"My name is Te-oni. You may not believe it, but I'm the oldest demon in all of Fujishiki Mountain. People call me the legendary long-lived Demon King.
I've fought against four Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps.
Hehe, not to brag, but none of them could kill me.
What doesn't kill me only makes me stronger.
Now, to handsome guys and beautiful ladies reading this, give me some applause for encouragement.
I can still live on!"
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
In the dim undergrowth of Fujishiki Mountain, a pair of narrowed yellow eyes were quietly hidden, with a slowly writhing black body making only slight rustling sounds.
As a veteran demon who had survived countless final selections and was still hanging on until now, Te-oni had developed a unique method of survival and concealing his presence through numerous purges by the Demon Slayer Corps.
Over the years, Te-oni increasingly believed that gods must exist in this world, and that he must be a lucky one blessed by the gods.
Otherwise, escaping death from the swords of so many Hashira- even the Twelve Kizuki wouldn't believe it, but it was actually true.
So, although Te-oni's power and body had shrunk dozens of times now, he still had strong confidence.
He believed that he would eventually escape from this hellish place!
And those humans who had hurt and humiliated him before!
Shinichi Moriki and those damned fox-masked brats!
Sooner or later, one by one!
He would crush their bones and chew up their flesh!
Just wait!
That day would come eventually!
I am the lucky one blessed by the gods!
Te-oni's yellow eyes were filled with intense hatred.
Just as Te-oni was indulging in his fantasies, a commotion interrupted his thoughts.
His yellow eyes quietly looked over to see two swordsmen appearing on the road not far away, vigilantly advancing with swords drawn.
One of the young swordsmen with red hair had a fox mask hanging at his waist that made Te-oni's eyes bulge with rage!
That's right, the newcomer was none other than our Tanjiro.
Beside Tanjiro was an unfamiliar young swordsman.
Clearly, the two had encountered each other in Fujikasane Mountain and decided to travel together.
"Strange, there's a very odd scent in the air." Tanjiro suddenly crouched down, frowning as he sniffed.
The swordsman beside Tanjiro immediately became tense.
Having traveled with Tanjiro for quite a while, he was well aware of how keen Tanjiro's nose was.
Basically, no demon within a fifty-meter range could escape Tanjiro's nose.
"Is it another demon?! Where?" The swordsman quickly gripped his Nichirin Blade with both hands, nervously looking around, his voice trembling slightly.
He was clearly a swordsman with a weak mental strength, at least far inferior to the calm Tanjiro.
Tanjiro said uncertainly, "Not necessarily. Anyway, I can only vaguely sense a tiny bit of malicious aura. If it were a demon, it shouldn't be this weak. If I had to say, it's more like the malice given off by a rabbit whose home has been invaded."
"Ra-rabbit?"
Hearing this, both the swordsman beside Tanjiro and Te-oni hiding in the dark were stunned.
But immediately after, uncontrollable rage exploded in Te-oni's heart.
This damned brat!
What was he saying?
Was he saying that the great Te-oni was like a timid rabbit?!
"Eh! The malice has intensified! It's changed from a rabbit to a fox!" Tanjiro exclaimed in surprise.
Buzz!
Te-oni's yellow eyes were instantly filled with bloodshot.
Although he was enraged to the extreme, he wasn't foolish enough to rush out.
His current strength was no longer what it used to be.
He might be able to handle one brat, but two swordsmen would be beyond his capabilities, not to mention that red-haired brat.
The polite red-haired brat, if he wasn't mistaken, was the one those demons had been discussing before.
Being able to kill through so many demons, this brat's strength was probably not to be underestimated.
Thinking of this, Te-oni quietly retreated deeper into the shadows.
There would always be opportunities.
Humans would always get tired.
As long as that red-haired brat showed a weakness, it would be time for the great Te-oni to make his appearance.
...
Tanjiro had a very strange feeling.
Ever since he had sensed a faint malice somewhere earlier, that malice seemed to have locked onto him, following him all the way.
Although very subtle, Tanjiro was certain this malice persisted.
However, as Tanjiro had said before, this malice was too faint.
He couldn't specifically judge whether this malice came from a demon or something else, nor could he pinpoint it.
Tanjiro wasn't a fool.
Since he couldn't find the one hiding in the dark, he might as well pretend not to notice and just walk on boldly.
Who knows how much time had passed when several terrifying bloodthirsty roars sounded near Tanjiro and his companion.
Then, several red-eyed demons, starved to the point of losing reason, bared their fangs and pounced towards the two.
Tanjiro and the unnamed swordsman immediately prepared for battle.
Te-oni, hiding in the dark, naturally saw this scene and couldn't help but feel wildly elated.
"Good! The opportunity has finally come!"
Without any hesitation, Te-oni condensed his form.
Soon, a lump of flesh covered in shit-green baby arms appeared in the shadows.
At the same time.
"Water Breathing, Fourth Form: Striking Tide!"
The azure light raised by the Nichirin Blade seemed like a truly surging tide, blocking all the attacks of several demons in front, while the swift sword light didn't miss the chance to attack.
With a flash of blood, the heads of two demons flew into the sky.
This scene stunned the unfamiliar swordsman on the other side.
Although he knew Tanjiro's strength was quite good, this was too exaggerated.
They were all here to participate in the final selection, so how could this kid effortlessly handle three or four demons, while he himself struggled to deal with just one?
Tanjiro and the unfamiliar swordsman were both wholeheartedly dealing with the demons before them.
After several days, Tanjiro had also given up on asking these irrational demons how to return to being human.
"Good chance! Brat! Your head is mine, the great Te-oni's, to take! Moriki! Just you wait, these fox-masked brats will be your interest!"
Te-oni, seeing Tanjiro's almost unguarded back, had a fierce look in his eyes.
Without any hesitation, his disgusting deformed body violently charged towards Tanjiro.
However...
Zing! Swoosh! Splat!!
Blood splattered, and a deformed large head suddenly flew into the sky.
Te-oni only felt his vision blur, and suddenly everything in his sight began to spin, as if he had lost balance.
"What's going on?!"
When the scenery before Te-oni's eyes stabilized and stopped moving, what he saw was Tanjiro's somewhat surprised face.
"What an ugly demon, why does it have so many arms on its body?"
Thud!
The headless ugly body fell in front of Te-oni.
'Is this... my body?'
[Te-oni is the hand demon who's surviving thing looongggggg only to be behead in a second by tanjiro 😭]
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