The Alchemist in Bleach

With a flick of his two fingers, a flame appeared out of thin air and burned the note to ashes. Ichiro then looked up at Kamui with a slightly apologetic expression: "I'm sorry, Father, there are some things that your Aunt World can teach you first, is that alright?"

"It's alright, Father, you go ahead and do your work." Kamui smiled and bowed.

Ichiro's smile grew even brighter. Nothing is more gratifying than a child being sensible, except for a harmonious harem!

Immediately, Ichiro explained Kamui's upcoming training course to the world, and then used spatial control to leave this place and head to Urahara's base.

However, what Ichiro didn't know was that after he left, Kamui's expression instantly turned cold. He stared straight at the world and said, "No matter how good you are to me, I will not hand over my father to you! My father belongs to my mother! This is my opinion, and you don't need to teach me. Don't worry, I won't tell my father."

World took a deep breath. She was genuinely curious about how the Mother had managed to instill so much "common sense" into the still-developing Kamui, making him know so much and so infuriating!

However, she forced herself to suppress her displeasure. The plots of those stepmother dramas that Ichiro had watched before kept surfacing in her mind. Well, she filtered out the stepmothers who weren't the main characters, because nine out of ten of those stepmothers were bad! They weren't good role models!

Despite his displeasure, he smiled and said calmly, "Lord Ichiro won't fall for anyone else. Come on, I'll teach you some swordsmanship. Don't worry, I'll teach you well. You are Lord Ichiro's son, and naturally, you are also my son. There's no difference."

'What a troublesome fellow!' Kamui muttered to himself, but replied calmly, 'Okay, World... Auntie!'

'That troublesome brat!'

......

Meanwhile, Ichiro, who was constantly traveling by using spatial control, was unaware of the family drama unfolding at home. Judging from his perception of the two, although Kamui had a strange aversion to the world, he believed that with Kamui's level of maturity, their relationship must be very harmonious!

Yes, nuclear harmonies!

Ichiro did not go to the original location. It was indeed quite hidden at first, but as Yoruichi and the others went out, it was gradually exposed. Later, they simply sealed off the surface entrance like Ichiro had done, leaving only some ventilation openings, and all entry and exit were controlled by the space.

However, they would have to set the coordinates themselves. It wasn't that Ichiro was reluctant, but rather that some of the coordinates were in very dark places because he wanted to strengthen the Void Crow. Not everyone had Ichiro's strength, so it wasn't suitable to share them.

Shortly after, in Urahara's underground base, spatial fluctuations suddenly appeared, and Ichiro's figure emerged from them. He made a hand gesture to the few Second Division members who were on guard, making them relax, and then walked towards Urahara's experimental area.

This underground space is just like the one in Soul Society—empty, desolate, and as bright as day!

He didn't know what was so good about this kind of environment; he remembered that the underground base of Urahara Gensei in the original work was also of this design.

A while later, Ichiro slowly approached the experimental area. From a distance, he saw Soi Fon looking at Urahara, who was calculating something not far away, and the black cat on his shoulder with a resentful gaze.

"Envious?"

Soi Fon glanced coldly at Ichiro without answering him. If Urahara was the person she hated the most, then Ichiro was the second most hated!

Ichiro shrugged and strolled leisurely toward Urahara.

"You're here? Take a look at this information first." Urahara said without looking up, while patting a document next to him with his left hand.

Ichiro glanced curiously at what he was calculating, but after discovering it was the optimization formula for the second stage of Shunko, he lost interest and instead picked up the documents on the table and began to read them carefully.

To Ichiro's surprise, this was actually a document on how to create fragments of the Spirit King!

This made Ichiro look at Urahara with some surprise; this guy's research ability was truly terrifying!

Theoretically speaking, it is impossible to artificially create fragments of the Spirit King.

The Spirit King seems to be unique; a new Spirit King can only appear after the current Spirit King is completely dead!

Before this, all others could do was create replicas of the Spirit King to replace him at any time, so as to prevent the world from collapsing due to the Spirit King's disappearance.

Ichiro was able to create Soul King fragments because his world or alchemy could reconstruct the most fundamental spiritual particle structure—an ability that even Yhwach, the leader of the Quincy, might not possess.

However, Ichiro also believed that Urahara was not the kind of person who made empty promises, at least not in terms of research. So Ichiro immediately began to read it seriously.

And this look lasted for half an hour!

I looked at it over and over again!

The look in his eyes grew increasingly complex!

Contrary to his initial assumption of creating it by mixing the spiritual pressure or souls of humans, Hollows, and Shinigami, Urahara employed an extremely ingenious method—using the assimilation power of the Soul King!

Simply put, it means artificially guiding the power of the Spirit King emanating from the fragment of the Spirit King to assimilate another high-density spiritual pressure aggregate!

By perfectly utilizing the omnipotent nature of the Spirit King's power through a series of techniques, fragments of the Spirit King can be created.

Of course, the creation of the Soul King fragments was only the surface; what truly opened Ichiro's eyes was Urahara's exquisite use of the Soul King's power.

Clearly, after a year of research, although he has not yet found a way to create the power of the Spirit King, he has made considerable progress in other aspects of the research on creating the Spirit King, just like Ichiro's Spirit King Hand.

The reason for summoning Ichiro was also revealed. The exchange was secondary; the main reason was that they were eyeing the Spirit King fragment in Ichiro's possession. After all, Urahara was different from him; he only had one Spirit King fragment, which couldn't be used for experiments casually.

In fact, the same applies to Ichiro's case. The original fragments of the Spirit King are still untouched, and what they are using now are reconstructed ones. If they accidentally use them, what if there are secrets in them that they haven't discovered yet? Wouldn't that be the end of them?

"How about it? This technique is pretty good, isn't it?" Urahara said with a hint of pride as he held up his black tea.

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Chapter 104 The Frustrated Soi Fong

"Hmm, that's quite interesting. You really are a pervert! But I remember you also mentioned Fullbring, right?" While marveling at him, Ichiro tossed him a small bag of Spirit King fragments for assimilation experiments, and at the same time, inquired about Fullbring as mentioned in the secret letter.

He had studied the information very carefully. The methods of using the power of the Spirit King were extremely ingenious. Compared to this, the Spirit King's Hand he invented was like a mobile phone versus a smartphone—the level of application was completely different.

However, his advantage lies in the fact that the technical requirements are not high, and anyone can use it. This is different from Urahara's. Urahara's is a Kido technique, which has a threshold. Although this threshold is just a matter of lifting a foot for Ichiro, it does not mention Fullbring at all.

"Oh, that? You know, I'm helping Yoruichi perfect the second stage of Shunko."

"Hmm, so what?"

"So in addition to improving Shunho, we also developed Fullbring at the same time. After all, the disadvantage of the second stage is that the power is too strong, so that the technique that should be a coordination of physical abilities has become an explosive skill. The reaction force is strong enough to seriously injure herself. This is the biggest disadvantage at present. After one hit, the enemy will die or she will die. Therefore, we need to develop a suitable Fullbring technique, such as healing, or Suzaku's rebirth or something."

"Hmm, so what?"

"So as an experiment, Soi Fon's Fullbring was developed. Unfortunately, the plan to guide the ability failed, and the ability... is very useless."

Ichiro looked at Soi Fon curiously and asked, "What is your ability?"

Ichiro could understand why Soi Fon was chosen as the test subject. Unless it was completely controllable, Yoruichi wouldn't have been able to train in Fullbring beforehand, and in that case, the Fullbring test subjects would have to be selected from her subordinates.

Furthermore, since Fullbring is something that enhances strength to some extent, it's natural to start with close subordinates, so Soi Fon naturally comes in first.

"Ability: Three-hit kill... Hitting the same spot three times guarantees the opponent's death..."

"..." Ichiro was slightly speechless. "What kind of ridiculous ability is this... A Zanpakuto that can kill with two hits is already outrageous enough, but a three-hit kill... What kind of idiot would let you get hit in the same spot three times... Could it be that you didn't operate it properly?"

Ichiro's suspicions were not unfounded. This was a guided development experiment, and even if it didn't get the desired results, it shouldn't have been this bad, right?

Three-hit kill... Is this ability a joke?

Ichiro and the others weren't deliberately lowering their voices, so Soi Fon, who was nearby, heard everything clearly. Her face darkened completely, but she still couldn't refute them...

First, her two-hit ultimate attack has very strict activation conditions. Against these two in the same position, she basically only has one chance to hit, making it rather useless. Second, both of them can erase Bee Pattern Flower using various methods... (Note: I remember seeing the letter as Butterfly Pattern Flower before. I don't know if I misread it or if it's a translation issue. I'll use the encyclopedia version here.)

"How is that possible? I think your technique is flawed! Ultimately, changing a method originally for human cultivation into a method for death god cultivation without multiple trials is itself problematic!"

"Oh? Is that so? Then why was I able to obtain the ability I wanted? To put it bluntly, isn't it still a problem with the operator!"

"You're doing this for yourself, which is a different matter from doing it for others!"

"Slap slap~" Seeing that the two wanted to continue talking, Yoruichi jumped up and slapped her two tails, interrupting their argument: "Let's get down to business!"

"Ahem~ So, what you're talking about related to Fullbring is actually having Fullbring material on hand?" Ichiro coughed twice, straightening his expression.

"Well, it's a pretty useless ability anyway, so feel free to research it. Of course, this belongs to Soi Fon. After you've done your research, see if you can modify her Fullbring, or give her a Fullbring. This ability... as long as it's practical, that's fine." With that, Yoruichi walked over to Ichiro and squatted down.

“Sure, no big deal. Modification might not work, but if my experiment succeeds, I can give her Fullbring. By the way, I wasn’t arguing with you just now.” Ichiro turned to Urahara. “I’m telling the truth. Your operation was flawed. Fullbring abilities are more or less related to the medium you use. What medium did you use?”

“An ornament.” Upon hearing this, Soi Fon walked over, extending her right hand. In her palm lay a golden hairpin, the head of which was carved with a lifelike bee.

"A hairpin..." Ichiro held it in his hand, examining it and smelling it. "What will it look like after use?"

"It will transform into a bow and arrow, just like the Quincy, and can shoot spiritual energy arrows with a power level of around 30th level Hakudo."

Upon hearing Soi Fon's description, Ichiro looked up in astonishment and retorted, "Even worse than I thought... Hitting three arrows in the same spot, what kind of idiot would stand still and let you shoot them?"

Hearing this, Soi Fon frowned and said somewhat unwillingly, "I can practice archery! As long as my archery skills improve, the effect in actual combat will be just as strong!"

"Come on!" Ichiro rolled his eyes. "Don't forget, your Second Division is all about assassination. Assassins are all about killing with one blow. Whether it's a sneak attack or a head-on confrontation, the best thing is to finish someone off with one strike. Your two-hit kill is already outrageous for an assassin, let alone this three-hit kill."

"With that time, you should practice your hand-to-hand combat skills; that's far better than anything else. Before Zanpakuto appeared, the Captain-Commander was the strongest Shinigami, and the Shihouin family was the strongest assassin family. Your Hachi family isn't much weaker even without Zanpakuto. Playing to your strengths and avoiding your weaknesses is the key. Being all-around means being mediocre most of the time."

Ichiro's words silenced Soi Fon. Despite her dislike for Ichiro, she knew he was right. Her Zanpakuto and Fullbring technique only sounded powerful; in reality, they were utterly useless to an assassin.

But the path Ichiro mentioned isn't that simple either. The Shihouin family is so powerful because of the divinely bestowed weapon. She doesn't have the right to use that thing. Abandoning her Zanpakuto, how easy is it to become stronger?

"Don't say things like that. So, can abilities be changed?" Ye Yi couldn't stand it anymore and spoke up.

"It can't be changed. The ability is already set. Think about what kind of ability you want, and then create a new one. This one can be discarded later. It's not like a Zanpakuto. There's no rush. When do you plan to do that experiment?"

Ichiro was referring to the assimilation experiment of the Soul King fragments. If it were just about sending fragments, Urahara wouldn't have sent a secret message to have Ichiro come all the way here.

“Now of course, Soi Fon. Have someone guard outside, um... and then you come over too.” Urahara slammed the document in his hand shut, looked at Soi Fon and hesitated for a moment, but finally decided to let Soi Fon know about this as well.

A year is not a short time. Spending so much time together, it's enough to see Soi Fon for who she really is. Especially since the Fen family has been loyal to the Shihouin family for generations. It's safe to say that the Fen family would never betray anyone. Otherwise, the Xingjun wouldn't have been handed over to Soi Fon after Yoruichi's betrayal.

Ichiro looked at Yoruichi and saw her nod her cat head. He shrugged, having no objection. In fact, having read the original work, Ichiro trusted Soi Fon a little more than the other two.

Soi Fon nodded gratefully, her face beaming with undisguised joy. For the first time, she felt a tiny bit of affection for Urahara. Of course, if Yoruichi hadn't jumped onto Urahara's shoulder, this affection might have lingered for a day or two longer!

Half an hour later, the three people and the cat walked into an area in the base that was filled with various ghostly barriers. Ichiro looked around and clicked his tongue in amazement.

"You've really gone overboard, haven't you? With this kind of setup, even Adjuchas would have to kneel down, right?" Ichiro wasn't exaggerating. If he hadn't only ever seen Adjuchas, he would have said Vastod.

Kido is such a terrifying technique. If you have enough skill and enough time to prepare, anyone who comes will be killed. Take Ichiro, for example. In a one-on-one fight, with his current strength, he is at his best. Even if he uses all his skills, he is on par with the slightly weaker Vasto Lorde, or even slightly inferior.

But if given enough time to prepare, not much, just a full chanting time, he can make Vastod roar with a Five Dragons Rotation!

This is still given time to chant. If Urahara had enough time to set up his densely packed demonic arts, anyone would be worried. Of course, there are usually no fools who would walk right into his trap.

Upon entering the barrier, Yoruichi jumped off Urahara's shoulder, dispelling the Heavenly Gift Soldier and transforming back into human form—well, dressed, no less. The mechanism is unclear, but Yoruichi mentioned that it seems to be controllable. (The cat-transformation ability wasn't explicitly stated, but I'm inclined to believe it.)

After Yoruichi jumped down, Urahara and Ichiro slowly walked forward, while Yoruichi took a few steps back and explained Ichiro and the others' experiment to Soi Fon.

As they were talking, Ichiro and the other two walked up to the spiritual pressure aggregate, which was actually just a pile of Hollow remains.

This is the most efficient conversion method after Ichiro's research. It works for both human and Shinigami souls, but that would obviously violate the rules of the Seireitei, so Ichiro has never tried it, only roughly calculated it.

Upon reaching the pile of wreckage, Ichiro stopped, while Urahara took two steps forward. This experiment would be led by Urahara, with Ichiro assisting, to avoid accidents caused by the rampage of spiritual pressure. Ichiro, having risked his life once before, was more experienced in this kind of thing, and having him in charge made people feel more at ease.

Urahara took a fragment of the Spirit King from the bag Ichiro had given him, clasped his hands together, held it between his palms, and chanted incantations. At the same time, he activated the Kido magic that had been set up around him, guiding the power of the Spirit King in his palms out and assimilating it into the spiritual pressure aggregate in front of him!

While Urahara was on his way, Ichiro behind him was not idle either. He had put on the Soul King's Hand on his left hand at some point, and the power of the Soul King was ready. He also put on an alchemy glove on his other hand. This was the last line of defense. If the Soul King's Hand could not stop him after he went berserk, he would refine all the spiritual pressure into something else to ensure that nothing went wrong!

He has experience dealing with rampaging spiritual pressure!

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