Death God: Starting from Refining Essence into Qi

The wasteland of North Rukongai trembled slightly with the footsteps of the Quincy army. The leaden clouds hung low, shrouding the entire world in a somber shadow. The Black Ridge Gate, like a sleeping black beast, stretched between the wasteland and Seireitei, its five-zhang-high stone wall gleaming with a cold, bluish-gray luster.

Outside the wall, tens of thousands of Quincy, dressed in uniform white military uniforms, stood in neat rows in front of the Black Ridge Gate. The spirit bows in their hands gleamed with a cold light. There was not a sound, only the rustling of the wind through the hems of their uniforms and the heavy breathing of their soldiers, which together created a suffocating sense of oppression.

Yhwach reined in his horse, and it came to a stop ten paces from the Black Ridge Gate. He raised his head, his gaze calmly sweeping over the wall before him. Behind him, four members of his personal guard stood side by side, their eyes sharp as knives beneath their pure white military caps.

Nikita Deslock raised her hand, forming a pistol, and fired a bullet at the Spirit Barrier. The blue spiritual bullet struck the Spirit Barrier, creating only a faint ripple before disappearing without a trace.

"Conventional spiritual particle attacks cannot penetrate it."

Upon hearing this, Algraa Lalau looked at Yhwach at the front and, seeing that he made no move, dismounted.

He was tall and robust, with broad shoulders and a strong physique. He walked to the black-edged gate, placed his hand on the cold, murderous stone wall, and felt the weight and hardness emanating from it.

Algra Ralau unleashed a torrent of spiritual pressure. He had activated his Bloodlust Armor, and spiritual energy surged through his arteries, coursing through his entire body. As his muscles tensed, veins writhed beneath his skin like earthworms. He lowered his stance, pressing his hands into the ground, creating craters. Then, he gripped the gap between the Black Prism Gate and the ground, his muscles tensing instantly as he let out a deafening roar.

"drink--!"

The earth cracked slightly beneath his feet, and the Black Prism Gate was indeed slowly lifted a crack. Veins bulged on Algraa Lalau's forehead, sweat trickled down his face, dripping onto the ground. His arms trembled slightly; every inch he lifted higher came at a great cost.

However, when the black-rimmed door was lifted to waist height, his movements suddenly stopped. No matter how hard he tried, the black-rimmed door remained motionless, as if a thousand-pound weight was pressing down on it.

Killing stones are characterized by their ability to completely block spiritual particles and weaken the spiritual power of those who come into contact with them. Therefore, they are often made into handcuffs to imprison prisoners of intermediate to high spiritual power.

The prolonged exertion had greatly depleted Algraa Lalau's spiritual energy, causing the muscles in his arms to twitch uncontrollably, and his blood vessels to be on the verge of bursting.

"Enough, Argra." Yhwach's voice came calmly, without a trace of emotion.

Algra Ralau slowly released his hands, and the black prism door crashed back into place with a loud bang, sending dust flying. He stepped aside, his chest heaving, his eyes filled with frustration and resentment.

Yhwach dismounted, extended his right hand, and pressed his palm down on the ground.

In an instant, centered on his palm, the spiritual particles on the ground began to surge wildly. Countless blue spiritual particle points emerged from the soil, as if drawn by an invisible force, converging, rotating, and reforming beneath the black prism gate. In the blink of an eye, a giant bow composed of pure spiritual particles took shape on the ground, its bow taut, its bowstring full as a full moon, its back firmly pressed against the bottom of the black prism gate.

Yhwach gently raised his finger.

"Buzz—"

The giant bow emitted a deep hum, and the bowstring snapped open. A tremendous force traveled down the bow's back to the black-rimmed gate, which even Algraa Lalau couldn't budge, was easily lifted as if it were a toy. The gap between the bottom of the gate and the ground widened, from a foot to a foot, and finally to over two feet high, enough for anyone to easily pass through.

The entire process was devoid of any earth-shattering noises, only the subtle hum of flowing spiritual energy and the friction of the slowly rising Black Prism Gate. A unified cheer erupted from the Quincy army, its sound resounding through the heavens, filled with fervent worship and faith in their emperor.

Inside the Black Ridge Gate, the Grim Reapers guarding the gate were already stunned by this sudden turn of events. They had originally thought that with the sturdiness of the Black Ridge Gate and the protection of the Soul-Sealing Membrane, they could hold out for at least several days, but they never expected that the other side would open the gate so easily.

Before the Grim Reapers could recover from their shock, Yhwach had already extended his right hand forward.

"shooting."

As the cold command fell, the thousands of Quincy in the front row simultaneously raised their spirit bows and drew them taut. Countless blue spirit arrows rained down like a storm, slicing through the air with sharp whistling sounds as they shot towards the Grim Reapers inside the gate.

The Spirit Arrows were too fast, so fast that most Shinigami didn't even have time to draw their swords. Screams rose and fell, and blood instantly stained the stone pavement of Seireitei. The Shinigami in the front rows fell like wheat being harvested, the Spirit Arrows piercing their bodies and pinning them to the ground behind them, their blood slowly flowing down their bodies and forming dark red streams on the ground.

A few quick-reacting Death Gods hastily drew their swords to parry, but the density of the spirit arrows was too great. They could only barely protect their vitals, and were still struck by multiple spirit arrows, falling into pools of blood. In just a short while, the thousands of Death Gods guarding the Black Ridge Gate had suffered heavy casualties, with only a few hundred remaining, hiding behind the corpses of their comrades or behind cover.

"go ahead."

Yhwach's voice rang out once more, and the Quincy army surged into the Black Ridge Gate like a white tide. Their steps were synchronized, their formation perfectly intact. The Quincy in the rear continued to suppress the remaining Shinigami with their spirit bows, while the Quincy in the front drew their rapiers and plunged them into the corpses of Shinigami along the way, clearing out any that had feigned death.

Just then, beams of golden light suddenly shone from the direction of Seireitei. Hundreds of Kido followers, led by Kiyomi Ise, arrived, raising their hands simultaneously and chanting rapidly.

"Binding Spell Number Thirty-Nine: Round Gate!"

Hundreds of golden, fan-shaped shields unfolded simultaneously, layer upon layer, blocking the Quincy's spirit arrows. The arrows struck the shields with crisp clanging sounds, sparking golden fire, but they could not penetrate the shields' defenses. The remaining Shinigami seized the opportunity to retreat, hiding behind the shields, panting heavily, their faces filled with the relief of surviving a calamity.

Kiyomi Ise stood in the center of the Kido army, her plain white robes fluttering in the wind, her long hair tied up with a wooden hairpin, revealing her smooth forehead. Her expression was aloof, her eyes calmly watching the Quincy army that was steadily approaching.

Xuan stood beside her, two Zanpakuto slung across his waist, his white daiki-doji haori fluttering in the wind.

Gen and Kiyoko Ise only directed the Kido followers to use the [Round Gate Fan] for defense; they did not personally use higher-level Kido techniques, such as [Danku], for defense.

While higher-level Kido offers superior defense, its wide-range release consumes a significant amount of spiritual energy. Saving that energy and converting it into Destruction Techniques for killing enemies would reduce the number of Shinigami casualties far more than saving a few Shinigami with Sky Piercing Techniques. In this war concerning the survival of Seireitei, every ounce of spiritual energy must be used wisely.

After the Quincy's first wave of arrows was blocked, they immediately adjusted their tactics.

Instead of firing indiscriminately, they split into groups of three. One group used spirit bows to suppress the shields, while the other two groups flanked the demons from both sides, attempting to attack from the flanks.

"Left, [Red Fire Cannon]!" Kiyoko Ise's voice was clear and firm as she swiftly issued the command.

Thirty Kido members simultaneously turned to the left flank, raising their hands to unleash Crimson Fireballs at the Quincy who were flanking them. The blazing fireballs roared out, exploding within the Quincy formation, engulfing several Quincy in flames, their screams echoing through the air.

"Right, [Binding Spell #30: Mouth Thrust Triple Flash]!"

Golden beams of light shot out like snake fangs, pinning a dozen Quincy at the forefront to the spot. The Shinigami at the front seized the opportunity to rush forward and slashed them down.

However, the Quincy were simply too numerous. Despite the Kido sect's Kido causing them considerable casualties, they still flooded into Seireitei like a tidal wave.

"Charge in for close combat! Don't let them create distance!"

At a command, the Shinigami charged towards the Quincy with shouts. They knew they had to close the distance for melee combat, or they would be worn down by the Quincy's spirit arrows. The number of Kido followers was no match for the rain of spirit arrows from tens of thousands of Quincy; the Shinigami had to close the distance and enter their most proficient territory.

In the instant the weapons clashed, the sounds of battle on the battlefield suddenly intensified. The crisp clash of swords, the booming of exploding spirit particles, and the screams of the dying intertwined, composing a tragic war epic.

The Quincy displayed a level of combat skill far exceeding that of the Shinigami, and their teamwork was impeccable.

A few elite Quincy even materialized spirit particle weapons, unleashing a dense barrage of spirit particle bullets that felled hordes of Deaths in their wake. This novel weapon caught the Deaths completely off guard; they had never seen such rapid and concentrated ranged attacks, and were unable to mount an effective defense for a time.

The demons no longer defended against the spirit arrows, but focused on defending the Shinigami's side against the incoming spirit bullets.

The Grim Reapers are accustomed to fighting alone or in small teams, emphasizing individual skill. They are extremely ill-suited to the tightly coordinated large-scale tactics of the Quincy.

Often, a Shinigami will be struck by a spirit arrow shot from the side or be attacked by two other Quincy together as soon as he has just cut down a Quincy.

The tide of battle was gradually turning in favor of the Quincy. The Grim Reapers suffered heavy casualties, their bodies piling up like mountains, their blood staining the cobblestones crimson. Yet, not a single Grim Reaper retreated.

They knew that Seireitei lay behind them, their homeland they had to protect. If they retreated, the Quincy would advance unimpeded, and the entire Seireitei would be reduced to scorched earth.

More importantly, long-range combat is more advantageous for the Quincy. To survive, retreat is absolutely out of the question; the only option is to close the distance and engage the Quincy in melee combat. Only close-quarters fighting will force the Quincy in the rear to cease their ranged suppression fire for fear of friendly fire, allowing the Shinigami to rely on their years of honed swordsmanship to fight back.

A young Shinigami was struck in the chest by three spirit arrows simultaneously, yet he still mustered his last bit of strength to plunge his Zanpakuto into the abdomen of a Quincy. In his dying moments, he saw a Kido member shield his teammates from a hail of spirit bullets with his own body, leaving him riddled with holes. Not far away, a Shinigami was being attacked by five Quincy, his body covered in wounds, yet he continued to fight on, refusing to fall.

At this moment, behind the Shinigami ranks, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni, dressed in a white Captain-Commander haori, wielding Ryujin Jakka, his eyes sharp as an eagle, stared intently in Yhwach's direction. His spiritual pressure blazed like a raging fire, yet he did not immediately attack. The other captains stood beside him, their expressions grave as they observed the battlefield, analyzing the Quincy's strength and fighting style.

Saito, seemingly immortal, gripped the Purple Lightning sword at her waist, her eyes gleaming with a warlike light, eager to charge forward. Xuan pressed down on her shoulder, shaking his head slightly, signaling her to calm down.

Xuan's gaze never left the Quincy formation. He carefully observed the Quincy's attack methods and abilities, his brows gradually furrowing.

He discovered that while these Quincy were formidable fighters with excellent teamwork, they all used only the most basic spirit bows and rapiers, and none of them displayed any special abilities. The exaggerated holy script abilities that involved the very rules of the universe, as well as the even more powerful perfect holy bodies, were nowhere to be seen.

Moreover, apart from the four members of the Royal Guard, none of the other members of the Sternritter appeared. At least, Xuan was certain that he did not see Yugran Hasward and Bazzby in the crowd.

Genji knew that the Sternritter was created by Yhwach specifically for the attack on Soul Society. This legion was the core fighting force of the Quincy, and every member a thousand years later possessed captain-level strength. If Yhwach truly wanted to conquer Seireitei in one fell swoop, he would inevitably send out this trump card force.

A bold conjecture gradually took shape in Xuan's mind.

Yhwach never intended to go all out in this attack. He was prepared for defeat from the start; it was all a carefully planned feigned death.

Xuan's mind raced through various clues from the past. The rebellion of the Ryudoji family was likely a test by the Quincy against the Soul Society's defenses; the Quincy had amassed a large army in the human world, but had not caused much damage; their choice to send messengers to issue a challenge in advance and attack from the Black Prism Gate seemed to be a deliberate attempt to make the battlefield public.

All of this points to the same conclusion.

Yhwach wants to abandon the mortal world and carry out a tactical relocation. His presence in the mortal world is too obvious, and his every move is under the surveillance of Hyosube Ichibei, making it difficult for him to grow in power and strength and achieve glory again (by finding a way to restore his sealed omniscience and omnipotence).

Therefore, he planned to deliberately lose in this massive war, fake his death to escape, and lead the remaining Quincy to infiltrate the Soul Society.

In this way, he could not only get rid of Hyosube Ichibei's surveillance, but also deplete the potential young Shinigami of Soul Society during the war.

Thinking of this, Xuan's tense nerves relaxed a little.

Although this war will still cause huge casualties, at least it won't be a full-scale attack by the Quincy. At the very least, this war should end in the Quincy's defeat, just like in the original story.

Gen knew this was just the beginning. If Yhwach's feigned death succeeded, the Wandenreich would quietly grow stronger in the shadow of Soul Society. A second blood war would erupt a thousand years later, but that was too far off and irrelevant to the present.

Xuan only needs to get through this war safely; he doesn't need to think too much.

The fighting on the battlefield continued, a cacophony of blood and flame, death and courage. At the breach in the Black Ridge Gate, Quincy continued to pour in, while the Grim Reapers used their flesh and blood to build a new line of defense.

As the sun set, it dyed the entire battlefield blood red. The corpses of Grim Reapers and Quincy lay intertwined, and blood flowed through the cracks in the stone pavement.

Corpses piled up like hills, and blood flowed like rivers.