But now, nothing remained.
The buildings had been leveled, the rubble cleared, and even the remnants of solidified lava were swept away, leaving only a vast, flat expanse.
Squads of fully armed soldiers were on duty across the plains.
Some were patrolling, others stood guard, and some watched over the Quincy prisoners...
Before the Senkaimon stood a group of people in uniform white suits. They wore masks, stood with their backs perfectly straight, and though silent, they exuded an air of arrogance.
Upon seeing Ren enter, the group immediately surrounded him, dropping to one knee with their heads bowed low.
Guernica, the leader, spoke in a solemn voice.
"Your Majesty, everything is prepared."
"Don't call me 'Your Majesty'; I haven't claimed the throne yet."
Ren waved his hand, signaling them to rise as he walked forward.
These men were elites scouted by Guernica over the years—Ren's private army, handling tasks that could not be brought into the light.
They obeyed his orders alone and were accountable only to him.
No one else had the authority to interfere.
It was effectively his personal intelligence agency.
Guernica bowed. "Yes, my Lord. Please follow me."
He had already set up a barrier nearby to block prying eyes, ensuring no major commotion was caused.
Following behind Ren, Shisui asked curiously, "My Lord, what exactly are you planning? Why all the secrecy?"
"Shisui, do you know of the Gates of Hell?" Ren didn't play coy and got straight to the point.
"Of course. Didn't you once sign a contract with that Great Noble Family to use your spiritual pressure to help suppress the Gates of Hell?"
Shisui nodded slightly. He remembered it happened around the time of Ren's wedding.
Not many knew of it; Ren had only told a handful of people, himself included.
"When the clan executed Itachi and Obito, the Gates of Hell appeared and dragged their souls inside."
At the mention of Itachi, Shisui's expression darkened, and his voice dropped. Even though Itachi had committed such atrocities, he was still the boy Shisui had viewed as a younger brother.
It was painful to think he was being punished in Hell even after death.
During the execution, Shisui had been at the Shihoin estate protecting a pregnant Yoruichi, so he had only heard the details afterward.
"Are you planning to open the Gates of Hell here, my Lord?"
Ren nodded. "Exactly. I have an idea I want to test out."
Under Guernica's lead, Ren arrived at a relatively secluded location.
Guernica had cordoned off the area; no patrolling soldiers were in sight, only his direct subordinates keeping watch.
In the center, several members of the Stealth Force were waiting.
"Begin."
At Ren's command, they went into action, forming an orderly formation with solemn faces and reciting elegies.
Watching the scene, Shisui seemed to realize something.
'A Konsō.'
"Correct."
Ren explained, "Many Quincies were killed earlier, many of whom were above the third-class spiritual power level. This will be our headquarters from now on, so we need to do some cleaning."
During his time at the Shin'ō Academy, Shisui had learned about the Konsō.
Soul Reaper bodies are made of spirit particles; upon death, these particles should return to the Soul Society to complete the cycle.
However, Soul Reapers of the third-class spiritual power or higher cannot return to the cycle because their reishi is too dense. The Konsō ritual is the method used to facilitate their departure.
Although the dead Quincies weren't Soul Reapers, their internal reishi was also too high, so the principle was likely the same.
Regarding the Konsō, Shisui had also heard a rumor.
'Reishi above the third-class spiritual power can never return to the Soul Society, yet these powerful particles cannot be left drifting there indefinitely.'
'The true purpose of the Konsō ceremony is to cast these spirit particles into Hell.'
Combined with Ren's mention of opening the Gates of Hell, Shisui suddenly understood.
"Is that rumor about the Konsō true? Are dead Soul Reapers sent to Hell?"
"It's true," Ren said softly, his expression becoming much more serious.
"This ritual is a probe. I want to see if this shadow dimension can summon the aura of Hell."
As the elegies ended and the ritual concluded, flecks of pitch-black matter appeared out of thin air, floating in the sky and permeating the area.
Seeing no danger, Shisui reached out and pinched some of the substance.
It dispersed like gas from his fingers before coalescing again.
Shisui looked puzzled.
"It's not reishi, and it hasn't returned to the atmosphere. What is this?"
"It's Hell's phosphorus."
Ren watched as the phosphorus appeared and then vanished like the wind, as if it had never been there.
He knew his experiment was a success.
"The appearance of phosphorus means Hell can reach this place."
"The spirit particles of those dead Quincies have already been sent into Hell!"
He turned and signaled to the waiting Guernica.
Receiving the command, Guernica immediately ordered a squad of Stealth Force members forward.
They escorted over a dozen bound individuals who were unconscious, their eyes closed and breathing steady.
Being controlled, they walked with stiff steps, brought here without any awareness.
Shisui's brow furrowed. Sensing something was off, he focused his perception and looked surprised.
"Living humans?"
He suddenly recalled the manifestation of the Gates of Hell during Itachi and Obito's execution.
Looking at Ren, he seemed to understand. "The previous ritual was to confirm the coordinates. Now you want to open the Gates of Hell, and these people are the 'sinners' required to open them?"
"Bingo!"
Ren was clearly in a good mood now that things were progressing as expected.
These humans were criminals Guernica had brought from the living world, every one of them a murderer.
They were the kind of killers who took lives purely for their own selfish desires.
Some had even explicitly consumed human flesh—not out of hunger, but merely to satisfy a twisted appetite.
Regardless, they were undeniably great sinners!
Shisui grew more confused. "But why open the gates, my Lord?"
"You should know by now, what is my greatest specialty?"
Ren countered with a question before drawing his Zanpakutō.
He turned to Guernica. "Execute the order."
Seeing the Zanpakutō in Ren's hand, Shisui's expression shifted.
"Is it possible you intend to sign a contract with Hell?"
"How can that be! That's Hell—a black hole that could swallow the three realms if you're not careful! It's too dangerous!"
He was about to continue his protest when Ren waved him off.
"I know exactly what I'm doing."
"Rest easy, Shisui. I'm sufficiently prepared. This is a contingency for future wars. There's no telling when it might come in handy."
While Ren was speaking, Guernica had finished the preparations.
He led one human to the center of the area, then retreated to a distance, drew his pistol, and fired.
The gunshot echoed. The human's head burst in a spray of white and red, and the life vanished instantly.
The moment he died, the air suddenly erupted into a violent tremor.
BOOM!
Along with the shaking, a massive gate appeared out of thin air, bursting with a crimson light that dyed the surroundings blood-red.
An indescribable atmosphere of omen immediately shrouded everyone's hearts, an invisible pressure that inspired pure dread.
"So this is the Gates of Hell!"
Shisui activated his Sharingan and looked up.
He saw two skeletons decorating the gate, their hands gripping the central seam, while several golden chains bound the two doors together.
A low rumble echoed as the Gates of Hell slowly groaned open, revealing a crimson interior as the golden chains snapped and miasma poured out.
A powerful suction erupted from within the gate, dragging the soul of the dead man inside.
The instant the man was pulled in, Ren stepped forward, his body flickering as he followed the soul inside.
"My Lord!"
Seeing Ren move, Shisui moved to follow without a second thought.
But just as he reached the threshold, Ren's voice echoed from within.
"Shisui, don't follow me. You'll just be in the way."
Shisui froze at the words.
In that split second, the heavy doors of Hell slammed shut.
The impact sent a gust of wind rushing outward, tossing Shisui's hair.
Shisui could only watch helplessly as the gate slowly vanished from before him.
Without the gate, the empty clearing returned to its previous state.
The invisible pressure evaporated, and everyone present breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Snapping back to his senses, Shisui turned to Guernica and shouted.
"Quick! Kill another sinner! Open the gates again!"
Guernica nodded solemnly and had his men toss another human forward.
Simultaneously, he raised his pistol, aimed, and fired without hesitation.
Bang!
As the man died, the gate reappeared, and that crushing pressure along with the miasma once again weighed on everyone's hearts.
But from the moment the doors opened, pulled the soul in, and slammed shut again, there was still no sign of Ren.
"Again! Kill another!"
Shisui's voice was cold.
The gate appeared once more, but Ren remained nowhere to be seen.
"Do it again! Again!"
Shisui's fists were clenched tight, his voice tinged with desperation.
Had it not been for Ren's explicit order and his absolute faith in the man, he would have jumped in himself.
Just then, a slightly raspy voice spoke from behind them.
"Shisui, Guernica, what are you doing?"
Everyone turned to see a group of figures in white.
The man in front was tall and muscular, wearing a white suit with a coat draped over his shoulders, the word 'Justice' fluttering behind him.
He had a very prominent afro.
Sengoku!
His gaze swept over the corpses, and a look of realization flashed across his face.
'A secret execution, then.'
Looking around and not seeing Ren anywhere, he stepped forward to stand beside Shisui.
"Where is the Great King?"
"I heard from Zephyr that he had already arrived here."
Shisui waved at Guernica. "Keep going!"
Then, speaking as fast as he could, he gave Sengoku a brief rundown of what had happened.
"What? The Great King went into Hell?!"
"And he jumped in on purpose just to sign a contract with it?!"
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]