A few days later, Tengen had fully stabilized.
The dust had settled.
The Jujutsu world returned to peace—at least on the surface.
Sōjun Minamoto's profile was once again placed before the higher-ups. From technique abilities, development progress, to birthdate and birth weight—everything was meticulously detailed, with a clear and structured growth record.
He didn't care. As long as their intel couldn't keep pace with his growth, it was nothing but scrap paper.
Events like Tengen's evolution—capable of shaking the entire Jujutsu world—would be immortalized in Jujutsu High's history. Those who stood out during such moments could leave their own comments, serving as motivation for other sorcerers.
Sōjun Minamoto and his team were summoned to the mission building.
A Window handed over a thick dossier—an official record chronicling the entire Star Plasma Vessel incident.
Satoru Gojo arrived first.
Suguru Geto followed right after.
When it was Sōjun Minamoto's turn, he saw the comment Gojo had left. As expected—it read, "Throughout Heaven and Earth, I Alone Am The Honored One."
What kind of motivational line is that?
Geto, on the other hand, had written a set of notes full of reminders, cautioning against arrogance and urging continued growth despite one's strength.
"..."
Sōjun Minamoto stepped forward, picked up the pen, and, with a sweeping stroke, left behind a bold, flamboyant line of characters before turning and walking away.
The Window flipped to the page. The writing was elegant, neatly spaced, already standing out from the rest. Her expression showed appreciation—until she read the line:
[Seven consecutive Black Flashes may be the limit for Heaven and Earth—but not for me. —The Sovereign]
Indeed, satisfaction always comes through comparison.
The Star Plasma Vessel incident was officially over.
Riko Amanai was reborn. Misato Kuroi could now freely go about her life. Satoru Gojo learned the Reverse Cursed Technique. Tengen broke free from instability. Masamichi Yaga was one step closer to becoming principal. Sōjun Minamoto's strength increased again. And every other Grade 1 sorcerer walked away with something...
Everyone had a bright future ahead.
Sōjun Minamoto caught sight of Shiko Mishima trailing alone at the back—and she caught him looking.
The newly promoted Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer, Shiko Mishima, quietly crept up beside him. She clapped lightly, her smile stiff, voice dry:
"An event like this deserves a celebration, ri…right? So, how about I buy you a drink?"
...
Daily training resumed.
Even after her promotion to Grade 2, Shiko Mishima didn't leave. She remained as Sōjun Minamoto's exclusive assistant.
Her reason? "The time isn't right."
Funny, considering how happy she'd been about switching roles before...
With Sōjun Minamoto's current strength, he didn't have to care much about the higher-ups. Whether to take missions or not—it was up to him. And he only accepted if the money was good.
Lately, he wasn't short on cash, so he spent most of his time in the dorms.
Riko Amanai had also chosen to stay.
For now, Sōjun Minamoto continued teaching her, but in a few days, she'd transfer into the first year at Jujutsu High—a brand new student sorcerer.
She'd been staying at Sōjun Minamoto's place these past few days.
And honestly, it was getting annoying.
A few days later, Yuki Tsukumo showed up at the door. "That old man's hiding," she said, downing the tea in one gulp like a boss, then glanced up at Riko Amanai.
"So you're the Star Plasma Vessel?!" She got up, walked over, giving Riko a once-over. "Pretty weak, huh."
"Want to learn Jujutsu from me?" Yuki clenched her fist, swinging it strongly near Riko's ear. "You should take your fate into your own hands."
What a weirdo.
Riko Amanai backed off in fear, hiding behind Sōjun Minamoto.
"Huh~?" Yuki Tsukumo looked slightly annoyed and sat back across from Sōjun Minamoto. One arm rested on the table, the other raised, fingers flicking lightly.
She used a lot of gestures when speaking.
"I said I'd help you with one thing for free. Just one." Yuki nodded at Sōjun Minamoto with her chin. "So, have you made up your mind?"
"If not, I can owe you one for now..."
"I heard you can control mass?" Sōjun Minamoto cut in.
He plucked a star from his eye—an object that expanded until it revealed its true form in his palm:
An eyeball.
"Can you help increase its mass?" he asked.
Yuki Tsukumo wasn't fazed at all. But behind him, Riko Amanai let out a gasp.
Yuki took the eyeball. A crimson hair strand still connected it to Sōjun Minamoto.
She studied it carefully.
The pupil contracted, staring right back at her. An intense sensation of being watched crept over her. She rotated it halfway, turning the pupil outward.
After a while—
"I can," she said. "How heavy do you want it?"
"As heavy as possible."
The Star Eye had always sounded impressive, but internally it was hollow, fragile enough to scatter in a breeze.
Sōjun Minamoto had placed high hopes on it from the beginning. Now that he found a breakthrough, if he could enhance its mass and energy levels—why shouldn't it match or even surpass the stars?
He had grand ambitions.
To walk a long road, you needed long-term goals.
He wanted to hold a galaxy in his gaze. So he dove deep into related studies. The universe was still full of mysteries—humanity hadn't even figured out Earth yet. Many things were still "theoretical."
But paired with Jujutsu, the possibilities were huge.
Power had always been subjective. As long as your logic was consistent, even a wrong path could become a road paved with meaning.
Anyone who studied astronomy knew the saying: "Mass is king."
A celestial body's mass determined its behavior and motion. The greater the mass, the more objects orbited it.
To create a starry sky, increasing the mass of each eyeball was the first step.
Different-massed eyes orbiting one another, layered orbits forming a system of celestial motion. When the orbits echoed each other, they'd form increasingly intricate structures... layer after layer, nested through Barrier Techniques, compounding the energy with no real upper limit.
It felt like he was stepping onto a path completely different from the rest of the Jujutsu world.
Sōjun Minamoto's heart burned with excitement.
Now, all that remained was for Yuki Tsukumo's technique to succeed—permanently increasing the eyeball's weight.
Its material structure would inevitably transform.
Once it did, with his technique's perfect control, he could shape the rest of his eyes as he desired.
"All done," Yuki Tsukumo finally said, her expression stern.
Her technique could theoretically assign imaginary mass to an object, with no upper limit. But realistically, her Cursed Energy was finite—and the Jujutsu world itself had limits.
She'd nearly drained herself dry.
She held the eyeball in her palm, her arm muscles taut with strain. Sōjun Minamoto assisted in controlling it. Together, they just barely kept the eyeball from dropping.
If one needed a benchmark to describe a Special Grade sorcerer's strength... right now, the eyeball weighed as much as 1.5 nations.
Then came the awkward part—
Sōjun Minamoto couldn't quite contain it.
Luckily, it was still under perfect control.
He forcefully returned it to its socket, his Cursed Energy burning fast. The black lines beneath his clothing lit up and pulsed, constantly replenishing his reserves. He refined his Cursed Energy until it reached an ultra-low level, stabilizing the eye.
Too heavy.
It would take time to adapt.
Still, the result far exceeded his expectations, and Sōjun Minamoto couldn't help but let out a small laugh.
With that, the Star Eye experiment was a success.