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

Haschward felt very heavy-hearted, because he knew very well that this was Yhwach's trump card, and also his innate talent:

“Give” and “take back”.

Yhwach can give a part of his soul to others. Those who touch Yhwach will have their soul or body defects repaired, be healed as if by a miracle, and may even awaken special abilities.

The Quincy race was created in this way, while the "Holy Script" received an even higher gift—directly drinking the blood of Yhwach.

The so-called pure-blooded Quincy are nothing more than the descendants of those Quincy who directly received Yhwach's blessing.

However, this gift of the soul does not come without a price!

Those who touch Yhwach and obtain his soul fragments will die soon after their bodies and minds are healed (those whose potential has been awakened will be taken back by Yhwach after they are killed or grow to a certain level).

In other words, the soul fragments that Yhwach separated from him will grow stronger and return, making Yhwach's soul even more powerful.

It's the same principle as "lending".

Yhwach grew to his current level by constantly bestowing and then taking back souls, possessing an unparalleled spiritual pressure in the three realms.

The process of recovering soul fragments manifests as "sleep".

This is why, during the thousand years before Yhwach's resurrection, the Quincy lived in constant fear and did not attempt to save him, but simply waited in silence—the awakening of the Quincy King posed a great risk to them.

If Yhwach's power gets out of control, even a small accident could wipe the entire Quincy clan from the Three Realms!

Besides sleeping, Yhwach can also actively reclaim soul fragments, a skill known as "Sanctification."

Now, in order to reverse the situation, Yhwach has taken the initiative to launch the "Sanctification", targeting the Quincy scattered throughout Seireitei and the remnants of the Quincy in the human world!

Originally, he was very "tolerant" of purebloods. In the past, even Saint-Berg only targeted half-blood Quincy... but now he can't care about that anymore!

Apart from special individuals like Haschwald and Lijebaro, the vast majority of Quincy, and even some members of the Knights of the Order, were on his recall list!

Putting aside the war for supremacy with the Grim Reaper faction, Yhwach now only needs to consider how to survive until the next minute in Iori's clutches!

In Soul Society, the soul is everything. Yhwach repaired his damaged soul in this way. Although he could not return to his peak, he swept away the decay and regained his powerful fighting strength!

"Although I was once on the verge of defeat, I ultimately survived."

Yhwach looked at Iori, a slight smile playing on his lips, the blue patterns on his body faintly visible.

Previously, in order to resist the White Horse, the active blood armor was changed to a defensive static blood armor. Now, in order to concentrate forces to decide the outcome, it has been changed back to active blood armor.

"Though you are powerful, after unleashing your power so recklessly, how much spirit do you have left at this moment—"

In the very instant of the "transformation from stillness to movement," the sky "brightened" once again:

The thick fog was pierced by the strong light, and the white-white vision was like an ice field being moved to the sky, while an increasingly hot and dazzling aggregate of light was rising from behind that pure white barrier!

"Varied--"

The Quincy King stared at this scene in disbelief, his blood-red three pupils trembling incessantly.

That's outrageous! A technique powerful enough to destroy the Seireitei in one blow can actually be used infinitely?!

Moreover, given the sheer scale of the event, how could his "eyes" see nothing? Could he only observe it with the naked eye when it actually happened?!

For Yhwach, who relied heavily on "omniscience and omnipotence," this was tantamount to sudden blindness!

Since it's impossible to predict Iori's future, it's difficult for him to prepare countermeasures... No, wait!

Looking up at the white horse that had dispelled the thick fog, Yhwach felt a sense of absurdity, and a thought flashed through his mind:

Even if he "saw" it, what good way could he possibly have to deal with it?

The next instant, Yhwach appeared within three steps of Iori, his raised black sword coated with spiritual flames. He swung his sword with all his might, not expecting Iori to back down, but as long as the two clashed, he could let [White Horse] indiscriminately cover both of them.

This can be considered a form of mutual destruction in another sense.

However, Yhwach firmly believed he would survive and didn't believe Iori would be foolish enough to die at his hands. Therefore, his only intention was to make Iori hesitant to act rashly, thus weakening the power of [White Horse].

He now understood that he absolutely could not afford to distance himself from Iori... close combat was to his advantage!

However, Iori seemed to have anticipated Yhwach's actions, giving the Quincy King a taste of the frustration that only his previous opponents had ever experienced.

The pre-prepared Ghost Path was chanted in suspense, and the fully powered, pitch-black coffin rose from the sea!

"【Hado no Kuroko】!"

It was a massive ghost path that none of the Grim Reapers had ever seen before. It was large enough to contain an entire town, and its height was like that of a mountain peak, disappearing into the depths of the mist and barely visible.

Surrounded by this sudden onslaught of demonic energy, Yhwach took a deep breath.

"You think you can kill me like this?"

Having suffered repeated setbacks, he was filled with rage. Even a thousand years ago, he had never lost his composure in front of Yamamoto. Even in defeat, he maintained his dignity. But now, however, he seemed to have given up entirely, and even his expression became ferocious.

He had never been forced into such a sorry state before. The uncontrollable emotional fluctuations triggered an even stronger spiritual pressure. Centered on himself, a huge wall of spiritual light rapidly expanded, resisting the black spiritual pressure that kept rushing up.

"The Circle of Anguish!"

The spiritual pressure surge that erupted from inside the black coffin, powerful enough to shatter space, was partially blocked by Yhwach, who cautiously weathered the crisis. However, before he could escape from the black domain, the massive coffin collapsed from above.

hum!

It was a massive fireball, as large as the sun, whose terrifying pressure distorted light and shadow, and for a moment one could vaguely see a magnificent white horse.

It was... without hesitation!

Yhwach clenched his fist, not expecting that Iori hadn't diminished the power of the attack at all—even though he himself was within the range of the strike!

The moment the Quincy King saw that sun, he understood that this was an attack that completely transcended the "limits," and its power was so great that it could even threaten the world itself. Even if one escaped into the Shadow Realm, one could not avoid it.

Moreover, he was new to this world and hadn't even had time to create his own spiritual space yet...

"Uh-huh!!!"

With a neigh from the white horse, Yhwach felt his spirit become unstable, which terrified him so much that he clenched his teeth.

If the Soul King's power is to create and control everything, then this is the equivalent of utter destruction, even surpassing Yamamoto's!

Is this... really a power that a Grim Reaper could wield?

"Aizen Iori!!!"

boom!

The exaggerated and magnificent blazing sun covered the entire sky, and the entire icy ocean world trembled under this destructive torrent, burning everything in its path to ashes!

The sea level seemed to have dropped slightly out of thin air, while the atmosphere was already filled with scorching steam...

Moreover, it did not weaken; its scale was actually expanding rapidly—if it were in the outside world, it would certainly be a natural disaster comparable to a mass extinction!

"The eighty-one emptiness of the Binding Dao!"

A semi-transparent spatial barrier appeared in mid-air, transforming into a spiritual dome that isolated everything, keeping the destructive sea of ​​fire outside.

boom! boom! boom! boom!

The powerful flames continued to bombard him, but Iori remained calm and composed behind the demonic barrier.

Of course, the golden ripples covering [Broken Void] were the source of his calm confidence—

This power from the Mediterranean God King gives him an absolute advantage on his "home turf," and the effects of all his abilities are amplified.

Iori had been watching the Quincy King being consumed by flames from beginning to end, observing how his defenses were broken down layer by layer by his unreasonable violence, disappearing into the crimson lotus like a mantis trying to stop a chariot...

When Iori waved his hand, creating a gust of wind that dispersed the aftershocks, what came into his view was a charred humanoid mass that was no longer recognizable.

"Is this the end? At least stand up one last time."

Otherwise... what's there for me to be proud of after defeating an opponent like that?

Chapter 497 So, what about the second one?

As expected of Iori, Yhwach survived the second blow from Hakuba.

Conventional methods were ineffective against him; he simply focused his efforts on protecting his heart and brain, and then used "Sainthood" to reap the benefits of his subordinates in return.

It was precisely as he was rapidly repairing his body that Iori narrowed his eyes slightly and keenly noticed the "remains" surrounding Yhwach.

After being scorched by the sun's fire, its original appearance was no longer discernible, but it was certain that its fire resistance was extremely strong—it was not vaporized, but left behind some slag!

He stretched out his finger, and a small residue, carried by the moisture, landed on Iori's fingertip. He kneaded it a couple of times, then pondered for a moment.

It wasn't that he couldn't recognize what it was; in fact, he didn't even need to—the goddess of wisdom hidden in the shadows was enough. And Athena didn't even need to think; she saw through its essence at a glance.

ore.

However, it is not a natural product, but a completely new element with properties similar to "tungsten" and "gold"... It seems to have been used before as something like an isolation shield.

Does Yhwach have the ability to create things from nothing?

Iori glanced at the Quincy King, but instead of rushing to kill him, he carefully observed the other's rebirth process. Then, when he saw a certain spot, he suddenly realized something.

"I see... The King of the Quincy is doing these things? Does he lack confidence at all?"

Bones, muscles, skin... the body tissues gradually recovered, a jewel-like heart was protected by the chest cavity, and the hole in the skull healed, concealing some kind of crystal-like object inside.

—【The Soul King's Heart】, 【The Brain in the Vat】!

In the original timeline, these two entities should have appeared in the Sternritter as Quincy, but now it seems that, like the "left hand," they have been absorbed by Yhwach and have no chance to appear as independent personalities.

The former, needless to say, is the most powerful among the many fragments of the Spirit King, while the "Brain in a Vase"... to be honest, it was never clearly explained what it was or whether it had anything to do with the Spirit King.

However, judging from Iori's observation, this does not seem to be a fragment of the Soul King. Rather, it may be an existence similar to "Hyoushube Ichibei," that is, a special life form born from chaos.

Of course, whatever the reason, the situation Iori faces will not change.

He now needs to deal with Yhwach, who possesses the Soul King's left arm (power of progress), heart (power of immortality), and brain in a vat (reality distortion), and also has extremely strong spiritual pressure and the Holy Letter A (omniscience and omnipotence)!

Such strength is utterly despair-inducing—

Ok?

Have it?

Iori blinked: I feel like something's different too.

"Well……"

The once majestic Quincy King is now in a sorry state, his entire body covered in hideous burns, revealing his bones and charred internal organs, as if he had just crawled out of hell.

He is indeed recovering rapidly, but the flames of the White Horse possess a strange vitality, sometimes reigniting after being dispelled and once again eroding Yhwach's body.

Therefore, even though the Quincy King regained his "human form," he could never make himself look like a normal person... He looked just like a character in some horror movies.

"If this continues... I'll really be in danger!"

In fact, Yhwach was already feeling the presence of death. If he hadn't accumulated enough power, he probably would have already perished under the attack of the White Horse.

However, it's good that he survived. He has a very powerful ability. As long as he doesn't die directly, he can control spiritual particles to repair his own body and analyze the enemy's abilities, thereby avoiding being harmed by similar abilities.

In a sense, he cannot be defeated twice by the same ability—of course, Iori is an exception.

He said that he still couldn't see through Iori's true nature, including the attack just now... These "eyes" seem to have gone blind.

But he would never willingly die here!

He also couldn't believe that he, who had already received the "Mandate of Heaven," would be killed!

Having both a left arm and a heart, if he can completely control them, then no one except the Spirit King will be his match!

He was destined by heaven to take over the world—the will of the Spirit King fragments, which had vanished into nothingness, was proof of this!

That high and mighty god, who has always observed the world with indifference, has made his choice!

Therefore, I, Yhbach, will absolutely not lose!

"Well!"

Just then, Yhwach, who had barely regained his ability to speak, uttered in a hoarse voice: "I have only accepted my true nature... That shameful father of mine, though I despise him, I must also acknowledge his power."

To reshape this world, we must utilize everything at our disposal, even the physical body of the creator god—my capacity is sufficient to control everything!

Spiritual Flame!

A pillar of azure flame rose from beneath the sea, encircling Iori and Yhwach within a small area of ​​over a thousand meters in diameter.

“You are a formidable enemy… Apart from Yamamoto and Hyosube Ichibei, this is the first person I have ever genuinely feared, and your importance far surpasses that of those two!”

"Should I feel honored?"

Iori gave a half-smile.

"Of course, this is a compliment from the Lord of the Three Realms."