In another hidden battlefield of Shibuya, the atmosphere was oppressive to the extreme.
"Bang!"
Accompanied by a dull impact, a black figure flew backward like a broken kite, slamming heavily into a concrete wall.
"Cough... cough cough..."
Megumi Fushiguro clutched his chest, struggling to crawl out of the pile of rubble. Crimson blood dripped continuously from the corner of his mouth.
His Jujutsu High uniform was tattered, and the cursed energy in his body was nearing its limit after the prolonged high-intensity combat.
"What's the matter? Can't you even stand up anymore?"
A man with blonde hair tied in a ponytail and strange purple markings under his eyes was tossing a peculiar longsword with a handguard-style hilt. He let out a sharp, neurotic laugh.
It was Haruta Shigemo, a curse user working under Kenjaku.
"I haven't had enough fun yet, little master of Jujutsu High."
Haruta Shigemo licked his lips, his eyes filled with perverted sadism.
"Weren't those two doggies and that big bird quite fierce just now? Why aren't you bringing them out anymore?"
Megumi Fushiguro ignored the taunts, staring intently at Haruta Shigemo while his mind raced.
Inside Dagon's domain, he had already consumed a massive amount of cursed energy to coordinate with Yoru, Kento Nanami, and the others.
In the recent exchange with Haruta Shigemo...
Although the Divine Dog and Nue he summoned held the advantage in speed and power, every attack that landed on the opponent felt like hitting a ball of cotton.
Not only did they fail to cause any substantial damage, but a bizarre rebounding force struck back, injuring his shikigami one after another and forcing their dismissal.
'This guy's technique... what exactly is it?'
Megumi Fushiguro wiped the blood from his mouth, his hands forming the summoning signs once more.
"The Ten Shadows Technique... is only this much, huh?"
Dragging his sword, Haruta Shigemo walked toward Megumi step by step, the mockery on his face becoming even more evident.
"The ancestral technique of the Big Three Families can't even touch a single hair of mine."
'If physical attacks are nullified by that strange power, then I'll change my approach.'
Megumi Fushiguro took a deep breath, showing no emotional reaction to the mockery.
During his training with Yoru, the most important lesson he learned was to maintain absolute composure in any desperate situation.
"Rabbit Escape!"
With Megumi's low shout, the shadows on the ground churned like boiling asphalt.
The next second, hundreds of black rabbits made of pure cursed energy surged out like a flood, overwhelming Haruta Shigemo from all directions!
"Whoa! So many little bunnies, how cute!"
Facing a swarm capable of instantly drowning an average sorcerer, Haruta Shigemo didn't panic at all; instead, he let out an exaggerated cry.
"But they're way too weak!"
Haruta Shigemo swung his sword violently.
"Slash! Slash! Slash!"
In the blink of an eye, dozens of rabbits were sliced into black cursed energy dregs.
However, Megumi's goal wasn't to kill him with these rabbits.
Under the cover of the swarm, Megumi's figure vanished into the darkness.
"Want to play hide and seek?"
Haruta Shigemo sneered, his sword spinning like a windmill to grind up the surrounding rabbits one by one.
"This kind of trick won't work on me."
Just as he finished speaking.
"Splash!"
A giant toad suddenly burst from the shadow beneath Haruta's feet!
"Well's Unknown Abyss!"
The toad opened its mouth, and its long, barbed tongue shot out like lightning, instantly binding Haruta Shigemo's legs!
"Got you."
Megumi's figure emerged from the shadow behind the toad, his hands already forming a new, complex sign.
"Ten Shadows Technique..."
Megumi squeezed out every last drop of cursed energy, veins bulging on his forehead.
He knew ordinary attacks were useless; he had to use an absolute force to crush the man instantly, leaving him no chance to trigger that bizarre reflection mechanism!
"Max Elephant!"
"Boom—!!!"
Accompanied by a deafening trumpet, a massive pink elephant, the size of a small mountain, appeared directly above Haruta Shigemo!
The elephant was composed of high-density cursed energy, its weight reaching a terrifying degree.
"What?!"
The smile on Haruta's face froze. He frantically swung his sword, trying to sever the toad's tongue.
But the tongue was unexpectedly resilient. The moment he cut it, Max Elephant's colossal body fell like a meteorite, crushing down with the force of a mountain!
"Rumble—!!!"
The earth shook, and the surrounding ruins collapsed under the terrifying weight!
Dust billowed into the sky, completely obscuring where Haruta Shigemo had stood.
"Phew... did it work?"
Megumi panted heavily, his legs giving out as he knelt on the ground.
Summons of Divine Dog, Nue, Rabbit Escape, and Well's Unknown Abyss, followed by the massive consumption of Max Elephant, had left his cursed energy completely depleted.
This was the limit of what he could do without summoning 'that thing.'
Megumi stared intently at the swirling dust ahead.
A few seconds later, the dust gradually cleared.
A massive crater, crushed by Max Elephant, appeared in Megumi's sight.
Inside the pit, Haruta's seemingly frail body was pinned beneath Max Elephant, almost entirely embedded in the rubble.
Blood flowed from his nose and mouth, staining the ground.
Beneath his eyes, the once clear purple markings were fading rapidly.
"Ah... aah..."
Haruta let out a painful scream, struggling desperately to crawl out from under the elephant's weight.
But the bizarre power he prided himself on—the ability to reflect damage—had finally reached its breaking point against the pure, absolute weight of Max Elephant.
No matter how much he struggled, Max Elephant remained like an immovable mountain, pinning him firmly in place.
"It seems... I win."
Megumi wiped the blood from his mouth and forced himself to stand.
Feeling the hollow void of his cursed energy and the heavy presence of Max Elephant, he felt a slight sense of relief.
But just as he prepared to step forward and finish off the curse user...
"Giggle... giggle giggle..."
Haruta, pinned beneath the elephant, suddenly let out a spine-chilling, maniacal laugh.
"You think... you've won just like that?"
Haruta struggled to lift his head, his malicious eyes fixed on Megumi with a look of madness.
"Little master of Jujutsu High... you're still too naive!"
The next second, a violent, extremely unstable surge of cursed energy erupted from within Haruta's body!
This fluctuation was so intense that even Max Elephant, pinning him down, let out an uneasy cry!
"This is..."
Megumi's pupils constricted to pinpricks.
He was all too familiar with this feeling!
Before meeting Yoru, he had countless times harbored the thought of taking his enemies down with him at all costs!
This lunatic was going to self-detonate!
Judging by the intensity of the fluctuation, if the explosion succeeded, not only Max Elephant but even Megumi—less than ten meters away—would be blown to pieces!
"Die! Die with me!!!"
Haruta roared insanely. The cursed energy within him had reached a critical mass, like a heavy bomb about to be triggered!
Megumi clenched his teeth, a look of resolve flashing in his eyes.
In a dead-end with no cursed energy and exhausted stamina, facing a madman about to blow himself up, could he still create a miracle?