Chapter 405: This Time, Much Thanks to You

The Soul Reapers from the conservative factions, seeing that the tide had turned against them, attempted to resist, but in the face of the overwhelming power of the senior leadership of the Soul Reapers, they had no means to fight back and were subdued quickly.

"Li An, this time we owe you a great debt." Kurosaki Ichigo stepped forward, patted Li An's shoulder, and said with a smile, "If not for you, we would not have known these traitors were hiding so deeply."

Rukia also nodded slightly: "Li An, I was wrong to have doubted your abilities before. You indeed possess sufficient wisdom and courage."

Li An smiled slightly: "This is nothing. I simply did not wish to be wrongly accused, nor did I want Aizen's conspiracy to succeed."

The senior leadership of the Soul Reapers looked at Li An, a hint of appreciation appearing in their eyes: "Li An, you are not only brave but also wise. Regarding this matter, you have not only proven your innocence but also rendered a great service to our Soul Reaper world. We have decided not only to let you continue participating in the trial but also to grant you an additional reward."

As he spoke, one of the senior leadership of the Soul Reapers produced a secret manual emitting a mysterious light and handed it to Li An: "This is a special array manual capable of enhancing spiritual power; we hope you will make good use of it."

Li An took the manual, his heart filled with joy. He knew this reward was not only recognition of him but also assistance for his future trials.

Guo Yao happily threw herself into Li An's arms, her eyes shimmering with tears of excitement: "Li An, you did it; I knew you definitely could."

The instant he stepped into the Hueco Mundo, Li An felt his surroundings wrapped in a strange and oppressive aura. The sky displayed an eerie dark red, as if dyed with blood; thick clouds pressed down low, as if they would fall at any moment. The ground beneath his feet was cracked and rugged, permeated with a stench of decay. Occasionally, the roars of Hollows could be heard from a short distance away, adding even more horror to this mysterious and dangerous region.

"Li An, you must be careful." Guo Yao tightly gripped Li An's arm, her voice trembling slightly, her eyes full of worry: "I just feel this place is very dangerous." Her body trembled slightly as her gaze, alert, scanned the surroundings, attempting to find a shred of safety within this strange and terrifying environment.

Li An gently patted Guo Yao's hand, the corners of his mouth rising slightly to reveal a confident smile, and reassured her: "Rest assured, Yaoyao. With me here, nothing will happen." However, his inner self dared not be slack for even an instant; in this unknown Hueco Mundo, every step might hide deadly danger.

No sooner had the words left his lips than a violent tremor came, as if the ground were being shaken by an invisible giant hand. Immediately following, a Hollow of enormous size slowly emerged from the darkness. This Hollow was as large as a small hill, its body emitting black mist in which strange lights flickered faintly; its eyes were like two burning ghost fires, revealing boundless ferocity and greed.

"T-this... what is that thing!" Guo Yao's eyes widened in terror, tears swirling in her sockets; she instinctively stepped back several paces and nearly fell.

Li An's expression instantly became grave; he felt a pressure unlike any he had ever encountered before, as the power of this Hollow exceeded his imagination. Yet there was not a shred of fear in his eyes; instead, a gleam of excitement flashed: "Interesting; it seems we have a hard battle to fight this time." His hands clenched slightly into fists, and the spiritual power within his body began to circulate slowly, ready at any moment to welcome the battle.

That powerful Hollow let out a deafening roar that made the surrounding air tremble. It opened its blood-filled maw, and a beam of black energy shot toward Li An like lightning.