Chapter 90: The True Body
"You're pretty tough," Maki Zen'in said, a sharp glint of appreciation flashing in her cold eyes.
"Come on—take a few more hits."
"N-no, no way!!"
The blue-black curse struggled free from the rock wall and bolted in panic.
Maki gripped Playful Cloud and gave chase without hesitation.
Crack!
She grabbed the end of the three-section staff, flicked her wrist, and snapped it forward like a whip. The final segment grazed past the curse's backside—
—and slammed into the ground behind it.
The shockwave alone sent fragments of shattered rock blasting forward with terrifying force, piercing straight through the curse's rear.
"AAAGHHHH!!"
The curse screamed in agony and sprinted even faster, not daring to slow for even a second.
Gone was its earlier playful arrogance.
Just the aftershock had been this devastating—
it didn't even want to imagine what would happen if that weapon landed directly.
Midway through its frantic escape, it suddenly twisted its body.
The massive mouth that made up its torso split wide open—
—and with a loud splash, a torrent of blood poured out like a waterfall.
Maki's expression changed.
She halted instantly and leapt aside, barely dodging the attack.
A sizzling sound came from behind her.
Turning back, she saw the rock wall that had been splashed by the blood beginning to smoke. The stone rapidly dissolved, chunks falling away as large sections were eaten through by corrosion.
"…Poisonous blood?" she muttered, a flicker of shock in her eyes.
Good thing I didn't charge in recklessly.
"Are you alright, Maki?"
On the other side, Ren stood with his fingers spread, unleashing continuous invisible slashes that shredded the smaller curses emerging from the holes, all while keeping an eye on her situation.
His own side of the battlefield was already under control.
In the world of jujutsu, balance is everything.
Wide-range, long-lasting barriers, or techniques that create large numbers of clones—all of them draw directly from the sorcerer's own power. In other words, producing so many duplicates inevitably comes at the cost of splitting the original's strength.
As long as they continued destroying the clones like this, the main body's power would be steadily weakened.
Which meant—
no matter where the true body of that curse was hiding, it shouldn't be a major threat anymore.
"I'm fine," Maki Zen'in said through clenched teeth. "You focus on exorcising the main curse. Leave this one to me."
She continued chasing the fleeing blue-black curse along the edges of the cavern, though her expression had grown more cautious, ready at any moment for another sudden spray of poisonous blood.
"Big brother! Big brother!"
The blue-black curse ran frantically, its stubby legs pumping as the massive mouth in its abdomen screamed,
"Help me! Help me!"
"…It has an accomplice?" Ren frowned slightly.
At that moment—
"Ah!"
A startled cry rang out beside him.
He turned sharply.
A pair of crimson arms had grabbed Tsumiki by the shoulders, dragging her backward.
"Senpai—!"
She cried out in alarm, but before she could finish—
her pale face and body were swallowed into a pitch-black vortex that had opened against the rock wall.
"Big brother!"
The fleeing blue-black curse lit up with joy, leaping straight into the same swirling darkness.
"Maki—go help Tsumiki! And you too—"
Ren issued a command to Divine Dog: Totality.
But Maki didn't even wait for him to finish.
With a sharp look in her eyes, she instinctively plunged into the vortex after them. The Divine Dog followed immediately.
The moment it disappeared—
the black vortex collapsed.
The cavern walls smoothed over as if nothing had ever happened.
Ren turned back.
Dozens of four-eyed curses were once again emerging from the holes.
His fingers flicked rapidly—
clang, clang, clang—
invisible blades shot out in waves, slicing through them.
Up until now, he had been holding back, letting Tsumiki gain experience by dealing with most of the enemies herself, only cleaning up what she missed.
But now—
he unleashed his full strength.
He needed to finish this quickly and go support them.
It should be fine.
Maki, armed with Playful Cloud, could easily handle that blue-black curse.
Even if the other intruding curse was unexpectedly strong, Divine Dog: Totality possessed power on par with a special grade curse—it could hold the line.
And Tsumiki—
she wasn't some helpless beginner anymore.
She had just defeated Megumi, a Grade 2 sorcerer.
Clang—clang—clang—
Blade after blade carved deep grooves into the cavern walls.
Soon, the once chaotic cavern, filled with the shrill screams of curses, fell into complete silence.
No more cursed spirits emerged.
But Ren's expression didn't relax.
Because—
the barrier hadn't disappeared.
Which meant the true body of the curse was still alive.
Then—
drip… drip…
The sound of water echoed through the silent cavern.
Clear.
Sharp.
Unnatural.
Ren looked up.
From the ceiling, a massive cocoon—like an enormous bamboo shoot—had formed at some point.
Its top split open.
A pale, curled-up figure dropped down.
It landed—
and immediately stood upright.
Then it began to dance, to shriek in delight, as if celebrating its own birth.
Ren's expression shifted.
This one was completely different.
Not just in form—but the cursed energy radiating from it was immense, on an entirely different level from the small curses before.
But how…?
Those dozens—hundreds—of clones should have significantly diluted its power.
So why—
was this one still so strong?
The curse raised its arms.
One hand extended forward, the other pulled back—
like drawing a bow.
As it moved, a golden arrow rapidly formed between its hands.
Shoo—!
With a sharp, piercing sound, the arrow shot toward Ren, so fast it became a straight streak of light.
Ren raised his hand—
smack!
He casually swatted it aside.
Though his movement seemed effortless, the heavy vibration in his palm told a different story.
That arrow—
had enough power to instantly kill an ordinary Grade 1 sorcerer.
Unfortunately—
it had struck him.
The curse seemed startled that its powerful attack had done nothing.
Its body froze mid-dance.
Its swaying head stilled.
Its shrieking mouth snapped shut.
Then—
in the next instant—
its pale form flickered—
and vanished from sight.