Kenjaku was stunned.
He could never have imagined that a Cursed Spirit could ask such a question.
It wasn't that the question was unreasonable; on the contrary, being able to ask this showed that Mahito already had a basic understanding of the human race, and even showed he had some knowledge of that special group of humans—Jujutsu Sorcerers.
This might seem normal, but there was a question that made Kenjaku feel a bit chilled—how long had it been since Mahito was born?
No, to be precise—how long had he been growing?
If he continued to grow, what level could he ultimately reach?
Even Kenjaku felt a shiver at this moment.
He was somewhat fearful of this, but at the same time, he was full of anticipation—anticipating Mahito's continued growth, anticipating the future Mahito described, anticipating the turning of the gears of history.
He couldn't help but laugh. "Good question, truly a good question. Being able to ask this shows you already have a very deep understanding of the human collective."
"This shouldn't be considered a very deep understanding, should it? Even though I was born less than a month and a half ago, old people and children are everywhere on the streets."
"As for the rest, just listening patiently to their conversations for a while will tell you a lot. Even if you're a bit lazier, reading some books written by humans can lead to similar conclusions."
Mahito wondered if something was wrong with Kenjaku's head. How could such a basic question be considered deep?
But as he looked at Kenjaku's soul with his soul-piercing heterochromatic eyes, he was surprised to find that Kenjaku's words were entirely sincere.
Kenjaku truly believed so—believed that merely knowing human lifespans are limited counted as having a 'deep understanding' of humans for a Cursed Spirit.
Kenjaku laughed again, but this time it was a mocking laugh.
He opened his eyes slightly and glanced at Jogo and Hanami nearby.
Mahito followed his gaze to the other two Intelligent Cursed Spirits—Jogo's single giant eye was for some reason looking toward the sea, where a few seagulls were flying, deeply capturing Jogo's attention.
Hanami remained impassive, just standing there blankly like a wooden statue.
Dagon—Dagon—
—he was just spacing out carefreely.
Mahito's mouth twitched involuntarily as he sighed deeply. "Fine, you don't need to say it. I get it. I'm the abnormal one."
Compared to the other three Intelligent Cursed Spirits, Mahito had to admit he was indeed the abnormal one, and he finally understood why the Jogo of the original story, even after being taught a lesson by Gojo Satoru and realizing he was matchless, never thought of using his own lifespan to outlast him.
—He hadn't expected there to be such a method at all!
Not to mention him, Hanami hadn't thought of it either! Even the Mahito from the original story hadn't thought of it!
As for Dagon—Dagon... don't count on him.
However, Kenjaku should have been able to think of this.
He has waited for a thousand years, so another hundred for Gojo Satoru shouldn't have mattered.
Why he didn't do it, or even mention it, was something Mahito couldn't figure out.
Jogo couldn't help but argue for himself: "You can't blame Hanami and me. As Cursed Spirits, we have always been full of killing intent toward humans."
"Before Mahito, Hanami and I were staunch human exterminationists; we were determined to wipe out all of humanity, so how could we care about how humans should die?"
This was the truth.
Although to Mahito, the current Jogo and Hanami seemed like a slightly irritable old man and a figure filled with motherly compassion respectively, they actually hated humans enough to want to completely wipe them out.
Since they were Cursed Spirits, they naturally treated humans with a Cursed Spirit's mindset; it really wasn't impossible for them to be ignorant of human lifespans.
In human sociology, this problem is called an Information Cocoon.
They lived in their own Information Cocoons, and with no one to remind them, they naturally failed to realize the issue and had never thought about it this way.
Hanami sighed and said a few fair words.
Jogo had a foul expression and shouted loudly, "Shut up! What do you mean we didn't consider it carefully? We've worked hard too, okay?"
"In these thousands of years, have you ever heard of a Cursed Spirit cooperating with humans? We've already broken through this step, which is equivalent to taking the first step in thousands of years."
"We're already amazing; it's just that compared to Mahito, we're still not mature enough."
Kenjaku said indifferently, "This stubbornness is also very characteristic of a Cursed Spirit."
"Geto Suguru!" Jogo was furious, the volcano on his head almost erupting.
Waves of heat spread from him as the center, and the cool sea breeze vanished in an instant, replaced by a heatwave that scorched the skin.
Hanami stepped forward and said a few more words, slightly comforting Jogo.
Jogo took a deep breath, slowly calming his rage, but his face remained incredibly sour.
Hanami turned back to Kenjaku and repeated Mahito's question: "Why don't we wait for Gojo Satoru to die before we act?"
Kenjaku didn't intend to be perfunctory, not just because Mahito's heterochromatic eyes were staring at him, but also because he knew now was a crucial moment for concluding a Binding Vow.
While human contracts could involve word games, Binding Vows were different.
Both parties had to express their intentions clearly; any ambiguity would only harm both sides.
Because Kenjaku was a master at using Binding Vows, he wouldn't make such a mistake.
He said seriously, "There are two reasons."
He held up one finger: "First, we are racing against time. Gojo Satoru is very strong, but you probably don't know that he is now a hundred times stronger than he was as a child."
"When he was a child, someone once hired Curse Users to kill Gojo Satoru. More than one Curse User was hired, but the moment they saw Gojo Satoru, they all gave up their assassination plans in fear."
"Now," Kenjaku continued, "Gojo Satoru still hasn't reached his limit. He is still growing. Based on a Jujutsu Sorcerer's lifespan, he can continue to grow until the day he dies."
"The later we launch the plan to subvert the Jujutsu world, the stronger Gojo Satoru will become, and the harder he will be to defeat."
Mahito nodded slightly, accepting this explanation.
In fact, Mahito knew far more about Gojo Satoru's strength than Kenjaku.
In the original story, during the final battle with Sukuna before Gojo Satoru's death, he was still growing.
In fact, he hadn't reached his limit at all; before he could, he was cut in half by Sukuna's abrupt Dismantle.
But that was Sukuna. Try that with anyone else?
Again, Sukuna is an outlier in the entire Jujutsu Kaisen series.
Everything about him shouldn't be discussed; there's no need because he's simply not replicable.
Kenjaku said indifferently, "I can't imagine how powerful Gojo Satoru will grow in a few more years or decades."
"If we focus on running away now, even Gojo Satoru would find it hard to catch us. But if Gojo Satoru continues to grow, the moment he sees us—even escaping will be a luxury."
Jogo frowned. He still couldn't imagine Gojo Satoru's strength, but since Mahito was nodding in agreement, he didn't say anything to spoil the mood.
So he just said defiantly, "Then we just have to hide from him. Like now, as long as we don't go near Tokyo, we're not in danger."
"Living while completely abandoning one's pride might be a way, but there's a problem—that is, we indeed won't be able to avoid running into Gojo Satoru for our entire lives," Kenjaku said.
Hanami made a questioning sound, asking Kenjaku what he meant.
Kenjaku took a deep breath and revealed a shocking secret: "Because... a god is about to be born."
All the Cursed Spirits were stunned.
Kenjaku didn't hide anything; he simply stated the biggest secret of the Jujutsu world:
"In this country, there is an absolute core Sorcerer. She is called Tengen."
"This is a term from Go. The very center of a Go board is called Tengen."
"Tengen's real name has long since vanished with time; only her status has been passed down as a legacy in the form of a name."
"I've explained this much; you should understand my underlying meaning."
Jogo's single pupil constricted: "What is her Innate Technique?"
Kenjaku had a smile on his face. "It seems you understand. Her Innate Technique is called Immortality."
Jogo's single eye snapped toward Mahito, who nodded slightly, confirming that Kenjaku wasn't lying.
Kenjaku shrugged: "It's exactly as you've realized. A Sorcerer who has lived for a thousand years is undergoing the final step of sublimation."
"If she succeeds, she will become a true god."
"She controls a powerful Great Barrier that covers all of Japan."
"These barriers have many functions, but for Cursed Spirits, the primary function is just an early warning."
"Wherever a Cursed Energy disaster occurs, Tengen can determine it through the barrier. She can only do that much now, but if she becomes a god..."
Kenjaku's words were meaningful, and Mahito understood.
He completely understood Kenjaku's meaning.
In fact, Mahito knew about Tengen's existence.
Tengen did indeed control a massive barrier covering all of Japan.
The barrier had many effects. According to the original story, this barrier could serve as the foundation for other complex barriers, could prevent Japan's Cursed Energy from dissipating, and could even be used to release Cursed Spirit abilities over a wide area.
In the original story, after Kenjaku absorbed Mahito's ability, he relied on this massive barrier to start the Culling Game.
Kenjaku wasn't lying. For Cursed Spirits, these barriers really only had one function: warning of Cursed Energy disasters.
The strength of this barrier lies in its coverage and its ability to promptly prevent the spread of Cursed Energy disasters.
It's no exaggeration to say that in the current Japan, where Cursed Energy disasters are frequent, Tengen's massive barrier is Japan's lifeline.
It's hard to imagine what despair all of Japan would fall into if the massive barrier disappeared.
As the maintainer of the Great Barrier, Tengen's status can be imagined.
Before this, Mahito hadn't thought about Tengen at all.
Not for any other reason, but although Tengen's status in the Jujutsu world was extremely high—even the highest—she almost never took action.
To Mahito, she was just a background character, not to mention—
—even if she had become an existence close to a god, wasn't she still instantly killed by Kenjaku?
After building up such a powerful impression in the late stage, the ending was extremely perfunctory. No wonder Mahito didn't think of it immediately.
Mahito really hadn't expected that Kenjaku valued Tengen even more than Gojo Satoru.
Kenjaku continued: "Gojo Satoru is indeed just a powerful human, as you say. If it were a contest of lifespans, Gojo Satoru would undoubtedly lose to you—but Tengen is different."
"Her technique, Immortality, has been tempered by a thousand years and has now reached the point of sublimation."
"Perhaps it's no big deal even if she becomes a god, but the density of information she collects as a god can never be compared to that of a human."
At this point, Kenjaku held up a finger.