Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 532 Bane: My existence is everything.

As the spiritual essence was continuously injected, Kiryuki's complexion improved, and his face gradually became rosy.

The healing of her injuries made her feel the revival of her life force, and she couldn't help but let out soft moans.

However, somewhat awkwardly, the recovery from the injury caused some places that were not particularly interesting to look at to become interesting.

This left Bane unsure where to look, so he simply left his gaze there.

"What are you looking at?" After recovering, Kiryu saw Bane staring at him silently and asked with a slight twitch of his lips.

"Cough," Bane snapped out of his reverie and cleared his throat in a mock manner, saying, "As a healer, I naturally need to carefully observe the changes in your injuries while I am treating you."

"So what conclusion did you draw?" Kiryu asked, slapping away Bane's hand that was still on her chest.

"The conclusion is that big is beautiful," Bane laughed.

"If it weren't for the fact that you saved my life, would I let you take advantage of me like this? Quickly find me some clothes," said Kiryuki, sitting up and covering his private parts with his hands.

Bane casually removed the 9th Division Captain's haori from his clothes and tossed it onto Kiryu Hikifune, saying, "So what happened? Your Zero Division is so fragile? As soon as I entered the Soul King's Palace, I saw Oetsu Nimaiya get blown up. I just got to the second floor of this inner palace and there you are, hanging here like a mural. And the rest of you? Were they all killed by Yhwach?"

"Didn't you see Kirinji Tenjiro on the first floor?" Kiryu asked after putting on Bane's haori.

"No," Bane replied casually.

Upon hearing this, Kiryuu frowned and said, "It seems he is dead, and may be waiting to be resurrected, or he may have already been resurrected."

"If you've already been resurrected, why don't you hurry over and continue helping?" Bane asked curiously.

Kiryu then explained, "The reason we were able to revive is because after joining the Zero Division, we had to modify ourselves, integrating the power of the Spirit King Palace into our entire bodies and transforming our bones into a part of the Spirit King Palace, also known as the 'King Key.' This is the key to being able to freely enter and exit the Spirit King Palace. By the way, how did you get up here?"

"I broke through seventy-two barriers," Bane said calmly.

Kiryu was momentarily speechless, then said after a moment, "As expected of you. As always, you're unexpected."

After a slight pause, Kiryuki continued, "When we transform into King Keys, we become one with the Spirit King Palace and create the Zero Ribbon Palace. In essence, the Zero Ribbon Palace is our origin. As long as it is not destroyed, we can be resurrected by calling our names. However, we can only restore our strength to the point where we can walk. It will take some time to fully recover."

"Isn't that just a useless thing?" Bane retorted upon hearing this.

If he had killed Hikifune Kiryu just now, even if Hikifune Kiryu were to be resurrected, he wouldn't have much fighting power left. Unlike now, he can be said to have recovered to his peak condition.

The price was merely that Bane lost a little bit of spiritual pressure, and spiritual pressure was the least valuable thing to him. Besides, Kiryu had already given him a reward.

"Only someone as strong as you would think this is useless!" Kiryu retorted.

Having said that, Kiryu seemed to have finally regained his composure and stood up abruptly, saying, "We can't waste any more time. The Eye and the Shadow might not be able to withstand Yhwach. If something happens to Lord Soul King, we're all doomed... uh..."

She originally wanted to say that if the Spirit King died, the Three Realms would be in chaos, but looking at Ban En in front of her, she suddenly felt that it wasn't that serious.

"What are you looking at me for? Come on, I'm quite interested in Yhwach too. That monk with the eye is pretty good, and his abilities seem somewhat similar to mine." Bane clapped his hands and stood up.

"Why did you clap your hands?" Kiryuki asked as he stood up.

"I," Bane was told, glancing involuntarily at his haori, "Don't forget to return it to me after this is over. It'll be the Ninth Division's prized possession from now on."

"I always feel like you've become more frivolous than you were back then. Is that just my imagination?" Kiryuki clenched his chest and looked at Bane with disdain.

Bane didn't respond to that. Instead, as he walked out, he muttered to himself, "If I become the Spirit King, wouldn't you become my direct subordinate?"

"Uh," Kiryuu paused slightly before saying, "That's certainly true from a legal perspective."

"So show me some respect, or you'll be in for a world of trouble," Bane said without turning his head.

The inner palace has four floors in total.

The meaning of the first three layers is unclear, and they all appear empty. The fourth layer, which is the highest layer, contains the body of the Spirit King and serves as a wedge for stabilizing the Three Realms.

In fact, he had a feeling that something was wrong as soon as he arrived at the first level of the inner palace.

Yhwach should be inside this great interior, fighting with that guy, the Eye Monk.

However, there was no fluctuation of spiritual pressure within this inner chamber. Even after reaching the second level, there was no movement when climbing the steps to the third level.

It wasn't until he and Kiryuki actually reached the third floor that they understood the situation.

The entrance to the third-level main hall was already stained with pitch-black ink, forming a curtain that resembled a "waterfall cave".

All movement was silenced by the dark curtain, and nothing could escape from it.

At the same time, only when he got this close did Bane notice some spatial fluctuations inside. If he wasn't mistaken, it should be like the Abyss in the underground prison. This third level of the inner prison is an independent space of its own, which explains why the outside world has not been affected.

"This is bad. The Eye Monk has sealed this place and is probably fighting Yhwach to the death inside. If he doesn't break the seal, we won't be able to get in, right?" Kiryuu said, his voice becoming somewhat doubtful and lacking confidence.

After joining Squad Zero, Kiryu Hikifune gained a detailed understanding of the members of Squad Zero.

In terms of strength alone, although she is also very strong, she is indeed somewhat inferior to the other three. Among the three seniors, Kirinji Tenjiro is the weakest, but his skills in healing and healing are outstanding.

As for Nimaiya Oetsu, as a sword god, his strength is extremely formidable. However, compared to the eye-wielding monk Hyonshube Ichibei, there is still a world of difference between them.

In Kiryuu's mind, even if she, Nimaiya Oetsu, and Kirinji Tenjirou joined forces, it would be impossible for them to defeat the oldest member of the Zero Division, the eye-wielding monk Hyosube Ichibei.

That is a special life form that has existed since the ancient times when the Spirit King still retained his independent consciousness.

The man who is said to have given all names and meanings to the Soul Society!

So after noticing the sealing barrier, she instinctively concluded that it "could not be opened." But before she could finish speaking, she suddenly remembered that the guy next to her was a Spirit King. When she was promoted to the Zero Division, the monk with eyes had specifically asked her about him.

Clearly, the monk with the eyes is quite wary of this person, and since he met him, Kiryu has never encountered anything that could stump him. He should be able to open the monk with the eyes' barrier, right?

Bane reached out and touched the dark ink curtain. Under Kiryu's surprised yet expectant gaze, he pierced the curtain with his index finger and probed inside.

Clearly, he could indeed break through the 'black curtain' of the blind monk, and it seemed as if he was under no pressure at all.

However, after sensing some turbulence within the barrier, Bane quickly stopped his next step of 'lifting the curtain'.

He removed his finger, glanced at the fourth-level staircase, and asked, "Is the Spirit King up there?"

"Hmm, hmm?" Kiryu responded first, then looked at Bane with a puzzled expression.

Bane didn't say anything more, turning and heading towards the fourth floor. Seeing this, Kiryu called out, "Hey, what are you doing? You don't really want to replace the Spirit King, do you? That's not a good place. Believe me, if you see..."

"I should know more than you do, Kiryu." Bane replied as he stepped onto the fourth step.

However, as soon as he stepped onto the steps, he felt a suppression of spiritual pressure. The steps under his feet suddenly shattered, and waves of dark spiritual particles flowed down from the steps, which were none other than the ink of the monk with the eye.

Clearly, one cannot enter the fourth level without the Eye Monk's permission, which is why Yhwach fought him to the death on the third level.

However, before the ink could even soak into Bane's feet, black spiritual energy emanated from his body, rippling out from beneath his feet and merging with the waves of ink, making it impossible for anyone to distinguish between them.

Then, he calmly walked up to the fourth floor.

Kiryuki watched this scene with a shocked expression. Before she could recover from her shock, Bane asked, "Did you go up there?"

"On the day I joined the Zero Division, I went to pay my respects to the Soul King once, and that was the only time," Kiryu Hikifune answered instinctively.

"Should we go take another look?" Bane turned around and asked casually.

"Wait for me!" Kiryu quickly stepped onto the stairs.

However, the next second, she was almost overwhelmed by the powerful spiritual pressure of the monk, and fell face-first onto the steps. Fortunately, Bane's spiritual pressure quickly shielded her from the suppression, and she was able to follow behind Bane step by step.

"Do you really want to become the Spirit King?" Kiryu asked, watching Bane's retreating figure.

"At first, that was indeed what I thought, that was my goal," Bane said softly.

Before Kiryu could speak, he quickly continued, "However, after living in the Soul Society for hundreds of years, I suddenly realized that no matter if I am the Soul King, the captain of the Ninth Division, or the Dean of the Kido Institute of the Shinigami Academy, it is all the same to everyone. At my level, identity is no longer a symbol. My existence is everything."

"Then why did you still go up there?" Kiryu asked after a moment of silence.

However, after thinking about what Bane had just said, she realized he was right.

In the Soul Society today, even if Bane doesn't sit in the position of Soul King, is there really much difference between him and the Soul King?

Power?

No, he's just not as keen on power anymore. If he wanted more power, whether it was the Captain-Commander, the Central 46, or even their Zero Division, who could stop him?

status?

To this day, is there any substantial difference between the name of the Spirit Lord and the name of the Spirit King?

"Relief." As Kiryuki wondered about this, Bane said with a hint of pity in his voice.

"Liberation. Liberation?" Kiryu murmured, as if he had understood something.

After all, she wasn't a fool.

"Yes, I have come here not for the name or the throne of the Spirit King, but to free a great person of equal status from that infinitely long and miserable state," Bane said softly.

As he said this, Bane stepped over the last step and officially entered the fourth floor of this great interior.

The main hall remained empty, with no superfluous objects present.

Only in the center of the main hall was there a seal that looked like amber crystal, in which a figure with missing limbs was reflected.

Since time immemorial, the Spirit King, who served as the cornerstone of the Three Realms, maintaining their stability and operation, and who enjoyed the title of Supreme, was actually a pitiful wedge among them.

And that prologue, the Spirit King, should have been devoid of consciousness, spirit, and any concept.

When Bane appeared on the fourth floor, a profound light suddenly flashed in his empty pupils.

He woke up.

(End of this chapter)