Shin took a step back, and ripples spread through space. But at that moment, the most terrifying spiritual pressure erupted from Aizen's body.
Rings of white energy appeared around him like a cage, and the spatial ripples that had just formed vanished.
"Hm!" Shin's Rinnegan narrowed, and his expression turned solemn.
At this point, Aizen's fifth evolution had been completely finished.
If he had previously looked like a lofty god, then this evolution transformed him into a terrifying demon from the abyss.
An ugly mask covered his face, and three Hollows appeared on his body. His former butterfly wings had also changed, developing in an eerie direction and splitting into several tiers, each with a demon-like head growing from it.
"The final evolution?" Shin frowned slightly as waves of Yin-Yang Release chakra erupted one after another, attempting to break through the restraints of the spiritual pressure around him.
He knew this evolved state of the Hōgyoku. In the Soul Reaper World, Aizen had relied on the Hōgyoku to evolve to this extent—the so-called final stage.
Unfortunately, before the protagonist's halo, he had still been defeated.
Yet there was no denying that Aizen in this state was incredibly powerful. He had already surpassed the boundaries of both Soul Reapers and Hollows, and in a sense, was transcending toward godhood.
Shin knew that the essence of the Hōgyoku was to allow its host to evolve without limit, its power originating from the user's heart.
But nothing was absolutely invincible. The Hōgyoku was fundamentally something governed by the heart, so when Aizen's heart wavered in the Soul Reaper World, the Hōgyoku wavered as well, stopping its evolution and eruption of power.
That was why Aizen ultimately met defeat. If he had remained steadfast in himself, then in theory, the Hōgyoku could have continued