BLEACH: Blade of Purification

How many years had it been since Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni had last taken action?

No one remembered.

But anyone who had seen him fight would never forget his terrifying power. And now, though he had perhaps only shown a fraction of that power, it was still enough for one to sense an indescribable horror.

Due to their proximity to the battle, the spectating Captains had to raise their own Reiatsu for defense to avoid being caught in the crossfire and ending up in a sorry state. After all, the boy had challenged the Captain-Commander; even if he was soundly beaten, it would be an honorable defeat. But for them, long-established Captains, to get messed up just from watching would be far too embarrassing.

However, watching the golden flames instantly transform into an endless sea of heat that consumed everything—up, down, left, and right, with only fire visible wherever one looked, even dyeing the sky a golden orange—one couldn't help but worry if the young man who had challenged the Captain-Commander had already lost all ability to resist after just that one blow.

After all, to put it bluntly, if the Captain-Commander was serious, the temperature of his flames could rival that of the sun!

With one swing of his sword, Yamamoto stood motionless. Only the flames danced, and the sound of them licking at something echoed continuously.

The battle was over.

That was the message Yamamoto's stance seemed to convey.

However—

Suddenly, a section of the massive wave of flame that covered the field bulged outwards from above. A black shadow then slashed through the fire, flying out at high speed and landing in a higher area that the flames had not yet reached.

After just one blow, he was already in a completely battered state. His yukata was riddled with burnt holes, and the skin beneath showed several burns. More than the direct damage from the terrifying flames, the real threat was the continuous, intense heat. A moment of carelessness could cause the moisture in one's body to evaporate instantly!

Standing above the sea of fire, Ling Qing gasped for air, but the air he inhaled was so scorching that it felt as if his lungs were being burned, a faint, painful sensation.

In the instant the flames had struck, Ling Qing had condensed his Reiatsu to its absolute limit to protect himself, while simultaneously pushing his slashing speed to its peak, beating back the surging flames to avoid the worst of the blow. Even so, he now felt an immense and terrifying pressure.

The power of Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni, the thousand-year Shinigami, had been fully demonstrated with just a single, casual strike! This was different from the defense he had painstakingly broken through earlier. Once Yamamoto went on the offensive, he was as fiery and powerful as the sun itself—immovable.

Ling Qing had heard rumors that Yamamoto's Shikai alone was comparable to another Captain's Bankai, and could even surpass most of them. Ling Qing had never taken such power-leveling rumors seriously. After all, such comparisons were too simplistic. A battle depended on many factors: the environment, tactics, power levels, psychology, and even preparation. It was not impossible for the weak to defeat the strong. Relying on such simple comparisons was meaningless.

But now, the Ling Qing who had held such beliefs had to admit, though he had never seen another Captain's Shikai or Bankai, that this power of Yamamoto's... was not something he could defeat in his current state.

This casual strike from Yamamoto was far stronger than the final attack of the Adjuchas.

"Oh? You still have the strength to breathe? It seems I was too lenient with you."

As if not intending to wait for a response, the moment his words fell, Yamamoto swung his ancient tachi upwards once more. The rushing flames coiled upwards like a fire dragon, surging towards Ling Qing from all directions like a living entity.

Ling Qing hurriedly swung his long tachi, extinguishing the flames that came for him one by one!

Yamamoto was indeed overwhelmingly powerful, but that didn't mean Ling Qing was powerless to fight back. The power within Ling Qing's body was boiling. He unleashed it all without reservation, his strength and will focused solely on resisting Yamamoto!

All his power was channeled into his longsword. The blade, concentrated with all of Ling Qing's might, was swung, tearing apart the surging waves of fire! Compared to the scorching inferno, his attack was the cold silence and dark finality of death.

One slash was not enough, so he made two. Two were not enough, so he made three!

What looked like a single sword stroke was actually a dense barrage of silver arcs, one after another. These arcs cut through the wave of fire, parting it like the Red Sea, creating a straight path. Seven or eight brilliant arcs even cut through the remaining flames and rushed towards Yamamoto.

Yamamoto let out a cold snort. He swung Ryūjin Jakka, and the flames that enveloped him surged, blowing away all seven or eight of the sharp, silver arcs.

However, Ling Qing had already charged through the path he had just carved, launching an attack on Yamamoto without a hint of retreat!

By the time Yamamoto noticed, a strange shadow had quietly appeared within the surging golden flames.

The next moment, a silver flash that seemed to tear through space itself was almost upon him.

"Jōkaku Enjō! (Fortress Blaze!)"

A powerful, resonant shout!

Suddenly, a clear space erupted around Yamamoto. The flames surrounding him were instantly repelled to a distance of two meters from his body. And the突击 that was almost upon him was also pushed back.

This technique was one of Yamamoto's defensive moves. When an enemy attacked from behind or launched an attack too fast for him to raise his sword to defend, he would instantly detonate everything around him with fire, delivering a point-blank attack to the enemy. So, strictly speaking, the space that had suddenly cleared was not because the flames were repelled, but because they had been instantly detonated. And the repelled sword was not pushed back, but blasted away.

To be able to launch an attack of this magnitude against Yamamoto, despite the absolute difference in power, and without even having achieved Shikai?

The spectating Captains had been surprised countless times in this short period, but they were still astonished by what was happening before their eyes.

But in truth, it was precisely because Yamamoto possessed such absolute, dominating power that he would not have any killing intent towards Ling Qing. The terrifying flames and the unbearable heat—that was the truly frightening aspect of Yamamoto's power.

The reason Ling Qing was able to launch such a powerful offensive was because he had cast all of that aside, completely ignoring the damage the flames and heat would inflict on him, gritting his teeth and enduring the pain, with only one thought in his mind: to leave a scar on Yamamoto!

If he could just leave his own mark on this invincible Shinigami, for Ling Qing, that would be a victory in itself!

-------

Enjoying the story? Support the author and get access to early chapters by joining my Patreon!

Find me at My : pat*eon*com/RuneA

I, Herta's Fiancé, the Universe's Number One Male Fist (111 Chapter)

Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Succubus in Sixth Street (220 Chapter)

Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (220 Chapter)

MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (90 Chapter)

BLEACH: Blade of Purification (100 Chapter)

Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (260 Chapter)

My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (98 Chapter)

The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp (100 Chapter)

Watching Yu-Gi-Oh! short videos is making the veteran players lose...(57 Chapter)

Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live (100 Chapter)

Zenless Zone Zero The Random Kamen Rider (100 Chapter)

Genshin Impact: It All Began With Me Being Stepped On by Arlecchino (70 Chapter)

Naruto: I Can Synthesize Summoning Beasts (40 Chapter)

Demon Slayer: The Great Swordsman's System, Disciple of Yoriichi (61 Chapter)

My Wife is a General, but I'm an Emanator of Abundance! (40 Chapter)

If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it.