The towering Dog Demon, now twelve metres tall, swung his dark green right claw directly at Luo Shu.
The claws sliced through the air, trailing scattered emerald light that formed crescent shapes, resembling five razor-sharp blades.
Facing Sesshōmaru's assault, Luo Shu immediately chose to retreat.
He leapt backwards with millimetre precision, evading the fierce wind pressure from Sesshōmaru's swipe. As the claw passed before him, Luo Shu suddenly lunged forward and grasped the fur on Sesshōmaru's right paw.
"Hmm?"
This inexplicable action alarmed Sesshōmaru, who immediately tried to retract his strength and counter with a downward press of his claw.
Yet at that moment, Sesshōmaru suddenly realised the demonic poison imbued in his right claw had vanished without a trace.
This bizarre phenomenon left him momentarily stunned, but he didn't slow his movements in the slightest. Instead, he swung his claw, aiming to strike Luo Shu with the back of his paw.
But in that instant, Luo Shu raised his head, his black eyes clearly reflecting Sesshōmaru's form.
Calamity Bestowal – Lightning Strike.
The next moment, a crackling spark sounded—
Sesshōmaru's silvery fur abruptly turned charred black, his muscles spasmed violently, and his attack instantly went awry.
Seizing the opportunity, Luo Shu drew the pistol at his waist and fired twice. The bullets struck Sesshōmaru's eyes with pinpoint accuracy, only to produce a metallic clang upon impact.
Luo Shu saw the bullets being deflected and immediately tossed his firearm upwards, grabbing Tenseiga instead as he swung it down towards Sesshōmaru's right claw.
In that instant, Sesshōmaru reacted. Gritting his teeth, he channelled his Demon Power, causing it to explode outward like a sphere, enveloping his entire body before he shot upwards at high speed.
At the same time, a black-purple crescent took shape where he had stood, resembling a black hole as it sucked in the surrounding piles of bones amidst a violent howling wind.
"Oh? Dodged it?"
Luo Shu rested Tenseiga on his shoulder, casually catching his pistol as he watched Sesshōmaru zigzagging through the sky with a look of surprise.
Narrowing his eyes, Luo Shu remarked in astonishment:
"Using Demon Power to encase the body for high-speed movement? So that's how you evade attacks?"
Meanwhile, in the air.
Sesshōmaru ceased releasing his Demon Power, reverting to his human form. His face bore slight scorch marks as he glared darkly at Luo Shu.
"What was that crescent?"
Recalling the lethal sensation he had felt when Tenseiga was swung, Sesshōmaru's expression grew even more sombre. Unable to hold back, he demanded:
"Why would Tenseiga—a sword that cannot kill—release such a dangerous slash?"
The Sword of Compassion Tenseiga—this was how the Dog Tribe referred to the blade.
Though it was a sword, it could not cut anything. In fact, striking living beings with it would heal them instead.
Those struck by Tenseiga would find severe illnesses alleviated, withered trees suddenly revived—it was a weapon utterly incapable of killing.
Yet just moments ago, when Luo Shu had swung Tenseiga, Sesshōmaru had sensed a deadly threat.
Especially from that fleeting black-purple crescent.
The moment it appeared, Sesshōmaru had even experienced the illusion of his body being severed for a second time.
Tenseiga had never displayed such power in his hands.
At this, Luo Shu gave the blade a casual shake and replied indifferently:
"Meidō Zangetsuha!"
"Tenseiga's innate ultimate technique—it tears through space, creating a Netherworld path to the Underworld, using its gravitational pull and spatial distortion to harm enemies."
Curious, Luo Shu glanced at Sesshōmaru and asked:
"Didn't Tōga ever demonstrate this move to you?"
Sesshōmaru's face darkened further. Though he had heard of the technique, Tōga had indeed never shown it to him—at least, he hadn't known it was unleashed by Tenseiga.
Thus, in the past, Tenseiga had always seemed useless to him. Were it not his father's legacy, he wouldn't have bothered carrying it at all.
Yet now, in an enemy's hands, Tenseiga had revealed terrifying power, sending Sesshōmaru into a rage.
"Is this all you can do, human? Resorting to such underhanded tricks?"
With a furious roar, Sesshōmaru abandoned his Demon Form, opting to fight in his human shape.
He had realised that his larger form was ineffective against a small, swift target like Luo Shu.
Moreover, given how his toxins had been absorbed, Luo Shu seemed to possess some bizarre ability to siphon his energy, making close combat inadvisable. Thus, he chose mid-range tactics.
'Perhaps a Demon Power whip strike?'
The strategy flashed through his mind as Sesshōmaru flicked his fingers, unleashing a luminous green energy whip from his fingertips.
Swinging his right arm, the whip cracked thrice through the air before lashing down towards Luo Shu.
At that moment, Luo Shu suddenly raised his right hand and caught the glowing whip mid-air.
"Foolish!" Sesshōmaru snorted coldly as the demonic whip composed of Demon Power exploded violently.
Yellow-green smoke billowed out instantly.
When the smoke cleared, Luo Shu's hand appeared as if it had gripped a high-concentration bomb - blackened, crimson and flesh torn open.
From above, Sesshōmaru looked down at Luo Shu with icy indifference:
"Grabbing my Demon Power without any protection - were you trying to pull me towards you?"
"Let me enlighten you. My Demon Power contains the force to destroy all things. Touching it unprotected results in... in..."
Sesshōmaru's pupils contracted sharply as he watched Luo Shu's hand miraculously heal as though time had reversed. His expression immediately turned grave.
"What is this?"
"That stung a bit."
Luo Shu frowned, shook his left hand, then blew on it before looking up at Sesshōmaru:
"It seems my current physical resilience can't withstand attacks from a Great Yokai's Demon Power."
Hearing this self-deprecating remark while seeing Luo Shu's completely unharmed hand, Sesshōmaru's face darkened:
"Are you mocking me, human?!"
Luo Shu didn't answer, merely regarding Sesshōmaru with a headache:
"Apparently, my abilities lean towards attrition warfare. This complicates things slightly."
He'd just tested something - grabbing Sesshōmaru's Demonic Whip without activating Calamity Absorption resulted in injuries from the explosive Demon Power.
Yet if activated, Luo Shu felt no threat whatsoever from Sesshōmaru's venomous Demon Power attacks.
The awkward truth was that, apart from spatial attacks like Meidō Zangetsuha or high-flame-pressure Dying Will Flames bullets, Luo Shu lacked formidable offensive methods.
While Calamity Bestowal could momentarily paralyse Sesshōmaru, the wary yokai could counter by enveloping himself in Demon Power for high-speed aerial manoeuvres.
As for powerful offensive calamities or debilitating status effects, Luo Shu's reserves were limited.
Instant-kill calamities? Nonexistent.
By nature, calamities represented disasters and suffering - agonising but rarely immediately fatal. For lethal calamities, Luo Shu suspected he'd need to advance to Calamity Priest rank.
Thus, some trickery was required.
With this thought, Luo Shu looked up at Sesshōmaru:
"You keep calling me despicable and foolish. Let me show you what a despicably foolish human can do!"
"What?"
Before Sesshōmaru could react, Luo Shu suddenly turned his gaze towards Senhime Rin Getsu's direction.
"Damn it!"
In the next instant, Luo Shu leapt, abruptly intercepting the battlefield between Senhime Rin Getsu and Takina Inoue.