The aftermath of Sukuna's world-ending strike had yet to fully subside.
The spine of the entire Japanese archipelago seemed to have been completely snapped by an irresistible force, slowly sinking into the dark, freezing depths of the ocean in an irreversible descent.
From the direction of Sukuna's slash, the tectonic plates of the entire Western world underwent a violent, cascading shift.
Super earthquakes tore the continents apart.
Hundred-meter-tall tsunamis, like apocalyptic behemoths from myth, swallowed the prosperous coastal cities of the West.
The air was thick with the burnt stench of sulfur and the salty tang of seawater.
The sky was completely blotted out by thick volcanic ash, plunging the entire world into a despair-inducing, sickly yellow gloom.
Doomsday had arrived.
The surviving humans huddled in the ruins of their cities, only a single emotion left on their faces.
Numbness.
However, Satoru Gojo and Suguru Geto knew very well.
This was far from over. That cursed brain was still alive.
Deep within Jujutsu High, in the Tombs of the Star.
This place was supposed to be the sacred, inviolable core maintaining Japan's entire barrier network.
Now, it was thoroughly corrupted by a sickeningly viscous, evil aura.
Kenjaku's plan had finally reached its ultimate, most perfect conclusion.
He had successfully completed his final evolution.
He utilized the absolute peak of negative emotions and cursed energy forcefully harvested from all of humanity the moment the [Culling Game] began.
Combined with the vast, ocean-like reserves of energy Tengen had accumulated over a millennium.
He forcefully "evolved" his existence into an entirely new, ultimate form that transcended all definitions of life.
It was a massive, constantly writhing and multiplying lump of flesh composed of billions of souls and cursed energy.
Countless faces, twisted in agony, surfaced on the flesh lump only to be swallowed by new faces an instant later.
Countless arms of varying lengths stretched out from it, grasping blindly at the empty air.
It was like a living planet forged from pure curses and malice.
The next second.
Through Tengen's global barrier network, the figure of this ultimate being appeared on every surviving, powered screen across the world.
Whether it was the massive billboards in city squares.
Or a shattered television screen in the ruins of someone's home.
Or a survivor's smartphone with a flickering signal.
Everyone's vision was completely dominated by this indescribable, terrifying entity.
A cold will, devoid of humanity and sounding as though billions of voices were speaking in unison, echoed in the minds of every survivor.
"I have succeeded."
"From this day forth, I shall bring the ultimate 'evolution' to this world."
"All life, all souls, all wills shall assimilate with me and become one."
"We will no longer suffer from conflict, division, or pain."
"We shall 'ascend' together."
"To become a complete, eternal, and supreme consciousness."
To accumulate the near-infinite energy required to complete this final assimilation...
...Kenjaku began greedily devouring all remaining high-density sources of cursed energy on the planet.
The ancient powerhouses who had been defeated and had yet to regroup were suddenly, without warning, entangled by tentacles bursting from the ground.
"No—!"
Their bodies, along with the cursed techniques they took such pride in, were instantly broken down and completely devoured as pure cursed energy.
They became a part of this ultimate being's body.
Watching the massive, ever-expanding lump of flesh on the screen, the smile on Ian's lips grew even deeper.
"Now this is getting interesting," he chuckled.
He snapped his fingers with a crisp sound.
An imperceptible golden light, like a living creature, silently slipped into Suguru Geto's body beside him.
Suguru Geto, who had only recently returned from the dead and was discussing countermeasures with Satoru Gojo, jolted violently.
An expression of sheer disbelief washed over his melancholic face.
To his astonishment, he realized something.
The "Uzumaki" within his body, used to store cursed spirits, had suddenly begun to violently reverse itself.
The Special Grade Cursed Spirits he had personally exorcised—whose cursed energy residue had long since dissipated—were being reconstructed and resurrected within his "Uzumaki"!
Jogo's flaming single eye.
Hanami's compassionate face formed of wood.
Mahito's stitched face, forever wearing that twisted smile.
They had all returned.
Furthermore, the cursed energy radiating from them was several times stronger than when they were alive.
Witnessing Kenjaku's terrifying, all-consuming power, and feeling this immense, regained combat strength within himself...
...Satoru Gojo and Suguru Geto exchanged a glance.
They saw an unprecedented resolve in each other's eyes.
They knew.
Other than Ian, they were the only two capable of stopping this apocalyptic disaster.
They hesitated no longer.
The two best friends, once hailed as the "strongest," charged toward the ever-expanding ultimate being in the Tombs of the Star.
Satoru Gojo took the lead.
He pushed his ultimately enhanced [Limitless Cursed Technique] to its absolute peak.
A highly condensed [Blue], capable of warping space itself, formed in his palm and was ruthlessly blasted toward Kenjaku's main body.
However.
The moment that terrifying attack—capable of instantly compressing an entire city into a singularity—made contact with Kenjaku's writhing flesh...
...it was forcefully "analyzed" and absorbed by the entity's body.
The next second.
A massive rift violently tore open on the surface of Kenjaku's body.
An identical [Blue]—one with even more terrifying destructive power—erupted from within, blasting right back at Satoru Gojo!
In the face of this crisis.
Satoru Gojo pushed his offensive and defensive [Limitless Cursed Technique] to its limits, acting as an impenetrable fortress to block Kenjaku's attack head-on.
From the side, Suguru Geto commanded his army of tens of millions of enhanced cursed spirits. Like a raging tsunami, they launched wide-scale attacks to provide cover and suppress the enemy.
Jogo's flames.
Hanami's roots.
Mahito's [Idle Transfiguration].
Countless cursed techniques from Special Grade Cursed Spirits wove together into an apocalyptic web of firepower.
Their teamwork was just as flawless as it had been in the past.
It was as if they had returned to their unbridled, reckless youth—a time they could never truly go back to.
However, in the midst of battle, Kenjaku displayed an even more terrifying, despair-inducing ability.
His constantly writhing body was continuously analyzing and evolving at an astonishing speed.
He could actually forcefully acquire the cursed techniques of others by modifying his own soul and flesh.
Faint traces of the Limitless Cursed Technique even began to cover the surface of his body.
He evolved as he fought.
Growing stronger and stronger.