An open-barrier domain is an advanced, "divine" technique that projects an innate domain directly onto reality without an enclosing shell, often featuring a central anchoring structure like Sukuna's shrine. Destroying a domain's anchor causes the immediate collapse or severe destabilization of that innate domain.
But…
Ethan's sovereignty doesn't have a central physical anchor, as it treats Ethan himself as the center. This means that when Ethan moves around, his entire 200-meter domain moves with him, making his domain far more versatile than Sukuna's shrine.
When Ethan's and Delugor's domains clashed, the result was the immediate destruction of Horizon of the Captivating Skandha's outer wall.
The special-grade cursed spirit Delugor began experiencing cursed-technique burnout, rendering him unable to use it for a period of time.
Without giving the cursed spirit any time to recover, Ethan summoned forth an army of Tora.
"Restrain it."
Two words—and hundreds of Crimson Bands of Cyttorak bound themselves around Delugor's body, completely immobilizing him. A bit of overkill… but the Ancient One had said it was slippery.
"So, what do you think? Impressive, right?" Ethan asked.
The Ancient One spoke only after analyzing the domain for another second.
"An… open-barrier domain. Truly a divine art."
Ever since she had seen the fight between the War Curse and that seven-year-old boy, she had known this day was coming—the day he surpassed her.
Had two years already passed?
Guess it's true what they say… time passes quickly when you're enjoying it, even for a chronomancer like her.
The Ancient One was viewed as a weapon by sorcerer society, primarily because of her unmatched strength—making her a "golden" deterrent against curses, demons, and dimensional threats rather than a person with emotional needs.
Her immense power made her an indispensable tool for maintaining the balance of the world, often placing societal duty over her humanity. She had even drawn power from the Dark Dimension to prolong her life for centuries and bolster her sorcery to protect Earth.
Nobody had asked her to do it.
But she knew what would happen to her native reality if she didn't.
"The burden of knowledge," Agamotto had called it—and indeed, it was a burden.
Now, looking at the almost ten-year-old boy—who was probably already the strongest sorcerer in human history—she knew that one day he would have to share that burden… with Doctor Strange.
At immense cost to her own health, she had viewed possible futures of Ethan. It wasn't that she didn't trust him—but she could not risk this reality on trust alone.
It was the duty of the Sorcerer Supreme to protect Earth, even from herself.
Now, looking at the octopus-like cursed spirit completely immobilized by the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak and surrounded by an army of Tora, she felt content.
The future was secured in good hands.
The cursed spirit struggled uselessly against its bindings. The Crimson Bands of Cyttorak were a near-unbreakable magical restraint used to bind powerful entities.
Originating from the extradimensional demon Cyttorak, they manifested as glowing red bands, representing Cyttorak's indomitable will.
She had asked Ethan before they arrived at the ocean—if possible—whether she could investigate this special grade. At the time, it was only mild curiosity.
But now…
For it to possess this much cursed-energy reserve, it must have incubated for centuries.
How had it escaped her detection?
It had happened before… with the War Curse. But she had thought that was an isolated incident.
Something—or someone—was actively hiding Imaginary Vengeful Special Grades from her.
Another special grade?
"It seems… I lost…" the curse exclaimed with a sigh.
Something wasn't right.
She had killed this particular curse about 270 years ago. It had caused a significant string of water-based disasters, notably in the South Asian subcontinent, often resulting in over 10,000 casualties.
Back then, it had struggled to the bitter end—even when its death was inevitable.
So why was it resigning itself to fate this time?
What was different?
It was definitely stronger than before—but that should have only made it more arrogant.
Weaker cursed spirits are often instinct-driven, chaotic, and inhuman.
Higher-grade curses, however, can develop high intelligence, malice, and self-awareness, allowing them to manipulate, strategize, and possess distinct, cruel personalities. Yet their personalities do not change even after rebirth.
She would know. She had killed curses born of the same concepts for centuries—and they had always shared the same mentality.
No exceptions.
At least… until today.
"If I am dying… hehehe… I will cause as much carnage as I can before I go!" the cursed spirit added with a manic laugh as it began to disappear.
What!?
It sacrificed its core concept!
When Delugor realized he could not escape his bindings—held by the tiger shikigami—he enacted a binding vow.
Imaginary Vengeful Special-Grade Cursed Spirit Delugor would sacrifice his concept, being born from fear of water-based disasters, in exchange for a 9.3-magnitude earthquake striking directly beneath them.
The binding vow took hold.
The earthquake hit.
Normally, no special-grade cursed spirit would ever sacrifice its concept. It would mean no version of them could ever exist again—especially not someone like Delugor, who valued survival above all else.
But after evolving, something fundamental had shifted within him.
He understood that he was not just a monster—but the embodiment of humanity's fear of oceanic disasters.
He wanted them to feel it again.
In his final moments, he remembered a conversation with the strongest special-grade cursed spirit he had once met.
"I truly am a curse," they had said.
He understood that feeling now—as he cursed the world even in death.
In her 700 years of fighting curses, the Ancient One had never seen a curse sacrifice its concept simply to spite her one last time.
"The earthquake… it's at least a 9!" Ethan said as she studied the rapidly rising water levels.
Silence reigned as they grasped the consequences—until one of the Tora broke it.
"Master Ancient One… I have studied advanced eldritch magic on water manipulation…"
Yes. They would need to offset the coming tsunami—but how?
She looked around and saw more Tora emerging from the shadows.
Hundreds.
Thousands.
The open-barrier domain was still deployed.
Maybe there was hope yet.
"How long can you hold on?" she asked. Any plan she made now would depend entirely on Ethan's ability to keep the domain open and supply more Tora.
"Long enough. Do you have a plan?" Ethan replied.
There was one more advantage his barrierless domain had over Sukuna's shrine—his shikigami could operate outside the 200-meter radius.
"Even if we collapse the initial tsunami from the epicenter," she explained, "the earthquake alone will kill thousands. And then there will be secondary tsunamis caused by tectonic shifts, resulting in even more deaths."
"We can't save everyone," she added grimly.
They stood in silence for a moment.
Then Ethan turned to her, his expression resolute.
"Then… we save as many as we can."
Ethan's unparalleled power separated him from the rest of humanity, creating a chasm only true connection could bridge—something he shared with the Ancient One and Wong.
He knew sorcerer society would one day try to use him as a tool, forcing him to shoulder the world's protection—just as they had done with the Ancient One, at great cost to her mental health and personal identity.
Would he take her place after her death?
Hell no.
Her way of living for others was her own choice—one he respected, but could never replicate.
Ethan wanted to travel the world:
The Bermuda Triangle.
The Tower of London.
Infamous prisons like Alcatraz.
Aokigahara Forest.
And many more.
To study the threats humanity faced—because different cultures produced different curses.
Maybe he'd stop some threats along the way.
Ethan didn't seek to eradicate curses—that was impossible.
But peace in our time?
That might be achievable—if he could tame the Divine General, Mahoraga.
Ethan and the Ancient One exchanged determined looks as thousands of Tora began preparing high-level water-manipulation spells.
Hundreds used Vapors of Valtorr to solidify or flash-freeze massive bodies of water, forming a dome against the incoming tsunami.
Hundreds used Torrent of Tiamat to channel chaotic energy, forcing water to defy natural laws and counter the tsunami's flow.
Hundreds supported the Vapors of Valtorr casters through Water Transmutation, reinforcing the dome.
The Ancient One oversaw everything, acting as the master control between groups.
Meanwhile, Ethan summoned hundreds of building-sized chimeras:
Max Elephant with Nue's wings—Mahagajas.
Round Deer with Nue's wings—Raikos.
He commanded the Mahagajas to provide tactical support to the Ancient One, unleashing torrents of water against the tsunami, while the Raikos flew to nearby coastlines to assist survivors of the earthquake.
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