Death God: Starting from Refining Essence into Qi

On the surface of the dark golden arm armor that Zhen Yuan had transformed into, black and purple energy patterns flowed wildly, undulating and pulsating as if they were alive. The free-floating spiritual particles in the surrounding air were being drawn away by it with terrifying efficiency.

【Binding Spell #73: Mountain-Turning Crystal】

As spiritual energy was poured in, a massive white, inverted quadrangular crystal appeared out of thin air before Xuan. The crystal's surface gleamed with a warm luster, and its interior flowed with intricate spiritual particle patterns, like the most solid natural crystal, completely enveloping Xuan's figure. Almost at the same instant the inverted crystal took shape, Xuan's right hand thrust forward again, his voice steady yet urgent.

【Binding Spell No. 81: Severing the Void】

A completely transparent wall of air unfolded against the inner wall of the Mountain-Reversing Crystal, its thick and solid spiritual pressure spreading out as if it were a tangible substance. This was the highest-level defensive ghost technique that Xuan had mastered, enough to withstand a full-force attack from anyone below the captain level. The two defenses overlapped, forming a seemingly indestructible barrier in front of him.

Even after Xuan finished all this, he remained vigilant and continued to channel his spiritual energy into his veins.

Blood Stasis Armor.

Pale black lines spread out from his neck like vines. From his neck to his fingertips, from his chest to his ankles, the fine lines crisscrossed, appearing and disappearing beneath the white haori of the great demon priest.

This was an ability that Gen had never displayed in public, and even Saito and Senji were unaware of it. In stark contrast to the Quincy's signature blue spiritual patterns, Gen's Bloodstained Armor was a deep, ink-like pale black, consistent with the black pure energy within his body.

A trace of worry flashed through Xuan's mind. The Bloodstained Armor was a unique ability of Quincy, and once it was recognized, it would inevitably bring endless trouble.

Whether this will attract Yhwach's attention is another matter, but the higher-ups in Soul Society, especially the Tsunayoshiro family who place great importance on the Soul King, will undoubtedly try every means to capture Gen alive. For example, they might convict him of being a traitor who surrendered to the Quincy, imprison him, and then conduct experiments and dissections. Gen has never overestimated the five great noble families that have existed in Soul Society for ten thousand years, especially the Tsunayoshiro family, who dismembered the Soul King.

But with the shadow of death looming close, Xuan could no longer afford to consider these potential risks, nor could he hesitate for even a moment. Those risks were secondary; he had acquired the Blood Stasis Armor precisely so that it might come in handy someday.

Just as the Bloodstained Armor completely covered her body, the fatal bullet struck the Mountain-Shattering Crystal.

"Click—"

The crisp cracking sound, like shattering glass, was particularly jarring amidst the chaos of the battlefield. The Mountain-Shattering Crystal had completely disintegrated. Countless white crystal fragments scattered like snowflakes.

The bullet that followed did not stop at all and struck the broken air directly.

The barrier emitted a groan of unbearable strain, and its once smooth surface caved inward with a noticeable curve. The bullet's tip had pierced the barrier's interior, and the spinning spiritual particles were frantically tearing at the barrier's spiritual structure. A thin crack began to spread from the bullet's point of contact, rapidly expanding across the surface like a snake.

Xuan Neng could clearly feel the spiritual particle patterns inside the Broken Void rapidly collapsing. The power of this bullet far exceeded his expectations; even the Broken Void, amplified by Zhen Yuan, could only barely stop it for a moment.

"Click—"

Another crisp sound.

The bullet pierced through the barrier, whistling as it tore through the air, heading straight for Xuan's chest.

At the critical moment, the pale black patterns on the Bloodstained Armor suddenly lit up.

The bullet slammed into Xuan's chest, the immense impact like a hammer blow, sending him flying backward.

The Death Armor of today does not yet possess the defensive capabilities of later generations. At this moment, Xuan's Death Armor has been pierced, and the spiritual energy bullet is spinning rapidly in Xuan's chest, rubbing sharply against the Bloodstained Armor, dissipating its speed and force.

The bullet ultimately stopped at the surface of Xuan's skin, failing to penetrate his spirit body. However, the overwhelming force of the impact still penetrated through the Blood-Silent Armor and entered his body, causing his internal organs to churn violently. A metallic, sweet taste rose in his throat, and Xuan gritted his teeth, forcibly swallowing back the blood that welled up in his mouth. His face was slightly pale, but apart from that, there were no visible signs of injury.

Xuan staggered to the ground, his feet leaving two deep marks on the blood-stained stone pavement before he regained his balance. He then looked warily in the direction from which the bullets had come.

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From the top of the three-story building in the distance, Nikita Deslock saw this scene clearly through her scope.

Those two shots had exhausted the high-density spiritual energy she had condensed for a minute, and the sniper rifle barrel was hot from firing two shots in quick succession.

Nikita Deslock remained expressionless, but a hint of seriousness flashed in her deep black eyes.

Because of the sniper's high vantage point, the fastest way to dodge is backward. Therefore, Nikita Deslock pre-aimed and slightly raised the muzzle of her second shot.

Even if a Death God of ordinary fourth-level spiritual power dodged the first bullet with all his might, it would be impossible for him to survive her armor-piercing sniper bullet.

really.

The great ghost Taoist priest who had previously only displayed fourth-level spiritual power had been hiding his true strength; he was a genuine captain-level fighter.

All his previous performances were a facade. That Kido that covered tens of thousands of square meters and killed thousands of Quincy in one strike was not an extraordinary display of power, but rather the tip of the iceberg of his true strength.

Nikita Deslock stopped paying attention to Xuan, her sniper rifle dissipated into spiritual particles, and she used her Flying Kick to quickly move towards Yhwach's location.

The test is complete.

This Shinigami, skilled in using Kido (demon arts), possesses the ability to provide ranged defensive support and wide-area attacks for other combatants, posing a significant threat to this battle. In her mind, she raised Gen's threat level to surpass that of most Gotei 13 captains.

The most important thing now is to report this intelligence to His Majesty Yhwach. Even if His Majesty Yhwach doesn't need this intelligence, victory is assured.

Nikita Deslock thought so.

Just as Nikita Deslock was retreating, a purple lightning bolt ripped through the smoke of the battlefield and arrived near Xuan.

"Hey! Are you alright?"

Saito, immortal and wielding the Zanpakuto Shiden, descended from the sky like a purple meteor over a group of Quincy, turning his head to shout in Gen's direction.

The purple lightning in her hand never stopped, tearing apart the Quincy wielding Western swords around her.

Blade flashes and dense arcs of electricity exploded in the air, leaving long afterimages of purple lightning in the air, like a giant electric net, shattering all the dozens of spirit bullets and arrows aimed at Xuan.

"I'm sorry to have dragged you down." Xuan leaned against the large, broken stone slab behind him, his chest still rising and falling slightly.

He had just activated multiple high-level binding spells in a short period of time, and even used the Instant Step to dodge the sniper attack during the gaps between the binding spells, so his meridians were aching slightly.

This was caused by the excessive release of spiritual energy, which put a heavy burden on the meridians. In a short period of time, Xuan was unable to mobilize a large amount of spiritual energy to clear out the Quincy who were attacking him. He could only watch as Saito fought with his hands tied because he was worried about the spiritual arrows and bullets aimed at Xuan.

After deflecting several spirit arrows, Saito swung his sword and cleaved a Quincy wielding a sword in two beside him.

She turned her head and glared at Xuan fiercely: "Get lost! I advised you to let that woman wear the Great Ghost Taoist's robe before, why didn't you listen? Now that she's being targeted, you're saying you're dragging me down? Don't tell me you can't bear to see her die, it's so ridiculous."

Xuan couldn't help but laugh and scold, "You're just talking nonsense. Kiyomi Ise is the core of the Kido Clan's command. She knows how to make the Kido Clan cooperate with the Gotei 13 in battle. I was able to withstand the attack just now, but she would have died without a doubt. The Kido Clan is already a disorganized mess."

"That sounds nice, but who was it that almost got shot dead just now?" Saito curled her lip, stomped her foot hard, and instantly appeared to Gen's left front, severing the throat of a Quincy who was trying to flank her. Warm blood splattered on her white captain's haori, blooming into dazzling red plum blossoms.

More and more Quincy surrounded them. They had clearly noticed Gen's weakness and Saito's restraint, and wanted to take this opportunity to kill them both.

Blue arrows rained down like a storm, the cold glint of rapiers shimmering in the sunlight, and the layers of encirclement continued to shrink, compressing the space for the two to their limit.

"A bunch of scum, only dare to attack now? Looks like we didn't kill enough before." Saito swiftly blocked all the incoming attacks, then cleaved several wielding rapiers in two with a single stroke, and said fiercely.

Just then, an incomparably powerful spiritual pressure descended from the sky, accompanied by a biting wind pressure, which dispersed most of the surrounding smoke and blood.

The bright orange scarf, like a burning flame, was the first thing to catch their eye. Immediately afterward, Shihouin Senhi's bronze-colored figure landed in front of them. He raised his hand and waved it gently in front of him, and a semi-transparent golden dome instantly unfolded, enveloping both Gen and Saito.

"Clang—clang—clang—"

The dense barrage of spirit arrows and swords struck the golden shield with dull thuds, yet failed to leave even a crack. The deafening sounds of battle outside immediately became muffled, as if muffled by a thick layer of glass.

"How are you feeling?" Qianri asked Xuan.

"I'm alright, I'm basically not injured. It's just that I released too much spiritual power in a short period of time, and my meridians need to rest and recover now," Xuan replied. After being protected by the Binding Dao and the Bloodstained Armor, the attack that finally hit him was not too serious. With the physical abilities of a Shinigami using Instant Step, he could easily withstand it. The injury was not as serious as the condition of his meridians.

Saito, immortal and ageless, leaned against the inner wall of the barrier, examining the protective structure that radiated a warm, golden light. She tapped it with her finger, producing a dull thud. She raised an eyebrow at Shihouin Senhi:

"What? How did we get in here so quickly?"

"Have you forgotten that I come from the Heavenly Armored Squad?" Shihouin Senhi smiled, revealing a set of pearly white teeth. "This is a special weapon designed for defense. When activated, it can temporarily block several full-force attacks from the captain. Of course, I'm not talking about Captain-Commander Genryusai."

Saito clicked his tongue in amazement: "Good stuff, as expected of the Shihōin family. Gen, why don't you use the Shihōin surname and go get a couple of these first?"

The current head of the Shihōin family, Shihōin Chihiro, glanced helplessly at Saitō.

Saito said dismissively, "Alright, I was just saying it offhand. How are we going to get out now? I'm going to kill all these annoying bastards around here. You guys leave first. I'm really fuming."

"I can control it to briefly open a passage," Qianri said, pointing a finger at the Golden Barrier Wall.

"Alright, then you hold out with Gen for a while, I'm going out now." As Chihiro opened a crack just wide enough for one person to pass through, the sounds of fighting outside instantly rushed in, and Saito's figure had already disappeared from the spot.

Before the golden barrier closed, Xuan saw a purple afterimage flashing through the crowd, accompanied by unrestrained laughter and the screams of Quincy wherever it passed.

-----------------

Xuan sensed the state of the meridians.

At this point, one still cannot use large-scale demonic arts, mid-to-high-level demonic arts, or instantaneous steps, but it is still possible to do so using only a trace of spiritual power.

Xuan was well aware of his current situation: even if the sniper did not make another move while Saito was assisting Xuan, Xuan still did not know whether the other party was still watching him and preparing to make a move when the Golden Barrier ended.

Xuan could no longer unleash his spiritual power continuously as before for a short period of time. The wisest choice now was to leave this dangerous area immediately, return to the Death God's front line, and wait for a full recovery in a safe place.

Xuan attempted to use [Binding Path Twenty-Six: Curved Light] to conceal his and Qianri's forms and spiritual pressure, but unfortunately discovered that the Golden Barrier isolated the internal and external spiritual energy, just like [Severing the Void]. [Curved Light] could not be released outside the Golden Barrier.

The person who had been observing Xuan for a thousand days and the spiritual pressure suddenly disappeared, startling him, but he quickly realized that this must be Xuan's demonic path.

Xuan released the [Curved Light] spell. Without waiting for Qianri to ask, he began to explain his thoughts.

"Now that you can use the Ghost Path, it should be enough for you to maintain the Golden Barrier while returning to the rear. It consumes almost no spiritual energy, similar to when you trained your beast transformations." Qianri looked at Xuan. "I've taught you how to use the Golden Barrier, and I'm giving you the Golden Barrier as well. With the Golden Barrier protecting you, no one should be able to harm you within this distance."

A hint of surprise flashed in Xuan's eyes: "I remember being taught in the family academy that 'only the patriarch and those who have made unparalleled contributions to the family are qualified to command weapons'? You gave me the Golden Barrier, how are you going to explain this to the family?"

"Why do you have such a good memory?" Qianri laughed. "My father ran away, and now I'm the head of the Shihouin family. Of course, I get to decide who gets the weapons."

"Alright, now I'll teach you how to use the Golden Barrier. I need to hurry and direct the covert mobile operations; I've already wasted a lot of time, and I don't know how the battle is going."

-----------------

Xuan controlled the golden barrier to create a passage, and Qianri took a step out, kicking out and breaking the neck of a Quincy, whose head was tilted to one side at an odd angle.

In just a few breaths, the dozen or so Quincy nearby were wiped out by Shihouin Sennatsu. He stood amidst the pile of corpses, his orange-red scarf fluttering in the wind, radiating a chilling aura of killing intent.

"Goodbye," said Thousand Days, then dodged the incoming spirit arrows and bullets, charging into the Quincy army like a tiger among sheep.

Xuan didn't linger, manipulating the Golden Barrier to move towards the Death God's battle line. The golden barrier was exceptionally conspicuous on the smoke-filled battlefield, but all the spirit arrows and bullets fired at it could only create a faint ripple on its surface, unable to penetrate it at all.

The Ghost Path members who had returned to the rear of the Death God's battle line to recover their spiritual power immediately discovered Xuan and came to greet him.

"Great Demon Master! Are you alright?" Kiyoko Ise's face was full of worry, and her once neatly tied hair was now somewhat disheveled. "Just now, the Demon Path members were separated by a massive number of Quincy and dared not release their Hado and Binding Paths to provide support, fearing that they might affect you. Fortunately, two captains came to your aid."

"I'm fine, I just need to rest for a while." Xuan put away the Golden Barrier. "How's the situation on the battlefield now?"