"There's no end to them!" Maki shouted as she drove her spear through a lunging fish-like Cursed Spirit, pinning it to the sand. Her breathing had become uneven. With her Cursed Energy already running low, maintaining such an intense pace was becoming increasingly difficult.
Nanami cut through another tentacle with his blunt sword, his voice steady.
"We need to end this quickly, or we'll be worn down before we can finish it."
"The core should either be connected directly to the user's body or hidden in the most stable part of the domain!" Megumi called as he directed Nue into another dive, searching for an opening in Dagon's defenses. "Naobito Zenin-senpai!"
"Understood!"
Naobito took a deep breath as Projection Sorcery activated once more.
His figure instantly appeared beside Dagon, and a kick reinforced with Cursed Energy crashed into its shell.
Boom!
A dull impact echoed throughout the domain.
A faint crack spread across Dagon's thick carapace, but its enormous tail swept around almost immediately, forcing Naobito to retreat.
Toji Fushiguro appeared like a phantom.
Playful Cloud shot forward like a striking viper, driving directly toward the fresh crack.
Pfft!
This time, it connected.
The sharpened tip pierced through the weakened shell, and dark blood seeped from the wound.
Dagon let out a furious roar.
Its Cursed Energy surged violently, causing the seawater throughout the domain to churn into towering waves that crashed toward everyone.
"Look out!" Nanami shouted.
He shoved Maki out of the way, but the massive wave caught him instead, hurling him into the invisible barrier surrounding the domain.
A muffled groan escaped him as his body slammed against it.
"Nanami!" Megumi exclaimed.
At that very moment, a figure appeared silently behind him.
A hand rested gently against Nanami's back.
The overwhelming impact vanished instantly, dissolved by an invisible yet irresistible force that eased him safely back onto the ground.
Nanami turned sharply.
His eyes widened.
"Sol?"
He hadn't even noticed when Sol had arrived.
Toji, who had been preparing to charge again, paused briefly, his sharp eyes settling on Sol.
Ignoring Nanami's surprise, Sol simply swept his gaze across the chaotic battlefield.
With a single step, he vanished.
The next instant, he stood atop a broken steel beam that remained partially above the rising seawater. From there, he had an unobstructed view of the entire battlefield.
Leaning casually against the twisted metal, he reached into his pocket and withdrew an ancient cube.
The Prison Realm.
He lightly tapped its surface, sending a faint trace of energy into it.
Buzz.
The engraved patterns shimmered.
Soft light emerged from the cube, gathering beside him before gradually forming a familiar figure.
Gojo Satoru appeared exactly as he had been before being sealed, one hand tucked into his pocket and his blindfold still neatly in place.
He tilted his head from side to side, stretching his neck until a series of soft cracks echoed.
"Yo, finally decided to let me out?" Gojo said casually, sounding as though he had just awakened from a nap.
He lifted his blindfold slightly, revealing a glimpse of his brilliant blue Six Eyes as he surveyed the battlefield below.
Then he looked toward Sol.
"Wow, things are pretty lively down there. Where are we? That octopus's domain?"
"Dagon's Domain Expansion, Horizon of the Captivating Skandha," Sol replied evenly, his attention never leaving the battle.
Gojo leaned against the nearby steel beam beside him, mirroring Sol's relaxed posture as he watched below with obvious amusement.
"Tsk, tsk. Nanami's looking pretty rough. Maki-chan's almost out of steam. Old man Naobito's still got plenty left..."
His eyes suddenly settled on Toji.
"Hm?"
A broad grin spread across his face.
"Whoa! Isn't that Toji? What, did somebody drag him back from the dead? How nostalgic. Who talked him into working overtime?"
His voice was filled with exaggerated surprise, though it was clear he was mostly teasing.
Sol offered no explanation.
"Just watch."
"Fine, fine." Gojo shrugged. "I'm just here for the entertainment."
He continued observing the battle below.
"Megumi's still a little too rigid with his Shikigami. Oh! That move from Toji was beautiful. He almost landed a decisive hit."
Below them, the battle reached its climax.
Relentless pressure from Toji, combined with the others' coordinated attacks, finally forced Dagon into a vulnerable position.
To defend against Toji's strike aimed at its core, Dagon concentrated a massive amount of Cursed Energy into a single point.
The rest of its defenses weakened instantly.
"Now!" Nanami shouted.
Ignoring his injuries, he rushed forward.
His blunt sword, reinforced with precisely controlled Cursed Energy, slashed cleanly across the base of one of Dagon's massive supporting tentacles.
Pfft!
The blade bit deep.
Dark blood sprayed across the sand.
Dagon cried out in agony as its enormous body convulsed.
At nearly the same instant, Naobito appeared on the opposite side in a blur.
His Projection Sorcery propelled a devastating kick straight into Dagon's weakened carapace.
Crack!
The shell fractured with a sharp, unmistakable sound.
Maki inhaled deeply.
Her spear shot forward like a striking serpent, piercing directly into the wound Nanami had opened before twisting violently.
Megumi seized the opportunity.
"Nue! Maximum Output!"
Nue screeched overhead.
Lightning exploded across its body before condensing into a brilliant pillar that descended onto Dagon's exposed head.
Boom!
Thunder roared throughout the domain.
Electricity and seawater erupted in every direction.
Dagon's massive body lurched backward as it released a long, agonized howl.
The stability of the domain began to falter.
The once vibrant seawater darkened, becoming increasingly murky as violent ripples spread throughout the collapsing space.