The Powerful Cursed Womb: Heavenly Restriction

This Special Grade Cursed Spirit was clearly intelligent. It understood Lin Ran's provocative words, though not completely.

At that moment, it stretched its body, powerful cursed energy surging forth as if trying to intimidate Lin Ran.

"Stop giving off that nauseating, foul stench. Compared to that cursed spirit, you seem a little lacking." Lin Ran figured this Special Grade had not yet mastered a domain. If that was true, it would be much easier to deal with.

Whoosh!

The Special Grade Cursed Spirit suddenly lowered itself and charged forward at incredible speed. However, with Lin Ran's Cursed Energy Output, he could clearly see its trajectory.

Just as its claws were about to reach Lin Ran, they shattered an invisible barrier of cursed energy. Only after part of the force had been offset did the attack strike his Cursed Energy Armor.

With its power weakened, he could still feel pain in his body, but it was nowhere near as intense.

The moment it struck him, Lin Ran grabbed both of its arms with his hands. His feet dangling in the air, he planted them directly against its stomach.

"Blue-Black Flash!"

"Bang!"

That kick caved in the Special Grade Cursed Spirit's stomach, but it was not over yet. Using its arms as leverage again, Lin Ran kicked out once more.

One kick.

Two kicks.

Three kicks.

When he reached the fourth kick, the Special Grade Cursed Spirit's other two hands clamped down on Lin Ran's head, leaving him unable to move.

But by then, purple blood was already flowing from the Special Grade Cursed Spirit's mouth, proving that it had sustained considerable damage.

"Let go of me!" Lin Ran swung both legs upward, landing another Black Flash. Only after kicking away the hands gripping his head did he retreat and widen the distance between himself and the Special Grade Cursed Spirit.

The Special Grade Cursed Spirit had worn a smile the entire time, treating people like Lin Ran as nothing more than small prey to amuse itself with.

But it no longer thought that way. Its body was covered in injuries now. The person it had considered an ant was no longer an ant—if things went badly, he might even take its life.

Lin Ran adjusted his breathing where he stood, yet the Special Grade Cursed Spirit did not charge at him again. It seemed the creature was wary of him. Besides, even at a time like this, it had yet to use a domain, so it probably did not know how.

Lin Ran's cursed energy recovered much faster than before. After all these days at Jujutsu High, he had not been sitting around doing nothing. He trained regularly.

The first time he faced that Grade 1 cursed spirit near the crematorium, he had managed six kicks. Now, his improvement was more than double that.

As long as he was not killed instantly, even a Special Grade Cursed Spirit would have to suffer at his hands.

What worried him now were Fushiguro Megumi and Yuji Itadori. If Cursed Womb: Heavenly Restriction truly existed, it was far stronger than the one he was facing.

Meanwhile, as Fushiguro Megumi and Yuji Itadori searched for Nobara Kugisaki, they arrived in another open area. The surroundings were brighter than the gloomy atmosphere from before, yet they carried an oppressive feeling.

"Kugisaki isn't here. Let's go." Sensing danger, Fushiguro Megumi tried to leave through the other end.

But in the next instant, a figure appeared before Fushiguro Megumi and Yuji Itadori.

Both of them immediately became unable to move, frozen stiff where they stood.

"There's no mistake—it's a Special Grade. There's actually another Special Grade!" Fushiguro Megumi's expression darkened. Lin Ran had really been right, but how could two Special Grades exist in the same place?

Could it be some kind of cursed spirit organization, or some particular connection between them?

This was not the time to think about that. They had to move!

Sweat instantly streamed down Fushiguro Megumi's face. He had to move before it attacked, or there would be only one path left: death.

Thinking back on it, the Special Grade they had encountered earlier had been oppressive, but not to this extent. He could worry a little less about Lin Ran's side, but now he needed to worry about his own.

"Move, move, move!" Yuji Itadori forced himself to move. Lin Ran was dealing with a Special Grade Cursed Spirit too. They could not fall here—they had to break through.

Remembering his grandfather's final words, Yuji Itadori's hand finally moved. He drew the Cursed Tool Tu Zuo Mo from his waist and slashed at the Special Grade Cursed Spirit before him.

The upper half of this Special Grade Cursed Spirit resembled a human body, with defined muscles and pale skin. It had four very small eyes, and a neat row of teeth identical to those of a human.

Its lower half was wrapped inside a spiral shell like a conch, making it resemble a fetus. Perhaps that was why it was called a Cursed Womb: it had evolved from an initial state.

Before the Cursed Tool in Yuji Itadori's hand could even touch Cursed Womb: Heavenly Restriction, it casually swung an arm and severed Yuji Itadori's entire hand. It flew away in an arc and landed nearby, still gripping Tu Zuo Mo.

"This..." Yuji Itadori stared blankly at his left wrist, blood spraying continuously from it, his mind going completely blank.

"Yuji!" Fushiguro Megumi shouted anxiously. He understood how powerful Special Grade Cursed Spirits were. It had cut off Yuji Itadori's hand in an instant. This was practically the difference between killing and being killed in a single blow.

"Now that it's gotten this close, we can't escape anymore." Yuji Itadori's expression turned exceptionally grim. He undid the pouch holding his Cursed Tools and used one hand to wrap it around the stump of his other arm to stop the bleeding. "Hey, Sukuna. If I die, you die too. If you don't want to die, help me out!"

"I refuse!" A mouth belonging to Ryomen Sukuna appeared on Yuji Itadori's cheek, sneering, "Even if I die inside your body, I still have eighteen soul fragments left. Still, what pisses me off is that I don't control this body. Switch if you want, but when that happens, I'll kill those two brats before I deal with the cursed spirit. Then there's that woman. She's so spirited—fighting her should be quite satisfying."

"I won't let you have your way!" Yuji Itadori said through gritted teeth.

"That's true. But if you keep focusing on talking to me, your partner really is going to lose his life." Ryomen Sukuna's mocking voice made Yuji Itadori realize that the more pressing problem was the Special Grade Cursed Spirit before them.

Cursed Womb: Heavenly Restriction drew in a breath, then suddenly spat at the two of them. What seemed to be a cannonball formed from cursed energy blasted toward them, orange energy surging forth in an instant.

The two retreated quickly. After dodging the attack, they discovered that the ground had been blasted into a massive, elongated crater.

"That wasn't even a cursed technique. It just released cursed energy..." Fushiguro Megumi was utterly dumbfounded. Merely releasing cursed energy had such terrifying power. They could not possibly be its match. This battle would undoubtedly end in death.

"Fushiguro! Fushiguro... Fushiguro!"

Yuji Itadori called out three times before the stunned Fushiguro Megumi finally reacted. His face had turned pale as he looked at Yuji Itadori. He felt that this was truly the end. Forget fighting two Special Grade Cursed Spirits—they likely could not even escape.

"Take Kugisaki and Lin Ran and get out of here. I'll hold this thing back until you leave. Once you're outside, find a way to give me a signal. Then I'll let Sukuna come out." Yuji Itadori had made up his mind this time. They had to make some degree of sacrifice, or none of them would be leaving this place.