Lynn needed to be eliminated in advance. This was Jogo's thought after hearing Hanami's report.
Lynn's strength was too great. As the strongest combat power on the Cursed Spirit side, Jogo was essentially an existence comparable to a Special Grade Sorcerer.
In Jogo's view, Hanami's strength was only slightly lower than his own and the two Special Grade Sorcerers.
Excluding those two people, Jogo could still put up a fight even when facing Special Grade Yuta Okkotsu or Yuki Tsukumo.
But such a top-tier combatant had been lost at Lynn's hands without any warning.
Superhuman physical fitness, an abnormally strange self-healing speed, the ability to manipulate flesh to launch attacks from all parts of the body, powerful slashes capable of splitting the earth in two, and Domain Expansion.
Having learned of Lynn's abilities from Hanami, Jogo finally realized how dangerous he was.
Most importantly, from Lynn's battle with Jogo, it was clear that after devouring a Sukuna's Finger, the opponent had mastered the Dismantle that Sukuna possessed.
By making this deduction, Lynn could even claim the power of the Sukuna's Finger for himself and continuously improve.
If Lynn were allowed to continue growing, he would one day become a danger on the level of Gojo Satoru, perhaps even surpassing him to become the new strongest.
To prevent this from happening, Kenjaku decided to use the Cursed Spirit to eliminate Lynn before he could mature completely.
Unsurprisingly, those old fossils panicked.
Having sat in high positions for a long time, the Jujutsu Sorcerer higher-ups had long since lost their original purpose.
In order to continue enjoying their power and status, they negated any change that threatened their own position, feeling immense hostility toward innovators like Gojo Satoru.
Seeing a powerful fighting force emerge on Gojo Satoru's side, one that could further grow and become stronger, the Jujutsu Sorcerer higher-ups became filled with hostility toward him.
To restrict Lynn's growth, they accepted Kenjaku's proposal, agreeing to use the Cursed Spirit to surround and kill him, while also using this opportunity to remove Gojo Satoru's most powerful asset.
Lynn possessed a Sukuna's Finger within him; killing him would not only severely damage the Gojo Satoru faction's strength but also cause Sukuna to lose some hope of resurrection—a win-win situation.
As the promoter of the plan, Kenjaku was delighted, believing that this two-pronged attack would surely eliminate Lynn.
The finger Cursed Spirit was merely a probe.
After Lynn dealt with it, the next step was to lead Hanami and Dagon, two Disaster Cursed Spirit, in an encirclement attack.
Affected by Jogo's death, Dagon hatched prematurely from the Cursed Womb, gaining a further boost in strength.
He himself would engage Lynn head-on to draw his attention, while Hanami would assist from the shadows, working together to drain Lynn's Cursed Energy.
When the time was right, Dagon, who was also hiding in the shadows, would unleash his Domain.
This was Kenjaku's perfectly orchestrated plan.
If Lynn reacted by unleashing his Domain Expansion, or if he withstood Dagon's initial wave of attacks and then unleashed his Domain Expansion, Hanami and he could both use their Domains against him.
Lynn was not Gojo Satoru, after all; as long as there were enough combatants to surround and suppress him, he would eventually exhaust his Cursed Energy and die.
At least at this moment, the instant Dagon dragged Lynn into his Domain, Kenjaku felt the situation was already settled.
Domain Expansion had an unavoidable hit effect.
Bolstered by the Domain's reinforcement, the fish-form Shikigami summoned by Dagon ignored spatial distance and engulfed Lynn in just the time it took to draw a breath.
Its teeth, capable of biting through reinforced concrete, gnashed downwards. In a daze, Lynn felt the cold, crushing pressure of the deep sea enveloping him, making him momentarily forget the reason for his current predicament.
But in the very next second, everything changed.
Boom—!
Golden lightning instantly burst forth, submerging the Shikigami covering Lynn's body.
Amidst the massive roar, the youth clad in lightning reappeared on the coast, completely unharmed.
"Is this your trump card?"
Ignoring the fish-form Shikigami that reappeared on him, Lynn walked step by step toward the ocean ahead.
"If this is all you have, then I suppose I overestimated you."
Like a true bolt of lightning, Lynn instantly traversed a hundred meters, appearing directly in front of Dagon.
The terrifying gale split the sea in two; his speed at this moment was so fast that even the sea water could not keep up with his momentum.
"Compared to Jogo, you are too weak."
Lynn raised all eight of his arms: "With just this level, I don't even need to use Domain Expansion."
"Damn it! Don't look down on people!"
Dagon roared, pushing the Cursed Technique within his body to its absolute limit, as hundreds of Shikigami descended from all directions.
Simultaneously, the seawater beneath his feet surged upward, transforming into massive water dragons that charged toward Lynn.
At the moment of life and death, Dagon's mastery over his technique broke through, erupting with power far exceeding anything before.
But in the very next instant, the overwhelming Shikigami were torn to shreds by invisible sharp blades, and the water dragons were drowned out by golden lightning.
In a scene that shook the soul, Lynn's eight arms struck down simultaneously, hundreds of fist shadows intersecting.
In just an instant, Dagon's torso was blasted into a bloody mist by pure brute force.
"How is this possible?!"
Kenjaku's voice contained disbelief.
Dagon was not an ordinary Cursed Spirit; he was a Disaster Cursed Spirit born from humanity's fear of the ocean.
To be immune to attacks within his own Domain and then be instantly killed, what kind of monster was this?
"Kenjaku!"
Hanami's intermittent voice reached Kenjaku's ears, causing him to look toward the source of the sound.
Countless tree roots shot out from the ground, wrapping around Kenjaku's body, attempting to restrain him.
But in the next instant, the fortress wall was blasted apart.
Lynn, moving at a speed that defied imagination, rushed toward Kenjaku.
"Maximum Technique: Vortex!"
Kenjaku shouted as he leaped backward, his body wrapped in a massive sphere of Cursed Energy that he was preparing to launch.
Unlike ordinary moves, Maximum Technique was an ultimate technique born from the Cursed Technique, possessing extremely high power.
And as the technique mastered by Suguru Geto, the Maximum Technique of the Cursed Spirit Manipulation technique was even more special.
This move could merge all the Cursed Spirit under his control into one body, firing them out as an ultra-high-density Cursed Energy cannon.
More importantly, this move had no upper limit; the more Cursed Spirit stuffed inside, the stronger the technique's power became.
However, correspondingly, to unleash the full power of this move, a certain amount of time was needed for preparation.
"Hanami!"
"I am ready."
With no time to mourn Dagon's demise, the next Disaster Cursed Spirit to arrive on the battlefield was Hanami!
"Domain Expansion— Shining Sea of Growing Branches!"
Vast Cursed Energy surged up from the ground.
Following Dagon's fall, Lynn and the others had already returned to the Juvenile Detention Center.
But under the pull of this Cursed Energy, the surrounding scenery changed again, and Lynn found himself in a forest.
Kenjaku's voice echoed mockingly, and Lynn realized that the enemy was trying to use the terrain to his advantage, attempting to wear him down with attrition.
"Tch, so troublesome."
Lynn curled his lip and got up again.
Compared to Dagon, who had just hatched from the Cursed Womb, Hanami, like Jogo, had lived for a very long time.
As fellow Disaster Cursed Spirit, their development of Cursed Techniques was even more advanced, not much inferior to Jogo's.
Hallucinogenic floral scents, Cursed Seeds that could absorb Cursed Energy, indestructible massive tree roots...
In just an instant, countless attacks engulfed Lynn, ignoring the distance.
But just like with Dagon moments ago, golden lightning struck back with greater force, blasting the tree seeds and roots into the sky.
Standing on the barren ground, Lynn looked forward.
"Finally showing yourself, huh."
As the Domain Expansion was activated, Hanami, who had been hiding in the shadows, came into the open.
Compared to usual, the white cloth wrapped around her left arm was gone, and immense Cursed Energy was continuously gathering.
On the other side, Kenjaku's voice was filled with a cold, sinister tone, and the massive sphere of Cursed Energy he was preparing began to solidify and condense.
With Dagon as a cautionary tale, the attention of both was tauter than ever; targeting either one would result in a charged attack from the other.
"In that case, I will meet it head-on."
Two hands emerged from Lynn's abdomen and clasped together.
Originally, he was just unsure of Hanami's location.
Since the enemies had all appeared, there was no need to conserve Cursed Energy anymore.
"Domain Expansion—Raging Thunder Field!"
Boom—!
Surging Cursed Energy erupted.
Centered on Lynn's position, the barren land spread outwards, submerging the forest and the flower field.
Golden lightning descended from the sky, emanating majestic divine power like a descending Thunder God, shaking the soul.
"It's more complete than anticipated."
Kenjaku commented.
The barren land engulfed half the forest, which meant Lynn's Domain and Hanami's were an even match.
This was not a normal phenomenon.
According to Hanami's report, Lynn comprehended Domain Expansion during his fight with Jogo, which was less than half a month ago.
In other words, Lynn only took less than half a month to perfect an incomplete Domain to a level comparable to Hanami's.
"Truly a monster."
Spanning a thousand years, Kenjaku had witnessed many geniuses, yet none could compare to Lynn.
"I confirm it now; if I let you continue to grow, you will absolutely surpass Gojo Satoru."
"But regrettably, you won't have the chance to grow further; this place will be your grave."
As the words fell, Kenjaku's voice turned cold, and the massive sphere of Cursed Energy he had been preparing instantly shot toward Lynn.
Lynn had to die.
Witnessing Lynn's performance, Kenjaku immediately abandoned the Death Painting Retrieval Plan that was still in preparation, pouring all the Cursed Spirit he had accumulated into the Vortex.
Hundreds of thousands of Cursed Spirit converged into this single strike, the power of which somewhat transcended Kenjaku's own limits.
"It's time to end this, Lynn."
"You are right; it is time to end this."
Lynn replied calmly.
An attack that gathered hundreds of thousands of Cursed Spirit could not be withstood even by him in his current state.
If hit head-on, he would probably not even have a chance to regenerate before being completely swallowed by the torrent of Cursed Energy.
However, ...
"No matter how strong an attack is, the prerequisite is that it must hit the enemy."
A Domain is the combination of a Cursed Technique and an Innate Domain, fixed to the outside world using Barrier Techniques.
Minefield of Thundering Light was a Domain summoned by Lynn with Current Propulsion as its core.
But besides Current Propulsion, Lynn possessed another Cursed Technique: The Dismantle from Sukuna.
"Attack!"
Kenjaku shouted, and the massive Cursed Energy sphere shot out toward Lynn.
Hanami also finished charging, and the surging Cursed Energy on her left arm was instantly injected into the Domain. A flower field spread out from beneath her feet, instantly invading Lynn's Domain.
In a daze, countless illusions flashed before Lynn's eyes, and a dense drowsiness rose in his mind.
"This is your trump card, huh."
When his eyes opened again, Lynn's vision had returned to clarity, and the Maximum Technique: Vortex was right in front of him.
But even so, Lynn remained unfazed.
As his hands behind his back formed a sign, the remaining Cursed Energy within his body erupted at this moment.
"Domain Expansion—Coffin of the Demon-Warding Priest!"
A second domain bloomed here.
Under Lynn's lead, Raging Thunder and Fushiguro 's Domain fused together, the domain's strength instantly climbing to a new level.
Coincidentally, at this moment, Hanami had just finished a burst of power, her cursed energy falling into a brief stagnation.
Unable to react in time, the newly fused domain instantly covered Hanami's Devouring Blossom Sea.
The dense forest and flower fields vanished, replaced by barren earth that enveloped the entire battlefield.
In the next instant, countless lightning-infused sword energies rained down, detonating the Ultimate: Uzumaki.
The power of hundreds of thousands of Cursed Spirit erupted at that moment; even the fused domain could not withstand it.
In just a few breaths, the surging torrent of cursed energy shattered the domain, blasting the Juvenile Detention Center serving as the battlefield sky-high along with it.
BOOM——!!!
Accompanied by a deafening roar, a mushroom cloud rose from the ground. The terrifying shockwave spread outward, blowing away Ijichi, who had retreated to a distance of two kilometers earlier.
His body tumbled over a dozen times on the ground before finally slamming into a private car behind him, stopping his momentum. Intense pain radiated from the blue and purple bruises covering his body.
"Cough... What happened..."
Confusion filled Ijichi's face.
As an outsider, he had no idea what had just transpired in that instant.
By the time he regained his senses, everything before his eyes had been turned upside down, and a constant ringing filled his ears.
"The direction of that explosion just now was..."
As if realizing something, Ijichi forced himself up despite the pain wracking his body and looked ahead.
"Wait! You've got to be kidding me!"
When the scene ahead came into clear view, Ijichi froze in place as if petrified.
Nothing. There was nothing left.
Both the Juvenile Detention Center and the surrounding buildings had completely vanished with the explosion.
All that remained was a massive crater.
Gazing into it, a bottomless darkness met his eyes, chilling as an abyss.
Staring dumbfounded at the scene for a moment, Ijichi finally snapped out of his shock and tremblingly pulled out his phone.
A major incident had occurred; he needed to contact Gojo Satoru immediately.
*Thump——! *
Right then, a dull sound reached him.
Ijichi paused, turning his head to look beside him.
The ground, which had been intact just moments before, had now cracked open into a large hole.
A figure missing half its body crawled out, cradling a head in its arms.
"You are... Suguru Geto?"
Ijichi instinctively took a step back.
As a long-time employee of Jujutsu High, he had naturally seen Suguru Geto before.
But the problem was, wasn't Suguru Geto already dead? Why was he here, missing half his body?
"Yo~ Long time no see, Mr. Ijichi."
Geto, now only an upper body, looked down: "Could you lend us a hand? Hanami and I aren't in the best condition for moving right now; we need someone to carry us."
"You've got to be joking!"
Ijichi instinctively drew a pistol from his coat.
Though he didn't understand the situation, this Suguru Geto was clearly problematic.
"I advise you not to shoot."
Geto revealed a faint smile: "My partner is standing right behind you. If you make any sudden moves... well, the consequences could be quite severe."
Partner?
Ijichi's body stiffened, and he subconsciously glanced behind him.
Only then did he notice a young man with a stitched scar across his face standing behind him.
Though his appearance seemed human, Ijichi knew this youth was a Cursed Spirit.
"Quite the commotion you caused, Suguru Geto."
Ignoring Ijichi's reaction, the youth—Mahito—walked past him towards Geto and Hanami.
"Where's Dagon? Why isn't he here?"
"Dead. Lynn was stronger than anticipated. Hanami and I barely managed to survive."
"[I'm sorry, Mahito. Lynn moved too fast. By the time I realized, Dagon had already been sacrificed. ]"
"I see. That's a shame."
Mahito feigned a sigh.
As a being born from human malice, he naturally harbored no positive emotions.
Dagon's death only made him lament the loss of a teammate, knowing future actions would become more troublesome.
"By the way, Geto, why did you stop me from acting?" Mahito turned his gaze towards Ijichi. "Does this guy have any value in staying alive?"
"Of course, he does. He can drive," Geto replied.
With such a huge disturbance at the Juvenile Detention Center, Jujutsu High would receive the news even if Ijichi didn't report it.
It wasn't wise to linger here; they needed to leave quickly.
However, Hanami typically moved through the earth, and Mahito was practically a newborn infant.
In their current restricted state, they needed someone who could drive to take them away. Ijichi happened to fit the bill.
"Mr. Ijichi, we'll be counting on you next."
"In exchange, if you deliver us to our destination, I'll spare your life. How about that?"
"Stop joking around!"
Ijichi gritted his teeth. "No matter how afraid of death I am, I could never help you!"
"Is that so? What a pity."
Geto shook his head regretfully.
"Mahito, deal with him."
"Should've done that sooner."
A malicious grin spread across Mahito's face.
Perhaps to make Ijichi feel more despair, he didn't attack immediately but instead walked forward step by step.
Faced with this, Ijichi knew he had no way out. Without further hesitation, he pulled the trigger.
In the next instant, a roar echoed.
Mahito's body was sent flying backward, crashing into a dent in the ground dozens of meters away.
"Huh?"
Ijichi's eyes widened in shock.
Since when was his pistol that powerful?
"No!"
The next second, Ijichi realized the truth and turned to look at the figure behind him.
"Lynn! You're not dead?!"
"If you don't know how to speak, you can choose to remain silent."
"Uh, sorry, that's not what I meant."
"I know. Otherwise, you'd be airborne by now."
Lynn slowly emerged from the massive crater behind them.
"You two are really good at surviving. I thought that last hit had finished you off."
"We should be the ones saying that."
Geto stared at Lynn for a moment, then let out a bitter laugh.
This is just cheating.
Even without a direct hit, that Ultimate: Spiral, condensed from hundreds of thousands of Cursed Spirit, had detonated right in his face.
At the last moment, he had summoned the Special Grade Cursed Spirit Smallpox Deity, which he had kept in reserve, using its domain as a buffer to evade the initial blast.
After that, it was only because Hanami desperately protected him, sacrificing most of her body to burrow underground with him, absorbing life force while escaping, that they barely managed to survive.
But what about Lynn?
He had been standing at the very epicenter of the explosion, no more than five meters away when the Ultimate: Spiral detonated.
Even with the fused domain as a buffer, he shouldn't have been safer than them.
"Maybe because my will to survive is stronger," Lynn replied with a faint smile, as if reading Geto's thoughts.
Because of Hanami's charged attack, he hadn't been able to detonate the Ultimate: Uzumaki immediately, and his situation had indeed been perilous.
However, even in the most desperate situations, a sliver of hope remains.
[Survival Instinct: The stronger the will to survive, the greater the boost to all attributes. Easier to break through in dire situations. ]
At the brink of life and death, Lynn's will to survive soared to unprecedented heights, and the power surging within him formed the final piece of the puzzle.
Using the fused domain as a buffer, he too evaded the initial blast. Then, amidst the ensuing torrent of cursed energy, he continuously activated Reverse Cursed Technique, coordinating with Super-speed Regeneration to complete his recovery.
"While other versions of me are showing off, I'm the one getting beaten up as soon as it's my turn. Unbelievable."
After mentally After making a comment, Lynn focused his will and summoned the Spirit Devouring Barrier, striding forward to face Geto and Hanami.
"Looks like we're really done for this time."
Geto raised his hand. "Can you give me a chance to surrender? I think I still have value in staying alive."
"Surrender?" Lynn looked down at his feet. "Surrender is a lie; a sneak attack is the truth, right?"
*Thump——! *
The instant Lynn's words fell, the ground beneath his feet suddenly shattered, and Mahito's upper body emerged from it.
"Haha! You let your guard down!"
Mahito grabbed Lynn's ankles with both hands, a twisted smile on his face.
"Not attacking the moment, you discovered me was your biggest mistake!"
Idle Transfiguration activated. Through his technique, Mahito made contact with Lynn's soul, attempting to distort it.
But in the very next second, the surroundings blurred, and he found himself enveloped in the mist.
*Thump——! *
Geto: "...?"
Hanami: "?"
Staring at Mahito, who had suddenly exploded into a bloody the mist, both Geto and Hanami were stunned.
Seriously, man.
How did you just explode?
But clearly, no one was going to give them an answer.
In the instant after Mahito exploded into a bloody the mist, Lynn's figure appeared before the two of them.
BOOM——!!!