That's right.
He was indeed alive.
Even if Hyōsube didn't answer, Yamamoto could clearly feel the powerful spiritual pressure, constantly emanating from this crystal, like a burning furnace, easily allowing people to feel the heat within.
But...
"How can he be alive?"
"If this is what it means to be alive, what are you guarding, as a powerhouse like you?"
Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni roared at Hyōsube.
Like a lion enraged to the extreme.
Foolish loyalty?
Legacy?
Oaths?
Or some other idiotic reason?
What on earth would make such a strong person, who has lived for millions of years, guard such a useless... corpse?
"What the Spirit King-sama and I are guarding,"
"Is the fragile Three Realms."
Hyōsube Ichibe'e seemed to be able to sense the burning will in Yamamoto's chest, but still said calmly:
"For this, the Spirit King-sama voluntarily sealed himself here."
"...Voluntarily?"
Hearing this, Yamamoto suddenly calmed down and looked at the hollowed-out body in front of him.
Who would voluntarily become like this?
"Yamamoto."
Hyōsube sat down on the ground with a thud, also beckoning him, and asked in a chatting tone:
"What do you think, how does our Three Realms exist?"
"The Three Realms naturally have birth, death, and reincarnation, and run constantly." Yamamoto didn't understand Hyōsube's question, "Isn't this something that should be taken for granted?"
"Wrong!"
Hyōsube slapped his thigh and sighed: "There is no such thing as taking things for granted in this world."
Yamamoto frowned suddenly.
"The world countless years ago was a chaos without birth or death, without progress or regression—in that era, only the circulation of spiritual particles existed in the world."
"Birth, existence, decay, and rebirth."
"Even 'Hollows' were once a part of the spiritual particle cycle."
Hyōsube Ichibe'e told the past in a slow voice: "However, I don't know when Hollows began to change."
"It began to learn to devour spiritual particles and strengthen itself, like a big mouth that can never be filled, opening a gap in the world's spiritual particle cycle."
"The cycle was broken, and spiritual particles all gathered in the direction of Hollows."
"In this way, in just a short period of time, the entire world would be swallowed by an infinitely large Hollow."
"In addition, souls are still facing the expansion of hell, the crisis of the world completely falling into stagnation, and other problems..."
"The Spirit King-sama was born in such an era."
"He is the first entity, the most ancestral life, the source of all powers such as Quincy, Shinigami, and Fullbring. Just existing can crush all obstacles, the closest to omniscient and omnipotent... God."
It was already very rare for Yamamoto to maintain his rationality when he first heard these ancient secrets, but he still had some questions about some details.
"If that's the case... then who could have made the Spirit King into what he is now?"
Hyōsube still had that calm expression:
"Then we have to go back to the original question."
"What do you think, how do the Three Realms exist?"
This time, Yamamoto didn't dare to speak presumptuously.
Faced with this old antique who had lived since millions of years ago, the information gap between Yamamoto and Hyōsube was simply immeasurable.
The fat monk then nodded calmly and narrated:
"If I have to use an analogy..."
He stretched out his hand.
So, a seesaw with three connecting poles appeared on his fingertip.
At the end of each pole, there was a water cup.
Hyōsube's fingertips supported the intersection and held it up to Yamamoto.
"It's about this look."
Yamamoto's pupils shrank, as if grasping something, but he still asked: "What does this mean?"
"It means that the World of the Living, the Soul Society, and Hueco Mundo each represent one of the water cups, and the water in the cup represents the total amount of spiritual particles in this world."
"Because the lengths of the poles are different, the sizes of the cups are also different. These three unstable worlds can barely maintain a fixed connection."
Hyōsube Ichibe'e demonstrated to Yamamoto as he spoke.
Among them, the amount of water in the 'cup' representing the 'Soul Society' suddenly decreased by half. Then the entire three-body structure began to collapse as its weight decreased.
The water in the other two realms also poured out of the cups.
As the weight decreased, the stability of the Three Realms became smaller and smaller, and finally swayed and fell from Hyōsube's fingertips.
"Splash."
The fat monk provided the sound effect: "Like this, the Three Realms are destroyed."
Yamamoto was completely stunned.
Just... so easily?
"Wait?"
"If they can be destroyed so easily, then how has the Three Realms maintained its stability for millions of years?"
"That's the Spirit King's role."
Hyōsube said, and another set of three connecting poles appeared on his fingertips.
But this time, there was a nail at the center of these three poles.
Stuck deep into his finger.
So, no matter if the water in the Three Realms increased or decreased, swayed or stabilized, it was still fixed on his finger.
Although it would still sway, it wouldn't collapse so easily.
"..."
Yamamoto looked at the small nail and didn't know what to say for a moment.
Hyōsube then continued: "If you also want to join the Spirit King's Palace, what we have to do is probably to guard the function of this nail."
"Also, the reason I don't let you kill too many nobles is also for this reason."
"If possible, it's better not to spill too much 'water'."
"Even if the nail has penetrated deep into the flesh, the time it can take root is ultimately limited—every time the Three Realms 'sway', the rooted nail will be pulled out a little bit."
"Until the end, it is completely pulled out."
As if thinking of something regrettable, the fat monk couldn't help but sigh.
Hearing this, Yamamoto couldn't help but clench his fists.
"Since the safety of the Three Realms is so important, why would a powerhouse like you allow those nobles to abuse the wandering souls?"
"If you wanted to control them, who could resist you?"
"Why don't you act?!"
His roar was loud and clear, and it came from the heart.
However, Hyōsube didn't refute anything, but asked calmly:
"How do you know if we haven't done it?"
"Hmm?"
Yamamoto was stunned.
Hyōsube continued to narrate: "In millions of years, as long as someone who is willing to use their brains can think of too many methods and countermeasures, but there are also too many problems you can't imagine."
"Governance, laissez-faire, strict discipline, lenient laws, and even supporting people like you to launch rebellions..."
As if thinking of something interesting, Hyōsube suddenly said: "Speaking of which, the last guy who said something like you has been dead for almost 20,000 years..."
"Do you know what that guy did when he was still alive?"
Yamamoto frowned: "What did he do?"
"Because the five great clans of that era were a bit too much, and even wrote the rules of sacrifice and cannibalism into the law, it also aroused a rebellion that was even larger than yours this time."
Hyōsube said with a low smile, as if he remembered something interesting: "20,000 years ago, the entire five great clans suffered a rather tragic 'cleansing', and even lost their lineages."
"How is that possible?" Yamamoto said subconsciously.
"How is it impossible?" Hyōsube asked him back, "Do you think you are the only hero in this world? Or do you think the Soul Society in millions of years are all cowards and good-for-nothings who don't dare to risk their lives?"
"What's more."
"Do you know which generation the current heads of the five great clans are?"
"I..." Yamamoto subconsciously wanted to open his mouth, but suddenly thought of something and couldn't help but be stunned.
Hyōsube continued: "Take the people you are familiar with as an example."
"Your subordinate, Shihouin Senjumaru, is the twentieth family head."
"The twenty-first generation will be called Hidesato."
"The twenty-second generation will be named Shihouin Yoruichi."
"The Kuchiki family changes even faster."
"The kid called Kuchiki Ginrei is already the twenty-sixth generation."
"Even if each generation of family head lasts for a thousand years, it's only tens of thousands of years in total, not to mention, there hasn't been that long at all."
"—Aren't you curious?"
"The Soul Society has such a long history, and their ancestors were people from the Spirit King era—then, why have these families only been passed down for so few years?"
Hyōsube clapped his hands together and said with a smile: "The answer is, they were killed by rebels who were more radical and more violent than you."
"At that time, we didn't stop it either, just to see what the world established by these rebels would look like."
"For this, we even added fuel to the fire."
"It's a pity... the result wasn't any better."
"The 'tribal union' established by those bastards only lasted for one or two thousand years, and then it fell to an almost incomprehensible level due to the same bad deeds. It was easily overthrown by the remaining nobles."
"After that, there were frequent wars and killings."
"It took a long time after that for this world to stabilize again—as a result, it accidentally returned to its original state."
Yamamoto was completely dumbfounded after hearing this, so surprised that he couldn't even speak.
These were all things that had already happened?!
In the past, there were even people who killed more thoroughly than him... did?
But everything still returned to its original state.
If that was the case...
Then, what should he do?