BLEACH: Blade of Purification

Although he said he had something important to say, he didn't actually say it right away. For one thing, they were outside the 80th District of the Rukongai, and a Gillian, an Adjuchas, and even a being beyond that had just appeared. Even though the Hollows had retreated, it was probably better not to linger here for too long. Besides, there was nothing here; it was a real mood-killer.

For another, Shihouin Souichirou had just said that in the heat of the moment. He hadn't yet figured out exactly what to say, where to start, or how much to reveal. He needed a little more time to think it over. Of course, while he thought this, he didn't let it show.

He placed his hand on Ling Qing's shoulder and said, "This isn't the place to talk. Let's find another spot where I can explain in detail." He then used Shunpo, taking Ling Qing with him as they rushed back towards the inner Rukongai. From a third-person perspective, it would create the illusion of teleportation. But abilities similar to teleportation were characteristic of Hollows, especially Gillians. A Shinigami's Shunpo, while appearing similar, had a different principle. Shunpo was about using a special footwork to achieve high-speed movement. The illusion of teleportation was created because the speed was too fast.

Ling Qing realized this as Souichirou repeatedly used Shunpo with him. He could feel the surrounding scenery stretching and elongating into mere curves of color. Maintaining stability and finding a foothold at such speeds required special training and habituation. What truly interested Ling Qing was how useful this method of movement could be for long-distance travel. The vast distance that had taken them over half a month to cross was covered by Shihouin Souichirou in just a short amount of time.

In other words, if Souichirou had shown this ability earlier, they wouldn't have had to waste over half a month on the road. But on the other hand, the fact that Souichirou was fully displaying this ability now meant that he no longer intended to hide it.

When the sensation of extreme speed left his body, Ling Qing noticed they were already back within the 50th District, though he couldn't immediately tell where. Souichirou didn't seem to have any intention of taking Ling Qing directly back to his "Odd Jobs" shop.

"Let's talk here," he said, putting Ling Qing down as they landed on the ground.

Although the weather was gradually starting to cool and the heat of summer was long gone, it was still some time before the cold of winter. The green grass on the ground had not yet begun to wither. Shihouin Souichirou paid no mind to the expensive, low-key luxurious clothes he was wearing—though if he truly cared, he wouldn't have worn them to the wasteland beyond the 80th District—and plopped down on the grass. He then casually patted the spot next to him and said to Ling Qing with a charmingly silly smile, "Ling Qing, have a seat."

"..."

It took an immense amount of willpower for Ling Qing to resist the urge to retort and roll his eyes. Since Souichirou had sat down, it seemed inappropriate for him to remain standing. But he didn't sit next to Souichirou. Instead, he sat cross-legged opposite him and gave a slight nod, gesturing for Souichirou to 'begin his performance.'

Honestly, Ling Qing didn't really care whether Souichirou was a Shinigami or not, nor did he care why he had sought him out and brought him along. He didn't even care about the identities of the so-called Baraggan, Ggio Vega, or some Szayelaporro.

What he cared about now was his sword, and that "Sephiroth" who denied being Sephiroth but looked more like Sephiroth than anyone. Seriously, Sephiroth, did you get tired of chasing Chocobos and decide to chase me instead?

Other than that, the only thing he cared about was whether Souichirou was planning to renege on his "name your price" offer!

"How should I put this..." Shihouin Souichirou started and stopped, stopped and started, thought and thought, and forgot to speak. After a long time of frowning in deep thought with a grave expression, he finally came out with this sentence, which made Ling Qing unable to resist placing his sword on his neck!

"I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die!!!" The man, who was already middle-aged and looked quite impressive at first glance, immediately threw his hands up and let out a noisy, long-outdated cry for help.

Several black lines appeared on Ling Qing's forehead. He was already starting to regret idly chatting with this guy about all sorts of nonsense before...

"Ahem." Noticing Ling Qing's unpleasant expression and realizing his "improve the atmosphere" operation had failed, Souichirou quickly composed himself, trying to look serious. Unfortunately, he hadn't learned another very important lesson from Ling Qing: no matter how cool or aloof a person seems, once they start down the path of comedic facial expressions and gags, there's no turning back. His impressive aura had vanished the moment he tried to be funny!

"Well then, let's start with the 'Shinigami and Zanpakutō' part. How much do you know about that, Ling Qing?"

Seeing that Souichirou was finally getting to the point, Ling Qing removed the 2.5-meter-long sword from his neck. Souichirou couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"I know a little, but not much," Ling Qing answered honestly.

The further one went into the Rukongai, the more closed off the information became. On one hand, it was because the people there only cared about themselves. On the other, it was because the population turnover rate was too fast. It was common for someone who might know something to be cut down by a random knife the next second.

Closer to the Seireitei, information about Shinigami became more available, but it was still quite limited. Information about what powers Shinigami possessed, and about Zanpakutō, was only superficial. The most common things spread in the Rukongai were that Shinigami were powerful, had no worries about food or drink, and what kind of people were more suited to become Shinigami. Simply put, it was selective political propaganda. They only advertised the benefits, not the specifics.

Of course, it wasn't that there was no one in the Rukongai who knew enough about Shinigami. Some nobles from the Seireitei also lived there. For various reasons, they preferred to live in the Rukongai. It was said that the Shiba Clan, one of the Five Great Noble Clans, also had their family home somewhere in the Rukongai. These nobles certainly knew the situation with the Shinigami like the back of their hands.

However, in the 45th District of West Rukongai where Ling Qing was, and among the people he had come into contact with, there were indeed not many who knew much about Shinigami. And Ling Qing himself didn't care much about this situation, because he believed he would become a Shinigami sooner or later, and he would learn what he needed to know at the Shin'ō Academy. Before that, it was better to focus his energy on strengthening himself and completing his "Sephiroth skills" homework.

"I see..." Souichirou let out a sigh of "as expected." "So I still have to start from this point? Well, well, I'll just play the role of a Shin'ō Academy teacher and explain it to you from the beginning."

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