Over the next few days, Kenjaku devoted all his energy into researching this golden goblet.
Kenjaku conducted many experiments.
He first caught some weak Cursed Spirits and threw them directly into the Holy Grail.
As soon as those Cursed Spirits touched the black liquid at the bottom of the cup, they would let out shrill screams. Then, their bodies would begin to twist and completely melt, becoming part of the black liquid.
However, the volume of the black liquid did not increase.
Kenjaku quickly discovered that the Holy Grail absorbed Cursed Energy and Cursed Spirits not to increase the amount of black liquid, but to "purify" it.
The black liquid at the bottom of the cup was an extremely filthy, extremely dark amalgamation of energy.
Kenjaku didn't know exactly what it was, but he could feel that this substance was more primal than Cursed Energy, closer to the very essence of "Negative Emotions".
He attempted to extract the black liquid and dripped it onto a Grade 2 Cursed Spirit.
The result shocked him.
The instant that Grade 2 Cursed Spirit came into contact with the black liquid, its body began to change drastically.
Its livid skin turned into a pitch-black carapace, its size swelled by nearly double, and the Cursed Energy fluctuations it emitted skyrocketed straight to the Grade 1 level.
Moreover, it became incredibly berserk; its aggressiveness and all its attributes were enhanced several times over, far surpassing the level of a normal Grade 1 Cursed Spirit.
It took Kenjaku some effort to bring it back under control.
He looked at the Cursed Spirit in his hands that had been strengthened by the black liquid, then looked at the scant amount of black liquid remaining in the Holy Grail, and a plan gradually took shape in his mind.
What if... he used this black liquid to feed even stronger Cursed Spirits?
For example, a Special Grade?
But Special Grade Cursed Spirits were not that easy to catch.
Furthermore, Kenjaku's current body was only that of a Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer, so his strength was limited.
He needed a safer method.
Thus, he thought of another idea.
He selected two locations.
Aoki Second Psychiatric Hospital, and Tokyo Juvenile Detention Center.
Both of these places had a dense accumulation of lingering Negative Emotions, making it easy to breed Cursed Spirits.
Additionally, their locations were relatively secluded, so even if a major disturbance occurred, it wouldn't easily attract too much attention.
Kenjaku took the Holy Grail and quietly infiltrated these two places.
In a certain room within the Psychiatric Hospital, and in an abandoned warehouse at the Juvenile Detention Center, he set up simple Cursed Techniques respectively to draw out a small fraction of the Holy Grail's power and integrate it into the local environment.
Then, he hid in the dark, waiting quietly.
The Cursed Wombs formed very quickly.
Kenjaku could feel that during their incubation process, those two Cursed Wombs were continuously absorbing the dark energy emitted by the Holy Grail.
Their Cursed Energy fluctuations were much stronger than ordinary Cursed Spirits right from the start, and they continued to increase.
Following this trend, the Cursed Spirits that hatched would at least be at the peak of Grade 1, and might even touch the threshold of Special Grade.
Kenjaku was very satisfied.
He had two purposes for doing this.
First, to test the limits of the Holy Grail's power.
To see exactly how strong a Cursed Spirit catalyzed in this manner could become.
Second, to stimulate Ryomen Sukuna inside Itadori Yuji.
By manipulating those corrupt Higher-ups of the Jujutsu World, he would send Itadori Yuji to these two places to face Cursed Spirits that far exceeded his capabilities.
Faced with a life-or-death crisis, Ryomen Sukuna would absolutely seize temporary control of the body.
When that time came, Kenjaku would be able to observe Ryomen Sukuna's condition and Itadori Yuji's suppressive power over Ryomen Sukuna, paving the way for his subsequent plans.
Everything went smoothly.
Until Kama appeared.
Kenjaku would never forget that day.
He hid in the shadows near Aoki Second Psychiatric Hospital, remotely observing the Cursed Spirit's situation through a Cursed Technique.
Then, he saw that girl with short silver hair.
The first time Kenjaku laid eyes on her, he felt something was wrong.
She wasn't a Jujutsu Sorcerer.
The energy fluctuations on her body were incredibly similar to the Holy Grail.
Although the form of expression was different, they were essentially of the same origin.
Kenjaku immediately became vigilant.
Not long after the Holy Grail appeared, she arrived in the Jujutsu World.
This kind of coincidental timing made Kenjaku completely disbelieve that it was an accident.
He decided to hold his ground and observe first.
Then, he witnessed a scene that made his scalp go numb.
That Cursed Spirit he had placed such high hopes in couldn't even withstand a single arrow in front of that girl.
The moment the Pink Streamer pierced through the Cursed Spirit's core, Kenjaku felt the Holy Grail violently tremble.
Kenjaku's face turned livid.
He realized that there was definitely some profound connection between this girl and the Holy Grail.
Moreover, she was dangerous.
Extremely dangerous.
Kenjaku immediately changed his plans.
He no longer actively used the Holy Grail, choosing instead to hide it. He thoroughly concealed his own tracks and began secretly investigating Kama's origins.
But he didn't expect Kama's sensory abilities to far exceed his imagination.
Just by leaking a trace of its aura, Kama had locked onto the Holy Grail's location.
That afternoon, while Kenjaku was researching the Holy Grail in a safe house somewhere in Tokyo, he suddenly felt a chill down his spine.
The Holy Grail began to vibrate crazily.
The cracks on the cup spread at a visible rate, and the black liquid at the bottom surged violently, as if it had suffered a tremendous fright.
Before Kenjaku even had time to react—
"Swoosh!"
A pink stream pierced through space and shot toward the Holy Grail!
"Bang——!!!"
Kenjaku was sent flying by the shockwave, slamming heavily into the wall.
He coughed up a mouthful of blood and struggled to his feet, looking in the direction of the Holy Grail.
The Holy Grail was still there.
But the cracks on the cup were already densely packed; a single touch would shatter it completely.
More than half of the black liquid inside the cup was gone, leaving only a thin layer.
And that pink stream, after piercing through the Holy Grail, did not disappear. Instead, it made a turn in mid-air and shot straight toward Kenjaku!
Kenjaku's pupils shrank abruptly.
I can't dodge it!
I'm going to die!
Right at this critical moment—
The Holy Grail suddenly erupted with a blinding black light!
The black liquid gushed out from the rim, transforming into countless tentacles that entangled the pink stream.
"Sizzle, sizzle..."
The pink stream eventually dissipated.
Immediately after, the Holy Grail flashed, taking him away to escape to another location.
Kenjaku slumped onto the ground, gasping for air, his back already soaked in cold sweat.
He looked at the Holy Grail.
Kenjaku felt that the aura... had locked onto him.
"No..."
He wanted to retreat, but his body wouldn't obey.
The black liquid overflowed from the rim and crawled toward him.
"Wait... I'm your collaborator... I helped you collect Cursed Energy... I..."
The black liquid ignored his pleas.
It climbed onto his feet and spread up his legs.
"Ahhhh——!!!"
Kenjaku let out a shrill scream.
He tried to struggle, but the black liquid had already wrapped around his neck, burrowing into his mouth, his nose, his ears...
Finally, it entered his brain.
Kenjaku's body convulsed violently a few times, then completely stopped moving.
A few seconds later.
He stood back up and bent down to pick up the Holy Grail from the ground.
The instant his fingers touched the cup, the black liquid surged from the rim and spread up along his arm.
"Hrr..."
He opened his mouth, letting out a sound like leaking air.
The black liquid inside his eye sockets slowly rotated, reflecting the messy scene inside the safe house.
Then, he turned around and walked toward the door.
The target—
Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical College.
It was going to find itself an even stronger Vessel!
Through Kenjaku's memories, Ryomen Sukuna, residing inside Itadori Yuji, was its best choice!
...