Kenjaku thought seriously for a moment and suddenly laughed.
"Is this part of the Binding Vow?"
"To subvert the current jujutsu world, you can't just use our strength; you have to pay a little something too."
Mahito said with a smile, imitating Kenjaku's manner.
"Or do you have doubts about strengthening my abilities?"
No, it wasn't doubt, but fear.
Kenjaku sighed inwardly, but didn't show it on the surface.
Should it be said that he is indeed the manifestation of human-to-human curses?
Mahito was truly too special, so special that even Kenjaku could feel a clear wavering.
He considered for a long time and said cautiously,
"If you can form a new Binding Vow with me."
"What?"
"During the period of subverting the jujutsu world, you must help me with all your strength once," Kenjaku said.
Mahito was stunned for a moment, suddenly thinking of what Kenjaku had said in the original work.
He desired the evolution of all humanity; as for whether they evolved into Jujutsu Sorcerers, Curses, or something else, he didn't care.
And to achieve this ideal, the Culling Game had to unfold.
Mahito realized that Kenjaku was setting him up.
Even though Mahito's power had not yet fully grown, Kenjaku had already felt that Mahito was gradually slipping out of his control.
And a Mahito who had escaped his control would have no reason to help him; theoretically, that game of his could no longer be completed.
But he still hadn't given up on his game.
Perhaps there were reasons involving the Binding Vows he had continuously made over the past thousand years, and he was already overburdened; therefore, he urgently needed that game to complete the Binding Vows.
Thus, he had to ensure the game proceeded normally.
Since Mahito had now escaped his control, he had to find a way to make Mahito help him.
For a master of Binding Vows, there was no better means than making a new Binding Vow.
Having figured this out, Mahito hesitated for a moment.
Seemingly misunderstanding something, Kenjaku immediately said,
"Of course, I will also agree in this new Binding Vow that your helping me will never touch your interests. This matter might even be beneficial for you becoming a god. This is an unquestionable win-win."
These words were true.
Mahito used his eyes that could see through the soul to judge Kenjaku's sincerity.
Is there any factor in that game that would be beneficial for my evolution into a god?
Mahito thought about it, and there really was.
The merged cursed spirit.
This was something that still hadn't been clearly explained by the end of the original work.
This was also what Kenjaku wanted to accomplish.
What exactly was this entity, what theory was it born from, and what could it actually do?
All of this remained unknown.
Kenjaku was exactly a master in this field.
Since he was so confident, it meant it really was helpful for becoming a god—
it could even be said to be a huge help, to the point where it could directly make Mahito become a god.
Speaking of which, in the world of Jujutsu Kaisen, what exactly is a god?
Well, although he kept saying he wanted to become a god, in reality, it was just a slogan.
At this stage, Mahito's main goal was still to survive.
To that end, the slogan of climbing to become a god was necessary.
A slogan is a slogan, but as for how to become a god, Mahito truly knew nothing about it.
In the original work, the one closest to a god was undoubtedly Tengen, and Tengen wasn't explicitly said to have become a god either; the official statement was a higher-level existence.
A higher-level existence was called a god by the people within the work.
Even Gojo Satoru didn't refute this point, but the settings outside the work simply stated it was a higher-level existence.
What exactly this was had never been shown even until the end of the work.
Mahito laughed.
"I need all your knowledge, thousand-year-old Curse User."
Kenjaku finally relaxed and said easily,
"As long as you can learn it. Jujutsu techniques look magical, but they're actually quite boring to learn."
"I am very patient."
Mahito smiled slightly.
"Thousand-year-old Curse User, can you tell me your name now?"
Kenjaku took a deep look at Mahito, suspecting that Mahito's abilities must include a need for true names.
He wanted to refuse, but he knew this was the only chance to make this troublesome Cursed Spirit obedient.
He was already this difficult to deal with now; in the future, he would only grow to be even more unpredictable.
This was a Cursed Spirit with potential not inferior to Gojo Satoru—
No, perhaps it was precisely because of the birth of Gojo Satoru that, for the sake of balance, the world had allowed Mahito to be born at this moment.
He was originally meant to stand on equal footing with Gojo Satoru.
Having figured this out, Kenjaku nodded slightly.
"I am Kenjaku, the thousand-year-old Curse User."
Mahito stretched out a hand.
"Then, before the current jujutsu world is subverted, please give me your guidance, Teacher Kenjaku."
"Likewise, please give me your guidance, Mahito-san."
Kenjaku hesitantly reached out and shook Mahito's hand.
At this moment, the Binding Vow was established.
But at the same time, Mahito truly touched Kenjaku's soul with his hand.
He didn't make any changes.
He simply touched Kenjaku's soul, and Kenjaku's Cursed Energy protection wasn't even triggered.
If it had been before his contact with Hijiri Shunta, he definitely wouldn't have been able to do this, but now he could do it easily.
In modern terms, the old Mahito was a third-rate doctor holding a scalpel.
If he wanted to touch the opponent's soul, he had to use the scalpel to lightly cut through the opponent's protection before he could touch their soul.
But now, Mahito knew that if he didn't modify it and simply recorded and observed, using an X-ray would be more precise than using a scalpel and would not be detected.
In this world, probably not even Sukuna could do this.
This was a miracle that only Mahito could perform.
So, naturally, Kenjaku fell for it.
Kenjaku indeed suffered no harm—
because simply observing with one's gaze definitely doesn't count as harm.
But Kenjaku's soul had already been completely recorded by him.
Mahito revealed a wide smile.
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