(T/N: Hello everyone, Sorry about yesterday, wasn't able to release any chapters!! But don't worry, There will be 6 chapters today!! Thanks for you support!! Enjoy!!)
Gulu gulu gulu—
A strange, incomprehensible sound echoed from the large conch shell.
Katori Nanatsuki tried several times in a row, but Sound of Hell only located low-intelligence beings.
"If you don't use a specific frequency, it's really difficult to locate high-intelligence ones." Saitō Furaofushi took the large conch shell and adjusted the Sound of Hell to a particular Reiatsu frequency. "Let me try to locate Grandma's Reiatsu."
Gudong gudong—
After a moment, the conch shell emitted a burst of static, like the sound of plunging an empty bottle into water.
"Grandma?" Saitō Furaofushi leaned toward the mouth of the shell and called out.
After a while, a distorted voice came from within:
"Fu...rao...fu...shi..."
Somewhere deep in Hell, a white-haired woman sat cross-legged on a rock floating above a sea of magma.
If Nanatsuki were here, he would have thought Saitō Furaofushi looked like she had been carved from the very image of this woman.
The white-haired woman concentrated for a moment, then raised a finger. Reishi gathered at her fingertip as she cast a Kidō spell, making the voice in her ear clearer.
"You haven't contacted Grandma in a long time..." she said calmly.
At the same time, the distorted voice that Nanatsuki and Furaofushi heard gradually smoothed out.
"I was imprisoned in Muken, and my belongings were confiscated. If it weren't for Katori-kun's help, I wouldn't have been able to use Sound of Hell right now," Saitō Furaofushi sighed in relief. It had been many years since they last contacted her grandmother, and she was worried the connection wouldn't work.
"You were thrown into Muken?! Aren't you the Captain of Squad 6?!"
Furaofushi then explained her grudge with the Tsunayashiro Clan.
"The Tsunayashiro Clan, huh... they've dared bully my granddaughter, have they..."
The white-haired woman furrowed her brow. A strange glint flashed through her eyes as if she were contemplating something.
Hell had been restless lately. The Lord of Hell was beginning to awaken. Perhaps, she thought, this could be the perfect chance to wipe out the Tsunayashiro Clan.
If they weren't removed, Saitō Furaofushi would remain imprisoned in Muken forever.
Back in Muken, Nanatsuki felt the voice coming from the conch shell grow darker and more ominous.
Furaofushi said, "Grandma, I taught Katori-kun how to make Sound of Hell. He wants to ask you some questions about Hell."
The white-haired woman returned to her senses. During their earlier conversation, Furaofushi had mentioned Nanatsuki, and she knew he was the only Shinigami currently able to communicate with Furaofushi. So, she was willing to answer his questions patiently.
With a composed tone, the white-haired woman said:
"You want to know about the Lord of Hell, don't you?"
"I can tell you what I know."
"His resurrection has already reached a significant level. Talking about him here in Hell might allow him to sense us."
"To avoid being influenced by his power, I've stayed in the Wastelands, far from Hell's center."
"But although staying in the Wastelands keeps me safe from his control, it also cuts me off from reliable information. I know very little about events in the past ten years."
Hell was vast, and even though the Lord of Hell hadn't fully revived, his power still couldn't reach every corner.
The areas affected by him were centered in the heart of Hell and were no smaller than the Soul Society.
However, once you left the central region, things became barren, with Reishi concentrations even lower than the World of the Living.
As a result, few souls lingered beyond the central area. Most gathered in the heart of Hell.
The white-haired woman's spiritual body had already reached its natural limit. For her, remaining in the central area would not offer any further growth—only the risk of being corrupted by the Lord of Hell. So, she chose to stay in the Wastelands beyond the center.
Nanatsuki thought for a moment and then asked,
"Do you know how long until the Lord of Hell fully revives?"
The white-haired woman replied,
"I've discussed this with others here in Hell. There's no definitive answer."
"But judging from his movements over the past few decades, it seems his power steadily grows stronger, and his influence over souls deepens with time."
"His revival likely requires specific conditions. You mentioned just now that someone attempted to open the Gate of Hell in the Soul Society, which confirms our suspicions—he wants more souls and Reishi to flow into Hell."
"His goal may very well be to prepare for resurrection."
Nanatsuki fell silent in thought. After considering it, he too found the hypothesis plausible.
Opening the Gate of Hell in the Soul Society would allow the Lord of Hell to siphon souls and Reishi to aid his revival.
Nanatsuki then remembered something.
"When we were making the Sound of Hell, Miss Saitō and I accidentally discovered traces of Hell's Reishi inside Muken. We think this might be a serious threat."
"Hell Reishi inside Muken?" the white-haired woman frowned.
"That suggests Muken is connected to Hell. This isn't good. If the Lord of Hell's power can reach Muken..."
That would spell trouble for Saitō Furaofushi, who was still imprisoned there.
Although her left eye could counteract some influences, it had limits.
As the Lord of Hell's power increased, his ability to manipulate minds would become even stronger.
Furaofushi added, "I've been in Muken so long, and I never realized there was Hell's Reishi here. It must've been leaking from the deeper layers. But it's faded now—I think some power blocked it off."
Nanatsuki recalled that just before the Hell Reishi appeared, a Reishi Shell was being interrogated in one of Muken's upper cells.
He suspected that maybe the shell contained remnants of the Lord of Hell's power, which triggered the disturbance in Muken.
"That reminds me of a rumor..." the white-haired woman mused.
"In the Wastelands, there's a river with a massive whirlpool. It's called the Eye of Hell."
"There's a legend that if one can safely enter the Eye of Hell, they can travel to the Three Realms."
"If Muken is connected to Hell, then maybe the Eye of Hell is a pathway to Muken from Hell."
"I'll go look for that river myself."
Being in the Wastelands already, she planned to search for the river from the legend and verify it with her own eyes.