Chương 4: First Encounter with Bankai

"Whoosh!"

With Ailin's group's speed, in just a few dozen seconds, they had already arrived at a small battlefield.

At this small battlefield, there were five people holding strange weapons surrounding and attacking a Shinigami wearing a Shihakushō.

What made the weapons in the hands of the five people strange was that the hilts of these weapons did not have cross-guards, but rather something resembling octopus tentacles.

Moreover, these octopus tentacles seemed alive as they writhed along the five people's right hands and plunged into their arms.

The reason Ailin felt their Reiatsu was chaotic was that part of the Reiatsu from these people's bodies came from the blades they wielded.

Bakkōtō Blades!

The weapon held by the Shinigami they surrounded was a spear. Generally, the weapons of Shinigami were Zanpakutō blades. However, every Shinigami could merge their soul with an Asauchi through "Zanpaku-tō" to give birth to a Zanpakutō unique to themselves.

By calling out their Zanpakutō's name, a Shinigami could obtain its power. Usually, after releasing their Shikai, a Zanpakutō's shape and abilities would undergo changes.

Clearly, this Shinigami was a powerful warrior capable of releasing his Shikai. One could tell how strong this Shinigami was from how bolts of lightning shot out from the tip of his spear each time he swung it, knocking down the warriors besieging him.

Yet after the fallen warriors channeled Reiryoku into their Bakkōtō Blades, they quickly recovered and stood up again to continue surrounding and attacking this Shinigami.

"Are you reinforcements from the Gotei 13? Please assist us in capturing this criminal." Upon seeing Ailin's group arrive, one of the warriors immediately asked them for help.

Although they saw that their opponent was a fellow Shinigami, the orders received by the Penal Force for this mission were to assist the Kasumiōji Clan in suppressing the attackers.

Hence, Ailin and the others had no choice but to unsheathe their Zanpakutō from their waists and charge at the Shinigami.

Seeing Ailin's group approach, this Shinigami's movements visibly paused for a moment. However, after Ailin's group joined the battle, he did not show any mercy. The spear-wielding youth effortlessly parried Ailin's group's joint attack.

Sensing the power behind the blows of the youth's spear, Ailin's whole body shuddered as a tremendous force was transmitted through the spear, forcing his body to involuntarily retreat backwards.

"Not good!"

Having just been pushed back, Ailin immediately saw a flash of blue light. In that instant, Ailin didn't bother considering anything else and hastily stretched out his empty left hand, placing the back of his hand facing outwards.

"Bakudō Number 8 - Repulse!"

A transparent barrier emerged before the back of Ailin's outstretched hand. The next moment, an attack arrived.

After repelling the incoming Shinigami, the youth let out a loud shout as blue lightning crackled along his spear.

"Lightning Strike!"

"Boom!"

Following the youth's swing, the lightning instantly transformed into dozens of thunderbolts, bombarding everyone present.

"Boom!"

Struck by this lightning, the other warriors were instantly gravely injured.

On Ailin's side, because he had unleashed Bakudō Number 8 beforehand to block the lightning for an instant, the barrier was only shattered after the lightning's power had weakened somewhat.

"Thud!"

Capitalizing on the moment the Eighth Binding Spell barricaded the lightning, Ailin executed his own response.

"Projection— Sword Shield!"

Blue spiritual power coalesced before Ailin, condensing into over a dozen swords that combined to form a shield made of blades.

As long as it was a weapon from his Unlimited Blade Works, Ailin only needed to expend some Reiryoku to project it into the real world.

However, because they were just projections of the weapons from his inner world, their rank was one level lower than the "originals" inside Unlimited Blade Works.

"Boom!"

The lightning collided with the sword shield, shattering over half of it after its power was reduced from destroying one Kidō spell. Only then did the remaining energy completely dissipate.

Riding on the aftermath, Ailin was pushed back some more distance before firmly stopping himself.

"Hmm?"

Seeing that Ailin was the only one left standing from the group, the youth had wanted to continue his attack. But the Kasumiōji Clan's Bakkōtō Blade warriors, empowered by their weapons, quickly recovered and rejoined the encirclement.

Witnessing this scene, Ailin was in no hurry to participate in the encirclement. Instead, he rushed over to one of his comrades, placing his hands above the Shinigami's body as blue light radiated from them.

Healing Kidō!

Among Ailin's numerous copied Zanpakutō were several Penal Force members well-versed in healing spells. After assimilating their experiences, Ailin was now comparable to anyone in recuperative Kidō.

"Thanks bro, I'll treat you to drinks after we're done with this mission."

"Sounds good. Please go distract him for now while I heal the others."

"Got it."

Next, after successively treating his other injured comrades, Ailin assumed the role of battlefield medic.

The Kasumiōji Clan's warriors had their Bakkōtō Blades to recuperate.

Ailin's healing Kidō supported his injured Second Division allies.

After a dozen or so minutes, three of the Kasumiōji Clan's warriors had died while three of the five Second Division members were heavily injured, drastically decreasing their combat power. However, this youth was also barely holding on.

"Kill!"

In another wave of attacks, substantial auras of Reiryoku emerged from the bodies of the Kasumiōji warriors. The tentacles of their Bakkōtō Blades had now crept past their necks to their chests and below.

At this state, although a Bakkōtō Blade warrior was still weaker than the youth, the gap had narrowed significantly. Soon, several more wounds appeared on the youth's body.

Just when it seemed the youth could no longer endure, Ailin suddenly sensed an overwhelmingly powerful Reiatsu rapidly approaching them. Sensing the impending danger, he immediately grabbed one heavily injured Shinigami onto his back while holding the other two injured in his hands and fled the battlefield as swiftly as he could.

"Boom!"

In the distance, a tremendous fiery explosion sent Ailin's group flying violently through the air.

"Cough... damn, did they lose control of the main battlefield? To actually let that person charge over here instead..."

Clambering up from the ground, Ailin felt his entire body aching. Looking back, he saw a man walking out from the raging flames. In his hand was an enormous curved blade with a crimson groove running through its center.

Strands of fire burned within this indentation on the massive sword. The surrounding air warped and rippled from the scorching high temperature.

At the same time, the Reiatsu emanating from this man's entire body made Ailin feel as if he were submerged in the ocean depths. Simply moving was already difficult, let alone breathing - that seemed nothing more than wishful thinking.

"Captain-class. This is undoubtedly the Reiatsu of a Captain!"

"Moreover, from the state of his Zanpakutō, he has clearly activated his Bankai!"