Chapter 182

Although the Juvenile Academy mission in the previous playthrough only reported 3 level-two cursed spirits, Kazuma Hatake didn't really believe the report.

He himself had been deceived several times, and the mission at that time was clearly a setup laid in advance by Lu Suo.

Kazuma had a lot to do, and Kazuma was unwilling to take up his limited rest time because of his own speculation—even though he knew Kazuma would definitely come.

However, this did not stump him.

After a moment's hesitation, Kazuma Hatori decisively brought along Yuta Otsukoku, who was also a top-tier sorcerer.

The timeframe is the day before the mission at the Juvenile Academy in the previous game.

"Is it a rather dangerous cursed spirit? Nearly level one?"

Standing in front of the gate of the Eishi Juvenile Academy, Otsuko Yuta, carrying a sword pouch, asked Hatori Kazuma in a low voice.

The engagement ring he received from Rika had been on his ring finger for over a year.

Because he was designated as a Special Grade when he enrolled, and had undergone six months of special training before enrolling to familiarize himself with how to use his own strength, the missions that Yigu Youtai had received in the past year or so were basically all of Level 2 or lower, which allowed him to quickly grow into an experienced veteran.

However, true top-tier cursed spirits are rare. He is more likely to encounter near-first-tier cursed spirits that can use curses, or those that are comparable to top-tier cursed spirits in terms of harm and destructive power.

"I'm not sure, I brought you along just to be on the safe side."

Kazuma Hatori replied to Yuta Otsukoshi first, then nodded slightly to the head of the juvenile detention center who had come to greet them at the door, saying, "Thank you for your help."

"Not at all, we are deeply honored to learn that it is the Patriarch Yuqu and the Holy Son Yigu who have come in person."

The advantage of running a religious group is that believers and worshippers come from all walks of life and have social statuses ranging from high to low. They also have a wide network of contacts, making it not difficult to contact the person in charge of the juvenile detention center.

"In accordance with your wishes, we have temporarily transferred all personnel to another juvenile detention center nearby."

The person in charge patted Yuqu Kazuma on the chest to assure him, and then whispered to him, "To be honest, there have been reports these past two days of people seeing unidentified egg-shaped objects in the sky above the sports field. We're worried because they haven't sent anyone over there."

"The fact that it can be observed by the naked eye of a non-magician means that the situation is indeed quite dangerous."

Yuta Otsu immediately became serious. Seeing this, Kazuma Hatori didn't delay any longer. He hurriedly told the person in charge to leave the area as soon as possible, and then he and Yuta Otsu passed through the gate and headed straight for the sports field.

After confirming that the person in charge had also left, Yuta Ekiku immediately put two fingers together and raised them, then lowered the curtain that completely covered the entire juvenile academy.

Under the cover of this dim curtain, the curse that already existed here will become even more active.

"I can already sense a strong aura of curse; the level is indeed very high."

Taking his usual katana from his sword sheath, Yuta Otsuko raised his head, his gaze fixed intently in a certain direction. "Hatori-sensei, you should also be careful."

He had known Teacher Yutori for almost two years, and naturally he knew that Yutori's talent in perceiving magical power was completely zero, and he could not learn basic barrier techniques such as [Tent]. However, in contrast, the ability to effortlessly unleash a series of black flashes in battle was a terrifying ability that no one but Teacher Yutori could do.

"Um."

Hagoromo Kazuma also gripped the [Kyousou] tightly, completely focused.

The cursed fetus, which had been floating quietly above the juvenile academy's sports field, seemed to sense the imminent deadly crisis and began to beat rapidly—more and more urgently!

*Smack*

—I could hear a faint sound, like soap bubbles bursting.

It hatched itself ahead of time.

In the blink of an eye, the scenery where Kazuma Hatori and Yuta Otsukoshi were located had completely changed.

"It's actually... a born domain?"

Ekiku Yuta was only stunned for a moment before he immediately held his katana horizontally in front of him, and his cursed power slowly and in large quantities flowed into him.

The ring on his ring finger shimmered faintly, ensuring he could summon Rika at any moment.

"Being able to use spell power to expand the domain of life, this is a top-grade spell spirit." Yuta Otsu took a deep breath. "Fortunately, Professor Hatori discovered it early, otherwise who knows what the consequences would have been."

Most top-tier cursed spirits possess a domain of life; if one inadvertently falls into it, the best course of action to avoid death is to run away—this is common knowledge in the minds of ordinary sorcerers in the world of curses.

When he was in college, Kazuma Hatake was also given a brief introduction to the subject, but it was only now that he experienced firsthand what the [Born Domain] was all about.

But at this moment, instead of immediately leaving, he and Etoku Yuta took the initiative to walk towards the center of this living area.

They came precisely to solve this problem.

The instant he sensed the powerful curse approaching, Yuta Ekiku raised his sword to parry, precisely blocking the extremely fast and sharp claw of the top-tier cursed spirit.

Faster than expected—the thought had barely crossed Otsuku Yuta's mind when a sharp blade flew past his ear toward the cursed spirit, aiming at the same head as Otsuku Yuta, who was swinging his sword in a backhand counterattack!

Neither of the two attacks landed, only forcing it to retreat, while its cheeks puffed out as if it were gathering its strength.

Although that top-tier cursed spirit was newly born, its reaction in battle was already comparable to that of a seasoned sorcerer, possessing an innate mastery of how to deal with the latter—

boom!

The shockwave, formed by the concentrated power of the curse, carved out an extremely deep trench, but it abruptly stopped and dissipated in front of Kazuma Hatori.

.

The [Ye Shuang] that flew back was thrown out again, and the entire shattered space transformed into an invisible yet solid barrier at this moment—like a sword cutting water, which is impossible in the real world, neatly and forcefully stopping the shock wave from continuing to advance.

Even the top-tier cursed spirit was stunned, seemingly not understanding what had happened.

It may be able to fight on instinct, but that doesn't mean it has a mind capable of normal thinking.

How could Yi Gu You Tai possibly let this opportunity slip by? But the moment he got close, the cursed spirit would surely escape again by relying on its incredible speed. In the blink of an eye, the ring on his ring finger flashed with light.

"Rika, I'm begging you!"

"—So worrying!"

The super-grade cursed vengeful spirit, which fully manifested upon being summoned, let out a sharp howl. Its massive size, far exceeding that of the super-grade cursed spirit, was like a tidal wave that overturned the heavens and the earth—leaving it no room to dodge. Half of its body was crushed by the huge claws that slammed down, spurting out a large amount of dark purple blood.

The remaining half was stuck in the deep pit, like an insect with its head severed, its nerves still twitching.

"Purple...purple, it's beautiful..."

Rika let out a cheerful laugh, then turned back to show Yuta Otsukoshi, "Yuta... Yuta..."

“Well done, Rika.”

Yuta Ekiku raised his hand and touched her face, which no longer looked human, but his tone and actions were very gentle. "Thank you for saving me again."

"Heh...heh heh...Rika...likes...Yuta..."

This terrifying, top-tier cursed spirit, which made the Directorate General extremely wary and fearful, revealed a childlike excitement after being praised by Yuta Otsukoshi.

"I like you too, Rika."

Yuta gently pressed his cheek against hers again before finally withdrawing it completely.

Although the curse has not yet been lifted, his interactions with the super-grade cursed spirit [Rika Inori] are gradually returning to the pattern they had before she died.

While Yuta was comforting Rika, Kazuma Hatori had already used [Karma Twins] to swiftly and decisively finish off the Special Grade Cursed Spirit that was trying to heal itself with its curse power—not only did he obtain Ryoumen Sukuna's finger, but he also received a [Special Grade Cursed Power Crystal] as a bonus.

He had already upgraded his experience to the highest level, so he didn't need the magic crystal for the time being and put it in his inventory.

As for this two-faced Sukuna finger...

Kazuma Hatori already had the one that Satoru had brought with him in his inventory, so it didn't seem to matter whether he kept this extra one or not.

But if we hand it over directly to the college, wouldn't he just be working for the management department for free?

Moreover, he was actually somewhat curious to try eating it himself and see what would happen...

Kazuma Hatake thought for a moment, then decided to have Yuta help him access the [account] so he could have a signal to make a call. "Satoru? It's like this..."

"Huh? Ryoumen Sukuna's fingers actually appeared in the juvenile academy?" Gojo Satoru was surprised, then came up with a reasonable explanation.

"It's probably a [resonance] situation. Because Yuujin became the vessel for Sukuna, the other fingers that were not found and sealed by the High School, and the fingers whose power was suppressed by being devoured by the cursed spirits, all completely released their cursed power."

"Besides the juvenile academy, there must be other places where similar cursed spirit riots will occur... Ah, I'll leave this finger with you for now. I'm still on a business trip, and I'll come to pick it up when I'm done."

Kazuma Hatori readily agreed, "Okay."

This also means that if he were to join the Panxing Sect, Wu would agree to use his cat-like form to accompany him to the Sandian Hall until they went home together.

Yay!

Working for the director's department is like slamming your fist on the table in a fit of rage; working for a beautiful home is like a dream come true.

"actually……"

Kazuma Hatori thought for a moment, but before he could voice his thirst for knowledge, Gojo Satoru, who was keen and knew him perfectly, guessed it accurately.

"You want to eat it yourself, don't you?" Gojo Satoru warned his lover, who sometimes seemed unusually oblivious, over the phone while using one hand to deal with the endless stream of cursed spirits.

"You were lucky you ate it once before and were fine, but you actually want to eat it a second time? And it's the fingers of Ryomen Sukuna, no less?"

The deliberately stern tone was like scolding a naive toddler who wanted to put everything in their mouth to taste it.

Kazuma Hatori immediately became incredibly obedient: "I definitely won't eat it."

"ensure?"

"ensure."

After coaxing him several more times on the phone and repeatedly emphasizing that he was more looking forward to the souvenirs that Chisato brought back—Hatori Kazuma, who had almost been scolded, finally hung up the phone, breathed a sigh of relief, and turned around to see Otsukoshi Yuta secretly laughing.

“Ah, this,” Yuta Otsu immediately changed the subject, his face full of honesty and kindness, “I didn’t hear anything just now.”

The seemingly aloof and cold leader of the sect, who makes decisions with swift and decisive action, would immediately and obediently apologize to Gojo-sensei when he was in private... He knew nothing of this.

Kazuma Hatake: "..."

Oh well, it's not like it's the first time Yuta has seen me, and there's nothing shameful about it.

"Let's go, let's check this juvenile detention center one last time, then we can call it a day."

…………

"What should we do to defeat the sorcerer?"

Sitting in the family restaurant was Xia Youjie alone, yet he wasn't the only one; for example, the one speaking at this moment was a top-tier cursed spirit capable of normal communication, who called himself Louhu.

He originally intended to absorb one of them as the key to his plan, but he discovered that there were three others with similar auras. Knowing that he would be difficult to deal with, Xia Youjie decided to use his wits and pretended to be on the same page as them, discussing traveling together.

This was one of the unexpected events, but plans are not fixed. As long as the original result is achieved, it is normal to change course slightly along the way.

"Before that day arrives, two conditions must be met: First, make Gojo Satoru unable to fight; second, win over Sukuna of both sides."

“But with Gojo Satoru’s strength, I don’t think you can kill him.”

Xia Youjie tucked his hands into his sleeves, knowing that Gojo Satoru's strength was overwhelmingly powerful. "Although I'm not entirely without a solution, this move can only be used once, and it must be used when it's most unexpected."

"Even if we all go out in force, we still can't kill him?"

Being questioned about her abilities immediately angered Louhu, and her gaze towards the curse master became extremely unfriendly. "And what method are you talking about?"

“You can try, but I think there’s no third option besides running away or being exorcised,” Xia Youjie said calmly. “Don’t worry, I’m not without my trump cards to deal with him.”

"But my suggestion is to seal Hagoromo Kazuma first. His technique is very troublesome and can almost suppress all active spells."

What should we use?

"Top-grade cursed artifact, [Prison Gate]."

The moment the phrase "[Prison Gate Frontier]" was uttered, the air instantly felt as if it were being scorched by fire, becoming scalding hot and dry.

"It's that forbidden cursed object!" Louhu almost stood up, his voice rising. "You actually have that thing?! Why didn't you use it to seal Gojo Satoru?"

“Given Gojo Satoru’s talent and strength in battle, we may not be able to seal him successfully,” Xia Youjie said cautiously. “And even if we do manage to seal him, Hato Kazuma’s technique will most likely be able to stop the sealing effect of [Prison Gate].

"Therefore, we must first seal away Hagoromo Kazuma, and we can even try to use him to blackmail Gojo Satoru into not taking action—although based on my understanding of Gojo Satoru, the latter plan is unlikely to succeed, but it can at least disturb his mind."

As for dealing with Gojo Satoru, he has another backup plan.

Even after Fushiguro Jinji's death, the [Heavenly Rebellion Blade] was also taken overseas by Gojo Satoru, and it's unknown whether it was sealed or destroyed. But a weapon with a similar effect still exists.

"What a dawdling approach! This is the cowardice of you humans!"

Louhu sneered, completely disregarding Xia Youjie's convoluted schemes—it made a unilateral announcement to Xia Youjie in an even more arrogant and haughty voice.

"Give me [Prison Gate], I want to add it to my collection!"

"—In contrast, I will kill Kazuma Hagoromo."

…………

At this moment, the full moon has climbed to the treetops.

Kazuma Hatori was walking home—with a super cute cat with long, fluffy white fur and bright blue eyes steadily cradled in his forearm.