The dressing room was filled with the chemical scent of hairspray, and the lights were blindingly white.
Chen Tian was slumped in the sofa, his long legs sprawled out lazily.
A document was crumpled casually in his hand, its edges frayed.
Two people stood opposite him.
Kento Nanami, dressed in a suit and tie, his blond hair meticulously combed, wore a standard professional stern expression, his brow habitually furrowed, as if always ready to deal with troublesome matters.
Zen'in Maki beside him was in a completely opposite state.
She held her breath, her usual unapproachable coolness completely gone, her eyes behind her glasses fixated on Chen Tian, shining like charging lights, her fingers nervously twisting the hem of her Jujutsu High uniform, her face suspiciously red, looking exactly like a die-hard fan whose brain had crashed upon seeing their idol.
Chen Tian glanced at the document, a symbol of the Jujutsu World higher-ups' "goodwill," a smile without warmth playing on his lips, not even lifting his eyelids:
"The Jujutsu World higher-ups sent you two to recruit me?" he asked the air.
"Yes," Kento Nanami's voice was flat, businesslike, "The higher-ups hope to unite against Suguru Geto."
His tone was utterly devoid of emotion, purely going through the motions, eager to finish as soon as possible.
Chen Tian scoffed, not bothering to hide the mockery in his eyes.
With a flick of his wrist, the document arced through the air and landed with a "thwack" on the dressing table, scattering its contents.
"Not interested."
Three words, cold and decisive.
Kento Nanami was not surprised by this, even giving a barely perceptible nod—troublesome mission over, good.
Chen Tian stood up and stretched lazily, bones cracking, as if no one else was there.
He turned to Maki, his face instantly switching to a highly approachable celebrity smile, completely ignoring Nanami beside him.
"Since you're here," he said lightly, "stay for the concert before you leave."
Before he finished speaking, he had already walked to the wall, grabbed a cool electric guitar, and slung its strap over his shoulder in a fluid motion.
Pushing open the door, the bright lights of the dressing room were left behind.
The hallway outside was dim, with only a faint roar of sound coming from the direction of the stage ahead—the fervent shouts of tens of thousands of people becoming clearer and clearer.
Chen Tian's steps were unceasing, like a cheetah pouncing on its prey, heading straight for the boundary between darkness and light that was about to ignite.
The heavy curtain suddenly flew open!
A tsunami of screams instantly engulfed him: "Ne—ro—!!!"
Blinding spotlights sliced down like swords, pinning him in the center of the stage.
Chen Tian, with his electric guitar, wore his signature wild, in-control smile.
No idle chatter! His fingers scraped violently across the strings!
"Zheng—!!!"
The sharp, explosive note, like a clap of thunder, instantly crushed all other noise!
It was followed by the booming of heavy drums, pounding the heart, and the roaring bass shaking the floor!
All the stage lights exploded!
White, red, and blue lights furiously churned, cutting across the countless frenzied, distorted faces in the audience.
Massive speaker arrays spewed out deafening sound waves, like invisible giant fists smashing into everyone!
Chen Tian was the eye of the storm on stage!
He violently shook his head, sweat flying in the strong lights.
His fingers became blurs on the fretboard, sliding, hooking, and scraping at high speed, a dense and savage metal riff pouring down like a torrential storm!
On the huge projection screen was his sharp profile, sculpted by the lights, sweat rolling down his jaw, his eyes like knives, a nearly sinister, in-control smile on his lips.
The oppressive, mysterious, yet explosive intro flowed out.
Chen Tian's lips pressed against the microphone, and his high-pitched, penetrating singing voice tore through the sound waves, it was the OP from the anime "Jujutsu Kaisen" from his previous life, "Kaikai Kitan":
Ushou Musou Hito no Nari, (All creation, the nature of humanity)
Kyosei Shinzou Jingai, (Bluffing, imagery, inhuman things)
Mononoke Mitai da (Just like a monster)
Kyoshin Tankai Inochi Yadoushi (Born equal in this world)
As the song entered their ears, it instantly dragged tens of thousands of minds into that eerie whirlpool of reincarnation!
Yami wo Haratte Yami wo Haratte, (Exorcise the darkness, dispel the gloom)
Yoru no Tobari ga Oritara Aizu da, (When the night curtain falls, it's the signal)
Aitai shite Meguru Kanjousen, (Confronting each other, the circular battle continues)
Zaregoto nado wa Hakisutete Ike to (Cast aside all idle talk)
The chorus exploded!
Chen Tian's voice suddenly soared, like lightning tearing through the night sky!
Guitar sound waves layered one after another, drumbeats dense like a doomsday rainstorm!
The air in the entire venue was boiling and resonating!
The audience below was completely insane!
The crowd, like a wheat field ravaged by a hurricane, wildly headbanged, jumped, and roared!
Raised arms, under the psychedelic lights, looked like a frenzied forest.
Waves of "Nero! Nero! Nero!" rose higher and higher!
On stage, Chen Tian's singing grew even more soaring, every note seemingly carrying immense power, fiercely striking people's souls.
Kento Nanami's furrowed brow deepened.
His gaze was fixed on the radiant Chen Tian on stage, the lyrics constantly echoing in his mind.
He knew in his heart that the darkness of the Jujutsu World was not so easily dispelled; curses, like a persistent illness, bred and spread in human negative emotions, while Jujutsu Sorcerers were bound by endless restrictions, struggling forward in this darkness.
Kento Nanami sighed helplessly, thinking that Chen Tian, seemingly cynical, had subtly expressed the current state of the Jujutsu World through music, and wondered how many of the audience, lost in the song, truly understood.
Maki, on the other hand, had long since fallen into a frenzy.
Her eyes never left Chen Tian for a moment, her hands waving almost uncontrollably, screaming hoarsely, as if to unleash all her passion.
At this moment, she had completely shed her usual stern demeanor, transforming entirely into an ordinary fan immersed in the idol's charm.
Kento Nanami raised his hand, the cold light of his phone screen reflecting on his face.
He had intended to report the anomaly of this song to the higher-ups, his finger already on the dial button.
But then he thought about facing tedious analyses, endless meetings, and possibly being assigned more difficult tasks after reporting, like falling into an unending cycle of overtime.
A wave of fatigue instantly washed over him.
He pursed his lips and muttered, "Forget it," stuffing his phone back into his pocket.
In this crazy concert venue, he really didn't want to be entangled with the troublesome affairs of the Jujutsu World anymore; he just wanted to temporarily enjoy this moment of "leisure," even if it was so brief.
Meguro Ward, a neighboring district of Shibuya.
The usually bustling streets were now eerily silent.
Residents had temporarily evacuated under the official reason of "natural gas pipeline crisis inspection," leaving behind only empty shops and closed doors and windows.
The wind blew, carrying a few discarded flyers.
By the riverbank, the pink-haired Yuji Itadori stood out.
He stood by the murky river, hands raised high, clapping vigorously.
"Clap! Clap! Clap!"
The crisp applause was unusually abrupt in the silence.
The river water churned in response, as if boiling!
Dozens of twisted, foul-smelling Cursed Spirits roared as they burst out of the water, clawing and lunging towards the young man on the bank!
Itadori's eyes sharpened, he pushed off the ground, agilely leaping backward, easily dodging the first wave of attacks.
"This way!" he growled, turning without hesitation and sprinting towards the entrance of a nearby abandoned tunnel!
Behind him, the Cursed Spirit horde, like hyenas smelling blood, roared and pursued relentlessly.
In the shadows of the tunnel entrance, a tall figure stood silently—it was Choso.
Itadori led the Cursed Spirit horde into the tunnel entrance area, then abruptly stopped, turning to face his pursuers.
Choso moved.
He formed hand seals, and blood-red Cursed Energy surged as if solid!
"Piercing Blood!"
A violent crimson blood arrow instantly shot out!
The first few Cursed Spirits in front didn't even have time to scream before being directly pierced through their bodies!
Subsequent Cursed Spirits were also pierced one by one by the blood arrows.
Itadori seized the opportunity, his figure shooting into the chaotic Cursed Spirit horde like a cannonball!
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Heavy punches, carrying immense force, slammed into the Cursed Spirits' bodies!
Each dull thud was accompanied by the wailing dissipation of a Cursed Spirit.
He and Choso cooperated seamlessly, one clearing a wide area, the other making precise kills, their movements clean and efficient, with astonishing speed.
In less than a minute, dozens of Cursed Spirits dissipated into black smoke, leaving only a fishy smell of air and faint Cursed Energy residue at the tunnel entrance.
"Done!" Itadori shook his fist, but no relaxed smile appeared on his face, which remained heavy.
Choso nodded, his expression calm: "Next spot?"
"Uh, let's go to..." Itadori began, but his voice suddenly cut off.
A voice abruptly came from above them, "Ah, Megumi isn't here."
Both of them looked up simultaneously.
On the highway guardrail above the tunnel, a figure had appeared at some point.
His short blond hair was striking in the dim light, and he even looked around, as if confirming something.
"Tsk, am I the first one here?" he murmured to himself.
Itadori and Choso instantly tensed, their muscles bulging, immediately assuming defensive stances!
This movement finally caught the blond man's attention.
He looked down, his indifferent gaze sweeping over them, as if looking at pebbles on the roadside.
"What were you two just doing?" His tone was flat, yet filled with biting contempt, "Making so much noise, afraid no one would see you?"
Itadori frowned: "Flee?"
The blond man scoffed, as if he had heard the biggest joke: "Huh? You don't even know that?"
Choso took half a step forward, subtly shielding Itadori behind him, his voice low: "Itadori, the higher-ups have issued a death sentence for you.
They said it's because you lost Gojo Satoru's protection."
"Huh?!" Itadori's pupils constricted, a huge sense of absurdity leaving him speechless for a moment.
Just then!
A deep, hoarse, uninflected voice, like an ice pick against the back of their necks, sounded without warning from behind them:
"Oh?... It's not just one person, is it?"
Buzz—!
A huge wave of Cursed Energy instantly enveloped Itadori and Choso!
In an instant, their hair stood on end, and their muscles stiffened as if frozen!
They spun around!
Just ten steps behind them, a man stood silently.
His eyes were deeply sunken, with heavy dark circles, and his entire being exuded an aura of deathly stillness.
He had a long, narrow cloth bag slung over his shoulder, its outline revealing an ominous sharpness.
His indifferent eyes were locked onto Yuji Itadori.