Chapter 505
, Form 1: I said we would meet.
Chapter 505, First Form: I said we would meet.
Clang! Clang! Clang...
The heavy, penetrating sound of metal clashing echoed again and again in the vast, desolate天地 (heaven and earth), carrying far and wide before finally dissipating into the boundless sky.
This sound has been heard here for hundreds of years.
The source of the sound was a vast, monochromatic wasteland.
The land was cracked, the rocks were exposed, and even the sparse drought-resistant plants looked withered. Hot winds swept through, stirring up dust, and there was no sign of life.
However, in the very center of this wasteland, the earth seemed to have been ripped out, forming a huge circular depression with neat edges, deep and vast, like a pupil.
In stark contrast to the desolate wasteland around it, at the bottom of this depression lies a vibrant oasis, with lush vegetation layered upon layer and a winding river encircling it.
The continuous sound of forging came from the heart of this oasis.
There stood a building that resembled a tall tower, but it was completely different from the style of this planet. It was entirely black, and its surface was covered with intricate and complex red circuits.
These patterns extend upwards from the base of the tower until they disappear into the spire, flowing with a scarlet luster and exuding a coldness that is incongruous with the vibrant life around them.
Inside the tower, the ground was piled high with countless ores and materials, emitting a faint glow.
call!
Otsutsuki Kumoshiki stood quietly with his back to the mountain of precious materials, his white robe spotless, his hands outstretched, and a blazing, pure golden flame burning before him.
The firelight cast shifting shadows on Yun Shi's calm face, and his deep blue eyes reflected the leaping golden flames.
Above the golden flames, a mass of liquid substance floated, resembling molten metal or a living gel, constantly twisting and stretching under Yun's control.
"what……"
Every now and then, the surface of the liquid mass would suddenly bulge out, twisting into hideous and painful human faces, opening their mouths to let out silent screams, trying their best to break free of their restraints and struggle to escape.
Every face was filled with pain, resentment, and bitterness, as if it contained the deepest malice in the world, causing the liquid to churn and change constantly, unable to be completely shaped.
Standing to the side, the upper body of the man from the Sichuan school was naked. He suddenly swung his long-handled heavy hammer, which was entirely black except for the dark red sheen of the hammerhead, and smashed it onto the struggling, protruding face...
clang!!
Kawa's bare upper body muscles bulged, sweat dripped down, but he just stared intently at the liquid substance without any pause. Using the feedback from the force, he adjusted his center of gravity and swung the hammer again!
The second hammer blow, the third hammer blow, the fourth hammer blow...
Clang! Clang! Clang...
The heavy, rhythmic sound of forging echoed continuously, each strike landing on the very spot where the "soul" struggled.
It hurls those souls that tried to escape back down, and forges and fuses them with the materials that hold them.
With continuous, powerful hammering and forging, the mass of liquid that kept churning out painful faces struggled less and less, as if its form was being smashed apart little by little.
The murky colors of the liquid mass deepened, and under the control of Otsutsuki Kumoshiki, its shape slowly stretched and condensed, gradually revealing the prototype of a long whip.
A moment later, Yun Shi's eyes flickered slightly, and she withdrew her hands that were maintaining the golden flames.
The blazing golden flames instantly turned deep blue, and a bone-chilling cold spread out, enveloping the material that had already begun to take shape in the air.
laugh!
The tempering was completed in an instant, and the deep blue flames dissipated.
A pair of "maces" floated silently in the air, resembling hard whips. The mace body was made up of several sharp-edged rhomboid blocks strung together, resembling bamboo root joints, with no sharp point at the end.
"call……"
Seeing this, Chuan Shi let out a deep breath, put down the heavy black hammer, and made a loud "thud".
Another "weapon" was forged.
No, this thing has long surpassed the concept of "weapons" of the Otsutsuki clan.
It is alive, possessing a unique soul, and as Yun-shiki-senpai said, it should be called "Asauchi" or "Zanpakuto".
Thinking of this, Chuan Shi turned to look to the side, where several objects of different shapes were quietly placed next to the mountain of ore materials.
A pair of folded wings "flying thousands of miles".
A long, gleaming silver spear, the "Divine Annihilation Arrow".
A blue and white arm armor that fits the contours of the arm.
A giant axe with an ancient and heavy design and a wide blade, known as "Tenkumo".
A long, narrow katana with a tsuba (handguard) shaped like a cycle, called "Reincarnation Karma".
And, the giant scythe "Four-Scythe Child" that was first forged from the "blood core" left behind by Grell.
Each of these Zanpakuto has been crafted with unimaginable effort and resources.
Not only did they utilize the ancient relics they had searched for across the planet over the past millennium, but they also forged the souls of powerful individuals drawn here over the millennia, driven by greed, and even...
They also used a portion of the remains of the Ōtsutsuki Shibaju.
During this time, they left behind many legends and traces throughout the planet.
For example, cultivated herbs, when consumed by ordinary humans, can cure all diseases...
For example, an accidental drop of blood created a valley filled with miasma...
For example, this tower, built in a cloud-like structure, is used to extract natural energy from the ground and is known by nearby people as the "Spear of the Sky"...
[Foreshadowing Revisited: Chapter 84 - A God Spanning a Thousand Years? A Figure That Permeates History?]
call!
Otsutsuki Kumoshiki raised his hand, and the pair of maces that were floating in the air were drawn into his palm.
It feels slightly heavy and cool to the touch.
He lowered his eyes and gazed at the two newly created objects in his hands, a hint of weariness flashing across his eyes.
Centuries have passed, and even he was bound to grow weary.
"Let's call this the God-Slaying Whip," Yun Shi said in a low voice.
The two maces in his palms lay quietly, similar in length and weight, like the two ends of a balance scale. The maces, without blades, had abandoned any sharp killing intent.
It is more like a tool used to rebuke, punish, and demonstrate authority and law, rather than a weapon simply intended to take lives or maim.
Moreover, double maces also belong to the whip category, and those who wield maces are usually the embodiment of justice and prestige, so there is absolutely nothing wrong with the name he chose...
Otsutsuki Kumoshiki gathered his wandering thoughts and looked up at Kawashiki.
Kawa's bare upper body was covered in sweat, making his already pale skin even paler, but his eyes were unusually calm.
Over the centuries, Kawashiki has transformed from a branch family member who knew nothing about forging and was filled with fear of the Otsutsuki main family into a "craftsman" who can skillfully wield a heavy hammer.
Through repeated tempering, my mind became as calm as iron, and the fear I once felt vanished without a trace.
After all, anyone who has personally participated in forging the remains of "Otsutsuki Shibakai" into weapons would find it difficult to maintain that initial, almost instinctive fear of the so-called Otsutsuki clan.
"You should go and rest first," Yun Shi said, her tone returning to its usual calm.
"Yes." Chuan Shi lowered his head slightly, responded, and then turned to walk out of the tower...
"Oh, right."
As if remembering something, Yun suddenly asked, "Is the craftsman you called to teach you forging techniques still alive?"
Chuan Shi subconsciously stopped in his tracks, thought for a moment, and replied, "Three hundred years have passed. They should be dead by now. Humans on this planet have far too short a lifespan."
He recalled the skilled, taciturn old man who had devoted his life to forging, and even with the medicinal herbs the old man had given him, he probably wouldn't live more than a hundred years.
Time is always incredibly cruel to humankind.
"Then let's go see if he has any descendants."
Yun was not surprised by this, and casually tossed out a scroll, which landed steadily in Chuan's hand.
"If he has descendants, give these items to him and tell him to change his name to Qingming from now on."
"If there are no direct descendants, just find any talented craftsman you like, give him the items, and have him change his name to Qingming as well." Chuan Shi took the scroll, glanced at it, and saw a longsword, armor, a trident, and a demon mask inside.
"This is..." Kawashiro paused for a moment.
The first three items looked somewhat familiar, but he remembered the fourth one.
Hundreds of years ago, a fraudster who called himself "Death" came with his followers and was casually killed by him. His soul was extracted by Senior Yun and made into this mask.
"These four prototypes were just for practice and to test some ideas," Otsutsuki Kumoshiki's voice remained calm. "They're useless to me, so give them away."
"Yes." Chuan Shi put away the scroll, asked no further questions, turned around and stepped out of the tower.
Stepping outside the tower, Chuan Shi glanced at the vibrant oasis and the desolate wasteland surrounding it. His gaze flickered slightly, and without lingering, he vanished from the spot.
Inside the tower, Ōtsutsuki Kumoshiki placed the "God-Slaying Whip" alongside the other six Zanpakuto.
He lowered his head, looking at the seven Zanpakuto, which had taken hundreds of years of painstaking effort to forge countless rare materials and souls, without a trace of joy in completing his masterpiece.
There was only a bottomless calm.
He did not touch the remains of Shibaju, nor did he attempt to become one with them.
Now is not the time.
Now, several decades have passed since the millennium deadline set by the Otsutsuki clan.
Yun had already unilaterally severed ties with its home planet and its own family long ago.
He didn't know when his family noticed anything amiss, nor when they sent out investigators.
But he knew that anything could happen at any time.
He also knew that both he and the Chuan family were psychologically prepared to face their own people.
Especially Sichuan style.
Kawashiki has only been around for two thousand years. He spent five hundred years growing up on his home planet, five hundred years following Urashiki as a servant, and almost the entire remaining thousand years on this planet.
The mountains and rivers here, the rise and fall of civilizations here, made his feelings for this planet much deeper and more complex than for his distant home planet.
and so……
"bring it on."
Ōtsutsuki Kumoshiki walked to the stone seat, sat down, closed his eyes, and whispered, "I'll be waiting for you here."
"Style One, Kaguya..."
The tower was plunged into an almost deathly silence.
The sky gradually darkened, turning from bright daylight into a dusky evening.
Yun Shi sat on the stone seat, his eyes closed, his breathing steady and long, the last rays of the setting sun reflecting on half of his cheek.
next moment……
boom!!
A terrifying roar, like a meteorite striking the earth, instantly shattered the tranquility of dusk.
The entire earth trembled, the tall trees rustled and their branches shook wildly, and the birds that lived among them cried out and took flight, casting frantic silhouettes against the crimson sunset.
"Otsutsuki Cloud Style".
A cold, emotionless voice echoed clearly between heaven and earth, carrying an air of superior authority and indifference.
“You have left without permission, cut off contact with the clan, and concealed your whereabouts, violating the clan’s ironclad rules. I have come here to carry out your punishment on the orders of the clan.”
"Now, come out and confess your sins."
Inside the tower, Otsutsuki Kumoshiki, sitting on a stone seat, slowly opened his eyes.
Sensing the powerful aura sweeping in from afar, he showed no panic, but instead a smile appeared on his face.
Finally, it's here.
At this moment, beneath the sky dyed red by the setting sun, a figure stands beneath the celestial canopy, wearing a well-tailored, elegant, and fitted white long-sleeved tuxedo, the hem of which flutters in the wind.
Most striking is the unusual long, curved horn on his head, which starts from the right side of his forehead, curves backward, extends around the back of his head, and grows back to the left side of his forehead, forming a coronal structure.
His face was cold and stern, his skin pale, and he looked down indifferently at the tower and oasis below, his eyes devoid of any warmth.
It was none other than the Otsutsuki Ichishiki.
In his right hand, he was gripping Kawashiro's neck, lifting him into the air.
"Ho..."
Kawashiki's body was pierced by several black rods, and blood kept flowing out. These black rods disrupted the flow of chakra in his body, making it impossible for him to gather any power. Blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.
"How could this be..."
Kawa's body trembled slightly, his eyes reflecting the figure that had captured him, and he said with difficulty and hoarseness, "How...could it be...you..."
Otsutsuki Ichishiki.
The person sent by the main clan was none other than Otsutsuki Isshiki!
This was completely unexpected by Trump.
Given Otsutsuki Isshiki's strength, status, and arrogant, aloof nature, how could he possibly personally perform such a thankless and dirty job?
Ōtsutsuki Isshiki glanced at the Kawashiki in his hand as if examining an insignificant object, and said, "This planet was originally my target."
"You just beat me to it; I thought I'd missed out..."
"I never expected that after occupying this planet for thousands of years, you not only failed to plant the divine tree as required, but also unilaterally severed ties with your own family."
He paused, looked at Chuan Shi's slightly trembling white eyes, and continued, "This is illogical, and you should be aware of the consequences of doing so."
"So, right now, I'm very curious..."
Ōtsutsuki Isshiki's tone remained calm, but the oppressive aura emanating from him grew increasingly heavy: "What exactly is this discovery, or rather..."
"What is it that makes you take such a huge risk, even at the cost of severing ties and betraying your tribe?"
"Have you really found that person on this planet?"
Upon hearing this, Chuan Shi's trembling body stiffened, but he quickly said in a hoarse voice, "I... I don't know what you're talking about."
A cold glint flashed in Otsutsuki Isshiki's eyes. He wanted to ask more, but just then...
hum! !
A powerful and chilling aura swept in from below, instantly diluting the oppressive force of the attack.
"..."
Yishi narrowed his eyes, withdrew his gaze from Kawashiki, and turned downwards to look at the figure emerging from the tower.
His gaze met the other person's raised eyes.
What met his eyes was a pair of deep, beautiful eyes that seemed to contain the starry sky and vortexes.
"Otsutsuki Ichishiki".
A genuine smile appeared on Yun Shi's face as she slowly said, "I did say..."
We will meet.
(End of this chapter)