You are very strong, but my painting style is better than yours!

A calm voice came from behind Saya, causing her to turn around abruptly, where her astonished face was reflected on the screen.

"You are!"

At this point, the image freezes and slowly fades out, with sci-fi style subtitles appearing randomly...

[A massive crossover project: The Singularity F Golden Star Cup is about to begin!]

……

"...That's amazing, to achieve this level of completion in such a short time."

High school student Shui Xiaosa watched the animation in astonishment, her throat involuntarily swallowing.

This isn't one of those "live-action CG" parodies; it's pure 2D animation. They even set up a large studio specifically for it, so this seemingly simple PV is surprisingly lavish, almost like a showcase of technical skill...

As an amateur enthusiast with some knowledge of the industry and even creating his own works but never getting a formal position, Sota knows how much effort it takes to make a good animation.

A 20-30 minute animation may be the culmination of weeks of tireless work by an entire team.

To produce such a PV in such a short time, almost simultaneously with the government's propaganda plan, is an unimaginable amount of work. Not to mention, it also involved gathering so many professional voice actors, illustrators, composers, and storyboard masters... But considering that this was driven by the government and backed by national-level funding, it is indeed quite reasonable.

The government doesn't need to approach these people; it only needs to put pressure on the leading companies in the industry, and the companies will naturally beg these big shots.

Using money, connections, and shamelessness as their weapons, a dream team was assembled, and their tireless work resulted in this animated PV. Though only one minute long, it's a masterpiece, leaving viewers utterly captivated.

Not to mention the general public who are unaware of the truth, even someone like Mizushino Sota, who knows the truth, now wants to see what happens next in the anime!

The good news is that there is indeed a sequel, and the update frequency is extremely high, with new clips every day. Because several studios are working on it simultaneously and playing it in rotation, the production schedule is not too tight.

Thanks to extensive online and offline promotion, online discussions about this collaborative project have reached a peak, even topping the news charts on major websites at one point.

Speculation about the identity of the princess in military uniform has been rampant.

Its origins were quickly unearthed, along with the prototype character and various fan-created settings, all brought into the open—after all, it wasn't exactly a secret.

As we all know, netizens' intelligence gathering capabilities are no less than Jiraiya's, and their support speed is comparable to Galio's.

The circumstances surrounding Setsuna Shimazaki's life were also uncovered, and when these dark secrets were laid bare in the light of day, the course of events took a dramatic turn.

As the "villain" of this large-scale project, Gun-hime has gained many fans with her looks and chuunibyou (delusional) remarks, and Shimazaki Setsuna's previous works have also proven that she is a very talented newcomer.

So, what led to such a tragic end for this promising high school illustrator?

It's cyberbullying, societal indifference, and a distorted culture within the online community—

But the public won't blame those who can't see the truth; they'll only focus their blame on those who cyberbullied Setsuna Shimazaki.

They were able to insult and bully Setsuna Shimazaki because of the violence of the majority, and the girl herself was powerless to resist and had no one to rely on.

But at this point, they have undoubtedly become an absolute minority in the face of the entire subculture and even the whole society, and it is impossible for anyone to stand up for them.

Therefore, their stance changed instantly!

Most cyberbullies deleted their social media accounts after being attacked, but even so, a lot of personal information was still exposed, including browsing history and so on... Many people suffered social death - it's like a cyber witch hunt, only the execution method is different.

At this time, the newly released animation PV, which featured a character resembling Setsuna Shimazaki, pushed the public's attention to a new peak. Everyone speculated about the connection between this project and Setsuna Shimazaki, leading to various interpretations...

If this were in ancient times, such a collective impression would have been enough to create a new myth. However, in the information age of the 21st century, the popularity of anything is only fleeting.

But that's enough...

That princess in military uniform with her overly thick silver hair, who looks like a broom come to life, would probably be moved by seeing the cyberbullies struggling to protect themselves.

The PV doesn't explicitly hint at the story of Altair and Setsuna Shimazaki, and no one knows how Altair gained life; we can only speculate.

However, letting the audience fill in the blanks themselves achieves a much better effect than saying it directly, which suits Iori and the others' wishes.

This PV is just one part of the promotional campaign. The overwhelming information bombardment has drawn the public's attention to this project, and various offline activities are also in full swing.

Just as the atmosphere reached its peak, the curtain was officially raised.

By the way, regarding the new character "Saya" who appeared in the PV... well, it's a complicated story.

Good news, she does indeed come from a slice-of-life visual novel.

Bad news: that visual novel has a highly explicit sequel.

Simply put, it's similar to the relationship between "Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle" and "Cardcaptor Sakura," except that the two worldviews are quite different. One is a bittersweet campus novel, while the other is a bizarre and obscure urban fantasy.

While there's nothing wrong with the Saya that Iori and the others saw, it's not surprising that her settings were confused under the influence of the [Acknowledgment Power], considering that she has an identical counterpart in another world with the same appearance and name.

And that Saya... well, she's not a bad person, but her very existence is a threat to the world. On the surface, she's an ordinary, cute high school girl, but once her daily life is disrupted, she reveals a terrifying nature that even she herself is unaware of.

That visual novel has over forty Bed Ends, more than half of which are related to Saya. The only five remaining Good Ends all share the common premise that "Saya's world has not collapsed/is filled with her lover"—which shows her importance.

Basically, this is a story about a "brother-obsessed guy who becomes incredibly strong to protect his cute little sister, even capable of killing gods."

The "older brother" character setting felt very familiar to Iori... but I won't go into details.

Now that everyone knows Saya's background, they're actually less willing to let her join the fight.

Therefore, Iori turned her attention to another character who had been summoned long ago but had never joined any side:

Better Cross Fasting!

He is equivalent to the Captain-Commander of the Cross Saitama from another world, but a younger version of him, so his strength is naturally impeccable.

After his previous battle with Iori ended in a draw, Shizusai, sensing something amiss, fled into the mountains. A few days later, he realized that he had not been deceived by the enemy's illusion, but had truly arrived in another world.

Although he was not as composed as he was in his old age, as a "death god," it was a basic requirement for him not to interfere with the lives of people in the world. In addition, he had no need for food, so he simply secluded himself in the mountains and lived the life of an ascetic.

Princess in military uniform had also gone to see him, but the creator had no interest in anything called "recognition power" and did not care whether he was created or not, completely ignoring Altair's invitation.

Since there were no Hollows or Quincy here, he didn't plan to draw his sword; it was that simple.

But this time, when Iori came to his door, he only gave him two choices:

One option is to join their own camp, and the other is for the two to continue the battle that ended in a draw last time.

Therefore, the choice for Hiko Cross Salad is naturally—

"warlike!"

There is no suspense!

Although he did not intend to interfere in the present world, he also considered Iori to be "unpredictable," so their encounter was naturally not included!

Although the two sides have now cleared up their misunderstandings, how could Hiko Shisai, who is in his prime, possibly let go of such a powerful opponent and not challenge him?

"Make up for what happened last time, kid!"

With an expression like an angry Vajra, Shizusai drew his Zanpakuto and uttered the release phrase.

"All things in the universe are but embers—the mighty, fiery sword!"

The atmosphere was distorted, and the temperature of the entire forest suddenly rose. Then, violent flames surged from the blade, blotting out the sky as if descending from heaven.

With a powerful leap, Shizusai soared into the air, streaking across the sky in a massive burst of flame, like a meteorite carrying fierce destructive power as it hurtled towards Iori.

Concealed within the flames powerful enough to melt steel and rock in an instant was a longsword capable of severing all things; the strongest, most unpredictable strike, a reverse kasaya slash, severed the boundary—

boom!

The fire soared into the sky, and the bursting flames almost filled the sky!

But the raging fire seemed to have hit some kind of boundary, only raging in half of the sky, but was blocked by a certain "line", looking like a cliff formed by flames, which was very strange.

——【Broken Void】

Iori uttered two words softly, yet the barrier she erected was as unshakeable as a city wall.

...In fact, even a real city wall could not withstand this attack.

However, Iori does not need complicated incantations. As long as the thought flashes through her mind, the spiritual pressure, which is like a physical entity, will form a barrier that isolates everything under the action of her will, blocking the sea of ​​fire that burns away all things in the universe!

"Well!"

The strongest impermanence stared wide-eyed, seemingly not expecting that his Fiery Broken Sword would be unable to shake the opponent.

"His strength is indeed greater than it was in his old age, but this reckless nature of his is something he can never change, Yamamoto-sensei... no, Hiko Jussai!"

Iori curled the corners of her lips, held the sword with only one hand, and suddenly exerted force to press the katana of Shikisai backward.

Clang!

The surging spiritual pressure exploded, forcing the strongest impermanence to take a step back!

I'm stronger than you now!

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

The splashing flames heated the atmosphere, and the dazzling light and shadow made the two intertwined figures appear blurry. The fierce slashes made the two weapons seem to bend, but the loud clang of the weapons was unimpeded and entered the ears of the fans watching the battle with perfect clarity.

But they soon lost the ability to receive such clear images, because as Shikizaki became serious, the surroundings had completely turned into a field of flames, and even the epoch-making cyber technology could not withstand the high temperature comparable to the Earth's core.

"This trick..."

With each clash of swords, Shizizhai felt a growing sense of unease and doubt, but his body showed no hesitation. Each strike, wreathed in flames, instilled fear in even the captain-level Wuchang.

"What, does this feel familiar?"

Iori suddenly exerted his strength, and the powerful spiritual pressure coated his Zanpakuto with a blue spiritual light. He drew an arc and cut through the flames in front of him. Then, he flashed and appeared ten meters away, avoiding the katana that Jujisai swung down next.

"This is exactly your (Yamamoto's) style!"

"There seem to be many things in this world that I don't understand... How pathetic! I never thought that I would be driven to this point by imitators."

With his legs spread apart, he took off his charred haori and casually threw it away. At this moment, Hiko Shikisai had already separated his clothes, revealing his scarred but incredibly strong upper body. Each scar recorded his past battles, and anyone who saw them would know that he was a strongman who had emerged from countless battlefields.

Removing these clothes means he will enter a fighting state even more ferocious than his "Shikai" (initial release).

In comparison, the battle just now was merely a warm-up. Back in their first encounter, Shikisai had already realized that Iori was no opponent that could be defeated by Shikai alone.

Although the spiritual pressure was similar to his own, he always had the feeling that the other party was hiding his strength. The real situation might be that he was a strong person on the same level as the ruler of the invisible empire!

You can't win against this kind of opponent without showing the spirit of "destroying the world"!

"Oh ho? Using Bankai in a place like this?"

Iori gathered spiritual particles at her feet, forming invisible steps that floated on the already magma-filled ground.

"It's finally time to show your true skills, although it's a little disappointing that it's not the real me... Dance to your heart's content in front of me!"

Chapter 467 Why aren't you watching me properly!

"Sunfire burns the city walls!"

The towering flames melted the ground, while the rising blade energy cleaved a high slope in two, causing a massive boulder, the size of a small hill, to slowly fall downwards.

In a flash, Iori left her original spot, while Shikisai stayed close by. The two engaged in a rapid-fire exchange of blows between each instant step, turning the surrounding area into a sea of ​​fire with explosive flames.

boom!

The mountain crashed to the ground, and amidst the violent tremors, pale blue arc-shaped sword energy cleaved it into several pieces, creating gaps in the all-consuming sea of ​​fire.

Clang!

Iori emerged from the sea of ​​fire, only to be met head-on by Gouka's slash. She immediately twisted her left wrist, and Meikyo Shisui cleaved from the side, letting the katana's blade glide past her. Her right hand, palm facing each other, formed a hand gesture—

[White Thunder]!

boom!

The strongest Grim Reaper's body was blasted away and crashed into a rock.

The next moment, the rock melted, and a fiery Asura emerged from the flowing lava, completely unharmed!

"It's not the same as the 'ghost magic' I remember. It has a kind of ambiguous feeling. As expected... it's just similar. You are not the real Wuchang."

"You can call me 'Death'."

"How could such a thing happen in the world... two groups of people living in different worlds who are surprisingly similar."

"Indeed, the similarity is a bit too high."

Iori looked at the blazing flames covering Shikisai's body and revealed a competitive smile.

"The prison uniform worn by the setting sun?"

"It's the Annihilation Flame Armor!"

Shizizhai raised his head, his eyes filled with an uncontrollable urge to destroy.