"Oh? You lot… didn't get killed by Kokushibo?"
Muzan Kibutsuji looked at the reinforcements with open disdain, a light, mocking glint in his eyes.
The images relayed to him had shown Kokushibo's head being smashed to pieces.
And even so, Muzan remained relaxed.
As if Kokushibo's death hadn't shaken them much at all.
Behind Muzan, Demon Slayer Corps bodies were scattered everywhere.
When the young Ubuyashiki's command came through, they had tried to retreat.
But Muzan was simply too fast.
In almost an instant, he butchered them all.
Their vital areas had then been swallowed by the countless mouths split across Muzan's body.
At this moment, Muzan Kibutsuji had evolved into a completely new form.
While fighting the poison, his body had undergone a mutation.
Now, his shape was built for battle.
As long as you were struck, those mouths could bite down and devour flesh and blood.
And in doing so, restore his stamina.
"It seems your fights went quite smoothly," Muzan said calmly, the blades that had been torn off him regenerating at once. "But I have some unfortunate news for you."
"That girl in the striped uniform, and the boy with a snake wrapped around his neck… it seems Upper Rank Four has already dealt with them."
His voice stayed soft, almost casual.
But the image in his mind was clear: Nakime using the shifting walls to corner them, cutting them down so thoroughly they couldn't possibly be any deader.
"Next is you. One by one. So annoying."
"After I kill you, I'll go find that child from the Ubuyashiki family."
"If he begs me nicely, I don't mind turning him into a demon too. Hahahaha!"
Muzan laughed. More blades sprouted from behind his thighs, and he launched a full assault on the group.
They watched the flashy storm of attacks coming, gripped their weapons, and braced themselves.
Blades crisscrossed the wide platform, slicing the air apart.
The shriek of torn air exploded again and again as the slashes reached them.
Rip!
Giyu Tomioka, the Water Hashira, couldn't evade in time. A massive wound was carved across his body.
"Mr. Tomioka!"
Tanjiro shouted and surged forward again.
He couldn't let Mr. Tomioka fall into danger!
Tanjiro rolled and twisted, closing in on Muzan Kibutsuji.
In a heartbeat, Muzan entered his range.
I have to break his rhythm!
Tanjiro tightened his grip on his Nichirin blade, eyes locked on Muzan.
And in that instant of focus, he failed to notice the danger creeping back in.
A sharp hiss.
Another blade struck from Tanjiro's blind spot.
Boom!
The blade detonated midair.
Vincent Fox yanked Tanjiro back with one hand.
"There's no need to force a breakthrough yet. Find the opening, slowly."
But even as he warned him, Vincent Fox was already charging in first.
Sensing Vincent Fox, Muzan redirected most of his blades to wrap and coil toward him.
Vincent Fox flipped, slid, and pivoted, dodging one death-laced strike after another.
When he couldn't evade, his fists and feet smashed the blades apart in rapid succession, spraying Muzan's blood across the floor.
For a moment, Muzan Kibutsuji was actually pushed back.
"Don't waste the chance Mr. Fox is creating for us! Get in there and press the attack!"
Gyomei Himejima roared, swinging his flail toward Muzan, who had just lost half his blades.
The massive weapon moved unbelievably fast, leaving afterimages in its wake.
The others unleashed their techniques as well, hacking apart the regenerating blades again and again.
Thud!
A heavy impact rang out.
Muzan blocked the flail head-on.
Even though his right hand was mangled into pulp, he still stopped it.
The damage regenerated instantly.
Muzan's claws clamped around the spiked ball, leaving deep gouges across the metal.
A screeching grind followed.
Gyomei immediately yanked the chain back.
The force tore the flail from Muzan's grip and ripped off two or three of his nails with it.
But to Muzan, that damage was nothing more than a mild itch.
His nails regrew the moment they fell.
And in that same instant, the other Hashira's attacks arrived.
Sword techniques converged, pinning Muzan in place.
A cyan gale, churning water, hazy mist-light, all wrapped around him at once.
"A bunch of gnats… irritating little bastards."
Muzan's patience snapped.
More blades burst from his back.
Dozens of spikes stabbed outward in a single wave.
"Dodge!"
Tanjiro shouted, flames flowing along his Nichirin blade as he shredded the strikes aimed at him.
Crack. Crack.
Chunks of Muzan's flesh fell to the floor.
Even severed, they still wriggled and regenerated.
Fast.
Faster than any so-called Upper Rank.
"Sun Breathing?" Muzan sneered, disgust twisting his face. "How revolting. After all these years, one finally shows up again."
"But you're still far, far beneath that man."
Muzan's attention snapped fully onto Tanjiro.
He sent several blades stabbing at once, ignoring the attacks landing on his own body as if they were meaningless.
"I felt it! I cut him!"
Sanemi Shinazugawa shouted in excitement, but when he turned, he saw Muzan's head reattach the instant the blade pulled free.
Terrifying regeneration.
Tanjiro kept turning his sword, cutting down each incoming blade.
But Muzan's recovery was simply too fast.
Almost instantly, the severed blades regenerated.
Tanjiro's Sun Breathing still couldn't turn his Nichirin blade red, so it did nothing to suppress Muzan's regeneration.
The rebuilt blades never slowed, still thrusting toward Tanjiro.
Tanjiro fought as he retreated, cutting and cutting.
"Damn it… the wall's behind me!"
With only his left eye remaining, Tanjiro realized he was cornered.
No space left.
"Protect Tanjiro!"
Even Giyu, usually sparse with words, shouted.
The group's attacks shifted immediately.
Blade after blade struck at the roots of the incoming spikes, severing them brutally.
And Vincent Fox stepped in again.
He moved so fast he left afterimages across the battlefield.
Both hands shot out, catching every blade he could, locking them in his grip.
Flames!
His arms ignited, heat surging upward with terrifying intensity.
Feeling the pain, Muzan abandoned those blades instantly, letting them detach.
New ones erupted from his back.
He lashed out like a mad demon, a frenzy of slashes exploding around him.
In an instant, several Hashira were injured to varying degrees and thrown backward.
Blood poured.
These wounds were heavy.
"That's enough."
The ceiling suddenly shattered.
A pink figure in a striped Demon Slayer uniform dropped in like a meteor.
"Save it, Muzan Kibutsuji!"
----------------------------------------------------
The deeper he goes, the more the truth unravels. Don't wait read ahead and witness Vincent's rise before the world catches up!
[email protected]/_theon
Change @ to "a"