Chapter 12: Chapter12: Give me the Zanpakutou!
Li Yue found himself on what looked like a floating island in the sky, surrounded by a landscape of grayish-white earth and vines, with a plastic chair sitting at the edge of the island, facing away from him.
Element detected!
Li Yue's gaze sharpened instantly. He adjusted his already tidy clothes, cleared his throat, and confidently walked toward the plastic chair.
From a distance, all he could see was the chair, but as he got closer, he noticed someone sitting in it. The figure seemed small, and all he could make out was a tuft of white hair peeking above the chair's back.
Of course! This fits my vibe perfectly as a mischief-maker!
Li Yue's lips curled into a satisfied smile as he approached the chair.
"Hey, my friend, your lonely days are over."
He extended his right hand.
"Give me the Zanpakutou!"
"If you want it, then you'll have to take it."
A light voice responded. The figure sitting in the plastic chair slowly stood up, reaching for a long blade with a white hilt beside them. Then, the person stepped away from the chair.
"But you already knew that."
Long white hair cascading down to her waist, crimson eyes, a delicate pale face, wearing a modern short-sleeved kimono, paired with short white socks and black geta sandals. She wasn't even 160 cm tall! Absolutely perfect. It was like she was dancing on his innermost desires!
Li Yue gave a satisfied nod. His Zanpakutou was not some burly man in sunglasses but a white-haired, red-eyed girl. Amazing! His soul knew him too well!
Raising his right hand, Li Yue hoisted his Shallow Hit onto his shoulder, a smile spreading across his face.
"I had a feeling you'd say that."
"How many times have we fought?"
The white-haired girl tilted her head slightly.
"Not once! This is our first meeting."
Li Yue unsheathed his Shallow Hit and pointed it at her. The girl's lips curled upward.
"Time to finish this, girl."
She raised her hand, flicking her blade from its sheath.
"Once and for all!"
The two stood face-to-face, staring each other down before both of them grinned at the same time.
"Hahaha~~~"
"Gegegege~~~"
They both burst into laughter simultaneously.
"That's it, exactly what I expected! As expected of my Zanpakutou!" Li Yue laughed while pointing at the girl, who looked entirely smug.
"Of course. A Zanpakutou is born from the soul, it's practically your other half. Since I'm your other half, how could I not know exactly what you're thinking? Just like that favorite line of ours."
"No one knows me better than I know myself!" they both declared in unison.
Their perfect synchronization led them to share another knowing glance before they laughed even harder.
"Hahaha~~"
"Gegegege~~"
After laughing for a while, Li Yue stopped and started examining the girl carefully, rubbing his chin. The girl, noticing his stare, put one hand on her hip, flipped her hair with the other, and let him admire her.
"Well? Am I pretty?"
"Gorgeous! As expected of my Zanpakutou. Your looks are absolutely my type!" Li Yue gave her an enthusiastic thumbs up, stating his honest thoughts without any hesitation.
"Of course! I'm your other half, after all. No one understands your tastes better than I do. Just like how you love beautiful girls, I do too. Since your soul space doesn't have any other beautiful girls for me to admire, I figured I might as well become one myself so I can admire myself."
Brilliant. No beautiful girls to look at? Just become one yourself so you can admire your own reflection. It was like the classic group chat competitions where they dressed up in maid outfits to see who could pull off cross-dressing better. This was peak "mischief-maker" thinking!
"Just like in those games you used to play, with ship-girls and gun-girls, I'm your sword-girl now. We're both happy with this result, aren't we?" The girl's words made Li Yue raise both hands in agreement.
"Exactly! A character like this has to be a beautiful girl. No one pulls for the guy characters!"
"Hah, but didn't you pull for Zhongli, Kazuha, and Neuvillette?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
"My friend, you know me too well. I only pull for beautiful girls. Male characters can't tempt me—unless…"
"Unless they're too strong!" the girl finished for him.
"Exactly! The weight of the Geo Archon is reassuring, and as for Kazuha—well, he's Anemo, and in Genshin Impact, you have to pull for the Archons. As for Neuvillette… well, there's a team comp called Neuvillette Burst!" Li Yue explained with a grin.
"Poor Barbatos," the girl quipped, giving him a thumbs up in approval.
"But I am curious about one thing," Li Yue pointed at her outfit.
"You're definitely my type—white hair, red eyes, and white stockings—but why are you wearing a kimono? You know I'm a huge fan of school uniforms, especially those with skirts that don't reveal akabura! My mind's always on my lovely students. You should be thinking the same as me, right? So why a kimono?"
"What? You don't like kimonos? Besides, students in Shining School wear kimonos too. Do you have a problem with Hyakki Yagyo Academy?" she teased.
"Not really. Kimonos are still in my range of tastes, but I think school uniforms look better."
"That's because you're shallow. You only like school uniforms because they show more skin. You perv!" the girl taunted, as if seeing right through him.
"As for why I'm wearing a kimono, it's related to my name. You should know that a Zanpakutou's name means something."
"Ah, I get it now." Li Yue nodded, instantly understanding.
The girl also nodded knowingly before crouching down slightly, meeting his eyes.
"Well then, enough talk. It's time to get started."
Li Yue blinked in confusion.
"Wait, you're serious?"
"Of course I'm serious. Did you think I was joking? You are me, and I am you. You should know your own personality by now. If there's anyone to mess with…"
"It's gotta be myself!"
Li Yue's face darkened. He had completely forgotten this part. As someone who thrived on chaos, Li Yue loved watching drama unfold at the expense of others—so naturally, his other half, his Zanpakutou, would be the same. Now, his Zanpakutou was ready to turn the tables on him!
"This is the fun, my friend!" The girl gripped the sheath of her sword with her left hand, crouching slightly as her right hand grasped the hilt. Blue energy sparked around her, and her aura shifted dramatically.
"Wait, are we really doing this from the start?!" Li Yue's eyes widened, preparing to run.
But before he could take a step, everything around him turned black and white.
In his vision, white lines began appearing, cutting his world into pieces.
CRACK—
Like shattered glass, Li Yue's world fragmented along the lines, and an overwhelming pain surged through him.
"Crap!"
When he opened his eyes again, he was back in reality, sitting cross-legged on the chair. Xingqiu was still engrossed in his book, oblivious to what had happened. The Shallow Hit on Li Yue's lap had transformed into a long sword with a white hilt and a black sheath.
Grabbing the sword with his left hand, Li Yue stood up and rubbed his neck with his right hand. The sensation of being sliced into pieces still lingered, even though he was back in the real world. The pain in his neck felt too real.
"No doubt about it—she's truly my other half, pranking me right from the start."
With a sigh, Li Yue glanced down at the sword in his hand. Despite being tricked, he had gained an excellent result. Both the appearance and the abilities of his Zanpakutou were top-tier. As expected from his soul!
Gripping the hilt with his right hand, Li Yue spoke the release command that he had learned when he was cut down.
"Sever the world—Yamato!"
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone