The air froze once again.
Sukuna's delighted expression vanished instantly, replaced by a tyrannical killing intent.
"What did you say?"
His voice was terrifyingly low, sounding like the roar of countless demons.
"You want my finger?"
"Do you wish to die?"
The fingers were not just a source of power, but fragments of his soul. And this lowly human actually dared to covet his soul?!
Boom!
A terrifying cursed energy erupted.
Sukuna raised his hand.
This time, he truly intended to kill.
He would crush this arrogant shrewd merchant into powder!
However.
At the very moment he went to strike.
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle—
An invisible force exploded deep within his soul.
It was irresistible.
His hand froze in mid-air; he actually couldn't swing it down!
"This is... a Binding Vow?!"
Sukuna's pupils shrank abruptly.
"Ah, I forgot to remind you."
Lynn took a half-step back and spread his hands.
He wore the standard smile of a shrewd merchant who had successfully pulled off a scheme.
"Since you have already consumed my product and enjoyed the 'freedom' it provides."
"The transaction has been forcibly enacted."
"This is a fundamental transaction based on the principles of a 'Binding Vow'."
"If you refuse to pay for the goods, or attempt to kill the creditor to default on the debt, the rules will judge you to be in breach of contract."
Lynn pointed at Sukuna's frozen hand.
"Although I am no match for you."
"The rules will backlash against this physical body."
"You wouldn't want to be forcibly deported just a minute after coming out because of a breach of contract, would you?"
"You're plotting against me?!"
Veins popped on Sukuna's forehead.
The great King of Curses.
To be forced into a buy-and-sell deal with a single piece of candy by a human with zero cursed energy?!
What an absolute humiliation!
Anger.
Extreme anger.
The killing intent in Sukuna's eyes almost solidified into substance.
Even if he had to risk deportation, he would kill this... "Don't be so quick to get angry, Mr. Sukuna."
Just as Sukuna was on the verge of losing control.
Lynn suddenly stepped closer.
He lowered his voice.
He spoke in a tone that only the two of them could hear:
"That one minute was just a small 'trial sample'."
Sukuna's movements paused slightly.
"I know what you're thinking."
"You're thinking about how to completely break free from the shackles of this body and truly resurrect after gathering all twenty fingers, right?"
Lynn's voice was full of temptation.
Like the serpent in the Garden of Eden.
"However, Itadori Yuji is a perfect vessel, but also a perfect cage."
"Even if you gather the fingers, it will be very difficult to break this cage from the inside."
Sukuna narrowed his eyes, staring intently at Lynn.
This guy.
He even knows about this?
"But I can."
Lynn pointed to his own head.
"Since I can manufacture medicine that lets you 'take temporary control', I can also manufacture medicine that lets you 'completely separate'."
"As long as the price is right..."
"Even if it's stripping your soul intact from this body, or even reconstructing a physical body from a thousand years ago for you..."
"I can do it."
This was a massive lie.
At least, the current Lynn couldn't do it at all.
But it was an even more irresistible 'empty promise'.
For a Sukuna who craved freedom, this temptation far exceeded the value of a single finger.
It also surpassed the anger of being offended in this moment.
Sukuna fell silent. He stared at Lynn for a long time, as if trying to see through the man's soul.
"Interesting."
After a long while, Sukuna withdrew his hand.
That violent killing intent receded like a tide.
He turned to face that Special Grade Cursed Spirit.
Puchi—
In mid-air, the Special Grade Cursed Spirit that had driven Fushiguro Megumi / Megumi Fushiguro to despair was instantly torn into pieces.
As if being cut by countless invisible blades simultaneously.
Without even letting out a scream, it turned into a cloud of purple-black blood mist.
The blood mist dissipated.
A shriveled finger, emitting an ominous aura, fell from the sky.
Sukuna casually reached out and caught the finger.
"Here."
Like throwing away trash, he tossed the finger toward Lynn.
"You had better be able to fulfill your promise."
Lynn caught the finger steadily.
The moment it touched his palm.
The system's cold notification sounded.
It sounded more beautiful than any music.
[Transaction Complete!]
[Obtained Item: Ryomen Sukuna's Finger.]
[System Valuation: 50,000 points.]
[Remaining Points: 50,070 points.]
Lynn clenched his fist, suppressing the urge to pump his arm in celebration.
He had won the gamble.
This was the only rule of survival for a transmigrator like him who lacked power.
Utilize information asymmetry, exploit human weaknesses.
Sell a one-dollar item for ten thousand dollars.
"Pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Sukuna."
Lynn gave an elegant bow.
Even though his legs were still weak.
"I look forward to our next... big business deal."
Sukuna gave Lynn a deep look.
"If you can't produce something that satisfies me next time."
"I will slice your soul into ten thousand pieces and feed them to cursed spirits."
"Remember that, shrewd merchant."
After saying that, the black tattoos on Sukuna's body began to fade.
Although he was very annoyed.
He could feel the medicine's effect wearing off, and Itadori Yuji / Yuji Itadori's consciousness, as persistent as a weed, was retaking control of the body.
A few seconds later.
The murderous 'King of Curses' had disappeared.
In his place was a bewildered, pink-haired youth scratching the back of his head.
"Huh?"
Itadori Yuji / Yuji Itadori blinked, looking at the surrounding mess.
"Where's that Special Grade Cursed Spirit?"
"How did it disappear?"
Itadori was a bit confused.
"I remember giving my body to Sukuna... and then I seemed to take a nap..."
"Why does my mouth have such a strong minty taste? This flavor is so intense?"
At this moment, Lynn's back was turned to him.
He carefully took out a handkerchief and wrapped the shriveled finger in layers.
Then he solemnly placed it into the inner pocket of his vest.
Lynn glanced at the collapsing Innate Domain around them.
With the death of the Special Grade Cursed Spirit, this distorted space was about to vanish.
"It seems I don't need to send you out."
"Wait!"
Itadori shouted.
"Who are you? That finger... are you going to sell it?"
As a Jujutsu Sorcerer, he couldn't just stand by and watch a special grade cursed object fall into the hands of someone with an unknown identity.
"Who I am is not important."
Lynn straightened his slightly messy collar.
His figure began to become ethereal.
That was the sign of the card's effect ending.
"As for this finger..."
Lynn pushed up his glasses.
He revealed his signature, inscrutable smile.
"It's just my first pot of gold."
Lynn's figure completely vanished into the air.
As if he had never appeared... In the woods outside the Juvenile Detention Center.
The air distorted for a moment.
Lynn stumbled out of the void and leaned against a tree trunk, gagging.
"Blegh..."
That one minute just now, although he appeared calm and unruffled on the surface.
In reality, he was overdrawing his mental energy to maintain his 'master' persona.
Facing Sukuna's killing intent, even for just a few seconds, was enough to cause a normal person's mind to collapse.
Not to mention having to engage in a game of wits and making empty promises under such high pressure.
"Too intense..."
"This business is truly dancing on the edge of a blade."
Lynn wiped the saliva from the corner of his mouth.
With trembling hands, he pulled out the wrapped finger from his jacket.
Looking at the dazzling [50,070 points] on the system interface.
A sickly flush gradually appeared on his pale face.
"But this return... is truly sweet."
With these fifty thousand points, he had completely escaped the embarrassment of the novice period.
He could even begin to lay out a larger game.
"Next..."
Lynn looked toward the entrance of the Juvenile Detention Center.
Several black sedans were driving up.
A white-haired man, 1.9 meters tall and wearing a black blindfold, stepped out.
He was carrying a bag of kikufuku in his hand.
Gojo Satoru
The strongest in the Jujutsu World.
Lynn took a deep breath and put the finger back in its place.
He stood up straight.
"Since I've already done business with the 'King of Curses'."
"Then it wouldn't be too much to talk shop with the'strongest Jujutsu Sorcerer', right?"
He straightened his suit and stepped toward the strongest.
________
Only a few energy stones remain for the bonus chapter.
This is the last chapter for today, and there will be an additional chapter after two revisions.