Clang—!!!
In the empty sewer space, the sound of the clash was like metal grinding against the toughest rubber!
At this critical moment, Mahito displayed combat instincts not matching his mad appearance, honed by countless "transformations." He didn't try to fully dodge the knife that exceeded visual capture, but the moment the blade reached his body, he rapidly twisted, expanded, and hardened his right forearm, along with the flesh and bone of half his shoulder, as if modeling clay!
His skin instantly took on a gray-white texture, resembling a crustacean's exoskeleton. Bones grew and intertwined, forming a twisted bone shield covered in irregular edges and corners, the thickest part in the center over half a foot, dangerously placed in the path of the blunt blade!
The blunt blade, wrapped in 120% overtime cursed energy and the division rules of the "Ratio Technique," viciously slashed into this hastily formed bone shield!
The black dividing line flickered violently, trying to separate the bone shield from the "arm" behind it!
However, Mahito's technique was based on the instantaneous transformation of his soul and body through "Idle Transfiguration," and the strangeness and tenacity of his "material" were beyond imagination. The blunt blade dug deep into the bone shield, emitting a piercing scraping sound, gray-white bone fragments and black cursed energy spots flying, but it ultimately failed to cut through cleanly, getting stuck in the center of the shield.
But what truly made Mahito's heterochromatic pupils suddenly constrict, and his face show clear shock for the first time, wasn't the sharpness of the blade or the power behind it.
Pain.
A sharp pain he had rarely experienced in countless battles, experiments, and even self-transformations since his birth, reaching deep into his soul. As if some fundamental foundation of his existence had been shaken, it followed the modified arm, penetrating the core of his consciousness!
Ordinary physical attacks, even cutting off limbs, were like a game of "shape-changing" for him, the pain limited to superficial feedback. Cursed technique attacks, unless they contained special purification or anti-curse abilities, were mostly compensated or adapted to by the deep cursed energy of their special-grade cursed spirit nature and the strange plasticity of their souls.
But this knife was different.
The black dividing line, the cursed energy condensed to the extreme, at the moment it touched his "transformed body," seemed to bypass the physical defense of the exterior and directly act on the most basic "soul structure" he used to maintain that form!
He could feel that part of his soul structure, "transformed" into the shield, had suffered certain damage.
This man... this pedantic sorcerer with the blunt blade, who claims to be "working overtime"... Can he attack the soul?!
"You..." Mahito suddenly retreated, using the opportunity to "pull" his right hand out of the deformed bone shield, which quickly returned to its normal shape like melting wax, leaving only a deep, slowly healing gray-white cut on it.
His heterochromatic eyes stared at Kento Nanami, who had already withdrawn his blade and assumed a guarding posture before him, with clear doubt and an even stronger interest: "Can you see the 'soul'?"
This was almost impossible!
The soul is invisible and intangible. Ordinary sorcerers, even special grades, can only perceive its existence indirectly through methods like cursed energy fluctuations, emotional residues, and technique effects. They absolutely cannot "see" its specific form, let alone perform such a precise attack on the soul's structure!
The reason his Idle Transfiguration was special and almost incomprehensible was based on the level of "being able to directly touch the shape of the soul," something most beings couldn't achieve.
Facing Mahito's shocking question that pierced to the heart, Kento Nanami didn't respond. He didn't answer, but slightly adjusted his blade-holding posture, his gaze behind his lenses like the most precise measuring instrument, fixing on every trace of cursed energy and soul fluctuation on Mahito's body.
Silence was an answer in itself—an answer focused on combat and contemptuous of nonsense.
In the jujutsu world, the "technique" attributes and "cursed energy" power of a sorcerer are almost inherently determined at birth by factors like bloodline, talent, and soul traits, difficult to change post-natally. Like hardware configuration, it's finalized when it leaves the factory.
Sorcerers' efforts for improvement mainly focus on two aspects: first, physical combat strength—physical power, speed, reaction, endurance, and the ability to combine cursed energy with physical techniques; second, the stability and strength of the soul—this determines the upper limit of cursed energy, the precision of technique control, and the ability to resist mental attacks and cursed energy erosion.
And when a sorcerer tempers their soul to a state strong and "pure" enough through special training methods, it is possible to transcend ordinary perception and vaguely "see" the outline and fluctuations of the soul. This isn't true sight, but a more advanced "perception" based on the resonance of cursed energy and the soul.
Sorcerers who reach this level naturally deal more significant damage to cursed spirits, curse users, and even other beings with souls, and can trigger effects similar to "critical hits"—that is, attack effects far exceeding the simple superposition of cursed energy and physics.
A thousand years ago, Zen'in Genji left behind several secret methods for tempering the soul and perceiving the soul. These methods weren't direct attack techniques, but more like "internal cultivation methods" to strengthen the sorcerer's foundation.
As an outstanding graduate of the Tokyo Jujutsu High, Kento Nanami naturally and systematically practiced these methods during his studies. Although he wasn't a genius specializing in the soul domain, with his rigorous, almost stubborn personality and daily polishing, he had already tempered his soul to be far beyond his peers—stable and sharp.
He might not be able to "touch" and "transform" the soul's form like Mahito, but he could "see" its faint outline and, to a certain extent, apply the division rules of his "Ratio Technique" to the weaknesses of the target's soul structure through the power and will of his cursed energy.
This was the fundamental reason he could "attack" Mahito's soul.
---
Frustrated by the strike and realizing the strangeness of Nanami's attacks, Mahito's rapid mind immediately changed his strategy. Close-quarters combat, especially the risk of being hit by the opponent's blade, which possessed soul-attacking properties, seemed not very "economical."
"Hey~ interesting! So interesting!" The shock on Mahito's face faded, and the excited smile of discovering a new toy reappeared, but a hint of caution flickered in his eyes. Instead of trying to get closer, he leaped sharply backward.
During his leap, his legs underwent intense deformation below the knees! Calf muscles swelled dramatically, bones twisted and reset, and the soles of his feet transformed into a large, hoof-like structure covered in a hard cuticle!
Clop, clop, clop, clop!
The horse hooves pounded heavily on the wet concrete floor, making a sharp, dense sound. Mahito used these modified, powerful lower limbs to initiate a retreat, bouncing back with dazzling, irregular high speed within the relatively narrow sewer space! Not moving in a straight line, he ricocheted between walls, pipes, water surfaces, and ceilings, like a flea with amazing elasticity, leaving a series of blurry afterimages and the clatter of hooves, severely hindering Nanami's ability to lock onto the target.
At the same time, his hands weren't idle. With each bounce off a wall or pipe, his palm would touch the twisted remains of modified humans he had already discarded or "disposed of" here.
"Go!"
Mahito cried joyfully, his hands moving like magic. The moment these remains touched his palm, they seemed to come alive, rapidly deforming and solidifying. He used them as throwing weapons, launching them from various cunning angles towards Kento Nanami, who maintained a calm posture below, aiming for his head and face!
There were "bone darts," irregular multifaceted shapes with sharp edges; spear-like "flesh spikes," pointed at the tips; spherical "corrosive sacs," covered in venom gland bumps; even "flying heads," retaining half of a terrified face, biting with open mouths...
These "weapons" themselves might not be very powerful, but there were many, and they came from strange angles. More importantly, they perfectly complemented Mahito's fast, chaotic movement, forming a three-dimensional network of firepower.
Kento Nanami stood his ground, his body like a rock in a dense "rain of bullets," dodging, twisting sideways, ducking, and stepping with maximum precision. The blunt blade sometimes swung to deflect threatening "weapons" that were unavoidable in the air. His eyes behind the lenses calmly tracked Mahito's changing trajectory in the air, his mind rapidly calculating.
(He's trying to avoid close combat.) Nanami judged calmly in his mind. (It seems even this cursed spirit, who can play with souls, is wary of attacks that can directly damage the origin of his soul.)
This was important intelligence. It showed that this cursed spirit's "immortality" or "invincibility" largely depended on the plasticity and inviolability of its soul. When that advantage was partially neutralized, it also chose a "safer" tactic.
But how long can this ranged harassment with trash last?
Kento Nanami pushed up his glasses, the lenses reflecting Mahito's figure as he pushed off the ceiling again and flipped backward. The other side seemed to be enjoying itself, trying to tire him out this way, looking for openings, or waiting for him to make a mistake.