When Eichi joined the battle, the situation changed immediately.
Previously, out of fear of injury, he would disengage as soon as he touched the Cursed Spirit while restraining it, with the primary goal of disrupting its movements.
Now it was different.
Having mastered Reverse Cursed Technique, Eichi no longer worried about getting injured, and his attacks became increasingly fierce.
Under the siege of one person and two Shikigami, new wounds constantly appeared on the Cursed Spirit's body.
A rough, hoarse sound rang out as the black mist around the Cursed Spirit converged, then suddenly burst apart.
The sudden change made Eichi wary.
As he retreated, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him.
"Suguru?"
Suguru's sudden appearance caused Eichi's movements to pause for a moment, but he quickly continued to swing his blade.
Eichi knew Suguru would not suddenly rush in front of him in such an unclear situation, nor would he attack him like this.
Pfft.
To Eichi's surprise, the katana pierced through "Suguru's" palm before being firmly grasped by the other party.
Then "Suguru" delivered a whip kick toward Eichi's waist.
Eichi blocked with his arm and was kicked away by "Suguru's" immense strength, and the katana was flung far away.
As Eichi warily looked at "Suguru," "Suguru's" body became dark and distorted, then transformed into Eichi himself, standing in front of him.
The black mist came and went quickly, and Tiger Funeral and Nue, who were about to attack, stopped with confused expressions.
The Cursed Spirit in the field had disappeared, leaving only two "Eichis" exchanging blows.
The two had identical figures and appearances, identical attack methods, and even identical Cursed Energy auras.
Very quickly, Tiger Funeral and Shadow Servant distinguished the real Eichi.
They identified their master through the connection from the Heroic Spirit chess pieces Eichi had used to strengthen them earlier.
The Eichi conjured by the Cursed Spirit was almost identical to the real one. Even the closest people would be unable to tell them apart in a short time.
But it was still a fake. It had not formed a contract with Eichi's Shikigami, nor did it have the connection brought by the Heroic Spirit chess pieces.
As the enemy became smaller, to avoid accidentally harming Eichi, Tiger Funeral and Shadow Servant switched from long-range spell bombardment to close-quarters combat.
Tiger Funeral's sharp claws, imbued with wind blades, repeatedly tore through the Cursed Spirit's defenses.
Shadow Servant lowered its altitude, changing from large-area bombardment to precise sniping, which forced the Cursed Spirit to constantly dodge.
Unlike the utterly disheveled Special Grade Cursed Spirit, Eichi felt incredibly good, better than ever.
Every move he had learned before was executed, and the originally ornamental moves became increasingly concise and lethal.
In Eichi's eyes, everything in the world seemed to slow several times, and every movement of the enemy was seen with extreme clarity.
The bent body, the fist thrown from behind, the corner of the clothes blown by the wind, and the distorted face of the Cursed Spirit that had transformed into Eichi.
At this moment, Eichi felt that nothing could escape his perception. He seemed to have become the center of the world.
Black Flash.
His clenched right fist swung toward the Cursed Spirit's chest.
Dark Cursed Energy flashed in his hand.
Pfft.
The Black Flash, arriving later but striking first, pierced through the Cursed Spirit's chest.
The Cursed Spirit let out a hoarse, miserable cry.
Heavily wounded, it could no longer maintain Eichi's appearance and reverted to its ugly, six-meter-tall form.
Eichi did not pursue but looked down at his right hand.
"Is this Black Flash?"
Black Flash, a critical hit delivered when a Jujutsu Sorcerer's physical attack and Cursed Energy impact differ by less than 0.0000001 seconds.
It is an attack that occurs when physical and Cursed Energy strikes land almost simultaneously, causing 2.5 times the original damage.
The immense power of a Black Flash can even distort space.
Having landed a Black Flash, Eichi felt better than ever. The Cursed Energy that usually required careful control now flowed as smoothly as breathing, every wisp moving according to his will.
He could even perceive the "taste" of Cursed Energy.
The Cursed Energy within him exuded the taste of anger, while the purplish-black blood of the Special Grade Cursed Spirit remaining on his hand revealed a malicious sense of satisfaction.
"A taste of falsehood and deceit."
A painful cry came, and the Cursed Spirit's broken body began to tremble. Cursed Spirits were released from its body one by one, and soon nearly a hundred low-grade Cursed Spirits appeared on the playground.
Almost all were humanoid Grade 4 Cursed Spirits, with a few at Grade 3.
Each distorted face bore an eerie smile.
As if immensely satisfied before death.
"Is this your true nature, to delude humans with false illusions and enslave their souls within your body?"
"Useless struggle."
Even with a large number of enemies appearing, Eichi's calm expression remained unchanged.
A group of offal Cursed Spirits posed no threat to the current Eichi.
Tiger Funeral and Shadow Servant began to attack.
One by one, the humanoid Cursed Spirits turned to ash in the gale and magical projectiles.
Eichi walked expressionlessly to the Special Grade Cursed Spirit, dodged its attack, and punched its head.
Straight punches, jabs, whip kicks. Attacks continuously landed, while the Cursed Spirit's counterattacks all missed.
Black Flash.
The second Black Flash landed, and another large hole appeared in its body. Its broken form finally collapsed.
Ignoring the Cursed Spirit struggling to crawl away, Eichi tilted his head and looked behind him.
"Too slow. If you were any later, your Special Grade Pokémon would be gone."
Perhaps because victory was already in hand, or perhaps because of Suguru's arrival, Eichi slowly withdrew from that peculiar state.
"Are you alright, Eichi?"
Suguru looked at him with concern.
Eichi was covered in blood, his clothes heavily damaged.
"I am fine. I have mastered Reverse Cursed Technique, and my injuries have already healed."
After speaking, Eichi turned to the Cursed Spirit struggling to crawl on the ground.
"Let us deal with this guy first, then we can talk about the two behind you."
With that, his gaze fell on the Crimson Being and the Cursed Spirit beside her who resembled her.
Tiger Funeral stood behind Eichi, and Divine Dog: Totality had, at some point, blocked their retreat.
"Understood."
Suguru wasted no words, passed Eichi, and activated his Technique to transform the Cursed Spirit into a black-purple Cursed Spirit Orb, then swallowed it with his back to Eichi.
Still retaining that omnipotent sensation, Eichi vaguely perceived Suguru trying to control his body and suppress the urge to vomit.
"It is over."
A few minutes later, Suguru, who had completely controlled the Special Grade Cursed Spirit, turned and stood beside Eichi.
"Are you going to tell us about your situation?"
Suguru looked at the two sisters surrounded by Shikigami, as well as Kenji, who had been escorted by his Cursed Spirits, and the girl in the coffin.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇◇◇
◇ I'll be dropping two bonus chapters for every 10 reviews.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ If you enjoy the story, please consider leaving a review, it helps a lot!
◇ Don't forget to add the book to your library.