Bleach: The Path to Transcendence

Karakura Town, Kurosaki Manor.

Kurosaki Manor, nestled in the southern suburbs of Karakura Town, is a luxurious townhouse, a haven for the Kurosaki family of Quincies, hidden from the mortal world.

Currently, in the basement of Kurosaki Manor, a pale blue Reishi barrier flows gently like a veil, surrounding the area. Along the walls, rows of Reishi collecting devices are neatly arranged, emitting a faint glow.

A young girl with side-parted short orange hair is standing in this mysterious space. Her appearance is delicate, her youthful vitality and beauty evident in every gesture.

At this moment, she is engaged in a fierce battle with a yellow-haired middle-aged man sporting a goatee.

“God's Tempest!”

The middle-aged man suddenly roared, his voice like a resounding bell, echoing in the basement. Instantly, a Reishi hurricane, centered around him, surged outwards like a raging tide.

In the blink of an eye, a pair of gray wind-attribute wings abruptly manifested on his back, their feathers trembling slightly, as if accumulating immense power. Immediately afterward, with a wave of his hand, a sacred arrow of destruction, imbued with endless gales, shot towards the girl in front of him.

“Swoosh!”

A sharp whistling sound pierced the air.

At the same time, the wings on the middle-aged man's back fluttered vigorously, sending dozens of feather blades like nimble birds, flying towards the girl, forming a pincer attack, intending to trap her.

However, facing this fierce offensive, the orange-haired girl showed no fear.

She merely curved her lips into a faint smile, a smile filled with confidence and composure. Immediately, she used Hirenkyaku, her figure like a swallow, gracefully weaving between the flying feathers and arrows, dodging each of these attacks.

The orange-haired girl keenly seized a fleeting opportunity, lightly tapping the void with her feet, relying on the exquisite footwork of Hirenkyaku, and rushed swiftly towards the middle-aged man surrounded by countless storms.

“It's not over yet!”

Upon witnessing this, the middle-aged man immediately clasped his hands together rapidly, gathering vast power in his palms. In an instant, a giant axe forged from gales materialized, its blade gleaming with a chilling light, carrying the force of an overwhelming avalanche as it chopped down fiercely towards the orange-haired girl.

The orange-haired girl remained calm and unhurried, slowly raising her fair hand, a pale blue pattern, like a nimble vein, instantly enveloped her palm.

Immediately afterward, she fearlessly grabbed the roaring gale axe.

This axe, containing the power of endless storms, was firmly grasped in her hand, unable to move even an inch. She relied on the powerful force of her own Blut Vene Anhaben to withstand this attack head-on.

“咻!”

A sound of rushing wind suddenly rang out. In the instant the middle-aged man was momentarily stunned by shock, the orange-haired girl had already appeared behind him like a ghost, relying on her Hirenkyaku, which had reached the pinnacle of skill. She held a small but sharp Miniaturized Heilig Pfeil, radiating a chilling aura, steadily against the middle-aged man's neck.

“Grandpa, you lost!”

The girl's crisp voice echoed in the basement.

“I'm old, useless!”

Kurosaki Tomihiko looked helpless, raising his hand to scratch his head. He was utterly astonished that he had lost to his fifteen-year-old granddaughter, despite activating his Vollständig.

This orange-haired girl was none other than Kurosaki Masaki. Kurosaki Tomihiko found it hard to believe that Masaki had defeated him, who had activated Vollständig, using only the basic abilities of a Quincy, without awakening the power of Schrift or gaining the blessing of Vollständig.

Thinking of this, Kurosaki Tomihiko couldn't help but sigh from the bottom of his heart.

“Masaki, you are just like your uncle!”

“Uncle?”

Since childhood, Kurosaki Masaki had often heard her parents and grandfather mention her uncle, Kurosaki Hiroshi, but she had never met him in person, filling her heart with curiosity about this mysterious uncle.

Just then, a man and a woman walked in from outside. The woman had golden hair, was about thirty years old, and had a beautiful face; the man had black eyes and black hair, wore round-rimmed glasses, and looked refined and gentle. They were Kurosaki Masaki's parents—Ishida Soken and Kurosaki Kanae.

“Dad, how was it? I told you long ago that Masaki is already the strongest in our family. Now you can rest assured to let her go out, right!”

Kurosaki Kanae walked forward with a face full of smiles, affectionately holding her father's arm, half-jokingly.

Kurosaki Tomihiko was filled with emotion and sighed deeply:

“The younger generation is to be feared!”

The next morning, soft sunlight streamed through the window, shining into Kurosaki Masaki's room.

Masaki was methodically packing her personal clothing and study supplies, while the concerned nagging of her parents occasionally reached her ears.

“Masaki, when you get to your cousin's house, don't be too playful. You must focus on your studies. You're in high school now, and the workload is very heavy. You can't be careless at all, and you must not be lazy. The weather is getting colder now, so don't eat cold or raw things!”

Her mother, Kurosaki Kanae's voice was full of worry and instructions.

“Yes, yes, yes, I know!”

Kurosaki Masaki responded verbally, but her hands didn't stop packing, her eyes showing a hint of excitement and anticipation about leaving home, making her replies seem somewhat absent-minded.

Since the last lord of the Sternbild, Ishida Wuliu, passed away, and then the mixed-blood Quincy, Muramaki Terugo, led most of the young mixed-blood Quincies to rebel against the Sternbild, the situation had undergone earth-shattering changes.

The remaining Quincies chose to disperse and live separately in order to preserve their bloodline and prevent further accidents.

For the current Kurosaki family, including the adopted Ishida Soken, the whole family only has four people, and all of them are pure-blood Quincies.

And those remaining mixed-blood Quincies, only a few chose to leave, most of the rest followed the pure-blood lineage of the Ishida family.

After entering high school, Kurosaki Masaki's studies became more and more heavy. After repeated discussions by the whole family, it was finally decided to let Masaki stay at the Ishida family's house, which is very close to the middle school, so that she can save time going to and from school and focus on her studies.

This is why Kurosaki Tomihiko insisted on examining his granddaughter's strength. He had to ensure that Masaki had enough ability to face everything outside on her own.

......

Kurosaki Tomihiko, Kurosaki Kanae, and Ishida Soken stood side by side at the door, their eyes closely following Kurosaki Masaki's gradually receding figure.

The morning sun shone on them, adding a touch of warmth and a slight sense of melancholy to this farewell.

“Mom, Dad, Grandpa, go back, I will take care of myself. I'll be back at the end of the semester!”

Kurosaki Masaki paused, slowly turned her head, a bright smile on her face, and waved vigorously at the three of them.

However, none of them noticed that in the shadows that were invisible to the naked eye, a group of people in black robes were quietly lurking, closely monitoring every move of the Kurosaki family.