"Crunch. Crunch."
The eerie sound of flesh being torn and devoured echoed through the silent expanse of Hueco Mundo's endless desert. The pale dunes, bathed in eternal night, bore witness to the grotesque feast.
Ren—no, the Hollow he had become—consumed relentlessly. The lifeless corpse of the lizard-like Hollow had been reduced to mere scraps, its blood seeping into the sand. Yet, even after swallowing the last fragment, an unsatisfied hunger gnawed at him. It was as if he could devour a hundred more and still crave more.
Then, something shifted within him.
A surge of power coursed through his being. His spiritual pressure, once faint, now flared slightly stronger. It wasn't an overwhelming transformation, but it was undeniable. He estimated that his total strength had increased by about one-twentieth. But more than that—he had grown. His massive, centipede-like body stretched slightly longer, his exoskeleton thickening in density.
Curiously, he realized something.
More than sixty percent of the spiritual energy he absorbed came from the shattered fragments of the Hollow's mask, rather than its body. The discovery intrigued him.
"So, the masks hold the most power…" he mused. "The taste… strange. Like compressed biscuits."
A dark chuckle escaped him. In his past life, he had enjoyed snacks. Now, he devoured souls.
In the following days, Ren roamed the unending wasteland, hunting. He developed a strategy—stalking, ambushing, and devouring other Hollows. The weaker ones never stood a chance. His monstrous tail, capable of striking like a whip, crushed his prey before they could react. His claws tore through bone and mask alike.
Over time, patterns emerged.
Most of the Hollows he encountered were mindless, driven only by primal instinct. They fought savagely but without intelligence. Not once did he find another like himself—one who retained human thoughts and reasoning.
The realization unsettled him.
"Am I an anomaly?"
The thought lingered in his mind as he buried himself beneath the sand, his enormous form concealed, leaving only a sliver of his mask peeking above the surface. He had learned patience. Hunting required precision.
Then, it happened.
A sudden, bone-rattling roar split the silence.
From the distance, a black and red beam of energy carved through the dunes, its heat distorting the air. The Cero—a devastating Hollow attack—struck with terrifying precision. The target, an earthworm-like Hollow nearly forty meters long, screeched in agony as the blast cleaved it in two. The force of the impact sent a shockwave through the sands, a towering cloud of dust rising in its wake.
Ren trembled beneath the sand.
"This… This is a Cero."
He had seen it countless times in the anime, but witnessing it firsthand was an entirely different experience. The sheer power was suffocating. His instincts screamed at him—this was not an ordinary Hollow.
His gaze locked onto the source of the blast.
A towering figure loomed in the distance. Nearly a hundred meters tall, its body was draped in black, a grotesque mask covering its face. Jagged bone spurs protruded from its neck in a circular formation, like a macabre collar. And the spiritual pressure radiating from it—it was suffocating.
"A Gillian…" Ren muttered, his mind racing. "No… not just any Gillian."
He had observed Gillians before—massive creatures, uniform in appearance, mindless and sluggish. But this one was different. It exuded intelligence. It was a rarity, an anomaly among its kind.
"A sentient Gillian…"
The implications were clear. In Hueco Mundo's hierarchy, Gillians formed when hundreds of Hollows fused together, their individual consciousnesses typically lost in the process. Only a select few retained their identities, and those few had the potential to evolve further—to become Adjuchas, and eventually, the legendary Vasto Lorde.
Ren's entire being tensed. This creature was a predator among predators.
And he was prey.
Before he could even think of an escape, another movement caught his attention. The bisected earthworm Hollow, still clinging to life, squirmed desperately. Half of its body burrowed into the sand, dragging itself forward—toward Ren's position.
His stomach dropped.
"Damn it, don't come this way!"
The earthworm's panicked movements kicked up more sand, betraying Ren's hiding spot. His mind raced. If the Gillian detected him, he was done for.
Then, the towering predator moved.
The sentient Gillian blurred forward with shocking speed, its massive frame vanishing for a split second before reappearing directly in front of the fleeing earthworm. Without hesitation, it raised a clawed hand, lined with razor-sharp bone spurs, and grasped the writhing Hollow.
Effortlessly, it lifted the creature into the air. The earthworm let out a final, shrill cry, its desperation echoing through the night.
Crunch!
The sound of bones snapping rang through the air as the Gillian crushed its prey in an iron grip. Blood and spiritual energy spilled from the mangled corpse, dissipating into the wind.
Ren remained utterly still, his breath nonexistent, his instincts screaming at him to remain hidden.
The Gillian tilted its head, its glowing red eyes scanning the surroundings.
Then, without another glance, it tossed the broken Hollow aside and turned away, walking toward the distant horizon. It had no interest in small prey.
Ren let out a slow, silent exhale.
"That was… too close."
His entire body was tense, his muscles coiled like a wound spring. If he had been just a little slower, if the earthworm had gotten any closer… he would have shared its fate.
This encounter made one thing painfully clear.
He was still weak.
Too weak.
If he wanted to survive in Hueco Mundo, if he wanted to stand at the top rather than be swallowed by the strong, there was only one path forward.
He had to evolve.
And for that, he needed more power.
His gaze flickered toward the remains of the earthworm Hollow. Slowly, he emerged from the sand, his claws flexing as he approached the corpse.
It was time to feed.
And this was only the beginning.
Roaring!
This alien Gili'an actually used a sound attack! Normally, only those who had evolved into Adjuchas or had undergone the transformation into Arrancar could wield such an ability. Yet, this creature had mastered it ahead of schedule!
Ren, hidden not far away, felt a chill crawl down his spine. His mind raced as he tried to process the terrifying reality before him.
"Is this it? Did I finally cross the line, only to die before I even had a chance to rise?" A bitter smile played on his lips as the thought took root.
The alien Gili'an gripped the giant earthworm Hollow in one massive hand, its grotesque, gaping maw opening wide. Without hesitation, it stuffed the struggling creature into its mouth, powerful jaws snapping shut. The sickening crunch of bone and flesh echoed across the silent desert.
In just a few swift bites, the giant earthworm was gone—devoured completely. Then, without so much as a backward glance, the Gili'an turned and began walking away.
Ren remained still, buried beneath the sand, holding his breath.
"That was close... I almost exposed myself."
But just as relief started to settle in, the massive creature suddenly paused mid-step. Slowly, it turned its head, its piercing gaze locking onto the very spot where Ren lay hidden beneath the sand.
Ren's body stiffened. His mind screamed at him to flee, but he knew any sudden movement would seal his fate.
Then, to his utter disbelief, the Gili'an simply smirked—or at least, the closest thing to a smirk a Hollow with a mask could manage. A look of pure condescension flashed in its enormous eyes. And then, without a word, it turned and left.
Ren remained frozen, his mind a whirlwind of emotions.
"It... It found me. But it thinks I'm too weak to bother with? It doesn't even consider me worth eating?"
The realization sent a strange mix of humiliation and relief surging through him. He clenched his claws, gritting his teeth.
"Fine. Fine! You want to look down on me? You think I'm not even worth devouring?" He let out a slow exhale, forcing down his frustration. "One day… one day when I evolve into an Adjuchas or even a Vasto Lorde, I'll make sure you experience exactly what I'm feeling right now!"
His whispered vow carried into the cold, empty night, swallowed by the endless desert.
Only after several painstaking hours, when he was absolutely certain the alien Gili'an was gone, did Ren finally dare to move. Slowly, he wriggled his massive frame out of the sand, cautious and alert. His eyes landed on the remains of the giant earthworm Hollow.
Its upper body—where the highest concentration of spiritual energy resided—had been completely devoured. But the lower half remained untouched, discarded like an afterthought.
To a powerful Hollow like the alien Gili'an, it was nothing but scraps. But to Ren, it was a treasure trove of spiritual nourishment.
A smirk spread across his masked face.
"Thank you, Brother Gili'an, for your generous gift."
With that, he lunged forward, sinking his fangs into the remains of the earthworm, tearing into its flesh. The rich, potent spiritual energy surged through him, fueling his growth. This was just another step toward survival. Toward strength.
And one day, he would make sure the alien Gili'an regretted ever looking down on him.