The Blade That Killed the Soul King

Yhwach's voice echoed through the palace, but there was no response. He laughed self-deprecatingly.

"I'd almost forgotten, how could a cripple possibly answer me?"

Yhwach looked at the enormous purple curtain inside the palace. Even standing Inner Palace, he still hadn't been able to meet the Soul King. This wouldn't do; how could he boast about his achievements to the Soul King now?

With a wave of his hand, Yhwach unleashed a surge of spiritual pressure, easily drawing back two purple curtains.

The scene inside was exactly as he had imagined, or rather, it was impossible to change. From the moment that man voluntarily became the wedge of the world, he was destined to be forever guarding this place.

Yhwach took two steps forward, looking at the man sealed in the crystal. A rare human emotion appeared in his eyes—a look of reminiscence.

This man, who is nominally a father, has never fulfilled his responsibilities as a father for a single day. If it weren't for his ability to share his soul and make up for his own deficiencies through the souls of others.

He probably died long ago in that state of being unable to see, hear, speak, or even move, like an infant.

This is the kind of person who, despite being Quincy, abandoned the Quincy and joined the Bleach's side. What's even more ridiculous is that, in order to maintain the stability of the world, he transformed himself into a shape that is neither human nor ghost.

A thousand words reached his lips, but he choked up the moment he saw the Soul King. Yhwach denied everything about the Soul King, so he would return the world to a state of utter chaos.

Perhaps, this is also an opportunity to wash away the shame of being imprisoned for this nominal father.

Seeing the Soul King living a life worse than that of a prisoner, Yhwach felt bored. His initial intention to mock and boast vanished, and his only remaining thought was to quickly advance the world's progress.

Yhwach unfurled his cloak, and a shadow spread out from within it, forming a human-sized shadow at his feet. A child-like figure emerged from within, its body pitch black, its face distorted, and its eyes lifeless.

"You know what? I was originally thinking about how to lure Ichigo Kurosaki or Sawada Tsunayoshi here to kill you, but the unexpected turn of events led me to find this."

Yhwach placed one hand on the child's head, and the Blut Reishi veins began to spread across the child's body, quickly covering him. The child's eyes regained some of their luster.

"It can only be said that even the future chose to let you die, allowing me to find this creature in the Dangai that combines the power of Bleach, a Hollow, Fullbring, and Quincy."

Yhwach flicked his finger, and his Quincy Cross sword flew into the child's hand. The child gripped the sword, raised it high, and aimed it at the Soul King.

If Tsuna were standing here, he would definitely recognize that this is the same person who was created by Tsunayashiro Tokinada Soya Ashirogi combining various corpses.

When Soya Ashirogi clashed with Kaname Tōsen's attack, the space around the Valley of Screams shattered, and his body entered the Dangai.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Soya Ashirogi should perish and be torn apart by the conflict of the four forces.

However, he was destined to survive, and unexpectedly encountered Yhwach had led the Quincy army to settle in the Valley of Screams of Crying in the Dangai.

Upon seeing Soya Ashirogi, Yhwach first used the power he had given to stabilize Soya Ashirogi's body, and then decided to change his plans.

In the original plan, Yhwach intended to hold the final battle at the Soul King Palace, using his ability to foresee the future to guide Sawada Tsunayoshi or Ichigo Kurosaki to fight the Soul King.

But all of that changed the moment he found Soya Ashirogi. Who wouldn't want to solve a problem easily and pleasantly than engage in a grueling battle with Sawada Tsunayoshi?

Therefore, Yhwach began to gradually lay down the shadows within the Dangai, and on the day Tsuna and the others took their exams, he severed the communication Three Worlds, thus giving him ample time to kill the Soul King.

Everything was planned perfectly, except for Aizen, who went beyond the scope of the plan and failed to become his ally.

But it doesn't matter. When he reigns supreme, he won't need to care about people like Sosuke Aizen.

"Do you know what he is?" Yhwach's interest in chatting with the Soul King rekindled by the appearance of Yhwach Soya Ashirogi. "I call him the Blade, and bestow upon him the Saint Letters B, Blade. It is the blade used to kill you!"

As Yhwach finished speaking, Soya Ashirogi's raised blade suddenly fell. The moment he raised the blade, all the spiritual pressure of the Bleach, Hollow, Fullbring, and Quincy on Soya Ashirogi's body was injected into the Quincy Cross, and the conditions for killing the Soul King were met.

The Quincy Cross slashed fiercely at the crystal, and the sound of the crystal shattering followed. Just as Yhwach had thought, only someone who had gathered all four powers could possibly break the Soul King's seal.

The blade drew ever closer to the Soul King, and Yhwach was about to witness Soul King death. All his emotions coalesced into a single sentence. "Farewell, Soul King, my father!"

With a whoosh, the Quincy Cross Soya Ashirogi slashed diagonally through the crystal, splitting the crystal that sealed the Soul King in two. Except for the upper half, which was suspended by Chains, the lower half fell directly to the ground of the palace.

"Here you go!"

Yhwach patted Soya Ashirogi's head with satisfaction. Soya Ashirogi's appearance made everything go very smoothly, so smoothly that Yhwach found it a little unbelievable.

The three special forces were perfectly isolated, and one of them did not participate in this conflict. This battle was entirely the stage for the Quincy.

However, his excitement lasted less than two seconds Yhwach's face froze. Something was wrong; why wasn't the world shaking?

After the Soul King, who served as the catalyst, died, the three worlds should have begun to merge. Why?

Yhwach stared wide-eyed at the half-crystal on the ground. Indeed, half of his body was sealed inside the crystal, and it was also true that the Soul King had been split in two by Soya Ashirogi's attack.

Where exactly did we go wrong?

The next moment, Yhwach's pupils contracted as he saw the half of the crystal that had fallen to the ground float up, along with the crystal shards, which flew back to where they belonged.

The two crystal pieces were pieced together in Yhwach's astonished gaze. As if time had reversed, the knife marks on the crystal gradually disappeared, and from bottom to top, the crystal that sealed the Soul King became as good as new.

"That's impossible!"

Yhwach immediately raised his hand to touch the crystal, and the solid sensation transmitted back to him told him one thing: his plan had failed.

Yhwach abruptly turned to look at Soya Ashirogi, his three-pronged eyes quickly scanning Soya Ashirogi's body.

"That's right, the powers of Bleach, Hollows, Fullbring, Quincy are all there. Where exactly did things go wrong!"

As Yhwach's eyes swept toward the sealed crystal, Soya Ashirogi slashed at the crystal again.

Just like before, the crystal recovered after breaking, but this time it was even faster; the broken half automatically regenerated before it even hit the ground.

Seeing that his attacks had no effect, the last vestiges of Soya Ashirogi sanity drove him to frantically slash at the Soul King.

No matter how many pieces Soya Ashirogi chopped the Soul King into, the Soul King was always able to heal itself. Until this moment, Yhwach had to admit that Soya Ashirogi's attack was ineffective!

Where exactly did things go wrong? Was this sword just a fake, and was it impossible for an individual whose four powers couldn't be perfectly combined to kill the Soul King?

Or is it...?

"You are refusing death!" Yhwach roared at the Soul King, his face contorted with rage.

He originally thought that he could kill the Soul King directly with the power of the Soul King candidate, but now that the Soul King is not dead, there is only one explanation: the Soul King is refusing to die.

"Why! Why would you protect a world like this! Even at the cost of sacrificing everything yourself! Why would you abandon us Quincy!"

One question after another spewed from Yhwach's mouth. His anger had begun to burn away his reason. The reality that his millennia-long scheme would ultimately come to naught brought him to the brink of collapse.

However, what truly broke Yhwach was only just beginning.

The Soul King, sealed within the crystal for countless years without ever moving, actually spoke!

"Because I am the Soul King!"

Yhwach was completely stunned. The Soul King's sudden words left him momentarily speechless. He staggered back two steps, then mustered his courage, straightened his back, and spoke.

"Then relinquish the position of ruler of the Three Worlds. I will definitely do a better job than you!"

The Soul King inside the crystal narrowed his eyes slightly, and then, to Yhwach's astonishment, his body actually passed right through the crystal and flew out!

How is that possible? Wasn't he sealed away?

Yhwach's mind raced, frantically trying to explain everything that was happening before his eyes. No, it was possible. He had willingly been sealed away, which meant that the seal couldn't possibly harm him!

The Soul King, without hands or feet, flew slowly toward Yhwach, exerting terrifying pressure on Yhwach despite doing nothing.

When the Soul King and Yhwach were face to face, Yhwach could even feel the Soul King's breath and see his own reflection in the Soul King's pupils, the Soul King spoke again.

"Yhwach..."

"What do you want to do!" Yhwach forced his tone to harden. Was this the oppressive feeling of a father? He had never felt it since the moment he came into this world.

"The Almighty of those with four pupils will always see farther than those with three pupils..."

Taunt? Yhwach only heard taunt in the Soul King's words, and he immediately retorted angrily, "So what if he has four eyes? So what if he has three? The world will eventually be mine! Kill him, sword!"

Soya Ashirogi immediately stepped forward and brandished his sword. This was an excellent opportunity; the Soul King had emerged from the seal himself, and perhaps they could eliminate him in one fell swoop.

Imagination is always beautiful, but the reality is that Yhwach saw the Quincy Cross pierce right through the Soul King's body. Could it not even cut through the Soul King this time?

As if he hadn't sensed the sword of Soya Ashirogi, Soul King spoke slowly once more.

"My foolish son..."