Yoshio now needs Quincy to cooperate with him on some experiments. The Quincies of the Wandenreich won't do; since Yhwach has awakened, even if he hasn't fully regained the Almighty, the Wandenreich is no longer a place where one can stir up trouble. In the World of the Living, there are only two Quincy families left, which is why Yoshio has appeared before Masaki. Besides, if he has Masaki, won't Ichigo Kurosaki be at his mercy?
Yoshio is very clear about his role—he's a villain. Everything he's done so far is definitely not what a protagonist would do, and especially once Aizen is exposed, he himself will inevitably be implicated. When that time comes, his stance will be on the opposite side of the protagonist. At that point, he'll need people to vouch for him—Masaki and Sōken Ishida are perfect… tools to restrain the protagonist's side. Even if he becomes an enemy of the Soul Society, as long as Masaki and Sōken stand with him, the two most important male leads in Bleach—Ichigo and Uryū—will at least not be his enemies.
Although he had confidently told Sōken Ishida and Masaki that he was a Shinigami transformed from a Quincy, Yoshio hadn't actually succeeded with that experiment yet. The Quincy souls he'd stolen from Mayuri long ago had already been used to make the Hōgyoku. The souls he could get from the Wandenreich were all of dead Quincies, and meddling with a living Quincy like Baelz was inconvenient. So, although his theory was sound, theory alone isn't enough without practice. And now—here comes Masaki?
Especially because… Masaki is a Quincy who has gone through Auswählen!
He actually has a way to create Quincies: use the Mind-Rending Blade to cut down a Shinigami and you can produce a Quincy. But Quincies obtained this way are all mixed-blood, and mixed so far they have nothing to do with Yhwach whatsoever. He studies Quincies in order to figure out how to deal with Yhwach via Quincies. Quincies unrelated to Yhwach, he doesn't need.
He has already altered this world, and correspondingly, Yhwach's future will change too. Will Aizen still be imprisoned? Will Yhwach still be cleaved by Ichigo's blade?
Yoshio truly can't say. He may be lazy by nature, but whenever he thinks of the danger ahead, his motivation to arm himself returns in waves.
Thus, Masaki is a perfect test subject: once strong, pure-blooded, with some trait that attracts White Hollows, endured Auswählen, has a firm will, and is deeply tied to the protagonist. And Yoshio wasn't lying to her—others can't see Yhwach, but Ichigo definitely can. The Monk, Aizen, Yhwach… which of them doesn't see Ichigo as a blade? As for whom this blade will cut, the three surely have different ideas.
Masaki appearing at Ichigo's side will only expose her. As Yoshio said, rather than becoming part of the enemy's known quantities, it's better to become the unknown, so that in future battles she can strike unexpectedly. In this world, perhaps many know of Yhwach, but very few know his abilities. Perhaps only the Monk and Haschwalth know the Almighty clearly; even Schutzstaffel member Baelz wasn't told that Yhwach possesses the Almighty. Well, Aizen might also know—he always knows many things others don't, though who knows where he learns them. Yoshio has long suspected it might be related to Aizen's Bankai; he thinks Aizen's Bankai could be tied to "knowledge" or "information."
That's why Aizen seldom uses Bankai, fighting instead with Kyōka Suigetsu's Shikai.
The Ishida family knows a lot about Yhwach—knows about Auswählen and has long researched anti-Auswählen—but even they likely don't grasp the truth of the Almighty. So they don't know Yhwach can peer into the future. In fact, right now Yhwach indeed doesn't have foresight—his power hasn't fully recovered. But that doesn't stop Yoshio from intimidating Masaki.
It would take too long to explain, so he had Nezuko and Masaki sit while he explained the Wandenreich and some things about Yhwach. Even Nezuko didn't know about Yhwach; Yoshio had mostly spoken about Shinigami before, only touching on Quincies without detail. Only now did Nezuko learn she too possessed Quincy power.
"But Dad…" Nezuko seized a pause, raised her hand to signal she had a question, and after Yoshio nodded she asked, "If Yhwach takes the powers of all impure Quincies, then why am I fine?"
"There are many reasons. You'll understand in the future," Yoshio said without elaborating.
Masaki also asked at this time, "According to you, Yhwach can see through present and future—so how can we hide from him?"
"It's possible," Yoshio said. "A Quincy who survives Auswählen has essentially crossed death. A Quincy who has crossed death has a chance to evade the Almighty." He'd derived this from Sōken Ishida's research. He didn't know how Sōken proceeded later; he only extended from the early research. Compared to Sōken, Yoshio believed his own method might be better—although… it's still imperfect.
There's an old saying in this world: If you deceive the Shinigami with false death, you will gain immortality. If you want to evade Auswählen and the Almighty, you must first face Auswählen. By crossing death through Auswählen, you gain the potential to "transcend the Almighty." As for how to utilize that potential and make it real—that's for later research. Because Yoshio has never studied a soul after Auswählen, he can't yet grasp the follow-up progression. So… Masaki is a precious experimental material.
After he finished, Masaki didn't answer immediately. Yoshio wasn't in a hurry. He set a seal and left.
Yoshio first returned to the Hell Solitude and sent the already-purified Lascivious One node to Baelz. At that moment Baelz happened to be with the other Schutzstaffel, injecting spiritual pressure into Surtur's Branch of Ruin. Under the branch's effect, Surtur's Ragnarök domain covered the entire Seireitei!
Of course, the people in Seireitei wouldn't notice anything yet. As time passes, the closer it gets to the "Ragnarök" that Surtur has designed, the more the Shinigami will, under the subtle influence of Twilight-ization, drain their spiritual power and dull their wits. When Ragnarök fully erupts, the Twilight-ization in each Shinigami will simultaneously reach its final stage. Only then will the Shinigami realize the change.
…
After finishing everything, Baelz and the others exited the palace. Yhwach had fully regained consciousness; at that moment, everyone in the Wandenreich was cheering for that sacred moment. Baelz blended into the crowd and sang praise for Yhwach's recovery. People performed the Holy Chant, shouting, "King of the Quincies—after nine hundred years the heartbeat returns…"
Amid the crowd Baelz saw Liltotto and the girls, and walked over. "Where have you been lately?" Liltotto asked, curious.
"His Majesty's orders. I did something amazing," Baelz said vaguely. It was classified. Since Yhwach had only summoned the four of them in the Schutzstaffel, it meant he hadn't planned to reveal this to the regular Sternritter. Hearing that, Liltotto just curled her lip. Fine, don't say it—like she cared.
"So jealous, ugh! If only I were Schutzstaffel too!" Bambi stamped angrily. "Uh… how about I teach you research?"
Baelz's eyes rolled as he offered. Bambi's eyes lit up, then dimmed. "Really? I've never touched that stuff. Forget it." "Try it. It's not like you'll lose anything," Baelz coaxed. "If you really have no talent, just stop."
"Hey, you little brat, you're not trying to hit on Bambi, are you?" Giselle on Bambi's left pulled a weird face and said loudly. Bambi immediately put on a wary look. "I am indeed very pretty, but you're not my type. At least grow taller!"
Over the years, Baelz had grown taller—from grade-schooler to middle-schooler stature. No, the pinnacle of middle school—half a step into high school!
A vein popped on Baelz's forehead. "What are you thinking? Bambi isn't my ideal type."
"Oh? Then what is your ideal type?" Meninas tapped her lip and asked teasingly.
"Well…" Baelz fell into thought. "Alright, enough, you lot. Baelz's still a kid. What would he know?" Liltotto cut the topic off.
"To be fair—true," Baelz nodded solemnly. "Let's think about such profound issues after we flatten the Soul Society."
They looked toward the Silbern, sensing a transcendent spiritual pressure that then completely faded. Yhwach had reclaimed through Auswählen all Quincy powers he deemed unnecessary. He was only at day one of the first year of his nine-year recovery—far from full power—but even so, they could feel the unfathomable strength. Yhwach is truly strong.
A thousand years ago, Yhwach led ordinary Quincies against the Soul Society. Back then Quincies had no Schrift, no Vollständig—only simple spirit weapons to fire arrows; at best, Quincy: Letzt Stil. Yhwach himself, due to Ichibē Hyōsube's stratagem, lost the Almighty and fought in a closed-eye state. And their opponents?
The famed strongest in history—the First Generation Gotei 13 under Yamamoto.
One could say: closed-eye Yhwach led a group of Quincies far inferior to the Sternritter, invaded the Soul Society, and spread war across the Seireitei against the First Gen under Yamamoto. The entire Seireitei, except where Central 46 sits, was ravaged. In the end, only Yhwach fought alone. Even then, it took Chōjirō Sasakibe's sneak attack from behind to grievously wound him, allowing Yamamoto to kill him.
Moreover, the more Baelz learned about Yhwach and Quincies, and the longer he stayed in the Wandenreich, the more he suspected Yhwach had done it on purpose. Yhwach once negotiated with Ichibē Hyōsube; in that talk, the Monk used the Soul King's left hand to seal Yhwach's Almighty. Yhwach then used death to undo the seal, even turning the Soul King's left hand into his subordinate.
So Baelz would not underestimate Yhwach. In the Bleach world, Yhwach is the most troublesome enemy—not only because of the Almighty, but because he seems to bear providence. Until he completes his mandate, he is invincible. Of course, that's from Baelz's higher-dimensional perspective. If a few people know about the Almighty, then only he might sense this mandate.
Today is a day of revelry for Quincies inside the Wandenreich, and a day of tribulation for those outside. Amid the joy and sorrow, some take it calmly.
Baelz mainly watched Robert Accutrone and Askin Nakk Le Vaar. Eventually the crowd dispersed. Baelz returned to his room.
Bambi followed, not because she liked research, but to see if Baelz had any fun gadgets. He often made interesting trinkets.
The most famous was the "transformation pill" Giselle ate, fulfilling Giselle's wish. Since then, others often dropped by to see if they could snag a tool. Thus Baelz was well-liked among the Sternritter.
Since he'd mentioned it earlier, she came to check. Baelz had been waiting for Bambi to come in; he didn't dare act outside. Now that Yhwach was fully awake, he couldn't be as reckless as before—even if Yhwach might already be asleep…
"What's this?"
Upon entering, Bambi saw something like a pill on a lab bench. She was very interested in Baelz's drugs—after all, Giselle became a woman by eating a pill. Seeing her notice the pill, Baelz quickly feigned panic.
"Ah! Bambi, you can't eat that!" His reaction piqued Bambi's interest. She picked it up right away. "Let me look. What's the harm? First tell me what it is."
"This…" Baelz said a bit guiltily, "If I tell you, you have to keep it secret."
"Relax. My lips are sealed," Bambi thumped her chest confidently.
"This… is a 'second Schrift' I made by researching His Majesty's Schrift."
"Second Schrift?" Bambi grew interested. "What's that? Also, how dare you research power bestowed by His Majesty—no wonder you want secrecy. You little… not honest."
"It's something that, when ingested, may awaken a second Schrift and also amplify spiritual pressure," Baelz said. "But after I made it… I never tested it, so I don't know the exact effects."
"Oh?" Bambi asked, intrigued. "Any risks?"
"At worst it does nothing—no risks."
"You sure?"
"Of course. When has my experimental product ever failed?" Baelz said confidently.
"Hey—Bambi, what are you doing?! You can't eat that!"
With his confirmation, Bambi swallowed the pill. She cackled. "Don't be stingy. You can always make another."
"Hic~"
After swallowing the "Lascivious One" node, Bambi felt a burst of fullness, hiccuped, and then said, "Seems like nothing changed."
"How could it take effect so fast?! Just like His Majesty's bestowal of Schrift, it'll take time," Baelz said. "True," Bambi nodded, then turned to leave. "Don't worry, I won't tell. If my body changes, I'll come back."
With that, she opened the door and left. Know when to quit while ahead!
After she left, Baelz's gaze deepened. Once she ingested the evil node, Bambi's soul ability immediately changed.
Her previous soul ability, "False Leader," was basically useless. Now it became "Demonic Avatar: Lilith." In fact, this is like what happened when Tokinada Tsunayashiro first fused with an evil-person node—his soul ability became "Demonic Avatar: Tyrant Duke."
Will those who fuse with evil nodes become demons?