~ Next Bonus, 200!

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Shin opened a Senkaimon gate, leading a group of students practically vibrating with curiosity into the World of the Living.

To hunt Hollows, you had two options: the World of the Living or Hueco Mundo.

But Shin wasn’t about to drag a class of Shin’ō Academy cadets to a place like Hueco Mundo—in that hellscape, they’d be less than cannon fodder.

At their current level, these students could handle a more powerful Hollow at best. Working together, they might even take down a giant one. But a Gillian-class Menos? They’d be slaughtered in an instant.

"So this is the World of the Living?" Rukia Kuchiki asked, her curiosity shared by all the other students. It was their first time here, and everything seemed new and fascinating.

"You’re all spirits here, so you don’t have to worry about being seen by regular humans," Shin explained to Rukia and the other students.

Of course, Shin himself could be seen. He wasn’t a spirit, but he could easily conceal his presence from humans if he chose. By the same token, humans with naturally high spiritual power, like Ichigo Kurosaki, could see Soul Reapers. Then there were the Fullbringers, whose powers were awakened through spiritual energy.

"Alright, I’m going to use some Hollow bait to draw a few of them in," Shin announced. "Are you all ready?"

Hollow bait was essentially a lure crafted from spiritual energy. Since Hollows were drawn to high concentrations of spirit particles, it was incredibly effective. A small piece wouldn’t attract anything too powerful, just a few insignificant, lesser Hollows. If a Gillian showed up, it would be like hitting the jackpot; you might as well go buy a lottery ticket.

"We’re ready, Instructor Shin!"

The students gripped their Zanpakutō. Most were still the standard, unreleased Asauchi, but a few had already achieved Shikai. Anyone who could achieve Shikai while still in the Academy was considered a genius.

Soon after Shin tossed out the bait, a swarm of small Hollows appeared. They were barely stronger than ordinary humans and had no real attacks to speak of—mostly just shrieking to frighten people. Against a Soul Reaper, they were nothing more than cannon fodder.

Dozens of small Hollows were drawn in, along with one significantly stronger one. When Renji Abarai spotted it, he immediately charged forward.

"Roar, Zabimaru!"

Renji’s Zanpakutō transformed into a segmented, whip-like blade—a direct-combat type. It wasn’t particularly exceptional, even in its released state, but it wasn’t terrible either.

Shin watched him go. ’He can handle that one, no problem. But using his Shikai right out of the gate? He must think he’s got Reiatsu to burn.’ 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

A Shikai release could boost one’s spiritual pressure by nearly tenfold, but it had a major drawback: it drained Reiatsu like a sieve. Every attack consumed a massive amount of spiritual energy. Only those with immense reserves, like Ichigo Kurosaki, could maintain a constant state of Shikai. His giant blade was practically always in its released form, a testament to his innate power.

After all, Ichigo was a cocktail of four different powers: Soul Reaper, Hollow, Quincy, and Fullbring. It was no wonder the guy was a walking cheat code.

Soon enough, Renji defeated the powerful Hollow, but he was visibly exhausted. His current Reiatsu couldn’t sustain Shikai for long.

"Your Shikai should be a trump card, not your opening move. You’re too impulsive."

Shin appeared in front of Renji and said.

Though Renji wasn’t injured, his Reiatsu was nearly depleted, effectively cutting his combat strength in half.

"If you run into another enemy in this state, you’ll be a dead man."

"And don’t think my presence here is a guarantee. If you find yourselves in real danger, I might not step in," Shin added as a final reminder.

His words might have sounded harsh, but they were for their own good. When true danger struck, who would be there to save them? In the end, they could only rely on themselves.

The smaller Hollows were dealt with quickly, with no injuries. If they couldn’t even handle lesser Hollows, they had no business becoming Soul Reapers.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, Shin’s gaze sharpened. He looked into the distance, where several Gillian-class Menos Grande were lumbering toward them, destroying buildings as they went. Humans fled in terror.

Since humans couldn’t see Hollows, to them, it looked as if the buildings were being destroyed by some invisible force, leading to panic, helplessness, and ultimately, death, as their souls were devoured.

"What is that?"

Rukia’s face went pale as she stared in horror at the behemoths in the distance. Their power was overwhelming. The sheer Reiatsu radiating from them was almost enough to bring Rukia to her knees.

"Menos Grande... Gillians? What are they doing here?"

Shin raised an eyebrow. He couldn’t figure out what was going on. A Gillian shouldn’t have been drawn here.

An idea flickered and died just as quickly. ’Could Aizen have sent them?’

He dismissed it instantly. That made no sense... Aizen had nothing to gain by provoking him. Right now, Aizen knew better than to pick a fight—he certainly wouldn’t go out of his way to start one.

"A Menos is beyond your current abilities," Shin said to Rukia. He had no intention of letting them fight these things; it would be suicide.

"I’ll handle these. You all stay back."

Even if Shin hadn’t intervened, someone would have. There were still Quincy in the World of the Living, and this was Karakura Town—both the Visored and Kisuke Urahara were here. The Visored might not show themselves easily, but Urahara wouldn’t stand by and do nothing if things got out of hand.

A Cero blast shot towards him. Shin watched it calmly. "Bakudō #81. Dankū."

A transparent barrier materialized, blocking all the Cero blasts.

"A chantless Dankū..." Rukia murmured, her eyes shining with admiration as she looked at Shin.

It was so powerful—even without the incantation, it could block a Cero.

In truth, she was making a mountain out of a molehill. If Shin couldn’t even block a Cero from a mere Gillian, he’d have to be pathetically weak. After all, Gillians were just cannon fodder.

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