"Light Returns at Dusk"

Clearly, Megumi Zenin had nearly headed south just now, too.

After being saved, Megumi Zenin clearly still hadn't grasped what had happened. She lay on the ground for a good while, delivering her own boarding speech before finally noticing the two people beside her.

"Hey, Megumi."

Jianxia greeted Megumi warmly, as though someone else had just blasted her into a Kobe meme.

Shinji had also put away his earlier look of anxiety. With his hands tucked into the broad sleeves of his robe, he pulled Megumi Zenin up from the ground.

"Megumi, you did very well. You can rest now."

Shinji patted Megumi Zenin on the shoulder. In his eyes, today's battle had already demonstrated his daughter's excellent qualities as a jujutsu sorcerer.

As an excellent Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer, she would surely have no trouble reliably exorcising Grade 2 Cursed Spirits.

That would put Shinji much more at ease when she went out on missions.

Megumi Zenin was a little dazed. All she remembered was losing her clash of cursed energy blasts against Jianxia.

By all rights, even if she hadn't been reduced to mush, she should at least have been injured.

Yet now, she felt nothing but vitality coursing through her body. She could even fight Jianxia a few more times.

She could probably even trade a round with Sukuna, the King of Curses!

But how on earth had he done it?

Noticing Shinji's and Megumi Zenin's confusion, Jianxia made no attempt to hide anything. After returning Banquet of Fated Remnants to the black substance, he began explaining.

"During my fight with Megumi, Banquet of Fated Remnants, whom I'd subdued, connected with me on a spiritual level and awakened an innate cursed technique, Light Returns at Dusk."

Jianxia then walked to the middle of the courtyard. Small stones of all kinds lay scattered there, all blackened by the heat and shock waves.

Jianxia casually picked one up, then returned to the pair and waved it in front of them.

"Simply put, Light Returns at Dusk can reverse the current state of anything it touches, restoring it to how it was before."

As Jianxia activated the cursed technique, a flash of white light swept past. When he opened his palm again, the blackened stone had become smooth and gray.

"And after connecting with Banquet of Fated Remnants, I can use that innate cursed technique to a certain extent, too-though both the targets I can affect and how far I can turn back time are very limited."

Without summoning Banquet of Fated Remnants, Jianxia could only use Light Returns at Dusk on things that contained no cursed energy or had merely picked up a trace of cursed residue, like this little stone.

But if Banquet of Fated Remnants used it, the cursed technique could also target objects containing cursed energy, and even jujutsu sorcerers or cursed spirits.

In exchange, both the target's own cursed energy and how far Light Returns at Dusk reversed time would affect its cursed energy consumption.

Despite Jianxia's breezy demeanor, saving Megumi Zenin just now had actually exhausted all his cursed energy. His fighting ability would be greatly reduced for a while.

Shinji Zenin nodded thoughtfully, seemingly working through the effects of Light Returns at Dusk and considering where it could be used.

Megumi Zenin, meanwhile, simply gave up thinking. Her face practically said, "That's Jianxia for you."

"Anyway, thank you, Clan Head Zenin, and you too, Megumi. Without you, I might not have formed a bond with Banquet of Fated Remnants so quickly."

Jianxia bowed solemnly to the pair, expressing his gratitude.

Jianxia didn't consider himself an ungrateful wretch. Since the Zenin Clan had helped him so much, he would naturally repay that kindness.

"Not at all, not at all. The Zenin Clan's home is little more than a rustic farmhouse. We should be thanking you for honoring us with your presence, Master Jianxia."

After carefully observing Jianxia's fight with Megumi Zenin, Shinji had reached a conclusion.

He couldn't say for certain how strong Jianxia was, but at least there was nothing wrong with him as a person.

He did seem a little too close to cursed spirits, though...

One more friend meant one more source of strength. A small clan lacked the clout to look down on others, so treating people kindly was the best approach.

"There's no need to thank me, Jianxia! Your techniques were far too profound for me, but I learned a lot from this fight, too!"

Megumi Zenin wasn't angry about getting beaten up. She treasured opportunities like this to spar and exchange insights with someone strong.

After all, in the Jujutsu Society, more experience meant a better chance of survival. Any powerful jujutsu sorcerer was bound to have extensive real combat experience.

An experienced sorcerer like Jianxia had taken the initiative to invite her to spar. How many jujutsu sorcerers could only dream of such an opportunity!

"Oh, speaking of which, there's something I wanted to ask."

Jianxia looked this way and that around the courtyard, but saw nothing except the lingering glow of sunset.

"Do only you and Megumi live in this huge house, Clan Head?"

From a modern person's perspective, the layout of the rooms alone deserved a thorough overhaul. But considering this was the Heian era, that would have been nitpicking.

Still, Jianxia had noticed three problems as soon as he entered the Zenin Estate.

First, how did a small clan with only a few generations of history have a house that looked as if it hadn't been repaired in centuries?

Both the moss-covered red bridge at the entrance and the gate, which looked liable to shed a few bricks at any moment, gave off an air of neglect.

But since the old-fashioned look might have been deliberate, Jianxia hadn't planned to mention it.

Second, security was practically nonexistent. Apart from the barrier controlling entry and exit at the outer perimeter, he couldn't see anything inside the house that could stop an enemy's advance.

Wouldn't they be screwed if some testosterone-fueled woman came charging in?

Still, the barrier technique concealing the estate might have been exceptionally sophisticated and provided enough security, so Jianxia hadn't mentioned that either.

The third issue was the number of people.

As Jianxia remembered it, even if the Zenin Clan of the Heian era didn't have as many members as it would a thousand years later, it should at least have had around ten.

Yet even after he and Megumi Zenin had fought hard enough to send sparks flying, no one except Shinji Zenin had come to see what was going on.

At Jianxia's question, Shinji Zenin gave a bitter chuckle before speaking.

"This is a family disgrace, and ordinarily, it shouldn't be aired in public. But you're remarkably observant, Master Jianxia, so I suppose I must satisfy your curiosity."

Jianxia noticed that as Shinji began speaking, Megumi Zenin's expression visibly grew forlorn, as though a painful subject had been brought up.

"The previous clan head-my father-passed the position of Zenin Clan head to me. My elder brother, Shinichi Zenin, and my second uncle, Kago Zenin, were unhappy with his decision and chose to leave, taking the other clan members with them."

At this point, Shinji Zenin's voice also grew subdued, and a barely noticeable trace of weariness appeared at the corners of his eyes.

"The Zenin Clan originally had eighteen members. My elder brother and second uncle each took some of them away. Only Megumi and I remained here in the ancestral home."

Realization dawned on Jianxia. He'd been wondering where the Zenin Clan's genes for producing lunatics were waiting to ambush him. It turned out Shinji had already enjoyed that blessing in his place.

"So that means the Zenin Clan has effectively split into three factions?"

"That's right. One follows my elder brother, Shinichi Zenin, another follows my second uncle, Kago Zenin, and the last follows me... They both believe they're the best candidate for clan head."

Shinji nodded, confirming Jianxia's words. Then he looked at Megumi Zenin, and some of the sadness faded from his eyes.

"It's getting late. You should turn in early, Master Jianxia-Megumi, show Master Jianxia back to his room."

Shinji glanced at the last sliver of sunset on the horizon. Seemingly remembering something, he said goodbye to Jianxia and hurried back to his room.

Jianxia looked at Megumi Zenin, whose mood had clearly darkened, then at Shinji Zenin's retreating back.

He hadn't expected to find a Zenin Clan family drama even in the Heian era a thousand years ago.

Talk about a mess.