaki saw Shinji Hirako's miserable state, anger instantly clouded her judgment. She rushed forward, wanting to teach Liu Ziyun a lesson—even knowing she couldn't win, she couldn't bear to see her companion treated like this.

But just as she was about to rush out of the crowd, a strong hand pressed down on her shoulder.

It's Love Aikawa.

"You can't do it." Love Aikawa's voice was unusually calm. "I'll do it."

Hiyori Sarugaki struggled to break free, but Love Aikawa's hand held her firmly like an iron clamp. "Hiyori, calm down. Although Liu Ziyun was heavy-handed, he's right— Hirako really relied too much on his Zanpakuto's power. We need this lesson."

Liu Ziyun glanced in the direction of their argument, a slight smile playing on his lips, "Alright, alright, let's stop fighting. If we injure another one, Little Fatty might not survive."

He paused, then continued, "I'm going out for a stroll. You guys practice as I just demonstrated—you don't have to be as ruthless as my last move, but if you don't teach Hirako a lesson, he'll think his skill level is incredible. All his fighting techniques rely on the Zanpakuto's abilities; if his Zanpakuto isn't good, his Hakuda - Zanjutsu isn't good, his Kidō isn't good... once his skills fail, he's just waiting to die. You guys practice hard."

After saying that, Liu Ziyun and walked out. His steps were calm and steady, not at all like a blind man—every step precisely avoided the obstacles on the ground, and every turn was just right.

As he passed by Shinji Hirako, he suddenly stopped.

Hachigen Ushōda looked up at him warily, as if afraid he would deliver another blow.

But Liu Ziyun simply raised his hand and lightly touched the largest wound on Shinji Hirako's chest with the hilt of his Life-Taker sword.

"Existence Is to Change Fate — Life-Taker, Wound Severance."

A warm, platinum-gold light emanated from the hilt of the sword and flowed into Shinji Hirako's body. The deepest wound, which had almost cleaved his body open, healed at an astonishing speed in this light, disappearing without a trace in the blink of an eye, leaving only a shallow scar.

Shinji Hirako let out a long breath, feeling the tearing pain in his chest finally subside. He struggled to sit up, and said with a wry smile, "You healed me, but why didn't you heal everything? There are still so many wounds..."

Liu Ziyun his sword, his tone indifferent. "If you're all healed, how will Little Fatty practice? I just need to make sure you don't die. I'm leaving."

He didn't linger and walked straight out of the training ground, leaving the members of the Visored staring at each other in bewilderment.

The atmosphere in the training ground only became lively again after Liu Ziyun's footsteps completely disappeared at the end of the corridor.

Kensei Muguruma walked over to Shinji Hirako, knelt down to examine his injuries, and frowned. "Um... do we train like this too? Isn't that a bit too harsh? And if you don't control your strength, someone could really die."

Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi also came over, carefully "observing" the unhealed wounds on Shinji Hirako's body— Hachigen Ushōda's treatment was still ongoing, but the effect was not ideal, and many wounds were still bleeding.

"Then we need to practice even more carefully," said Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi in a deep voice. "We need to master the ability to control every attack with ease. Actually, when Hirako Zanjutsu with Ziyun had already held back—look closely at the wounds on Hirako's body; every single one avoided vital points, each one only scratched the flesh. If Ziyun really wanted to kill, Hirako would have already fallen during their first exchange."

Shinji Hirako lay on the ground, staring at the ceiling, and let out a long sigh, "Sigh... it seems we really were too lazy before. Otherwise, how could we, who were all students at the same time as Ziyun, have been so easily defeated by him? His strength has far surpassed ours, while we... we're still standing still."

These words made everyone fall into deep thought.

Indeed, although their lives in the World of the Living had been tough over the years, they had never truly faced a life-or-death crisis. Without Aizen's pursuit or the pursuit of the Gotei 13, their training had gradually become comfortable, and they had lost their sense of urgency.

Liu Ziyun, who had been "lurking" in the Soul Society for nearly a hundred years, had been secretly honing his skills and never let up.

"Then..." Kensei Muguruma stood up, looked around at everyone, "From today onwards, we need to get serious. We can't continue to be so lazy."

"Agreed." Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi nodded.

"But..." Hiyori Sarugaki was still somewhat unconvinced, "That bald guy's methods were just too..."

"Too cruel?" Love Aikawa chimed in, "But that's reality. Aizen won't show us any mercy, and neither will our future enemies. If we can't even withstand the 'cruel training' of our comrades, how will we cope when facing real enemies?"

Everyone fell silent.