Prison Demon

Lu Li stood barefoot on the pitted tatami, blood streaming down his body, making him look like a man of blood.

Teacher Unohana's swordsmanship specialization was undoubtedly far higher than his. After barely more than ten minutes of fierce combat, more than half of his Life Source had already been lost.

His body was covered in sword wounds, several of them deep enough to faintly reach the muscle.

He stepped forward, slowly walking toward Unohana, who stood against the wall midway through the room. It felt as though he were climbing a steep snow-capped peak. The summit he looked up toward was that formidable swordsmanship, while the falling snow landing upon him was the bone-chilling killing intent.

Was he going to die?

What a shame. This was his first time fighting so freely and wholeheartedly, yet it was going to end so soon?

No, he had not had enough. He still had to keep climbing!

His path of martial arts had only just begun.

Lu Li glanced at the Asauchi in his hand. Aizen had once said that he himself was resisting that power, and even now, he could not be sure whether that was truly the case.

Yet after entering that Hell several times and attempting to communicate with that Demon God-like figure, something seemed to dawn on him.

Why did he need to ask for Its true name?

Shouldn't the name of my Zanpakuto be decided by me?

Right, Prison Demon.

The atmosphere changed.

Unohana, who had been preparing to step forward and finish her final bout with Lu Li, halted because she noticed that Lu Li's atmosphere had changed.

The Setting Sun's radiance shone through the paper windows slashed open by blades and fell upon Lu Li's back. Blood slid down his knotted muscles, like a demon-faced painting weeping blood.

Blood dripped beneath the man's feet, spreading into violet-black dreams across the tatami.

From Unohana's perspective, the man stood before the enormous painting with the Setting Sun's light behind him. Directly above and to the side of him were the fierce tiger's eyes in the painting.

The man spoke, his deep voice knocking upon Unohana's heart and throwing open the gates of Hell.

"Shatter the chains, Prison Demon."

As his voice fell, violet-black mist rose from Lu Li's body and drifted diagonally upward in the faint breeze. For a moment, the tiger in the giant painting seemed to come alive, for its eyes had gained spirit.

Its muscular tiger arms were poised to strike as it faced the savage evil ghost. Violet-black flames ignited in its tiger eyes, just like the surging fighting spirit of the man standing beneath it.

Roar—

The tremor raised by Reiatsu was like the roar of tigers and the cry of dragons, as though a Demon God imprisoned through countless cycles of reincarnation was cheering while pouring out Its rage!

The man stood there, gripping a newly born Zanpakuto.

The middle of its pitch-black blade bore a hollow blood groove, covered in twisted violet-black patterns like creeping vines. Those patterns extended all the way to the hilt, turning into violet-black chains that coiled around the man's arm.

Violet-black mist wrapped around the man. Set against his blood, he looked like an asura.

Lu Li slowly exhaled a foul breath, as if reborn. His Reiatsu temporarily rose again, truly reaching the same level as Unohana's. He also felt that suppressive force acting upon him, which meant his Reiatsu could have risen even further.

At that moment, all his combat attributes increased by 1 point, while his previously lowest Strength attribute increased by 2 points!

Not only that, he felt that his five senses had become sharper and his neural reflexes had undergone a tremendous leap.

And compared with the Asauchi from before, the Prison Demon in his hand was on an entirely different level of sharpness.

Looking at Lu Li after his Shikai, Unohana smiled dangerously. "Shikai, Student Lu? It seems you can please me even more."

She held Minazuki but did not release it, because her Zanpakuto was a biological-type Zanpakuto. After Shikai, it would transform into a huge, flat, one-eyed creature resembling a manta ray. That would not help in the current fight; rather, it would interfere with her enjoyment of this slaughter.

"It's the final exam..."

Lu Li shifted to a two-handed grip and lowered his stance. Fighting spirit surged in his violet-black eyes. "...Time to hand in my paper, Teacher!"

As his voice fell, the tatami flipped up and flew backward. A blast of air erupted, and the violet-black mist stretched into a long band like a line drawn across the giant painting.

Minazuki collided with Prison Demon, scattering sparks like silver blossoms on an iron tree.

In an instant, the two had exchanged dozens of strikes. Unohana's eyes held both killing intent and delight.

Yes, just like this. Come, please me!

Prison Demon came down in a strike from above. Unohana held her blade in one hand and braced its spine with the other, blocking Lu Li's blow.

To Unohana's surprise, Lu Li did not flip backward to disperse the force. Instead, the moment their blades met, he increased his exertion even further and used the powerful recoil to launch himself into the air.

He shot toward the ceiling like a bullet, adjusted his body midair, and inverted himself downward. Thus, he found footing once more. The knotted muscles in his legs resembled the tiger in the giant painting, while his bare toes gripped the ceiling like claws.

The next instant, Lu Li fired downward like a cannonball. His black blade, trailing violet-black mist, slashed at his opponent's head.

Clang—

After blocking the strike, Unohana could not help lowering her body and took several steps back before dissipating its force. A thousand years of combat experience allowed her to swiftly shift away, evading Lu Li's following slash.

The two accelerated once more. Blade light and blood light danced together, sketching a painting of Violence and slaughter within the hazy mist.

The floor, walls, and even the ceiling became footholds for them both. Their battle had risen from a plane into three dimensions.

Amid the sparks thrown up by the friction of their Zanpakuto, frenzied gazes collided, and killing intent intertwined with fighting spirit.

After another collision, the tremendous force sent them leaping backward, and they both planted their feet upon the walls.

Boom—

With a deafening crash, the wall behind Lu Li shattered. His lightning-fast charge turned him into a streak of violet-black light.

Unohana's charge, meanwhile, was soundless yet carried terrifying killing intent, becoming a cherry-white phantom at high speed.

The two met at the midpoint, then passed each other. A bloody arc splashed across the giant painting like spilled ink, staining the evil ghost red as it slowly slid down her chest, like an uncanny rain.

Lu Li turned around and glanced at the arm that had just landed on the floor from midair. It was his left arm, almost severed cleanly from the shoulder.

Lu Li flicked blood from his blade, drawing an elegant arc across the ground, then looked at Unohana standing beneath the evil ghost.

"Hahaha..."

Unohana faced away from Lu Li, her laughter sounding slightly crazed. "Student Lu, would you like to join the Fourth Division?"

Lu Li raised a hand and used Healing Kidō to perform emergency treatment on the wound and stop the bleeding. He shook his head. "Teacher Unohana's offer is tempting, but I want to go outside and see the wider world first."

"Is that so... What a pity. Still, you're right. The Fourth Division doesn't suit you."

Unohana slowly turned around. A wound ran across her chest from her left shoulder to her lower abdomen, just as when she usually taught Lu Li Healing Kidō by cutting him.

She had lost. If not for her originally immense Reiatsu, Lu Li's blade could have severed her body.

In that final instant, Lu Li had not only been a fraction faster than her, but he had also been more decisive. The result was that Lu Li lost an arm, while she suffered a "fatal wound."

With her combat experience, she could naturally tell who had won and who had lost. Lu Li's slash had truly cut her awake.

She could have continued fighting and continued enjoying the slaughter until Lu Li died. But after regaining some clarity, she felt that would not only be irresponsible toward the assessment, but also a waste like feeding peonies to a cow.

She stared at the one-armed man before her, her eyes gleaming with longing for the future.

I truly want to fight you... in a battle at our peaks.