Segunda Etapa

"Listen to yourself. If I'm not alive, am I supposed to be dead?"

Qi Yan stepped out of the Garganta.

Snap!

Qi Yan snapped his fingers, and the Garganta rapidly closed.

Thump! Thump!

At the sight of Qi Yan, the Demon Dragon's massive body involuntarily took two steps back. It cried out in disbelief:

"Impossible! There's no way you could have withstood my roar!"

Qi Yan nodded, then swept his gaze around at the terrifying destruction caused by the roar. "Yeah! As expected of a Giant Dragon's roar, its power is terrifying. If it had hit me head-on, I'd definitely have died long ago. But if I can't take it head-on, can't I just dodge?"

When the Demon Dragon had prepared to use its roar, Qi Yan had swiftly completed his assimilation with Ulquiorra. Arrancar like Ulquiorra all possessed a common skill.

That was—Descorrer.

A skill that tore through space, allowing Arrancar to move freely between the World of the Living and Hueco Mundo.

Qi Yan had used Descorrer to temporarily rip open space and hide in the gap between dimensions. Once the roar had ended, he returned.

There was one drawback to this move: it was rather slow to activate. Fortunately, the Demon Dragon's roar had a long windup as well, giving Qi Yan enough time to slip into the spatial gap.

"Alright, let's hurry up and begin round two. This state consumes quite a lot of magic power, and my time is precious."

He had just assimilated Yoriichi Tsugikuni. Yoriichi Tsugikuni's normal state consumed very little, but once his full combat power was unleashed, the consumption was actually terrifying.

Especially those seemingly simple slashes—they were attacks that compressed and condensed magic power to the absolute limit. Every strike consumed a considerable amount of magic power.

As Qi Yan spoke, he drew his Zanpakutō and chanted the Resurrección release command:

"Seal it! Black Winged Demon!!"

"Buzzzzz—!!"

Black Spiritual Pressure shot straight into the heavens from Qi Yan's body.

The cloudless sky was instantly covered by thick dark clouds, and the entire world darkened.

Then, countless black raindrops fell from the sky.

Everyone present had seen this scene before, yet every time they saw it, they were incomparably shaken.

Soon, the phenomenon vanished, and Qi Yan transformed into his First-Stage Resurrección form.

Seeing Qi Yan in this form, Demon Dragon Alazam gritted its teeth and sneered. "Kid, I've seen this combat form of yours. Your swordsmanship in this form is merely average, and your strength is weak. You're no match for me at all."

Demon Dragon Alazam tried to provoke Qi Yan with its words. As long as this guy dared to transform into that form, it would fly into the air again and attack with its roar, taking advantage of the fact that Qi Yan could not fly.

"Mm, you're right. But have you forgotten something important? If you were in peak condition, I definitely wouldn't attack you in this form. But you're seriously injured now!"

"And who told you this form of mine was weak? Ulquiorra is the strongest Hollow in my heart. I won't allow you to insult him."

"However, since you think this form is weak, I'll show you a stronger one."

Qi Yan softly uttered, "Segunda Etapa!!"

"Buzzzzzz!!!"

An even more terrifying Spiritual Pressure erupted from Qi Yan's body. Blue-black Spiritual Pressure radiated from his entire body and surged outward.

"Uwaaaaaah!!"

Many people raised their arms to shield their eyes.

The clothing on Qi Yan's upper body gradually disappeared. Black feathers covered his abdomen, legs, arms, and back, while the rear half of his robe split into two, like a pair of black coattails.

His wings spread fully, revealing bat-like claws. The horns on his helmet grew longer, sharper, and pointed upward. A long black tail sprouted behind him, and his feet turned into sharp talons. A black hole appeared in Qi Yan's chest, and one could even see the scenery behind him through it.

"Th-this... is this... Mr. Qi Yan?"

Everyone was somewhat frightened by Qi Yan's transformation.

"Kid, do you think transforming makes you my match? Your magic power can't sustain this form for long, can it? Otherwise, you wouldn't have gone back to rest after killing only five Nine-Star Monsters."

After suffering severe injuries, the Demon Dragon's mind seemed to have cleared considerably. It even recalled Qi Yan's earlier performance amid the monster horde.

Qi Yan nodded. "Yeah! With my current magic power, I can only maintain this form for a little over a minute."

The Demon Dragon was instantly overjoyed upon hearing that. "One minute? Hahahahaha!!! Only one minute!! Kid, it looks like you're destined to die here today!! After one minute, I'll make you suffer properly. I'll make you beg for death but be unable to die!!"

The Demon Dragon was incredibly excited. It hated this human who had slashed it so badly more than anything. A mere human had actually made it taste fear. It would definitely take revenge for such unbearable humiliation.

"One minute!!"

Upon hearing Qi Yan's words, the human side could not help but fall into despair. Could one minute really be enough to kill the Demon Dragon? If that minute ended and Qi Yan still could not defeat it, then every one of them was doomed.

Qi Yan said calmly:

"One minute is enough to deal with you!"

Almost as soon as Qi Yan finished speaking.

"How arrogant..."

Whoosh!

Qi Yan appeared right before Demon Dragon Alazam's enormous face.

Qi Yan's body spun at high speed before he kicked Demon Dragon Alazam in the face.

Boom—!!

After taking Qi Yan's kick, Demon Dragon Alazam's massive body was sent flying sideways.

"Uwaaaaaah!!"

Qi Yan stomped hard beneath his feet, flapped his wings, and shot toward Demon Dragon Alazam at high speed.

In the blink of an eye, Qi Yan caught up. Then he viciously kicked downward.

Boom—!!

"Waaaaaah!!"

Demon Dragon Alazam let out a pained scream as its entire body plummeted to the ground, smashing out a massive crater. Qi Yan's attack had struck directly into its wound.

Before Demon Dragon Alazam could react, Qi Yan grabbed the Demon Dragon's tail with both hands.

"Get up!!!"

Then he spun with force, swinging the Demon Dragon's body around in circles.

"Ooooooh!!"

Qi Yan then released his grip, sending the Demon Dragon's body flying.

Boom—!

The Demon Dragon's body crashed into a small mountain, blasting a huge crater into it.

"Waaaaaah!!"

The Demon Dragon coughed up blood. Its body had already suffered devastating injuries, and Qi Yan's relentless physical assault only worsened them. If not for the Dragon race's tenacious vitality, it might already have died.

Watching Qi Yan rapidly approach, the Demon Dragon opened its mouth and spewed a violent dragon breath.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Qi Yan repeatedly used Sonído, completely evading the dragon breath while rushing forward at high speed. In an instant, he arrived before the Demon Dragon again.

"You damned little insect!!"

The Demon Dragon clawed at Qi Yan, but grasped nothing but air.

Qi Yan appeared behind the Demon Dragon, pointing his index finger at it.

Black energy continuously gathered before his fingertip.

"Black Cero!"