Yuki Tsukumo could still sense several other weak voices lingering within that ancient, aged soul. They were souls similar to her own, possessing the exact same physical constitution. They were the Star Plasma Vessels—young girls who had been assimilated by Master Tengen.
This was precisely why Yuki showed such visible disgust towards him.
"It's been a long time. You seem to have changed," Principal Masamichi Yaga said, his tone sounding somewhat surprised.
More than a decade ago, Tengen's body was still distinctly in human form. Now, it looked more like a Cursed Spirit. It seemed that the consequences of the failed Star Plasma Vessel assimilation eleven years ago were far more severe than Yaga had imagined.
Tengen looked at Yaga and the slightly surprised Jujutsu High students, replying with a calm smile. "Don't be surprised."
"Although I possess an immortality technique, I am not ageless," Tengen explained. "When you live past your lifespan for five hundred years, you will eventually become like me."
'Five hundred years? Is this guy joking?'
Nobara Kugisaki, Takuma Ino, and Atsuya Kusakabe watched Tengen casually chatting and laughing, the corners of their lips twitching in disbelief.
"Wait."
Megumi Fushiguro didn't care about Tengen's appearance, nor whether he was technically a human or a Cursed Spirit. Megumi looked at Tengen and asked in a deep, serious voice, "How do we unseal Gojo-sensei from the Prison Realm?"
"And do you know anything about the mysterious Sorcerer who is currently controlling Suguru Geto's body? What is his true purpose?"
Within Jujutsu High, Master Tengen was known for his immortality. However, he was also known as the Omniscient Sorcerer. He had never left the Tomb of the Star and had always remained indifferent to worldly affairs, yet he possessed absolute knowledge about the developments in the outside world.
This was evident from the fact that Tengen had casually revealed everyone's deepest identities moments earlier. This even included Yuta Okkotsu, who was standing right next to Tengen as a bodyguard. Upon their very first meeting, Tengen had immediately recognized Yuta's Sugawara no Michizane bloodline.
"That child..." Tengen began slowly. "The former Noritoshi Kamo... the Sorcerer currently controlling Suguru Geto's body, is named Kenjaku."
"Hehe, Kenjaku..." Yuki Tsukumo raised an eyebrow and let out a cold, mocking laugh. "The Bodhisattva of Compassion uses the 'Kenjaku' lasso to save the world, yet this man is so cruel and tyrannical? How ironic."
Yuki narrowed her eyes at Tengen. "And you call him 'that child'? It seems you two are old acquaintances."
Tengen was acutely aware of the intense hostility radiating from Yuki Tsukumo. Decades ago, Yuki was also one of the Star Plasma Vessels selected by Jujutsu High to assimilate with him. If it weren't for the fact that Yuki was a Special Grade and simply too powerful to be forced, she would have been captured alive by the Higher-Ups and dragged to the Tomb of the Star for the ritual long ago.
Tengen ignored Yuki's taunts and directly presented a condition to everyone present.
"I can tell you Kenjaku's goal, and I have the method to unseal Satoru Gojo," Tengen offered. "But you need to leave someone here to stay at the Tomb of the Star to protect my safety."
"I need at least one Special Grade Sorcerer, plus several other Grade 1 Sorcerers."
Both Special Grade Sorcerers, Yuta Okkotsu and Yuki Tsukumo, frowned simultaneously. Yuta had arrived several hours earlier than the others and had asked Tengen these exact questions beforehand. Unfortunately, he had not received a reply until now.
Tengen continued, "That child's ultimate goal is to force the entire population of Japan to evolve together."
"Hundreds of millions of people... he intends to merge them all!"
Principal Masamichi Yaga stepped forward, his tone questioning. "You need a Special Grade escort team? Aren't you even confident you can handle him yourself?"
Tengen replied in a deep voice, "Kenjaku is a master of barrier techniques, second only to me. Even if he can't find the hidden entrance to the Tomb of the Star, he can still dismantle the barriers and force his way in."
"Furthermore, because I lacked an assimilation eleven years ago, my current physical state has evolved. I am closer to a Cursed Spirit than a human."
Tengen's four eyes swept heavily over the stunned crowd. "In other words..."
"My current existence is something that Cursed Spirit Manipulation can control and absorb."
"WHAT?!!"
Yaga, Yuta, Yuki, and the students immediately widened their eyes. Master Tengen could be controlled by someone else?!
Yuki Tsukumo knew best the absolute terror that lay within that fact. As a Sorcerer who had survived for over a thousand years, Tengen was no longer limited to assimilating only with Star Plasma Vessels. If it weren't for the restriction of his own barrier techniques, and if Tengen hadn't been completely without worldly ambition... he could easily assimilate with normal people outside of the Star vessels, no longer limited by physical constitution or quantity.
Yuki and Yuta instantly understood Kenjaku's true plan. Summoning the Golden Age of Sorcerers from a thousand years ago was merely a facade—a transition phase. His real goal was to control Tengen and assimilate hundreds of millions of humans into him.
Kenjaku's goal was to create the most terrifying, apocalyptic monster in history.
Moreover, if Tengen assimilated the Cursed Energy of hundreds of millions of people, humanity would be forced to evolve. That would mean that ordinary humans worldwide could suddenly see the physical bodies of Cursed Spirits.
What would naturally follow was an overwhelming, planetary-scale eruption of negative emotions from the sheer terror of the masses.
So... the hellish scenes of Tokyo would be staged all over the world.
After a brief moment of stunned shock, Maki Zenin, who had remained silent, stepped forward.
"What about Zenin Mirai?" Maki demanded. "What is his ultimate goal? And why did he help Kenjaku in Shibuya?"
Tengen was known as the Omniscient Sorcerer because of the protective barriers that extended throughout all of Japan. Tengen could perceive and control almost everything that happened in the outside world through this network, but there were exceptions.
For example, the private estates of the Big Three Families were protected by independent barriers set up by other elite Sorcerers, and Tengen was unable to freely obtain information from within them. It wasn't that it was impossible; Tengen could certainly penetrate the barriers of the three families. The families wouldn't be able to stop him, but they would immediately detect the traces of a forced intrusion. Therefore, to maintain political peace, Tengen did not rashly intervene in their private territories.
Thus, when asked by Maki about Mirai's motives, Tengen could only slowly shake his head to indicate that he did not know.
Half a day ago, that terrifying force wielded by Mirai was powerful enough to destroy the entire Jujutsu High campus. Tengen strongly suspected that the Sorcerer known as Zenin Mirai had made a deliberate, calculated decision to let the Tomb of the Star remain untouched.
...
United States of America, the White House.
The White House remained brightly lit, even in the middle of the night. However, it was completely empty, with absolutely no sign of the Secret Service or military presence.
Looking at the foolish Cursed Spirit, Mirai asked, "White Zetsu, how is it going with Clone Number One?"
"Don't call me White Zetsu!"
With an expensive Cuban cigar dangling from his mouth, Zetsu sat smugly in the Presidential chair behind the Resolute Desk, shaking his head and swaying his body back and forth. "From now on, please call me President Zetsu."
Sensing the deadly Kamui ripples spreading in the void from Mirai's eye, White Zetsu immediately tensed up. "Wait a minute! Chill! Clone Number One is in position, don't worry!"
Having received a definite answer, Mirai then looked at Naobito Zenin, who was waiting respectfully to the side.
"It's not necessarily safe to just kidnap the President and a few Cabinet Ministers," Mirai instructed coldly. "Let's bring along a few heirs from those powerful corporate and political families as well."
Mirai knew the truth about the status of government officials in the United States... in reality, their power couldn't compare to the scions of the wealthy, influential dynasties pulling the strings behind the scenes. Gathering them was a necessary insurance policy.
The Next Day.
Mirai returned to the Shinjuku base through a Kamui portal, followed by a group of elite Zenin Sorcerers carrying heavy sacks over their shoulders containing the VIP hostages.
"The timing seems perfect."
Looking up at the suddenly darkening sky, a cruel smile curled at the corner of Mirai's lips.
In the distance, ten colossal black barriers erupted, reaching up to the heavens and enveloping the entirety of Japan.
"The Culling Game... begins."
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