The Supreme Soul, Starting with Death

"Evil wolf, Erlang, my name is Erlang?"

"Very good, very good. That's Erlang. Remember, from now on, when I call you by that name, I'm calling you. And this guy, he hasn't decided what to call himself yet, so let's just call him Bat. Come on, Bat~"

“Ban, bat, bat.”

"Yes, yes, you learned it right. Jiro, you are definitely a genius. It's a pity that there are no schools in Hueco Mundo, otherwise I would definitely enroll you in a preschool, no, I could even send you straight to elementary school!"

"I...I am a genius?"

Erlang was clearly somewhat insecure, his tone filled with apprehension, but his tail was wagging rapidly behind him, obviously enjoying the feeling of being praised by Gu Shi.

Gu Shi pulled Erlang into his arms and rubbed his head vigorously, his excitement undiminished, laughing heartily.

"Of course, Erlang, you learned to speak so quickly, what else could you be but a genius!? It was my mistake to say you weren't smart earlier, I apologize! Have confidence, you are a genius!"

"By the way, Erlang, you're so smart, how about learning something else? Math? Classical poetry? Biology? These are all my strengths, I'll definitely be able to teach you!"

"Forget about English. When I was in school, I was always hovering around the passing grade. I won't mislead anyone!"

"By the way, I'm pretty good at chemistry too, and I've also studied philosophy for a while out of interest. Anyway, you can just learn from me for now. When you become an Arrancar, we'll get you a prosthetic body and send you to university. Then you'll be a dog who actually took the college entrance exam!"

Gu Shi was happy, unaware of what "learning hell" meant, but the big dog was also delighted to receive praise. Its tail wagged rapidly, and it was so excited that it forgot how to speak, barking joyfully.

After a while, Gu Shi's emotions calmed down a bit after he had taught Erlang a lot of common words, addition and subtraction within ten, and two classic poems by Li Bai.

[Yes, my initial assessment was correct. Because I lost a lot of negative emotions during the blurring process, I become much easier to cheer up. It's just that the pressure from that madman was too great, so this trait of mine rarely shows up.]

Now that I'm free from those constraints and feel completely relaxed, my tendency to get easily excited and happy has resurfaced. Not only do many things make me happy, but the duration of my happiness has also lengthened; once I'm excited, it's hard for me to calm down.

Perhaps I should be more careful to control myself, lest I excitedly rush up to reminisce with Aizen the next time I see him; that would be too horrible a scene.

After briefly summarizing his situation, Gu Shi glanced with satisfaction at Erlang, who was calculating 5+7 on the sand. Turning his head, he saw that Bat had also squatted on the sand to the side, seriously calculating 13+29. Next to him was a poem, "Quiet Night Thoughts," which, although illegible in handwriting, was neatly formatted.

...?

"Bat, what are you doing?"

Bat looked up and met Gu Shi's gaze. His expression remained calm and unchanging, seemingly without any change. But after a glance, he immediately lowered his head and continued counting his claws.

"Please don't disturb me, I've forgotten where I was in the count."

Confined by the bat's body structure, although the bat's wings have a few small claws, they are not very flexible and cannot perform such a difficult action as counting fingers. He can only stare at his toes to count.

Watching the bat's toes clumsily curl up one by one, then clench them tightly, and how it seemed to lose its balance and sway precariously whenever its claws were clenched into fists, Gu Shi's eyes twitched.

"Stop for a second. If you're still doing addition of numbers greater than ten like this, what if I gave you a three-digit problem? You'd be scratching your head until tomorrow. Come here and I'll teach you how to do vertical addition. Once you learn that, it'll be much easier to do addition and subtraction."

Bat Void immediately put down his stiff toes, which were already cramping, and moved closer to Gu Shi with a blank expression, staring at Gu Shi silently, waiting for him to teach him the magical "technique".

"...With your attitude, anyone who didn't know better would think I was actually teaching you magic."

Gu Shi rolled his eyes inwardly and quickly wrote 77+67 on the sand. Then he wrote down the vertical calculation and began to explain the knowledge points such as aligning numbers and calculating from right to left. Fu Qiu listened carefully and nodded subconsciously. His attitude was much more serious than when Gu Shi was in school.

Chapter Forty-Three: Truth

"Hey bat, what are you thinking? Why are you so interested in these things?"

Gu Shi rested his chin on his hand, his face full of helplessness. He originally only planned to teach Erlang some simple things to help Erlang develop his logical thinking skills, which was a kind of enlightenment education for children.

But who would have thought that while Erlang's learning progress was relatively stable, Bat Xu seemed to be possessed. Every day, whenever he had free time, he would either drag Erlang to learn new things or squat on the sand to do math problems. He seemed to be studying much more diligently than Erlang.

Although Gu Shisheng wasn't exactly a poor student, he always treated learning with the mindset of completing a task. In his previous life, he couldn't understand those top students who "relaxed by doing a set of math problems," and now he can't understand why Bat Xu is so enthusiastic about learning math.

Bat Xu was practicing converting decimals and fractions on the sand when he heard the question. He stopped scratching his claws after finishing the problem he was working on, thought for a moment, and then gave a serious answer.

“Actually, I have been confused since I was born. I don’t know what is right and what is wrong. It’s like from our perspective, cannibalism is just a necessary step to maintain life. For us, it is definitely not a wrong behavior. But from the perspective of ordinary people and death, it is undoubtedly a major evil.”

"I've discovered that there isn't an absolutely correct answer to many things. Once your perspective on a problem changes, the answer will change, and the world seems to be in chaos."

"In such a world, I don't even know if I truly exist. Is it possible that from another perspective, consciousness and soul are merely illusions? Are the self and emotions we cling to simply errors arising from the process of life's reproduction?"

Although the bat-like Hollow spoke calmly, as he spoke, a slightly manic spiritual pressure unconsciously overflowed from his body, distorting the surrounding air and disrupting the blowing hot wind. Clearly, thinking about these issues brought him great pressure and pain, and his heart was far from as calm as it appeared.

Just as the Bat Void seemed about to go berserk, Gu Shi was hesitating whether to knock it out and help it calm down physically when the Bat Void's spiritual pressure stirred up the airflow, gently brushing over several unfinished math problems on the sand, blurring some of the numbers.

Instantly, the chaotic spiritual pressure vanished. Bat Hollow showed no signs of losing control. He carefully used his claws to trace the blurry numbers again, making them clear again before letting out a sigh of relief and turning to continue speaking to Gu Shi.

"But, Gu Shi, you see, mathematics is different. No matter how it's transformed, it will always have a definite, absolutely correct answer. It won't lead to different correct answers just because different people look at it. It's the 'absolute correctness' that I've been looking for but haven't been able to find."

"I still don't know if my existence is real, or if my life has any meaning. But I'm willing to live for mathematics, for absolute correctness, even if I'm just a false phantom. As long as my thinking exists for absolute correctness, I will no longer be confused."

Looking at the still calm yet incredibly resolute Bat Void, Gu Shi felt as if he were seeing a saint faithful to his faith. The simple elementary school math problems on the ground seemed to have lost their childishness and transformed into a holy scripture shining with holy light, a path to truth.

He quickly shook his head, trying to shake off the strange hallucination. Gu Shi coughed lightly, avoiding looking into the bat's determined eyes.

"Ahem, you're right. Mathematics is the crystallization of human wisdom accumulated over generations. It's the key to truth. Now that you've realized this, I'll teach you more in the future."

"Now, hurry up and finish these questions, then we should go hunting. Knowledge and truth are the long sedimentation of wisdom in the river of history. In the future, more truths are destined to be discovered by people. If you kill them off by other falsehoods too early, those truths will be completely out of your reach."

"So, when you're studying math, you can't forget to eat well, strengthen your abilities, and build up the foundation for you to survive and continue pursuing the truth."

"Truth, huh? What a warm and hopeful word it is."

Batman pondered the word "truth" carefully. Although his expression remained unchanged, he was clearly inspired with vigorous motivation and enthusiasm. After nodding deeply to express his gratitude to Gu Shi, he plunged back into the sea of ​​questions.

After finishing all the practice questions for the day and having Mr. Gu Shi check them for errors, Bat Xu finally took to the air, his sharp eyes searching for prey to catch high above.

Watching the bat's departing figure, Gu Shi patted Erlang's head and shook his head helplessly.

"Erlang, it seems you're not the only one going to take the college entrance exam in the future. Maybe your tutor will be Bat, who's much more enthusiastic about learning than you are."

Erlang, who was copying "Song of Climbing Youzhou Terrace", looked up blankly and realized that Bat Xu had flown away at some point. He first thought about how much time had passed, but then immediately put the question out of his mind and excitedly licked Gu Shi's hand a few times.

"Wow, so cool! 'I see no ancient sages before me, nor any to come after me; I contemplate the vastness of heaven and earth, and tears stream down my face.' This poem is so cool! From now on, I'm going to recite it while I fight!"

As he spoke, Erlang excitedly jumped a few times on the spot, striking a cool pose while loudly reciting the ancient poem he had just learned, seemingly imagining the cool scene of the enemy roaring loudly while he loudly recited poetry, his tail wagging excitedly.

"...Alright, it seems Bat can't be your teacher. You two are different, one in science and the other in humanities."

Rolling his eyes, Gu Shi casually grabbed the excited Erlang and lay down on him as a pillow, ignoring the still excited recitation of poetry in his ears. He couldn't understand whether he was too lucky or too unlucky, with two atypical contestants by his side.

Oh, right, there weren't just two, there was also a little lizard.

Gu Shi raised his hand, staring at the little lizard that was pretending to have a tattoo on his arm. He was about to tell it to behave normally when he saw the little lizard quietly move its claws, twisting itself from an S to an Ω, and also changing its color to a more aesthetically pleasing red and black.

"...You kid, you're not going to study art in the future, are you?!"

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Chapter Forty-Four: Like a Forest and Like Rain

"When autumn comes on the ninth day of the ninth month, my flowers will bloom and all other flowers will wither. You pitiful weeds, Erlang Jushi will come to take your life."

A large dog, its entire body covered in pale white bone armor and its fangs menacing, spoke in a refined manner, calling itself a lay Buddhist. It bit off its opponent's neck, blood dripping from its mouth, and then fell into a deep daze.

"Erlang Jushi? Erlang Sanren? Erlang Kuangke? Which title is cooler? It's so hard to choose."

"When adding fractions, the denominator remains the same; when adding the numerators, the numerators are added together. When multiplying fractions, the denominator and numerator are multiplied separately. Tell me, what fraction of my spiritual power do you possess? If I eat you, what fraction of your spiritual power will I absorb?"

The bat, clutching a creature resembling a sparrow, meticulously tore apart its wings to prevent escape, while humbly seeking advice on its next meal.

Gu Shi said that one person's wisdom is limited while the collective wisdom is superior. Thinking alone inevitably leads to oversights, while discussing with others can spark inspiration.

“…Little guy, if you ever dare to mention studying art to me again, I’ll give you a good beating.”

On the ground, sitting on a bear-shaped phantom several times larger than himself, Gu Shi idly gnawed on a bear leg, when he suddenly tapped the head of a small lizard that had come close to him to drink blood.

The little lizard was eating when it was suddenly beaten. It shook its long tail in confusion, and seeing that Gu Shi didn't intend to say anything more, it simply lowered its head and continued drinking blood.

Since following Gu Shi, the little lizard has been drinking blood rich in spiritual energy every day, and it has grown at an astonishing speed. Its body, which was originally only the size of a normal person's finger, has grown to the length of Gu Shi's bear paw in just a few days. It can now twist and create more fancy patterns on Gu Shi's arm.

Gu Shi glanced at the still goofy little lizard, which resembled Erlang before he became a phantom, and shook his head after finishing a whole bear leg. He then clapped his hands and roared.

Hey! You two! Can't you be a little more mindful of dining etiquette?!

"Erlang, who knows the hardship behind every grain of rice on your plate! Look at you, lost in thought, how much blood has been wasted on the sand! How can you be so wasteful of food? Do you even deserve the ancient poems you've memorized?!"

"And you, bat, no whispering while eating! Quickly kill that clown in your paws, and don't talk to him anymore!"

Seeing that Gu Shi was about to get angry, Erlang quickly ran back with his prey in his mouth, chuckled beside Gu Shi, and began to concentrate on eating.

The bat in the sky sighed regretfully, shook its head at the sparrow whose eyes were full of confusion, and said in a low voice.

"I'm sorry, it was a very pleasant discussion with you, and I benefited a lot. However, my friend is urging me to come back, and I look forward to our next exchange."

As it spoke, the bat bit off the sparrow's head and slowly fell to the ground, a hint of doubt creeping into its mind.

Gu Shi mentioned when teaching Erlang ancient poems that as a poet, one must always maintain politeness. Even when facing an enemy, one should not forget to say some polite words. This can not only highlight one's own demeanor, but also make one's enemy feel valued, thus making them feel comfortable. Perhaps, in the course of fighting, enemies can be turned into friends, creating a beautiful story.

Bats don't care much about showing off their manners, but if they can make their prey feel a little happier on their deathbed, they feel it's okay to be polite. So, in recent battles, they never forget to say some polite words.

But why? It seems the prey we've killed recently is even more desperate and angry?

Could it be that Gu Shi said something wrong?

"...Impossible. Gu Shi, who taught me so much math, couldn't possibly be wrong. I must have chosen the wrong thing to say. I'll try a different set of polite phrases next time."

Seeing the thoughtful look in the bat's eyes as it landed, Gu Shi knew that this guy was probably agonizing over some pointless problem again. He secretly rolled his eyes and raised his voice again like a mother hen.

"Don't think about it now, just eat..."

Before Gu could finish speaking, the sand beneath the bat, stained red with the blood of its prey, suddenly burst open, and a gigantic centipede lunged out, its sharp mandibles snapping straight at the bat.

Although the bat reacted immediately and flapped its wings to fly into the sky, it was too late. The centipede's huge mouth not only swallowed the prey in its claws completely, but also bit off both of its claws.

Despite the pain, the bat, which had nearly been bitten in half, continued to flap its wings to gain altitude, and a green phantom began to condense in its mouth.

At the same time, Gu Shi and Erlang also exerted their strength instantly, rushing towards the centipede Xu, who still wanted to continue attacking.

Gu Shi was faster than Erlang and approached the centipede first. Just as he raised his front claws, intending to slap the creature, the sand beneath his feet suddenly began to tremble abnormally. Without thinking, Gu Shi immediately dodged to the side.

The next moment, the centipede's tail, with its sharp barbs, shot out from the ground, narrowly grazing Gu Shi's side and leaving a deep bloody gash on his body.

Gu Shi dared not linger and immediately turned around and bit the centipede's tail. The enormous bite force crushed a section of the centipede's shell. The centipede let out a sharp, piercing roar, abandoned the bat, and twisted its body to bite Gu Shi's head.

At this moment, Erlang also arrived at the battlefield. Taking advantage of the fact that the centipede's attention was completely drawn to Gu Shi, he leaped onto the centipede's back, using its segmented carapace as steps, and ran all the way to the centipede's head.

In a few quick maneuvers, Erlang successfully rushed onto the centipede's enormous head. He gripped the centipede's mask, which was as big as a stone table, with his limbs, and plunged his head into the hole of the mask's right eye, biting down hard on the centipede's eye.

Due to the difference in spiritual power, although Erlang successfully bit the centipede's weak point, he was unable to crush its large, fragile eyeball. His sharp canines only pierced the eye slightly.

But that was enough. The excruciating pain and fear from being bitten in the eye made the already frenzied centipede even more insane. He frantically shook his head, trying to throw Erlang off.

Jiro exerted all his strength, biting the centipede's eyeball tightly and refusing to let go. At the same time, he kept his eyes fixed on the bat in the air, which was still gathering its ghostly energy. Only when he saw the bat nod did he immediately release his grip and use the centipede's swinging motion to fly away.