Kenjaku's mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, weighing various pros and cons and the possibility of taking a desperate risk, when a sudden change occurred.
The air in front of him rippled without any warning. It wasn't space being torn apart, but rather something highly condensed, an invisible entity containing pure spirit and the concept of creation, penetrating the barrier between space and reality to quietly emerge.
It was a strange energy body, constantly shifting and flowing with chaotic deep blue and dark gold lusters, somewhere between liquid and light. It was only the size of a fist, floating silently in mid-air.
Inside, it seemed as if countless tiny soul phantoms were struggling, restructuring, and deforming—being born and annihilated in a cycle—emitting a weird fluctuation that was both familiar and strange.
"This is...?"
Even with Kenjaku's thousand years of shrewdness and experience, his pupils couldn't help but shrink at this moment as he stared intently at this suddenly appearing strange energy.
He could clearly perceive that this energy was not masterless. In its deepest depths, there was imprinted a domineering spiritual mark filled with an aura that he could never mistake—it belonged to Sukuna.
Immediately after, Sukuna's deep and playful voice rang directly in the depths of his consciousness, as if crossing space to whisper in his ear.
"That Culling Game stage of yours sounds somewhat interesting. Seeing what new species of poisonous insects can be bred is better than just waiting around to grow mold." Sukuna's tone carried a casualness as if granting a favor.
"As for your dream of merging with Tengen and creating a new god..."
He paused for a moment, seemingly savoring some upcoming "fun."
"Great Cursed Spirit Tengen... Heh, that title isn't bad. An unprecedented Great Cursed Spirit forcibly blended with the souls, Cursed Energy, and consciousness of over a hundred million people, born in endless chaos and pain... What will it look like? Will it be more capable of piquing my interest than Satoru?"
For the first time, Sukuna's voice revealed real, almost expectant emotion toward Kenjaku's plan.
"Although that useless clown Mahito is dead, I find his toy quite pleasing to the eye." Sukuna continued, his voice carrying a hint of nonchalant arrogance.
"That trivial trick of his for manipulating souls... when I crushed him to death, I conveniently extracted and restructured it."
Following his words, the light of that floating deep blue and dark gold energy body shimmered slightly.
Kenjaku's breathing became slightly hurried, his gaze locked onto that mass of energy.
Sukuna's words were like a bolt of lightning in the dark, instantly illuminating his nearly hopeless path forward.
Having lost Mahito's "key," Sukuna had actually turned around and created a brand new, potentially more powerful "key," and casually tossed it to him.
This was completely beyond his scope of understanding.
Forcibly extracting the core of a deceased person's Cursed Technique?
No, it was refining, restructuring, and even sublimating it.
What terrifying insight and control over the soul, over rules, and over the essence of a Cursed Technique did this require?
This was by no means as simple as extraction, it was akin to creating a Cursed Technique.
Although it was based on Mahito's technique, the means and status it displayed made Kenjaku feel a shiver from the depths of his soul.
"As for your Culling Games..." Sukuna's voice continued to transmit.
"Go ahead and set it up. I permit it. It's perfect to use this to screen whether there are any decent strong people in this era besides Satoru. And while you're at it, accumulate more nourishment for that 'Great Cursed Spirit' of yours."
"Remember, Kenjaku."
Sukuna's voice suddenly turned cold, carrying an unquestionable warning. "I am not interested in the process of your play. How you build the stage, how you drive the actors, and how you create chaos is all up to you. I am only interested in two things."
"First, how many powerhouses worth killing can ultimately be born from this play."
"Second, and most importantly..."
Sukuna's voice was filled with pure, almost hungry expectation. "What your 'Great Cursed Spirit Tengen' will eventually grow into."
"Don't make me wait too long, and don't make me disappointed."
"Otherwise, I wouldn't mind personally tearing down your stage and throwing you into the Culling Games as well, to see how much fun can be squeezed out of an old fox like you who has lived for a thousand years."
As the words fell, the floating deep blue and dark gold energy body slowly drifted toward Kenjaku, finally stopping in front of him, undulating slightly as if it possessed life.
Sukuna's consciousness link was cut off immediately after.
The night sky was quiet, as if everything just now had been a mere hallucination.
But the mass of energy in front of him, emitting the sublimated fluctuations of Idle Transfiguration, and the missing sleeve of his left arm, both reminded Kenjaku with absolute reality of everything that had just happened.
He reached out his slightly trembling right hand and cautiously touched the energy mass.
The moment his fingertips made contact, a cold, vast flood of information filled with creative power, accompanied by the brief methods Sukuna left behind on how to use this mass of spiritual authority to activate ancient Jujutsu Sorcerers and transform vessels, poured directly into his mind.
The method was simple, even crude—use this mass of energy as a fuse to inject into the target's body. The rules of creation and bestowal contained within would automatically scan and adapt to the characteristics of the vessel and the sleeping soul, guiding the fusion and bestowing the most suitable form of Cursed Technique.
The success rate was unknown. However, the information Sukuna left behind carried an unquestionable confidence, as if what he gave was the only and inevitably correct answer.
Kenjaku withdrew his hand and clenched it tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force. He looked down at his palm, then looked up at the night sky where Sukuna had disappeared, the expression on his face complex to the extreme.
There was the relief of surviving a desperate situation, the ecstasy that the plan could continue, deep dread toward Sukuna's unfathomable power, and... humiliation.
However, this thread of humiliation was quickly suppressed by an even stronger obsession.
His plan! Merging with Tengen! Creating a new world!
That was what was most important. As long as the goal could be achieved, it didn't matter whose power was borrowed or who viewed him as a pawn.
"Sukuna..."
Kenjaku whispered, the flames reigniting in his eyes.
"You want to see the 'Great Cursed Spirit'? You want to see the strongests?"
"Good... very good."
"Then I shall present to you the most grand performance."
"I will use the Culling Games to screen out all the essence and madness of this era."
"I will use the key you gave to awaken all the sleeping ancient beings and ambitions."
"I will use all of Japan as an altar, and the souls and Cursed Energy of a hundred million people as fuel to gestate that unprecedented thing you expect."
"Great Cursed Spirit Tengen!"
"When that time comes..."
A smile that was a mixture of madness, expectation, and endless malice appeared on Kenjaku's face.
"I hope you, the audience, can still maintain your current pleasure."
He no longer hesitated and solemnly used a special Cursed Technique to seal and put away the mass of spiritual authority bestowed by Sukuna.
Then, he took one last look at this land that had hosted his brief confrontation with Sukuna, and slowly retreated, merging into the shadows of the worship hall and disappearing.