After spending a full half hour in a taxi, Xia Chuan finally arrived at the Time Vessel Association.
The journey had taken him almost to the outskirts of the city.
“Damn.”
Xia Chuan cursed under his breath.
There were two reasons for his irritation.
First, the taxi fare had been ridiculously expensive.
Second, standing before him was a staircase stretching more than a hundred steps upward.
It was supposedly the headquarters of a cult.
Why did they need to build the place so high?
Did they expect people to climb up here and worship them like pilgrims?
Still, despite being located near the edge of the city, the place seemed surprisingly inconspicuous.
Hardly anyone appeared to pay attention to it.
Grumbling inwardly, Xia Chuan began climbing the stairs.
Normally, places occupied by jujutsu sorcerers shouldn’t have many cursed spirits around.
Yet once Xia Chuan reached the upper part of the staircase, he noticed quite a few small cursed spirits wandering around the surrounding area.
They weren’t wandering aimlessly.
They seemed more like sentries, monitoring the area.
“Are these cursed spirits created by Suguru Geto?”
…
At the same time, inside the enormous compound connecting the foot of the mountain to the buildings above, Suguru Geto yawned as he looked toward the sky.
“Geto-sama, it doesn’t look like we’ll have any visitors today.”
A tall, beautiful woman with pink hair stood beside Geto.
She looked almost like a secretary.
Her name was Shion, and she was one of the people who regarded Geto as the head of their little family.
Shion knew that ever since Geto had discovered a talented individual who had escaped the attention of Jujutsu High a few days ago, he had been in unusually good spirits.
“Not necessarily.”
Geto’s eyes suddenly sharpened.
“We have a guest.”
“Hm?”
Shion was surprised.
At the same time, she noticed the anticipation in Geto’s expression.
The Time Vessel Association generally had two kinds of visitors.
One group consisted of wealthy business partners who provided funding for the organization.
The other consisted of ordinary people who came seeking spiritual purification.
Regardless of which group they belonged to, they were all ordinary humans.
Although Geto always treated visitors politely, Shion knew very well how much contempt and disgust he actually held toward ordinary people.
If he was genuinely looking forward to a visitor, then…
Could this be the new jujutsu talent he had been waiting for?
Shion couldn’t help becoming curious.
She looked toward the empty staircase.
Before long, the sound of footsteps climbing the stairs became increasingly clear.
A moment later, Xia Chuan appeared before them.
He’s a high-school student?
And not bad-looking, either.
That was Shion’s immediate assessment.
Geto, meanwhile, approached with a relaxed smile.
“Yo, Xia Chuan-kun.”
“You came faster than I expected.
I thought you’d spend some time thinking about it first.”
Xia Chuan looked at him.
“I came all this way because of what you told me.”
“Of course.”
“Since you’ve come, I’ll keep my word.”
Geto stroked his chin before gesturing toward the compound.
“Come inside and have a seat.”
Xia Chuan nodded and followed Geto into the inner courtyard.
“By the way, I heard some rumors about the Time Vessel Association on my way here.”
“Oh?”
Geto’s interest was immediately piqued.
“Now I’m curious.
What did you hear?”
“Apparently, it’s a place similar to a shrine or temple, and your spirit-extermination services are supposed to be quite effective.”
“That’s right.”
Geto raised a hand casually.
“After all, exorcising cursed spirits is one of the most basic abilities of a jujutsu sorcerer.”
“And if I’m being honest, it’s actually quite profitable.”
“Are you interested in that kind of work, Xia Chuan-kun?”
Xia Chuan nodded.
“I am.”
Money was, after all, one of the necessities of life in this world.
As a student, Xia Chuan currently had very few legitimate ways to earn a substantial income.
Spirit extermination, however, offered him a rare opportunity to make serious money through legitimate work.
“Then why don’t you join the Time Vessel Association?”
Geto smiled.
“When it comes to connections, we have quite a few wealthy clients.
A single job can—”
“If it’s an incident that requires someone to personally visit the site,” Shion quickly added, “one job can easily bring in a profit of seven or eight hundred thousand yen.”
“And the Time Vessel Association currently works with several major corporations and even some politicians.”
Xia Chuan shook his head.
“Unfortunately, I don’t have any plans to join an organization right now.”
Become one of Geto’s people?
He had no intention of doing that.
He had only come here because of the potential benefits to his own growth.
As far as Xia Chuan was concerned, their relationship was, at most, a cooperative one.
Hearing his answer, Shion looked somewhat displeased.
Geto, however, continued smiling.
“In that case, how about working part-time?”
“We’re quite flexible here at the Time Vessel Association.”
“That sounds reasonable.”
“If I have the time, I might give it a try.”
The two continued chatting casually.
Their conversation was surprisingly natural for two people who had only just met.
Seeing how highly Geto valued Xia Chuan, Shion stopped showing any dissatisfaction and simply followed them.
The three eventually arrived at a large hall deeper inside the compound.
The interior was spacious and almost completely empty.
There wasn’t even a chair.
Geto sat cross-legged on the floor and looked directly at Xia Chuan.
“Although jujutsu sorcerers are generally born with their abilities, there are indeed some exceptions.”
“Now, let’s get back to the main topic.”
“Xia Chuan-kun, do you know what cursed energy is?”
Xia Chuan sat down some distance away from him.
He circulated the energy within his body.
“You mean this energy inside me?”
“Bingo!”
Geto snapped his fingers.
“People who possess cursed energy are generally referred to as jujutsu sorcerers.”
“And most jujutsu sorcerers possess an innate cursed technique.”
“Just like those unusual eyes of yours.”
“And my own Cursed Spirit Manipulation.”
“Oh, right.
I almost forgot to explain.”
“My technique allows me to absorb and use cursed spirits.”
“Cursed spirits are essentially supernatural entities born from the negative emotions of humanity.”
Xia Chuan nodded lightly.
He listened attentively, just like a beginner learning the fundamentals of an unfamiliar subject.
“There are other thresholds and requirements beyond possessing an innate technique, but we can leave those aside for now.”
Geto smiled warmly.
“Since you’ve come all the way here, I assume you’ve already discovered that you possess some other special potential besides those eyes.”
Xia Chuan shook his head.
“Rather than calling it another ability, I’d say my eyes can evolve continuously by killing cursed spirits and absorbing the negative energy they leave behind.”
Xia Chuan didn’t hide this information.
Upon hearing it, Geto stroked his chin.
A hint of disappointment appeared on his face.
“So that’s how it works.”
“That’s somewhat different from what I expected.”
“But it doesn’t really affect the outcome.”
“Xia Chuan-kun, you should understand what I’m planning, right?”
“Of course.”
Xia Chuan wasn’t stupid.
Geto had already revealed his Cursed Spirit Manipulation, which had made his intentions fairly obvious.
“So what kind of compensation do you want in return?”
At those words, Geto’s narrowed eyes slowly opened.
Then he laughed and waved his hand.
“Don’t overthink it, Xia Chuan-kun.”
“After all, jujutsu sorcerers are all family.”
Seeing Geto say that, Xia Chuan didn’t pursue the matter any further.
Perhaps Geto genuinely intended to help him.
But it was equally possible that Geto’s enthusiasm had diminished somewhat after learning that the cursed energy Xia Chuan absorbed was ultimately being converted into growth for his eyes.
Regardless, Xia Chuan didn’t care.
For now, he simply wanted to find out whether he could make his Sharingan evolve today.
As though sensing the anticipation building inside Xia Chuan, Geto smiled.
“Then…”
Geto stood up.
His enormous sleeves swept outward.
In an instant, several terrifying cursed spirits appeared throughout the vast hall.
Their grotesque forms filled the room with an oppressive atmosphere.
“They’re all good children who won’t attack humans.”
“So, Xia Chuan-kun…”
“Go ahead and feed.”