A Spirit Worm caught sight of the three people who had left with Sonído, then burrowed underground and disappeared. A long time later, a man wearing glasses and whose fleshy wings were gone received this information.
"Oh dear, what a pity that they managed to snatch it away first! Such a strong fighter."
This person was none other than Szayelaporro. He and Baraggan had long since awakened from their long evolution and moved their base to the Menos Grande Forest, where Reishi was more abundant.
While conducting experiments on Szayelaporro, this group of Void beings also constantly sought powerful allies, intending to reclaim everything that belonged to them.
Inside the still partially sealed Las Noches, Moonlight couldn't illuminate every part, so there were several sun-like objects inside...
"Those suns are actually specially made Reiryoku Lamps, powered by several Adjuchas standing nearby acting as batteries, constantly supplying Reiryoku to keep the lights burning. They take turns when they get too tired."
"The Arena is a place where Menos Grande vent their emotions and resolve conflicts. Those Adjuchas who all want to evolve into Vasto Lorde Adjuchas will gather here to fight and devour each other, aiming to evolve into the highest stage of Arrancar."
"That's Laboratory, absolutely forbidden territory. You're too powerful; don't go near there. The researchers there are too weak..."
With an indifferent tone, Ulquiorra gave the most enthusiastic and detailed introduction; even with Ulquiorra's personality, he was slightly surprised when he saw the two Arrancar.
Starrk and Lilynette followed curiously behind Ulquiorra, deliberately keeping a distance of five or six meters, as they listened attentively to Ulquiorra's explanation of the situation and his introduction to some important members.
After a brief introduction, Starrk was already moved: 'So many amazing companions! If only we had set out earlier, we wouldn't have had to endure this loneliness all this time!'
The Adjuchas observed the two new Arrancars from a distance. The socially adept Adjuchas risked their lives to pay their respects thousands of times, just to become acquainted with them.
At this point, their "Arrancar Army" already had three powerful Arrancars, proving that Arrancar wasn't the only Ulquiorra; there really were other individuals capable of evolving to this level...
"What's wrong? Are you afraid we'll do something to you?"
"Uh, no, it's just that it's been too long since I've been this close to other people."
To make it easier for Starrk to move around freely, Zero wanted to set up a small seal to suppress his Reiatsu, reducing it by half. However, Starrk and Lilynette both took a half step back, which puzzled Zero as he tried to approach.
They had already exchanged names on the On the Road here, but Zero noticed that they deliberately kept their distance from him. Perhaps it was out of habit, after all, they had killed too many of their companions with their Reiatsu.
"If you don't seal your Reiatsu, maintaining five or six cartloads of Reiatsu like you normally do would be unbearable for low-ranking Adjuchas," Zero said, waving his wrist with a smile. "Look, I have some here too!"
If Starrk were to unleash his full Reiatsu at this moment, he could definitely reach seven carts, while Lilynette, as the 'sword,' would only reach one cart. Even if it were suppressed by half, Starrk could easily use 3.5 carts of Reiatsu.
'Lord Nangong also has the same seal? His Reiatsu is already very strong, how can it get even stronger? And Ulquiorra...'
Starrk, still surprised, walked towards Zero and extended his hand. After Zero sealed him away, he witnessed an extremely awkward scene...
A tuft of black hair peeked out from under Starrk's open, tattered cloak, and Zero realized that the two of them were still naked.
And then there's Lilynette, the little girl who's just wrapped tightly in her tattered clothes and has no idea what's going on.
After having Ulquiorra take them to change clothes, Zero returned to the Office Area, then opened the Garganta and went inside...
"Has Lord Nangong left? Is he the Soul Reaper?"
Noticing that Zero's Reiatsu had disappeared, Starrk then asked Ulquiorra, who was watching them change clothes with wide eyes... Zero had never forced him to use the word "Master"; Starrk had learned it from the Adjuchas and Ulquiorra.
"He is Soul Reaper, and also a Hollow, an existence somewhere in between. But for now, he has only one identity: our leader, the one who guides us forward, the one who gives meaning to our existence."
A strange look flashed in Ulquiorra's eyes as he spoke. Was it gratitude towards Nangong? He himself wasn't sure.
"So, what do we need to do?"
After hearing what Ulquiorra said, Starrk also wanted to have something to do, otherwise it might be difficult to integrate into the group.
"When intruders appear, simply eliminate them..."
After saying that, Ulquiorra left. He still had some things to deal with regarding the shortage of experimental souls. He needed to select a few reliable Adjuchas to plunder from Soul Society.
Zero's hasty return was for a reason. He had come secretly this time. The Homogeneous Body controlled by Yanis was guarding Soul Society, and it was he who contacted them with his Hand Chicken, saying that there was a problem in Soul Society and that Menos Grande were hunting souls near the Seireitei.
Zero was afraid that Yanis would give himself away, so he secretly sneaked back to Soul Society. This time, he used Hollow powers to open the Garganta, and his location was very accurate...
Because he was too overconfident during the last assassination attempt and failed to kill Baraggan, Yanis changed his careless ways and began to imitate Zero, even down to the smallest details.
Zero already asked Ulquiorra and contacted Grimmjow while they were in Hueco Mundo. This wasn't done by their subordinates; it must be someone from Baraggan...
Zero guessed wrong this time. It wasn't someone from Baraggan, but Menos Grande cultivated by someone else. Its abilities were rather strange, and it knew how to hide its Reiatsu.
The 11th Division will go to surround and kill the Hollow, while the other units will stand by, ready to provide support at any time.
When the Fake Rei led several hundred members of the 11th Division to the Fifth District of West Rukongai to search for Menos Grande, a Garganta suddenly opened, and countless Hollows swarmed in.
The ordinary Squad Members of the 11th Division were hacking and slashing wildly, caught up in a frenzied battle... In the blink of an eye, Zero successfully switched the fake with the Real Rei.
Over three thousand Ragged Hollows have arrived, and their numbers are still growing, but no Menos Grande Hollows have shown themselves yet. What's going on?
'Something might be attracting these Ragged Hollows...'
As Zero frowned in thought, he continued to slash at the Giant Hollows with his sword, and Yanis followed suit, offering his own conjecture.
Logically, with so many Grunts, there should be a leader, but so far there isn't even Gillian, which is a bit unusual.
"Kiganjō, Ashido, Maki, Kuluo, lead the search party to the area where the Hollows are most densely gathered. There might be something nearby that has attracted them here."
"Yes."
Upon hearing Zero's command, several top-tier experts scattered to explore the densest points of the Ragged Hollows.
Less than three minutes later, Ashido returned with a smoking Steel Pipe. When he arrived, the Ragged Hollows scrambling for it, indicating that they only engaged the 11th Division after being drawn in.
"The smoke attracted the Ragged Hollows from Soul Society, and the vibrations from the Steel Pipe located the Hollows in the Garganta, causing them to gather? What a twisted trap..."
Zero immediately figured out the problem, but he couldn't understand who would use such a low-level trap to get him... Didn't that person know that even Vasto Lorde couldn't shake him?
"Captain, we've found this item here too..."
"This place too..."
Sizzle!
A larger rift was torn open in the sky, and the slow-moving Gillian appeared. This substance indeed attracted not only Ragged Hollows, but also Hollows with Menos Grande.
"Destroy these things, end the battle first..."
After squashing the Steel Pipe in his hand, Zero didn't speed up the clearing of the Void. Instead, he stayed in the giant Garganta, playing whack-a-mole, killing every Gillian that appeared.
The mastermind behind this is definitely plotting something; he's waiting, waiting for things to unfold so that the other party can surface. If the 11th Division easily resolves this battle, then the mastermind will definitely disappear without a trace...
As the pressure mounts, the Soul Reaper of the 11th Division begin to suffer damage. Ashido and his Kiganjō are exhausted from running around, striving to protect the lives of their Squad Members.
At this point, a new member finally couldn't hold back any longer and suggested calling for backup from the Seireitei, but was scolded by the veteran members who said that he should fight well, understand the battle, and love the battle.
The new team member clearly didn't understand these things. He might enjoy fighting, but he definitely didn't like fighting where he could die!
Zero, who had been observing the battlefield with a cold eye, suddenly had a flash of inspiration: 'Calling for backup? That's it, the enemy might not be targeting me, but rather the reinforcements coming to my aid.'
Zero readily complied with the new team member's wishes and began calling for backup; however, even with the Hell Butterfly's rapid message transmission, it would still take more than ten minutes to cover this distance.
Before the message could even reach them, Hell Butterfly sent a message: a large number of Hollows had appeared in the Eighth District of South Rukongai, and the Third Division, Fifth Division, and Sixth Divisions were temporarily handling the situation. The 11th Division would immediately go to provide support after completing the encirclement and killing of Hollows.
As the unsung leader of Hueco Mundo, Zero has confirmed that this incident has nothing to do with Baraggan and his group... With Adjuchas's abilities, a single roar could summon thousands of Ragged Hollows to serve him, so there's no need for these Baits to lure them in.
Who could it be? The Black-Clothed Man from that night?
Zero sensed that this might be directed at him, and as he ran, he kept recalling his enemy.
If we're talking about the biggest enemy, it has to be the Tsunayashiro Clan. But the Tsunayashiro has kept a low profile in recent years. Apart from Tsunayashiro Tokinada, they haven't made any major moves.
As for the others, the only culprit Zero could think of was that guy who managed to escape perfectly after invading the Great Spirit Book Gallery; he was only nearly caught because he accidentally bumped into Zero.