Recaps

Angel asked Qingxiao about the Fallen, learned he was Ryomen Sukuna and that Qingxiao had confined him inside Yuji Itadori, then agreed to help dismantle the Culling Game barriers in exchange for being taken to Sukuna. After Hana Kurusu regained control, she learned Qingxiao was Megumi Fushiguro’s guardian and eagerly asked about him, leaving the alley to follow Qingxiao toward him.

• Angel asked Qingxiao where the Fallen was, and Qingxiao and Hajime Kashimo realized she meant Ryomen Sukuna.
• Qingxiao told Angel he had beaten Sukuna back into Yuji Itadori’s body, and Angel asked to be taken to him.
• Qingxiao offered to take Angel to Sukuna if she erased the Culling Game barriers, and they agreed that she would not harm Yuji Itadori.
• Angel returned control to Hana Kurusu, who nearly fell before Qingxiao steadied her and advised her to improve her fitness.
• Qingxiao mentioned his student Megumi Fushiguro, and Hana revealed that Megumi was important to her and asked whether he was safe.
• Qingxiao told Hana that Megumi was in another area and invited her to follow him to find out how he was doing.

Qingxiao, Kashimo, and Hana cleared their barrier, then added rules to reveal players’ points and locations and allow point transfers. They opened a passage to the Sendai barrier, where Kashimo looked forward to fighting its strong players, while Ryu Ishigori suddenly sensed trouble.

• Qingxiao and Kashimo fought their way through the barrier while Xiaolu helped and Hana stayed behind them.
• On a rooftop, Qingxiao and Kashimo joked about having no worthy opponents before deciding to move to another barrier.
• Kashimo proposed displaying players’ points and locations, and Qingxiao added a rule allowing point transfers so players who could not earn points might survive.
• Qingxiao showed Hana and Kashimo the scores of Ryu Ishigori, Dhruv Lakdawalla, Takako Uro, Kurourushi, and Hiromi Higuruma, and Kashimo recognized that the first four were in Sendai.
• Hana opened a gap in the barrier, and she followed Qingxiao and Kashimo through to the Sendai barrier.
• Ryu Ishigori sneezed and said he suddenly had a bad feeling.

Qingxiao, Hana Kurusu, and Hajime Kashimo entered a ruined street crawling with Cursed Energy insects, where Angel used Jacob's Ladder to clear a swarm. When Kurourushi emerged, Qingxiao left Kashimo to fight it and headed toward three powerful Cursed Energy sources in the central district.

• Qingxiao sensed the dense Cursed Energy among the insects as Hana Kurusu panicked and rose into the air.
• Angel took control of Hana Kurusu and used Jacob's Ladder to erase the flying cockroach swarm.
• Qingxiao jokingly called the insects “Courage Gu” as Kashimo complained about them.
• Kurourushi emerged from the subway entrance wielding the Festering Life Sword.
• Qingxiao sent Kashimo to fight Kurourushi while Hana Kurusu watched for poisonous insects, then left for the central district.

Guyue Qingxiao walked through Dhruv Lakdawalla’s Inviolability domain, destroyed his Shikigami, and killed him. Ryu Ishigori recognized Qingxiao as a worthy opponent and began fighting him, still eager for more after a dozen exchanges.

• Ryu Ishigori warned Guyue Qingxiao not to enter Dhruv Lakdawalla’s Inviolability domain, but Qingxiao walked through its cutting force unharmed.
• Qingxiao crushed the Giant Mole Shikigami with a punch and broke the Pterodactyl Shikigami’s beak before throwing it aside.
• Qingxiao crossed the domain and killed Dhruv Lakdawalla with one punch, causing the domain to collapse.
• Ryu Ishigori excitedly asked Qingxiao’s name, identified him as the Top-Ranked Elimination King, and challenged him to fight.
• Ryu and Qingxiao exchanged heavy punches; Qingxiao held his ground while Ryu staggered back, then charged in again, thrilled by the fight.

Qingxiao overwhelmed Ryu Ishigori in close combat, shrugging off his barrage and repeatedly knocking him unconscious. After Ryu Ishigori wounded Qingxiao with a focused Cursed Energy shot, Qingxiao rushed him and drove a knee toward his chest.

• Qingxiao intensified his punches and broke through Ryu Ishigori's guard, then walked through his slush shock-wave barrage and overpowered him in a clash of fists.
• Ryu Ishigori charged Qingxiao with a Cursed Energy-coated fist, but Qingxiao struck back harder and continued battering him at close range.
• Ryu Ishigori called Qingxiao delectable again, prompting Qingxiao to demand, “Are you gay?!” before breaking Ryu Ishigori's arm and repeatedly knocking him unconscious with punches.
• Ryu Ishigori escaped and fired a focused Cursed Energy shot that grazed Qingxiao's cheek, drawing blood.
• Qingxiao rushed across the street toward Ryu Ishigori and raised his knee to strike his chest.

Hajime Kashimo and Angel fought Kurourushi as it unleashed swarms of insects and a corrosive domain. Angel purified the domain, but Kurourushi wounded Hajime Kashimo and its insect eggs began hatching inside his arm.

• Hajime Kashimo traded blows with Kurourushi and charged his staff with cursed energy while looking for openings in its joints.
• Kurourushi released swarms of cockroaches that threatened Hana Kurusu, and Angel took control of her body and destroyed them with Jacob's Ladder.
• Kurourushi spread a black mist across the street, and Hajime Kashimo protected himself with Hollow Wicker Basket until Angel purified the domain with another Jacob's Ladder.
• Angel asked why Hajime Kashimo had not used his domain, and he claimed Kurourushi was not worth opening it for.
• Kurourushi feinted left and struck Hajime Kashimo's left arm, where its eggs hatched and began spreading beneath his skin.

Hajime Kashimo and Angel defeated Kurourushi after Kashimo burned the parasites from his wound and exploited a gap in the curse’s armor. When multiple Domain Expansions erupted from the central district, Kashimo and Hana Kurusu hurried toward the battle.

• Angel protected Kashimo from Kurourushi’s attacks but refrained from purifying the eggs embedded in his arm because it could undo his Incarnated Vessel state.
• Kashimo used his electricity to burn the eggs out of his wound, then attacked Kurourushi’s armor joints with a lightning blade.
• Angel blocked Kurourushi’s corrosive blood mist while Kashimo used his iron staff to channel a return-stroke shock into the curse’s wound.
• Kashimo shattered Kurourushi’s head shell and killed it, and Angel used Jacob's Ladder to erase the remaining eggs and remains.
• Hana Kurusu regained control of her body, and she and Kashimo ran toward the central district after sensing multiple Domain Expansions.

Qingxiao overwhelmed Ryu Ishigori, but Takako Uro intervened with a spatial Cursed Technique and joined the fight. After studying how her technique deflected attacks, Qingxiao used his flight Cursed Tool to maneuver around her defenses and prepared a sudden change of direction.

• Qingxiao smashed Ryu Ishigori through several walls, leaving him battered but exhilarated by the fight.
• Ryu Ishigori called Takako Uro into the battle, and she used spatial planes to deflect Qingxiao's punches.
• Ryu Ishigori and Takako Uro argued and repeatedly disrupted each other's attacks while Qingxiao evaded them.
• Qingxiao tested Uro's spatial planes and realized he needed to get close before she could position them.
• Qingxiao unfurled his blood-red flight cloak, lured Uro into defending against a rush to the left, then abruptly changed direction.

Qingxiao defeated Uro without killing her, explaining that he had come for a fight and saw no reason to kill opponents who had fought fairly. Ryu Ishigori and Uro then opened their domains against him, while Hajime Kashimo arrived and invoked Hollow Wicker Basket; Qingxiao answered by opening his own domain, Seeking Truth by Abandoning Cleverness.

• Uro tried to stop Qingxiao's charge with Thin Ice Breaker, but he broke through and injured her left shoulder.
• Qingxiao admitted he had held back and told Uro he would not kill her because she had fought without dirty tricks or lethal intent.
• Ryu Ishigori struck his chest to build his Cursed Energy and opened Meteor Ice Cream Prison, while Uro activated Thin Sky.
• Hajime Kashimo arrived after defeating Kurourushi and used Hollow Wicker Basket when he saw the domains opening.
• Qingxiao calmly recited an incantation and opened his domain, Seeking Truth by Abandoning Cleverness.

Guyue Qingxiao unleashed his domain, Seeking Truth by Abandoning Cleverness, which dissolved cursed techniques and matter throughout its vast field. With Ryu Ishigori, Takako Uro, and Hajime Kashimo shaken by its power, Qingxiao declared himself the Special Grade Sorcerer Guyue Qingxiao and challenged anyone to kill him.

• Guyue Qingxiao spread Seeking Truth by Abandoning Cleverness across the battlefield, and its cursed energy dissolved Ryu Ishigori's and Takako Uro's domains.
• The domain erased the ruined street and its buildings, while Earth Is Receptive continued supplying Qingxiao with cursed energy.
• Ryu Ishigori failed to activate his cannon, Takako Uro feared Qingxiao's overwhelming power, and Hajime Kashimo struggled to shield himself after his Hollow Wicker Basket dispersed.
• Qingxiao surveyed the three sorcerers and proclaimed himself the Special Grade Sorcerer Guyue Qingxiao, asking who dared or could kill him.

Ryu Ishigori challenged Qingxiao to a final fistfight inside Qingxiao’s domain, where every physical attack triggered Black Flash. After defeating Ryu and inviting him to Jujutsu High, Qingxiao pursued Takako Uro, then awkwardly turned his gaze away when he saw her exposed by cursed technique burnout.

• Ryu Ishigori charged Qingxiao and was struck by a casual Black Flash that shattered his right arm.
• Ryu understood that Qingxiao’s domain made his physical attacks trigger Black Flash, then chose to fight on despite knowing he would lose.
• Qingxiao met Ryu’s final punch seriously, broke his left arm and chest, and left him unconscious after Ryu said he had had his fill.
• Qingxiao praised Ryu and suggested he come find him at Jujutsu High, then turned to pursue Takako Uro as she tried to escape the domain.
• Qingxiao caught sight of Takako Uro, whose cursed technique burnout had left her exposed, and immediately turned his face away in awkwardness.

After Qingxiao embarrassed Uro by insisting she wear his cloak, Hajime Kashimo resolved that Qingxiao was the opponent he had awaited for four hundred years. Kashimo entered the domain and released Mythical Beast Amber to challenge him.

• Qingxiao threw his cloak to Uro and told her to cover herself because he had a wife, provoking her into an angry attack.
• Qingxiao dodged Uro’s blows and mocked her, while Uro’s embarrassment and fury made her attacks less controlled.
• Hajime Kashimo watched Qingxiao’s domain erase the other domains and concluded that Qingxiao was the strongest he had sought for four hundred years.
• Kashimo decided to use Mythical Beast Amber against Qingxiao and stepped into the domain, telling him he might have awakened for him.
• Qingxiao took a fighting stance and warned Kashimo not to die, and Kashimo released Mythical Beast Amber.

Qingxiao and Hajime Kashimo fought at full strength inside Qingxiao’s domain, where the gray mist gradually dissolved Kashimo’s lightning-powered body. Qingxiao urged him to stop, but Kashimo chose to continue despite knowing the fight could kill him.

• Hajime Kashimo attacked Qingxiao with his vibrating iron staff, and Qingxiao countered with Black Flash, briefly being forced back for the first time in his domain.
• Hajime Kashimo compressed his Cursed Energy into his body and staff to resist the domain, increasing his power at the cost of worsening damage to his body.
• Qingxiao learned to predict Hajime Kashimo’s position shifts and landed a Black Flash that made him cough blood and dimmed one of his vertical pupils.
• Hajime Kashimo used a burst of thunderclouds to strike Qingxiao from behind, but Qingxiao twisted around and sent him flying with a Black Flash.
• Qingxiao taunted Hajime Kashimo about not opening a domain, and Kashimo admitted Mythical Beast Amber left him unable to do so.
• As his body disintegrated, Qingxiao told Hajime Kashimo to stop, but Kashimo insisted on continuing because a satisfying fight was worth dying for.

Guyue Qingxiao defeated Hajime Kashimo’s final attack, but Hana Kurusu arrived with a way to save him. Angel used Jacob’s Ladder to stop Mythical Beast Amber from consuming Kashimo, leaving him alive.

• Hajime Kashimo questioned Guyue Qingxiao about loneliness, compassion, and why Sorcerers fought to the death, and Qingxiao told him to follow his heart and find someone who understood him.
• Hajime Kashimo concentrated his remaining vitality and Cursed Energy into an attack with the Iron Staff, while Qingxiao prepared a full-power black lightning punch aimed at the staff.
• Qingxiao’s punch collided with Hajime Kashimo’s Iron Staff, breaking the staff and sending Kashimo crashing to the ground as his lightning began to fade.
• Hana Kurusu arrived and said Angel could use nullification to interrupt Kashimo’s Cursed Technique, and Qingxiao let her proceed.
• Angel took control of Hana Kurusu’s body and cast Jacob’s Ladder, halting Mythical Beast Amber’s disintegration before Kashimo’s Incarnated Vessel state could also be dispelled.

After the battle, Qingxiao brought the badly injured Hajime Kashimo to Jujutsu High, where Shoko treated him. Kashimo woke to Qingxiao’s teasing, and a misunderstanding over Takako Uro’s returned cloak left Qingxiao facing Shoko’s ominous question.

• Qingxiao bandaged the unconscious Hajime Kashimo, then ordered Takako Uro to take the unconscious Ryu Ishigori to Jujutsu High.
• Uro dragged Ryu out of the ruins while Qingxiao carried Kashimo to the Medical Room and asked Shoko Ieiri to help treat him.
• Kashimo woke after surgery, and Qingxiao tricked him into thinking he had become a girl.
• Uro returned Qingxiao’s cloak to the Medical Room, where Shoko and Kashimo noticed she had been wearing it.
• Qingxiao explained that Uro had been naked when he lent her the cloak, and Shoko asked if those were his last words.

Qingxiao’s attempt to explain why he gave Takako Uro a cloak is derailed by Ryu Ishigori’s groggy remark and Satoru Gojo’s arrival, prompting Shoko to demand an explanation. After the misunderstanding is resolved, Qingxiao arranges the end of the Sendai Colony operation and plans to leave for Tokyo No. 1 Colony, while Suguru Geto oversees civilian shelter and quietly destroys cursed spirits.

• Qingxiao struggled to explain the cloak to Shoko while Takako Uro and Hajime Kashimo teased him, until Shoko claimed his arm and declared that the cloak meant nothing.
• Qingxiao went to bring Ryu Ishigori inside, and Ryu murmured that he wanted to do it again after recovering, leading Satoru Gojo to accuse Qingxiao of swinging both ways.
• Shoko confronted Qingxiao about what happened in Sendai, and after two and a half hours of explanations and Hajime Kashimo’s testimony, she and Satoru Gojo reluctantly believed him.
• Qingxiao told Suguru Geto to prepare civilian shelters and said he would leave for the Tokyo No. 1 Colony the next day; Takako Uro and Ryu Ishigori agreed to meet outside Sendai in three days.
• Suguru Geto arranged supplies for the Sendai shelters and discreetly turned approaching Grade 3 and Grade 4 cursed spirits into Cursed Spirit Orbs without alarming the civilians.

Qingxiao went to Tokyo No. 1 Colony with Hana Kurusu, intending to find Megumi Fushiguro and clear out dangerous Players. After splitting up from Hana, he encountered the oddly dressed Fumihiko Takaba in a convenience store.

• Qingxiao checked the leaderboard, saw that he had 175 points, and twice tried unsuccessfully to call Megumi Fushiguro.
• Hana Kurusu joined Qingxiao on his trip to Tokyo No. 1 Colony and opened a passage through its barrier.
• Qingxiao told Hana to find Megumi and send him her location while he went to clear the map.
• Qingxiao entered a convenience store and met Fumihiko Takaba, whose clothes left one side of his upper body bare.

Qingxiao tried to leave Takaba behind and continue toward Hiromi Higuruma, but Takaba pleaded for another chance to make him laugh. They entered a battered food truck that Takaba unknowingly transformed into a warm diner, and Qingxiao began assessing the power of his Cursed Technique.

• Qingxiao asked whether Takaba was a comedian, and Takaba confirmed it and insisted that Qingxiao watch his act.
• Takaba performed a cold joke and a Wi-Fi pun, but Qingxiao remained unsmiling and tried to walk away.
• Takaba explained that Qingxiao was the only person who had called his comedy a performance, so Qingxiao agreed to give him one more chance.
• Qingxiao suggested they talk inside a battered food truck, which became a clean, warmly lit diner as they entered.
• Takaba caused bottles of liquor and a cocktail menu to appear, then offered Qingxiao a drink.
• When Qingxiao ordered a Cuba Libre, Takaba secretly searched beneath the counter for a bartending guide.

Qingxiao and Takaba tried making drinks for each other, producing a flaming Cuba Libre and a smoky, unpleasant Godfather before agreeing their pairing was excellent. As they chatted about the approaching New Year, Takaba revealed his family had stopped setting off fireworks after his father died, and Qingxiao asked whether his father had been the only one who knew how.

• Takaba mixed Qingxiao a Cuba Libre with the proportions reversed, creating a drink that burned with a blue flame.
• Qingxiao made Takaba a Godfather, substituting a cigarette for a cinnamon stick, and Takaba found it tasted like burnt charcoal and secondhand smoke.
• Qingxiao and Takaba joked that their terrible drinks made an excellent matchmaking system.
• Qingxiao noted that New Year was approaching, and Takaba said his family had not set off fireworks since his father died.
• Qingxiao asked Takaba if his father had been the only person in the family who knew how to set off fireworks.

Qingxiao and Fumihiko Takaba continued their comedy contest, with Takaba trying to recover from losing the first round. Qingxiao used Takaba’s imagined cat ears and a meow to make him laugh again, leaving Takaba defeated.

• Takaba laughed at Qingxiao’s joke, but protested that the first round did not count and challenged him to best of three.
• Takaba proposed a staring contest and pulled a grotesque face while Qingxiao watched him seriously.
• Takaba imagined Qingxiao with cat ears, causing a pair of black cat ears to appear on Qingxiao’s head.
• Qingxiao discovered the ears, posed cutely, and said, “Meow~.”
• Takaba burst out laughing, and Qingxiao declared that he had lost again.

After losing to Qingxiao, Takaba questioned whether he should remain a comedian and relived the loneliness and failures that had shaped his twenty-year pursuit. Qingxiao struck him and insisted he was funny, and Takaba recommitted himself to making people laugh.

• Takaba lost both rounds to Qingxiao and admitted that he felt less talented and wondered if he should have become a comedian.
• Takaba remembered his family opposing his career, his repeated failures onstage, and the partnerships that ended in disappointment.
• Takaba admitted that he had become a comedian because he wanted people to notice and remember him.
• Qingxiao punched Takaba and challenged him not to abandon his dream over a setback.
• Takaba declared that he would keep pursuing comedy because making people laugh was how he wanted to live.

Takaba and Qingxiao relived their years building a comedy act together, from awkward early shows to the National Comedians Competition. Onstage, Takaba teased Qingxiao about combat rankings and knives until he challenged him to make him kneel and beg.

• Qingxiao pulled Takaba to his feet, and the dining car transformed into a college theater where they performed their first routine, “The Interview.”
• Takaba and Qingxiao worked small venues after graduation, supporting each other through bad shows as their audiences and reputations grew.
• At the National Comedians Competition, Takaba and Qingxiao began their routine on a packed stage.
• Takaba joked that Qingxiao ranked below an average angry man and warned that training would not protect him from a knife.
• Takaba moved close to Qingxiao and claimed he could make him get on his knees and beg.

Takaba and Qingxiao turned their staged fight into a chaotic performance that won over the theater, and Takaba became emotional at the audience’s enthusiastic response. Qingxiao quietly warned him not to cry and ruin the mood.

• Takaba provoked Qingxiao into punching him, then pretended to be badly injured and made Qingxiao beg for forgiveness.
• When the audience laughed and applauded, Takaba revealed the act and teased Qingxiao, who punched him again into the backdrop.
• Qingxiao helped Takaba up, and they laughed, bowed together, and accepted the audience’s cheers.
• Takaba grew teary as he realized the crowd was applauding him, and Qingxiao told him not to cry.

Qingxiao parted ways with Takaba after promising to meet again and set off to find Hiromi Higuruma. Meanwhile, Megumi Fushiguro fought Reggie, but Reggie exploited Megumi’s distraction over Itadori and wounded him with a barrage of objects.

• Qingxiao exchanged contact details with Takaba, agreed to appear at one of his shows, and left Desolate Street as Takaba resolved to keep performing.
• Qingxiao checked the points leaderboard, spotted Hiromi Higuruma’s ID, and headed toward him.
• Megumi Fushiguro fought Reggie, whose receipts produced weapons and restored his injuries, and concluded that he needed to end the battle quickly or change locations.
• Megumi heard signs that Itadori was in danger and summoned Nue to assess the situation, while Reggie prepared an attack.
• Reggie hurled a mass of furniture, vehicles, rebar, and rubble at Megumi, who dodged most of it but suffered a bleeding shoulder wound.

Megumi Fushiguro lured Reggie into an indoor swimming facility and unleashed his Chimera Shadow Garden, stunning Naoya as he watched. Reggie activated Hollow Wicker Basket to counter the domain’s sure-hit effect, but a Divine Dog attacked his calf before he could finish taunting Megumi.

• Naoya watched Megumi Fushiguro struggle against Reggie and decided to intervene if Megumi was about to lose.
• Megumi Fushiguro escaped on Nue toward an indoor swimming facility, with Reggie pursuing him on an electric scooter.
• Reggie summoned two freight trucks that Megumi dodged, then struck Megumi with flowerpots as Naoya arrived.
• Megumi Fushiguro expanded Chimera Shadow Garden, engulfing the swimming facility in darkness and surprising Naoya and Reggie.
• Reggie activated Hollow Wicker Basket to counter the domain’s sure-hit effect, but a Divine Dog emerged from the shadows and bit his calf.