She took a sharp, cold breath. "Total Concentration! Insect Breathing, Butterfly Dance!"
Her haori fluttered. With light steps, Shinobu's figure moved. In the blink of an eye, she had put distance between herself and Su Chen. She silently huddled in the corner, kneeling down and looking a bit flustered.
Su Chen smiled. It seemed he had finally discovered Shinobu's weakness. From now on, if that girl bothered him again, he would only need to lean in and whisper "Shinobu-jiejie~" into her ear. Hahaha! Su Chen was truly overjoyed. As long as he had Shinobu under his thumb, wouldn't he be able to walk sideways in the Butterfly Mansion from now on? Just thinking about it made him excited.
Su Chen quickly composed himself. The competition wasn't over yet, so he needed to be serious. He turned his head to look at the other four patients and explained some techniques for improving concentration. Then, he had them continue meditating.
"No matter what disturbances happen later, you absolutely must not lose focus," Su Chen said. "If you do, well, I can't help you. I'm going to meditate with you all. Everyone must try to clear their minds of distracting thoughts and absolutely not be disturbed by external things."
Hearing this, the four nodded. But one of them noticed a problem. He raised his hand and asked, "Su Chen-daren, if you're also meditating, then who is going to disturb us?"
Hearing this, Su Chen smiled faintly. "Don't rush, you'll have your fun later. I just hope that when the wind comes, you can remember to stay calm. And when the heat wave comes, you can stabilize your body temperature. Believe me, if you can last for half an hour under these conditions, then you're not far from becoming a Kinoe-rank member."
The four nodded, only half understanding. They didn't really get what Su Chen meant, but they knew that by lasting for half an hour, their body and mind would change, and maybe even transform. So they just needed to go for it.
At this moment, the same Slayer asked again, "Then Su Chen-daren, when will these disturbances you mentioned arrive?" Su Chen was silent for a moment, then slowly closed his eyes. The corners of his mouth curved slightly. "Don't rush. Just wait for it."
...Meanwhile, on the other side, at Shinazugawa's Training Grounds. At this moment, Inosuke was already lying peacefully on the ground, sleeping soundly.
Shinazugawa rubbed the bridge of his nose, looking annoyed. "This won't do! He collapsed and fell asleep after only one hundred and one attacks? I really don't know how you passed the Demon Slayer Corps assessment. Come on! Attack me one more time!" he shouted.
But Inosuke couldn't move an inch. He was sprawled on the ground, his butt in the air, already snoring loudly.
"How unsightly," Shinazugawa frowned. But despite saying that, he thoughtfully dragged Inosuke back to his "pigsty."
Inosuke had, in a way, gained Shinazugawa's approval. After all, among the Demon Slayer Corps members, very few dared to challenge him. In Shinazugawa's own experience, anyone who could attack him more than ten times would generally become a Kinoe-rank member in the future. And those who could attack him a hundred times... They had the potential to become a Hashira! Inosuke had attacked him one hundred and one times, which showed his stubbornness and determination. Hmm, this boy is good. A hint of admiration appeared in Shinazugawa's eyes as he looked at Inosuke. Although this boar-headed boy's appearance was weird, his character and strength were already good enough to be his successor.
Immediately after, Shinazugawa looked down on the three Tomioka brothers huddled in the corner. The disappointment in his eyes was obvious. These three guys didn't even have the courage to let him massage them. They would probably never climb to the Kinoe rank in their lives.
"Su Chen-daren's side is almost finished!" Suddenly, someone in the crowd watching the training exclaimed.
Shinazugawa quickly looked over. He realized that Su Chen and his five patients (including Shinobu) had all entered a meditative state. They looked relaxed and natural, completely at ease. It seemed they had been holding that state for a long time.
Not good! Shinazugawa thought. This is bad. He had been having too much fun with Inosuke just now and almost forgot why he was here. If Su Chen really won, not only would he not learn the conditions for awakening the Mark, but he might even lose his Hashira residency qualification!
Now, every second Shinazugawa saw Su Chen and the others last, he felt like money was disappearing from his pocket, or like an ohagi mochi was flying away from him. Absolutely not!
The next moment, Shinazugawa showed a cruel smile. In that case, I apologize, Su Chen. You're the one who said we could interfere with opponents. So I'll just use a small trick to bring you down! After all, it's perfectly reasonable for me, the Wind Hashira, to accidentally create a strong wind in the training grounds, isn't it?
He decided to do it immediately. The current Wind Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps immediately got into a starting stance for a sword technique.
"Look, what is the Wind Hashira-daren doing?" "He's looking at Su Chen-daren! Has the Wind Hashira-daren finally lost his patience?" "That movement looks like a sword technique, right?" "But the Wind Hashira-daren doesn't have his Nichirin Sword. Can he really do it?"
Among the watching Demon Slayer Corps members, everyone began to comment on Shinazugawa's movements. Seeing Shinazugawa perform a sword technique without his Nichirin Sword completely shattered the worldview of the lower-ranking members. A Breathing Style... without a sword?
Kanao, sitting by the door, also watched this scene with great confusion. She remembered that her Flower Breathing could also make her strength abnormally great. But she didn't think sword techniques worked without a sword. But judging by Shinazugawa's posture, he must have done this more than once.
Kanao couldn't help but feel a hint of worry for Su Chen. A Hashira is a Hashira , and their strength is immense. Although Su Chen was the one who proposed the rule about interfering with opponents, the opponent was still a Hashira! What if Su Chen gets injured? Kanao's muscles tensed up, as if she was ready to "save Su Chen" at any moment.
The next moment, Shinazugawa moved. Without a blade in his hand, he sharply inhaled. "Total Concentration!" At this moment, the blood flow in Shinazugawa's body began to accelerate. A mysterious aura rapidly spread out from around him. Shinazugawa used his right hand like a blade, his left hand raised high. Then, with a leap, the oxygen in his lungs began to react! "Wind Breathing! No-Sword Style! Claw-Clawing Wind!"