Dual Jutsu, The Might of Wood Style!

Facing the several cursed spirits on this floor, Itadori slowly moved over to Lin Mu's side.

"Lin Mu, what do we do next?"

Lin Mu's Sharingan grew even redder in the darkness as the three tomoe in his pupils spun.

A terrifying pressure bore down on every cursed spirit before them. In that instant, all their bodies stiffened.

"Now!"

Lin Mu shot forward like an arrow. Though Itadori had no idea what he had done, he knew this was the best chance to exorcise these cursed spirits!

Chakra gathered in his palm, forming an invisible blade. With every casual swing, blood sprayed in great arcs.

After killing another Grade 3 cursed spirit, Lin Mu felt something shift. His inheritance progress rose slightly by 1%.

Feeling his strength increase, Lin Mu's footwork became even faster.

By the time Itadori finished off his first cursed spirit, Lin Mu was already picking out his third.

"So fast!"

Though Itadori usually acted carefree and playful, he was more perceptive than anyone. Seeing how rapidly Lin Mu's strength was growing, he could not help feeling a sense of urgency.

"And Lin Mu hasn't even used cursed techniques yet!" With that thought, Itadori sped up as well.

"Uwee— I don't want to work overtime!"

A relatively powerful cursed spirit rushed out from behind the others, its claws aimed straight at Lin Mu.

Because of its small size, this cursed spirit had been hiding behind the others, using them as shields.

The sudden attack startled Itadori in the rear. "Watch out!"

Not only was this cursed spirit underhanded, but it had chosen its timing well. Lin Mu was in midair, evading the other cursed spirits.

And its attack targeted exactly where Lin Mu would land. There was no way to dodge in midair!

The cursed spirit seemed to understand this as well. Its already hideous face twisted further as it neared success.

Yet what happened next left both the cursed spirit and Itadori behind it completely dumbfounded.

Lin Mu, who should have been falling, was actually hovering in midair!

His right hand was pressed tightly against the smooth ceiling, leaving him suspended in the air! He remained utterly motionless, as if glued there with industrial-strength adhesive.

If Newton had seen this, no one knew where his coffin lid would have flown off to!

Lin Mu pushed off with both feet in midair, and his chakra-infused legs kicked the cursed spirit attacking him into pieces.

But that was not all. What Lin Mu did next completely dropped Itadori's jaw.

Instead of coming down, Lin Mu, still hanging in the air, flipped his body over and planted both feet on the ceiling.

Then he simply stood on the ceiling!

For a moment, Itadori began doubting himself, unable to tell which direction was up and which was down.

If that was not the ground above them, then why could Lin Mu stand on the ceiling so effortlessly?

Fortunately, reason eventually overcame his shock. Lin Mu's hanging hair proved that the place Itadori stood on really was the ground.

Lin Mu's ability to stand on the ceiling had to be some special cursed technique or ability of his.

"Fire Release: Majestic Flame Destroyer!"

Lin Mu formed hand seals with both hands, his chest swelling slightly as the surrounding air turned scorching hot in an instant.

A single spark lit up, followed by roaring flames that filled the entire corridor!

"Boom—!"

The flames crashed and raged through the narrow corridor. Under the searing heat, not a single cursed spirit escaped unscathed.

Lin Mu had not stood upside down on the ceiling just to show off. He had considered beforehand that the space here was too narrow.

If most of the flames struck the cursed spirits head-on, they might rebound. So he had released the ninjutsu from above, allowing some of the flames to shoot forward unobstructed over the cursed spirits' heads.

After wiping out all the cursed spirits in one strike, Lin Mu landed steadily from the ceiling.

"Let's go. Let's see how Nobara's doing."

Lin Mu spoke casually, as if he had not just caused an explosion-like commotion!

Itadori curled his lips helplessly. "I think you're the one who should be classified as a monster, aren't you?"

Outside, Megumi and Gojo also noticed the explosive commotion from the lower floor.

Gojo smiled faintly. "That was seriously reckless."

"Using such a powerful cursed technique in such a cramped space."

"No... should I say he's skilled enough to be fearless?"

Megumi looked somewhat downcast. Already frustrated because he could not join the fight, seeing his teammates perform so brilliantly naturally made him feel worse.

"I wonder if Nobara can handle things over there by herself?"

Gojo Satoru looked up toward the upper floors.

"Damn it!"

Kugisaki gritted her teeth and reluctantly lowered the weapon in her hand.

She stared in disgust at the low-grade cursed spirit before her, which was holding a child hostage.

This cursed spirit was only Grade Three, and a weak one at that. Yet it had resorted to something as despicable as taking a hostage!

After dealing with a cursed spirit disguised as a mannequin, she had found the child hiding behind some boxes.

Already frightened by the cursed spirit, and intimidated further by Kugisaki's fierce appearance, the child had frozen when she told him to come over, too scared to move.

Just as Kugisaki was consoling herself by complaining that the rumor about children not liking beautiful women was true—

The cursed spirit suddenly appeared and took him hostage.

The cursed spirit's ugly face split into an exaggerated grin as one claw pressed against the child's neck, threatening her to drop her weapon.

But after Kugisaki put it down, the smile on its face only widened.

It had no intention of letting the child go!

Just as the cursed spirit was about to strike, the wall behind it was suddenly punched through by two fists!

One belonged to Itadori, and the other to Lin Mu!

"Splat—"

Lin Mu's hand precisely pierced through the cursed spirit's clawed hand that had been aimed at the child.

Itadori, meanwhile, had grabbed at empty air.

"Eh, I missed."

From behind the wall, Lin Mu said helplessly, "I told you to come a little more this way."

"Forget it."

Itadori suddenly exerted force, smashing a huge hole through the thick wall with his body.

The instant his eyes met the cursed spirit's, Tuzuo Demon flashed with silver light in his hand, severing the arm that held the child hostage.

Itadori kicked it away in the same motion and caught the still-terrified child in his arms.

Realizing things had gone bad, the cursed spirit simply used the force of Itadori's kick to flee outside.

It crashed through the window with a bang. Just as it was about to escape, Kugisaki swiftly picked up her cursed tool and shouted, "Throw me the hand on the ground!"

Itadori froze. "Which one?"

Kugisaki shouted angrily, "Either one! Just give it to me!"

She then took a voodoo doll from her shoulder bag, cursed energy surging wildly from her body.

Both Itadori and the child's expressions changed when they saw the voodoo doll. "What a sinister technique!"

"No need to make this so troublesome."

Lin Mu slowly walked in through the hole Itadori had smashed in the wall, his tone calm.

"Wood Release: Advent of a World of Trees!"

"Boom—"

As soon as Lin Mu finished speaking, several branches as thick as arms burst through the wall.

The branches coiled upward like pythons, instantly binding and piercing through the cursed spirit desperately fleeing through the air!

Nourished by the cursed spirit's blood, fresh shoots sprouted from the branches, continuously drilling out through the cursed spirit's skin!

The excessively bloody sight left the child completely dumbfounded. He likely would not recover for at least a month or two.

Itadori covered the child's eyes and said faintly, "All right, compared to Kugisaki's, yours is even more outrageous!"

The cursed spirit's life force vanished, and it gradually crumbled into ash. Only the thick branches extending from the wall remained. Having absorbed the cursed spirit's nutrients, they grew ever more lush and verdant, adding a touch of life to the gloomy abandoned building.

Downstairs, Gojo Satoru wore a rare look of surprise.

"Two cursed techniques!?"