Bleach: Watch Closely, This Is How You Use a Zanpakutō novel Chapter 185

Chapter 185 - 185: Thicket

Masatsuki Aozaki gently placed a hand on his chest, feeling the mysterious power radiating from the blue-black Hōgyoku embedded within him. It rested there quietly.

Suddenly, he snapped back to reality, his eyes sharpening with newfound clarity.

At that moment, he felt as if he had transcended the world, gazing down upon it from a lofty, otherworldly perspective. The vast spectacle of existence unfolded before him like a magnificent, vividly painted scroll.

And upon this immense tapestry, a pair of familiar eyes slowly opened, deep and wise beyond measure.

A strange sensation surged through Masatsuki Aozaki's heart.

He felt as though he knew this presence—as if, somewhere in his memory, he had once understood its true identity. Yet, as he faced it now, his recollection grew hazy and indistinct.

This contradiction unsettled him deeply.

Just then, a resonant, bell-like voice rang out:

"Go forward."

Forward? But where?

Masatsuki Aozaki found himself lost in thought.

An irresistible impulse stirred within him, compelling him to lift his gaze to the vast, empty sky. It felt as though all he had to do was take a single step, and he would ascend to an entirely new plane of existence.

Yet, that boundless emptiness carried an eerie sense of isolation—so vast, it was almost terrifying.

And in the next instant, everything would change beyond recognition.

He hesitated, standing frozen in place, debating whether to step into the unknown.

What lay beyond? What did this path truly mean? Was it worth pursuing without hesitation?

Questions flooded his mind, filling him with doubt.

Yet, his yearning for the unknown surged like an unstoppable tide, relentlessly eroding the barriers of his resolve.

Masatsuki Aozaki stepped forward, as if truly ascending into the heavens.

In that fleeting moment of uncertainty, reality snapped back into focus. He found himself seated, his body slack, as if he had merely drifted into a trance.

A second later, he blinked, then straightened as though nothing had happened.

"My Reiatsu hasn't increased... Is it because the Hōgyoku hasn't fully awakened yet?"

Muttering to himself, he slowly lowered his head, blinking thoughtfully.

The Hōgyoku had fused perfectly with his body, yet it hadn't triggered the evolution he had expected. There wasn't even the slightest sign of an increase in Reiatsu.

"It didn't raise my Reiatsu level... but I can tap into the immense Reiatsu stored within the Hōgyoku."

"In other words, the total amount of Reiatsu I can wield now far exceeds what I had before."

Masatsuki Aozaki contemplated this in silence.

Though his Reiatsu level remained unchanged, the sheer volume of Reiryoku at his disposal had multiplied several times over.

He nodded slightly, then shut his eyes, focusing his enhanced spiritual perception to its fullest extent.

His awareness expanded at a staggering rate, stretching across a vast radius of hundreds of miles—an area roughly a third the size of the Seireitei. In terms of the World of the Living, it was comparable to the entire landmass of Japan.

After a brief pause, his figure blurred into motion. In an instant, he became a streak of shadow, vanishing into the distant horizon like a fleeting gust of wind.

...

The strength test for the three Hollow girls had long since concluded, and they were now resting.

Among them, only Harribel caught a glimpse of Masatsuki Aozaki's retreating figure.

Considering the dangers that lurked within Hueco Mundo, she instinctively wanted to follow him.

But she quickly realized just how terrifyingly fast he was.

After pursuing him for a short distance, she understood that catching up was impossible. Left with no choice, she abandoned the thought.

"Masatsuki-sama, where are you going? Will there be danger?"

A trace of concern surfaced in Harribel's heart, but knowing that her own strength was insufficient, she could only sigh inwardly.

Boom! Boom! Boom! _{free.webn\ove(l)(.)c(o)m}

Three thunderous crashes echoed as the colossal beasts collapsed lifelessly onto the ground, never to rise again.

...

Guided by his sharpened spiritual perception—sensitive to even the most elusive fluctuations of Reiatsu—Masatsuki Aozaki pressed forward.

Eventually, he arrived at an isolated, concealed place, deep within the unknown reaches of Hueco Mundo.

Stretching endlessly before him was a dense forest, so vast it seemed without end.

After a long and difficult search, his gaze fell upon something unusual—an eerie grove of white trees.

They lacked color, sound, or scent. They simply existed, like a void given form.

These trees twisted together like brambles, their tangled branches tightly constricting a single, massive white tree at the center.

From a distance, it looked as if the giant tree had been shackled by countless heavy and merciless restraints, bound in endless torment.

"Could this be... part of the Soul King's body?"

Masatsuki Aozaki narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing the strange trees before him.

Within them, he sensed a familiar presence—an energy identical to the Soul King fragments he had collected before.

"But compared to those scattered fragments... something of this scale... Calling it 'Soul King's shards' doesn't seem fitting. 'Soul King's flesh' would be more accurate."

Taking a deep breath, he steadied himself before stepping toward the area where the Reiatsu was at its densest.

Each step was measured and cautious. He had no idea what awaited him.

Then—his expression suddenly changed.

...

(40 Chapters Ahead)

p@treon com / PinkSnake