CHAPTER 476: CHAPTER 476: FIRSTHAND EXPERIENCE

Lilynette held her dual pistols in both hands, while ten Reishi lightsabers floated around her body. She was clearly far more proficient and fluid in her control of power than Starrk.

Their original form had been capable of splitting into two beings, a testament to their exceptional mastery over Reishi and soul structure.

Although it was never explicitly stated in the original work, seeing the scene before him, Masatsuki Aozaki couldn’t help but harbor a strong suspicion—perhaps Lilynette was the true main body.

After all, their original self had been so powerful that it felt crushingly lonely. In an attempt to become weaker, it separated off the stronger part—Starrk.

In that light, it would make perfect sense if the relatively weaker Lilynette were the original.

...

At that moment, Kenpachi Zaraki charged forward without hesitation, dragging his massive, jagged blade behind him.

His eyes gleamed with ferocity, wild and savage like a beast, throwing himself into battle without a hint of fear.

In the world of the Shinigami, especially in the later stages, beings who mastered conceptual and rule-based powers had become commonplace. Relying on mere Shinigami strength alone was no longer enough.

To become stronger, one had to seek out stranger, more varied paths of evolution.

Kenpachi Zaraki sprinted with everything he had, kicking up clouds of dust behind him—when suddenly a brilliant blue glow surged forward, lighting up his demonic mask.

Reishi lightsabers launched in rapid succession, like a storm of blades. Under Lilynette’s precise control, they sealed off every possible escape route.

Watching the dense barrage, Masatsuki Aozaki murmured,

"A variant of Los Lobos?"

Lilynette’s sword formation closely resembled Starrk’s Los Lobos, but it was obvious her control far surpassed his. She could pull off such a complex technique without using soul fragments at all.

No way to dodge!

Faced with the incoming onslaught, Kenpachi Zaraki made the only choice he could—he braced himself and took it head-on.

A lightsaber smashed into his body with brutal force, unleashing a deafening explosion. In that moment, destruction and regeneration collided.

But Kenpachi wasn’t the type to flinch from pain. He was hurled back, skidding hundreds of meters across the ground before finally managing to stop himself.

Then, without missing a beat, he raised his Zanpakutō. At the tip of the blade, a radiant glow burst to life.

Sword Pressure!

A golden wave of searing energy blasted forth, slicing a crescent arc through the air.

It looked as if it could rip the sky itself apart, leaving shimmering trails of light in its wake.

"Huh? That actually worked?"

Lilynette raised a brow in surprise.

Sword pressure was one of the most basic techniques in a Shinigami’s arsenal. And the energy Kenpachi released was only comparable to one of her lightsabers.

Yet when the powerful slash clashed with the lightsaber array, the resulting energy collision triggered a chain reaction—each lightsaber detonated in succession.

"Was that just the instinct of a wild beast... or a total coincidence?"

She turned her head—but caught a blur of motion racing at her from the side.

Fast, purposeful strides.

He was trying to close the distance.

Trying to get close to me, just like that?

Her lips curled into a faint, mocking smile. Then she raised her dual pistols again.

Cero Metralleta!

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

With a sharp, screeching sound, countless beams of blue energy pierced through the air like a hail of bullets, ripping through the void and raining down toward Kenpachi Zaraki.

The beams were blindingly fast—arriving before him in the blink of an eye.

Was this the true power of the only fully autonomous Arrancar-born Menos?

Kenpachi had no time for further reaction. He slammed to a halt, but it wasn’t enough—the barrage of light smashed him straight into the ground.

...

As the dust began to settle, the once-smooth terrain had been transformed into a wrecked battlefield.

Crater upon crater covered the area, like the aftermath of an intense bombing run.

"That was close. This place almost got destroyed," Masatsuki Aozaki said casually, waving his hand.

Only then did the others notice that a cube made of six transparent barriers had quietly enveloped the area. The barrier previously cast by the Kidō corps had been completely obliterated the moment it collided with the barrage.

But it wasn’t over yet.

After the first wave of Cero attacks, the twin pistols in Lilynette’s hands suddenly transformed into two sharp long swords. A dull thud echoed beneath her feet, and in the next instant, she vanished from sight.

For her, this shift in combat style seemed effortless—if anything, she handled it with ease.

But just then, she spotted Kenpachi Zaraki, who had been crouched low, suddenly spring into the air. The long sword in his hand stabbed deep into the ground. Twisting his waist and core, he unleashed a surge of Reiatsu that instantly raised a wall of dust.

That wall was quickly shredded by the violent wind kicked up by her twin blades.

Lilynette narrowed her eyes. The swirling dust momentarily obscured her view of the target.

She hesitated for a second, then a dazzling light suddenly burst through the dust.

Cero!

Oh? So he used the dust to hide how unskilled he is at firing it?

Did turning into a monster actually make this guy smarter?

Lilynette muttered to herself.

The Cero tore through the dust from the opposite direction. She tapped the ground lightly and nimbly dodged aside.

Just as she was about to throw out a taunt, a sudden chill ran down her spine. She instinctively leaped to the side.

Bang!

A serrated long sword flew like a dart, embedding itself firmly in the spot where she’d just stood. It quivered violently.

"Damn it, I almost forgot—this guy’s not even a Hollow!"

She couldn’t help but curse under her breath, rolling backward in a messy retreat.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The beast-like figure charged on all fours, tearing through layers of air pressure barriers at astonishing speed. Deafening sonic booms echoed around them.

Who’s the real monster here?

Lilynette felt a surge of irritation. A Shinigami being this savage?

This is overkill! It’s one thing to slash people with a katana, but why is this Shinigami acting more like a Hollow than an Arrancar?

She saw Kenpachi Zaraki already within twenty meters, grabbing one of the fallen long swords with one hand while swinging the other like a beast’s claw. The glow on both blades intensified.

Sword Pressure!

With a swing, a trailing arc of energy shot out, striking Kenpachi and blasting him backward.

A gruesome wound split open across his body, blood spraying everywhere—but it healed almost instantly.

Watching the scene unfold, Masatsuki Aozaki couldn’t help but feel a pang of emotion.

Right now, the line between Hollow and Shinigami seemed to blur. Their actions and traits were beginning to overlap.

A Shinigami acting like a Hollow. A Hollow fighting like a Shinigami.

If that stubborn old man saw this, who knows what he’d think?

But it doesn’t matter—he’ll get to experience it himself soon enough.

What’s that? He doesn’t want to?

Too bad. This is a direct order from the Central 46!