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"Ahhhhhhhh—"
The Hollow's screams continued, but as it screamed, a fissure silently opened behind it.
I'm going to die~!
Although it was only a momentary contact, that instant had already made Grand Fisher realize that the young man in front of it was far from someone it could contend with; staying here would undoubtedly lead to its death.
Fortunately, the opponent had not taken it seriously from beginning to end; as long as it opened a Black Portal, it could immediately leave this place.
The screams from its mouth continued, and the dark fissure, concealed by Grand Fisher's massive body, gradually widened, but it wasn't a Black Portal large enough for a Hollow to pass through; its size was only enough for a human child to pass through, and only then could it avoid the terrifying young man in front of it and secretly return to Hueco Mundo.
The Imitation of Grand Fisher's head tentacles was not merely to imitate a human appearance; this Imitation itself was also its true body.
In short, both its current massive body and the 'little girl' Imitation on its head were its true body; no matter which one was injured, it could transfer to the other, and its current plan was to abandon its current tall body, transfer into the little girl Imitation, and then enter the Black Portal.
Grand Fisher's gaze was fixed on the young man talking to the mother and child by the riverbank, imprinting his face firmly in its mind.
Just wait, I'll come find you again.
Feigning a pained shake of its head, it flung the little girl Imitation towards the Black Portal behind it.
It succeeded!
However…
Bang!!
Water splashed, and the little girl it had flung did not enter the Black Portal but instead plunged headfirst into the river.
"What?"
Grand Fisher's pupils contracted, and it abruptly turned to look at the fissure behind it, a human-like expression of disbelief on its face.
It disappeared?
No!
Rather than disappearing, it was more like...
Someone had sealed the space, forcibly closing the Black Portal it had opened.
Grand Fisher subconsciously tried to tear space again, but there was no reaction… The space that could originally be easily torn open had become incredibly rigid; no matter how hard it tried, the surrounding space remained undisturbed.
How is that possible?
Grand Fisher seemed to recall something, and it abruptly turned its head, only then realizing that the young man by the riverbank, at some unknown point, had turned his gaze towards it, but there was no focus in his pupils, as if he were in a daze.
Did he do something?
As this thought surfaced in Grand Fisher's mind, it instinctively shook its head.
The ability to control space, ever since the Soul Society's inception, had been their exclusive ability as 'Hollows,' as easy to use as lifting a hand or foot.
Even if a Shinigami was strong, it was impossible for him to possess the ability to seal space.
Moreover, although such sealing abilities existed, as far as it knew… this was an ability possessed only by those monsters residing in Las Noches.
"Sigh—"
Just then, it noticed the young man by the riverbank, who was in a daze, suddenly sighed.
I gained something~
But I also lost something…
Ishikawa looked at the system prompt in his mind, his expression incredibly conflicted.
His current mood could be perfectly described as 'painfully happy' or 'happily painful'.
[Kurosaki Masaki's Affection +1, gained 500 experience points, current Affection: 50]
Current Experience Points: 157400.
Upon seeing this value, Ishikawa's expression grew even more conflicted.
Because of the 150,000+ experience points, 85,000 were experience Ishikawa already had, meaning Kurosaki Masaki's 50 Affection points only provided him with 72,400 experience points.
It wasn't that she was weak, but rather…
Her spiritual power, for some unknown reason, vanished in an instant.
Moreover, with the disappearance of spiritual power, which was the root of her soul, her own soul withered in that brief moment.
It could also be called…
Life force exhaustion!
[Kurosaki Masaki's Affection +1, gained 600 experience points, current Affection: 1]
[Kurosaki Masaki's Affection +1, gained 600 experience points, current Affection: 2]
[...]
[...Gained 1200 experience points, current Affection: 10]
[...]
[...Gained 2000 experience points, current Affection: 20]
[...]
[Kurosaki Masaki's Affection +1, gained 2000 experience points, current Affection: 30]
[...]
[Kurosaki Masaki's Affection +1, gained 1500 experience points, current Affection: 40]
...
Initially, the experience points Kurosaki Masaki provided Ishikawa were second only to Captain Unohana's 1500 experience points per 1 Affection point among everyone Ishikawa knew, reaching twice that of Kukaku at the same Affection level, 600 experience points per 1 Affection point.
At 20 Affection points, it doubled like with other people, but when Affection reached 30, it did not double as expected, but remained at 2000 experience points per Affection point.
After 40, it decreased instead of increasing.
The experience points provided after 50 Affection points were even less than what the initial 1 Affection point provided.
All these Affection points arose in a brief instant, and the changes in Kurosaki Masaki's body also began and ended in this brief moment.
She…
Was about to die.
Ishikawa turned his head to look at Kurosaki Masaki, who was leaving with her child, and the strange look that initially appeared in his eyes turned into realization.
He finally understood…
Why the terrifying spiritual power fluctuation, which occurred an instant before he arrived, suddenly vanished.
Auswählen!!
This was an ability to strip the power from all 'Quincy with corrupted bloodlines'.
Strictly speaking, rather than stripping, it was more like reclaiming the power that originally belonged to the one performing 'Auswählen'.
In just an instant, the terrifying spiritual power fluctuation around Kurosaki Masaki completely vanished as if evaporating into thin air.
Not only spiritual power, but with Ishikawa's proficiency in Kaido, he could clearly feel…
Kurosaki Masaki's soul's Soul Sleep, Soul Binding, and even Spirit Core, all collapsed in a brief instant, completely losing their function of generating spiritual power.
The reason Ishikawa said she was about to die was not because her physical body had a problem, but because her soul could no longer sustain itself.
Although she didn't die at Grand Fisher's hands, as time passed, her soul would gradually collapse, and when her soul completely dissipated, she would die with her physical body perfectly intact.
The collapse of the soul was absolutely incurable and could not be delayed; the duration of the collapse process would depend on the individual's soul density.
For those with weak soul density, perhaps their soul would dissipate into Reishi within two or three months; for those with strong soul density, this collapse process might last for two or three years.
But the outcome could not be changed.
She couldn't have been unaware of the changes in herself, yet from beginning to end, her attention was focused on the child in her arms, completely disregarding her own changes.
Her Affection for him wasn't because he saved her, but because, in her eyes, he saved her child.
A look of apprehension flashed through Ishikawa's eyes.
Everything happened right before his eyes, even beside him, yet he didn't detect the slightest abnormality, not even a tiny bit.
If he didn't already have the answer in his memory, he wouldn't even know what had just happened in that instant.
He couldn't see how the spiritual power was transferred at all, it was invisible to the naked eye, and it didn't stir any Reishi fluctuations; everything was completed silently.
He arrived a step too late!
If he had arrived just a little earlier, although the result wouldn't change, the experience points he could have gained would have been many times higher than now.
As for stopping it…
That was absolutely impossible!
Because 'Auswählen' could be said to be a contract of bloodline and soul; outsiders couldn't even detect it, let alone stop it.
Ishikawa's gaze shifted, looking at the boy Kurosaki Masaki held in her arms, who was watching him with wide eyes, then he immediately withdrew his gaze and looked at the river.
A male who couldn't bring him experience points, no matter how special, held no value whatsoever for Ishikawa.
Under the pouring rain, two figures, one large and one small, were engaged in a fierce battle in the middle of the river.
So strong—
Sugawa Hato's face was incredibly grim, and he couldn't help but feel a surge of regret.
Earlier, when he saw the guy who invaded his jurisdiction and snatched his performance points in a daze, Sugawa Hato was very excited, wanting to take advantage of that bastard's daze to eliminate this Hollow in one fell swoop…
But what he didn't expect was…
This Hollow, which was crippled by that young man's single blow, was incredibly strong!
He wanted to ask the young man on the bank for help, but he was too embarrassed to ask for assistance.
After all, he had taken advantage of the other person's daze to snatch the Hollow that person had crippled, and as a result… he was beaten to a pulp by the Hollow that person had crippled.
And just as Sugawa Hato occasionally cast his gaze towards the young man on the bank, the Hollow he was fighting also observed the young man on the bank.
Beep beep beep beep—
Just then, a ringing sound suddenly came out.
The man and the Hollow in the center of the river both looked towards the source of the sound.
Ishikawa pulled out the Denreishinki from his pocket, looked at the number on it, and his mouth twitched slightly; after holding the Denreishinki away a bit, he pressed the connect button.
"Why don't you go for it!!"
As expected, as soon as it connected, a frantic roar came from the Denreishinki: "Please, Lord Ishikawa, stop being in a daze!"
Tsk—
Ishikawa clicked his tongue, children with parents are truly happy.
That being said, Ishikawa still raised his hand and pointed at the void in front of him.
"Hadō No. 4: Byakurai."
Almost the instant Ishikawa raised his hand, an intensely strong sense of crisis surged within Grand Fisher's heart, instinctively wanting to tear space and escape, completely forgetting about its previous inability to open a Black Portal.
But it tore open…
In just an instant, a huge Black Portal appeared behind it, causing it to rush into the Black Portal without even pausing to feel bewildered.
However…
Buzz—
Thunder suddenly appeared, replacing all light in the world, like a thunderbolt, illuminating the entire riverbank.
The deafening roar of thunder echoed through the sky.
In the blink of an eye, the lightning bolt that shot out from his fingertip landed on Grand Fisher, turning its entire upper body, including its head, into ashes in that instant.
The terrifying scene left Sugawa Hato stunned in place.
After a long while, he came back to his senses and looked towards the bank, discovering that the young man in black work clothes on the bank had disappeared from his original spot at some unknown time.
...
Golden Seal Association headquarters.
A completely black butterfly flew out from the shimmering Senkaimon, with Ishikawa following closely behind.
"Ishikawa-sama."
As soon as Ishikawa stepped out of the Senkaimon, a tall figure came to greet him, a sweet smile on her face: "You've worked hard."
"Long time no see, Miss Hoki Aoi."
Upon seeing the person, Ishikawa almost instinctively showed a faint smile, his gaze revealing a heartwarming warmth: "Have you read the book I recommended to you last time?"
This tall figure was Hoki Aoi, who was responsible for handling noble affairs within the Golden Seal Association.
"Mhm."
Hoki Aoi nodded: "As Ishikawa-sama said, that book really suits my taste."
After exchanging pleasantries, Ishikawa did not stay long and bid farewell.
Hoki Aoi's Affection for him had already reached 35 points after a long period of cooperation; mere pleasantries could not increase Affection, so Ishikawa did not shamelessly cling to her for conversation, to avoid being overly intimate and causing a counterproductive effect.
After leaving the Golden Seal Association, Ishikawa observed the surrounding buildings, his expression unchanged, but his heart grew increasingly uneasy.
There was not the slightest abnormality.
Even though Auswählen had ended, the Seireitei still showed no changes whatsoever.
The spiritual power of countless 'Quincy with corrupted bloodlines', gathered together, was undoubtedly an incredibly terrifying force.
Yet, in reality, no one detected the existence of this power, not even in the Seireitei, where this power ultimately converged; no one knew what changes had occurred secretly.
This made Ishikawa's eyelid twitch involuntarily.
Because the more he understood, the more unsafe he felt staying in the Seireitei.
If it were just one or two dangerous individuals, that would be fine.
But…
Mad scientists, schemers, a certain prisoner, and even the enemy's main base… all piled up in this one place.
Just walking on the streets, Ishikawa felt like he was being watched by countless people.
In comparison, Rukongai was simply paradise!!
Ishikawa stopped dwelling on it, and as he walked towards the outskirts, he shifted his attention to the system interface in his mind, beginning to plan the use of his experience points.
150,000 experience points; there was no need to save all of them, just keep a few tens of thousands for leveling up when hitting a bottleneck and for handling unexpected situations.
However, how to use them made Ishikawa somewhat conflicted.
It wasn't really a dilemma, because for him now, there were only two stats worth investing experience in.
Reiatsu: Top (202439 / 1000000)
Incantation Abandonment: High (1280 / 100000)
If he took 100,000 from the 150,000 experience points and invested them into Reiatsu, Ishikawa's Reiatsu strength would be considered mid-tier among the Captains of the Gotei 13; although still inferior to the top-tier ones, his self-preservation ability would be sufficient.
And if he took 100,000 experience points and invested them into 'Incantation Abandonment', then he would get a significant boost in both destructive power and self-preservation.
Because after 'Incantation Abandonment' reaches the top tier, he would be able to unleash the full power of high-level Kido numbered 60-89 without incantations, including Dankū and all Hadō except for Kurohitsugi No. 90.
Originally, Ishikawa's plan was to invest all experience points into Reiatsu and then practice Kido himself.
For the past six months, Ishikawa had been focused on 'Incantation Abandonment', but after half a year, with the occasional assistance of 1 or 2 experience points, he barely managed to go from the original 780 proficiency points to 1280 proficiency points.
At the current speed, even if he trained only this one without stopping, it would take him nearly 98 years.
Actually…
This speed, in the eyes of others, was already astonishingly fast.
Because compared to simple Kido, the difficulty of Incantation Abandonment was many times harder.
After pondering for a while, Ishikawa made his choice.
[Incantation Abandonment: Top (0 / 1000000)]
The development of Reiatsu, with the Development Spiritual Mark, had been steadily increasing.
But Ishikawa would absolutely not spend 98 years practicing 'Incantation Abandonment'; with that time, he could have practiced many high-level Kido to high, or even top, levels with the assistance of a small amount of experience points.
Current Experience Points: 58680.
...
At the same time, in the Human World.
Inside a clinic in South Karakura Town, a child shouted excitedly.
"It's the perverted big brother who doesn't wear clothes!"
"Huh?"
"The one who saved me and Mom is the perverted big brother everyone says doesn't wear clothes!"
join p atreon.com/KeyofStars and become a Sequence 9: Reader for advance chapters | Every 100 powerstones = 1 extra chapter | Report issues @discord.com/GVBdncd9Wr