Bleach: Reborn — Chapter 70 - Volume 2: The Night Sky of Hueco Mundo

[Volume 2: The Night Sky of Hueco Mundo]

Chapter 70: Beneath Las Noches

Las Noches, another king of the inner circle had named this sky. That king had been a Vasto Lorde for thousands of years. His name was Baraggan Louisenbairn. His epithet: the Skull Emperor. He commanded hundreds upon hundreds of Adjuchas-class subordinates. His appearance was that of a skeleton, humanoid, towering in stature, yet seemingly floating through the air like an Aberrant Hollow. Whether he truly was an Aberrant Hollow or not, that skeletal form alone was more than enough to make his humanoid shape unquestionable.

His ability was time-based, the power to decay enemies instantaneously. And the speed of that decay was extraordinary. It was not just the bodies of his enemies that were affected. Barriers, physical matter, even Cero blasts and certain energy attacks could be rotted away in an instant, shielding him from harm.

The name Las Noches, within the inner circle, meant that all beneath this dome was the king's domain. And so Baraggan's palace had no roof, only a scattering of crumbling structures that served as his place of rest.

Of course, the inner circle was vast. Baraggan could not extend his reach to every corner of it. Beyond the edges of his influence, many other Vasto Lorde-class Hollows had declared themselves kings in their own right. Naturally, if Baraggan ever crossed paths with any of them, he would force them into subjugation, or use his near-invincible decay to end them.

It had been several months since Wayne arrived in Las Noches. He had already turned the cliffside where he once encountered Starrk into his base of operations, and had begun systematically pushing his territory outward, hunting for prey. And just today, Wayne's subordinates had captured an Adjuchas-class Hollow who had come from the east. The captive claimed to be a subordinate of the Skull Emperor Baraggan, and had been traveling westward to find the various factions and persuade them to submit. Unfortunately for him, once he entered Wayne's territory, he was swiftly subdued. He now knelt before Wayne, answering questions.

"So, besides your Baraggan, how many other Vasto Lorde-level strongholds are out there?" Wayne sat on his throne and studied the Adjuchas below him with unhurried interest.

"..." The Adjuchas below was covered in blood. Wayne had been interrogating him under torture for several days. "I only know of four. Whether there are more, I can't say for certain."

"Tell me." Wayne's expression turned serious. Just one Adjuchas, and already four Vasto Lorde trails. As expected, the number of Adjuchas-class Hollows in Hueco Mundo far exceeded anything Wayne had seen in the anime.

"Heading west from Your Majesty's territory, there's a stinking shark's domain. But her territory only has three Hollows. All female, and I have no idea what they're after. They haven't submitted to His Majesty, but they haven't fled either. Very strange."

"Her name?" Wayne's eyes sharpened. He already knew who the Adjuchas was describing.

"Tia Harribel."

"As expected." Wayne smiled to himself. Of course, the 3rd Espada, the Shark Empress Harribel. Though at this stage, Harribel should still be an early-tier Vasto Lorde. Her power was nowhere near Starrk's or Baraggan's. But even so, she was still Vasto Lorde. She possessed abilities that ordinary Hollows would struggle to deal with, and at his current stage, Wayne was not yet ready to make contact with her.

"Continue."

"There is another Vasto Lorde, called Rodfolles, a mid-tier Vasto Lorde, currently in a humanoid insect-headed form. He's located to the north of Your Majesty's territory and commands over a hundred Adjuchas subordinates as well. Because of his ability, His Majesty can't do much about him, but he's also unwilling to confront him head-on."

"What's his ability?"

"Quite peculiar, recovery and healing type. His regeneration speed is comparable to His Majesty's decay speed. So His Majesty's ability doesn't have much effect on him."

"Ultra-Rapid Regeneration?"

"Perhaps even faster than that. And it covers every part of his body." The Adjuchas glanced at his own ear. "Even if that fellow's skull is corroded away by His Majesty, he can regrow his head and come back. His Majesty has yet to find a way to kill him."

"He can come back even from decapitation? Even if his Hollow Mask shatters?"

"Yes, even if his Hollow Mask shatters, he can regenerate and recover. It seems a shattered Hollow Mask isn't fatal for him at all. But exactly what kind of ability it is, I'm not certain."

"And the other two?"

"These two... I don't actually know whether they're truly Vasto Lorde-level in strength. All I know is that somewhere to the southwest, there's a white forest. Something extraordinarily terrifying lives there. It's reclusive, with no companions, but every Hollow that ever tried to provoke it was cut down and devoured without exception. So I didn't dare go anywhere near that area." The Adjuchas had been broken by the prolonged torment, utterly worn out in body and spirit, and could only speak everything he knew.

"Mm. And the other one?"

"The last one... I heard it's somewhere near here. But before I had a chance to find him, your men caught me."

"Is that so." Wayne nodded. The last Vasto Lorde had to be Starrk. "I'm going to give you a few names. If you recognize any of them, tell me where you've seen them." He thought it over and named several individuals.

"Ulquiorra Cifer. Szayelaporro Granz. Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. Yammy Llargo."

Wayne rattled off four Espada names in one breath. In the anime, these were the only names he could recall clearly enough.

"Never heard of them." The Adjuchas shook his head. "But — the one called Grimmjow — I vaguely remember there was once a wandering group, an Adjuchas pack led by Shawlong, and one of them went by that name. It was a chance encounter between our forces and their pack. After a brief fight, both sides pulled back and parted ways without a fight to the death. The situation was tense at the time, though, so I don't remember much of the details."

"Do you know which direction they were headed?"

"When the two sides separated, they seemed to head south. But that was a few years ago."

"A few years ago, Grimmjow was already an Adjuchas?" Wayne rested his chin in his hand, thinking it over. If he hadn't spent ten years in the Forest of Menos chasing revenge, and had instead come straight up to Hueco Mundo the moment he became an Adjuchas, wouldn't he be at Vasto Lorde-level combat power by now?

Of course, nothing was guaranteed. There was no assurance he would have risen smoothly from early-tier Adjuchas all the way to Vasto Lorde after entering the inner circle so quickly. The path he had walked to this point was already a very stable one.

"Mm. And how much do you know about Adjuchas-level territories?"

"Adjuchas territories are everywhere." The Adjuchas said it with clear contempt, as if talking down to a rookie who had just stumbled into the world. Unfortunate for him, that rookie had the claws of a lion, and those claws had already forced him to his knees.

"Using my location as the center, draw out the nearby Adjuchas territories for me."

"..."

"Either draw, or die." Wayne said it pleasantly.

"And if I draw it, you'll believe me? If I draw it, you'll let me go?"

"That depends on your performance."

"Hmph. My advice is that you release me. If I don't report back within a set time, His Majesty Baraggan will send more men. You won't like what happens then."

"Do you even know what fruit looks like?" Wayne said with a laugh. "Draw the map. Once I've verified it, I may consider sparing your life. Otherwise, I'll send you to meet the fruit right now."

"Hmph." The Adjuchas was furious but dared not show it. His survival depended entirely on Wayne's goodwill now, and he knew it. Left with no choice, he sketched out a rough map of the surrounding terrain. It was crude beyond measure, but more than enough for Wayne to read.

"Jekain, take this map and send teams to check each area. If you find an Adjuchas stronghold, return and report immediately. Make sure everyone stays careful. This is not the Forest of Menos, the danger here is far beyond anything we've faced before."

"Understood, my king. I'll have them go in groups of three, spread across ten directions." Jekain nodded and went to make the arrangements.

"How long would it take to reach Baraggan's territory from here?"

"Only seven days."

"Tell the truth, and things will be easier for you." Wayne raised his hand and drew a slash across the Adjuchas's shoulder. A wound deep enough to expose bone split open across his body.

"Ngh..." The Adjuchas cried out in pain. "Half — half a month."

"You've already told me this much. Why not just be fully honest and spare yourself so much suffering? Why choose to hide things?" Wayne was dissatisfied with the answer. He summoned the Sky-Rending Greatsword and severed one of the captive's arms outright.

"I — I won't tell you His Majesty's location!" The Adjuchas was loyal enough for that, he refused to expose his lord's whereabouts.

"Alas. Take him away." Wayne lost any further interest in the conversation. If the Adjuchas truly wouldn't give it up, then he'd stay locked up. Wayne couldn't kill him yet, who knew whether Baraggan's forces had a Hollow with an ability similar to Timd's, one that could sense whether a subordinate Adjuchas was in danger based on his vital signs.

If that location was pinpointed, Wayne's freshly built base might have to be abandoned and rebuilt from scratch.

The Adjuchas was dragged off and locked away. Wayne sank into thought.

For now, consolidating his power was the priority. He needed to expand his territory, consume more Adjuchas-class Hollows, and build up his Reiatsu. His Reiatsu was still sitting at the level of a high-tier Adjuchas, not yet at its peak. By Wayne's calculation, he would need to devour at least several dozen more high-tier Adjuchas before he had any real chance of reaching the pinnacle of the Adjuchas class.

He needed to accelerate. At any point, a Vasto Lorde could surface within the bounds of his expanding territory. Last time, it had been Starrk's personality that saved him, if it had been anyone else, things would already have fallen apart long ago.

"Looks like the next stretch of time is going to be another frantic hunt." Wayne leaned back on his throne, his left hand settling instinctively on Nel, who lay curled up beside him in sleep. She had already drifted off. At Wayne's side, unless some overwhelming high-level Reiatsu came crashing down to jolt her awake, there was simply nowhere she felt more at ease than right here beside him.

"You really have it good." Wayne looked down at Nel sprawled out on the ground, helpless amusement in his voice. "You don't have to do anything, and your Reiatsu just keeps rising. Absorption really is a remarkable growth ability. If this keeps up for a few more years, won't you reach the Vasto Lorde realm before I do?" He shook his head with a wry smile, then closed his own eyes and savored a moment of quiet. His mind never stopped turning, though, still working through everything.

Should he go and seek out a Vasto Lorde for an alliance right now, or not?

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