A full moon hung high in the sky, its pure white light draping over Mount Xiemu like a veil, illuminating the entire peak.
Arms, legs, head—its body split into three parts, pinned down by eight sharpened stakes.
These scattered remains lay between ten wooden stakes—the crucified long-armed ape.
Its egg-sized eyes gleamed with a sly, eerie red light—it still had one last trick up its sleeve.
Because it knew the man before it wouldn't kill it immediately. He had said it himself—he wanted the sun to burn it to death.
"Damn human, just finish me off!"
A demon who took pleasure in slaughter was now cursing a demon slayer for being despicable—how laughable.
"No way!" Tendo shot Lower Two a glance before reaching into his robe and pulling out a vial of Wisteria Poison—complete with an injector.
Tenth Edition Wisteria Poison—a deadly toxin for demons, ensuring the most agonizing death possible.
Death by sunlight? It didn't deserve that.
The thought of the swordsmen who had died horribly at its hands made Tendo's blood boil. A clean decapitation was far too merciful.
A smile curled on Tendo's lips, but it didn't reach his eyes. From the ape's perspective—now reduced to just its head—that grin was terrifying.
This man was a devious devil.
Just staring at Tendo's smile sent uncontrollable shivers down its spine.
"You… just kill me already!"
"Gladly!" Tendo tilted his head and plunged the injector into its skull, administering doses into every piece before leaving it to die.
This version of Wisteria Poison was potent enough to kill a Lower Rank—let alone one already drained of stamina.
Only an Upper Rank could metabolize the toxin quickly.
Moments later, the ape's black fur fell off, turning to dust, while thin purple veins bulged visibly beneath its skin—the poison eating away at its body.
"AAAAAHHH!"
"Kill me! Just end it!"
"Damn… humans!"The gibbon let out a sharp, miserable shriek, its shrill cry tearing through the forest's tranquility.
With that scream, the gibbon's body parts began to tremble violently, wracked by the agony of Wisteria Poison.
Blood streamed down its cheeks, mingling with its inhuman wails as its swollen face twisted into a grotesque mask.
Suddenly, it laughed—a triumphant, unbridled sneer.
"Humans, die with me!"
"Hahaha!"
As it shouted, its sole remaining clone hidden within a wooden stump activated. The reason it had been pinned to the ground was because this clone had siphoned away thirty percent of its strength.
This was its killing move, specifically set up to catch the off-guard Tendo.
From the moment they clashed, the gibbon had known it couldn't kill this Hashira with its own strength alone.
Though it had been reluctant to use this move, it no longer cared—killing Tendo was all that mattered now.
The clone, infused with thirty percent of Lower Two's power, lunged at Tendo with lightning speed. Its arms fused together, shortening into dagger-like appendages, but their hardness increased exponentially.
Just as the clone was about to strike down the detestable foe before it, the gibbon grinned savagely in triumph.
I admit you're strong—unbelievably strong.
So what?!
You're still going to die by my hand!
"Hahahaha!"
The next instant, the clone pierced through the gibbon's own skull. Tendo, gripping his blade, sidestepped effortlessly, wearing an indifferent smile.
"Aah—"
"AAAHHH!"
"How?!"
"Impossible to dodge!"
"IMPOSSIBLE!"
The gibbon's voice stretched into a hoarse, broken wail as its shattered skull gushed dark purple blood. It howled like a mad beast.
Watching the dissipating clone, Tendo shrugged helplessly and mocked in the gibbon's earlier tone:
"Against absolute strength, all schemes are meaningless!"
"You're just weak!"
"Lower Two, was it?"
"Maybe you don't even deserve that rank. Even if I spare you, Muzan Kibutsuji will dispose of you anyway!"
Tendo's final words were the most venomous—more toxic than Wisteria Poison. After all, the gibbon had schemed endlessly just to enter Muzan's gaze and receive more blood.
For the slaughtered swordsmen it had tormented, this was the most satisfying outcome—not just death, but agonizing demise.
Tendo sighed. Those fallen swordsmen would never return.
Turning toward the woods, he called, "Seiken, have the Kakushi handle the cleanup. We need to bring everyone back."
Carrying Murata on his back, Tendo descended to the mountain's base and handed him over to three waiting swordsmen before rejoining the Kakushi squad to assist.
The news of Lower Two's defeat was delivered to headquarters by Seiken.
Alone on a midway mountain path, Tendo sat eating a large pack of food brought by the Kakushi.
Due to decomposition, the slain squad members' heads had to be buried onsite—only their Nichirin Blades could be retrieved as mementos.
"Tendo-sensei, are you alright?" Sato Kageha emerged from the nearby thicket, noticing Tendo's troubled expression.Since their acquaintance during the Final Selection, Tendo's post-battle scenes had almost always been handled by Kageha's team. Over time, the two had grown familiar with each other.
"It's alright, thank you for your hard work!" Tendo said with a smile, merely mourning the fallen swordsmen in silence.
"That's good to hear. I'll go check the higher areas—there might still be overlooked spots. We must bring the souls of the swordsmen home!"
As Kageha took a few steps forward, Tendo opened his mouth to stop him. After all, the Lower Rank Two was still nailed to the mountaintop, not yet completely dead.
"I'll go. It's not safe up there!"
Before Kageha could respond, Tendo had already vanished from his sight.
At the summit of Mount Shame.
Under the glow of the Full Moon, the long-armed demon clung to its last breath. The rest of its body had dissolved into blood, its head mangled beyond recognition.
It muttered to itself like a madman.
"Do you know why I chose Mount Shame?"
"Because there's a seal here—a seal set by a great one, a forgotten seal."
"Damn humans, if I die, you won't live peacefully either."
"There's an even more terrifying demon!"
"Hahaha!"
As soon as it finished speaking, its head exploded with a bang.
Finally, a pool of liquid mixed with Lower Rank blood spread across the ground.
The mountain trembled slightly as the liquid was gradually absorbed by the earth.
As the last drop disappeared, the ground at the summit began to crack slowly. The fissures multiplied, soon forming the pattern of a massive eye.
A dark red beam shot out from within, followed by a torrent of dark red gas gushing violently from the eye like a powerful flood.
The gas engulfed the entire mountaintop, shrouding everything in its path.
From within the bloody mist, a withered arm emerged from the ground.