Chapter 58: Immortal Fusion

Sōjun Minamoto had already made arrangements for Tengen's Immortality Technique.

He had never believed in miracles.

This world was far too small—so small that anything even slightly beyond people's expectations would be met with gasps and wonder, instantly labeled a "miracle."

But something that cheap didn't deserve the name.

Still, Sōjun Minamoto was willing to call what he was about to do a miracle—

He was going to fuse with immortality.

He would create a miracle.

The conditions were in place. Tengen had successfully maintained the trait of [being alive]. His consciousness was intact, he had escaped the passive evolution that came once every 500 years, and overcome the limits of bodily aging, gaining long life...

So what was the cost?

In a world like the Jujutsu world—built entirely on balance, with an absolute, near-unshakable equilibrium—what was the price for obtaining so many benefits?

The Immortality Technique had been split into two parts. The part engraved on the flesh had already been successfully assimilated by Sōjun Minamoto.

He had gained significant benefit from it. But what did he pay in return? Especially considering he had been targeted by the balance mechanism long ago, the price couldn't be small.

But Sōjun Minamoto, with his deep experience in negotiating with that very balance, chose to swallow this sugar-coated bomb—and was already preparing to eat the sugar and toss the bomb back.

The Immortality Technique, once assimilated, wasn't like his other techniques—space manipulation, cloning, etc.—which were fully complete and under Perfect Control. Immortality was incomplete, and it had been nested beneath the scope of Perfect Control.

And Perfect Control itself had changed once, back when Sōjun Minamoto awakened. It was no longer the same as the Minamoto clan's manipulation of flesh and soul.

Reincarnation—as an otherworlder. Rebirth—another new life. Perfection—layered with Tengen's once-in-500-year evolutionary trigger, and the added interference of the balance mechanism.

Five unique, irreproducible coincidences stacked atop one another. Even Sōjun Minamoto was willing to call that a miracle. He knew he probably couldn't replicate it again.

During his recent work healing curses, he'd developed an even clearer understanding of how techniques were structured. Whether on the soul's side or the body's, everything was laid bare before his eyes.

He couldn't help but marvel—this Immortality Technique was flawed in just the right way. It wouldn't trigger an uncontrollable evolution, and more importantly, it was under the jurisdiction of Perfect Control.

Sōjun Minamoto broke apart the cursed sigils left behind by the Five-Eyed Bucket Head, converting them into raw cursed essence. He kept only the technique imprints around areas like the frontal lobe.

Carefully, he shifted those imprints to align with his own brain, slowly guiding them toward the mark of Perfect Control.

Perfect Control was domineering. The moment it sensed a trace of that new imprint, it pounced—entwining itself around the broken Immortality Technique, pulling it into its domain, and beginning to consume and assimilate it bit by bit.

Perfection sat above even immortality—it sought to absorb that sliver of evolutionary authority.

As the two imprints tangled together, Sōjun Minamoto's techniques temporarily went offline, unable to function properly. But he wasn't concerned. Creating miracles was never easy—it took boldness and precision.

More importantly, he had the confidence to back it up. Even without his techniques, more than a decade of training in soul, body, and cursed energy had made most of his methods second nature—engraved in instinct and muscle memory.

Flesh Armor was out of commission—but he hadn't yet met a second opponent worthy enough to make him use it anyway.

A few days passed. The mark of Perfect Control had expanded, but the process was only half complete. It still lacked the soul-side blueprint.

Assimilating a technique at this level wasn't as simple as swallowing it whole. It required calibration. If any part carried instability, Sōjun Minamoto would slice it out entirely. There was no point in sacrificing the whole for a single advantage.

The soul side would need to be handled the same way—and it required one more crucial condition...

Sōjun Minamoto returned to the Tombs of the Star.

He took the lift down to the underground levels, walked the ceremonial path, and stopped before the massive doors of the main hall.

He gave them a push—of course, they didn't budge.

Familiar with the process, he stepped under the sacred tree, broke off his index finger, and gave it a slight twist. The severed finger transformed into a pure white bone spike. Blood wriggled over its surface, automatically forming pinhead-sized rune patterns.

A new stake was ready.

He was just about to drive it into the ground when—

Creeeeak...

That massive stone door, with a grating scrape across the floor, slowly opened.

Tengen had opened the door.

"What do you want with me?" Tengen stepped out of the Tombs of the Star.

Sōjun Minamoto raised an eyebrow. Somehow, the other had conjured a false body—identical in appearance to his original one, yet layered with Barriers. Sōjun couldn't easily pierce through the flesh to glimpse the soul beneath.

But that didn't matter. The link between soul and body hadn't been fully severed yet.

He summoned the glowing white short thorns with a thought. Soon, he locked onto Tengen's soul and spotted the fragment of the Immortality Technique etched into it. A small smile tugged at his lips.

"The higher-ups have been pretty active lately. Tough times for you, huh? The entire nation's safety resting on one uncontrollable man... no wonder they're uneasy."

"They've already reached out to the Ainu Jujutsu Alliance..."

"What do you mean by that?" Tengen asked. He'd long cut ties with worldly matters and chosen to completely withdraw into the Tombs of the Star. Lately, he'd been busy—so busy he hadn't even had time to handle the Barrier. If he were given just a few more days, even Sōjun wouldn't be able to force the doors open.

He would be safe.

As for the Ainu... of course he knew. But it didn't matter.

Sōjun looked at his detached, desireless state. Did he really feel untouchable? What a pity. A man with treasure invites trouble—once someone breaks through that shell, he might just regret it.

"If you're focused on your own work, and people keep showing up to pester you... even if they don't interfere, it still ruins your mood, doesn't it?" Sōjun said.

Tengen nodded instinctively. Clearly, he'd been disturbed often these past few days.

Then he heard Sōjun continue:

"Why don't we work together?"

"We don't crave power, nor do we want to be shackled by it. But people rarely have full control over their lives. So let's join forces—just for the freedom to pursue our own goals, and to take Barrier Techniques to even greater heights."

"What do you think? Give it some thought."

"How do you plan to do that?" Tengen looked over, a flicker of interest in his eyes.

"First, secure an absolute position within the Jujutsu World..."

Sōjun offered only a few words before taking his leave. His goal was met—the Immortality Technique had been successfully recorded into his soul.

Tengen moved at his own pace, and Sōjun knew it. He'd give him time. Once Tengen understood, he would come to him.

...

Back at his residence, Sōjun began working on his own soul.

It wasn't easy. He had to strip away the excess and preserve the essence so that Perfect Control could fully integrate. He also needed to synchronize it with his physical body.

A deep blue silhouette emerged from his form—his soul, identical in appearance, with brilliant star-like eyes.

They stood face to face. His physical body raised a hand, and a blade formed out of thin air. He began carving into the soul's head.

No need to be overly cautious. His soul was far more stable, solid, and lifelike than most. If he made a mistake, it would just hurt a little. At worst, he could spend some Cursed Energy to fix it.

Like always, being bold and meticulous was enough. His soul had a high margin for error.

A few days later, his Cursed Energy ran dry. Even his body looked faintly withered from the toll. His daily recovery couldn't keep up, so he started burning through flesh and blood to make up for it...

His soul, however, remained intact. What mattered was—

The Immortality Technique had been successfully integrated.

Perfect Control was still perfect—and now it had evolved.

Sōjun Minamoto's Innate Technique had reached a new level. Calling it Perfect Control no longer felt accurate.

He would name it:

Unlimited!