Death: Then stood in the sky.

Many diners and drinkers around were stunned, sitting there watching Nil inhale violently.

Aoshi's gaze fell on Nel, who was still stuffing herself with food. Her belly wasn't protruding at all; it seemed to have no limits.

But this is actually just because Nel's digestive ability is too strong.

Of course, the main reason is that I need to replenish my spiritual pressure.

In Soul Society, ordinary wandering spirits have very low spiritual pressure and do not have much need for food. They can survive with just a little ordinary food and water.

However, when the spiritual strength is too high, or the spiritual pressure exceeds a certain amount, these wandering souls without cultivation methods need to replenish the loss of spiritual pressure through specially made food containing spiritual particles, otherwise they will starve to death.

This is one of the reasons why many wandering spirits choose to join the Shinigami Academy.

In other words, Nel eats these foods not to fill her stomach, but to absorb the spiritual particles within them to replenish her spiritual pressure.

Completely unaware of what was happening behind the scenes, Kyoraku Shunsui asked curiously, "Is it really okay for your body to drink like this?"

Qing Si shook his head and said easily, "It's just a little drinking, it won't kill me. We've been drinking more than once or twice."

“Your body is really strange.” Kyoraku Shunsui said in a surprised tone, but his expression was actually very calm. “You have the same disease as Jushiro, and you don’t have the protection of ‘that one’, but not only have you lived to this day, you also look healthier than Jushiro.”

His gaze fell upon him. "Seiji, what exactly have you been researching?"

Chapter 103 The Divine Sword Stained with Sin

Kyoraku Shunsui had reason to suspect that Ukitake Seiji had researched something extremely dangerous.

Because he knew Ukitake Jushiro so well; the two had been together for hundreds of years, and he knew the other's body better than the other himself.

What about Fukitake Seisaku?

This guy isn't like Jushiro Ukitake, who has the power of the Soul King.

So how did he manage to survive to this day?

It should be noted that even the Fourth Division Captain Retsu Unohana was helpless against this illness and could only barely manage to treat Seiji Ukitake's body.

And Ukitake Seiji's past and resume...

To be honest, it's pretty ordinary.

This was Kyoraku Shunsui's idea, and it was also the idea of ​​the vast majority of people.

Two points are worth noting: besides the fact that she is suspected of learning swordsmanship from Unohana Retsu, she is also suspected of learning Shunpo and Hakuda from Koshifuin Yoruichi.

However, there has never been any substantial evidence to prove the former.

The latter.

Yoruichi Shifūin regularly trains the Executioners, teaching them techniques like Shunpo and Hakuda. Therefore, in the eyes of the other Shinigami, Seiji Ukitake is no different from the rest of the Executioners.

We've already trained a whole group of people, so it's just a matter of adding one more.

However, Kyoraku Shunsui knew that wasn't the case.

At the very least.

That's not the case with Retsu Unohana, the captain of the Fourth Division.

Kyoraku Shunsui carefully observed Unohana Retsu's attitude; she was so gentle towards Ukitake Seiji that she was almost like a Yamato Nadeshiko, rather than a kendo teacher.

I also witnessed firsthand how Retsu Unohana threatened the 46th Chamber, forcing them to abandon their ruling against Seiji Ukitake.

In addition, there's the daily interaction with Shishiro, the occasional hints he reveals, and the decades-long relationship with Ukitake Seiji.

Countless threads pieced together resulted in an image completely different from the previous one.

He possesses exceptional talent, his swordsmanship is recognized by Retsu Unohana, and he studied Shunpo Shiraito under Yoruichi Shifuin, so his level is probably quite high. Shiba Isshin evaluates him as a genuine captain-level fighter, even he feels pressure from him. His Zanpakuto is of a rare attribute type, similar to that of Yama-no-Toki.

All of these factors combined to create the image of a young Grim Reaper with exceptional talent.

But Seiji Ukitake chose to live an ordinary life.

All of this is actually quite understandable.

Because Ukitake Seiji is just a bit lazy, just like me, which is an excellent quality and worthy of praise.

But these are never the real problems.

It's research.

The former can be summarized as talent, but even if the Soul Society and Seireitei knew these things, they wouldn't go to the trouble of doing anything.

But research is a different story.

That would really mean being sentenced to death by the 46th Chamber.

Just look at Kisuke Urahara and his group; because they developed the power of Hollowfication, they were directly listed as traitors to Soul Society by the 46 Chambers and were to be killed without exception.

Before joining the 12th Division, Nekomamushi was also imprisoned in the Maggot Nest for a long time due to dangerous research.

As for other researchers and scientists who were sealed away or extinct, there are countless examples in the history of Soul Society.

As for Seiji Ukitake, he only took out the [Spiritual Pressure Amplification Drug], and he was immediately targeted by the 46th Chamber and listed as a potential dangerous element.

If it weren't for Retsu Unohana's intervention, Jushiro and I would probably have had no choice but to seek help from the old man on the mountain.

Behind him, a group of guests were talking, seemingly shocked by something, but Kyoraku Shunsui, preoccupied with his own thoughts, paid no attention to them.

Kyoraku Shunsui looked at Ukitake Seiji in front of him.

Kyoraku Shunsui made a decision.

"Although I don't know what you've been researching, your talent truly exceeds my expectations."

Kyoraku Shunsui drank the beverage, a few drops sliding down his chin and down his throat. He said earnestly, "I'd like to ask you for a favor."

"?"

Qing Si looked up. Why were these people asking him for help one after another? Who did they think they were?

Is it a wishing machine?

Or is it the Ukitake Blue Cat?

"You should also know about my past."

Kyoraku Shunsui leaned back, his gaze filled with nostalgia. "I used to be a guy without any goals or ideals, and I didn't get along well with my older brother. We couldn't stand each other. It was the kind of relationship where just seeing the other person would give us a feeling of physical disgust."

Aoshi nodded. That was indeed very serious, probably comparable to the situation of divorced men and women.

"Until later, a woman appeared."

Kyoraku Haruhiko calmly recounted her past, "She married my eldest brother and became my sister-in-law..."

Hearing this, Qing Si couldn't help but interrupt him, "So you've fallen for your sister-in-law?"

Kyoraku Shunsui nearly choked to death, his expression extremely ferocious, clearly indicating that the choking was intense.

but......

"In a sense, you're not wrong."

Kyoraku Shunsui placed his hands on the table, then adjusted his straw hat and said softly, "However, I prefer to call it longing."

He remembers it very clearly.

Back then, I was young and had exceptional talent, but I disliked fighting and spent my days idly.

This greatly displeased my father and many others in the family, who felt they were wasting this talent.

The seeds of conflict were sown.

Later, he was forcibly sent to the Shinigami Academy and became the old man's disciple.

During this time, Kyoraku Shunsui remained lazy and resisted learning the Slash Fist and Ghostly Strike, for which he suffered many beatings from the old man.

But they just won't change; I'll do it again next time.

Until Ise Gyouryo appeared.

“She was completely different from others. She never forced me to do anything. She would gently tell me how to do it, instead of scolding and reprimanding me like my father and older brother did.”

"Sister-in-law, you eased the tension between my brother and me, and he has started to become more understanding."

“From then on, I frequently visited their home, and whenever I had nothing to do, I would stay there to rest.”

"At that time, I thought, if only it could always be like this."

However, things did not go as planned.

Kyoraku Shunsui's voice trembled and became low, "In the Ise family, there is a famous curse that 'men who marry women of the family will die young'."

"My elder brother didn't believe in the existence of such curses, thinking they were just rumors, but his fate soon proved the curse's authenticity."

"He died, right before my eyes."

"Before he died, my elder brother asked me to take good care of my sister-in-law."

"I agree."

"but--"

After a pause, Kyoraku Shunsui said self-deprecatingly, "I didn't do it."

There is a ridiculous rule among the nobility.

That is, women who marry into noble families must not have any contact with their husbands' families after their husbands' death.

As a result, Ise Yuzuri was sent back to the Ise family and could never return to the Kyoraku family.

Kyoraku Shunsui attempted to resist, but all his efforts were in vain in the face of the aristocratic rules.

He broke his promise.

"The Ise family is a female-dominated family. Due to a curse, only girls are born into the family. This is the 'Ise family'."

Kyoraku Shunsui spoke with sarcasm, both to himself and to the nobles: "My sister-in-law married into the Kyoraku family with the resolve to abandon her own clan, wanting to break the curse that plagued the Ise family and change their fate of only giving birth to girls and having their husbands die young."

"But obviously, she failed too."

"After I was sent back to the Ise family, my sister-in-law secretly came to see me once."

Kyoraku Shunsui looked over, then at Ukitake Seiji, who was listening attentively, and slowly said, "She sent me a sword, its name is—"

"Eight Mirrors Sword".

Upon hearing the name, Aoshi paused for a moment, then immediately remembered what it meant.

The Eight-Mirror Sword is a sacred sword passed down through generations of the Shinto family, the Ise. It is ruler-shaped with four mirrors on each side of the blade, and two tassels are attached to the end of the hilt and the guard.

This sword is a bladeless sword that governs rituals. It has no sharpening, so it cannot be used to kill people with its blade. However, when facing a god, it can receive the god's power with its body and swing it in all directions to eliminate any sacred things it touches.

In other words, this is a sword that can slay gods!

"Judging from your expression, you've probably heard of this lost divine sword."

Noticing that no one was looking at them, Kyoraku Shunsui whispered, "This sword is with me now."

Kyoraku Shunsui did not choose to conceal it, because in his eyes, Ukitake Seiji was also someone he could trust.

"The Ise family has worshipped this sword for generations. Its exact origins are unknown, but it is known to possess immense power, and is therefore called the Divine Sword."

"My sister-in-law said these things during that meeting."

Kyoraku Shunsui stared at Ukitake Seiji, repeating his sister-in-law's words from that day, "Indeed, no matter what, the women of Ise cannot escape the fate of the Ise family, nor can they escape the curse of Ise. Perhaps, it is the sins committed by this sword."

"My sister-in-law believes that the source of the Ise curse lies in this sword."

"I have a rough idea of ​​what kind of misfortune that was."

Aoji remained silent.

In fact, he also had some suspicions about the sin that Kyoraku Shunsui mentioned.

The origin of the Eight Mirrors Sword cannot be traced back to its source, but its ability to absorb and reflect divine power, and its special ability to attack gods, all demonstrate that this sword is extraordinary.

In addition, there's the curse on the sword that Ise Yasunari mentioned.

Qing Si speculated that this was very likely the sword of the Dismembered Spirit King.

Because he was stained with the blood of the Spirit King, he was able to launch a special attack against the gods. It was also because he was stained with the sin of dismembering the Spirit King that he received this curse.