Curse Reply: After choosing Nawa, the cursed spirit cursed me for being cruel.

In the dimly lit Japanese-style room, the candlelight flickered more restlessly than usual. The cloying sweetness of incense in the air couldn't mask the oppressive atmosphere. Several aged faces appeared even more somber and distorted in the swaying light and shadow.

The deathly silence lasted for a long time.

"field……"

Finally, the most hunched figure spoke, his fingers trembling slightly as he held a brief intelligence summary with only a few lines of text in his hand.

Because of fear, rage, and a hint of...horrence that even he himself was unwilling to admit.

"...He deployed his domain." He repeated the description from the intelligence report, each word seemingly bitten off as he spat it out, "He directly erased the Abyss Devourer...from a conceptual level..."

boom!

A figure slammed his fist on the table and stood up abruptly. His face was flushed, veins bulged on his forehead, and his eyes were filled with undisguised ferocity and disbelief.

"How is that possible?! A brat who just leveled up not long ago! How could he possibly master a domain?! That's the mark of a top-tier expert! It's the pinnacle of sorcery! What makes him think he can?!"

"With that strange armor? Or with his nonsensical 'purification'?" Another cold, hard voice chimed in, equally angry, but even more so icy.

"The intelligence is accurate. Our man... that good-for-nothing, although he came back alive, he was almost scared out of his wits. The scene he described... it can't be faked. That kind of power... there's no other explanation but a domain."

"Neither Gojo Satoru nor Natsumi Yukichi have awakened... This Duanmu Yan actually beat them to it?" someone murmured, their tone filled with a sense of absurdity.

“Not only are they ahead of the curve.” The hunched old man slowly put down the intelligence report, raised his eyelids, and his old eyes no longer held the previous calculation and composure, but only a bottomless gloom.

"Moreover, because of his domain, we can no longer intervene. Our carefully laid plan is a joke in front of him."

He glanced around at everyone present, his voice lowering, "We have no trump cards left to directly confront those who can unleash their domains. None at all. Gojo Satoru and Natsumi Yuki are already troublesome enough, and now we have Duanmu Yan, who possesses a domain and clearly harbors ill will towards us."

"The possibility of forcibly controlling them is extremely slim. It would only completely enrage them, push these three monsters to the opposite side, and may even provoke a full-scale backlash from the forces behind them. At that time, the authority of the Elders' Council would truly be gone."

"Are we just going to let this go?!" The old man slammed his fist on the table and roared in frustration. "Let these three juniors ride roughshod over us? If this plan fails and the news gets out, what will other forces think of us? What will those level one and near-level one sorcerers who were already wavering think?"

"Forget it, what can we do?" the hunchbacked old man retorted coldly. "Are you going to deal with his domain? Or can you find a second sorcerer who possesses a domain and is willing to be at our command?"

The questioning plunged the room into silence once again.

The anger is real, but the feeling of powerlessness is equally real.

Faced with absolute power, even the most ingenious political maneuvering appears pale and laughable.

They are used to manipulating things from behind the scenes, using rules, interests, personal relationships, and righteousness to bind the powerful, but these methods become ineffective when the other side has the power to overturn the game.

After a long silence, the owner of the cold, hard voice took a deep breath and slowly sat down. "A direct confrontation won't work. But we can't do nothing either. This time, we underestimated him and made a mistake. We admit defeat, but that doesn't mean we've given up."

The hunched old man glanced at him and nodded slightly: "That's right. Circumstances are stronger than people. When it's time to bow your head, you have to. At least, you have to save face."

He pondered for a moment and slowly said, "In the name of the Cursed Arts Supervision Department, a commendation order is issued to commend the first-year students of Tokyo Metropolitan Cursed Arts Higher Specialized School, Gojo Satoru, Natsuyu Jie, and Duanmu Yan, for successfully handling the Hokkaido Special Grade Imaginary Cursed Spirit incident and avoiding major casualties."

He paused, then added, "A special mission bonus will be issued to each person... thirty million yen. It will be credited to their accounts immediately."

"Thirty million?!" someone exclaimed. "Isn't that too much? The reward for top-level cases used to be only one thousand..."

"A lot?" The hunched old man interrupted him, a smileless curve appearing at the corner of his mouth. "This is an attitude. It's our attitude of yielding. Money means nothing to them, especially to the one from the Gojo family. But this reward represents official recognition, it means that we're putting aside past grievances and trying to ease tensions and appease them. At least, we can't let the conflict escalate any further."

"Buy peace with money?" someone said bitterly.

“It’s about buying time,” the hunched old man corrected, his eyes turning deep and unfathomable again, like a lurking venomous snake.

“The strong all have their own paths and pursuits. Gojo Satoru pursues the strongest and does as he pleases, Xia Youjie has his own set of ‘righteousness,’ and Duanmu Yan… his philosophy seems to lean towards salvation. Now they are gathered together because they are fighting a common enemy and are young and impetuous. But what about the future?”

His gaze swept across the crowd: "When their ideas clash, when their paths diverge, when their interests no longer align... even the strongest alliance will crack."

"Can the Gojo family truly be completely at ease with Xia Youjie and Duanmu Yan, who come from humble backgrounds? Can Duanmu Yan's naiveté in trying to save everyone coexist with Xia Youjie's rationality? How long can the other two tolerate Gojo Satoru's recklessness?"

"What we need to do now is to retreat into the shadows and wait patiently. We will no longer take the initiative to provoke others, nor will we set up traps that are easy to exploit. Instead, we will observe, guide, and at the appropriate time, offer some options and create some situations."

He slowly leaned back in his chair, the shadows once again engulfing most of his figure, with only his voice drifting out: "Give them money, give them honor, and even... do them favors in some trivial matters, let them lower their guard, let them work out and clash among themselves."

"We'll wait and see."

The elders' anger and resentment transformed into deeper simmering and scheming. The storm on the surface had temporarily subsided, but the undercurrents beneath the surface may have only just begun to surge.

Meanwhile, Tokyo High School quickly received a commendation order and a text message notification that the money had been deposited into their account.

The huge prize money brought little joy; instead, it felt more like an ironic truce.

"Hmph, trying to fob me off like that." Gojo Satoru glanced at the text message, casually tossed his phone aside, and continued to devour his limited-edition dessert.

Xia Youjie just smiled, his eyes thoughtful.

Duanmu Yan stared at the extra numbers in his account, then turned off the screen without expression.

He accepted the money, but he kept track of the debt with the Elders' Council.

A temporary compromise does not signify the end; the real contest may have only just begun.

Chapter 56 Newcomer

Tokyo Jujutsu High School, second-year classroom.

The afternoon sun lazily streamed in, casting a warm glow on the wooden floor. Four people sat scattered throughout the classroom, each in a different posture.

Gojo Satoru propped his long legs up on the desk in front of him, slumped into the chair, his white hair sticking up in all directions, his sunglasses pushed up to his forehead, and he was idly playing with his fingers, muttering to himself.

"Why hasn't Teacher Moth arrived yet...? She's already five minutes late! Are all older people so careless about time?"

Xia Youjie sat up straighter, holding a difficult-looking ancient book in his hand. Hearing this, he didn't even look up, and said in a gentle voice, "He was probably held up by something. After all, it's the start of a new semester and also the time for recruitment. There must be a lot to do."

"Recruiting new members?" Gojo Satoru's ears twitched, and he instantly perked up, lowering his legs and leaning forward.

"Oh right! So, we'll have a junior soon?! Wow, finally not the youngest anymore! This feeling... isn't bad!"

Shoko Ieiri, sitting by the window, glanced at him, her deep brown eyes expressionless, as she silently moved the lollipop she was holding from her left to her right.

She was almost certain that Gojo Satoru was not thinking anything good at the moment, and was mourning for the upcoming freshmen for a fraction of a second in advance.

Duanmu Yan sat diagonally behind Xiaozi, his back straight, his gaze calmly fixed on the swaying shadows of the trees outside the window.

He had a slight thought and brought up the system panel that only he could see.

[Host Panel]

Name: Duanmu Yan

Age: 17

Combat strength: Special level

Spirit: Top Grade

Spell Power: Special Grade

Equipment slots: Nava Armor (98% compatibility), Tonado Armor (75% compatibility), Lucky Coin (6/10), Curse Detector

Inventory: Skull Crusher x1, Senzu Bean x5, Fusion Stone (Special)

Current points: 134158

Overall assessment: Stable top-tier combat power under normal circumstances, with strength roughly equivalent to a four-finger Sukuna vessel. Extremely high affinity with fire and wind elements, master of black flash, skilled in armor use, and possesses extremely strong explosive power.

Looking at the data on the panel, Duanmu Yan's lips curved upwards almost imperceptibly.

After acquiring the Tuonado Armor and unlocking the dual-mode conversion of the Sun Armor, his combat power has firmly entered the threshold of the Special Grade.

His last trip to Beihai, after experiencing the realm, gave him a deeper understanding of the essence of fire and purification.

The missions and training over the past two months have not only allowed him to fully master Black Flash, but also boosted the compatibility of the Nava Armor to 98%, bringing him just one step away from the third stage.

Tuonado also successfully reached the second stage.

The description in the overall evaluation that it is "approximately equivalent to a four-finger Su Nuo" may not sound like the top level, but it has already surpassed 99.9% of sorcerers in the world of magic, and there are fewer than 10 people who can beat him.

It can be said that he is now one of the pinnacles of sorcerers, an existence that countless sorcerers can only dream of.

To his dismay, the treasure chests he'd received over the past two months hadn't given him anything very useful; he only had a few Senzu Beans to use.

The sound of the classroom door being pushed open interrupted his thoughts.

Night Moth Masamichi walked in carrying Curse Skeleton, his face serious. Behind him were two boys wearing brand-new high school uniforms, each with a different expression.

The one walking in front had neatly combed blond hair, styled in a meticulous side part, and wore square-framed glasses. His expression was indifferent, his brows slightly furrowed, as if he carried a weariness beyond his years and a hint of... boredom?

The boy following behind was completely different. He had short, slightly frizzy black hair, large, bright eyes, and a radiant smile that was almost silly.

"Sit down, everyone." Masamichi Noi walked to the front of the podium, his voice as deep as ever. "Let me introduce you. These two are specially admitted students who enrolled this year. From today onwards, they will be your juniors and new members of the second year."

He turned to the side, gesturing to the blond boy: "Nanami."

Nanami Kento stepped forward, adjusted his glasses, and spoke in a steady, unwavering voice, polite yet distant: "Hello, second-year seniors, I am Nanami Kento. Nice to meet you." He then bowed slightly, returned to his original position, stood ramrod straight, and looked straight ahead.

Masamichi Nobi gestured to the smiling black-haired boy again: "Yu Haibara."

"Hello everyone!" Haibara Yu immediately stepped forward, his voice booming. He bowed deeply, "I'm Haibara Yu! I'm from Aomori! I'll be your junior from now on! Please take good care of me, seniors!"

He paused, as if suddenly remembering something, and hurriedly put down his backpack, taking out several items wrapped in plain paper bags. His face flushed slightly with embarrassment, but his smile remained bright.

"Oh, right! These are local specialties I brought from my hometown! They're delicious dried apples and pickled salmon! They're not expensive, but they taste really good! I hope you seniors won't find them too cheap!"

He enthusiastically handed the paper bags to Xia Youjie and Xiaozi, who were closest to him, and then jogged over to place them on the tables of Wujiao Wu and Duanmu Yan. His movements were a little clumsy, but full of sincerity.

Gojo Satoru picked up the small paper bag, weighed it in his hand, raised an eyebrow at Haibara Yu, and a playful smile curved his lips: "Oh? A greeting gift? This junior is quite savvy~"

Xia Youjie took the paper bag and smiled gently: "Thank you, Haibara. You don't need to be so polite."

Duanmu Yan also picked up the paper bag and thanked Haibara Yu.

He could sense a pure, untainted enthusiasm and vitality emanating from this junior, like a little sun, which seemed especially precious, and... especially fragile, in this school that dealt with death and curses year after year.

He glanced again at Nanami Kento, who stood beside him with a cold expression. This junior was like the other extreme: calm, self-controlled, and even somewhat precocious, as if he no longer held much expectation for the world and was simply fulfilling his responsibilities step by step.

One is like fire, the other is like ice.

The students that Teacher Moth recruited this time are quite interesting.

"Alright, the gift has been given and the greetings have been given." Night Moth Masamichi cleared his throat, interrupting the slightly lively atmosphere.

"Haibara, Nanami, find your seats. I'll explain the course schedule, task system, and college rules to you separately after class. Now, let's get to know your future classmates, who will be your companions through thick and thin."

His gaze swept over the six students in the classroom, each with their own distinct personality—the problem children group, the medic who also provides the witty remarks, the newly promoted Special-Class Armored Monster, and the newly joined Little Sun and Calm One.

Night Moth Masamichi sighed inwardly, yet felt a strange sense of anticipation.

Chapter 57 Battle with the Newcomers