The Supreme Soul, Starting with Death

Chapter 129 Soul Division

Upon hearing Tianpeng's exclamation, Gu Shi immediately turned his head. Sure enough, at the other end of the dark chamber, the Grim Reaper with the straw in his mouth finally stood up, twisted his waist on the spot, then placed one hand on his Zanpakuto, and leaned down slightly, seemingly ready to make a move.

He's preparing to act, but not immediately. What is he waiting for?

Gu Shi narrowed his eyes, pondered for a moment, and then nodded in realization.

"Lilynette, tell that guy to slow down, pretend he can't run anymore, and let go of his defenses so that the Hollow can bite him."

In the original storyline of "Bleach", one of Stark's strongest abilities after unleashing his Zanpakuto (Lylenette) is to cut his own soul. Each fragment of his soul can be transformed into a giant wolf that is entirely composed of massive spiritual energy and has the ability to act independently, allowing the wolf pack to fight alongside him.

Now, because of Gu Shi's existence, Stark did not undergo Arrancar on his own, but instead relied on the degraded Hogyoku to complete the process. Although Lilynette's relationship with him remains close, her identity is no longer that of a Zanpakuto that might disappear in a full-force battle, but rather that of a completely independent individual.

After this change, Gu Shi didn't know if Stark still had the ability to split his soul. After all, inquiring about other people's abilities, or even their strongest methods, was hardly an appropriate thing to do.

But what is certain is that Lilynette has the ability to split her soul.

However, unlike the Starks who use their soul-splitting abilities in battle, Lilynette, born from the Starks' obsession with finding companions and yearning for communication, has abilities that focus more on communication and companionship.

If the wolf pack that Stark longs for truly exists, Stark would undoubtedly be the most powerful alpha wolf in the pack, responsible for leading the pack to defeat formidable enemies and protect his companions.

Lilynette's role in the wolf pack is perhaps that of a logistics manager responsible for communicating with each individual wolf and ensuring absolute unity—a role that doesn't exist in a typical wolf pack.

Each fragment of her soul can be given to others, enabling real-time communication that transcends distance through the connection of souls.

To be honest, Gu Shi was somewhat devastated when he learned that Lilynette had this ability. If Lilynette had told him earlier and given him a fragment of her soul, he wouldn't have been so afraid when he met Nel. If Lilynette had helped him notify the Starks, wouldn't reinforcements have been on their way immediately?

However, Gu Shi didn't intend to complain. After all, keeping one's abilities a secret was only natural. When he and Stark were discussing how to maintain contact with the Soul Society spies, Lilynette was already very kind of her to reveal her abilities and help them solve the problem.

At this moment, the burly Arrancar who was walking the wolf-shaped Hollow in the present world also had a fragment of Lilynette's soul on him. After hearing Gu Shi's request, Lilynette did not understand why, but she still nodded decisively and repeated his words to the burly Arrancar.

Upon receiving the instruction, the burly man with the broken face did not hesitate and decisively slowed down.

Anyway, he only became like an ordinary person in terms of his aura, not in reality. Even if that little Void really took a few bites on him, it wouldn't kill him. He just needed to bite the little Void back, and the minor bite wounds would heal immediately.

Seeing the burly man's speed gradually slow down, the wolf-shaped Hollow chasing behind was overjoyed. He knew that no ordinary person could compare to a Hollow in terms of endurance. Judging from this, it wouldn't be long before he could enjoy this rare feast.

Meanwhile, the Grim Reaper watching the show from the rooftop also smiled, his eyes revealing a hint of impatience, as he gripped his Zanpakuto and stared intently at the burly Arrancar.

Finally, as the strong man's speed decreased further, the wolf-shaped Void finally caught up with him and pounced on his back, opening its mouth to bite his neck.

A cold glint flashed in the strong man's broken eyes. He suppressed the urge to retaliate, rolled to the ground as if exhausted, and was knocked to the ground by the wolf-shaped little ghost's pounce, thus escaping the opponent's attack.

Then, he rolled over on the ground in a seemingly disheveled manner, lying on his back and using his arm to block the wolf-shaped miniature's second bite, letting the other bite his arm hard.

As long as vital organs like the neck are unharmed, injuries to the limbs are not a big deal.

The Hollows on the other side of the black cavity also tensed up. If the bald Shinigami didn't make a move, the burly Arrancar would probably retaliate. Once the burly Arrancar was exposed, they would have to silence him as soon as possible to prevent the bald Shinigami from transmitting the information back to Soul Society.

Fortunately, the bald Shinigami finally moved. He used Shunpo to appear behind the wolf-shaped Hollow in a flash. He fired the low-numbered Binding Spell he had prepared beforehand, briefly depriving the opponent of his ability to move. Then, he slashed horizontally with his Zanpakuto, cutting through the Hollow's neck as he was swallowing with his head tilted back, severing most of the thick neck. Then, he quickly withdrew his sword and slashed again, completely severing the opponent's head.

With a cool pose, the bald Grim Reaper looked down at the burly man with the broken face, revealing a hearty smile that seemed imposing at first glance.

"Are you alright? I didn't expect there to be a ghost in a place like this. Luckily, I noticed something was wrong and rushed over immediately. I managed to save you."

Hearing this, Gu Shi breathed a sigh of relief. This Grim Reaper had indeed seen that the "ordinary person" being hunted had a strong spiritual power, already at the level of a high-ranking official. He felt that if the person became a Grim Reaper, he would probably rise to prominence very quickly. Therefore, he wanted to befriend this potential talent in advance and do him a favor.

For ordinary Grim Reapers, powerful figures like captains and vice-captains are too distant. Being able to establish a relationship with one or two Seat Officers already indicates having a strong backing. It's only natural that the bald Grim Reaper wants to do favors for future Seat Officers in advance.

So, what other way of doing someone a favor could be better than having a divine being descend from the heavens to slay a monster and save their life when they are about to die?

"Lilinette, make him ask the Grim Reaper what his name is, and promise that you will repay him in the future."

Having confirmed his conjecture, Gu Shi confidently gave the next instructions. Sure enough, after the strong man with the broken face did as instructed, the bald Grim Reaper laughed even more heartily, waving his hand with apparent magnanimity.

"My name is Nakano Daiki, you can just call me Daiki. What's your name?"

"My name is Hayato."

Of course, this wasn't the burly Arrancar's real name. However, in order to better integrate into Soul Society, he had already prepared a pseudonym for himself when he set off. Now, pretending to be nervous, he said it without giving himself away.

"Not a bad name. I'll take you to a safe place next. It's safer there than here, but if you want to save your life if you encounter monsters like this again, you'd better enroll in the Shinigami Academy as soon as possible and become a Grim Reaper."

As he spoke, the bald Grim Reaper paused, his expression turning serious.

"When you get there, you may lose some of your memories. Remember my name, Nakano Daiki. If you encounter any trouble at school, just ask your teacher for my name."

As a Grim Reaper who was sent to the mortal world, which is tantamount to being banished, the name of the bald Grim Reaper is actually useless. Mao's teacher probably forgot about this insignificant student long ago. He said this just to make this genius remember him.

After all, only in this way could he, in the future, rely on the other party's favor today to ask for their help in transferring him back to Soul Society after the other party becomes a high-ranking official.

Chapter 130 Feeling Good About Oneself

The burly masked man who calls himself Hayato was chosen by Gu Shi to be an undercover agent not only because of the unique location of his Hollow Hollow, but also because of his quick thinking.

Of the first batch of Hollows that Gu Shi captured, most of them were either paralyzed by the spiritual pressure of the Great Hollows, unable to utter a word and lying on the ground waiting to die, or they felt they couldn't live and wanted to have some fun before they died, loudly cursing Gu Shi's ancestors.

Only Hayato and another cat, Hollow, guessed that Gu Shi might have something for them to do by having the Hollow "catch" them instead of simply crushing them to death. Despite the Hollow's spiritual pressure, they lay on the ground, pointing to the sky and promising to serve the Hollow-sama, saying that they could entrust them with anything and that they would do their utmost to complete it.

At this moment, Hayato's brain, which had saved his life, came into play once again. He quickly understood the Grim Reaper's intentions. Without needing any further instructions from Lilynette, he immediately put on a grateful expression, repeatedly thanking the other party for their "care" and promising to remember their name forever.

Humans are visual creatures. If someone with a pointed face and shifty eyes makes a guarantee, no matter how much they pat their chest, people will still suspect they are lying. But someone like Hayato, who has a tough-guy face, will be subconsciously labeled as "upright and honest".

The bald Grim Reaper, banished to the mortal world, clearly hasn't transcended the human tendency to judge by appearance. He easily believed Hayato's assurances without a second thought that Hayato was merely deceiving him.

After enjoying the future seat officer's subservience for a while, the bald Grim Reaper nodded in satisfaction and drew his Zanpakuto with righteous indignation.

"Alright, I have to rush to patrol other places and rescue people who are in danger like you. Let's start the soul burial now. Don't worry, just let me press a mark on your forehead with the scabbard."

Immediately, Hayato and the Hollows on the other side of the Black Hole tensed up once again.

Whether they can pass the Soul Burial Ritual's test and be sent to Soul Society by the Hell Butterfly is yet another test. No one has a clear understanding of what kind of operating system the Soul Burial Ritual actually is.

Logically speaking, the Shinigami shouldn't have considered something as outrageous as burying Hollows when they first built this system.

Therefore, this system can work on all souls, but whether or not a soul should be buried in the Great Void depends entirely on the conscience of the field death god.

Alternatively, it can only respond to operations on ordinary souls. In this case, it will test whether Hayato's aura can deceive the Soul Burial System's detection.

Under everyone's tense gaze, the bald Shinigami flipped his Zanpakuto, the hilt slowly falling towards the center of Hayato's forehead, finally gently imprinting itself on Hayato's skin. Immediately, a faint glow shone from Hayato's entire body.

One second passed, two seconds passed, three seconds passed...

Hayato remained "slumped" in place, with no other changes occurring to his body. His right hand, hidden behind his back, had quietly curled into a claw, ready to launch a sneak attack.

The bald Grim Reaper was clearly also somewhat surprised. However, he was a typical underachiever, and when faced with this situation, his first thought was not to doubt Hayato's identity, but to wonder if there was something wrong with his actions.

"Uh, wait a minute. Your soul quality is too high and your spiritual power content is too high. The soul burial ritual developed for ordinary people will take a little longer to send you away."

The bald Grim Reaper, who had just put on such an air of superiority, was naturally unwilling to admit his mistake. He forced a serious expression, made up an excuse to appease Hayato, and at the same time desperately tried to recall the knowledge that he had already forgotten to Mao-sensei.

In his hazy memory, Bald Death vaguely remembered that the textbook seemed to mention cases of failed soul burials. The teacher seemed to have emphasized that this was a very important knowledge point that would definitely be on the exam, and that they had to memorize it.

At the time, he, like his classmates, didn't take the teacher's words to heart at all. What did the academic exams matter? As long as I mastered the Kido, practiced my swordsmanship to a high standard, and used Shunpo (Instant Step) flexibly enough, how could I be held back by an academic exam?

Anyway, that's just how death is. As long as I'm strong enough, even if I don't know how to read, a whole bunch of squads will still be fighting to take me.

After I graduate and prove myself, becoming a vice-captain and then a captain, when I return to school, won't those teachers who don't even dare to go to the battlefield but only dare to lord it over students in the school have to treat me with utmost respect?

Of course, the truth is that when they graduated, most of the bald Grim Reaper and his classmates who shared the same idea not only failed their academic subjects, but were also not as strong as they thought.

Ultimately, they could only be discarded as the leftovers, randomly stuffed into various squads to do errands and other menial tasks, just waiting to be killed off early in the event of a battle to make room for the newcomers.

The bald Grim Reaper was lucky; he was assigned to the 13th Division.

Captain Jushiro Ukitake of the 13th Division was a typical gentle and kind-hearted man. Instead of immediately sending them out on missions to "train" them and letting them be eliminated by natural selection, he arranged a whole round of intensive training for them amidst their "bored" complaints. Only after they had acquired basic self-defense capabilities were they released to carry out missions.

Unfortunately, the Gotei 13 is ultimately a violent organization. No matter how kind-hearted Jushiro Ukitake is, he can only help them train their combat skills at most; he can't possibly run any kind of academic enrichment class within the team.

In fact, most Grim Reapers only have six years of systematic cultural learning in their hundreds of years of career. After graduation, even if they want to learn, they can only study on their own from books, and they can't find teachers in this field at all.

The bald-headed Grim Reaper racked his brains but still couldn't recall how the failed soul burial cases in the textbook were handled.

[Forget it, whatever happens, if it doesn't work the first time, I'll just try a few more times.]

With a pursed lip, the bald Grim Reaper decided not to think about it if he couldn't remember. After all, it was just a trivial matter. If it were really important, his senior would have specifically told him about it when he came to the mortal world to carry out his mission. Since he wasn't told, it must not be important.

Making a judgment based on his own simple thought process, without considering the possibility that his senior might not have thought of it, that he needed someone to remind him of something so important, the bald Grim Reaper picked up his Zanpakuto again and tapped Hayato's head several times with the hilt without saying a word. He even secretly poured some spiritual power into the pattern at the end of the hilt, trying to enhance the effect of the Soul Burial Ritual.

Thus, the light representing the Soul Burial on Hayato's body accumulated and became brighter and brighter. Finally, it seemed to break through a certain threshold, and the passage to the Soul Society opened. His soul was sucked in and sent to the Soul Society according to the predetermined route.

The bald Shinigami and the Hollows on the other side of the black cavity finally breathed a sigh of relief. The bald Shinigami even swung his Zanpakuto with a sense of accomplishment, confirming once again that his idea was correct.

The things teachers teach in school are all rubbish. They make it sound so serious, but in the end it's just a matter of hitting a few more times. Even such a small thing is written into long, headache-inducing passages, and students are required to memorize it word for word.

Ha, as expected, the guys who write textbooks are just like the school teachers—cowards who dare not go to the battlefield. They deliberately create these things to torment these students in order to show their presence.

Today, the bald Grim Reaper still feels great about himself.

Chapter 131 Old Man Ishikawa

"...We've made contact! Gu Shi, that guy's awake!"

Under the silent gaze of everyone, Lilynette closed her eyes and sensed for a while before the other end of the soul link finally reacted.

Perhaps to prevent anyone from remembering the route of the Soul Burial Ritual and using it to sneak back to the real world, the Soul Burial Ritual also has the effect of forcibly rendering someone unconscious. Hayato lost consciousness the moment the Soul Burial Ritual was successful, and no matter how anxious the Hollows were, they could only wait patiently.

Finally, after about twenty minutes, Hayato finally responded again.

When Hayato woke up, he did consider not contacting Lilynette. After all, he was already in Soul Society, the territory of the Shinigami! Even if he betrayed them, would those Shinigami dare to come here to hunt him down?

Fortunately, Hayato never forgot his identity. The ring of scale-like bone fragments around his neck, hidden beneath his collar, constantly reminded him that he could never truly become a Shinigami, and that his only destination was Hueco Mundo.

The conflict between Shinigami and Hollows is irreconcilable. Even if he reports the Hollows' plots to the Shinigami, the Shinigami will not accept him or remember his merits. They will still kill him without mercy.

Therefore, if they want to survive and return to Hueco Mundo alive, the only viable path is to cooperate with those Hollows.

Quickly making a judgment in his mind, Hayato tugged at his collar, dealing with the enthusiastic old man while reporting the situation to Lilynette through their soul link.

"Uncle, do you have anything to eat? I'm a little hungry. I won't eat your food for free. I'll go find a job today and pay you back as soon as I earn some money."

Following Gu Shi's instructions before setting off, Hayato and the old man beside him exchanged only a few words before he bluntly expressed that he wanted to eat.

The need to eat is the most prominent characteristic of possessing spiritual power.

Sure enough, the already enthusiastic old man was even happier when he heard that Hayato wanted to eat. He had only come over to greet the young man because he thought he was good at physical labor, and wanted him to work in his shop. He never expected that this young man was also a Grim Reaper.

"It's a good thing that young people can eat a lot. Come on, young man, come with me. This meal is on me, it's on me!"

Without saying a word, the old man grabbed Hayato and headed towards his shop.

In the 23rd West District of Rukongai, Shinigami are no longer particularly rare, but unlike the previous 20 districts, where almost everyone is a Shinigami's family member and Shinigami who are resting visit their relatives every day.

Having the Grim Reaper as a background here carries significant weight. At the very least, if you want to do business, live a more prosperous life than the average person, and avoid being targeted or causing trouble, the Grim Reaper background is indispensable.