Quincy could absorb Reishi from their surroundings. At least, Fuzi and the others here could. That was why their most effective means of attack was to use Spirit Bows to fire Reishi arrows reinforced with spiritual power.
But that didn't mean Quincy had no close-combat abilities. They couldn't compare with Soul Reapers, who specialized in fighting at close range, but they could still hold their own in a brief exchange. At this moment, Hongjiang was being thoroughly irritated by the ten Quincy around him, who darted away as soon as he made contact—and retreated even when he didn't!
After exchanging attacks for a while, Fuzi began to think the Soul Reaper atop the bell was acting strangely. Even if he was guarding the Senkaimon, surely he didn't need to stay in one spot without moving? Besides, they'd twice aimed all their arrows directly at him. Using Flash Step to get away would clearly have been easier, yet he chose to take the attacks head-on.
Could it be that he can't leave the top of the bell? The thought came naturally to Fuzi. He immediately adjusted his tactics, having ten squad members continue their ranged harassment while he led the other nine Quincy in a close-range attack. They had only one target: the Soul Reaper atop the bell!
It proved that pairing a warrior with ranged fighters was indeed a classic combination. Hongjiang hadn't fallen behind, but he could hardly spare any attention for anything else.
He was also wondering whether to use a high-level Kido to deal with these people first. But his opponents were cautious, sending no more than three people in at once. They didn't linger in a fight, either. They'd land a quick blow under cover of the arrows and then retreat, with the next group stepping in to attack.
It was clearly a war of attrition. Hongjiang had deliberately exposed a weakness or two, but his opponents didn't take the bait. They were making it clear: unless he was wounded, they wouldn't risk a serious fight. They'd see who could wear the other down first!
"Bakudō #30: Beak-Piercing Triple Flash!"
Three beams of light shaped like sharp beaks appeared out of thin air before Hongjiang and shot toward Fuzi in midair. Fuzi didn't dodge. He took the Bakudō head-on, his body flying backward before he was firmly pinned to the ground.
If Hongjiang had used Flash Step to rush in and follow up with a slash—or hit Fuzi with a Hadō above #60—Fuzi would have been doomed.
There had been plenty of chances like that, but Hongjiang seemed not to notice them. He simply let the Quincy break through the Bakudō and rejoin the fight.
"Trying to trade your life for a serious wound on me? That's ruthless!" Watching Fuzi charge at him again and again, Hongjiang felt conflicted. He'd known all along that Fuzi wasn't as honest and unassuming as he seemed, but he hadn't expected him to be so ruthless.
In truth, Hongjiang had no right to call Fuzi ruthless. He hadn't drawn the Zanpakuto at his waist to kill him, not because he felt any lingering affection, but because he was waiting for a chance to take out all these Quincy at once! If anyone was ruthless, it was Hongjiang Diezuka!
Hongjiang was waiting for an opening in the plaza. Outside it, Yoruichi was also waiting for a chance while being kited around. Yes, the reason Yoruichi hadn't managed to hit Ryan was that he was keeping his distance and leading her on.
If Hongjiang was annoyed at having his attention tied up, then Yoruichi was getting angry because Ryan was playing with her!
This Quincy kid named Ryan was slower than her, and his destructive power couldn't compare to hers after releasing Bankai. But he had one advantage: Ryan could attack faster than she could. That alone left Yoruichi unable to bring her strength to bear!
"Boom!" The long staff collided with a blue arrow, setting off another massive explosion. Yoruichi swung her staff, carving a path through the burst of crimson flames without being affected by the blast. She hurried after Ryan, but in the time it took her to do that, he'd gone from being within ten meters to half a kilometer away.
Ryan fired arrows incredibly fast, and even while moving, his rate of fire barely slowed. That nearly erased the gap between their speeds. Even when Yoruichi occasionally reached him, the arrows flying straight at her forced her to trigger an explosion. Ryan could then use the blast to put more distance between them.
It happened every time! Yoruichi gritted her teeth and knocked aside the arrows in front of her, the veins at her temples starting to bulge. Being toyed with like a cat chasing a mouse was excruciating for the cat. It was a humiliating disgrace!
But Ryan didn't feel any satisfaction from playing with a cat. If someone could see inside him at that moment, they'd find countless thin blue lines attached to his bones.
Those lines were called Hirenkyaku. Quincy transformed Reishi into threads and used them to stitch together parts of their bodies that couldn't move, forcing their bodies to move like puppets. After all, he was facing Yoruichi's Bankai. He couldn't fly on the blast wind without breaking a few bones as the price of his ticket.
Soul Reapers who'd fought Quincy before would surely know about Hirenkyaku. That was why Hongjiang's original order had been to beat Ryan unconscious. He hadn't been joking: if they wanted to capture him alive, they really did have to knock him out. Breaking his legs or anything like that wasn't an option.
But Yoruichi had already forgotten about capturing him alive. All she wanted was to roast the pesky little mouse in front of her! To do that, she'd have to make more efficient use of the Flame Heart.
Yoruichi's Bankai, Ten Directions Annihilation Flame Heart, had four abilities, each corresponding to one of the four flame patterns carved into the stones on the staff.
The flame pattern facing Ryan looked like a blossoming flower. It could use her spiritual power to weaken whatever it touched, making its Reishi go berserk. The resulting effect was an explosion.
The second pattern was made of contracting lines and looked like a vortex. It absorbed and stored the berserk Reishi imbued with her spiritual power. She'd used this ability just now when she swept away the crimson flames.
The sword-shaped flame pattern worked in tandem with it, releasing the stored berserk Reishi and causing an explosion in midair without needing to touch anything.
Finally, opposite the flower pattern was a flame pattern shaped like a round shield. Its function was the opposite of the flower pattern's: it could completely block any berserk Reishi infused with her spiritual power. It was thanks to this ability that Yoruichi could use the blast wind to move without breaking bones or tearing muscles.
"Should I try blasting him from a distance?" Yoruichi had absorbed and stored quite a bit of berserk Reishi during her encounters with Ryan. If she released it all at once, she might be able to threaten him from afar.
"No. This isn't the time to threaten him. I need to kill him in one strike!"
Yoruichi bit her lip, trying to calm herself down. Ryan still didn't know about the trump cards she had up her sleeve, so he might still leave an opening. If she failed to finish him in one strike, the little mouse would surely become even more cautious.
Hold it in! No matter how furious she was, she had to stay calm right now!
In truth, Ryan was unlikely to leave an opening at this point. Those broken bones hadn't been for nothing. He knew full well that there was little chance he could threaten the life of the female Soul Reaper in front of him.
Even with Hirenkyaku, who would willingly lose an arm or a leg? The old woman in front of him was trouble! Ryan had learned his lesson after getting beaten by Yoruichi. But if he couldn't hurt her, couldn't he still annoy her?
A new game began. The game was called Hide-and-Seek!
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