It turns out that demons are not an evolution of humans; humans themselves can become this powerful…
"Perhaps it's because I often bask in the sun; sunlight can promote the human body's absorption of calcium, strengthening the physique," Chu Yang said earnestly, but he was already laughing internally.
What was originally a teasing remark, Akaza unexpectedly took to heart, falling into deep doubt.
Is he not strong enough because he hasn't been exposed to the sun?
Demons cannot walk in the sun; it truly is a fatal flaw…
Akaza closed his eyes.
Chu Yang sighed, then shattered the opponent's neck with a punch, a flicker of regret in his eyes.
Akaza's name in life was Hakuji, a good person. In his youth, to treat his critically ill father, he often committed theft. Although he took some detours, it was understandable; at least, he was a filial child.
His father, feeling he was a burden to Hakuji, chose to hang himself. Having lost his only family, Hakuji became extreme and irritable. If he hadn't later met Master Keizo, who taught him martial arts, he might have gone astray.
Hakuji was 15 years old that year.
Hakuji settled down at his master's dojo, but he was the only disciple there. Master Keizo's wife had just passed away, leaving behind a sick daughter, and the two depended on each other.
Master Keizo did not hold prejudice against Hakuji for his past mistakes and even entrusted his sick daughter, Koyuki, to his care, fully demonstrating his trust.
Thus, Hakuji spent a period of peaceful and warm days. During this time, Koyuki fell in love with this seemingly fierce but actually very gentle boy.
Hakuji, who had lived a less than glorious life before, never realized that Koyuki liked him.
When he was 18, Master Keizo planned to hand over the dojo to Hakuji and arrange an engagement between his daughter and Hakuji. Hakuji took Koyuki to see a beautiful fireworks display, and the two confessed their feelings to each other, confirming their affection.
Excited, Hakuji returned to his hometown to inform his deceased father of his marriage news. However, fate played a cruel trick; it was this brief separation that separated Hakuji and Koyuki forever.
The neighboring kendo dojo had always been jealous that Master Keizo, despite having few disciples, maintained a vast dojo. The two sides had deep-seated grudges but had kept them hidden, as they were no match for Master Keizo and Hakuji.
With Hakuji's return home, these scoundrels chose to poison the well, killing Master Keizo and Koyuki.
Hakuji, who thought he could finally embrace happiness, collapsed. He single-handedly killed sixty-seven people from the kendo dojo, clearing out the entire dojo and completely severing its lineage.
After that, he met Muzan Kibutsuji and became Akaza.
Through the long years, Akaza forgot all of Hakuji's memories, retaining only an obsession with strength, because deep in his soul, he always believed he wasn't strong enough, which was why he couldn't protect his family.
"If I became as strong as this person, perhaps my life would have been completely different?"
Before his life faded, Akaza's self in his mind merged with Chu Yang's figure, and the head that fell to the ground revealed a relieved smile.
Watching Akaza completely turn to ashes, Chu Yang felt some regret. Akaza, after becoming a demon, never actively hunted ordinary people. Most of the civilians who died because of him were caught in the crossfire during battles.
But this does not mean Akaza is innocent.
His sins are merely lighter than those of other demons, nothing more.
If fate could have been a little kinder to this young man, his life truly would have been very different.
There was no time to lament Hakuji's tragic life.
Chu Yang rushed directly towards Doma, who was fighting Kanae.
Doma, intent on escaping, was extremely ruthless in his attacks. Kanae was already injured in many places, and her beautiful haori was covered in blood.
"Get lost!!!" Seeing Chu Yang charging at him menacingly, Doma's expression grew even more distorted.
Even Akaza was utterly defenseless; he, as Upper Moon Two, wouldn't last many rounds either.
Kanae showed a look of satisfaction; the more desperate Doma was, the happier she became.
A sky full of ice and frost erupted from Doma, and within the ice and snow, a huge Bodhisattva statue blocked Chu Yang's path. The ice sculpture Bodhisattva clasped its hands together, appearing merciful.
Chu Yang's lips curled into a disdainful smile.
Though both were Buddhas, the Bodhisattva created by Doma was completely different from the one enshrined by Gyomei Himejima in the temple.
To Chu Yang, the ice sculpture Bodhisattva had no compassion at all; its pretentious act made it even more disgusting.
The Bodhisattva raised its hand-blade high and brought it down without hesitation, with the force of ten thousand pounds.
Chu Yang, filled with rage, stomped the ground, shooting out like a cannonball. While dodging the hand-blade, he crashed through the Bodhisattva, leaving a large hole.
He landed directly in front of Doma.
Face to face, the opponent's expression was fully visible.
Under Doma's horrified gaze, Chu Yang reached out and pressed down on his head.
Like pulling a radish, he pulled it from the neck.
Pop~~~
It wasn't until his head was separated from his body and Doma's gaze met Chu Yang's indifferent eyes that he belatedly realized something—
I'm going to die.
Except for the progenitor demon Muzan Kibutsuji himself, all demons created by him have a fatal weakness: after being decapitated, demons always have only one outcome, which is death.
Only an extremely strong will to survive can break through the limits of a demon, allowing them to ignore decapitation and regenerate their bodies.
Achieving this is also known as breaking the limit.
For so many years, besides Yoriichi Tsugikuni, no one could bring such terrifying pressure to demons. They naturally had no way to touch this supreme realm.
Akaza was so awestruck by Chu Yang's power that he gave up his chance to live, because he knew that no matter how many times he regenerated, he could never defeat this monstrous man.
As for Doma, he never possessed such a tenacious will from the beginning. He was exceptionally gifted, had never suffered any hardships, and was a born evildoer who took pleasure in bullying the weak.
Doma and Akaza led completely different lives, with no basis for comparison.
"This guy can actually be afraid…" Kanae, suffering from severe blood loss, was unsteady on her feet, but she still dragged her exhausted body to Doma.
After a brief moment of fear, Doma's expression returned to normal. He looked indifferently at Kanae and said regretfully, "What a pity, I couldn't drag you with me to the underworld. It would have been quite interesting."
"It's alright, all those you've harmed will be waiting for you on the path until you meet again," Kanae said calmly, a hint of satisfaction in her eyes. "Go there and receive your punishment properly!"
Doma chuckled softly, gazing at Chu Yang and saying, "I really look forward to the day you meet Kibutsuji Muzan. Will it be the end of the demon era, or will the Demon Slayer Corps be utterly annihilated in history? It's truly a shame I won't get to see that day."
"It has nothing to do with you," Chu Yang threw Doma's head away, watching it burn to ashes in the flames of Sun Breathing.
Kanae let out a long breath, and a wave of fatigue instantly washed over her.
Her body could no longer hold up, and she swayed, then fell.
Chu Yang, quick as lightning, put his arm around her shoulder, letting her lean against him.
"I'm sorry, I wasn't much help in the fight just now, and I still have to trouble you to take care of me," the weak Kanae mumbled with squinted eyes. If Chu Yang didn't have good hearing, he wouldn't have heard her words at all.
"When I was at Butterfly Mansion, you were always taking care of me too, so don't be so polite," Chu Yang said, then slowly channeled Wood Release Chakra into Kanae's body, helping her recover her vitality.
The intense battle just now had already drawn many people to their windows and doors to observe. Fortunately, it was deep night, and it was pitch black outside, so they couldn't see much.
Chu Yang's Kasugai Crow had already sent the intelligence back to headquarters. It wouldn't be long before logistics personnel arrived.
A moment later, Kanae's complexion improved considerably, and she could barely walk. So, the two left the town under the cover of night. If they stayed any longer, the town's residents would become restless.
Not long after the two left the town, they met the arriving "Kakushi" on a small road outside the town. Kanae's younger sister, Shinobu Kocho, was also among the crowd. Upon seeing Kanae covered in blood, she could no longer hold back and rushed out.
The two sisters embraced, and Shinobu Kocho cried uncontrollably. It was the first time Chu Yang had seen her cry so sadly, and he couldn't help but stand by, enjoying the sight with relish.
Who knew that after watching for a short while, Chu Yang would get burned.
"You idiot, why did you follow Kanae-nee-san? It's because of you that Kanae-nee-san got hurt!" Shinobu Kocho said angrily, "If it wasn't to protect you, how would Kanae-nee-san have been injured by a demon?"
Chu Yang clicked his tongue. He still preferred Shinobu Kocho a few years later. Although her words were venomous and she liked to be sarcastic, she was still cuter than this little girl in front of him.
At least she wouldn't wrongly accuse people.
Some of the Kakushi team members stayed to take care of Kanae, while others went to the town to clean up.
The fierce battle between the two sides had damaged many public facilities.
But everyone ignored Chu Yang, because he was clean from head to toe. Let alone blood, his clothes weren't even torn. In the eyes of others, Kanae had sacrificed herself to protect Chu Yang very well.
Kanae tugged at Shinobu Kocho's sleeve, pulling the roaring Shinobu Kocho back to her side, and said with a wry smile, "Don't embarrass yourself. If it weren't for Chu Yang, I would have died long ago. He alone killed two demons; I couldn't help at all…"
Kanae's voice was not loud, but it clearly entered everyone's ears. Everyone's movements paused for a moment, then returned to normal as they continued with their tasks.
Shinobu Kocho also froze for a moment, instinctively thinking she had misheard, until she saw her sister's serious gaze.
"Didn't he hold you back, causing you to get hurt?" Shinobu Kocho asked her sister incredulously.
"To be precise, I held him back. We just encountered Upper Moon Two and Upper Moon Three of the Twelve Kizuki. I was no match for either of them," Kanae openly recounted their encounter, frankly admitting she was no match for the demons.
As a Hashira, saying such words required great courage.
Silence!
The scene was terrifyingly silent!
The fact that Chu Yang single-handedly killed two demons and protected the Flower Hashira was already shocking. However, what was even more shocking was the identity of those two demons!
Upper Moon Two!
Upper Moon Three!
These later-arriving personnel usually found the stories about Lower Moons from the injured terrifying enough. They had never seen a Demon Slayer Corps member who lived to tell tales of the Upper Moons.
Because everyone who met an Upper Moon had died, including past Hashira-level swordsmen.
Seeing the horrified expressions of those around her, Kanae suddenly realized something and asked Chu Yang in surprise, "What intelligence did your Kasugai Crow send out?"
Chu Yang shrugged and replied, "It said you were injured and asked them to send people to treat you quickly."
"Why didn't you report the matter of you killing the Upper Moon to the Master?!" Kanae was so angry she felt a little dizzy, asking word by word, "You idiot, you should send important information!!!"
"I am saying what's important," Chu Yang said as a matter of course, "You were injured like that, isn't that important?"
Kanae's scolding voice stopped abruptly, her gaze blankly fixed on Chu Yang, then her fair face began to blush, spreading from her earlobes all the way to her neck.
Shinobu Kocho had no time to ponder how Chu Yang had killed the Upper Moon. Her gaze darted between the two, looking like a spectator enjoying the drama.
Oh ho ho, these two are acting strangely…
74. Chapter 74: The One Who Ends Everything! [Ten Thousand Word Chapter! Begging for Subscriptions]
74.
The detailed intelligence describing the battle process with the two Upper Moons was officially sent out, arriving at the Demon Slayer Corps Headquarters at dawn.