Flash!
Closing in!
In a single instant, Bai Chen appeared before Hollow White.
His arm rose—
and the massive flame war fan, wrapped in roaring spiritual pressure, descended from the sky.
The blade edge tore through the air as it aimed straight for White's horned skull.
The next moment—
the strike would sever the horn.
That scene instantly seized everyone's attention.
All eyes shifted away from the fading Negación beam and focused on Hollow White's bull-headed figure.
The atmosphere tightened.
Every second felt unbearably slow.
Only the descending blade proved that the moment of judgment had arrived.
Just like Tōsen Kaname moments earlier—
Hollow White had become Bai Chen's second execution target.
Under the overwhelming pressure of Bai Chen's killing intent—
and still bound by the lingering black flames—
White had no chance to escape.
Even as the war fan's blade approached within ten meters of its head—
it still couldn't react.
High above the battlefield, Gin Ichimaru widened his eyes completely.
For once, his narrow eyes were fully open.
A deep wariness flickered in his blue pupils.
From Gin's perspective—
Even if he himself were standing in White's place…
Even if his Zanpakutō Kamishini no Yari were already in Bankai form—
capable of piercing at five hundred times the speed of sound—
unless he had prepared in advance with total concentration…
there was no way he could block Bai Chen's sudden strike.
Let alone Hollow White—
which had been suppressed from the beginning and was already heavily injured by explosions and black flames.
To Gin, the result was obvious.
Only one outcome awaited.
The horn would be severed.
The bull-headed mask would shatter.
And Hollow White would explode and die.
The next moment—
exactly as Gin predicted—
the strike landed.
The war fan descended.
The blade cut through White's horn as easily as slicing tofu.
A slash glowing with black and crimson light split the air.
White didn't even have time to react.
The moment the horn broke—
the accumulated destructive pressure detonated instantly.
BOOM!
White's horned skull exploded.
Scarlet light erupted across the sky.
The blast scattered the remaining black flames.
A violent shockwave swept through the battlefield, swallowing both Bai Chen and White's dark body in an instant.
For a moment—
the entire battlefield became impossible to see clearly.
Gasps erupted everywhere.
Isshin Shiba stared at the explosion above the sky.
Even after witnessing Bai Chen's power several times already—
he still couldn't help but sigh in disbelief.
"When Bai Chen gets serious…"
"And truly intends to kill…"
"Unless the opponent is among the absolute strongest…"
"Anyone who fights him will only end up like this."
His voice was filled with emotion.
After all—
before Bai Chen arrived, Isshin himself had nearly been pushed to the brink of death by Hollow White.
Only after personally fighting the creature did he truly understand how terrifying it was.
A mutated Hollow possessing Shinigami power.
A monster far beyond what ordinary captains could handle.
And yet—
Bai Chen had simply swung his blade once.
One strike.
One fatal blow.
The horn shattered—
and White's entire bull-headed form exploded.
Although Bai Chen himself had been swallowed by the blast—
Isshin wasn't worried.
Not in the slightest.
After witnessing Bai Chen's signless healing technique more than once—
Isshin was certain.
In this world, perhaps only someone like Genryūsai Yamamoto in Bankai, or an even higher existence—
could truly injure Bai Chen.
Behind him, the 10th Division soldiers watched nervously.
They held their breath.
Their eyes locked onto the fading explosion cloud.
"Did… that monster die?"
"Did Hollow White finally disappear for good?"
For the Shinigami stationed in the Human World—
that horned Hollow had long been like a nightmare.
If it had truly been destroyed—
their future missions might finally become safer.
Soon—
the smoke began to clear.
From within the burning clouds, Bai Chen's voice suddenly sounded.
"Huh…?"
"Even after taking that kind of damage…"
"You still haven't died?"
Bai Chen's figure slowly emerged from the fading shockwave.
His eyes remained fixed straight ahead.
Locked onto the silhouette of Hollow White.
The scene that appeared next shocked everyone again.
Half of White's body had been blown apart by the explosion.
The broken horn, the skull mask, and its black armor had all been destroyed.
Only half a body remained.
Although it was still alive—
White looked like it could collapse at any moment.
Yet the creature's crimson vertical pupils burned with madness.
The remaining half of its body began glowing intensely.
Inside it—
a violent surge of spiritual pressure was erupting uncontrollably.
Bai Chen narrowed his eyes.
Because the meaning of that phenomenon was obvious.
Hollow White—
was preparing to self-destruct.
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