In the end, the Quincy Empire had been defeated. Yhwach, having a portion of his power sealed, had been vanquished by Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto and forced into a thousand-year slumber.
In terms of potential, Yhwach surpassed Ichibei Hyōsube, who, in turn, surpassed Ailin. After all, as long as humans existed, Yhwach could continue to grow, eventually reaching the Soul King’s level.
“Black” and “swords,” however, were finite. There was only so much “black” in the world, only so many “swords.”
But Ailin, possessing knowledge of “swords” from other worlds, no one could say for certain what heights he might reach.
He suppressed the urge to absorb the power of the countless swords surrounding him and, with a flicker of Shunpo, appeared atop the sword hill. Standing there was another Ailin. It was his severed left arm, transformed into a clone.
After releasing Sōsuke Aizen, Ailin hadn’t recalled his clone. He had left it within Unlimited Blade Works to train and continue collecting swords.
Over the past twenty years, his clone had also surpassed the limits of a Shinigami. Even if it were to be released into the Seireitei, only Yamamoto and Zaraki, in their Bankai state, could pose a threat.
The clone shared Ailin’s thoughts and intentions. Therefore, upon seeing Zaraki release his Zanpakutō, it had already retrieved Nozarashi.
Now, with Ailin’s arrival, the clone’s expression turned serious.
A golden aura enveloped the clone, erupting in a powerful shockwave that radiated outward.
As the golden light dissipated, the clone’s skin had turned crimson. Two black markings, wide at the top, narrowing towards the bottom, ran from his forehead, across his eyes and down his cheeks.
The Zanpakutō in his hand had transformed into a strange cleaver with a shortened blade and a bent handle.
A powerful wave of energy shot forward, traveling a kilometer before dissipating.
“Such incredible power!”
Ailin’s clone’s eyes widened in awe. He had used nothing but brute force, a simple swing without any swordsmanship techniques. Yet, the attack was nearly as powerful as one of Ailin’s own.
How strong would he be at full power?
Ailin beckoned with his hand. A Zanpakutō rose from the ground, spinning in the air before landing in his grasp. It wasn’t from the sword hill, meaning it was an ordinary Zanpakutō.
Raising the blade, he swung down towards his clone.
A white energy wave, sharpened by his swordsmanship, shot towards the clone. Unlike the clone’s brute force attack, this slash was pure technique, its energy concentrated and refined.
Ailin's clone, facing the attack, simply spread his arms wide.
With Ailin’s current swordsmanship mastery, even a slash from an ordinary Zanpakutō possessed power comparable to a Hadō above level eighty.
But an attack of that magnitude couldn't even force the clone to take a step back. In fact, it hadn't even scratched his skin.
“What an incredible enhancement!”
Ailin gasped in astonishment. Nozarashi’s Bankai amplified physical strength to a terrifying degree.
Of course, physical enhancement was just its most basic ability.
A stronger body was necessary to contain its wild and potent spiritual pressure.
A Shinigami’s Bankai could increase their spiritual pressure by five to ten times.
Nozarashi, as a top-tier Zanpakutō, naturally amplified its wielder’s spiritual pressure tenfold upon activating Bankai.
Moreover, that amplified spiritual pressure was incredibly wild and destructive, difficult to control.
It granted Ailin's clone immense power, but if he couldn’t master it, he would be consumed by it.
At best, broken bones and severed limbs. At worst, he would become a living bomb, detonating in a massive explosion of spiritual pressure.
However, Ailin’s own spiritual pressure surpassed even his clone’s tenfold amplified reiatsu. Therefore, his control over Nozarashi’s Bankai was far superior to Zaraki’s.
Zaraki, after releasing his Bankai, had only been able to unleash a single attack before his arm was shattered.
Ailin's clone, on the other hand, could unleash several powerful attacks without losing control. The difference in their mastery was akin to a millennium of experience.
It was like Yamamoto. A thousand years ago, he had used Ryūjin Jakka’s Bankai to slay Yhwach, nearly destroying the Soul Society in the process. But a thousand years later, during the Thousand-Year Blood War, he had learned to fully contain Ryūjin Jakka’s flames within its blade.
For Zaraki to truly master Nozarashi, it would take him centuries, even a millennium, to reach Ailin’s clone’s current level.
However, while Nozarashi’s power was impressive, to Ailin, it was merely a bonus.
What he truly valued was its ability to enhance his physical strength.
After a series of tests with his clone, he sensed that his body, in Nozarashi’s Bankai state, was nearly as durable as Yhwach’s Blut Vene.
Ailin vanished, reappearing behind his clone. He casually tossed the Zanpakutō in his right hand aside and placed his palm on the clone’s back.
His clone offered no resistance.
He even spread his arms wide, suppressing his wild spiritual pressure to avoid interfering with Ailin’s actions.
“Synchronization—Begin!”
Blue lines snaked out from Ailin’s hand, slowly spreading across the clone’s body.
He was using “Synchronization” to analyze his clone in its Bankai state, treating it as a weapon.
However, since his clone wasn't an inanimate object, even with its cooperation, the process was slow.
Thankfully, both Ailin and his clone were patient.
The blue lines, though slow, eventually covered the clone entirely.
He now resembled a red circuit board with intricate blue markings.
Having completed Synchronization, Ailin began analyzing his clone. This process was even slower than Synchronization.
It had taken him three days to synchronize with his clone in its Bankai state. The subsequent analysis took nearly a month.
Thankfully, his clone’s spiritual pressure, having surpassed the limits of a Shinigami, allowed him to maintain his Bankai for such a long duration.
Of course, it was also because his clone was simply maintaining his Bankai, not actively fighting.
Having completed the analysis, Ailin retracted his spiritual pressure. Both he and his clone sighed in relief.
That month, to them, had felt like decades.
Analyzing a living being was far more complex than analyzing an inanimate object.
For inanimate objects, Ailin could synchronize and analyze them in an instant.
But living beings were different. Their spiritual pressure was constantly fluctuating, making them impossible to completely analyze.
It was only because he was analyzing his own clone, whose essence was identical to his, that he had been able to use himself as a reference point, successfully deciphering his current state.
Then, by comparing his state to his clone’s, he was finally able to fully analyze Nozarashi’s ability to enhance physical strength.
Closing his eyes, he reviewed the information he had gained, ensuring there were no errors. Then, he opened his eyes.
Red lines spread across his body, increasing his physical strength to an extraordinary degree.
He clenched his right fist and threw a punch towards his clone.
The clone, sharing his mind and intentions, knew what Ailin was about to do. Before Ailin even shouted, he raised his fist, meeting Ailin’s attack head-on.
Their fists collided, a crimson fist against a pale fist with red markings, erupting in a deafening roar. A powerful shockwave radiated outward.
However, Unlimited Blade Works’ spatial stability was far greater than the Soul Society’s. It had even merged with Ailin’s “King’s Seal,” a spatial treasure he had created, making the space’s reishi incredibly dense and active.
Thus, the shockwave, powerful enough to shatter mountains in the outside world, merely created a gentle breeze within Unlimited Blade Works, causing no damage.
Only through firsthand experience could he truly grasp the extent of his enhanced strength. He had used his clone’s Bankai state as a reference point. Therefore, the “Enhancement” he had applied to himself was aimed at replicating his clone’s level.
It seemed his efforts had paid off. He had finally bridged the gap between himself and Ichibei Hyōsube and Yhwach.
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