What Kenjaku said was true, and Mahito had to admit it.
This was actually why Curse Users detested Gojo Satoru so deeply. The ecology of Curse Users and Cursed Spirits was extremely similar; if they didn't live according to their whims, their Cursed Energy would slowly decrease as their spirit waned, eventually dissipating altogether.
For a Curse User, killing and harming people was a way to increase power. Living as they pleased allowed for faster growth of Cursed Energy, and the same applied to Cursed Spirits. However, this was not the only way.
Mahito said flatly, "I'm quite unhappy with you right now, Teacher Kenjaku. Are you saying that I can ignore the effects of our Binding Vow and attack you? Even if I know the consequences of violating a Binding Vow are severe, as long as I can kill you, at least I'll be satisfied for now, so it doesn't matter?"
Kenjaku stiffened. Suddenly, an instinctive sense of crisis surged through him. A massive pressure silently filled his world, as if he had unconsciously moved from an open field into the deep sea. The sudden pressure almost forced him to his knees.
Mahito had grown stronger again… to an appalling degree.
Kenjaku raised his hands in surrender, softening his tone. "My apologies. I'm only concerned about the speed at which you increase your power, because you'll soon have to face Gojo Satoru. I wouldn't dare have any thoughts of betrayal. As you know, the Binding Vow we established must be observed by both parties."
"Being indecisive and fussy indeed goes against the instincts of a Curse and will affect one's Cursed Energy. But if it's all for the greater good, I can endure it and transform the endurance of such humiliation into a deeper level of Cursed Energy." Mahito suddenly curled his lips into a smile. "This is a principle the head of the Zen'in Family taught me. I learned this from him and am preparing to put it into practice."
Kenjaku asked curiously, "What did he do?"
"He stood by and watched his clansmen be slaughtered by me, sitting in the reception hall of the Zen'in residence and observing my information through a shikigami. I first killed everyone in the Kukuru, then everyone in the Hei."
Mahito recalled the battle just now and spoke slowly:
"I threw the captain of the Hei in front of him. That was his son. He was grief-stricken, yet wore a smile. He told me that the more exceptional a sorcerer is, the more they can transform this anger and fear into Cursed Energy, unleashing power that defies logic. And he indeed did it."
Kenjaku hissed, exclaiming, "No wonder there are traces of a Black Flash on Mirokuji Kirigiri's blade; it must have been struck by him. Truly ruthless, far too ruthless. As expected of the head of the Zen'in Family. To be mad to this extent, even I have to admire him."
A madman who could make even this thousand-year-old lunatic admire him—Zen'in Naobito would surely let out a loud laugh if he knew this in the afterlife, Mahito thought idly.
Then, he said, "Kenjaku, can you introduce me to other teachers?"
Kenjaku was startled. "Why the sudden interest?"
"I need deeper training. Relying on what I have now won't be enough," Mahito said. "In this battle, I realized my combat experience is indeed too lacking. My attack intentions were predicted several times, which made me feel very passive."
"Additionally, I want to learn some swordsmanship. Although I have the best sword in the world, I don't have the skill I should have to use it."
"I also have huge flaws in practical jujutsu combat. I clearly hold so many Cursed Techniques, but many times I can't combine them well."
"Thinking back now, I made quite a few mistakes in this battle."
"There are many Cursed Techniques I didn't even use. It's not that I forgot, but in that environment at the time, I didn't have time to use them."
"For example, Uncanny Valley. Aside from using it for a surprise attack the first time, I didn't use it at all afterward. I thought this spatial displacement ability would shine in a chaotic battle, but when it came time to use it, I suddenly realized I didn't understand the timing for it at all."
"Mainly, I couldn't give up actively taking damage to record others' Cursed Energy trails with Interstellar Flight just to use spatial displacement. Because Uncanny Valley only gives me an advantage, while Interstellar Flight can directly decide the outcome."
"Another example is Storing Luck and Probability Alteration. This combination of skills should be very powerful, but in the heat of a fierce fight, I simply didn't have the time to use them; it dragged down my combat rhythm too much."
"I need to conduct organization—planning."
As he spoke, Mahito became thoughtful again. "Perhaps I really need to settle down for a while to perfect my combat system. I thought my current combat methods were already very rich, but these rich methods are always working independently. I haven't fully utilized these abilities in a coordinated way. Then again, the time has been too short."
This was Mahito's true thought. During the battle with the Zen'in Family, although he seemed to always hold a massive advantage, it was because he possessed Idle Transfiguration, which allowed for near-infinite regeneration. It just so happened that no one in the Zen'in Family had a means to directly attack the soul, so no matter how recklessly he acted, it didn't matter; he could naturally fight without fear.
But what would happen in the future when he encountered attacks that could hit his soul?
If nothing else, the protagonist group had two individuals who could attack the soul: Itadori Yuji and Kugisaki Nobara could both do it. Furthermore, in the original work, when Mahito fought Yuukichi, Yuukichi also found a more general way to counter Idle Transfiguration.
Not to mention, any excellent Jujutsu Sorcerer would have a passive ability to protect their soul. His Idle Transfiguration would only become increasingly restricted in future battlefields.
Take this Zen'in battle as an example; besides using Idle Transfiguration for regeneration, he had hardly used it on anyone else. Was it because he didn't want to? No, it was because everyone knew he possessed the ability to alter the soul just by touching it, and everyone was very careful to guard against this move, so…
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