Bitter cold

Orihime Inoue's breathing became increasingly rapid.

Her hands were clasped together in front of her chest, her fingertips trembling slightly.

Each time she activated the Sōten Kisshun to ward off Ichigo Kurosaki's injuries, she was frantically draining the spiritual energy reserves within her body.

The once solid and solid orange-yellow light shield began to ripple irregularly at its edges.

At the top of the throne steps, Yhwach lowered his eyes slightly.

The eyes that wandered in the black liquid all locked onto the pale-faced girl.

"I see."

Yhwach said calmly, "Maintaining this divine ability to reverse cause and effect seems to be too heavy a burden for the souls of mortals."

Ichigo Kurosaki noticed the strange gaze, his expression changed slightly, and he immediately held his sword horizontally in front of him on the stone steps.

"Yhwach, your opponent is me!"

Ichigo Kurosaki pointed his long sword straight up the steps, and his black and white Reiatsu rose once more.

Yhwach's expression remained unchanged; he didn't even glance at Ichigo Kurosaki.

"Since we can't cut off those who wield the shield, let's eliminate the source first."

Yhwach raised one hand, and three golden arrows of light quickly condensed from the black liquid in his palm.

The three arrows were not aimed at Ichigo Kurosaki, but instead passed over the boy's shoulder and pointed directly at Orihime Inoue below.

"Call out--"

The moment the arrow left the hand, a piercing sound tore through the air, filling the entire hall.

"Stop!"

Ichigo Kurosaki's pupils contracted, and the white stone slab beneath his feet shattered into powder on the spot.

He transformed into a straight black bolt of lightning, flying backward to intercept the attack without regard for anything else.

The short sword in his left hand drew a crescent arc in the void, its blade colliding with the first beam of light.

With a deafening roar, the impact of the exploding light arrow made his wrist go numb.

Ichigo Kurosaki twisted his arm to the side, and with a swift motion, his black greatsword slashed horizontally, forcefully slicing the second arrow to pieces.

However, the third arrow grazed the back of his blade and headed straight for Orihime Inoue's throat.

Orihime Inoue stood still, her hands quickly forming hand seals and pushing them towards her chest.

"I refuse to Santen Kesshun!"

An orange-yellow triangular shield of light rose up in an instant.

The beam of light struck the core of the shield.

With a crisp crack, countless cracks instantly appeared on the surface of the sturdy shield.

The violent recoil force surged back into her body through her Spirit Veins, causing Orihime Inoue's body to tremble violently. She spat out a mouthful of blood and staggered backward.

Ichigo Kurosaki's eyes instantly became bloodshot.

It felt as if raging magma was churning inside my chest.

Yhwach!

Ichigo Kurosaki completely abandoned all defensive stances.

A burst of black light erupted from the white bone horn on his left forehead, and he hurtled towards the high platform like an out-of-control meteor.

He raised his longsword high, pouring all the Hollow power and the Soul Reaper power within him into the blade without reservation.

"Getsuga Tenshō!"

Dozens of enormous black blade-like beams stretched out in a continuous line, completely enveloping the Obsidian staircase.

The floor of the main hall was plowed with furrows several meters deep by this frenzied slashing.

Yhwach still held his sword in one hand, calmly taking half a step back.

The broadsword pierced through the void with precision, each strike sending up dazzling sparks.

With each tremor of the sword, a crescent moon was deflected and shattered.

"A sword wielded in a fit of rage is nothing more than the lament of a beast."

Yhwach swung his sword down with a backhand motion, the blade firmly blocking the massive blade that Ichigo Kurosaki was about to strike.

Ichigo Kurosaki didn't care about the long sword being blocked; he threw the short sword in his left hand, aiming straight for Yhwach's eyes.

At the same time, a ball of light, interwoven with pitch black and deep red, instantly condensed from the single horn on his head.

"Gran Rey Cero!"

The beam of light, released at point-blank range, erupted forth with a deafening roar, completely engulfing the two people's vision.

The intense heat completely melted the rubble of the entire temple ruins.

The black fluid surrounding Yhwach rapidly gathered in front of his face, transforming into a thick black barrier.

The short knife pierced the barrier half an inch before being firmly stuck by the black mud.

The destructive beam of the Cero struck the black wall, emitting a sizzling sound of dissolving, yet it could not penetrate even a fraction of the surface.

Amidst the smoke and dust, Ichigo Kurosaki stepped forward, his right fist imbued with his entire Reiatsu, and slammed directly into the weakest point of the black barrier.

Yhwach's left hand transformed into a palm, emerging from the black mud and firmly enveloping Ichigo Kurosaki's fist.

Two immense forces collided in the palm of his hand, shattering the surrounding space inch by inch.

Your anger won't save anyone.

Yhwach suddenly exerted force in his palm, his five fingers tightening like iron clamps.

The crisp sound of finger bones shattering rang out, Ichigo Kurosaki frowned, letting out a muffled groan.

He didn't retreat; his right leg swept across the ground like a steel whip, aiming straight for Yhwach's lower body.

Yhwach stomped his right foot on the ground, and a vast Holy Spiritual Power surged forth from beneath his feet, transforming into tangible ripples that swept across the entire arena.

Ichigo Kurosaki's sweeping leg was forcefully knocked away by the impact.

The broadsword slashed horizontally through the smoke and dust, its blade cutting open Ichigo Kurosaki's chest.

The armor shattered into pieces, and a cloud of blood exploded in mid-air.

Ichigo Kurosaki flying backward, tumbling dozens of times on the dilapidated stone steps before crashing heavily into the edge of a collapsed stone beam.

Kurosaki-kun!

In the distance, Orihime Inoue, clutching her bleeding chest, stumbled forward, trying to offer her support.

Yhwach didn't even glance back at Ichigo Kurosaki.

With a casual flick of his wrist, several black, fluid spears shot straight toward Orihime Inoue like soul-reaping chains.

Orihime Inoue bit her bloodless lower lip and once again mobilized the last of her spiritual power.

"Santen Kesshun!"

The light shield had barely opened when it was pierced through by the first spear.

Two more black spears grazed her shoulder blades and side abdomen, sending the girl flying several meters away.

Orihime Inoue lay in a pool of blood, her white dress stained with mud, and the hairpin in her hand completely dimmed.

She struggled to raise her hand, but it hung limply in the rubble.

"Inoue!!"

Ichigo Kurosaki struggled to sit up.

Several bones in his ribcage were broken, and each exertion pulled at the chapped flesh.

The Soul Reaper power and Hollow power within his body began to violently disrupt themselves, and even tiny cracks appeared on the pure white curved horn on his left forehead.

Yhwach stepped down the steps, the black swamp beneath his feet spreading outwards.

He looked down at the boy lying on the ground, his eyes filled with unwavering indifference.

"I already told you, Ichigo."

Yhwach's sword tip touched the ground, his voice echoing in the deathly silent hall.

"The struggles of mortals are meaningless before a predetermined end."

"The companions you cherish, the strength you rely on, are nothing but a candle flickering in the wind."

"It's over."

Yhwach slowly raised the broadsword in his hand, and pure white Holy Spiritual Power gathered at the tip of the sword into a destructive sphere of light.

This attack was enough to completely obliterate Ichigo Kurosaki along with the temple below.

Ichigo Kurosaki bit his lower lip until it bled, his palms digging into the rubble on the ground, trying to reconstruct the initial form of Zangetsu.

But his broken meridians were completely unable to respond to his will, and he had exhausted even the strength to turn over.

An atmosphere of despair hung over the dilapidated hall.

Just as the broadsword was about to strike, an extremely cold aura suddenly erupted from the side of the hall.

Crystal-clear snowflakes seemed to materialize out of thin air, swirling and dancing in the cold wind and frost within the hall.

The once scorching hot ground of the ruins was instantly covered with a thick layer of white frost.

A clear, cold, yet familiar voice tore through the stagnant air.

"Dance, Sode no Shirayuki!"

A pure white blade of light, carrying a shower of icy blossoms, pierced through the air and struck the side of Yhwach's descending sword.

Extreme cold spread along the weapon, freezing the gleam on the broadsword's surface into a sheet of crystalline ice.

A petite yet resolute figure emerged from the shadows of the ruins, stepping through the wind and snow, and landed steadily in front of Ichigo Kurosaki.

Rukia Kuchiki held a flawless white Zanpakuto, her short black hair fluttering slightly in the cold wind, her delicate face filled with a chilling expression.