Chapter 11: Chapter 11: The Chair Full of Power!
At Liyue Harbor, as the sun began to rise, the bustling port city was already coming to life. Sailors at the docks busily loaded and unloaded goods from the merchant ships, while the shops along the commercial streets opened their doors for business.
Inside the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, Zhongli sat on a stone bench in the courtyard, sipping his first cup of tea for the day, gazing up at the rooftop.
He was puzzled. Completely puzzled.
Up on the roof, Li Yue, who had crawled out of his coffin early, was sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, facing the rising sun. His Shallow Hit lay flat across his lap as he attempted to engage in one of the most important practices in awakening a Zanpakuto for a Shinigami: Sword Meditation.
The idea was to calm oneself, sink into the depths of one's mind, and enter their inner world where their Zanpakuto awaited.
Last night, after returning home from dinner, Li Yue jumped into his coffin and immediately opened the chat group. Being a good young man from the 21st century, how could he go to sleep without checking his phone first?
Even though the chat only had three members, he still had to scroll through it!
Kasumigaoka Utaha hadn't logged back in since the whole Aki Tomoya incident, but Aizen was there. Being a researcher, staying up late was routine for Aizen. Li Yue chatted with him about awakening his Zanpakuto and also about Hollowfication.
When Hollows became Arrancar through Shinigamification, releasing their Zanpakuto often made them look ugly since many Hollows weren't exactly attractive to begin with.
However, Hollowfication in Shinigami was different. It only involved wearing a mask, which was much cooler in appearance!
In the world of Bleach, style and coolness were the eternal themes!
Aizen had seriously explained the nature of Hollowfication and Shinigami powers to Li Yue, especially since Li Yue already had captain-level Reiatsu equivalent to Kensei Muguruma's. Awakening his Zanpakuto should be simple; Aizen himself had awakened his with just one session of sword meditation.
Li Yue suspected that Aizen was showing off, given how skilled he was at doing so.
So, early the next morning, Li Yue decided to try sword meditation for himself.
He calmed his mind, sinking his thoughts into the depths of his consciousness.
"Hey! Li Yue!"
In his mind, he reached his inner world, where his Zanpakuto would be waiting for him.
"Li Yue! Li Yue!"
Then, he would call out the name of his Zanpakuto.
"Li Yue, come down already!"
Well, calming down wasn't going as planned.
With a sigh of resignation, Li Yue opened his eyes and turned around. Below, Hu Tao was jumping up and down next to Zhongli, waving at him.
"Hu Tao, what's up?" Li Yue asked.
"Remember? We were supposed to go meet Xingqiu today!" Hu Tao reminded him, still bouncing around.
"A few days ago?" Li Yue was confused at first, then his eyes widened in realization.
"Ah! I remember now! I'll come down right away!"
Li Yue had managed to secure a place to stay at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor by helping Hu Tao sell luxury burial packages. His first big break came from publishing The Smiling Proud Wanderer with Xingqiu's help, but that wasn't enough to live on forever. Li Yue planned to submit more novels in the future—after all, it wasn't like he had to come up with original ideas. He had read plenty of martial arts novels to plagiarize.
He had agreed with Hu Tao to meet with Xingqiu today to discuss the publication of his second martial arts novel, The Legend of the Condor Heroes. Hu Tao had already helped him copy out the original manuscript.
Although Li Yue had come to Liyue, he couldn't read the characters of Teyvat. So, when copying the novel, he had to rely on others. Last time, Xingqiu had helped him, but the publisher had trouble understanding the text. Xingqiu had practically re-narrated the entire book. This time, Li Yue asked Hu Tao to be his scribe, so they needed to bring her to meet Xingqiu.
If only Inazuma weren't closed off to outsiders right now—Li Yue could've published a bunch of light novels at Yae Publishing House. With the two books from the chat group alone, he'd have plenty of content!
Jumping down from the roof, Li Yue followed Hu Tao out, leaving Zhongli behind to enjoy his tea in peace.
Li Yue and Hu Tao arrived at Feiyun Commerce Guild. The staff didn't stop them, letting them in right away. After all, one was a recent celebrity in Liyue Harbor, while the other was a long-time famous figure. Most importantly, both were close friends of their young master.
"Xingqiu! We're here!" Hu Tao called out loudly, even before seeing Xingqiu.
Hearing her voice, Xingqiu emerged from a nearby room, with one hand behind his back.
"No wonder I woke up in such a good mood today. It turns out I had esteemed guests coming!"
"Eh? Xingqiu, where'd you learn to talk like that?" Li Yue asked, curious.
"From your book, The Smiling Proud Wanderer! The sect leaders in there talk like this all the time," Xingqiu responded, still maintaining his pose with one hand behind his back. A few seconds later, though, his expression stiffened.
"Let me think... the most iconic character who talks like that is Yue Buqun. So, are you trying to be like Yue Buqun?" Li Yue asked with a mischievous smile, rubbing his chin.
"Are you aiming to be the 'Gentleman Sword'?"
"I'd rather not." Xingqiu quickly dropped his pose, looking exasperated.
"I just thought it sounded elegant, but being the Gentleman Sword isn't for me. After The Smiling Proud Wanderer was published, 'Gentleman Sword' went from a compliment to an insult."
"So, what brings you both here today?" Xingqiu asked.
"I've got a new martial arts novel. Hu Tao helped me scribe it, and we're ready to take it to the publisher," Li Yue explained.
"Oh? A new novel! Let me see it!" Xingqiu's eyes lit up with excitement. As a fellow martial arts author, he was eager to read it.
"It's right here!" Hu Tao handed over the manuscript for The Legend of the Condor Heroes, and Xingqiu immediately began reading, forgetting all about Li Yue and Hu Tao.
Both of them knew this was Xingqiu's usual habit—once he started reading, he tuned out the world. So, they found places to sit and called for the guild's servants to bring them breakfast.
Having skipped breakfast earlier, they figured it was the perfect opportunity to mooch some food from the Feiyun Commerce Guild.
The guild staff, knowing them well, promptly served up some dishes. As Li Yue and Hu Tao ate and chatted, Xingqiu remained engrossed in the manuscript. When they finished, Xingqiu was still reading, so Hu Tao started pitching the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's funeral packages to the guild's employees.
Though the exclusive luxury packages were popular, Hu Tao still promoted their regular services. After all, business was business, and promoting the half-price second tombstone deal was a great way to draw in new customers. Coming all the way to Feiyun Commerce Guild, she couldn't pass up the chance to advertise.
As Hu Tao wandered off to chat with the staff, Xingqiu continued reading, and Li Yue decided to sit on a chair, cross his legs, and resume his sword meditation.
Closing his eyes, he calmed his mind and allowed his thoughts to sink deeper, entering his inner world.
The dark void gradually brightened, and when Li Yue opened his eyes, he found himself under a clear blue sky. Looking down, he saw his attire had changed into a Shinigami's black uniform.
Success! This was his inner world, and since he was in his soul state, he was dressed in a Shinigami's Shihakusho.
Clenching his fist, Li Yue felt his freedom of movement and began to observe his surroundings.
What surprised him was the strange nature of his inner world. It appeared to be a floating island in the sky. Above him was the vast blue sky, while beneath his feet lay a desolate landscape of gray rocks and soil, with vines of the same dull hue creeping across the ground.
"Why does my inner world look so barren?" Li Yue wondered, puzzled. This didn't seem to match his carefree and fun-loving spirit at all! He immediately began searching for his Zanpakuto. If his inner world had already formed, then his Zanpakuto must have as well—it was just a matter of finding it.
Li Yue wandered across the floating island, scanning for his Zanpakuto. But no matter where he looked, all he saw was the same barren gray terrain and rocky landscape. That was, until he reached the edge of the island, where he finally spotted something different.
There, standing out starkly from the desolate surroundings, was a chair—brimming with power!
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone