As Bai Chen remained in Jinzen—
before long, his thoughts gradually blurred.
At the same time—
the Asauchi resting across his knees suddenly flared with light!
The smooth, razor-sharp blade shimmered as a surge of lush green radiance burst forth, vibrant and full of life.
"This is… the power of Wood Release!"
Before Bai Chen could even react—
his final strand of consciousness was violently pulled forward by that emerald glow,
dragged straight into his inner world!
The dialogue with his Zanpakutō had officially begun.
———
Not long after,
when Bai Chen opened his eyes again—
he realized he was no longer in the empty classroom.
Instead, he stood within a completely unfamiliar realm.
As far as the eye could see—
a vast blue sky stretched overhead, white clouds drifting lazily across it.
Warm sunlight poured down through the gaps in the clouds, bathing the land below in golden light.
Everywhere radiated an intense, thriving vitality.
"So this… is my inner world?"
Bai Chen scanned his surroundings,
taking in the blue sky, the white clouds, and the dense, flourishing forest.
After a moment of quiet appreciation, he nodded in satisfaction.
Good.
The scenery inside his soul was almost exactly what he'd imagined—
bright, alive, and peaceful.
Not dark.
Not oppressive.
That alone told him something important.
It meant his heart remained pure.
Gaining overwhelming power hadn't twisted his mind or birthed any darkness within him.
However—
after exploring for a bit,
Bai Chen's gaze locked onto something at the far edge of the forest.
A hidden valley.
"…This is—"
"Don't tell me… my inner world actually has a Final Valley?!"
Bai Chen froze, staring in disbelief.
In the distance, he could clearly see it—
a colossal waterfall crashing down from hundreds of meters above, roaring as it plunged into the valley below.
And on either side of that waterfall—
surrounded by dense forest—
stood two titanic statues, towering toward the heavens.
On the left—
a colossal Buddha statue.
Majestic.
Sacred.
Transcendent.
It radiated overwhelming authority.
More striking than its seated posture—
was its back.
Thousands upon thousands of wooden arms extended outward, layered in a vast circular formation like a blazing sun disk.
The visual impact was indescribable.
Even as the master of this inner world—
even though Bai Chen had already inherited Wood Release and mentally prepared himself—
the instant he truly laid eyes on that Buddha,
his heart was still shaken to the core.
"So this…"
"This is the pressure of Wood Release's strongest technique…"
"No wonder even Uchiha Madara, riding the Nine-Tails, got smashed flat here…"
Leaving aside the Buddha's near-kilometer-tall body—
just gazing at it was enough for Bai Chen to feel it clearly.
Every single wooden arm contained terrifying energy.
Each one alone rivaled the destructive force of tens of thousands of released Zanpakutō.
And there were countless arms.
Endless.
"Incredible…"
"After the system's enhancement, even Shinsuusenju (True Several Thousand Hands) has been strengthened far beyond its original level."
"No wonder it's the ultimate Wood Release technique."
Walking forward to the edge of the valley,
Bai Chen raised his head, staring up at the colossal Buddha.
His blood boiled.
In his mind, scenes already began to form—
future battles.
Activating his ultimate technique.
Standing before his enemies like a living war god—
piloting a literal walking catastrophe.
With the Ultimate Sage Body acting like a nuclear reactor,
endlessly supplying reiatsu—
Espada.
Captains.
Even the Sternritter.
Bring them all.
One punch each.
Crushed without exception.
Then—
after steadying his emotions—
Bai Chen turned around.
His gaze passed through the forest, locking onto the other statue.
The moment he saw it—
his eyes widened in delight.
"Oh right…"
"How could I forget?"
"If it's the Final Valley… then if Senju Hashirama is here—"
"Uchiha Madara has to be here too."
There it was.
Beneath messy, flowing white hair—
a face carved with unshakable confidence and iron will.
Most striking of all—
those pale-violet eyes.
Layer upon layer of Rinnegan rings.
And draped over his body—
a loose white robe marked with multiple tomoe patterns.
"Rinnegan…"
"Six Paths Madara…"
"…Does this mean that besides the God-Tier Senju Hashirama template—"
"there's another power sealed within my Zanpakutō?"
Bai Chen's gaze burned hotter by the second.
Originally, just the Wood-Element Zanpakutō—
paired with the Ultimate Sage Body—
was already enough to make him absurdly powerful.
But now—
after entering his inner world through Jinzen—
he'd uncovered an even greater surprise.
For now,
he had only fully mastered Wood Release.
Even its ultimate techniques still required time and refinement before perfect execution.
As for the conditions to awaken the Six Paths Madara template—
those remained completely unknown.
But that didn't matter.
Just knowing that his Zanpakutō didn't house a single power—
that it held multiple opposing forces—
was more than enough to satisfy him.
It meant his ultimate ceiling…
was far higher than he'd ever imagined.
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