The flame was not burning intensely; instead, it maintained the form of a flickering sprout.
The outermost layer of the flame appeared frozen, its surface covered in a substance that looked like both ash and frost. The inner flame was similarly motionless; only the very center of the core retained a liquid state, though its flow was incredibly sluggish.
It was as if time itself had been stopped.
"My Lord, this is—"
Shisui's Sharingan opened, his Mangekyo perceiving the flame with absolute clarity. At the same time, an inexplicable aura emanated from the fire. A look of contemplation crossed his face, tinged with a hint of doubt.
Yakumi felt the same, sensing a specific, unique aura from the flame. This particular sensation allowed him to recognize it instantly.
"My Lord, these are departed souls!"
A flash of realization dawned in Shisui's eyes. "They are the souls of those who died in this world, taking this form upon reaching the Yellow Springs."
"The flames of their souls have been frozen by the cold here, rendered unable to move. They can only fall into a deep slumber in this state."
Then, a frown appeared on that exquisite face as the suspicion deepened.
"However, the souls here are far too fragile. They cannot possibly endure this cold for long."
"Eventually, when they can no longer hold on, these souls will be worn away until they are completely exhausted, and their consciousness will vanish into nothingness."
Shisui stood tall, his sharp Sharingan surveying the surroundings. He was shocked to discover that across the vast expanse of the Yellow Springs, the ground was covered in these flames transformed from the souls of the dead.
They were densely packed, stretching as far as the eye could see.
"This place... likely holds every departed soul of this world!"
"Except for Brook!"
Ren's voice was low as he supplemented Shisui's observation. From the moment he saw the flame, he had already sensed the true nature of this place.
The Yellow Springs...
Rather than a netherworld, it was more like a cold storage facility for souls.
"And now, this land of the Yellow Springs shall be my territory!"
Clang!
Ren drew the Zanpakuto from his waist, and the blade emitted a faint, clear light. It was evident that the sword had already been released. With a gentle swing, the blade sent out a wave of sword pressure that carved a mark into the ground, his spiritual pressure surging wildly.
"Shisui, Yakumi, stay behind me. Accompany me as I explore this world of the dead."
"As you command!"
The two of them drew their weapons and followed Ren's Flash Step, beginning their exploration of this realm of the deceased.
As Ren had initially speculated, this land of the Yellow Springs truly lacked any specific ruler. Ren led Shisui and Yakumi across the landscape for more than three days. During this time, they traveled forward from their point of entry.
By the end of it, the three of them had actually returned to their starting point.
Seeing the sword mark he had left before they set out, the traces of spiritual pressure on it confirmed to Ren that this was indeed where they began. In Ren's vision, a faint, nearly imperceptible thread hung above the sword mark on the ground, extending forward.
The thread released by his Zanpakuto had come full circle from the regions they had already explored behind them.
"The Yellow Springs... is also a sphere?"
Ren roughly estimated the circumference of the Yellow Springs in his mind. Suddenly moved by a thought, he looked back at Yakumi, who appeared somewhat fatigued.
Traveling at full speed with Flash Step for three days and nights was a strain; even though Ren had moderated the pace, Yakumi's current Lieutenant-level spiritual pressure meant his mental energy was inevitably flagging.
Ren pondered for a moment before asking, "Yakumi, in the world of the living outside, what is the distance of the first half of the Grand Line?"
"My Lord, that is—" Yakumi looked troubled. "The sea is vast and boundless. I can only give you a rough figure, and there will inevitably be a significant margin of error."
"A rough figure is fine. I only need it for comparison."
Once Ren received the specific data from Yakumi, he compared it in his mind to the circumference of the Yellow Springs he had just determined. The result was exactly as he had expected—the two were almost identical.
In other words, the circumference of the ocean where the living resided was roughly the same as that of the Yellow Springs filled with the dead.
"Then... what about the surface area?"
Could it be that the two were like the inside and outside of a mirror world? Ren was not entirely sure of this world's specific physical structure. However, according to his deduction, that seemed to be the case.
The difference from the outside was that there were no oceans here—only a single, continuous landmass. After he had toured the entirety of the Yellow Springs, he had not seen a single being with an independent consciousness. There were only those soul flames that seemed to be paused in time.
During their travels, they had occasionally witnessed scenes where a soul could no longer withstand the cold, shattering and dissipating completely. The consciousness of those broken souls vanished entirely, leaving only fragments to fall to the ground.
It was exactly as Shisui had predicted.
Shisui spoke up, "My Lord, it appears this world is truly an undeveloped virgin land. If we use this as a base in the future, it might even be possible to establish a brand-new Seireitei!"
Ren nodded. Shisui's thoughts aligned perfectly with his own.
This expedition had truly yielded massive gains. Having spent over three days investigating, it was time for the three of them to leave. However, before departing, there was one thing Ren had to do.
"Shisui, Yakumi, move back."
Hearing this, the two did not know exactly what Ren intended to do, but seeing his solemn expression, they immediately used Flash Step to retreat two miles away.
Seeing that they were far enough, the Zanpakuto in Ren's hand gradually glowed with a clear light.
"Connect, Kiritsugu!"
Boom!
The spiritual pressure around Ren erupted, and the radiance on the blade became brighter than ever before. Once this light burst forth, it did not scatter in all directions. Instead, it converged into a single ribbon of light, shooting toward the heavens from the tip of the blade.
As it reached an altitude of nearly two thousand meters, it exploded violently. Like a magnificent firework, countless beams of light surged toward every corner of the land.
"That is... My Lord's threads! What is he doing?"
"I am not sure—but one thing is certain: it must be a world-shaking undertaking!"
In the distance, Shisui and Yakumi watched the ribbon of light that had pierced the sky suddenly shatter. They glanced at each other, both seeing the disbelief in the other's eyes.
"Could the Lord be intending to form a contract with all the departed souls at once?"
"How could that be possible!"
With waves of shock crashing in their hearts, the two continued to look forward with their trembling Sharingan. Sensing the spiritual pressure coming from ahead, they found it to be incredibly heavy. Even with their current Captain and Lieutenant-level spiritual pressure, they felt like a small boat in a thunderstorm before Ren's erupting power, liable to drown in that spiritual pressure at any moment.
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]