Chapter 18. Heavenly Blessed

As we sat outside waiting for Yuji and Nobara to exorcise the curse, and I for Gojo's 'signal', Megumi expressed his desire to go in and help. Gojo, however, advised him against it, highlighting that Megumi was still in recovery.

"Recovery? What happened?" I asked naively, though I knew what had transpired with Megumi the previous day, when he first met Yuji.

"Megumi went up against a second-grade cursed spirit yesterday," Gojo explained, pausing for dramatic effect. Despite knowing, I decided to play along.

"Why? Was it that strong?" I asked, my curiosity genuine.

"Yes," Gojo replied. "And when things got desperate for Megumi, that's when Yuji decided to swallow Sukuna's finger."

"So, Yuji swallowed Sukuna's finger to save Megumi," I deduced. "But Yuji seems perfectly fine. He can control Sukuna, right?"

"He can," Gojo nodded. "He is humanity's salvation from cursed energy and curses."

"I've been meaning to ask," Megumi interjected. "Is Yuji heavenly restricted?"

"When I first encountered him, he was surprisingly strong, but..." Megumi began, his voice trailing off. "Heavenly restricted people don't have cursed energy and can't see curses, but at the same time..."

"Yuji doesn't meet all the conditions, so he is not heavenly restricted," Gojo clarified. "He's special in his own way."

"But now that you've mentioned it," Gojo continued thoughtfully. "I've been wondering about something that could be crucial in shaping our world, or even the universe. Perhaps beyond."

"We've heard of people who are heavenly restricted," Gojo pondered. "But have you ever thought of the potential of people or beings who are..."

Gojo paused, his eyes twinkling behind his mask as he looked up.

"Heavenly Blessed?" he said, almost to himself.

"That would be you, Gojo-sensei," Megumi said, a note of reverence in his voice. "Other notable existences would perhaps be the star plasma vessel, or Master Tengen."

"People who are heavenly restricted do not have cursed energy and can't see curses, but they are blessed with immense physical strength," Gojo mused aloud. "I'd like to think that people who are heavenly blessed are the parallel opposites. They have extreme levels of cursed energy and can influence curses to evolve, but they are not as physically strong as other sorcerers."

"However, Heavenly Blessed people could augment their strength, artificially, with their cursed energy," Gojo added.

I twitched nervously from my position beside both Gojo and Megumi. Was Gojo discreetly talking about me, or was he referring to someone else?

Gojo smiled, a rare, genuine smile. "I have a lot of cursed energy, but I recently discovered that even my cursed energy has a limit that I can reach under the right pressure. Moreover, I don't meet the second condition because I am insanely strong. I am not Heavenly Blessed."

"I am 'just' Honored," Gojo concluded, a hint of wistfulness in his tone.

"When you say that they can artificially augment their strength, does that mean like all the other sorcerers outside Japan do?" Megumi inquired. "Are all sorcerers outside Japan Heavenly Blessed?"

"Yeah, I've been meaning to ask that," I said with a curious tone. I knew there were instances of other Jujutsu sorcerers existing outside Japan - from spoilers - but not on the same scale as in Japan. Back in the world hunger dungeon, it was puzzling seeing guns shooting beams of cursed energy. "Why are there so many sorcerers in the world?"

"To answer Megumi's question," Gojo started. "No, sorcerers existing outside the barriers across Japan aren't Heavenly Blessed, as far as I know. That is, as long as their base source of cursed energy is still subject to obeying all the rules affecting cursed energy existing outside Japan."

"Mh?" I wondered out loud, trying to comprehend what Gojo was saying.

"How do I put this?" Gojo wondered, his finger wrapping around his chin.

"I'll explain," Megumi offered his assistance.

"For ages, cursed energy has been constrained to Japan only, keeping the rest of the world from its consequences and ultimately harm... to some extent," Megumi explained. "However, that stopped being the case last year when a lot of cursed energy leaked to the outside world."

"Leaked?" I echoed, still trying to wrap my head around the concept.

"Yes," Gojo continued. "But it wasn't a natural occurrence. Someone, or something, influenced cursed energy to leak outside Japan. When it did, the rest of the world quickly reacted."

"Reacted? How?" I asked, intrigued.

"Only developed countries had the expertise and technology to harness the leaked cursed energy and utilize it," Megumi explained. "They started experimenting with it, forcing new sorcerers to emerge and evolve, sometimes through cruel experiments."

"And that gave rise to Artificial Cursed energy," Gojo added. "Like you saw with guns shooting beams of cursed energy back at the dungeon."

"What dungeon?" Megumi asked.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

"A dungeon of artificial curses," Gojo replied without wanting to go deeper into the explanation. "It will be your first lesson tomorrow right after Nobara, Yuji and Jamal pass this test."

"But as a general rule," Gojo continued. "Artificial cursed energy is weaker than natural cursed energy."

"The world nearly turned upside down when the leak happened, but the Higher ups managed to convince the new secret organizations to keep the world of curses and cursed energy a secret," Megumi added. "Most of the public in many countries are in a blind spot about what's really going on in the world."

"Most agreed to keep it a secret, which makes me very suspicious about what really happened in Tengen's shrine," Gojo said with a doubtful tone. "The barriers shouldn't have failed so easily. I'm convinced the higher-ups are involved, somehow."

"You think the higher-ups sabotaged the barriers?" Megumi asked, his eyes widening.

"It's a possibility," Gojo said, his voice low and serious. "Because of the leak, Jujutsu High failed to protect the rest of the world from curses and cursed energy. The consequences have been far-reaching."

"So, the spread of sorcerers and the evolution of curses outside Japan is linked to this leak," I said, piecing it together.

"Yes," Gojo confirmed. "But don't worry about it. It was bound to happen sooner or later, subject to the principles of the 'Economies of Scale'."

"What about Divine energy?" I asked a question that, more closely related to me.

Megumi's eyes twitched with confusion at the new term.

"If I'm right in my theory about Heavenly Blessed people," Gojo started. "Divine energy must be God's way of intervening in the ongoing crises in the world of sorcery. It literally came from the skies, after all."

"I feel like there's a lot of information I should be made aware of right now," Megumi noted with a puzzled expression. "Who exactly is Jamal?"

"Ah, I believe it's time I made the proper introductions," Gojo said, his smile and gestures enhancing the anticipation. "Jamal, why don't you..."

"Stop smiling," Gojo said after a brief pause for dramatic effect.

'That's the signal,' I thought, having anticipated this moment ever since we arrived in this part of Roppongi. The oppressive atmosphere made smiling an uphill task, but I forced myself to keep at it, remembering Gojo's advice that it would help manage my aura and prevent intimidating those around me.

At Gojo's words, I felt the tension in my cheeks begin to subside as I let my smile fade. Relief washed over me in waves, the muscles in my face relaxing as if a heavy weight had been lifted.

Megumi watched intently, his eyes narrowing with curiosity as he tried to understand the significance of this moment. As my smile completely disappeared, I felt something shift within me. It was as if a barrier had been removed, and cursed energy began to flow naturally through my body.

The sensation hit me with overwhelming speed, the cursed energy rushing through me like a river that had been dammed for too long. It filled every part of my body and the air around me. The surge was abrupt, but it calmed as I focused on my breathing, feeling more centered and powerful than ever.

Megumi's expression gradually changed from curiosity to apprehension. His brows furrowed as the oppressive atmosphere around us seemed to intensify, not just from the environment, but from me.

I glanced at Gojo, who gave me a knowing nod, his eyes twinkling with approval.

"What is happening to him?" Megumi mumbled, tension evident in his voice. I noticed his fists clenching behind his pockets, as if preparing for a fight. "Why am I feeling like this?"

"Like I suddenly want to grow stronger," Megumi expressed, looking at his own body. "No-" he corrected. "I feel like I need- I must grow stronger."

"Don't tell me you don't see his hair glowing too," Gojo remarked to Megumi, though their voices felt distant to me with cursed energy overwhelming my senses.

"I do," Megumi replied. "But seriously, what is happening, Gojo-sensei? Who or what is Jamal? I've never felt so much oppressive power come out of a human before. Not even you."

"Jamal is," Gojo started, "by my definition..."

"Heavenly Blessed."

"And that's not even him at his peak!" Gojo added excitedly, patting Megumi's back to ease his tension and lighten the curse-oppressed atmosphere.

"Not his peak?!" Megumi wondered aloud, heaving to maintain steady breaths as he tried to recollect his composure. "With that kind of aura?"

"Megumi, what you are feeling is Jamal's cursed energy flowing just from his core," Gojo explained. "If he becomes more skillful, he will be able to manipulate it with his brain and stomach autonomously, making him even more powerful."

"At this rate, he should already be the most powerful," Megumi said.

"Haha," Gojo chuckled, not showing any signs of offense. "Well, why don't we find out."

"Nobara and Yuji should be closing in on that curse by now.." Gojo mused while looking at the building.

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