Kenpachi Zaraki continued walking forward, his demeanor indifferent.
"Do whatever you want," he muttered dismissively.
Soi Fon turned to her team and issued swift orders.
"Leave ten members to protect the medical team. The rest of you, follow me!"
As soon as she finished speaking, her figure vanished in an instant, disappearing into the dense mist.
The Stealth Force members followed her lead, using their flash step to vanish one after another.
Meanwhile, the remaining forces continued their steady march forward.
The closer they got to the Plains of Death, the stronger the Hollow presence became, and the more intense the battle lust in Kenpachi's eyes grew.
Meanwhile, within the Plains of Death.
Soi Fon, leading the Stealth Force, arrived at the destination with incredible speed.
Even at the outskirts of the area, the dense mist reduced visibility to less than twenty meters.
Not daring to be careless, Soi Fon shouted,
"Everyone, stay on high alert!"
Although no one responded verbally, every member immediately heightened their vigilance to the maximum.
"Our primary objective is to avoid direct combat with the Hollows while locating the edge-guarding unit!"
"They've been operating in this environment for years and know this area far better than we do."
"Only by cooperating with them can we quickly quell this Hollow Chaos!"
"Now, disperse!"
Whoosh! Whoosh!
At her command, the Stealth Force members scattered in all directions.
While they weren't particularly strong in combat, their mastery of flash step made them exceptional in reconnaissance and survival.
"Alert! Hollows spotted!!"
Moments later, someone shouted the warning.
Soi Fon immediately used flash step to head toward the source of the call.
In truth, she had already sensed the spiritual pressure before the warning was given but hadn't pinpointed its exact location.
Now fully confirmed, she wasted no time and appeared directly above the Hollow.
"Windmill!!"
Her body spun rapidly in mid-air before delivering a powerful downward kick.
Boom!
The white mask of the Hollow cracked under her strike, and it collapsed to the ground, rendered motionless.
The nearby Stealth Force member stared in awe.
As expected of Captain Soi Fon, a master of Hakuda (hand-to-hand combat)—one strike was all it took.
"Don't just stand there! Keep moving!" Soi Fon barked.
"Yes!" The member quickly resumed their assignment.
Soi Fon remained at her current position, using it as a central coordinate to monitor the situation across different areas.
After all, venturing deeper into the mist would reduce visibility to less than five meters, making reconnaissance increasingly difficult.
Suddenly, Soi Fon sensed a faint spiritual pressure ahead.
Although it was weak and erratic, it was unmistakably that of a Soul Reaper.
Her eyes narrowed.
"An exile?"
Flash step!
Without hesitation, she disappeared from her spot and rushed toward the source.
The tactical planning before entering this area had been necessary because the Plains of Death were too unpredictable.
Without the help of the exiles who had survived here for years, the mission would be significantly more challenging.
Within three seconds, Soi Fon located the source of the spiritual pressure.
It was indeed an exile, identifiable by the distinct white markings on their Shihakusho (Soul Reaper uniform).
However, what she saw made her pupils contract.
The man was lying on the ground, his face pale, and his body—only the upper half remained.
When he saw Soi Fon, a glimmer of hope appeared in his lifeless eyes.
In a hoarse voice, he pleaded,
"Ca... Captain... Please save me... I don't want to die..."
He crawled toward her with his hands, dragging his mutilated body across the ground.
The gruesome sight made even Soi Fon feel a chill.
But she quickly regained her composure and asked urgently,
"What happened? Where is the source of the Hollow Chaos? What about the rest of the edge-guarding unit?!"
She fired off three questions in quick succession.
The man struggled to lift his head, his voice filled with pain.
"Be careful... Beware of them... their ambush..."
"Them?"
"Are you referring to the Hollows?"
Soi Fon was about to ask further when suddenly, a twisted spiritual pressure descended from above!
The oppressive force momentarily took her breath away.
"A flying Hollow?!"
Reacting instantly, she used flash step to retreat.
The moment she moved, a massive black crow-like Hollow descended from the sky, crushing the exile beneath its claws.
Boom!
Before Soi Fon could react further, an even stronger spiritual pressure surged from behind her.
"What?!"
Her body tensed in shock.
This was impossible!
A Hollow with such immense spiritual pressure should have been detectable from a hundred meters away!
How could it appear without any warning?!
There was no time to dwell on the mystery—another attack was already incoming.
Using her high-speed flash step, she evaded in another direction.
"This place... something is wrong! I need to leave immediately!"
After surviving two sudden ambushes, Soi Fon realized something was amiss.
These Hollows seemed to have adapted to the high concentration of spiritual particles in the Plains of Death, making them far more formidable than ordinary Hollows.
Although she wasn't afraid of them, the situation would be disastrous if other Stealth Force members encountered them.
In an instant, she made her decision.
She had to return to the previous coordinate point and recall all reconnaissance members immediately!
But just as she prepared to use flash step, another unexpected development occurred.
The surrounding mist began to solidify, forming a massive transparent barrier that completely trapped her inside.
"This... is a barrier?!"
Before she could fully grasp the situation, blades of air materialized within the barrier, slashing toward her!
"A trap-based barrier?!"
Her expression turned grim as she dodged with flash step, extending her hand toward the barrier wall.
"Bones of beasts scattered across the stars!"
"Crimson tower, steel wheels!"
"Motion is wind, stillness is void! The sound of spears clashing fills the empty castle!"
"Hado #63: Raikoho!!"
Boom!!
Golden lightning erupted from her palm, crashing into the barrier wall.
To her shock, the moment the lightning struck the barrier, it twisted and reversed direction, hurtling back toward her!
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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