Mount Tai Imperial Lord Ritual

Your actions have earned the appreciation of Plot Character Kenjaku. Your reputation with Kenjaku has increased.

Current: Indifference (78/100)

Tch. Bai Cangshu curled his lips in disdain for that "thousand-year-old sneak" hiding inside Wasuke Itadori’s body.

The other party was indeed a powerful Jujutsu Sorcerer. He had abandoned human principles and morality, and could even do something like possess a woman’s body, find Jin Itadori—the twin brother of Two-faced Shōnen’s reincarnation—marry him, and give birth to Yuji Itadori, a vessel specially prepared for Two-faced Shōnen.

From one perspective, he was mad enough, a powerful Jujutsu Sorcerer with sufficient "emotion."

But on the other hand, Kenjaku was far less frank and direct than Two-faced Shōnen and Satoru Gojo.

Whether it was Two-faced Shōnen or Satoru Gojo, they had always believed that they alone were the strongest. That conviction of being invincible under heaven complemented their own strength.

For Jujutsu Sorcerers, that intense emotion of above heaven and below heaven, I alone am supreme was precisely why those two had ascended to the pinnacle of strength.

Kenjaku was clearly lacking in that regard.

He felt fear. He had worries. He had… the instinct to seek advantage and avoid harm.

Even after plotting for a thousand years and mastering knowledge and techniques far beyond those of ordinary sorcerers, he still chose to hide behind the scenes when facing Jujutsu Sorcerers a millennium later, lurking in someone’s shadow.

Even when dealing with a junior like him, he still had to play these hypocritical games.

Bai Cangshu raised his head. If they were judging purely by aptitude within the highly "idealistic" system of Jujutsu Sorcerers, then he was superior to Kenjaku—even if… as an outsider Reincarnator, he did not even know whether he was qualified to use an Innate Technique.

In the power system of Jujutsu Kaisen, one important point was that nearly everyone’s technique was actually an Innate Technique, an ability they were born with.

But being born with it did not mean one could use it.

Even if someone possessed cursed energy that allowed them to see cursed spirits, as well as an Innate Technique, the structure of their brain determined whether they could actually use that Innate Technique.

It could be said that this was a very unusual setting in this world. These natural-born Jujutsu Sorcerers and ordinary humans really were akin to two different species.

Their brain structures differed fundamentally.

It was like mutants and ordinary humans in American comics.

That gave Suguru Geto’s "monkey theory" a little more credibility.

"Do you know who is currently commanding the remaining forces of the Jujutsu World and trying to make one final struggle?"

Bai Cangshu considered it briefly. Satoru Gojo was dead, and the Jujutsu World’s forces within Tokyo had nearly been completely wiped out. The only ones left were those people in Kyoto.

Whether Kyoto Jujutsu High or those great clans rooted in Kyoto for hundreds of years.

Thinking of this, Bai Cangshu’s expression turned strange. That special emblem was still in his Backpack.

Emblem: Shinto, aside from increasing both mental and energy attributes by 1 point, could also raise additional reputation with Shintoism.

In the Demon Slayer World, he had gained considerable reputation among the hidden faction Shintoism and old Onmyoji clans such as the Tsuchimikado.

Bai Cangshu was very curious how those old fossils in Kyoto would view him if he took out that emblem now.

"The people in Kyoto?"

Kenjaku nodded and added,

"To be precise, it is the so-called Star Religious Group led by Suguru Geto. They are organizing those remaining survivors and dreaming of cleansing the Spirit Disaster by nuking Tokyo."

"But many people understand that after a nuclear blast, a new special-grade cursed spirit will inevitably be born—one far stronger than an ordinary special grade."

"A cursed spirit born from this nation’s decades-long, undispelled fear of nuclear explosions."

You have triggered Side Mission: Prevent the Nuclear Blast

Mission Description: Japan's upper echelons have resolved to strike Tokyo with nuclear weapons. However, Kenjaku believes this will be ineffective and cause further disaster. Prevent the nuclear blast from descending.

Mission Reward: C-rank Anomaly Point x1, Dimensional Points 3000

Seeing the triggered mission, Bai Cangshu found both the reward and the mission content perfectly normal.

But there was one thing that made no sense.

To Kenjaku, whether there was a nuclear blast, or whether that "Nuclear Explosion Cursed Spirit" would be born, had nothing to do with him.

At this moment, there was only one absolute crisis on this land: Silent City: Tokyo.

Within what had once been Asia’s most prosperous region, an unprecedentedly terrifying cursed spirit was being born. And behind it all, a terrifying Reincarnator who had caused every one of these events was hiding in the shadows.

Kenjaku, Suguru Geto, and every other surviving figure in the Jujutsu World, regardless of their previous positions, should now only be considering that enemy.

Bai Cangshu did not point this out. He nodded and accepted the mission, then asked Yuji Itadori to drive him to Kyoto.

"Yuji is still young. He is too inexperienced for such a long journey. I’ll arrange for someone else to take you."

As expected, Kenjaku refused the request and took the initiative to arrange for a man to escort Bai Cangshu.

Bai Cangshu met Kenjaku’s gaze. Both had smiles in their eyes, as though they had already seen through each other’s intentions.

Then Bai Cangshu casually waved a finger and turned to leave.

He had already understood Kenjaku’s objective.

This mission to prevent the nuclear blast was, in essence, a way to send him to Kyoto, to the front lines against the Spirit Disaster.

Whether he successfully prevented the nuclear blast or was captured by Suguru Geto, he would come into contact with the faction opposing the King of Curses.

Bai Cangshu guessed that this world’s Main Mission might revolve around Suguru Geto and Cursed Spirit Gojo. The forces of the other hidden factions would ultimately mix their strength into those two sides in some form.

"Hello, Mr. Mercenary Tao. I am Kong Shiyu. I have come to take you to Kyoto."

Waiting for Bai Cangshu downstairs was a man in a black suit with short hair and a calm expression.

He drove a black Honda sedan and invited Bai Cangshu into the car.

Upon hearing Kong Shiyu’s name and connecting it with certain clues from the story, Bai Cangshu became even more certain of his earlier guess.

Kong Shiyu was a highly "coincidental" figure. First, he had acted as the middleman for the Star Religious Group, contacting Toji Fushiguro to assassinate the Star Plasma Vessel, Riko Amanai, which led to Satoru Gojo’s first death and awakening.

Then, after Suguru Geto defected, he helped Suguru Geto violently consolidate the Star Religious Group and become its leader.

Even when Satoru Gojo had been young, Kong Shiyu had tried to find someone to assassinate him.

This guy was practically openly one of Kenjaku’s people. His appearance now happened to prove it.

It also confirmed from another angle that Suguru Geto was still under Kenjaku’s control.

Whatever Suguru Geto wanted to do now—or was passively compelled to do—was Kenjaku’s will.

"Tch. Lord Kenjaku can’t even send a cursed spirit to fly me straight to Kyoto? He has to make a monkey like you use such a primitive method as driving?"

Sitting in the back seat, Bai Cangshu curled his lips and deliberately provoked Kong Shiyu.

But Kong Shiyu merely smiled indifferently, started the car, and drove onto the road.

Bai Cangshu watched the contraction rate of Kong Shiyu’s heart and lungs, the rhythm of his pulse. The man had truly not been affected in the slightest by that verbal provocation.

This guy was a smart person.

But… I don’t like Smart People like this.

Kong Shiyu suddenly felt an icy chill behind him. He instinctively tensed his back and looked into the rearview mirror, only to see Mercenary Tao staring at him without blinking.

That gaze made no attempt to conceal its hostility.

This guy… might really be insane.

Kong Shiyu moved between the hidden world and the ordinary world and had done many shady things, so he had naturally encountered all sorts of people. Whether assassins or Jujutsu Sorcerers, there were few mentally stable, normal people among them.

But this Mercenary Tao still made him feel that he was excessively dangerous.

The man’s gaze and thoughts were utterly unrestrained. He neither feared the power of that lord from the hidden world nor seemed likely to fear the laws of the ordinary world.

Because of Tokyo’s drastic upheaval, the people of Japan were deeply unsettled, and vast neighborhoods had become much more desolate.

The wealthy had long fled to other countries. Those who remained in Japan had mostly fled to the two ends furthest from Tokyo.

The car sped all the way onward. In his inexplicably tense state, Kong Shiyu took only a little over three hours to deliver Bai Cangshu into Kyoto.

Bai Cangshu suddenly smashed the side window, leaned out, and felt the wild wind battering him as the vehicle raced along at nearly 140 kilometers per hour.

He saw that familiar yet unfamiliar scenery once more.

Kyoto in the Jujutsu World was far more prosperous than it had been in the Taishō Era.

Beyond the shade of ancient shrines stood the same steel-and-concrete towers.

"Kong Shiyu, do you know something? I’ve never had very good luck."

Inside the car, Kong Shiyu could only vaguely hear what that madman was saying outside, but he still could not help glancing toward the back.

The madman had nearly stuck his entire body out of the car. At this speed, if they got into an accident, he would definitely become a pile of mangled flesh.

Bai Cangshu did not feel the slightest danger. On the contrary, he enjoyed the thrill.

He raised his left hand high. The curse mark left by Inari Ōkami was particularly conspicuous beneath the sunlight.

"So, Kong Shiyu, be careful when you act with me. Heh."

Bang!

The car jolted violently. Kong Shiyu instantly felt that something had ruptured, and he reflexively slammed on the brakes. Turning around to see what the madman was up to this time, he found that the other party was already growing farther and farther away.

That madman had jumped from a car moving at 140 kilometers per hour?!

"You—"

Before Kong Shiyu could curse, an enormous shadow suddenly swallowed him. He raised his head, and his entire body went cold as needle-like pain shot through his spine.

A gigantic cursed spirit descended from the sky.

Boom!

The vehicle crashed into the cursed spirit’s body, twisted violently, and then exploded.

At the final moment, Kong Shiyu shoved open the car door and jumped out. But the powerful momentum sent him rolling wildly across the road, instantly breaking several bones and bruising large areas of his muscles.

"Mr. Kong Shiyu, you really are unlucky."

The curse brought by Secret Rite: Inari God’s Strike caused Bai Cangshu to attract additional malice. Even when he walked down the street normally, people would find him unpleasant and provoke him.

Much less in a world filled with cursed spirits.

With Bai Cangshu positioned outside the car, the speeding vehicle was like a signboard that invited resentment as it continued onward. Being attacked by cursed spirits was the more likely outcome.

Kong Shiyu tried to rise from the ground, but amid the cursed spirit’s roar, he could only turn his head slightly to look at that madman.

He could not understand it at all. He had obeyed his orders and intended to send the other party near Star Religious Group territory. He had made no arrangements targeting him whatsoever.

Why had the other party suddenly done something like this?

Bai Cangshu did not look at the enormous bird-type cursed spirit. Its gigantic beak and rather bloated body made it far from agile.

He walked directly toward Kong Shiyu.

The cursed spirit abruptly lifted its head and pecked downward.

Riiip!

The sound of Thunderclap and Flash rang out. Bai Cangshu moved at high speed in an instant, arriving beside Kong Shiyu and grabbing this "black glove," who had done quite a few things, by the neck with one hand.

"I just don’t like having a smart person following me around."

That was right. Bai Cangshu had no intention of following Kenjaku’s wishes and joining Suguru Geto’s side. Whether there would be a nuclear blast had nothing to do with the Main Mission.

Or rather, if preventing the nuclear blast was necessary, then with so many Reincarnators in this world, someone would naturally carry out such a "simple" mission.

What Bai Cangshu wanted was to truly understand the core essence of this Main Mission—the Spirit Disaster!

The nature of the power that had caused Satoru Gojo’s fall and turned Tokyo into the City of Silence.

As for the answer to that question, the great clans and religious figures of Kyoto that had likewise been passed down from the Heian Period or even earlier were probably the ones who understood it best.

And if he was going to do this, Bai Cangshu naturally did not want a troublesome figure like Kong Shiyu following at his side or behind his back.

The cursed spirit pulled out its beak, leaving a deep pit several meters wide in the solid concrete road.

Bai Cangshu held Kong Shiyu by the neck and suddenly tightened his grip.

Crack.

The clear sound of a throat being crushed rang out. Kong Shiyu twitched weakly twice, then fell silent.

You killed Kong Shiyu and obtained Dimensional Points 50.

Milestone: Killer Demon progress updated. Current: 19/1000

Bai Cangshu grabbed Kong Shiyu and tossed him high into the air. Then he turned, leaped down from the highway, and sprinted toward a distant shrine.

The bird-type cursed spirit raised its head and swallowed Kong Shiyu’s corpse. By the time it looked for Bai Cangshu again, he had already raced two kilometers away.

After several hundred years, Bai Cangshu once again stood beneath the mountain gate of Fushimi Inari Taisha. In this era, the shrine possessed far more of the bustle of ordinary life.

Unlike in the Taishō Era, when Kibutsuji Muzan had stolen its trust and favor, Fushimi Inari Taisha in this age had even become a famous tourist attraction.

While receiving worship, it also gained further incense offerings from casual believers and idle sightseers.

Bai Cangshu rapidly climbed the mountain along the path formed by thousands of torii gates. He did not know whether it was an illusion, but after arriving at this shrine, he could feel the curse mark on his left hand faintly glowing.

Kyoto had likewise been affected by Tokyo’s fall. There were few people in the shrine at this time, and even the shrine priests were scarce.

Only after Bai Cangshu reached the courtyard in the middle of the shrine did he see an elderly man in shrine robes carefully sweeping up red maple leaves.

The old man turned around, and the moment he saw Bai Cangshu, he suddenly trembled.

"You are…"

Bai Cangshu deliberately held the emblem in his hand and said,

"I have some matters I wish to ask the Shrine Master about. Is he here?"

The old man bowed respectfully.

"Divine Messenger, have you come to inquire about the Mount Tai Imperial Lord Ritual?"

Bai Cangshu frowned. The Mount Tai Imperial Lord Ritual?