The true face of awakening
The Black-and-white interwoven Reishi light stream shot into the sky in an instant.
The two originally opposing Ultimate Principles completely broke their boundaries in Ichigo Kurosaki's palm.
The short sword on his left turned into pure white light fragments, which rapidly climbed and spread along his arm.
The violent Reiatsu crashed down like an invisible mountain, completely shattering the cracked stone walls surrounding the temple into dust.
On Ichigo Kurosaki's right forehead, a white and sharp curved horn rises from the ground, with bone-like texture extending from his forehead to the corner of his eye.
The white of his left eye had turned completely into a deep, inky black, and his golden pupil emitted a wild, beast-like glint in the shadows.
The black Shihakushō covering his body was completely torn apart by the surging spiritual energy, reconstructing into Half-black, half-white archaic armor.
The edge of the black giant blade held in his right hand was faintly enveloped in a layer of highly pure holy light.
A deep hum resounded across the entire sky of Wahrwelt at that moment.
The void rippled with a tangible force, and the sea of clouds above the temple was forcibly ripped open by the colliding forces, creating a thousand-foot-wide void.
Even the solid Soul King Inner Palace stone steps, crumbled and collapsed inch by inch because they could not withstand the high density of the convergence of laws.
Ichigo Kurosaki stood on the suspended Reishi steps, his long sword pointing diagonally at the ground.
This is all I have right now.
Ichigo Kurosaki raised his head, his half-human, half-hollow face showing no fear.
Yhwach stood at the top of the stone steps, the swirling black fluid around him subsiding slightly.
Dozens of dark eyes rolled in unison, scrutinizing the boy before them with great interest.
Yhwach smiled and said, "To perfectly fuse the power of the Hollows with the Quincy's origins is indeed a step that even the Soul Reaper cannot reach."
"But, Ichigo."
Yhwach took a step, and the shadow beneath his feet instantly filled the collapsed void, turning it into a road.
Every step you take, in the end, still rests on the ground beneath my feet.
Ichigo Kurosaki did not respond with any further words.
Suddenly, a cloud of white mist exploded from the void beneath their feet.
His speed had surpassed the limits of Shunpo and Hirenkyaku; the instant his body moved, the entire space even seemed to be cleaved in two by a blade.
The longsword slashed wildly upwards, its blade no longer wreathed in simple crescent moons, but instead crackling with a spiritual light infused with destructive Black-and-red thunder.
"Crescent Cross Clash!"
The black and white intertwined cross-shaped light instantly expanded to a hundred feet, crushing the space in front of the temple inch by inch.
Faced with this terrifying slash that could level an entire city, Yhwach simply raised his left hand.
The swirling black liquid coalesced into a gigantic hand, closing in front of it.
A deafening roar erupted in the center of the hall.
The chaotic shockwaves transformed into blades of wind, severing dozens of remaining Divine Pillars around the temple in half.
The cross-shaped light blade and the black hand remained locked in a stalemate in mid-air for a moment.
Ichigo Kurosaki's figure burst forth from the very center of the light, a sharp arc drawn from the white horn on his left forehead.
He gripped the hilt of the knife with both hands, the tip of the blade pressed directly against Yhwach's face.
Yhwach drew his Reishi broadsword with his right hand, the blade gleaming with a golden halo like the blazing sun.
"Clang!"
The resounding clang of metal clashing echoed through the sky, and sparks illuminated their faces.
Using the rebound force from the sword, Ichigo miraculously twisted his body in mid-air, his right leg whipping like a steel whip towards Yhwach's neck.
Yhwach tilted his head, and the sharp wind pressure tore a tear in his collar.
The black liquid shot out from Yhwach's shoulder, transforming into three jet-black spikes that pierced straight into Ichigo's heart.
A golden light flashed in Ichigo Kurosaki's eyes, and a ball of light, a blend of pitch black and deep red, instantly condensed in the palm of his left hand.
"Gran Rey Cero!"
The Cero, released at point-blank range, exploded with a deafening roar.
The violent beam of light completely vaporized the three black spikes and engulfed Yhwach's entire upper body.
The entire hall shook violently from this pure destructive force, sending marble shards flying everywhere.
Ichigo Kurosaki took a step back three feet, his chest heaving, his gaze fixed on the center of the smoke and dust.
However, before the dust settled, a low, soft laugh came from the heart of the storm.
"Combining Gran Rey Cero with his slashes is indeed a brilliant idea."
Yhwach waved his wide sleeves, and the high-temperature light mist that permeated the surroundings vanished in an instant.
His Obsidian battle robe was intact, except for the faint ripples on the black fluid on his chest.
Yhwach said indifferently, "But if you think that this level of destructive power can touch the body of a god, then you are simply ridiculous."
Ichigo Kurosaki slung the long sword behind his back, a stubborn, cold smile playing on his lips.
Whether it's achievable or not, we'll only know after trying.
The boy's figure transformed into a streak of light once more, and the shadows of his blades cascaded down like a waterfall.
Within a second, thousands of slashes erupted on the narrow steps.
Each strike was aimed at stripping Yhwach of his liquid armor.
Yhwach held his sword in one hand, his movements fluid and graceful, moving forward and backward with ease.
Each seemingly effortless deflection of the Long Sword struck precisely at the core of the Zanpakuto's Reiatsu flow.
"Your techniques lack true depth, Ichigo."
Yhwach deflected the broadsword aimed at his shoulder with a single stroke, then slashed forward with his widesword.
Ichigo Kurosaki his head back to dodge, a few strands of his hair being sliced off by the sword's edge.
He ducked and slid to the side, his long sword slashing upwards towards Yhwach's ribs.
The shadow beneath Yhwach's feet instantly transformed into a solid barrier, firmly blocking the blade.
Even if you completely integrate the bloodlines within you, you cannot change the limitations of being a mortal.
Yhwach's voice was calm and grand, as if proclaiming the final verdict under this celestial canopy.
Your vision can only see what's right in front of you for a fleeting moment.
"And what I gaze upon are countless Future already written."
A blinding white light erupted from Ichigo Kurosaki's longsword, shattering the barrier of shadows in front of him.
Stop talking about the Future all the time!
Ichigo Kurosaki leaped into the air, his half-black, half-white haori unfurling like wings.
The Reiatsu emanating from the longsword was condensed to its limit, and the entire blade almost transformed into a beam of pure light.
"If the Future is truly predetermined, then what's the point of us crossing the Soul Society to come here!"
"It's just a small embellishment before the curtain falls on the play."
Yhwach's broadsword flew out of his hand and hovered in the void above his head.
The endless golden Holy Reishi transformed into countless sharp Holy Arrows in mid-air, each containing the power to pierce through Captain-level Soul Reaper.
"Heilig Pfeil."
With a flick of Yhwach's finger, a torrential downpour of Holy Arrows swept down from the sky.
Ichigo Kurosaki swung his long sword, transforming it into an impenetrable curtain of Light Screen.
The clanging and shattering sounds continued incessantly.
Although he shattered most of the arrow rain, dozens of light arrows still pierced through his defenses and tore through his armor.
Deep, bone-revealing wounds appeared one after another on his thigh, lower abdomen, and side arm, with dark blood dripping from his armor onto the ruins of the main hall.
Ichigo Kurosaki, then flew backward from the powerful impact.
Yhwach's eyes remained expressionless, not even glancing at the staggering boy who was retreating.
He simply raised his right arm, and the thick black substance in his palm transformed into a jet-black beam of light over ten feet in diameter.
The beam of light tore through the air, carrying the power of laws that could annihilate everything, and slammed straight into the flying Ichigo Kurosaki.
This attack blocked all of the boy's escape routes.
Severely injured and unable to gain any leverage in mid-air, Ichigo Kurosaki's pupils constricted as he raised his sword to block.
Just a fraction of a second before the destructive black light was about to completely engulf the boy.
Two clear and familiar voices suddenly rang out at the edge of the shattered temple ruins.
A pure, orange-yellow hexagonal beam of light appeared out of thin air, transforming into an indestructible, massive barrier that stretched between the dark light and Ichigo.
"Santen Kesshun, Sōten Kisshun. I refuse!"