Jianxia saw the Zenin Clan of Heian-kyo as more than just Shinji Zenin's rivals.
Otherwise, he would never have made a binding vow to help him.
Judging by Shinji Zenin's account and the original story's events, the Zenin of Heian-kyo were the culprits responsible for the clan being full of lunatics a thousand years later.
And when it came to stubborn feudal forces, Jianxia had only one answer.
Kill!
Zenin Wu Yan was the opening they had handed him themselves.
Jianxia looked him over carefully. He appeared even younger than Megumi Zenin, the sixteen-year-old high school girl-probably only fourteen.
The Zenin of Heian-kyo actually sent children on suicide missions like this. Did they have no hearts?
"Hey, brat. Follow me."
After recalling all the cursed spirits he had summoned, Jianxia walked off without another word.
Zenin Wu Yan, who had been beaten into submission, dared not delay and hurried after him.
The two walked a long way in silence, until they entered the barrier and returned to the Zenin Estate.
Jianxia glanced back at the well-behaved Zenin Wu Yan and said, "Brat, you used to live here too, didn't you?"
According to Shinji, all the Zenin had lived in the estate before the clan split.
Only after Shinichi Zenin and Kago Zenin left with their clansmen had the place grown quiet.
Zenin Wu Yan looked around, then shook his head.
"No, Lord Sukuna. I was still very young when my father left here with the clan head, so I barely remember this place."
Shinji Zenin had mentioned the split before, but not when it had happened. Jianxia had assumed it was recent.
Besides, Megumi Zenin occasionally expressed fondness for the other elders and spoke of missing them, so he had thought they must have spent some time together.
So they had gone their separate ways over ten years ago. Megumi Zenin liked them because she had never met them, then?
Perhaps it was time to teach the child how treacherous people could be.
"It's better that you don't remember. That way, your actions won't be influenced by your feelings." Jianxia led Zenin Wu Yan through the gates to look for Shinji Zenin.
By actions, he naturally meant the infiltration he had discussed with him earlier.
In other words, Zenin Wu Yan would pretend to defect to Shinji Zenin to gain information and trust.
This wasn't a plan Jianxia had dreamed up on a whim. He had only decided to carry it out after discussing it with the boy and making sure nothing could go wrong.
Inviting a wolf into your home was dangerous.
But luring a chump into a trap left plenty of room to maneuver.
He might get some free labor and squeeze out more information about the Zenin of Heian-kyo at the same time.
Before long, Jianxia found Shinji Zenin feeding the fish beside the pond and brought the boy over.
Without even looking up, Shinji said as he fed the fish, "You're back. Uraume is making lunch. It'll be ready soon."
Jianxia didn't answer. Instead, he took a moment to get into character before speaking.
"How rude. You see Lord Ryomen Sukuna before you, and you don't even greet him?"
Shinji raised his head and arched an eyebrow at Jianxia's slicked-back hairstyle, then swept his gaze over Zenin Wu Yan behind him.
Within 0.000001 seconds, Shinji Zenin understood everything.
"My apologies, Lord Sukuna. I only finished dining with the head of the Fujiwara Clan yesterday, and I'm still a little out of sorts."
Shinji dipped his head in a slight bow to express his apology.
"At yesterday's banquet, I expressed my desire to strengthen our cooperation with the Fujiwara Clan. They agreed to an alliance, too. We should be able to begin operations soon."
Shinji solemnly fabricated memories of events that had never happened. Jianxia had to recall every sad moment of his life just to keep a straight face.
But to Zenin Wu Yan, listening from the side, it meant something else entirely.
His pupils trembled, and his breathing unconsciously grew faster and deeper.
Even the clan head could only submit to the Fujiwara Clan, not ally with them.
How could Shinji Zenin, an enemy of the imperial court, have that privilege?
Zenin Wu Yan glanced at Jianxia out of the corner of his eye, hoping to find some clue on the King of Curses' face.
But Jianxia's expression never changed, as though he had just heard an indisputable fact.
"I see. No wonder I didn't see you last night. Since you weren't here, I had to go out and find cursed spirits to fight. Even ten special grade cursed spirits couldn't put up much of a fight."
Jianxia rubbed his chin, a trace of regret appearing on his face, before continuing.
"I only made that binding vow to help you kill all your enemies because you promised to give me a satisfying fight every day."
Upon hearing that, Zenin Wu Yan nearly dropped to his knees.
Didn't the clan head say Shinji Zenin was only troublesome when it came to barrier techniques?
How could he give Ryomen Sukuna a satisfying fight every single day?
This couldn't be right!
Shinji sighed and tossed all the fish food in his hand into the pond, sending up a splash.
Only then did he walk slowly over to Jianxia, their eyes meeting.
"Lord Sukuna, to make it up to you, I'll fight you twice tonight-until you're satisfied."
With that, his gaze shifted to Zenin Wu Yan standing nearby.
Zenin Wu Yan looked as though he had been hit by Unlimited Void, his eyes vacant as he stood there blankly babbling.
"By the way, who is this...?"
"Oh, this brat came from the Zenin Clan in Heian-kyo to join you. Speak up."
Jianxia kicked Zenin Wu Yan in the backside, startling him so badly that he dropped to his knees.
"Lord Shinji, my name is Zenin Wu Yan. There is no place for me in Heian-kyo anymore. I wish to surrender to you!"
Seeing that his face was toward the ground and he couldn't see them, Jianxia and Shinji Zenin exchanged smiles.
An invisible signal seemed to connect the two of them.
Then Shinji Zenin resumed his earlier expressionless look, crouched down, and helped Zenin Wu Yan up.
Looking at Zenin Wu Yan after helping him to his feet, he adopted a troubled expression.
"Are you truly willing to surrender? You're not pretending so you can steal information, are you?"
Zenin Wu Yan's heart lurched. He quickly shook his head and said, "No, no, absolutely not! I sincerely wish to join you, Lord Shinji."
Then he turned a pleading gaze toward Jianxia, the mastermind behind this plan.
But Jianxia was examining his fingers as though they bore some work of art.
"Lord Sukuna..."
"Well, since Lord Sukuna brought you back, I'll trust you for now. But to be safe, we should still make a binding vow."
Shinji Zenin held up one finger.
"Make a binding vow that you can never disobey the orders of Shinji Zenin and his allies. In exchange, neither my allies nor I will ever endanger your life."
Zenin Wu Yan's expression grew troubled. He had come to the Zenin Estate in the first place to assist the Heian-kyo side.
If he made this binding vow, wouldn't his false surrender become real? Wouldn't he actually be joining Shinji Zenin?
Noticing Zenin Wu Yan's hesitation, Jianxia stopped admiring his fingers and delivered a flying kick to his back, sending him crashing face-first into the dirt.
"I've already made a binding vow with Shinji Zenin. What do you have to worry about? Are you looking down on me?"
As he spoke, Jianxia rolled his shoulders, as though he might tear the boy apart at any moment.
"I'll do it! I'll make the binding vow! Zenin Wu Yan will never disobey the orders of Shinji Zenin and his allies, but they can't hurt me either!"
Zenin Wu Yan hurriedly scrambled up from the ground and made the binding vow.
As Shinji Zenin agreed to his half of the vow, a strange sensation arose within everyone present.
The binding vow had taken effect.
Jianxia patted the still-shaken Zenin Wu Yan on the shoulder and gave him a meaningful smile.
"Work hard, brat."
For some reason, Zenin Wu Yan suddenly felt that his future was bleak.
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