Curse Return: Infinity

Half a year later!

Finally, it's the "period of time" that Yoruya Seido mentioned. 

The new curse markings have reached the intermediate upper level, and it has taken this long to arrive! 

This morning, just as the sky was beginning to lighten, Yoruya Seido had already appeared at the doorstep. 

"Are you ready?" 

Today, he was dressed in a black formal suit, giving off a slightly solemn vibe. 

"Wait a moment!" 

Minamoto Sōjun skillfully retrieved the keys and opened the basement door. 

This was Mrs. Minamoto's weaponry storage! 

Upon entering, there were about ten wooden humanoid mannequins in the center, covered in deep slash and stab marks. 

The walls were lined with various weapons: swords, spears, halberds, axes, and hooks. 

The collection was extensive. 

But the majority of the items were throwing weapons—flying knives, flying axes, arrows, and short spears—stored on several racks. 

The purpose of this weaponry storage was easy to understand, especially when you consider Mrs. Minamoto's inherited technique. 

Similar to puppet control techniques, some control machines, some control weapons, and of course, some control dolls, like Yoruya Seido! 

Mrs. Minamoto's current strength was about at the pre-first level, one of the top tiers in the jujutsu world, and her technique was inherited from the Yoruya family. She had loved playing with knives and guns since childhood, which naturally guided her development in this direction. 

At the same time, she was also a blacksmith. 

She had specifically learned how to craft cursed tools to enhance her technique's power. 

Cursed tools—tools imbued with curses, able to protect their user—are also ranked from 1 to 4, based on their power and usefulness. The higher the rank, the greater the advantage. 

Creating a cursed tool was no easy task. 

From design to material selection, forging, polishing, heat treatment, and sometimes even assembly and painting—the process was intricate and complex, not to mention the professional tools and extensive preparations required. 

A cursed tool, which is rarely successful, must align with one's technique to unleash its full power. 

The weaponry storage naturally didn't only contain cursed tools, but the majority were ordinary weapons. 

Her forging talent wasn't very high. 

Minamoto Sōjun thought of something that would likely upset Mrs. Minamoto. 

In addition to the collected weapons, there were only a handful of cursed tools she had crafted herself—fewer than five in total. 

Minamoto Sōjun also knew a little about blacksmithing. 

Cursed tools were precious, so he had always taken good care of them. Having worked with them for a while, he had learned some skills and found his success rate with cursed tools even higher than Mrs. Minamoto's. 

After practicing martial arts for so long, he was no stranger to weapons. 

Although he preferred close-combat techniques—the impact of fists, elbows, knees, and legs gave him quicker feedback, allowing him to respond instantly—having weapons always held an advantage. 

At least, before his body became harder and sharper than a cursed tool, he needed a sharp weapon. 

He picked up a sword, shook his head, and put it down—too elegant. 

He tried a long knife, and wiped it, but was still dissatisfied; it was single-edged, too unbalanced in attack and defense. 

A double-edged axe was too bulky. 

A spear was too long to carry easily. 

A hook was too strange. 

After picking and discarding for a while, he eventually chose two short daggers. 

They were about 30 cm long, with pointed, diamond-shaped blades on both ends, wrapped in dark, thin fabric in the middle, resembling a handheld version of an Emei piercing dagger. 

This was one of the few cursed tools Mrs. Minamoto had made herself. 

Minamoto Sōjun twirled the daggers between his fingers, tucked them behind his waist, feeling the blood slightly heat up, becoming excited. 

He walked out of the basement and approached Yoruya Seido. 

"I'm ready." 

After being a flyweight assassin for so many years and part of an academic faction, he was finally going out for a real mission. 

He had been an ordinary person in his past life, unable to instantly become exceptional in this world, just doing what he was good at—studying—which made everything feel effortless. 

Now, he was stepping into unknown territory and wasn't sure what he could achieve. 

Essentially, he was still the same ordinary person, just becoming better. 

"Let's go." Yoruya Seido said, leading him out the door and into a black sedan. 

The two were silent at first, but after a while, Yoruya Seido began to explain: 

"This is a first-level cursed spirit extermination mission. A juvenile detention center has developed a first-level cursed spirit, causing significant harm. So far, 15 people have been seriously injured, and 9 are dead. We need to get there as soon as possible and exorcise the cursed spirit!" 

It seemed like he had entered a sort of... work mode?! 

Soon, they arrived at the location, with Yoruya Seido pulling the car to the side. The two approached the entrance of the juvenile detention center. 

The area had been cordoned off with police tape, and access was restricted. Yoruya Seido showed his credentials without being stopped and led Minamoto Sōjun to the gate. 

"The curse is very thick here." 

Minamoto Sōjun looked up at the detention center, where dark mist was rising and gathering, forming a black cloud above. The curse was boiling inside, with an oppressive presence. 

Yoruya Seido remained silent, observing carefully from the outside. 

He then extended his right hand, curling his ring and pinky fingers, placing his thumb over them, and extending his index and middle fingers together in front of his mouth: 

"Born from darkness, darker than black, filthy and corrupt, purge them all." 

It was the "帳"(Chō/Barrier). 

Minamoto Sōjun's memories regarding this were triggered. 

The new curse markings provided a detailed description of the technique: forming a sword gesture with the hand, chanting the spell, and injecting cursed energy would form the barrier—"帳". 

In his mind, the precautions appeared: the sword gesture must be performed with the right hand for writing and chanting; the spell must be spoken softly, with clear enunciation; and the cursed energy must be balanced—not too much, not too little... 

A viscous, ink-like liquid flowed down from the sky, eventually forming a black hemispherical barrier that enveloped the entire detention center. 

"Let's go. Ordinary people can't see the barrier itself. Although they can see through it, they won't notice what's happening inside." Yoruya Seido led the way into the barrier. 

Minamoto Sōjun followed, entering the detention center. Inside the barrier, it was noticeably darker and gloomier, as if a layer of shadow covered everything. 

They hadn't gone far when they saw a human-hand-like centipede, its abdomen covered in countless eyes, coiled around the outer wall of the building, spewing curses into the sky while whispering eerily. 

As they approached, half of its eyes suddenly turned toward them, sending a cold, ominous glare. The pupils quivered, as if ready to burst from the corners, with veins bulging in the eyes. 

Yoruya Seido curled his fingers inward, hovering them above a teddy bear figurine. As cursed energy surged, the bear's mouth twisted, and shadows formed on its nose and forehead. 

From the teddy bear's face, he could sense a deadly intent. 

"Go!" 

Minamoto Sōjun felt the space distort for a moment, and the bear disappeared, reappearing above the cursed spirit. 

The cursed spirit followed the bear with its eyes; it could see it but couldn't stop it. The bear moved swiftly, slashing from the upper abdomen to the lower one, causing the creature's eyes to explode one by one, spraying blood and flesh everywhere. 

The cursed spirit screamed in agony, contracting its body and clinging to the building, trying to crush the bear. 

But the bear was too small and agile, dodging with every strike, while the cursed spirit struggled, crashing through half the building. 

The dust grew thicker, obscuring their figures, and the sounds gradually faded away. Soon, it was completely silent. 

Minamoto Sōjun waved his hand to clear the air, and when the dust settled, the centipede cursed spirit lay on the ground, its body fully extended and even larger. The teddy bear stood atop its head, a stark contrast to its massive form. 

Minamoto Sōjun walked through the rubble of the building, where he could still see some severed limbs. 

He approached the cursed spirit, gently touching its body and sensing it. 

The cursed spirit began to disintegrate on its own, turning into black mist and dispersing into the air, while the dark clouds above the detention center slowly dissipated. 

Where did all this cursed energy go? 

Minamoto Sōjun watched the scene with a deep gaze. 

It was hard to describe his current mental state. 

He wasn't afraid, nor did he feel disgusted by the blood and flesh. All that was left was the lingering sense of the unknown.

He took out the cursed tool daggers from his back and twirled them in his hands, with a subtle expression of excitement, as if eager for the next battle to begin.

"Yoruya, I'll leave the rest to you. You lead the cleanup and surveillance."

Yoruya Seido nodded, signaling the completion of their mission.

Minamoto Sōjun walked away, his feet now lighter than before.

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