Rewards

"I'm full."

Ryu Ishigori exhaled a mouthful of black smoke. The activated Executioner's Lightning had blasted his body black and charred.

He lay weakly on the ground, dazed, with residual arcs of electricity still dancing across his body.

As expected of the strongest of their era, he was simply no match for him.

"Sorry I couldn't offer more."

Hajime Kashimo waved a hand, then walked over to Ryu Ishigori and slowly sat down.

The great battle in Sendai was over, and he finally had time to catch his breath.

He had barely any cursed energy left. The successive battles had long since exhausted Hajime Kashimo in both body and mind.

Fortunately, there were no opponents left in the Sendai Colony who warranted his attention.

As everyone knew, the Four Heavenly Kings numbered five.

The Sendai Four Heavenly Kings had fallen to him one after another. Without question, Hajime Kashimo was now the strongest in the Sendai Colony-the fifth Heavenly King beyond the original four, and the strongest of them all!

The strongest Heavenly King's achievements were etched into Sendai. No one who had witnessed him in action would question his strength.

Sendai's survivors would remember those victories forever.

What? You still hadn't heard about Hajime Kashimo sweeping all four opponents in Sendai? Honestly, what was anyone supposed to do with you? Sit tight...

The sky was blue, white clouds drifted leisurely overhead, and warm sunlight spilled across the earth. What a lovely afternoon it would have been without Jujutsu Sorcerers and cursed spirits.

Only now did Ryu Ishigori have the leisure to appreciate the scenery four hundred years into the future.

Ever since the Culling Game began and he returned to life through incarnation, Ryu Ishigori had been busy earning points and challenging powerful opponents. He had never had time to take a close look at this beautiful sky, so different from the one four hundred years ago.

"Why didn't you kill me?"

Ryu Ishigori asked.

Having experienced the electrical charge exploding firsthand, Ryu Ishigori knew that not all the charge inside him had been detonated.

Hajime Kashimo had only detonated part of it. Otherwise, Ryu Ishigori could never have remained intact as he was now, merely unable to move for the time being.

Hajime Kashimo simply smiled.

"You finally got a second chance at life. Wouldn't it be a shame to waste it like that?"

That explanation hardly satisfied Ryu Ishigori.

"Are you insulting me? As someone strong, the moment I chose to fight, I was naturally prepared to have my life taken by someone stronger."

Hajime Kashimo gave no direct answer. He gazed toward the horizon, his expression brimming with confidence.

"Keep working at it, Ryu Ishigori. You still have a long way to go. This era has plenty of people stronger than you.

"I never consider anyone I've defeated a rival. I'll give you time to catch up, until I'm so far ahead you can no longer see me."

Ryu Ishigori froze for a moment, then burst into uncontrollable laughter.

"Hahaha! That's more like it. That's the arrogant Thunder God Hajime Kashimo I remember."

His excitement aggravated his internal injuries. Ryu Ishigori coughed twice, then rallied.

"All right, Kashimo. I'll remember that. Once I recover, I'll definitely challenge you again."

Hajime Kashimo grinned.

"I look forward to it."

"So, Lord Kashimo? Were you satisfied with the opponents I found for you?"

Lord Kashimo's moment in the spotlight was over. After who knew how long, our protagonist Lu Yun was back online.

Only then did Hajime Kashimo remember that he still had a temporary contract with Lu Yun. He replied flatly,

"They were so-so."

"Huh? How come?"

Lu Yun was shocked. Had even that failed to satisfy Hajime Kashimo?

Seeing Lu Yun's horrified reaction only brightened Hajime Kashimo's already excellent mood after several thoroughly satisfying battles. He stopped teasing the little fellow.

"I suppose you just barely passed."

The moment those words left his mouth, Lu Yun felt an invisible shackle binding his soul disappear. His soul felt noticeably lighter, and his thoughts grew livelier.

"Great!"

Like Angel and Hana Kurusu, they had reached a true agreement to coexist. Lu Yun no longer had to worry about Hajime Kashimo erasing his consciousness.

"Carrying all of yesterday's trials and hardships~"

None of his efforts had been wasted. Lu Yun could finally put his mind completely at ease.

What efforts, you asked?

Come on, didn't racking his brains to recall those absurd plotlines and dig up information count as hard work? A reward of recalling Elephant vs. House ten times would set you straight.

What's this guy singing?

Hajime Kashimo couldn't understand why Lu Yun had suddenly started singing. He couldn't relate to Lu Yun's excitement.

"All right, stop singing. I'm a little tired, so I'll rest first. The body's yours."

With that, Hajime Kashimo relinquished control, and Lu Yun's consciousness took over the entire body again.

Before his consciousness fell asleep, Hajime Kashimo made sure to remind Lu Yun,

"Oh, and don't forget to find Sukuna for me."

"No problem, Kashimo. Leave it to me."

Lu Yun gave his solemn assurance.

I'll definitely look, but who knows when you'll actually get to fight him. We still need some time to build up our strength first.

Come to think of it, while Hajime Kashimo had controlled the body, Lu Yun had received no notifications about rewards for defeating powerful opponents.

"No way. Don't tell me Hajime Kashimo's victories don't count?"

It struck him like a bolt from the blue, and Lu Yun's face instantly fell.

Yet the moment he finished speaking, a heavenly sound rang out, and reward notifications appeared before his eyes, one after another.

[Successfully defeated Special Grade Sorcerer Dhruv Lakdawalla. Reward obtained: "Increased cursed energy efficiency." Ability obtained: "Barrier Technique mastery."]

[Successfully defeated Special Grade Cursed Spirit Kurourushi. Reward obtained: "Increased total cursed energy." Ability obtained: "Cursed energy erosion."]

[Successfully defeated Special Grade Sorcerer Takako Uro. Reward obtained: "Improved cursed energy control." Ability obtained: "Introductory spatial control."]

[Successfully defeated Special Grade Sorcerer Ryu Ishigori. Reward obtained: "Increased cursed energy output." Ability obtained: "Cursed energy discharge."]

So it wasn't that there were no rewards. Their time simply hadn't come yet.

A string of reward notifications flickered before his eyes like a flood of messages. Countless pieces of unfamiliar information poured in, leaving Lu Yun's head feeling swollen and muddled.

"S-so much! It's gonna overflow!"

Lu Yun clutched his head in pain. The effects of all his new abilities gradually became clear, while special grade-level cursed energy rewards surged up from within his body.

These rewards weren't nearly as unremarkable as those he had received for dealing with a few roadside small fry. His depleted cursed energy surged back, gradually increasing by nearly a third of its original total.

This wasn't simply cursed energy recovery, but an increase in his total reserves.

In other words, the reward for defeating Kurourushi alone had increased the total amount of Hajime Kashimo's cursed energy within Lu Yun by over thirty percent-the equivalent of several of Sukuna's Fingers.

His total cursed energy could probably now rival Yuta Okkotsu's supposedly limitless reserves.

And that wasn't even counting the other rewards whose effects on his body were less obvious.

Recovering from his headache, Lu Yun raised his head, his eyes filled with unparalleled confidence.

"Wonderful. I'm beginning to understand everything."