Time slowly passed. Under Shoko Ieiri's continuous, precise treatment, Suguru Geto's body gradually healed, and color slowly returned to his deathly pale face. Although he was still far from his peak condition, he could move freely now.
After confirming that Suguru Geto's condition was stable, Satoru Gojo lightly nudged Wengu Che, who lay motionless on the ground, with his foot and asked casually, "What do we do with him? Finish him off right here, or hand him over to the higher-ups?"
At his words, everyone present turned their eyes toward Wengu Che.
Just as they were considering it, Qingxiao suddenly looked up at Satoru Gojo. His expression serious, he asked in a low voice, "Satoru, how are you holding up? Can you fight another round?"
Satoru Gojo paused slightly, a flicker of confusion crossing his eyes beneath his blindfold. He had no idea why Qingxiao had suddenly asked, but he still nodded lightly and answered with certainty:
"No problem. I've used up quite a bit, but I can definitely handle another fight. Why?"
Suguru Geto and Shoko Ieiri also looked thoroughly confused. Both turned toward Qingxiao, their eyes full of puzzlement, unsure why he had suddenly asked about Satoru Gojo's condition.
Seeing their puzzled looks, Qingxiao smiled and stepped forward, lightly grinding the loose stones underfoot. His eyes fixed on the unconscious Wengu Che on the ground, he slowly said, "This explosion killed countless ordinary people. Simply killing him would be letting him off far too easily."
Their expressions remained unchanged at his words as they quietly waited for the rest of his plan.
"My idea is to kill him without using cursed energy." Qingxiao's tone was calm, but his resolve left no room for doubt.
"When a human sorcerer is killed by physical means, the intense resentment and cursed energy left behind are very likely to turn directly into a cursed spirit rather than dissipate."
"Once he's fully transformed into a cursed spirit, we'll work together to exorcise this newborn cursed spirit, then have Geto absorb it with Cursed Spirit Manipulation."
At these words, the three people present immediately showed different expressions, each reacting differently.
Satoru Gojo stepped forward with a grin and clapped Qingxiao hard on the shoulder, his voice full of admiration. "You're a goddamn genius! Why didn't I think of that?"
Qingxiao also patted Satoru Gojo's shoulder and told him with a smile, "I, Guyue Qingxiao, hate wasting things most of all. I usually eat every last grain of rice in my bowl."
A clear flicker of emotion and surprise passed through Suguru Geto's eyes.
He understood Qingxiao's intention. This was not only a punishment for an evildoer, but also an opportunity to increase his own combat strength. After all, his Cursed Spirit Manipulation relied heavily on the quality and quantity of his cursed spirits.
Suguru Geto nodded lightly, approving Qingxiao's proposal.
Facing the man who had nearly killed her companions and herself, Shoko naturally could not feel the slightest mercy. She nodded calmly. "No objections."
Within moments, they reached a consensus, all agreeing to Qingxiao's plan.
Having recovered most of his strength, Suguru Geto wasted no time. He immediately took out his phone and called Patrol Officer Satō, explaining the situation. "Satō, the battle here isn't over yet. We still have a cursed spirit to exorcise, so please bring your people over immediately to set up a Curtain barrier. Seal off this entire area of ruins and isolate it from the outside world."
The person on the other end agreed, and Suguru Geto hung up, quietly waiting for support to arrive.
Under Shoko Ieiri's continued treatment, all of Qingxiao's superficial wounds healed. His sore, numb muscles regained their vigor, and most of the fatigue left by the earlier struggle faded.
Satoru Gojo had plenty left in reserve to begin with, and Suguru Geto's condition was steadily improving as well. Although none of them had returned to peak condition, they were already fit enough to handle the coming battle.
After making all the arrangements, Qingxiao turned toward Shoko Ieiri and gently instructed her, "Shoko, leave here ahead of us and meet up with Satō. Fill him in on the battle while you're there."
Shoko Ieiri paused slightly, then asked, "I should leave first? Don't you need me to stay and heal you?"
"No." Qingxiao shook his head lightly. "I'm afraid you might get caught in the fallout from the fight. It's too dangerous."
"All right."
Once Shoko's figure had completely disappeared beyond the ruins, only Qingxiao, Satoru Gojo, and Suguru Geto remained.
Qingxiao turned toward Suguru Geto and asked, "Geto, how many Grade 1 Cursed Spirits do you currently have stored?"
Suguru Geto raised his eyes and replied calmly, "One. After all, it's been hard to find Grade 1 Cursed Spirits for me to exorcise and absorb."
Without the slightest hesitation, Qingxiao bent down and pulled a thick, sturdy length of discarded rebar from the nearby rubble.
He gripped the rebar firmly, applied a little force with his wrist, and swung it.
Crack-
A crisp sound of shattering rang out.
Lying unconscious on the ground and utterly unable to resist, Wengu Che had his skull completely smashed by the rebar in an instant. Blood and bone fragments splattered in all directions.
After Wengu Che died, the ruins fell deathly silent.
His mangled body lay motionless where it was. The expected sight of a cursed spirit emerging from the corpse failed to appear.
One second, two seconds, three seconds... After several minutes of waiting, the expressions of those present began to shift slightly.
Satoru Gojo slowly uncrossed his arms, his voice carrying some surprise. "No reaction? Did your plan fail? Killing him physically actually didn't force out a cursed spirit?"
Looking at the unchanged corpse, Satoru Gojo could not help feeling it was a pity.
Suguru Geto frowned slightly, his gaze falling on the mangled remains on the ground. Quietly sensing the flow of cursed energy, he offered his assessment in a soft voice. "The residual cursed energy is slowly dissipating. Most likely, his dying fixation wasn't strong enough, or he died too quickly?"
Qingxiao also froze slightly, a trace of puzzlement flashing through his eyes.
Normally, a deranged curse user like this should have had enough fixation to sustain the transformation into a cursed spirit.
He stared at the ground, inwardly wondering, Did I overlook something?
"No way..." Qingxiao murmured, sounding somewhat uncertain. "That shouldn't be the case."
They stood quietly where they were without lowering their guard, but just as they all took it for granted that the plan to hatch a cursed spirit had failed-
Buzzz-!!
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