"What?!"
Mitsuri Kanroji jolted in fright. Instinctively, she snapped her arm and lashed out with a ribbon-like arc of steel.
The incoming blade snapped in half and fell at her feet, still twitching and writhing like something alive.
But in that same instant, the ground behind her burst open.
A spike shot up from her blind spot, slashing straight toward Mitsuri's back.
Tanjiro watched in panic, heart in his throat. He was too far away. There was no way he could reach her in time.
Obanai Iguro was even more frantic. His wavy Nichirin sword flashed, sending a slash of light in her direction.
But the spike was too fast.
Before the Serpent Hashira's strike could arrive, it would have skewered Mitsuri clean through.
Then the spike stopped dead.
Vincent Fox had smashed the floor apart with a single punch, exposing the nest of flesh Muzan Kibutsuji had hidden underneath.
That surprise attack had been launched through that hidden mass.
Vincent Fox's punch struck true, straight into the core, destroying its nerve network in an instant.
Mitsuri exhaled sharply and sprang away from the danger zone, guilt written all over her face as she looked at the others.
But in the time it took her to escape, Muzan's injuries had already fully recovered.
Rumble… rumble…
A quake-like roar rolled through everything as the platform beneath them rose higher and higher.
No, not just the platform.
The entire Infinity Castle was rising.
Boom!
Like a collapsing building, the surrounding structures began to break apart.
Above them, the rapidly ascending walls and beams tore open a massive hole, ripping the space wide and exposing everyone.
The Infinity Castle had broken through to the surface.
At the Ubuyashiki estate, Kiriya Ubuyashiki was drenched in cold sweat, hands trembling as he monitored the battle.
Just moments ago, one single mistake on his part had cost hundreds of Demon Slayer Corps members their lives at Muzan's hands.
Now Yushiro and Muzan were locked in a tug-of-war, and in the end the Infinity Castle still forced its way above ground.
That was good news.
Muzan was at a disadvantage.
If they could drag him out until sunrise, if sunlight touched him, the Demon Slayer Corps would win.
"How much time is left?!"
Kiriya turned to his sister, praying so hard it hurt.
Shorter. Please, make it shorter.
If he could, he would have willed the sun to rise right now.
"Still… still an hour and a half…"
Kanata stared at the pocket watch in her hand, shaking all over.
An hour and a half.
A span that could vanish in the time it took to read a few pages now felt endless.
A battlefield changed in the blink of an eye.
An hour and a half was enough to decide everything.
And now, battered and bleeding, the Demon Slayer Corps had to hold the Demon King Muzan Kibutsuji for at least that long.
Kiriya's pupils tightened, shock punching through him, but he bit down hard and continued issuing commands.
On the battlefield, more than a dozen black crows circled overhead, speaking in human voices.
"Caw caw! An hour and a half until dawn! An hour and a half!"
Too long.
Everyone's first thought was the same.
It was far too long.
Tanjiro crawled out of the rubble, searching desperately for the others.
And for Muzan Kibutsuji.
A soft rustling came from behind him.
Tanjiro turned.
"Kanroji-san… Iguro-san… thank goodness you're alright."
"Tanjiro-kun." Mitsuri's face tightened. "Where's Muzan?"
"W-wait… let me see if I can smell him…"
Tanjiro sniffed hard.
Then, not far away, something exploded.
Limbs and shattered remains of Demon Slayer Corps members flew out of the wreckage.
Muzan Kibutsuji stepped into view.
White hair drifting.
The blades on his back gleamed with cold points of light, metallic as forged steel.
And from his body, countless fangs extended outward.
Arms, thighs, even his waist split into greedy, gaping mouths.
"You're trying to drag me to sunrise?"
Naive fools.
"Then come and try."
Muzan's arms extended in a blur, and together with the blades behind him, he moved even faster than before.
Vincent Fox's silver-gray gaze remained flat and cold as he instantly mapped most of the attack paths.
He shot forward, intercepting every blade that threatened the others, yanking them apart and tearing them free.
With Vincent Fox covering them, the Hashira felt the pressure ease, if only slightly.
Giyu Tomioka, Mitsuri Kanroji, and Obanai Iguro surged in together, perfectly in sync.
Love Breathing, Second Form!
Serpent Breathing, Fourth Form!
Water Breathing, Eighth Form!
Their strikes landed on Muzan.
But the moment their blades sank in, before they could even pull out, the wounds sealed shut.
"I cut him, but not all the way through!"
Mitsuri shouted, calling out what she saw.
The other two were the same.
"He's a monster. His regeneration got even faster!"
Muzan's blades grew again and snapped into a counterattack.
Too close.
They were far too close.
The three watched the incoming strikes and braced with everything they had.
At this distance, there was no way to block it all.
"Move forward, all of you, move in!"
"Become the Hashira's shields! Don't let the Hashira take the hits!"
"Any swordsman who can fight Muzan must be protected. They're our hope!"
At the order, Demon Slayer Corps members poured in from all directions.
They dragged themselves up.
Some clutched broken Nichirin blades.
Some simply grabbed rocks off the ground and charged anyway.
"Don't! Don't go! You'll be killed!"
Tanjiro cried out, trying to stop them.
A bloodied slayer helped Tanjiro steady himself, then shook his head.
"Tanjiro-sama, protect yourself. You're the Corps' hope. Saving you was my honor. Now I have to do my job too."
He released Tanjiro and swung his blade at Muzan with everything he had.
"Fight! There's nothing to fear!"
"How long have the Hashira protected us? Now it's our turn to protect them!"
"Without the Hashira, we'd have died ages ago!"
They roared as they charged, one after another, throwing themselves forward without hesitation.
Muzan frowned.
The blades behind him whipped out, spearing the rushing slayers one by one.
Then a figure surged through the crowd and slammed Muzan into the ground.
Vincent Fox, face tight with fury, gathered every one of Muzan's blades into his grip.
His right hand clamped down on Muzan's head.
"Are you done playing?"
"If you're done…"
"Then it's my turn."
His left hand tightened.
Every tendril was severed cleanly, one after another.
Flames erupted along the cut ends, filling the air with the stench of burning flesh.
His right fist drove forward, blasting away half of Muzan's skull.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Vincent Fox's punches rained down, beating Muzan until blood and meat sprayed everywhere.
Muzan forced his flesh to regenerate again and again, dragging his recovery rate up until it barely matched Vincent Fox's destruction.
----------------------------------------------------
The deeper he goes, the more the truth unravels. Don't wait read ahead and witness Vincent's rise before the world catches up!
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