Saving People

Seeing Yamagata and the other man successfully escape, Kamisawa knew he had no chance of survival, yet a look of relief crossed his face. This ending wasn't so bad.

A whimpering sound, half-laugh and half-sob, echoed once more. Kamisawa turned his head to see the Gillian standing right behind him, its head tilted as it grinned down at him, as if seeing him for the first time.

In truth, ordinary Gillian cannot distinguish the faces of Soul Reaper; meat is meant to be eaten, and the subtle differences in their features are irrelevant. Its instinct told it that all it had to do was reach out and place the food into its mouth.

Facing the pale, giant hand drawing ever closer—the same hand that had just claimed the lives of his teammates—Kamisawa felt not a shred of fear. He swung his Chain Hammer and charged forward.

"Sitting still and waiting for death isn't my style. If you want to eat me, you'll have to break a couple of teeth for the trouble!" Whether he could actually do it or not, that was what Kamisawa thought; even breaking off a finger would be acceptable.

The collision he imagined never came. Just as Kamisawa was about to make contact with that massive hand, a figure appeared out of thin air, standing between them and forcibly separating the two.

"Long time no see, Kamisawa." The figure slowly turned his head, revealing a face that hadn't changed much in seven years. Hongjiang's features came into focus. "You're still quite spirited, I see."

"Hong... jiang?" Kamisawa's mouth hung wide open. He rubbed his eyes instinctively, his expression one of utter disbelief. "Chōzuka? Hongjiang!"

"That's right, it's me!" Hongjiang rubbed the stubble on his chin and said with a serious face, "I haven't shaved in half a month, so it's normal you didn't recognize me. The difference from before is indeed quite large."

Hongjiang's appearance was indeed different from seven years ago, but not so much that he should be unrecognizable at a glance. What truly shocked Kamisawa was his strength; he had known Hongjiang was strong, but he hadn't expected him to be on this level.

Every Soul Reaper learns the four basic combat arts, but the gap between a novice and a master is unimaginable. Take Flash Step, for instance—a technique that relies on instantaneous movement within a certain range. It was the very technique Hongjiang had used to travel here.

But Flash Step only looks like instantaneous movement; in reality, there is always a trajectory to follow. Kamisawa and his team were proficient in Flash Step, but they hadn't used it to break through the encirclement because the number of enemies was too high, making it easy to be intercepted mid-path.

Hongjiang was different. First, the range of his movement was so vast that Kamisawa couldn't even perceive it. Then there was the speed; he couldn't track the movement at all. In all his time in Squad 11, he had only seen three people perform such a flawless Flash Step.

Flash Step was one thing, but then there was the sheer power. While stopping the Gillian in its tracks, Hongjiang hadn't even felt the impact of the force. Such immense power was something even a lieutenant might not possess!

Kamisawa dared not think further. He looked at Hongjiang with complex emotions; the kid wasn't even a hundred years old yet. It really was true that comparing oneself to others only leads to frustration!

"What's with that look?" Hongjiang said irritably, feeling the force from his right hand suddenly increase. "It seems this fellow doesn't have the patience to let us reminisce. I'll get you out of here first."

Before Kamisawa could react, he felt his collar tighten. The surrounding scenery turned into a spilled palette of colors, all swirling into a blur in an instant—a sensation that, honestly, made him feel nauseous.

Fortunately, the discomfort was short-lived, and the world regained its clarity. Not far away were the backs of various Hollow, and a massive roar echoed in his ears, originating from that stooped Gillian.

A powerful gust of wind appeared out of nowhere, stinging Kamisawa's face, though he barely felt it at the moment.

"Were we just... over there?" Kamisawa pointed toward the spot where yellow smoke was now billowing, turning his head stiffly to look at Hongjiang, hoping for an explanation.

"That was close, that was close! We almost didn't make it out!" Hongjiang said, whistling as he spoke. With that relaxed expression, one couldn't tell he had been under any pressure at all. Kamisawa finally understood: all that talk about it being close, about almost dying—it was all nonsense, wasn't it!

Hongjiang's whistle successfully drew the attention of the Hollow. Seeing the enemies turn their focus back to them, Kamisawa grabbed Hongjiang's arm.

"What are you doing?"

"Waiting for you to keep running!"

Hongjiang shot him a look of disdain, pulled his arm away, and said, "No need to wait for me. You go on ahead."

"I can't just leave this trash here, can I?" Hongjiang finished with a shrug, and his figure vanished from the spot.

He didn't go back, did he?! Kamisawa hurriedly looked toward the swarm of Hollow, only to see that Hongjiang had already appeared behind one of them. Two black-gloved hands pressed against its head, his fingers digging deep into its smooth, white mask.

"Which side are you even looking at!"

With Hongjiang's shout, the Hollow was forced into a backbend, its massive head slamming heavily into the ground. The mask on its face shattered into pieces; it looked dead beyond any doubt.

This finally made the Hollow realize where they should be looking. Kamisawa, the delicious meal they had been eyeing, was now completely ignored as they turned and swarmed toward the provocateur, Hongjiang.

Then, Kamisawa witnessed Hongjiang's fighting style—a style he would later view as the artistic, fluid pursuit of a lifetime.

Amidst the swarm, Hongjiang moved with a short blade in hand, carving out pillars of blood, then switching to gauntlets and boots. His limbs became the most agile weapons of war, playing a strange symphony with flesh and bone.

He wove through the swarm like an ape swinging through the trees. To Kamisawa, Hongjiang didn't look like he was being besieged; he looked like a butterfly fluttering leisurely through a field of flowers.

Fists, palms, elbows, and knees always appeared at the perfect moment, as if everything had been choreographed in advance. No matter how many Hollow there were, no matter what direction they came from, or how close their claws and fangs got to him, the next second they were destined to be sent flying into the unknown.

One even flew right to Kamisawa's feet. Relying on his professional instincts, Kamisawa casually swung his blade, sending it off to meet the Soul King.

Further away, Tsukikage also witnessed this scene. To be honest, it was shocking. He hadn't expected Hongjiang, whom he had dismissed as a playboy, to possess such strength. Could Kao Susumu, from his own squad, really be superior to this young man? A massive question mark formed in Tsukikage's mind.

Pushing these thoughts aside, he felt a strong urge to join the fray—not to steal the credit, but to provide some support to this young man fighting alone.

The problem, however, was the Gillian. Tsukikage looked at the massive black shadow in the distance, which seemed to be watching the show, hoping it would continue to do so until reinforcements arrived.

Tsukikage's prayer seemed to have the opposite effect. The Gillian, which had been stagnant for so long, suddenly raised its head and let out a deafening roar. In the distance, Tsukikage felt the very air vibrate with the sound.

It wasn't the whimpering, half-laughing sound from before. This time, the cry was high-pitched and powerful. Even though they were different species and spoke different languages, everyone present knew one thing: it was angry!