Prison Realm, Open

Kenjaku's vision went black, and his limbs suddenly flew off—fortunately, he had already found the power to simultaneously apply the Reverse Cursed Technique to himself and his Shikigami, and his body was restored the instant his limbs were casually cut by the scythe.

However, the continuous pain and the feeling of his body being constantly cut made it almost impossible for Kenjaku to enter a proper counterattack state. If it weren't for Mahoraga and Round Deer, he would have died dozens of times over by now.

Xuan gripped the scythe handle tightly, the remnants of his Cursed Energy leaving scorching marks in mid-air as he slashed, his movements constantly shifting in mid-air, and Kenjaku's weary posture as he struggled to keep up.

bass--

Neck, chest, shoulders, legs—a continuous barrage of slashes and cuts lashed at Kenjaku's body. Kenjaku felt his soul, just as Xuan had said, was becoming fragmented and shattered.

Idle Transfiguration!!

Kenjaku is now incredibly grateful that he didn't fully exploit the potential of the Idle Transfiguration back then, otherwise repairing the injuries to his soul would be extremely difficult now.

Under Xuan's attack, Kenjaku couldn't even dodge. Burn marks left by the slashes appeared in the air. Xuan's body was like a black light, dodging left and right. Finally, the huge scythe slashed down, splitting Kenjaku's body in two, and he crashed into the barrier.

But at this moment, Kenjaku finally managed to free himself from multitasking.

This doesn't mean his condition has weakened; even if he focused all his energy on facing Xuan's attacks, he would probably only suffer one less cut.

However, on the other side, as the battle between "Suguru Geto" and Choso ended, Tengen had also been touched by the Cursed Spirit Manipulation and entered a state of being controlled.

... As for Suguru Geto's physical condition...?

Kenjaku released a large number of Cursed Spirit at once. Suguru Geto's body was rendered useless after touching Tengen, and Tengen was now lying in the space of his Cursed Spirit Manipulation.

Although the situation was dire, Kenjaku had... won.

Thinking this, Kenjaku supported the barrier. Their domains had disappeared. During the continuous attacks, after Kenjaku's domain shattered, Xuan discovered that his domain could no longer actively target Kenjaku, and Kenjaku would even benefit from the bonus of his domain. Therefore, he decisively shut down his domain.

"Xuan, do you want to hear my plan?"

Kenjaku raised his head, his golden eyes staring straight at Xuan's face, while Xuan landed on the ground, slamming his giant scythe against the earth.

"It's strange to see myself like a drowning dog, Kenjaku... A dying man's words are often kind; let me hear them?"

Covered in sweat and blood, "Zenin Xuan" stood up tremblingly, reaching for his waist.

"I used that Cursed Technique, and in countless futures, I saw a future I was extremely curious about."

As Kenjaku spoke, the Cursed Energy in his body began to weaken step by step, and the exhaustion on his face and the contortion caused by pain were obvious, making Xuan Zhi feel nauseous.

"I wasn't wrong. During the time I was searching for you, your sense of self was almost completely consumed by loneliness and solitude... If I had waited any longer, I wouldn't have gone to find you."

"..."

Xuan did not reply, but instead turned his head to the side, waiting for Kenjaku to continue.

"In the future I saw, you, growing increasingly dull without my arrival, became King of Curses even more insane than Sukuna..."

Tell me about it, I'm really curious.

Xuan swung his Long Scythe, his golden eyes sweeping over Kenjaku's body—the half-finished technique on his body absolutely could not be exposed to Kenjaku in his current state; to seriously injure or even kill him, he could only rely on Yuki Tsukumo.

If Phoenix Wheel needs to accumulate enough power to kill Xuan with a single kick, then the time required must be enormous.

Do you want to hear it?

Didn't I say I was curious?

Tengen has been obtained, and according to intelligence, the earpiece of the Choso has been blocked, but... the Choso, which can freely roam among the Cursed Spirit, should be arriving here soon.

Xuan has a skill that allows him to disappear within a fraction of a second and teleport away repeatedly—but only after a pre-set location is established before activation.

Kenjaku and Xuan both thought the same thing: they both needed time.

Kenjaku still needs someone to help him stall Xuan—and he has already chosen that person.

"You ruled the Muromachi period for over fifty years, and while you didn't resort to cannibalism... you didn't care at all about killing other people indiscriminately—and it was under these circumstances that I was discovered by you."

"Then, I found out your methods for creating Cursed Object, right?"

"It would be more accurate to call it interrogation, right? That's all you needed at that time, wasn't it?"

"A little guess will tell. Judging from your performance, you probably didn't die at my hands in that other world either, right? You're really resilient."

"With the power of the Cursed Object, you arrived in the modern world... Ha, just like Sukuna, you stand at the highest point so that someone can defeat you, or even defeat everyone."

Kenjaku smiled slightly.

"You're completely different from who you are now."

Is it useful to say such meaningless things?

"Have you ever imagined this yourself? As evil as you were back then, even Satoru Gojo and Sukuna would have to join forces at my suggestion to completely destroy you."

"I'm pretty strong, huh?"

"Who can argue with that?"

"So, you've got your moves ready, haven't you? You've kept me waiting this long, don't just run away."

Xuan tilted his head and looked at Kenjaku Kenjaku, whose body had mostly recovered. He finally stood up and looked at Xuan in front of him.

"It couldn't be hidden from the original owner after all."

Kenjaku did not stop anchoring his escape route. After successfully anchoring, he plunged his hand into the shadows behind him and continuously tossed out information to Xuan in front of him.

"My dear Xuan, I poured my memories into the Back of the Prison Realm. Before Satoru Gojo is unsealed, he will watch those memories reveal things over and over again—watching your body slaughter his students again and again."

So that's why he had that bad feeling when he came.

"From what you're saying, do you think Satoru Gojo would attack me without even knowing what happened?"

"How will you know if you don't try?"

Tsukumo!!!

Sensing the fluctuations in the air, Xuan immediately made his move. Lightning composed of the Little Mo's white Cursed Energy instantly controlled Kenjaku in place, and the Phoenix Wheel burst out with a powerful kick.

At this moment, Kenjaku revealed the full form of the strange square object he had taken out of the shadow behind him.

Kenjaku's words were uttered at the same time as the Phoenix Wheel flew out.

"Prison Realm, open!"