Somewhere in the Forest of Menos.
The billowing dust and tree debris were dispersed by the Second Espada guards outside the door, rolling like waves towards both sides of the tree, stretching for who knows how many kilometers in the darkness.
Szayelaporro gazed into the distance, her right hand twirling a pink strand of hair around her temple, her posture alluring, her voice hoarse yet captivating, " Ggio is dead. I never imagined Nelliel still possessed that level of power. Now that she's left the Forest of Menos, she must be heading back to gather the other Espada."
"This is really a headache," it said, loosening its fingers from the tangled hair around its temples, and turning its head to ask, "What should I do?"
"Why do you ask when you already know the answer?" An old man with white hair emerged from the tree hollow.
Although he was an old man, he did not have the weakness of an ordinary old man. His robust physique commanded respect. He wore a white crown on his head, and his face had a distinctly Western look, with white eyebrows Whitebeard.
A scar keeps his right eye permanently closed, while his left eye, when open, is as sharp as a knife; this is the Second Espada Baraggan.
"Hehe, I was just asking for your opinion. Since you guessed what I was thinking, then I'll say it."
Szayelaporro crossed his arms, his golden eyes narrowing, and said, "You should return to Las Noches first, lest you give Nelliel an excuse to lead the other Espada to the Forest of Menos."
"Why go through all this trouble?" one of the bird officers said, expressing his incomprehension.
"Heh," Szayelaporro chuckled, completely disdainful of answering such a foolish question, and continued, "Let's not go through the original entrance, but create another path, is that alright?"
"Hmm," Baraggan replied haughtily, his eyes darting into the tree hollow, "What should we do with that guy?"
"I'll implant the Reiatsu Recording Bug in him and send him to Soul Society. Anyway, you and I will both witness the fusion process, so there's no need for him to stay and provide guidance."
Szayelaporro then described his proposed solution.
Baraggan agreed, and said, "Let's go."
"Yes, Your Majesty," the four subordinate officials echoed.
Szayelaporro turned and walked back into the tree hollow, closing the door behind him to shield himself from the dust and tree debris.
It prefers cleanliness and won't let dirty things into its laboratory.
The interior of this large tree has been hollowed out, making it very spacious, with lights hanging in all four corners to ensure ample lighting.
In front of some metal instruments, there was a huge embryo, its exterior blood-red, and upon closer inspection, one could see dense blood vessels covering its surface.
Thump, thump, the embryo made a heart-like beating sound.
Szayelaporro's eyes gleamed with intense curiosity as he stroked the surface of the embryo. His mind drifted back to that day when he had originally intended to use the Shinigami had strayed into Hueco Mundo as research material.
To everyone's surprise, the other party proposed an experiment that greatly interested it: fusing Shinigami with a Hollow to achieve Hollowfication.
It was curious and was invited to participate, on the condition that it help capture a Hollow-Eater.
It's an extremely rare type of Hollow; the only known Hollow-Eater so far is the Ninth Espada, Aaroniero.
To track down and capture that guy, Szayelaporro's current strength is still somewhat lacking; he can only ask Second Espada Baraggan for help.
The fact that he harbors Second Espada motives is obvious to everyone.
Everyone understands that Baraggan has always longed for greater power to reclaim his rightful throne.
But everyone knows that this is impossible.
Aizen's ability to become the Hollow King was not solely due to his Kyōka Suigetsu power or the civilization he brought to Hueco Mundo.
Rather, it is a powerful strength that Espada cannot match.
If Baraggan continues down the normal path, he will never surpass Aizen; he must find another shortcut.
This experiment presents a great opportunity.
They are familiar with devouring their own kind, and they can also merge with their own kind to acquire their abilities—this is something beyond their comprehension.
If one could obtain this ability, surpassing Aizen through continuous fusion would not be impossible.
The prerequisite is that Genjirō can successfully fuse with Aaroniero.
If you fail, all your efforts will be in vain.
Szayelaporro felt regretful that he couldn't witness the experimental results firsthand, but there was nothing he could do about it.
The Aizen it sees isn't adored by the idol aura of Nelliel or Tier Harribel; it's full of realistic—or rather, overly arrogant—ideas.
No one can fathom what Aizen is thinking. He always presents a different image to different people, disguising himself to the point of being almost godlike.
To be honest, Szayelaporro was somewhat afraid of Aizen, and the thought that his actions being discovered might provoke Aizen's killing intent.
That fear even overwhelmed the pursuit of truth.
"Sigh," it sighed, withdrew its hand from the embryo, snapped its fingers, and a dark crack appeared in the space beside it.
With a loud bang, the crack opened, its outer edge nearly oval, looking just like a clam opening.
Szayelaporro used one hand to grip the embryo, forcefully pulling it up from the ground and driving it into the Garganta.
"Beep! Beep!"
An alarm sounded in the Spirit Wave Observation Room, which had been monitoring the Dangai. Rin Tsubokura, who was in charge there, frantically typed on her keyboard, saying, " Menos Grande's Reiatsu detected! Location: North Rukongai, Ward 36, West..."
Sōya Azashiro didn't listen to the exact coordinates. He was awakened by the sharp sound, his consciousness returning from the darkness, and a sharp pain surged in his head.
His Bankai fusion ability has a major drawback: if the fused object is destroyed, he himself will suffer corresponding damage.
It wouldn't matter in Seireitei, since this place is big enough that such damage wouldn't cause any serious injuries.
The Forest of Menos wouldn't work; it didn't have enough time to fuse together a sufficient space to accommodate that destruction.
This resulted in the entire space he merged with being destroyed by the impact, and his consciousness was forcibly excluded.
The damage was transmitted back to his body, causing him a concussion-like injury.
However, he didn't care about such a minor injury; his mind was filled with doubt: was his Menos Grande, dead?
He should be dead.
With Shiraishi delivering the finishing blow, there's no reason he'd survive.
He breathed a slight sigh of relief and asked, "How long was I unconscious?"
Urozakuro popped up from the side, leaned on his shoulder and said, "In terms of World of the Living time, it's about one minute and thirty seconds."
"What a disgrace. You said you wanted to purify Hueco Mundo, but you were driven back by a Menos Grande. No wonder Aizen didn't care about your actions."
She began mocking her master again, seemingly enjoying seeing his angry expression.
Sōya Azashiro pursed his lips and said, "This time it was my carelessness. Next time, I should integrate a more spacious space and fight against Menos Grande Realm expert."
"I told you, I'd keep you in Seireitei. That way, none of this would have happened."
Urozakuro brought up this idea again.
"Shut up." Sōya Azashiro rejected her suggestion, closing his eyes and saying, "I need to concentrate now, on getting back to Hueco Mundo."
"Aren't we going to deal with the Menos Grande that have suddenly appeared here?"
"The other Shinigami will handle it."