"Whew... finally over."
Ichigo drove the last Faceless Asauchi back with a slash, then braced his sword hilt against the ground.
He wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked around.
Good grief, had this place just been forcibly demolished?
The once-magnificent Inner Palace no longer had a single intact paving stone. Broken walls and rubble covered the ground.
Renji pulled Zabimaru out of a pile of rubble and casually shook the dust off its blade.
He looked up at the empty expanse overhead. "Yhwach has probably already slaughtered the Soul King."
Ichigo looked around, but found no trace of anyone else.
Ichigo frowned. "Where's that old monk? Did he just vanish into thin air?"
Just then, Ichibē Hyōsube's weak voice rang out directly in the depths of Ichigo's mind.
"Ichigo Kurosaki, Renji Abarai."
There was unmistakable exhaustion in the monk's voice. "Yhwach has already left the Soul King Palace."
Ichigo tightened his grip on his twin blades. "Where did he go? We'll go cut him down right now."
Ichibē Hyōsube gave them directions. "He stole the Soul King's power and built a brand-new castle below, Wahrwelt."
"At the center of the Inner Palace is a hidden Rotating Passage. It is the only route that leads straight to Wahrwelt."
The transmitted voice paused there.
"Go, quickly. You are the only ones who can stop him now."
After that final instruction, the monk's presence vanished completely.
Ichigo took his Zanpakuto in hand again and turned to the red-haired Soul Reaper beside him.
"Did you hear that, Renji?"
Renji Abarai snorted. "Of course I did. What are we waiting for?"
Ichigo took the lead. "Let's go cut that bastard's head off."
Without any hesitation, the two followed the monk's directions and plunged into the Rotating Passage hidden in the center of the