Its name was Rustbite Maru.
Among the demons trapped in this sealed mountain forest, it was not one of the strongest. At least four or five others could throw their weight around over it.
But now, the most arrogant of those demons had all been turned into waste fertilizer.
And yet it still stood here unharmed.
It even dared to openly appear before members of the Demon Slayer Corps.
What it relied on
was its special ability.
[Blood Demon Art: Corroding Rust]
A special ability granted by the blood of the creator of demons—Kibutsuji Muzan—and then evolved further as the demon devoured humans and grew stronger.
It could instantly rust away almost all metals.
Though only metal.
It had no special effect against other demons or humans.
But for swordsmen who used Nichirin Blades, it was a completely different matter.
As long as it wished,
the instant a slash connected with it, it could rapidly corrode and rust away the blade itself.
A swordsman without a Nichirin Blade—
what difference was there between that and a little kitten with no claws or fangs?
"If I eat all of you and then find a chance to escape, I'm sure that Lady will make me one of the Twelve Kizuki!"
"My ability is naturally the perfect counter to little sword-wielding brats like you."
It lunged forward.
For a moment, it actually forced Xiaxi, who was protecting Seiko, into taking several steps of evasive movement to either side.
"So you're not even an officer-tier demon, then?" Xiaxi probed. "And who exactly is that Lady you keep talking about?"
What do you mean not even officer-tier?!
Xiaxi's words hit a raw nerve.
Instantly Rustbite Maru's snarling claw swipes became a degree more vicious.
"You have no right to know that!"
"Just like all those swordsmen before you, all you need to do is let me eat you obediently!"
Seeing Xiaxi seemingly fall into a "hard struggle," several of the other swordsmen moved in to support him.
But after three people's Nichirin Blades had all turned into scrap metal, for a moment nobody knew whether they should keep pressing forward or retreat.
"You pests are so damn annoying."
Unable to bring Xiaxi down for so long, Rustbite Maru shifted its gaze toward the other ordinary swordsmen nearby, now left effectively unarmed.
Just as it was about to make a move,
a violent strike smashed into its abdomen so hard it nearly made it cough up stomach acid.
"You..."
Only then did Rustbite Maru, in disbelief, realize that this boy had never looked flustered from beginning to end.
Not even after the only weapon he relied on had been destroyed.
"When someone asks you a question, answer honestly."
As the demon doubled over in pain, Xiaxi smoothly followed up with a knee strike straight into its nose bridge. Dark blood gushed from its nostrils, smearing across its own face.
With a cry of pain, Rustbite Maru's vision blurred.
Even as a demon,
the nerves around the face and nose bridge remained among the most sensitive parts of the body.
Before it could recover, the ground suddenly seemed to vanish beneath its feet, and the next moment it was already slammed flat onto its back.
"So," Xiaxi asked, having just floored the demon, "what are the Twelve Kizuki? Your officers? And that ability to rust swords—is it unique to you, or can those Twelve Kizuki do it too?"
"..."
Looking up at the blurred starry sky, Rustbite Maru still could not process what had happened.
This was the Demon Slayer Corps' selection ground.
This brat wasn't even supposed to be a proper Demon Slayer yet, so how was he this absurdly strong?
"I asked you a question."
"I'm going to kill you!"
Rustbite Maru struggled upright, trying to bite at Xiaxi.
But before it could rise, Xiaxi effortlessly knocked it down again.
Even this demon still obeyed the mechanics of the human body—or at least its habits.
Power began from the waist and abdomen, the neck and arms supported it, and finally the hip and lower limbs completed the chain of motion.
That was the full mechanical chain of a standing motion.
But for Xiaxi,
all he had to do was interrupt it.
He kicked straight into the demon's knee, then shifted his body sideways and drove all his weight through his right palm onto the demon's head.
Rustbite Maru was shoved back down faster than it had risen.
The back of its skull slammed into the gravel with a heavy crack.
It came close to knocking the air out of it entirely.
The surrounding swordsmen, upon witnessing the blow, all felt the backs of their own heads grow cold.
This guy is way too practiced at this...
For Xiaxi, though, this was already instinct burned almost into his muscles.
It was just ground pressure after wake-up.
In fact, it was simpler than what he usually had to do in proper fighting games.
Because in this game he was currently playing, there was no built-in super armor protecting someone on get-up.
"If you tell me, maybe I'll let you go?"
Rustbite Maru's eyes gradually refocused.
Shame and anger nearly drove it out of control.
It roared, "How the hell would I know something like that?!"
Xiaxi replied, "Then what about your boss? You were just talking about wanting her approval, so don't tell me you know nothing."
The demon's expression froze.
As though recalling something terrifying, it shuddered instinctively before hardening its mouth again.
"You little shit, even if you kill me, I won't say a word!"
"And without a sword, can you even kill me? Hahahahaha!"
Hearing that, Xiaxi merely let out a faint sigh.
If he wanted to extract information, he would probably need some kind of interrogation skill or special item.
Whatever. There would be plenty of demons later anyway.
And some of this information was probably already known at Demon Slayer Corps headquarters and among its higher-ups.
For now, he should just push the main quest.
He threw a punch—and this time, he did not hold back.
Boosted by the temporary power of his breathing style, a single punch smashed the demon's face into a bloody mess.
Then came another punch.
And another.
A relentless storm of fists rained down.
Rustbite Maru certainly wanted to resist. It wanted to get up and escape.
But every time it tried to move, Xiaxi's strong, heavy fists interrupted it.
For a while, Rustbite Maru had become nothing more than a drumskin pinned beneath Xiaxi and pounded wildly, incapable of feeling pain.
For Xiaxi, however,
completely suppressing the demon in front of him was only natural.
Leaving aside its slightly troublesome Blood Demon Art, its strength was already below his own once Breathing empowered him.
And in terms of technique, it was a complete idiot.
Now that the fight had entered the ground phase, it did not even know a single halfway decent grapple or submission.
So naturally it could only be totally dominated.
Games were games.
These trained techniques did not necessarily get any flashy bonus effects in this game.
But combat technique and a strong physique were objectively real things.
So this was the victory of martial arts.
That said, the demon was not only good at taking hits. Rustbite Maru was still very tough with its mouth.
"You little brat, all you can do is show off right now!"
"So what if you're strong? What the hell is strength good for?!"
"I'm an immortal demon!"
"You can hit me now, sure—but can you keep it up forever?"
"There's still a long time until sunrise! Don't tell me you think you can drag this out all night?"
"Just let me eat you properly. Don't worry—I'll bite through your neck as quickly as I can. See? Aren't I merciful? Hahahahaha..."
Xiaxi's punches slowed.
"You do make a bit of sense."
The swordsmen nearby all widened their eyes, and one of them even shouted, "Hey, little brother, don't listen to its lies! We'll help you—if we hold it until sunrise, this thing is finished!"
At the side, Seiko stopped the swordsmen who were about to move in.
"Xiaxi-kun knows what he's doing."
"Persimmon, you're the smart one."
A series of cracking sounds rang out.
Xiaxi brutally smashed all four of the demon's limbs.
Then he naturally stood up, picked up the half-broken blade, and walked over to the demon's head.
"Tell me something—you must've eaten quite a lot of people, right?"
"Your name's pretty red, after all."
Rustbite Maru cried out uncertainly in pain. "Tch... it hurts. What are you trying to do?!"
"A sword?"
"Are you stupid? Don't tell me you think that broken little blade can still hurt me?"
Xiaxi said expressionlessly, "Did you forget? I cut your hand off earlier."
Rustbite Maru blinked. "Huh?"
Even though the blade had broken, the fact that it had been able to sever the demon's hand earlier meant that the rusting speed, while fast,
still had a limit.
"So long as the slash is faster than your rust can spread."
"That's all, right?"
Xiaxi flicked the broken blade in his hand a few times, getting used to it.
"And besides, so what if it's a broken blade..."
Total Concentration
In that instant, Xiaxi's power level surged wildly upward.
Among his three attributes, his Body stat in particular shot from 26 straight to 52.
[Wind Breathing: Fifth Form — Cold Autumn Mountain Wind]
A line of frost flashed past, as though the chill of late autumn had instantly cut straight through the mountain.
The descending edge tore through Rustbite Maru's neck and head in one stroke.
Xiaxi landed, then smoothly completed the sheathing motion.
"Since when were swords such unwieldy things?"
Then the remaining half of the Nichirin Blade in his hand turned completely into ash.
[Progress: 419/2000 (+156)]
Pretty high EXP.
A bit expensive in terms of blades, though.
Looking at the utterly dumbstruck swordsmen, Xiaxi called out to them:
"Hey. Somebody hand me a sword."
"Shotaro, don't just stand there."
The swordsman named Shota still had not fully recovered, muttering, "So this is the raging wind that can tear apart evil..."
Only then did Xiaxi remember he had turned off Breathing Effects.
Could it be that in their eyes, the sword form he had just used looked especially flashy?
Maybe... maybe he should turn them back on later.
That was what Xiaxi thought, though in the end it was Seiko who brought over a blade taken from one of the dead swordsmen.
"Xiaxi-kun, don't dislike it, okay?"
Xiaxi spun a couple of sword flowers to get used to it, then slid it into the sheath.
He looked at Seiko in confusion.
Dislike what?
Picking up party member gear?
He did not think too much about it. Instead, he turned toward the swordsmen who were just gradually recovering and said:
"Anyway, there probably aren't many demons left."
"From here on out, just follow me. Help me look for any stragglers too."
"It'd be best if not a single one of these demons got left behind."
"It'd be a waste of mobs."
The swordsmen all nodded, and one girl even shrank back in fright.
This boy had an awfully murderous aura.
"Anybody got a problem with that, make a sound."
"N-no... I guess?"
"Wouldn't this count as cheating?"
"It should be fine... probably..."
Several of the swordsmen looked hesitant.
Xiaxi raised his voice slightly. "Problem?"
Everyone shuddered at once.
They thought of the way he killed demons—like a gale flattening dry weeds, that icy murderous intent that slaughtered evil to the last... and that face of his, which had barely changed expression from beginning to end.
Could he be some totally unhinged swordsman whose whole family was slaughtered, whose little sister died horribly, and who had walked the path of revenge ever since?
If they refused him now, would he just cut them down on the spot?
"From here on out, we'll be relying on you!"
The group unexpectedly bowed deeply to Xiaxi in perfect unison.
Very good. Full of spirit...
Wait, do I really look like the bad guy here?
Xiaxi turned blankly toward Seiko.
Only to see the girl swordsman covering her mouth tightly, her shoulders trembling as she struggled not to laugh, her whole face flushed red from holding it in.
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