With the Mirror World, Hayashi now had virtually unlimited time. He no longer had to worry about running out of time. This was one of the most valuable aspects of the rewards system, akin to a passage ticket, with the Mirror World being the most precious—turning the impossible into the possible.
He could go anywhere in the mirrored version of the jujutsu world, with no one to stop or question him. He could come and go freely, without any restrictions.
This world was like paradise. He could eat any food, play any exciting games, and experience different lives.
However, Hayashi needed to adjust to it. Otherwise, growing too accustomed to acting recklessly and freely in the Mirror World might make the real world feel out of place. Confusing the two worlds could lead to serious problems.
After collecting his thoughts, Hayashi got up to make a late-night meal for everyone. For a while now, he had been in charge of cooking, and everyone had grown used to it—so much so that some people had even gained weight and started complaining about needing to diet.
Occasionally, Todo would also invite Hayashi for sparring sessions, further deepening the bond of friendship between them, making their relationship more harmonious.
Judging by the time, Hayashi figured it was close to the point where Junpei would face his fate. Hayashi decided to head back into the Mirror World to strengthen himself, preparing to eliminate Mahito directly. He needed to work hard.
Mahito's power was in its early stages, with enormous potential for growth. His ability, "Idle Transfiguration," was incredibly troublesome and twisted. If Hayashi let his guard down and allowed Mahito to touch him, he would be finished.
Additionally, after his battle with Gojo, Hayashi realized something—there was still a huge gap between himself and Gojo. The difference was like Hayashi just learning to walk, while Gojo was already happily raising a family.
That was the extent of their gap. Hayashi thought that his current power was decent enough—ordinary special-grade curse spirits weren't his match. But when it came to Gojo, he didn't stand a chance.
Not even close.
Maybe it was time for Hayashi to reevaluate his own strength. This rapid method of gaining power, while effective, didn't necessarily make him absolutely strong.
He still needed knowledge and experience. After all, he didn't know how many people out there could counter his current abilities. This was unknown and something he had to be cautious of.
In the Mirror World, dying meant he could try again. But in the real world, he only had one life.
That day, Hayashi went to an open field in the outskirts, away from Jujutsu High. The area was quiet and far enough from the school that he could safely enter the Mirror World.
After activating the Mirror World, a small section of space was sealed off from outside detection. Hayashi stepped through the temporal door and entered an identical world.
Once there, Hayashi felt like a child set free, running and jumping around the forest, enjoying the tranquility.
With his Time Flash technique activated, Hayashi's speed surged as he sped toward the city, keeping his cursed energy constantly released. Any sign of curses would lead him to exorcise them immediately.
"Devour… devour… devour… devour…"
A massive, leech-like curse slithered around the abandoned junkyard, its body dragging across the ground, creating a hissing noise.
All around it were similarly grotesque curses, feeding off the resentment and negative emotions of the nearby residents, growing stronger with each passing moment.
Like a reaper in the night, Hayashi walked steadily into the junkyard, holding his black blade. His steps were calm, but his heart beat with excitement.
"The hunt begins," Hayashi said with a cold smile, raising his black-steel blade like the scythe of death, swiftly sweeping it through the air.
The curses, sensing his cursed energy, lunged toward him, their mouths gaping like meat grinders, aiming to devour him.
With a single slash, Hayashi's black blade cleaved through them all. One by one, the curses were sliced in half, their dark blood spraying across the area.
"From darkness to darkness, all curses return to nothing."
Hayashi clasped his hands together, muttering under his breath. As the curses were exorcised, their cursed energy dissipated, leaving the area purified, preventing any new curses from forming for a while.
Technically, Hayashi could have left after exorcising the curses, as any new ones that appeared wouldn't affect him. Nor did it matter to the people in this mirrored world—once he left, everything would reset, or perhaps everything would just be an illusion.
The method of cleansing lingering curse remnants was something any jujutsu sorcerer could do. Hayashi had learned it from Todo, as it was basic knowledge for jujutsu sorcerers. This time, he used the Mirror World to test it, and the results were satisfactory.
After clearing the area, Hayashi continued on to other locations. Six hours later, he had gained 30 points, meaning he had exorcised 30 curses.
While the quantity was large, the points gained were minimal—just 1 point per curse, regardless of the grade. This was a bit disappointing.
That's why Hayashi focused on targeting large groups of low-grade curses. Wiping them out in waves was extremely satisfying, as each slash took down a horde of curses at once.
"Slash! Slash! Slash!"
Hayashi wielded his blade relentlessly, cutting down curse after curse. Once he cleared one area, he moved on to the next.
For three straight days, Hayashi didn't stop. By the end, he had earned around 200 points, having killed 200 curses. It was an enormous number, all falling by Hayashi's hand.
He had practically exorcised his way through all of Tokyo, avoiding stronger curses and focusing on weaker ones. After all, his goal was to earn points, not challenge himself.
On the third day, nearing dawn, a message appeared in Hayashi's mind, notifying him that he had 30 minutes left in the Mirror World before he would be forcibly ejected.
"So there is a time limit," Hayashi thought. After a few days in the Mirror World, he figured out that the time limit was three days. After three days, he would automatically return to the real world.
Then, he'd have to wait an hour before re-entering. However, entering the Mirror World a second time on the same day would cost double the points.
In other words, if he re-entered after an hour, it would cost him 20 points. If he entered again after another hour, it would cost him 40 points.
Though farming points this way was still profitable, it was exhausting. So in a single day, Hayashi figured he could only enter the Mirror World three or four times.
Of course, if he got tired, he could just sleep in the Mirror World. With three days in there, sleeping for one wouldn't be a waste.
As the time limit approached, Hayashi glanced around and noticed a convenience store in the distance. Casually, he walked inside.
"Welcome!" the cashier, a youth with dyed hair, greeted Hayashi with fake politeness. In reality, the cashier didn't want to be there at all—he was only working because he was broke.
Hayashi ignored him and walked over to the drink machine, grabbing a watermelon-flavored soda and opening it right away.
"Hey, that needs to be paid for first!" the cashier protested.
Hayashi didn't respond. After finishing the soda, he casually tossed the empty can onto the floor and grabbed another.
The cashier's anger flared, but remembering why he was there, he held back, just watching Hayashi misbehave.
"Go ahead, drink all you want. You'll have to pay for it later, and clean up the mess too, or else… heh."
After drinking three cans, Hayashi let out a satisfied burp and then walked over to the snack aisle, tearing open a bag of chips and eating as he wandered around.
Ten minutes later, Hayashi had left the store littered with trash. Feeling content, he walked out of the convenience store.
"Now you've really done it. I've got all the reason I need to beat you up!" the dyed-hair cashier fumed. Today was supposed to be his third day of being a "nice guy," and now he had this weirdo to deal with. With the evidence in hand, he felt justified in roughing Hayashi up.
"Thanks for the meal," Hayashi said with a grin as his time in the Mirror World ran out.
In an instant, he vanished from the cashier's sight. The dyed-hair youth stood there dumbfounded, his anger dissipating as if his mind had just blanked out.