"Huh, has this temple been abandoned for so long?"
Sasaki looked at the dilapidated temple, her face filled with disappointment. She had thought there might be some special supernatural traces left in this ruined temple.
Yuji Itadori stepped on a rotten floorboard, looking a bit awkward.
"It's Senior Sasaki who's the real talent for finding this place. It's so hidden that if you hadn't led the way, I probably would've gotten lost…"
Although Yuji Itadori didn't know what the Ling Yan (Spiritual Research) Club was supposed to do, his interactions with Sasaki and Iguchi over the past few days made him feel at ease.
He didn't think it was a waste of time to mess around with them outside.
"Hmm, this temple was built at least a few hundred years ago! But it looks like it's been abandoned for over a hundred years."
"There's probably nothing good to explore."
Sasaki walked disappointedly to Yuji Itadori's side, ready to leave with him.
But just as they were about to turn and leave, Iguchi's voice suddenly rang out.
"Sasaki, Yuji! Come quick, it looks like there's a basement here."
…
"Senior, step aside, I'll open it and take a look."
Yuji Itadori looked at the perfectly sealed basement cover, his face full of curiosity.
Since he was here, he genuinely wanted to know if there was anything special hidden inside this temple.
"Hmm…! Hmm…!"
Yuji Itadori tugged hard at the cover, and to his surprise, it was incredibly sturdy; even he couldn't open it.
For someone with physical abilities far surpassing ordinary people, this was simply unbelievable.
After all, if he wanted to, he could easily break all kinds of world records, so how could he be hindered by a small cover?
But just as Yuji Itadori was about to try again with all his might, Sasaki's stammering voice suddenly sounded in his ear.
"Yu-Yuji, maybe we shouldn't? What if these are cultural relics? If we damage them, that wouldn't be good."
Sasaki looked at Yuji Itadori's unconvinced expression, her heart pounding. She wasn't sure she could persuade him.
"Oh, it's already five o'clock!"
Iguchi, standing nearby, suddenly spoke, making Yuji Itadori's eyes widen.
"It's five o'clock? Oh no, I'm gonna be late. Senior Sasaki, Senior Iguchi, I'm heading back first."
With that, Yuji Itadori grabbed his bag and disappeared in a flash from Sasaki and Iguchi's sight.
Watching Yuji Itadori's retreating figure, Sasaki and Iguchi exchanged glances and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Let's not mess with it. It wouldn't be good if we caused any trouble."
"Iguchi, I didn't realize you were so quick-witted."
Sasaki playfully punched Iguchi, a smile appearing behind her glasses.
The simple-looking Iguchi chuckled, whispering:
"Sasaki, let's head back too! The sun's almost setting."
Sasaki nodded, looking around the temple ruins.
"Okay, let's go!"
This Ling Yan (Spiritual Research) exploration activity ended in failure once again.
Sasaki and Iguchi's shadows grew longer in the setting sun. The orange-red sunlight spilled over the temple ruins and the two of them, coating everything in a golden glow.
In a place Sasaki and Iguchi couldn't see, at the edge of the basement cover they had found, a black mist slowly emerged.
At the hour of twilight, just as the sun was about to set, the long-sealed basement cover loosened.
…
"Ugh…"
Zen'in Ming forced his eyes open.
"Where am I? Am I dead? Or have I transmigrated again?"
Sitting up from the coffin, Zen'in Ming first saw a grotesque special-grade cursed spirit.
Though the special-grade cursed spirit's appearance was terrifying and completely different from before, Zen'in Ming immediately recognized its identity.
"Rika…"
Hearing Zen'in Ming call her name, Rika, now a special-grade cursed spirit, gently stroked his face, her eyes full of affection.
What happened?
Zen'in Ming felt an inexplicable connection between his body and ten living beings.
The clearest connection was with Rika beside him.
The other nine, however, seemed to share a common bloodline with him, waiting for his summons at any time.
The grotesque special-grade cursed spirit that Rika had become let out a hissing, hoarse sound, unable to express meaning in human language, but Zen'in Ming still understood her words.
"Child, you have finally awakened."
"Your nine younger brothers have merged with you…"
Zen'in Ming didn't react at first, but then, seeing the nine shattered Cursed Womb cultivation vessels around him, he roughly understood Rika's words.
— [Is Rika treating me, who possesses Kamo Noritoshi's bloodline, as her child?]
— [What does it mean that the Cursed Womb: Death Painting has merged with me? Did I survive because of the Cursed Womb: Death Painting?]
— [Are the other nine mysterious beings I sensed those nine Cursed Wombs? Did Rika and her nine Cursed Womb children all form a contract with me?]
Zen'in Ming was confused about his identity at this moment. He didn't know what had happened.
However, judging by the abundant jujutsu energy on Rika's body, she must have been inexplicably cursed and became a special-grade cursed spirit who formed a contract with him.
— [Does that mean I'm like Yuta Okkotsu, the Pure Love King? Am I going to be the Pure Love King of the Meiji Era?]
— [But Rika's feelings for me seem different from the relationship between Yuta Okkotsu and Rika. Theirs was love, while Rika's and mine is familial affection.]
"Sigh…"
Zen'in Ming sighed, speaking softly:
"Since I survived because of you, and you mistook me for your child, I'll be your child in this life! I'll treat the nine Cursed Wombs you left behind as my brothers…"
"You've become my guardian special-grade cursed spirit, so I also have an obligation to protect your children!"
A hint of relief emerged in Zen'in Ming's heart. Even if his genetic modification failed, he at least had a special-grade cursed spirit like Rika guarding him.
Moreover, he seemed to be able to summon the Cursed Womb: Death Painting.
— [That's already pretty good! This means I have a guardian special-grade cursed spirit like Yuta Okkotsu, the Pure Love King.]
— [Being able to manipulate the Cursed Womb: Death Painting is like having Curse Manipulation like Suguru Geto. According to the original timeline, three of the nine Cursed Wombs in the Nine-Phase Diagram are special-grade cursed spirits, so this strength is unique.]
— [So, does this mean I have the strength of two special-grade sorcerers?]
Zen'in Ming suddenly felt he had turned misfortune into a blessing. Even if the genetic modification failed and he couldn't master the Zen'in clan's technique, with Curse Manipulation and Rika's protection, he'd already be enough to dominate the Meiji Era, right?
Zen'in Ming, dragging his famished body, crawled out of the coffin.
The special-grade cursed spirit Rika floated behind him, their state mirroring Yuta Okkotsu's initial entry into Jujutsu High.
"Why does everything around here smell of decay?"
Zen'in Ming frowned and waved his hand, using the moonlight spilling from the sky to find a mirror.
"I wonder if I've starved into a skeleton by now? It feels like I've been asleep for at least a month or two, right?"
Zen'in Ming had no idea how much time had passed. He still believed himself to be in the Meiji Era, contemplating how to live in this era.
However, the next second, the image in the mirror disrupted his thoughts.
Looking at his reflection, Zen'in Ming's heart was filled with shock.
He was no longer the Zen'in Ming he was before; his facial features had reverted to how they were before his transmigration.
At this moment, he had long, pure white hair and looked very young. Most importantly, his eyelashes were also white, and his pupils were filled with a dreamlike azure blue.
"This… this is Six Eyes? These are Celestial Eyes!"
Zen'in Ming was filled with doubt. He could hardly believe his eyes, but he could confirm that this pair of eyes was exactly like Gojo Satoru's in the original work.
Could it be that Kenjaku's genetic modification on him was successful?
But wasn't his primary modification target the Zen'in clan's Ten Shadows Technique?
Judging by this body, he should be more suited to the Zen'in clan's technique.
Zen'in Ming felt the changes in his body. After realizing he couldn't use the Shadow Technique, he suspected the Zen'in clan's genes hadn't been able to compete with the Six Eyes genes added by Kenjaku.
Therefore, what he was currently exhibiting was the Six Eyes trait of the Gojo clan.
"This isn't bad either!"
However, Zen'in Ming still doubted whether his Six Eyes was just for show.
Because, at present, he didn't have the 360-degree long-distance vision of the Six Eyes. Right now, he couldn't even see Rika behind him with these eyes, which he suspected were Celestial Eyes.
Instinctively taking a step forward, Zen'in Ming stepped on a floor covered in glass shards. The broken glass from the Cursed Womb cultivation vessels pierced through his decayed cloth shoes and into the sole of his foot.
Zen'in Ming felt a sharp pain, and bright red blood flowed from the wound.
He instinctively lowered his head, and by the moonlight, he realized the streams of blood gushing from his foot could actually be controlled by him.
"This is…"
"Red Blood Manipulation?"