Maggot's Nest

Wang Xun followed Kisuke Urahara inside.

As they passed through the crowd, most of the people ignored Kisuke Urahara, simply standing there in a daze, their faces expressionless.

Occasionally, someone heard them and looked over, staring intently at Kisuke Urahara and Wang Xun behind him.

Some wore mocking expressions, while hostility flashed in the eyes of others.

"Wang Xun, be careful."

"Most of these people love fighting. With nothing to do in here, they spend their time either training their bodies or brawling."

"Some of them might attack out of nowhere. Even with their Reiatsu suppressed, a few of them are fairly capable when it comes to Hakuda alone."

Wang Xun had already noticed some people quietly closing in around them.

"This is what you meant by no threat?"

"Well, given your strength, they shouldn't be a threat, right?"

Wang Xun looked around at that and discovered numerous scattered fragments.

As he walked, he absorbed them one after another.

[Obtained Reiryoku fragments ×12, Spiritual Might experience +60]

[Spiritual Might: eighth class (experience: 735/8000)]

[Obtained Hakuda insights ×25, Hakuda experience +125]

[Hakuda: lv4 (experience: 290/5000)]

A thought occurred to him.

"Third Seat Urahara, if they attack you guards in here, will they be punished?"

"Hmm? They will. Their punishment is a thorough beating from us."

"But most of them don't care. They just keep charging at us tirelessly, even when they're covered in wounds."

"I suppose that's how they vent their frustration, too."

Kisuke Urahara's tone was calm.

"After all, the people held in the Maggot's Nest aren't criminals, but potential threats."

"They were only reported and judged to be possible dangers to their comrades. Nothing substantial has actually happened."

"Some just have extreme views, some conducted research they shouldn't have, and others... simply learned things they shouldn't have known."

"Anyone would feel it was unfair."

Kisuke Urahara spoke softly.

Wang Xun understood. Such corrupt, backward old systems could often be found in the nooks and crannies of the Seireitei.

"What's this? From your tone, Third Seat, it sounds like you feel a little sorry for them."

Hearing Wang Xun, Kisuke Urahara laughed.

"Maybe."

Wang Xun thought for a moment. There was a question he was quite curious about.

"Speaking of which, do nobles get locked up here too?"

At Wang Xun's question, Urahara fell silent for a few seconds.

"Wang Xun, let's not ask questions that are bad for unity."

Hearing that, Wang Xun understood perfectly.

Those with power and influence certainly wouldn't end up here. Any nobles who did were probably minor nobles from the bottom of the hierarchy, or discarded pawns exiled after losing a power struggle.

As the two chatted, the people gathering around them were growing restless.

"Hey, Urahara, is this someone you just caught and brought in? He looks pretty young."

A burly man over three meters tall stepped forward, his eyes full of resentment.

"Wang Xun has very upright principles, and he hasn't done anything out of line."

Urahara acted as though he hadn't heard the sarcasm in the man's words.

"I suppose I should introduce him. He... could be considered my partner."

"Huh?"

Someone else sneered.

"I've spent seven years in this damn place, staring at the same rocks and the same faces every day."

"You can just bring an outsider in whenever you feel like it? You think this place is your home? What happened to the Stealth Force's discipline?"

"Kisuke Urahara, you're the one who should be locked up in here!"

The next moment, a fierce gust whipped up.

The towering man suddenly threw a punch without warning.

A long-haired man also struck, viciously kicking at Kisuke Urahara's ankle from behind.

But Kisuke Urahara was faster.

No one even saw him move before the long-haired man who had attacked from behind was sent flying, slamming hard into the stone wall nearby.

Urahara caught the burly man's fist, which was as big as a cooking pot, stopping it from advancing an inch.

The next second, Urahara seized the man by the collar and threw him, sending him rolling heavily across the ground several times.

The air around them froze.

"As the Detention Unit's squad leader, I should have that little bit of authority, I think."

"What? Do you want to try me too?"

The other prisoners stopped moving and watched the scene coldly.

No one stepped forward to help, but no one backed away either. Like a pack of hyenas waiting for a chance to strike, they stared at Kisuke Urahara.

"Cough!"

The long-haired man who had hit the stone wall coughed up a mouthful of blood and struggled to his feet, his eyes full of violence.

The next moment, he looked at Wang Xun, a vicious glint flashing in his eyes.

He charged again, but this time his target was no longer Kisuke Urahara. It was the white-haired kid behind him, who still looked quite young.

Wang Xun watched him and suddenly smiled.

"Third Seat Urahara."

He spoke in a low voice, his words especially clear in the vast space.

"If I fight back while being attacked, I assume that doesn't violate any rules?"

Urahara turned his head to look at him, a trace of interest flashing in his eyes.

"Of course. It's just self-defense."

The next moment, the long-haired man rushed up to Wang Xun and struck from an extremely tricky angle, trying to seize him.

But Wang Xun gave him no such chance.

Just as the long-haired man was about to grab him, Wang Xun abruptly raised his hand and caught the man's wrist.

With a pull and a twist, a sharp crack came from the man's arm as his wrist was forcibly dislocated.

While the man was stumbling from the pull, Wang Xun drove a flying knee hard into his abdomen, striking with enough force to lift him off the ground for an instant.

Then Wang Xun grabbed him by the collar and threw him away.

The long-haired man landed some distance away, clutching his wrist and convulsing, unable to get back up.

Wang Xun silently absorbed a few fragments.

[Obtained advanced Hakuda insights ×2, Hakuda experience +200]

[Obtained Hakuda insights ×5, Hakuda experience +25]

Kisuke Urahara clapped softly at the sight.

"Wow, Wang Xun, you really don't hold back at all. But please be a little careful. Don't kill anyone."

"Don't worry."

He stepped forward, sweeping his gaze over the hostile faces around him.

"Well?" he asked casually. "Anyone else want to practice with me?"

A brief silence fell over the crowd.

"Brat, you're asking for death."

The burly man Urahara had thrown got to his feet, spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, and grinned viciously.

Several more people stepped out of the crowd and stared coldly at Wang Xun, their gazes icy.

Behind them, more people were itching to make a move.

Seeing this, Kisuke Urahara folded his arms and stepped back a few paces.

"Since you're so interested, Wang Xun, I won't interrupt. I'll go fetch something first."

"When you're done here, remember to wait for me."

"Hey, keep an eye on things. Don't let them get too out of hand."

After instructing the guards hidden in the shadows, Kisuke Urahara turned and headed toward a small door deeper inside the cavern.

That guy should be about finished reading his research plan by now, I suppose.