Upon returning home, Ren was preparing to catch some sleep, but at that moment, the cawing of a crow suddenly echoed out. The Kasuigaru Crow, Tianyue, suddenly flew into his room.
"Lord Fanma! I have already passed the information regarding the Berserk Demons to the Master. The Master is very grateful for the intelligence you provided and has distributed the data on Berserk Demons to all swordsmen of the Demon Slayer Corps. Furthermore, in the vicinity of Mount Natagumo not far from here, a large number of demons and Berserk Demons have appeared. The Master suspects that there may be demons of the Twelve Kizuki level lurking there, so he has already dispatched the Insect Hashira, Lady Kocho, and the Water Hashira, Lord Tomioka, to handle it."
'Mount Natagumo? Lower Moon Five's territory? With the appearance of Berserk Demons, the original Twelve Kizuki must have been strengthened by Muzan's blood as well, right?'
Ren speculated silently. After all, if Kibutsuji Muzan had begun mass-producing Berserk Demons, there was no reason not to give the Twelve Kizuki a boost. If that were the case, then the current Rui might already possess strength approaching that of an Upper Moon, likely not far behind Giyu's level.
Thinking of this, Ren spoke up abruptly, "In that case, I'll take a stroll over to Mount Natagumo myself. I don't have anything else to do right now anyway."
However, Tianyue suddenly spoke, "Wait a moment, Lord Fanma! The Master wishes for you to go to another location!"
"Another location?"
"Yes. Kaedehara Town. It is a highly modernized town where a large number of Berserk Demons have also been discovered. Their numbers may exceed a hundred, and there are even signs of Twelve Kizuki level demons present. So far, twenty Mizunoto-ranked swordsmen have sacrificed their lives, and there have been dozens of casualties. The Master has already dispatched the Serpent Hashira, Lord Iguro, the Love Hashira, Lady Kanroji, and the Flame Hashira, Lord Rengoku, to handle it, but the number of demons there is simply too high. Therefore, he hopes Lord Fanma can go to provide support."
"Over a hundred Berserk Demons!"
Ren rested his chin on his hand, pondering. "If that's true, that place is practically a town of fierce demons. It's worth a look."
As for Mount Natagumo, he trusted the strength of Kocho Shinobu and Tomioka Giyu. Even if they encountered Rui, they wouldn't be in any real danger.
"Fine, let's head out then!"
With that, Ren took his Nichirin Greatsword and followed Tianyue, taking a carriage toward Kaedehara Town. The journey took a full two and a half hours.
It wasn't until half past three in the afternoon that Ren arrived at Kaedehara Town. Just as Tianyue had described, it was indeed a very modern town. There were trains and streetlights on the streets, and various supermarkets and even entertainment houses lined both sides. If managed well, it would have been an excellent place for tourism.
However, to his surprise, even though it was only three-thirty and still broad daylight, the streets were completely deserted. Despite being a modern town, it felt incredibly desolate. Why was that?
As if sensing his confusion, Tianyue explained.
"Lord Fanma, you may not know since you just joined the Demon Slayer Corps, but the more demons there are in a location, the more the local murder and disappearance cases grow exponentially. Cases caused by Berserk Demons are even more frequent. In just a few days, over a hundred people have died here. Consequently, the townspeople are either staying behind closed doors or have fled the town to seek refuge elsewhere. In a place where Berserk Demons exist, it is impossible for people to live happily..."
"It doesn't matter. Since the Berserk Demons are threatening people's happiness, we just need to slay them and protect the happiness and smiles of others. It's as simple as that."
"Lord Fanma..."
Tianyue stared straight at Ren with bright eyes before finally smiling. "You are right. That is exactly why the Demon Slayer Corps exists!"
"Lead me to Lady Mitsuri's base first. There should be a Wisteria House here, right?"
"Yes, yes, Lord Fanma. Please follow me."
Tianyue immediately led the way, with Ren following closely behind. Eventually, the man and the crow arrived at the Wisteria House together.
Upon entering, Ren saw a large group of Kakushi members busily moving back and forth in the courtyard, taking care of the severely injured people inside the building. Those with light injuries had already been sent to the Butterfly Mansion for treatment. Those remaining here were all heavily wounded members who could not withstand the jolting of the road and had to stay at the Wisteria House for medical care.
"Are there this many wounded here?"
Ren couldn't help but ask, "Then why didn't the Master ask Lady Shinobu to come here for support? Clearly, she is needed more here, isn't she?"
"Because Mount Natagumo also requires Lady Kocho. The demons there seem to use potent poisons, so Lady Kocho has already gone there."
"That makes sense. The spider demons there naturally possess poison-attribute Blood Demon Arts. After being strengthened by Muzan, their toxins will certainly be even more lethal!"
Thinking of this, Ren went straight to the main hall of the Wisteria House, where he met three familiar faces.
Kanroji Mitsuri, Iguro Obanai, and Rengoku Kyojuro.
After entering the hall, Ren immediately offered a greeting. "Long time no see, you three. Am I late?"
"Ren! It's been so long!"
Mitsuri rushed to his side instantly, grabbing his arm and speaking excitedly. "We've all heard about your exploits! To fight three Upper Moons single-handedly and even manage to kill one! You are really, really, really amazing!"
Kyojuro also praised him, "Mm! Taking on three Upper Moons! Including that arrogant Upper Moon One! Very impressive! Truly impressive!"
"Thank you for the praise..."
Ren gave a perfunctory reply because he had already noticed that Obanai, that king of jealousy, had his face instantly darken. The man was radiating an invisible killing intent, staring at him fixedly without pause.
This made Ren's lips twitch. 'Man, you really have some patience. You clearly have feelings for Kanroji, yet you just don't dare to confess. Watching you two back when I watched the anime drove me crazy...'
Shaking off the thought, Ren directly ignored Obanai's murderous gaze and got straight to the point.
"Let's talk business. What's the situation now? I only know there are many Berserk Demons here, and I saw the people outside..."
"Those people are all wounded. Over fifty people have been injured so far, and many are severely hurt—either missing an arm or having a broken leg. Currently, besides the four of us, there are fewer than ten people left who can still fight."
Mitsuri explained with a worried expression, "We didn't expect the demons here to be so powerful... No, we already received the intel sent by the Master. It's basically confirmed that all the demons here are Berserk Demons!"
"That's right. The strength of these Berserk Demons is far beyond that of ordinary demons."
When it came to business, Obanai also calmed down, no longer looking at Ren with that strange gaze. In terms of strength alone, he highly recognized Ren.
"Some of the top-tier ones even have strength comparable to the Lower Moons. We were caught off guard by them!"
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