Muzan stared at the lightning-wreathed blade in the black-clad man's hand.
From the friction between lightning and air, intense heat had built up, turning the jet-black blade incandescent red—then, under some peculiar ability, into a dark crimson hue, making it appear even sharper and tougher.
The killing intent radiating from the man, along with the faint demonic howl emanating from the blade, made Muzan's scalp prickle. It was as if he had been dragged back to that night several hundred years ago.
The overwhelming pressure caused Muzan to forget even to counterattack. He instinctively tried to dodge—but the opponent was simply too fast. Coupled with a moment of hesitation born of shock, he failed to escape.
Like a hot knife slicing through butter, the dark-red blade cut down from the side of Muzan's neck, carving all the way to his lower waist—nearly cleaving him in two!
"Ah—!"
Amid pain and terror, Muzan let out a shrill scream. He leapt backward, releasing countless blood-red thorny tendrils toward Kurosaki Rei, while shouting as he retreated:
"Nakime!"
Ever the exemplary subordinate, Nakime reacted instantly. She manipulated the Infinity Castle, opening a door at Muzan's position and transferring him to a location farther away from Kurosaki Rei.
Seeing Muzan vanish, Kurosaki Rei flicked his blade in a blood-shaking motion, flinging Muzan's filthy blood onto the ground in a graceful arc.
Lightning and dark-violet mist coiled around him. High-temperature white vapor poured from his mouth. Lifted by the hot airflow, his hair and black clothes drifted upward slightly. In the eyes of the many demons within the Infinity Castle, he looked like a wrathful Asura Thunder God.
Kurosaki Rei bared his teeth in a stark grin.
"The Demon King? That's it?"
From his new position above and to the side, Muzan stared at Kurosaki Rei with deep wariness.
"Kill him!"
He clutched his neck with one hand, struggling to heal the wound. Even after rejoining his body, a long scar remained, and he could feel an invasive force within him continuously destroying his cells. The electro-thermal power of Thunder Breathing also lingered in his flesh.
Fear surged uncontrollably from the depths of his heart. Kurosaki Rei's presence reminded him of the man from centuries ago—the one who had hacked him down so badly that he had been forced to self-destruct just to escape.
Damn it—why had the Demon Slayer Corps produced yet another monster like this?!
Fortunately, this was not the past. Today, he possessed far greater combat power. Tsugikuni Michikatsu—Yoriichi's elder brother—had joined his side. As Upper Rank One, guarding him, and with the battlefield being his own Infinity Castle, the situation was much better.
Muzan refused to admit that he was inferior to Kurosaki Rei. He believed Kurosaki Rei still didn't pressure him as much as Yoriichi had. But with subordinates present, he had no intention of lowering himself to fight personally—nor did he want to shoulder that risk.
"To dare attack Lord Muzan… how exceedingly bold,"
The cautious Dōma had already unleashed his Blood Demon Art before reaching Kurosaki Rei's platform. As the Infinity Castle trembled, a towering ice-crystal Bodhisattva—tens of meters tall—rose up.
Blood Demon Art: Frozen Mist · Lotus Bodhisattva!
The colossal Bodhisattva clasped its hands together, then, under Dōma's control, swung a palm-blade toward Kurosaki Rei. At the same time, its mouth spewed vast quantities of icy crystals.
Simultaneously, the new Upper Rank Four—Qingfeng, the explorer—also made his move.
His Blood Demon Art resembled that of the former Lower Rank Five, Rui: threads.
However, Qingfeng's threads were far more insidious—completely transparent, dozens of times tougher than Rui's, making them nearly impossible to guard against. In a chaotic battle, they were vastly more dangerous.
Demons could be severed and regenerate instantly—especially Upper Ranks. But if Kurosaki Rei carelessly dashed into those threads, he would be sliced apart, gravely injured, or even killed.
Qingfeng flicked his hand, laying down an invisible spiderweb throughout the space to restrict Kurosaki Rei's movement and prevent him from pursuing Muzan.
As Muzan's subordinate, Qingfeng privately felt that Muzan was far too cowardly—but as the Demon King, Muzan exercised absolute control over them. No matter how displeased he was, Qingfeng couldn't voice it.
More importantly, Muzan had to be kept alive. Once Muzan died, all demons would perish—even explorers like himself would not be spared.
Facing the combined assault of the two demons, Kurosaki Rei responded in a simple, brutal manner.
Before Dōma's ice crystals reached him, he inhaled deeply. Lightning then burst forth like a torrential flood, the heat carried by the current dispersing the approaching ice.
Having read the original story, Kurosaki Rei knew that inhaling those crystals would cause breathing difficulties and eventually alveolar necrosis. Eliminating this support-type caster was his priority.
In an explosion of lightning, the ground beneath Kurosaki Rei shattered. He transformed into a streak of black and violet-gold light. With an upward reverse slash of Demon-Imprisoning Blade, he first severed Qingfeng's invisible web—then split the massive ice Bodhisattva cleanly in half.
He was already upon Dōma.
Yet Dōma showed not the slightest fear, still wearing that false smile. He waved the two iron fans in his hands, and several ice vines entwined with lotus blossoms sprang forth, binding Kurosaki Rei.
Blood Demon Art: Vine Lotus Bloom.
At such close range, even Kurosaki Rei had nowhere to dodge.
And he didn't.
Bound, he forced himself one step forward with brute strength and swung his blade at Dōma's neck.
Dōma hurriedly retreated—but he had misjudged Kurosaki Rei's raw power. His movement lagged by a fraction, and the blade swept across his neck.
Kurosaki Rei frowned. The cut was slightly shallow—like an executioner's stroke gone awry. Dōma's head hadn't fully come off; a thin layer of flesh still connected it to his body.
Dōma grabbed his own head with both hands, pressing it firmly against his neck. As he leapt backward, the wound was already slowly closing.
Though not dead, he had suffered corrosive damage from Demon-Imprisoning Blade and scorching thunder damage from top-tier Thunder Breathing, forcing him to expend a great deal of strength to reattach his head.
Kurosaki Rei flexed his muscles, completely shattering the ice vines binding him. At that moment, Qingfeng's web descended from above.
Kurosaki Rei swung Demon-Imprisoning Blade upward, the blade-light shredding Qingfeng's invisible threads, and once again charged at Dōma.
"Akaza, what are you doing?!"
Seeing the battle turn unfavorable, Muzan's veins bulged as he roared Akaza's name—also implicitly warning Kokushibo, who had yet to act after landing on the platform.
Akaza, who had been watching the fight, frowned slightly but immediately moved.
Both he and Kokushibo were extremely fast—faster even than Dōma—and had reached this platform earlier. Yet neither had acted at first.
Akaza had two reasons for spectating.
First, he believed Kurosaki Rei to be a powerful martial artist. He didn't want to win through a group assault—he wanted a one-on-one duel, which he considered an honorable battle.
Ganging up on a single man? That was despicable in his eyes, not something a true strongman should do.
Second… he simply disliked Dōma. Seeing Kurosaki Rei on the verge of killing him, Akaza couldn't be bothered to help.
Kokushibo's reasons were similar.
He sensed that Kurosaki Rei was the strongest human of this era—someone akin to his younger brother. He wanted a one-on-one duel with Kurosaki Rei. Defeating him would, in a sense, fulfill his lifelong obsession and prove that the path he had chosen was correct.
Back then, he had willingly become a demon in pursuit of surpassing his brother—yet when his brother was on the verge of dying from old age, he had nearly been slain by him in a single stroke. His brother then died standing, victorious to the end.
That memory tormented Kokushibo deeply.
Thus, for centuries, he had pursued greater power, desperate to prove that he had surpassed his brother—yet lacking any worthy benchmark. After all, he and Muzan were partners and master–subordinate; he couldn't exactly use Muzan as a test subject.
Now, seeing Kurosaki Rei erupt with such terrifying strength, the long-dormant fire in his heart reignited. He wanted to test the fruits of his cultivation against Kurosaki Rei.
But now, the boss was panicking.
Muzan shouted, clearly displeased.
Reluctantly, Kokushibo stepped forward to intervene.
Akaza was the first to rush in, charging behind Kurosaki Rei—still maintaining his peculiar sense of martial etiquette as he shouted:
"Take this!"
As he called out, a twelve-pointed snowflake pattern appeared on the ground.
That was his Blood Demon Art—
Destructive Death: Compass Needle.
Like a compass, this art sensed an opponent's fighting spirit, allowing Akaza's attacks and evasions to lock onto the enemy with magnetic precision. The stronger the opponent's fighting spirit, the stronger and more accurate the Compass Needle's response.
At this moment, Akaza could clearly sense Kurosaki Rei's movements—and even anticipate his next attack.
He assumed a standard martial stance. Power flowed through his entire body like water, gathering into his right fist.
Then he struck.
Given Kurosaki Rei's strength, Akaza opened with his most destructive technique:
Destructive Death · Annihilation Style!
At the same time, Kurosaki Rei had just cleaved Dōma in half at the waist. Sensing Akaza's attack from behind, he twisted his body and punched backward with his left fist, colliding directly with Akaza's blow.
Boom!
At the point where their fists met, it was as if an explosion had occurred. A shockwave rippled outward in all directions, even momentarily halting the descending threads above Kurosaki Rei's head.
As Kurosaki Rei twisted and punched with his left hand, his right hand brought Demon-Imprisoning Blade down in a clean arc—beheading the bisected Dōma.
"Huh? I got decapitated? Am I going to die?"
Dōma's head, still wearing its fake smile, showed no fear of death as it spoke calmly in midair.
Caught in the shockwave from Kurosaki Rei and Akaza's clash, his head was flung away, tumbling to the ground. His eyes gradually lost focus, and his life faded away.
In less than half a minute since the battle began—
Upper Rank Two, Dōma, had been slain by Kurosaki Rei.
The fact stunned countless demons within the Infinity Castle—and terrified the explorers even more.
Though only a few Upper Ranks were directly besieging Kurosaki Rei, all remaining explorers in this world had been summoned to the Infinity Castle by Muzan. There were also several new Lower Ranks and even two new Upper Ranks.
They had believed that luring Kurosaki Rei into the Infinity Castle was akin to trapping a turtle in a jar.
But now, they strongly suspected—
Kurosaki Rei had been waiting all along for a chance to enter the Infinity Castle.
A top-tier hunter often appears in the guise of prey.
Kurosaki Rei had entered the game willingly.
"Kokushibo!"
Seeing Dōma killed so cleanly, the chill down Muzan's spine deepened. Unable to hold back any longer, he roared Kokushibo's name.
Kokushibo didn't reply—but his actions answered.
His figure flickered as he stepped forward, instantly arriving before Kurosaki Rei. He lowered his stance, one hand on the scabbard, the other on the hilt—
An iaijutsu stance.
Six eyes locked onto Kurosaki Rei, who had just slain Dōma. Kokushibo had never intended to stoop to group combat, but Muzan was clearly panicking.
After all, the boss was the boss—he had to be appeased.
As Kokushibo drew his blade, moonlight flowed like water. A massive crescent slash cut toward Kurosaki Rei's midsection.
Too fast to describe—
At that moment, Kurosaki Rei had just finished killing Dōma and hadn't yet recovered his blade, still locked in a fist clash with Akaza.
Under the collision of their punches, Akaza felt, amid the thunderous roar, a terrifying force surge toward him like a collapsing mountain.
That power even swallowed the force he himself had unleashed—like a tsunami devouring a feeble wave.
In an instant, starting from his fist, Akaza's right arm disintegrated. His knuckles shattered into powder, skin twisted and tore apart under the spiraling force, exploding into fragments of flesh and blood.
The power continued upward, annihilating the bones and flesh of his entire arm. Even then, the remaining force didn't dissipate—it transferred into his body, blasting him backward through the air.
At that moment—
Kokushibo's blade arrived.
Kurosaki Rei forced Demon-Imprisoning Blade back with effort, awkwardly raising it vertically to guard his waist.
Because the defense was rushed—and Kokushibo's combat mastery rivaled his own, with attributes close as well—Kurosaki Rei's blade was driven back, pressed against his waist, slamming into his body.
Kokushibo's six eyes were cold and emotionless.
As sparks flew, his blade vanished—then reappeared.
Bathed in overlapping moon crescents, the second strike arrived instantly.
Moon Breathing, Third Form — Loathsome Moon!
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