Breaking Point

Countless mirrors rose up within the Soul King Palace area. The moment Aizen appeared Inner Palace, he unleashed his full latent spiritual pressure. Beside the mirrors, countless Aizen covered in spikes appeared.

This was Aizen's last bit of power. The strange Kido within him was still devouring his spiritual pressure, and the injuries inflicted by the Monk hadn't healed. He no longer expected to defeat the Monk today; there was only one thing he wanted to do.

He must go to the Inner Palace and pull Soul King down from his throne. He must do this himself, not be led before Soul King Monk like a prisoner by a monk!

Only Sosuke Aizen himself can decide his fate!

"Honestly, they're still struggling even now."

The Monk was somewhat exasperated by this disobedient junior. He could have simply surrendered, but instead, he insisted on making pointless moves. He had already granted Aizen's wish to see the Soul King; what more did Aizen want?

Helpless, the Monk frowned as he scanned his surroundings with his real eyes. In his vision, every Aizen was real.

Interesting, but not many. These Aizen began to unleash their Kido attacks on Kido Monk, but the Monk easily dispatched one of Aizen with a light sweep of his brush.

Weak, too weak. With so many realities splitting out, Aizen's strength is so weak that it can be ignored. Even Monk Kido they released didn't bother to defend against; they couldn't even penetrate the body constructed by the King Key.

Without much effort, the Monk found the body controlled by Aizen. There was nothing he could do; that body was flying towards the Inner Palace.

It seems Aizen intends to use these clones to stop him so he can go and meet the Soul King himself.

This is outrageous! Without a follower of the Soul King to guide them, how dare any outsider disturb His Majesty the Soul King!

An even greater expression of anger appeared on the Monk's face. He didn't care what Aizen did to him, he didn't care even if he killed him, but disturbing the Soul King had crossed his bottom line.

The Monk's pupils transformed into a black and white vortex pattern. Monk swung Ichimonji and unleashed a horizontal slash, releasing black and white energy that instantly wiped out everyone, Aizen. The Monk immediately chased after Aizen.

Aizen glanced back, surprised that the Monk had such a powerful attack hidden within. It seemed that the clone tactic was a bad first move, but there was no time for him to regret it. He could only hope that the monk could reach the Inner Palace as soon as possible.

Behind Aizen, one Bakudo after another chased after him. In this state, Aizen's power was too weak; even his most proficient Bakudō #81: Dankū couldn't stop the Monk's Kido.

Before reaching the Inner Palace, Aizen was finally bound. He could still vaguely see that noble figure, but even so, he was just a hair's breadth away from reaching the Soul King on his own.

"Wait! I'll go in and report right away," the Monk said coldly, clearly showing that Aizen's unreasonable behavior had thoroughly enraged him.

Aizen strained to lift his head, trying to see what the inside of the hall looked like, but being bound hand and foot, he was always just a little short of being able to catch a glimpse of what was inside.

After waiting for a long time, Aizen finally saw the Monk return. The Monk's face no longer showed any anger; instead, he had a cheerful expression and looked like a harmless old man.

"Go in, but you're only allowed to take a peek from afar."

The Monk led Aizen to the top floor of the Inner Palace, which looked like a huge plaza with many pillars and a huge circular curtain in the middle.

Upon reaching this level, the Monk immediately removed the Bakudo from Aizen's body, showing no fear of him escaping.

Because the Kido seal within the Hogyoku Monk the same level as the Hogyoku itself, Aizen still had spikes stuck in his body, but this did not affect Aizen movements.

Aizen walked step by step into the hall. As Aizen walked, the curtain of the circular screen was lifted, revealing a man who had lost his limbs and was sealed in a crystal.

"Is this the Soul King?" Although Aizen had guessed it beforehand and knew that the Soul King was missing many body parts, Aizen was still shocked by what he saw.

Soon, shock was replaced by anger, Aizen turned to the Monk and asked, "Why would you place the Soul King, who has completely lost his autonomy, on this throne?"

"To use the Soul King to command the Three Worlds?!"

At this point, several strands of anger seeped from between Aizen's teeth. Personally, Aizen liked the Three Worlds, and in his view, Monk who usurped power from the Soul King for the sake of the Three Worlds were sinners of this world.

Perhaps the nobles of Seireitei are also connected to the people of the Zero Squad; they are all sinners who rebelled against the Soul King.

"Huh?" The Monk chuckled dismissively, sitting cross-legged on the ground with his arms folded. "If I told you that this was all done voluntarily by Soul King, what would you think?"

"That's impossible!" Aizen out. How could anyone willingly become a human stick, with only boring sitting as a last resort? At least he, Aizen, couldn't do it.

"Why is it impossible? Soul King King's actions are all for the stability of the Three Worlds!" the Monk said, spreading his arms wide in an exaggerated tone.

"Soul King willingly became the wedge for maintaining the stability of the Three Worlds. Once he disappears, the world will immediately fall into a state of collapse. This is the importance of Soul King," the Monk said, word by word. He had no reason to lie to Aizen.

How could that be?

Aizen sat helplessly on the ground. To be honest, he was completely overwhelmed. He had thought that the current Soul King throne was nothing more than a puppet that the nobles had pushed onto the throne, neither alive nor dead.

Aizen's goal is to reshape the order of Soul Society. To achieve this, he is willing to overthrow the Soul King and become the new king to control the Three Worlds.

But the Monk's words undoubtedly told Aizen that the Soul King could not be touched. If the Soul King were to move, it would mean that the Three Worlds might be instability. Apart from not speaking or making any moves, the importance of such a Soul King was beyond doubt.

What about all his efforts over the years? Did he really want to climb onto this throne that he can't possibly be dethroned from?

What a joke.

Thinking of this, Aizen also thought of the man who possessed the same research talent as him, Urahara Kisuke.

Aizen had long wanted to question Urahara Kisuke: why did he, with his unparalleled talent capable of creating the Hogyoku, choose to live a life of subservience under the Seireitei?

Looking back now, Urahara Kisuke may have known the Soul King's secret all along, and displaying his talent in a limited way was a compromise he made for this unstable world.

With a series of "pfft pfft" sounds, as Aizen began to give up resistance, two more sharp spikes emerged from Aizen shoulders. When Aizen stopped resisting, the power of the Kido within the Hogyoku began to overwhelm the power of the Hogyoku itself.

The Hogyoku itself also needs to respect the host's emotions when it acts. Aizen's abandonment proves that the part of the Aizen symbolizing Hogyoku is beginning to lose its balance, and the power that seals the Kido has gained the upper hand.

"By the way, I heard you want to become the new Soul King?" The Monk revealed an extremely sinister smile, his words full of sarcasm. "That's fine, as long as you throw this old Soul King down, I'll make you the new Soul King."

Aizen gave a bitter smile. The Monk had just used the word "make," hadn't he? A new Soul King? He'd probably end up like the old one, shaved into a human stick and sealed away by the Monk, only to be able to see the outside world again after who knows how many years.

Aizen's guess was exactly what the Monk was thinking. Logically speaking, the condition for becoming Soul King is to possess four powers: Bleach, Quincy, Hollow, and Fullbring.

Currently, Aizen only possesses the power of Bleach and Hollow's power, but he has an ultimate advantage: the Hogyoku.

The Monk believed that as long as Aizen and the Hogyoku were sealed together, he could replace the former king and maintain the stability of the Three Worlds for countless years.

In the Monk's eyes, only the Soul King's wedge ability mattered. Who the Soul King was was not important, nor was he concerned about why the battle was being fought in the lower realm.

The only thing Monk care about is the stability of the Three Worlds. That's one issue, but it certainly won't be the last.

He gave up. Even the most unwilling-to-be-second-best mentality chose to give up at this moment. So be it, failure is failure. He didn't want to be turned into a human stick by the Monk.

Aizen collapsed to the ground, losing all will to resist. The power of the Kyōka Suigetsu quickly surpassed Aizen's suppression, and spikes pierced through his body, causing the spiritual pressure of the Hogyoku to form gray bandages that wrapped around him.

Being sealed Urahara Kisuke is better than being turned into Soul King, right?

As the sealed Kido spread across his body, Aizen suddenly smiled. He seemed to understand why Sawada Tsunayoshi had helped him so many times. It turned out that long ago, he had begun to fear the Soul King Palace, the Monk, and the possibility of being turned into the Soul King.

Do you regret it?

Aizen probably doesn't regret it. He knows very well that he won't believe anything anyone else says since he hasn't personally witnessed the Soul King's state.

Sawada Tsunayoshi must have seen through his mindset. No matter what, Aizen was bound to have a showdown at the Soul King Palace, which is why he chose to push things along during the Sōkyoku and in Hueco Mundo.

The seal was about to completely cover Aizen's face, and his eyes seemed to be able to penetrate countless obstructions and look directly at Sawada Tsunayoshi underground.

He had to admit he was starting to take a slight interest in Sawada Tsunayoshi. How could a human boy in his early teens understand the secrets of the Soul King? Why did he possess that strange Zanpakuto with its seven flames? Why could he create giants that didn't belong to this world?

Sawada Tsunayoshi, once I break free of this seal, I will demand that you give me a proper explanation.

Tsuna was unaware that Aizen's interest in the Soul King's throne had shifted to him; he was simply staring listlessly at the unchanging screen.

Urahara Kisuke did not send the Surveillance Spirit Bug deep into the Inner Palace; he only watched from a distance. After all, the Inner Palace was the Soul King's palace, and trespassing would carry a serious charge.

The other captains of Seireitei tacitly refrained from mentioning entering the Inner Palace, and could only wait silently from afar for developments.