Muzan was watching.
From afar, through the eyes of his demons, he observed the battlefield in silence.
Based on the strength Tanjiro had shown yesterday, this lineup should have been enough to kill him.
If the boy died here, then the threat would end before it could grow.
If he survived and killed all these demons instead, then it would prove one thing: the boy had been hiding his true strength. In that case, Muzan would use this battle to estimate his limits, then summon the Upper Ranks and crush him in one decisive strike.
And if even this battle failed to expose the boy's upper limit...
Then Muzan would simply withdraw into the Infinity Castle and hide for another hundred years.
His lifespan was close to infinite.
There was no need to gamble with his life.
...
In the forest, Tanjiro quickly swept his gaze over the surrounding demons.
The demons were also studying him.
The bat demon, half of one wing severed and bleeding, glared at the sword in Tanjiro's hand with obvious fear.
"Be careful," it warned the others. "Wounds from his sword don't heal!"
"Then we simply avoid getting close."
The female demon standing farthest away covered her mouth with one hand and let out a soft laugh. With her other hand, she drew several daggers from the loose sleeves of her kimono.
The tall, thin demon beside her looked far less composed.
His expression was ugly, almost sour, and he stood in place without speaking.
Tanjiro noticed his silence, but there was no ti to ponder it.
The female demon moved first.
With a flick of her wrist, several daggers shot through the air.
At first glance, there seed to be nothing special about them. No blood, no smoke, no strange transformation. Just steel cutting through the night.
Even so, Tanjiro did not raise his sword to block.
After the fight against the blood-controlling demon the previous night, he had learned one lesson well: the simpler an attack looked, the more dangerous it might be.
He kicked off the ground and dodged.
Sure enough, the daggers abruptly twisted in midair and chased after him as if guided by an invisible hand.
So that was her Blood Demon Art.
Tanjiro glanced back, adjusted his footing, and dashed toward the nearest demon.
The demon raised its claws to intercept him.
It never had the chance.
Tanjiro's sword flashed once.
The demon's head flew from its shoulders.
Without stopping, Tanjiro turned and faced the pursuing daggers head-on. Asuramaru swept through the air, cutting the incoming weapons apart as cleanly as a knife through tofu.
Clink, clink, clink!
The daggers snapped one after another, broken pieces scattering across the ground.
Tanjiro stepped through the falling fragnts and rushed toward the next demon.
The female demon's smile froze.
"How...?" Her eyes widened. "What kind of sword is that? How can it cut through my daggers so easily? And why can't I control it?"
Her thoughts tangled together.
Her Blood Demon Art allowed her to manipulate iron. Even if a Nichirin sword was more difficult to influence, she should at least have been able to affect it slightly.
But the sword in Tanjiro's hand did not respond to her at all.
Asuramaru might as well have existed outside her technique.
In the span of that brief hesitation, Tanjiro killed two more demons.
Now, only three remained.
The bat demon had lost a wing and could no longer fly properly.
The female demon's Blood Demon Art was nearly useless against Asuramaru.
Only the tall, thin demon had yet to reveal his ability.
Tanjiro focused his attention and charged straight toward the injured bat demon.
The bat demon's face changed.
He's coming for !
With no ti to think, it opened its bloody mouth and released another wave.
"Blood Demon Art: Sonic Resonance!"
Invisible sound waves swept through the forest and slamd into Tanjiro, disturbing his muscles and slowing his movents.
The female demon seized the opportunity. She controlled the broken dagger fragnts scattered across the ground while throwing out several fresh daggers from her sleeve.
The broken pieces ca from behind.
The new daggers ca from the front.
A pincer attack.
Tanjiro's expression did not change.
He cut down the daggers in front of him first, then turned his wrist and swept Asuramaru behind him. The shattered fragnts of tal were knocked away and split apart before they could touch his body.
Inside the sword, Alex watched with a trace of regret.
That female demon's Blood Demon Art was probably iron manipulation.
If an ability like that were developed properly, it could beco terrifying. At the simplest level, controlling the iron in human blood would be deadly enough. There were countless ways to evolve such a technique.
Unfortunately, she was limited by the knowledge of this era.
Alex sighed inwardly and continued observing.
Still, the tall, thin demon bothered him.
The bat demon and the female demon were both attacking Tanjiro with everything they had, yet the tall demon remained on the sidelines, watching in silence.
That was suspicious.
Alex extended his perception, carefully checking the surroundings to ensure he would notice any change the mont it happened.
...
On the other side of the battlefield, Zenitsu, who had fainted from sheer terror, suddenly sprang upright.
His eyes remained closed.
His hand rested on the hilt of his Nichirin sword.
His body lowered into a sword-drawing stance.
The three demons facing him froze.
The demon who had been walking forward with a spiked club turned his head and asked blankly, "Boss... did this guy really faint just now, or was he faking it?"
The demon called Boss raised one hand, irritation spreading across his face.
"You're asking ? Who am I supposed to ask? Kill him!"
Zenitsu's teeth clenched.
Mist spilled from his mouth in a steady breath, accompanied by a strange, sharp sound.
The leading demon frowned.
"What the hell is that noise? Did this brat get so scared he farted?"
The demon in front actually tilted his head.
"I don't know, Boss. Let sll—"
"Thunder Breathing."
Zenitsu's voice was low.
"First Form."
Lightning cracked through the air.
"Thunderclap and Flash: Threefold."
The mont the words fell, his body vanished.
A flash of golden lightning tore across the ground.
Before the three demons could react, Zenitsu appeared behind them, already sheathing his sword.
Click.
The guard t the scabbard.
Three heads flew into the air.
Their bodies collapsed a heartbeat later.
Zenitsu swayed, then fell backward and woke up with a start.
"Huh? What happened?"
He scrambled to his feet, confused, then turned around.
The three demon corpses were already crumbling into ash.
Zenitsu's face twisted beyond recognition.
"AHHH?! What's going on?! What happened just now?! Why did those three demons suddenly die?!"
Despite his panic, he still noticed the fight nearby.
Inosuke was locked in battle with the ox-like demon. Of the four demons that had moved to intercept him, only that burly one remained.
Their weapons and fists collided again and again.
The ox demon raised both arms, blocking Inosuke's twin swords with its iron-hard flesh while laughing.
"You can't break through my defense. Give up and let eat you. I still have to go kill that other brat. You're in the way."
"Hah?! You can rot in the wilderness and beco my stepping stone!"
Inosuke crossed his twin swords at his sides and lowered his body.
"Self-Taught Beast Breathing..."
Power gathered in his legs.
Then he charged.
Like a wild boar tearing down the mountain.
.....
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