Chapter 196: Chapter 196: Crafting the Sound of Hell
(T/N: Third and final Chapter of today! Hope you guys enjoyed the read! and Thanks for the support!!
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The conversation between the 8th Division Shinigami and the prison guards caught Nanatsuki’s attention.
"Captain Hikifune gave us tranquilizer guns so we could restrain them before they self-destruct," said the Shinigami escorting the Reishi Shells. "You prison folks interrogate them first, but don’t kill them. They might have useful intel."
"I see. Don’t worry. Once they’re in the Underground Prison, their fates are sealed!" the prison guard said with a laugh.
The Reishi Shells were separated and placed in individual cells, each monitored by four guards.
Nanatsuki slipped into the shadow of one of the guards, silently observing the Reishi Shells.
The two captured by the 8th Division had moderate levels of Reiatsu. One was on par with an average Shinigami, while the other met the entry standards of the Shin’o Spiritual Arts Academy.
Curious whether the prison guards could extract any valuable information, Nanatsuki left a shadow-eye in the corner to monitor the situation and then headed for Muken.
Once there, he called out into the abyss:
"Saitō Furaofushi."
A girl with twin ponytails and purple hair emerged from the darkness.
Nanatsuki pulled her directly into the Shadow Space.
"Miss Saitō, I’ve collected the materials needed to craft the ’Sound of Hell’." He pulled out a massive shell he’d retrieved from Hueco Mundo using his Reishi Pocket.
"That’s pretty big. Bet it’s not easy finding something like this in Soul Society," Saitō Furaofushi said, inspecting the shell. "Is this a Hollow shell?"
"Yeah. You can’t find mollusk-type spirits this size in the Soul Society or the World of the Living, so I had to go Hollow-hunting."
Nanatsuki nodded, then pulled out a selection of pastries and fine liquor from his Reishi Pocket.
Saitō’s eyes lit up. "You’re way sharper than my last lieutenant! You even remembered what I like!"
The first time she had asked for snacks, she hadn’t specified anything. Nanatsuki had brought a variety, then carefully observed which ones she favored.
This time, he brought only those she liked most.
That thoughtful touch clearly pleased her. She grabbed a skewer of hanami dango and said between bites, "Let’s get started. This Kidō formula’s a little tricky..."
She picked up the tools Nanatsuki prepared and began sketching words and symbols on paper.
"Use your Reiatsu to engrave these into the shell," she instructed. "You have to inscribe them into the interior without cracking it. That requires precise control. But with your captain-level ability, you should be able to handle it."
Nanatsuki reviewed the inscriptions. "No problem."
She sifted through the Hollow shells and selected a large spiral with seven layers. "This one. Seven rings—perfect. The ’Sound of Hell’ my grandma gave me was seven-ringed too."
Nanatsuki accepted the shell and began the engraving.
Each layer of the spiral shell required different characters and symbols. A daunting task for a normal Shinigami.
But Nanatsuki was a Kaidō specialist, and the Katori-ryu swordsmanship demanded exceptional Reiatsu control. For him, this was easy.
Thirty minutes later, the engravings were complete.
"Your control is amazing—nailed it on the first try!" Saitō praised. "Next, you need to stake out a Gate of Hell in the World of the Living."
"When it opens, chant the incantation in front of the gate to draw Hell Reiatsu into the shell’s runes. That’s how the ’Sound of Hell’ is completed."
She warned him again, "I don’t recommend using it out in the open."
"As I mentioned before, it sometimes receives messages from Hell. These messages can corrupt your mind."
"Even with your strength, if you’re exposed often enough, you could fall under its sway."
"I’ll be careful," Nanatsuki nodded. "That kind of influence is terrifying. Just look at Captain Nobutsuna Shigyō."
"Actually, I’d like to meet your grandmother after the crafting is done. I’ll bring the completed ’Sound of Hell’ back here to Muken."
Saitō touched her eyepatch and smiled. "That’s fine. This eye can block those mental intrusions."
With business finished, Nanatsuki didn’t leave right away. He stayed to monitor the interrogation through the shadow-eye he had planted.
Pouring sake, he drank and chatted with Saitō while keeping an eye on the situation.
Through his shadow perspective, he saw two Shinigami enter the cell—one male, one female, both tall and lean, clearly siblings.
He remembered Kensei Muguruma had once mentioned them during a conversation about the prison squad. They were seated officers of the 9th Division.
According to Kensei, the two were psychologically dark and highly skilled in extracting confessions.
They wheeled in a cart loaded with interrogation tools.
"The sedative’s wearing off. Wake him up," said the woman.
The man picked up a long tube from the cart, unscrewed the cap, and held it under the Reishi Shell’s nose. A pungent vapor surged up.
"Cough! Cough!" The Reishi Shell snapped awake from the noxious scent.
He took one look at his surroundings and the two Shinigami, quickly realizing his predicament. He tried to summon Reiatsu to trigger his self-destruct spell.
"Don’t bother," the man chuckled, patting his cheek. "Your Reiatsu’s sealed. No matter what you do, you can’t use it."
The prisoner glared at him in rage.
The woman opened a toolkit lined with sharp instruments.
"First time interrogating a Reishi Shell. Let’s see what your spiritual body can handle..." She picked up a long needle.
"Let’s start gentle," she murmured, gripping his finger and inserting the needle under the nail.
"AAAAAAHHHH!!"
The scream echoed through the cell as he writhed in agony.
But she held his hand firm.
Slow and deliberate, she pushed the needle in further, drawing out the scream longer and louder.
A smile tugged at her lips—she was clearly enjoying it.
"No matter how many times you hear that kind of scream... it’s always deeply satisfying," the man laughed.
"What do you want from me?!" the Reishi Shell shouted.
"Looks like you’re ready," said the man, retrieving a scalpel. "Don’t worry. My touch is much more refined."
He stepped forward slowly, blade gleaming in the light.
Thirty minutes later, the prisoner cracked.
"I’ll talk... What do you want to know?!"
They weren’t trained suicide soldiers. The only reason they’d been able to self-destruct was because they saw death as another form of rebirth.
"What were you doing there? What’s your objective?"
"We’re new recruits for the Academy... We were captured en route to enrollment..."
Easy enough to verify. A quick check at the Shin’o Spiritual Arts Academy would confirm the story.
But hidden in the shadows, Nanatsuki’s heart sank.
These two had passed the academy’s entrance exam!
If they hadn’t been caught, they might have infiltrated unnoticed.
"What were you planning to do inside the Academy?" the male interrogator asked.
"We were going to spread the faith of the ’God of Soulsoil’... get people to join us..."
"’God of Soulsoil’? One of those wild street gods from Rukongai?" the woman scoffed.
"No! The ’God of Soulsoil’ isn’t some street god! He rules over death! You Shinigami, when you die, your bodies just break down into Reishi—but we, the faithful, return to the Soulsoil Divine Nation of our god!"
The Reishi Shell was growing frenzied.
The woman furrowed her brow and reached for another tool to shut him up.
But suddenly, the prisoner’s face twisted in pain.
Moments later, his eyes glazed over, and his head slumped.
"What the—?" the man muttered. "He shouldn’t be unconscious yet."
He grabbed the scent tube again and held it under the prisoner’s nose.
But this time, there was no response—just a slow drip of white fluid from his nostrils.
The man’s face paled. He quickly checked the body.
The prisoner’s brain had turned to mush.
"How? His Reiatsu was sealed! How did he destroy his own mind?!" The woman was stunned.
"Maybe someone implanted a spell in his brain that doesn’t require Reiatsu to trigger..." the man growled. They hadn’t gotten enough intel—now one of their captives was gone.
Meanwhile, back in Muken—
"The ’Sound of Hell’... it’s reacting?" Saitō stared at the glowing red shell in Nanatsuki’s hand. "This reaction... is there a Gate of Hell nearby?!"
As the prisoner collapsed, the unfinished ’Sound of Hell’ pulsed faintly.
According to Saitō, it meant the rune-inscribed shell was reacting to nearby Hell Reiatsu.
Nanatsuki had also placed shadow-eyes outside the Underground Prison for emergencies like this.
He checked them—no Gate of Hell had opened nearby.
If it wasn’t external, then something inside the prison was wrong.
He suspected the strange change in the prisoner was linked to the sudden appearance of Hell Reiatsu.
"Let’s take a look outside," he said, dispersing the Shadow Space and stepping back into Muken.
As he walked deeper, the glow from the shell intensified.
"These Hell Reiatsu... they’re coming from deep inside Muken!" Nanatsuki muttered.
"Could Muken really be connected to Hell?!"
He’d always suspected a link between Muken and Hell—but this was hard to ignore.
"Miss Saitō, it feels like there’s a rule here preventing me from entering the deepest part of Muken. Can you tell me about it?"
"As a prisoner, I can enter partway, but even I get blocked after a certain point," she replied. "There’s a barrier beyond which no one can pass."
"The glow is fading..." Nanatsuki noticed the shell’s light dimming. "The Hell Reiatsu is dispersing."
"Quick! Chant the incantation and seal it in!" Saitō urged.
Nanatsuki nodded and began to chant:
"Let the soul of darkness be the guide,
Connect the abyss of blackness,
Hear the sound of Hell..."
As he chanted, the fading Reiatsu surged into the shell.
It glowed brightly—then dimmed, the runes now brimming with red energy.
Gurgle... gurgle...
A strange, meaningless sound echoed from the shell.
It had connected to some soul in Hell.
Gurgle... gurgle...
The sound continued—mysterious, eerie.
"This one’s probably a higher-level intelligence," Saitō noted. "Hell has its own full Reishi ecosystem, just like Soul Society and Hueco Mundo. Not all the souls there are dumb beasts."