Extreme Brutality—Mistakes Come at a Price!

The raging wind erupted!

The vast spiritual pressure was like a river bursting through its dikes, like an endless gale powerful enough to topple heaven and earth.

Pale blue-white Wind Breath coiled around the silver blade, becoming the protagonist within this barrier.

The blade fell.

Space itself seemed to be severed, with pitch-black fissures stretching across everything in every direction.

Endless Blue Flame swept upward against the raging wind, merging together into a terrifying vortex of fire that covered the entire Suzumushi barrier.

At that moment, Kaname Tosen's expression stiffened to the extreme.

He had never imagined that Su Feng, unleashing his full power, would possess such horrifying might.

Amidst the surging spiritual pressure and howling gale, Kaname Tosen felt like a lone boat upon a storm-tossed sea, liable to capsize at any moment.

At this critical juncture between life and death, he too unleashed all his potential. Tangible black-purple spiritual pressure surged over Suzumushi, transforming into countless blades in an attempt to overwhelm Su Feng.

Rumble!

Explosions rang in his ears as lingering Blue Flame danced amid the raging wind.

Had this attack taken place outside, at least half the courtyard would have collapsed into ruins.

Yet before the descending slash, it was like an ant trying to shake a tree, utterly useless.

There was not even the slightest resistance in Su Feng's arm as it swung down.

Slash—

The sound of flesh tearing rang beside Kaname Tosen's ear.

His stiff expression was replaced by astonishment. Scalding blood sprayed out, staining his black Shinigami Uniform before evaporating amid the dancing Blue Flame.

A left arm flew into the air!

The agonizing pain from the severed stump instantly twisted Kaname Tosen's face beyond recognition, making even his body tremble.

Su Feng stepped forward and gripped the trembling Suzumushi in reverse.

The dark, silent Mumyō Hell shattered with a thunderous crash, and his deprived senses returned.

"It's over, Kaname Tosen."

Su Feng's expression remained calm as he said indifferently, "Since you made the wrong choice, you have to pay the price."

As soon as his words fell, he swung down once more, slashing across Kaname Tosen's body.

The terrifying gash nearly pierced through his entire body. Blood sprayed like a fountain as cold despair devoured his reason.

Kaname Tosen collapsed powerlessly to his knees, his spiritual pressure dispersing as the barrier cracked apart.

Under the tense gazes of the Division members in the courtyard, the massive black oval barrier, like a balloon swollen to its limit, suddenly exploded.

Countless black fragments streaked away, turning into spirit particles and blending back into the air.

Two figures appeared before everyone.

Su Feng remained as he had been before, his white Captain's Haori fluttering in the fierce wind, his expression calm and composed.

Most eye-catching of all—

Was the Zanpakuto in his right hand, whose appearance had changed drastically.

Its original eighty-centimeter length had become one hundred and twenty centimeters. Pale blue-white Wind Breath curled around it, and a faint howling could be heard.

Strands of Wind Breath danced over the blade and even wound around Su Feng's body, complementing his white haori.

Su Feng merely stood there, yet as the Wind Breath stirred, the ground around him was continuously sliced apart, forming furrows after furrows.

Even from a great distance, merely looking at him with the naked eye was enough to send chills down one's spine.

This was his Zanpakuto's Shikai—

Storm Howl!

Coincidentally, the former captain of the Ninth Division had wielded a wind-type Zanpakuto, and so did its current captain.

But Storm Howl's potential far surpassed Kensei Muguruma's Tachikaze.

It could even be said that the two were not on the same level at all.

If the strongest fire-type Zanpakuto was Ryujin Jakka, and the strongest ice-and-snow-type Zanpakuto was Hyōrinmaru—

Then the strongest wind-type Zanpakuto was Su Feng's Storm Howl!

Moreover—

Even now, he had yet to uncover the limits of this Zanpakuto.

Perhaps as he grew stronger, it would reveal different facets once again.

For now, Su Feng had only mastered Shikai. He was still some distance away from Bankai.

But for him, it was enough for the time being.

After all, merely erupting with Shikai had been enough to grind Bankai-using Kaname Tosen into the ground.

The figure on the ground stood in stark contrast to the completely uninjured Su Feng.

Kaname Tosen's left arm had been completely severed, with faint Wind Breath still lingering around the smooth wound.

A massive penetrating wound extended from his left shoulder all the way to his waist and abdomen.

Torn flesh had split open, and great swathes of crimson stained the ground. He looked as if he were hovering on the brink of death.

And that was with Su Feng holding back.

Had he put even a little more spiritual pressure into that final slash, Kaname Tosen would likely have been cut cleanly into two.

Su Feng withdrew his spiritual pressure, and Storm Howl returned to its Asauchi state.

The sudden hollow sensation rising from deep within his body caused his face to turn pale.

Though he had won the battle in overwhelming fashion, the consumption of spiritual pressure had also been terrifying.

Just breaking Suzumushi's ability to deprive its target of their senses had consumed more than half of Su Feng's spiritual pressure.

Combined with his all-out strike after activating Shikai, his already limited remaining spiritual pressure had been depleted even further.

Su Feng only appeared fine on the surface. In truth, his spiritual pressure was nearly completely exhausted.

Fortunately—

The density of spirit particles in the Seireitei's atmosphere was high, so spiritual pressure recovered extremely quickly.

This state would not last long.

"Yanagawa Ki, Satoya, get out here and clean up."

Upon hearing Su Feng's order, the two Division members froze for a moment before scrambling out of the crowd on all fours.

They were respectively the Seventh Seat and Eighth Seat of the Ninth Division.

They had originally been dissatisfied with Su Feng becoming captain, but after witnessing his earlier display of dominance and the battle just now—

That tiny bit of defiance had long since been thrown to the winds.

Even Kaname Tosen, who had mastered Bankai, had been beaten into this state. If it had been them, they would probably have been chopped into seventeen or eighteen pieces.

At any time, the strong held absolute authority in the Soul Society.

Though the Ninth Division's culture was not like that of the Eleventh Division, which revered absolute martial strength above all else—

As Shinigami, the Division members still regarded the strong with respect and admiration.

"He's not dead yet."

Su Feng sheathed his blade and said calmly, "Send him to the Fourth Division. With Captain Unohana's mastery of Kaido, she should be able to preserve his life."

Kaname Tosen still had considerable value.

If he died like this during the battle for captaincy, Aizen, who was still only planning things on the surface, would surely alter his entire plan.

What the situation would turn into then was impossible to say.

At the very least, Su Feng still held some initiative now.

Yanagawa Ki and Satoya looked at Kaname Tosen's miserable state and instinctively shuddered.

After a brief daze, the two hurriedly gathered him up, then carefully cleaned away the bloodstains left on the ground. Only then did they carry Kaname Tosen away toward the Fourth Division barracks using Shunpo.

Once their figures vanished, a deathly silence remained in the Ninth Division's courtyard.

Everyone looked at Su Feng with frightened eyes.

No matter how unruly a Division member might be—

The new captain's overwhelming strength had undoubtedly left an exceedingly deep impression in their hearts...