The closer Tatsuya and Tanjirou got to the area indicated by the Kasugai Crow, the thicker the smell of blood and a burnt odor became in the air, mixed with the lingering aura of terrifying energy collisions.
A half-demolished tavern stood with collapsed walls and broken wooden beams.
Kyojuro Rengoku was kneeling on the ground, barely supporting himself with his nichirin blade plunged into the earth.
His flame haori was severely damaged, covered in dust and bloodstains, blood constantly oozing from the corner of his mouth, and a terrifying 貫穿傷 (penetrating wound) on his left shoulder was gushing blood.
His breathing was heavy and labored, but his bright, piercing eyes still burned with an unyielding flame, fixed intently on the front, shielding a girl who had fallen to the ground behind him.
"Ugh! You won't take another step!"
His voice was as resonant as a bell, and even though it was laced with gasps, it was filled with an undeniable sense of power.
"As long as I have breath in my body, I will never let you harm innocent people!"
His opponent, the handsome figure in a white suit, exuding endless cold malice—
Kibutsuji Muzan, indifferently raised his hand, and the grotesque black thorny whips extending from his fingertips were poised like venomous snakes.
"Pointless struggle. Your blood, your bones, will all become insignificant data on my experimental table…"
Muzan's voice was cold and devoid of any emotion.
On the ground nearby, a figure wrapped in ominous black-red energy was struggling and howling in pain, uttering indistinct delirious words: "Ruri…"
Just at this critical moment, Muzan's movements suddenly paused!
He frowned with extreme disgust, turning his head sharply towards the direction from which Tatsuya and Tanjirou were approaching.
"That annoying Lightning Release again… It's relentless!"
He spat in a low voice, his tone clearly showing irritation and a hint of imperceptible apprehension.
He instantly weighed the pros and cons.
An unknown-state, strangely fast Tatsuya, plus a Flame Hashira who could still fight to the death… He did not want to get entangled in a protracted battle at this moment.
But he also didn't want to abandon the special experimental subject that was currently undergoing transformation on the ground.
In that moment of hesitation—
Boom!
A blue-white bolt of lightning slammed down onto the ground, kicking up a circle of dust and tiny electrical arcs.
Tatsuya released Tanjirou, stood firm, and his gaze swept across the entire scene like electricity.
Tanjirou staggered a step, barely steadying himself.
Muzan then realized with a start that Tatsuya's speed was more than just a notch faster than their last encounter!
The Lightning Release Armor surrounding him was also more solid and ferocious.
"He's gotten so much stronger? How is that possible?!" Muzan's heart was greatly shaken.
At the same time, he also noticed Tanjirou, who was enveloped in Tatsuya's Lightning Release Chakra.
He hadn't paid close attention last time, but Tanjirou's eyes, now filled with deep-seated hatred and killing intent, were almost tangible and hard not to attract his gaze.
It was this fleeting glance… Tanjirou's flame-shaped scar on his forehead, and his Nichirin hanafuda earrings, seared into Muzan's vision like a red-hot branding iron.
It instantly pierced the deepest memories of his blood!
The figure of that man… the figure who, like the sun, had driven him to despair and brought him centuries of endless fear—
Yoriichi Tsugikuni!
Fear instantly clutched Muzan's heart, causing him a very brief moment of paralysis.
This was exactly the effect Tatsuya wanted!
He would never give Muzan time to recall or react!
"Lightning Bind!"
Tatsuya inwardly roared, the energy technique he had secretly perceived and mimicked using his [Eye of Truth] and then constructed with Lightning Release Chakra, instantly activated.
Zzzzzzzz—
A vine made entirely of violent, azure-blue lightning burst forth without warning from the ground beneath Muzan's feet.
Like a living lightning snake, it instantly coiled around his legs.
The intense numbness caused Muzan's body to experience a very brief moment of paralysis.
"What?!"
For the first time, genuine shock appeared in Muzan's eyes.
"When did he…?!"
And at the very same moment the lightning vine shot out, Tatsuya had already moved.
"Thunder Breathing, First Form: Thunderclap and Flash!"
Boom—!!
The [Lightning Release Armor] was at full power!
Spring Thunder was drawn, accompanied by a blinding flash of lightning that tore through the night.
Tatsuya's figure transformed into true lightning, striking with a terrifying speed that far surpassed their last encounter, a speed that even made Muzan's heart palpitate, directly cutting towards him!
The blade was sharp, faster than thought!
It seemed that the strike, imbued with the power of lightning and the sun, was about to sever Kibutsuji Muzan's head!
Chhhht—
The sensation of the blade cutting through flesh and bone clearly registered, but Tatsuya frowned.
In the nick of time, Muzan, with a bizarre posture that completely defied biological structure, had forcefully jerked his head to the side!
"Jingzhe," imbued with the power of lightning and the Nichirin, failed to sever his neck, but instead, with an ear-splitting tearing sound, sliced diagonally from his forehead, almost cleaving off half of his head!
Black blood splattered!
But as the progenitor of demons, Muzan's regenerative abilities were terrifyingly monstrous.
Even with Tatsuya's Lightning Release Chakra wildly raging in the wound, hindering healing.
The terrifying wound still writhed and repaired itself at a visible speed, flesh growing and intertwining, emitting a grating sizzling sound.
Tatsuya's gaze was cold; he was not surprised.
He hadn't expected a single strike to finish Muzan.
Leveraging the unspent momentum of Thunderclap and Flash, his figure moved like lightning, instantly spinning around.
"Thunder Breathing, Third Form: Swarm of Mosquitoes, Thunderclap!"
Zzzzzzzzzzz—
He himself seemed to transform into a humanoid lightning storm, rapidly rotating and advancing around Muzan.
The Jingzhe in his hand unleashed countless ripple-shaped lightning slashes, like a swarm of mosquitoes biting, instantly enveloping Muzan's entire body!
Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!
The sounds of flesh being cut and evaporated rang out densely.
The intense sounds of slashing were like heavy rain hitting lotus leaves; countless bone-deep wounds instantly erupted all over Muzan's body.
Black blood splattered, only to be quickly evaporated and scorched in the leaping lightning all around!
"Ugh ah—!"
Muzan let out a roar mixed with pain and fury.
He finally fully recovered from his brief paralysis and astonishment.
"Arrogant brat!!"
...
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