Ms. Gojo thought she was dating an ordinary person's boyfriend.

The next day, after Gojo Satoru swiftly finished handling several urgent official business at the college, he took Sumi Kichikawa directly into the secret prison at the bottom of the college.

The underground barrier here has been reinforced even more tightly than when Gojo Satoru came alone the day before.

The dense, powerful spell patterns flickered on the cold walls, and the number of people keeping watch around the cell had doubled without hesitation.

Hua Yu and Lou Hu were separated and imprisoned in two separate barriers that were completely isolated from each other, even the fluctuations of their magical power were completely cut off.

Seeing Gojo Satoru lead a stranger in, Louhu let out a vicious snort:

"Gojo Satoru, what trick are you up to now?"

Although Hua Yu on the other side did not speak, she slowly opened her eyes and silently watched the two people outside the barrier.

Although Lou Hu was in a sorry state, she remained defiant: "Don't waste your time. No matter who you bring, I'll say it again, we won't say anything."

Hua Yu coldly echoed, "You won't learn anything from us."

Sumi Kichikawa didn't even flinch at this pointless provocation.

He stopped half a meter outside the isolation barrier, his gaze sweeping calmly and scrutinizingly over the two top-tier cursed spirits.

You've misunderstood.

Kikawa Sumi's voice was cold and flat, "I didn't need you to ask me to come here today."

A look of surprise and wariness flashed across Lou Hu's face.

Gojo Satoru, no longer bothered by the trouble, simply found a clean spot against the wall, turned his head slightly, and stared at Kikkawa Sumi with great interest.

"Xiao Cheng, how do you plan to pry their mouths open?"

Sumi Kichikawa did not give a direct answer.

He slowly raised his right hand.

Fingertips traced a seemingly effortless arc in the cold air.

The next second, a pale, almost transparent golden light flowed from his fingertips, like countless optical fibers, rapidly extending in the dimly lit cell along a trajectory that was impossible for the naked eye to detect.

These threads intertwine, coil, and stitch together, eventually converging in front of Sumi Kichikawa's chest to form a silent, slowly rotating, enormous golden ring.

Even Gojo Satoru, who was used to seeing big scenes, showed a hint of surprise on his face as he stared at the mysterious ring.

"What... ability is this?" he asked, puzzled.

"This is one of my abilities," Sumi Kikawa replied softly, maintaining the shape of the ring. "It's called the 'Causal Ring'."

"A causal loop?"

"Um."

With a steady response, the pale gold ring spun faster in front of Sumire Kichikawa.

Immediately afterwards, a certain "aura" that had been hidden on Louhu and Huayu seemed to be forcibly drawn up and rose up.

Strands of deep purple light, like wisps of ghostly spirits, were drawn into the ring.

Within the ring, they transformed into countless imperceptible dotted lines, winding and deep from the broken body of the cursed spirit towards the far distance beyond the prison.

Gojo Satoru stood quietly to the side, not making a sound to disturb them, but staring intently at the few dark lines that were gradually becoming clearer, like peeling away layers of an onion.

After a moment, Sumire Kikawa turned her head slightly to look at him.

"I told you before that there are many things in this world that cannot be seen with the eyes."

"For example, cause and effect?" Gojo Satoru chimed in.

Sumire Kawakawa nodded.

He is now using the causal ring to target those traitors hidden in the Directorate or the three families, who know that the information they release will be used to harm their colleagues, yet still feel at ease providing protection to the Cursed Spirits.

"The repercussions of cause and effect are the most severe yet fairest law in the world." Sumi Kikawa's voice was not loud, but it resonated heavily in the empty prison.

"Those humans lurking in the shadows, hesitant and indecisive, when driven by self-interest to secretly collude with cursed spirits, knowing full well that the knife they're handing out will stab their own kind and even countless ordinary people, yet they still don't stop..."

"The evil consequences they have sown are already predetermined."

"And the technique I'm using now is called Reversal of Cause and Effect."

Gojo Satoru listened quietly.

He stared at the swirling, intertwined light within the ring, his azure eyes narrowing slightly, as if he had already grasped the power of this spell.

"The purpose of this technique is... to return their evil deeds to them?"

"right."

Kikawa Sumi extended her slender fingers and gently flicked the thickest, bluntest causal line in the ring.

"This law will return to them the full extent of the evil they have committed."

Gojo Satoru's expression became completely serious.

He understood.

The causal loop is not used to judge the good or evil of individuals; it is like a mirror that reveals true nature.

It never targets a specific name, but rather those traitors who have truly had contact with a top-tier cursed spirit.

As long as you harbor evil intentions and act on them, you will never escape.

The cycle of cause and effect operates silently.

The lines extending from Louhu and Huayu are sometimes faint, representing only insignificant and brief encounters; while others are so dark they are almost black, clearly connecting to some deep and complex exchange of interests.

That is the inescapable cause and effect between humans and cursed spirits.

Kikawa Sumi closed her eyes, carefully discerning the tangled lines in the vast network.

A moment later, several of the causal lines lit up.

Gojo saw it clearly.

"Found it?"

"We've found a few," Sumire Kichikawa said, opening her eyes. "But we can't confirm their identities yet."

"So, do we still need to force them to expose themselves?"

"Um."

Kikawa Sumi raised her hand, her five fingers pointing towards the void, and slowly closed them together.

The causal loop then suddenly contracted inward.

"I have deliberately reduced the force of the causal reversal so that it will not immediately endanger their lives," he explained calmly. "But in the next few days, these people will gradually develop undeniable abnormalities."

Gojo Satoru raised an eyebrow: "For example?"

"For example, the power of the spell may gradually flow backward, the spell may go out of control for no apparent reason, or a previously concealed fatal injury may begin to appear without warning."

Kikawa Sumi paused for a moment before making a judgment.

"The consequences of their actions will backfire, and they will inevitably be exposed."

Upon hearing this, Gojo Satoru suddenly paused.

He seemed to suddenly realize something, and his gaze returned to the gradually dissipating ring of cause and effect.

"Those three families who bullied Junpei before..." Gojo Satoru slowly turned his head, "were you dealt with in the same way?"

Sumi Kichikawa didn't hide anything: "More or less."

Gojo Satoru's eyes lit up noticeably.

"So, the strange incidents that happened to those three people were also a case of cause and effect reversal?"

"Yes. But the impact on them is more severe than this time."

"I knew it." Gojo Satoru stroked his chin, a look of sudden realization on his face. "I was wondering why they were suddenly suffering one after another. It turns out you were the one pulling the strings behind the scenes."

Looking at the golden specks of light before him, he couldn't help but sigh, "Cause and effect are truly amazing."

After his initial astonishment, he astutely followed up with, "Does that mean anyone can become the target of this thing?"

"no."

Kikawa Sumi shook her head and explained in detail the inviolable restrictions:

"For causality to take effect, it must meet strict underlying logic. For example, the target must have actually formed a causal connection with the cursed spirit, or the target must have actively created pure malice sufficient to cause a real disaster while in a conscious state."

"In short, if they are inherently good and do not actively choose to associate with evil, or only think about it but do not actually do evil... the law of cause and effect will have absolutely no effect on such people."

"The cycle of cause and effect only punishes predetermined evil."

Gojo Satoru immediately drew inferences: "Who are those scumbags who bullied Junpei connected to?"

"It was the cursed spirit that I later exorcised," Sumi Kikawa said. "That cursed spirit seduced those three boys."

Gojo Satoru raised an eyebrow slightly: "Seduction?"

"It amplifies the malice in their hearts and makes them more susceptible to the curse," Sumi Kikawa calmly stated the facts.

"But ultimately, they themselves succumbed to their inner malice and actively committed evil."

"Therefore, even if they were lured by the cursed spirits, they are by no means innocent."

Gojo Satoru was silent for two seconds, then clicked his tongue in disgust.

"Those three people are really..."

For a moment, he seemed to think even cursing was too offensive, and in the end he just gave a cold, mocking sneer.

"They clearly had a chance to stop, but they insisted on going down a dead-end path. Now they're suffering the consequences of their own actions."

Sumi Kichikawa did not comment much on those people.

Gojo Satoru's attention quickly returned. He looked at Sumirei Kichikawa, the gloom in his eyes gone, and he reached out to rub Sumirei Kichikawa's head.

"This has truly broadened my horizons. My little Cheng is truly amazing."

Kikawa Sumi's hair was slightly ruffled by his ruffled hair, but she didn't dodge. She just looked up at him with a hint of helplessness: "Why are you suddenly saying this?"

"It's nothing." Gojo Satoru smiled and withdrew his hand, not holding back his praise for his lover. "It's just that I suddenly felt that the way you used the laws to punish those scumbags just now... was especially, especially cool."

Kikawa Sumi stared at his self-righteous appearance for a few seconds, and finally sighed inwardly, swallowing the words she wanted to slap his hand away.

At this point, the causal loop that had enveloped the prison had completed its mission.

The brilliant gold gradually faded, eventually turning into countless tiny, firefly-like specks of light that silently disappeared back into the damp, musty air.

"These next few days, we'll have to rely on you, Satoru." Sumirei Kawakawa returned to the main topic.

"Wu can arrange for trusted people to keep an eye on anyone in the director's office and the college who shows any unusual behavior."

"Focus on observing those whose magical power is flowing backward, whose spells are out of control, or whose old injuries suddenly recur."

"I understand." Gojo Satoru nodded. "As soon as they show symptoms, we can follow this line and pull them all out."

"Um."

"And then what happens after the mole is identified?"

After thinking for a moment, Sumire Kikkawa said, "If there is a key figure among that group who is deeply involved, Satoru can bring one to see me."

Gojo Satoru's expression shifted slightly: "You can continue probing further in?"

"The connection of cause and effect is never just one layer." Sumire looked at the cursed spirit in the cell and said with certainty, "As long as the other party is connected to people or things deeper, I can follow that part of the cause and effect to continue to find out the mastermind behind it all."

Gojo Satoru nodded seriously.

"I see."

He raised his hand and tightly grasped the hand of Sumi Kichikawa that was hanging by his side.

Despite the chilling barrier of the underground prison, Gojo Satoru's palms still carried a reassuring warmth.

"Leave the rest to me."

Feeling the warmth from his palm, Sumi Kichikawa gripped his hand tightly in return.

"it is good."