Quincy's Desperate Gamble

"Hmph!"

The man let out a cold snort. With a slight flick of the spirit bow in his hand, he didn't even need to draw the string; a dense barrage of Spirit Particle Arrows shot toward Natsuki.

Natsuki utilized Shunpo, preparing to dodge immediately.

Yet, after he initiated Shunpo, the Quincy took the initiative to close the distance. Using Hirenkyaku, he arrived right beside Natsuki. At the same time, Natsuki felt the spirit particles beneath his feet fall into chaos. His Shunpo was forcibly interrupted, and as his vanishing figure reappeared, the Spirit Particle Arrows arrived before him, poised to pierce through his body.

Natsuki frowned.

The powerful Reiatsu within his body erupted instantly. As it surged, an invisible force swept outward, instinctively pushing everything in the vicinity away, while the Zanpakuto in Natsuki's hand swung in tandem.

A massive wave of Sword Pressure emerged.

The Spirit Particle Arrows were swept into it and annihilated, eventually transforming into vast amounts of spirit particles that diffused outward, threatening to evolve into a spirit particle storm.

However, because there was someone present who excelled at manipulating spirit particles, the storm failed to take shape.

These scattered spirit particles were drawn in by the Quincy standing near Natsuki, coalescing into yet another, even larger Spirit Particle Arrow.

Whoosh!

In an instant, the Spirit Particle Arrow descended from above, instantly shrouding Natsuki.

Just as it was about to strike him, the surrounding world suddenly turned a deep, crimson red.

Numerous crimson butterflies began to flutter about.

A faint red mist appeared, adding a hint of the scent of blood to the area.

"Hmm?"

The middle-aged Quincy with the ponytail frowned. He sensed a danger approaching and instinctively attempted to use Hirenkyaku to dodge, but in the next moment, he realized that the spirit particles he was manipulating beneath his feet had become chaotic.

It was just like how they used the power of the Quincy to interfere with the Shunpo of Shinigamis.

A Shinigami's Shunpo is a technique where the Reaper's own Reiatsu interacts with external spirit particles, creating a powerful explosive force to propel them forward.

Hirenkyaku, on the other hand, is purer; because Quincy do not possess the high-intensity spiritual power that Shinigamis do, they can only manipulate external spirit particles, adjusting their flow beneath their feet to achieve high-speed movement.

Normally, only a Quincy possesses the ability to manipulate external spirit particles at will; unless they encounter one of their own, it is impossible for their Hirenkyaku to be interfered with.

Yet, at this very moment, it was being severely disrupted.

"Shinigami, what exactly have you done?"

The middle-aged Quincy looked ahead.

Possessing a powerful ability to control spirit particles, they naturally also possessed extremely keen Spiritual Perception. In his perception, that Shinigami had not died; on the contrary, the Spirit Particle Arrows he had condensed, along with the surrounding spirit particles, were all gathering toward the Shinigami at this very moment, being absorbed by him.

Within the red mist, Natsuki's figure emerged. His appearance remained unchanged, save for the blade in his hand, which had turned a deep, blood-red, as if fresh blood might drip from it at any moment.

"Thank you for the gift!"

A strange smile curled at the corners of Natsuki's lips as he spoke to the Quincy before him.

"As far as I know, Quincy possess the ability to manipulate spirit particles. Spirit particles are your weapons, so I am very curious: if you were stripped of them, what would you rely on to fight?"

As Natsuki spoke these words, he stomped his foot on the ground and arrived before the Quincy in a flash, swinging his crimson Zanpakuto toward him.

Upon hearing Natsuki's words, the Quincy had been attempting to mobilize spirit particles, but in this strange environment, he seemed to have lost all perception of the surrounding particles. No, he could still sense them, but he was unable to command them.

This sent a chill through the Quincy's heart.

Beyond fighting with their own Reiatsu, Shinigamis possessed one other thing that was unaffected by the Quincy.

That was the Zanpakuto.

Since the war began, he had killed many Shinigamis and had seen many of their Zanpakuto.

Undoubtedly, this strange environment and his inability to manipulate the spirit particles here were both related to the opponent's Zanpakuto.

When Natsuki's Zanpakuto struck, he could only rely on his body's instincts to dodge.

Even with his years of combat in the Human World, his physical instincts were strong, but with physical capabilities inferior to a Shinigami, how could he hope to evade?

Splurt!

Blood sprayed, but the man was a rare pure-blooded Quincy and did not die immediately; instead, he scrambled to the side.

"At this point, even if you dodged one strike, what good does it do you?"

Natsuki's tone was indifferent as he decided to deliver the fatal blow.

"Shinigami, even if I am to die, I will drag you down with me."

As he spoke, the Quincy took off a pouch he carried with him. A uniquely shaped glove appeared in Natsuki's sight, and as Natsuki's Zanpakuto swung down, he hurriedly pulled the glove onto his hand.

The spirit particles in the vicinity, which had been freed from the Quincy's control due to Natsuki's Zanpakuto release, fell into chaos for an instant, only to be forcibly drawn in by the Quincy, surging into his body before diffusing outward once more.

The Quincy, who had already collapsed, stood up again.

The spirit particles transformed into a wall of light, forcibly blocking Natsuki's blade.

Immediately afterward, they transformed into countless Spirit Particle Arrows, flying toward Natsuki.

As for the man controlling all of this, his face was twisted in extreme agony. Threads condensed from spirit particles appeared all over his body; using these threads, he turned himself into a puppet. Even though his body was severely wounded, he could still forcibly continue to fight. This was a desperate technique of the Quincy known as Ransotengai, originally a skill used by elderly Quincy whose bodies could no longer move, but it could also be used to make a final stand when the body was critically injured.

Of course, the primary reason he could briefly break through the limitations of Natsuki's Zanpakuto and forcibly manipulate the Reishi already influenced by Natsuki's Reiatsu was the glove in his hand.

Sanrei Glove!

With the aid of this glove, a Quincy can briefly reach their final form. At that moment, all the power within the Quincy's body erupts, merging with the surrounding Reishi to achieve the level of forcibly manipulating all Reishi in the vicinity.

However, because it disperses Reishi, a Quincy will lose all their power and be reduced to a cripple after using it.

Even though the middle-aged man was a pure-blooded Quincy possessing a far greater ability to manipulate Reishi than an ordinary Quincy, once he discovered he could not control the surrounding Reishi, he had no choice but to use this item to push his power further and fight for his life.

As it turned out, he had bet correctly.

After advancing his power, he forcibly manipulated the Reishi affected by his opponent's Zanpakuto and regained the ability to fight.

As long as he could fight, he firmly believed he could kill this Shinigami.

Even if he were to die himself.

But given that the Shinigami was already quite powerful, a life-for-a-life trade was not a loss.