A new ability

After leaving, Yuanfang felt utterly untroubled, as though Riko Amanai's safety had nothing to do with him.

He continued his search for cursed spirits, intent only on rapidly improving his strength.

Although he knew that doing so now had barely any effect, he still firmly believed that every tiny improvement was worthwhile.

As long as he could gain even a sliver of strength, he refused to give up.

Meanwhile, Riko Amanai was having no easy time of it either.

Over the course of that day, she faced countless assassination attempts.

Fortunately, however, she had two powerful protectors by her side: Suguru Geto and Satoru Gojo.

Whenever danger arose, they always appeared in time to get her out of it.

Toji Fushiguro, who had been watching everything from the shadows, also began putting his plan into motion.

He intended to post missions that would bring others in to continually drain Satoru Gojo's energy, gradually wearing him down.

After all, Satoru Gojo was far too powerful. Without some special tactics, it would be difficult to pose any real threat to him.

Boom!

With a thunderous crash, Yuanfang's tiny body shot like an arrow loosed from a bow and slammed into a tall wall.

"Cough... cough..."

Yuanfang spat out mouthfuls of blood and wiped his mouth with his small hand, staring grimly ahead at a humanoid cursed spirit with a rhinoceros head and four arms.

After killing so many cursed spirits, he had never expected to run into such a tough opponent today. Had his body not been strong enough, that last blow would have smashed him into pulp.

This cursed spirit had to be somewhere around Grade 2 or Grade 1. He could not understand why the cursed energy it had emitted earlier had been so weak. Otherwise, he would never have provoked it.

After all, Yuanfang knew full well that even if a Grade 1 Cursed Spirit could not use jujutsu or release cursed energy inside his domain, its physical strength was still beyond anything he could match at present.

With injuries this severe, it was already too late to escape. His only choice was to fight for his life.

The Rhinoceros Cursed Spirit cared nothing for what Yuanfang was thinking. Moving with a strange gait, it charged toward him like a speeding train.

The farther it charged, the faster it became. The exceptionally sharp horn on its head radiated dark-purple cursed energy as it hurtled toward Yuanfang like a cannonball about to leave the barrel.

Watching that horn move so fast it was almost invisible to the naked eye, Yuanfang's expression grew increasingly grim.

With his injuries, dodging it was practically impossible.

If that horn struck him, he would die without any chance of survival.

Boom... boom...

The Rhinoceros Cursed Spirit was like a moving mountain, every step shaking the ground. In an instant, it came within two meters of Yuanfang.

At that very moment, its speed dropped slightly, and the cursed energy coating its horn vanished.

Although the Rhinoceros Cursed Spirit did not understand what had happened, it had no intention of stopping. It wanted to deliver a fatal blow to Yuanfang.

But Yuanfang seized that fleeting opportunity, dodging as swiftly as lightning to evade its attack.

Bang!

The instant the horn struck the tall wall, the wall crumbled. Dust engulfed the entire area, obscuring everything from sight. What had happened?

Yuanfang paid none of that any mind. The moment the dust cleared, he ran off into the distance, his grin harder to suppress than an AK's recoil.

His grim expression began to relax, and his fear of death vanished.

Instead, he looked as though he had discovered a treasure and wanted to let loose with wild laughter.

"I never imagined it! I never imagined my domain could do this, too. If I'd discovered it sooner, I wouldn't have had to worry so much."

The corners of Yuanfang's mouth rose despite himself. He gently touched the spot where the Rhinoceros Cursed Spirit had severely injured him, his heart brimming with joy.

That spot had now healed completely, leaving no trace of injury.

It was all thanks to another miraculous function of his domain that he had just discovered.

The negative cursed energy it absorbed had collided with the negative effects on his body, producing the miraculous effect of two negatives making a positive and allowing him to grasp Sorcerer Reversal.

Now, he could say without exaggeration that as long as his brain remained intact and he had enough cursed energy, he could instantly repair any injury he suffered.

Of course, that alone would not have made him quite so ecstatic.

Most importantly, he could transfer negative energy to others, allowing them to benefit from the same miraculous effect of two negatives making a positive.

Of course, every gain came with a loss. He could not transfer positive energy to others the way Shoko Ieiri and Yuta Okkotsu could.

But that was no big deal to him. The effects were more or less the same anyway.

The only difference was that their positive energy could harm cursed spirits, whereas his could not.

"I still shouldn't celebrate too soon. I'll deal with the trouble in front of me first, then give it a try!"

Reining in his smile, Yuanfang looked toward the now-dissipated dust and saw the Rhinoceros Cursed Spirit staring back with blood-red eyes.

Rather than wait for it to charge at him, he shot toward it like an arrow loosed from a bow.

His tiny fist slammed into the Rhinoceros Cursed Spirit like a cannonball, driving it back again and again.

Roar!

Even angrier now, the Rhinoceros Cursed Spirit roared and unleashed its cursed energy like an erupting volcano, blasting it toward Yuanfang.

Seeing this, Yuanfang did not retreat in the slightest. He threw a punch at it in return.

Boom!

Boom...

A child and a monster two or three meters tall traded blows, neither able to gain a decisive advantage. The sight was utterly bizarre.

Three hours later...

Bang!

Ignoring the hint of terror in the eyes of the Rhinoceros Cursed Spirit as it lay helpless on the ground, Yuanfang punched straight through its forehead.

The Rhinoceros Cursed Spirit dissipated, becoming nourishment for him.

"Fighting dim-witted cursed spirits like you really is easy!"

Throughout their fight, Yuanfang had been at a disadvantage. Even when he focused all his attention, his arms or legs still occasionally got broken.

But because he had awakened Reverse Cursed Technique, the cursed energy the Rhinoceros Cursed Spirit recklessly released was all absorbed by Yuanfang, turning him into an unkillable cockroach.

He had effectively worn the Rhinoceros Cursed Spirit to death. If it had been a little smarter and refrained from releasing its cursed energy and cursed technique...

Yuanfang's own reserves of cursed energy would never have lasted that long.

"All right, it's getting late. Time to test my theory!"

With that, Yuanfang picked up his schoolbag and shot like an arrow loosed from a bow toward a spot in the distance.

Before long, he reached something furry.

A closer look revealed a kitten with fur as white as snow. But it was completely motionless now, likely killed after getting caught up in their battle.