Bleach: From the moment I was invited by Squad Zero.

"He regained his power? This is Hyōrinmaru's original, true power?!"

The intensity and texture of this spiritual pressure instantly reminded him of what he had felt with Captain-Commander Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni's "Ryujin Jakka".

It possesses a terrifying power that seems capable of incinerating the world, representing the pinnacle of fire magic!

Although their attributes are completely opposite, one being extreme fire and the other extreme cold, the oppressive feeling that can be described as "the strongest" is so similar!

"The strongest ice-type Zanpakuto... truly lives up to its name!"

Zhibo gritted his teeth and gripped the Yanyue sword tightly in his hand.

He could sense that Hyōrinmaru at this moment was on a completely different level from before!

If he could have used his formidable strength to maneuver around or even suppress the Ice King just now, then now, facing this Ice King who seems to have returned to his "complete form".

On his own, I'm afraid...

"Yanagawa!" Shiba Isshin suddenly turned his head and shouted at Yanagawa, who was still standing at the edge of the battlefield.

"How long are you going to stand there?! Isn't it time to make a move?! If you keep fighting like this by yourself, I'm afraid I'll really have to use my Bankai!"

His tone was urgent, even tinged with helplessness.

Bankai is his ultimate trump card, but as he said, it comes at a great cost, and he would never use it lightly unless absolutely necessary.

Moreover, facing Hyōrinmaru, whose current state is strange and whose power has surged, even if Bankai is used, the outcome is still uncertain, but the cost will inevitably be heavy.

Yanagawa stepped forward and stood beside him, their pure white haori fluttering violently in the whirlwind stirred up by Hyōrinmaru's terrifying spiritual pressure.

However, there was no seriousness or tension on his face. Instead, a playful smile curved his lips as he turned to look at Shiba Isshin, who was standing guard beside him, and teased him in a relaxed tone:

"Oh? Captain Isshin, this is it? You were so confident just now, saying you were going to burn it."

"..."

Shiba Isshin almost couldn't catch his breath. He suddenly turned his head and glared at Yanagawa, his expression incredibly interesting.

He took a deep breath and complained:

"Liu Chuan! Stop spouting nonsense! Do you think the title of 'Strongest Ice Elementalist' was given for nothing?"

His tone was excited, but the flames of the Blade of Light in his hand burned even more fiercely.

Upon hearing this, Liu Chuan's smile faded slightly, but his eyes remained calm.

He said no more: "Then, let's go together, Captain Yixin."

As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Chuan moved first! But he didn't rush directly at Hyōrinmaru; instead, spiritual light flowed in his hands, and he chanted:

"Binding Spell Number Sixty-One: Six-Staff Light Prison!"

"The Sixty-Second Binding Path, the Hundred-Step Railing!"

"The Sixty-Third Binding Method: Chains and Binding!"

Swish!Swish!Swish!

Several beams of light, each with a different shape and structure distinct from standard Kido, shot out from Yanagawa's hand almost simultaneously.

Their target is Hyōrinmaru in his complete form, who has just finished integrating his power and reached the peak of his momentum!

The Hundred-Step Railing transformed into several beams of light, sealing off the area around Hyōrinmaru.

The Six-Staff Light Prison is no longer a simple six-slice light beam, but has differentiated into dozens of finer beams with more complex spiritual particle structures.

The enormous serpentine chains formed by the binding bars, covered with a strange pale golden spiritual particle coating, hurtled towards Hyōrinmaru's neck and waist with a whistling sound!

All of this happened in the blink of an eye! The speed, precision, and bold modifications and combinations of Yanagawa's Kido techniques caused Shiba Isshin's pupils to shrink in astonishment.

"This kid's understanding and control of the Ghost Path is simply unbelievable! These improvements are unheard of!"

Although Hyōrinmaru's power surged in its complete form, its movements seemed slightly sluggish due to the recent absorption of power.

In addition, Liuchuan's binding spell attack had a tricky angle and a special structure, and his movements were actually temporarily entangled by several spiritual chains and beams of light!

"Roar!" Hyōrinmaru let out an angry roar.

He struggled fiercely, his arms, covered by icy dragon claws, suddenly thrust outwards!

Click! Click-click!

Under the terrifying power of the fully-formed Hyōrinmaru, the tough, specialized binding chains and beams began to crack, and frost rapidly spread upwards!

Clearly, these modified binding spells alone cannot hold him captive for long.

But Yanagawa's purpose was not to imprison, but to disrupt and create opportunities!

"Now! Captain Isshin!" Liu Chuan shouted.

"Received!" Shiba Isshin was already poised to strike, his Blade of Light trailing a long fiery tail as he lunged straight at the opening Hyōrinmaru had created in his struggle!

"Crescent Moon Sky Slash!"

A powerful fire-attribute slash, with unparalleled penetrating power, slashed fiercely towards Hyōrinmaru's chest!

Hyōrinmaru's anger intensified, and golden light flashed on his forehead.

With this golden power, it forcibly broke through the restraints and blocked Shiba Isshin's slash.

Then he slammed his hands, which were covered by icy dragon claws, into the ground, uttering a low chant:

"A Thousand-Year-Old Ice Prison!"

Rumble, rumble, rumble—!!!

Centered on Hyōrinmaru, the earth trembled violently!

Countless enormous ice pillars, each over ten meters in diameter and hundreds of meters high, broke through the frozen ground and shot into the sky!

These icicles were not random; rather, they formed a spherical cage that was constantly contracting and squeezing inward, completely enveloping Shiba Isshin and the space in front of him!

The icicles exude a chilling aura that freezes everything for eternity! Once trapped inside, one will be instantly and eternally frozen, spiritual energy will cease to flow, and life will be completely extinguished!

"Not good!" Shiba Isshin's expression changed drastically. He could feel the absolute freezing power contained in that ice prison, far exceeding any previous attack!

The ice prison contracted at an astonishing speed, and it was too late for him to escape!

At this critical moment!

At some point, Yanagawa appeared not far behind Shiba Isshin.

The Zanpakuto he had always held in his hand but had never truly used—"Tenjhin"—was finally slowly raised and held horizontally in front of him.

His other hand gently stroked the simple, silver-white blade.

"Vibrate—"

A strange fluctuation quietly spread out from the center of Tianzhen in Liuchuan's hand.

"—Earthquake."

The moment the words of liberation were uttered.

The silver-white blade of Tianzhen suddenly burst forth with a powerful silver light!

The light wasn't dazzling, but it gave people a sense of "tremor" that went straight to the depths of their souls.

Liu Chuan's hand holding the sword was as steady as a rock. He simply swung the Heavenly Tremor, which was covered with silver light, seemingly casually at the thousand-year-old ice prison that was about to close.

Click.

At the very moment that soft sound rang out, starting from the direction in which Liu Chuan swung his sword, the space in front of him visibly twisted, folded, and then—

Cracked.

This space was forcibly "shaken" by some invisible force, resulting in spiderweb-like, ever-spreading white cracks!

These cracks spread silently, distorting the light wherever they passed. Even Hyōrinmaru's eternally chilling aura seemed to be disturbed and repelled by the "cracks" themselves!

The next second, these spatial rifts touched the millennium-old ice prison.

*Sizzle!*

Those enormous icicles, when touched by the white crack, resembled glass artworks struck by an invisible giant hammer.

Almost half of the "Millennial Ice Prison" collapsed and shattered into countless glittering ice crystal powders with Liu Chuan's seemingly casual wave of his hand!

Taking advantage of the situation, Shiba rolled awkwardly, landing on the ground and staring in shock at the billowing ice crystal powder.

He then abruptly turned to look at Liu Chuan, who was still in a sword-wielding posture, the silver light on the blade slowly receding. His mouth was agape, wide enough to fit an egg, and his eyes were filled with unprecedented shock.

"The space itself was shattered?"

He muttered to himself, almost unable to believe his eyes. That was Hyōrinmaru's Thousand-Year Ice Prison! It had been shattered by Yanagawa's single strike?

Even Hyōrinmaru, whose momentum had slowed slightly after releasing the Thousand-Year Ice Prison, showed obvious astonishment for the first time.

The golden light on his forehead began to flicker erratically.

Chapter 23 The Four Realms Frozen

The collapse of the millennium-old ice prison caused Hyōrinmaru's movements to be momentarily slowed down.

This was an excellent opportunity for Shiba Isshin, who had been through countless battles!

"A great opportunity!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Shiba pushed the flames of the Moonlit Blade to their limit, instantly bursting out from the area filled with ice crystal powder, and approached Hyōrinmaru at a speed exceeding the limits of ordinary Shunpo!

His tactical intention was crystal clear—strike while the iron is hot and kill him!

"Crescent Moon Sky Slash!"

The intense flames were compressed into the moon, and wherever the blade passed, the space itself seemed to be scorched with faint distortions!

Pfft—!

The feel... is wrong! There's no solid feeling of striking a solid object, nor the hardness of shattering ice crystals; instead, it feels like piercing a layer of viscous mist!

Shiba Isshin's pupils shrank drastically! The "Hyōrinmaru" before him, the moment he was struck by the Scythe of the Moon, his body shattered like an ice sculpture.

Starting from the point of entry, countless cracks spread rapidly, and then with a "whoosh," the entire thing exploded into fragments of ice crystals!

Is it an afterimage?! No, it's something even more sophisticated than an afterimage—an illusory image of ice!

"Damn it!" Shiba Isshin's internal alarm bells rang, and a bone-chilling cold swept over him from behind!