The distance of a kilometer was compressed into a single step by the old man clad in a white haori over a pitch-black shihakushō; in the blink of an eye, he flashed to appear before Roy, looking down at him from on high, asking, "Is there more?"
In Yamamoto Genryuusai Shigekuni's old eyes, dense with wind, frost, and the years, there flashed a rare gleam of high praise; with a turn of his wrist, he simply drove Ryūjin Jakka into the ground before him, just like... an old man in his twilight years leaning on a cane, quietly watching Roy.
Roy's long fiery red hair swayed in the wind, strands stained with dust drifting down; the corner of his mouth pulled, and he smiled through the pain. "Of course."
At that moment, the system prompt chimed...[Prompt: "Swordsmanship" +100]
[Current "Swordsmanship": Level 4 (99,940/100,000) → Level 5 (40/1,000,000)]
The boy's lips curled higher and higher, the faint arc becoming broader; then, at some point, the smile froze, his body followed suit and stiffened. In his twin pupils, the suns that flared to life with a soft whoosh slowly rotated as his consciousness, carried by a gentle breeze, soared straight up.
In one second, it swept past Yamamoto Genryuusai Shigekuni.
In two seconds, it flew over the mountain forests.
In three seconds, the moon... in four seconds, it burst out of the atmosphere, entered an endless deep well, drawn by a searing heat and brilliant light from the depths of the nebula, flying toward it; in the haze, who knew how long had passed, before he finally saw it—that sun wrapped in nebulae, wreathed in countless star-rings, wantonly radiating light and heat into the cosmos!
"If you want to learn [Ren], first observe your heart... A person who doesn't even know what they truly want inside can't develop [Nenryoku], can't become a 'Nen user.'"
In that moment, the earnest teachings of his father, Silva, surfaced in his mind.
Roy opened his eyes, staring blankly at the massive sphere of light before him, encircled by several planets.
Through its surface, he saw the flares, the sunspots, felt the solar wind... then pierced through the layers of light, advancing deeper into the sun. For the first time in his life, he was observing the sun from negative distance!
So why would an upgrade in "Swordsmanship" be related to the [Sun]?
Right... 'Because my heart is my sword. Just as there are myriad swords—gentle swords, slaughtering swords, swords of loyalty, swords of justice... as for me—'
The boy shed the role of Kamado Eiichiro, returning to his true appearance. His beautiful silver hair unfurled, and he spread his arms wide, embracing the sun... faintly, as the solar wind brushed his hair, it was plated with a dazzling, blazing "gold"!
'I am the sun. I am the sword of the sun. I am the sword that shines upon the world and grants life to all things... and at the same time, the sword that erupts in terrifying, peerless chain reactions, unleashing energy in wanton detonation!'
Closer—streams of particles shuttled and collided, drowning Roy in an instant.
In that instant, countless fusion reactions erupted within him, enacted within him, over and over, endlessly branding their imprint... something he would never, ever forget, for all eternity!
[Prompt: Host dives straight into the solar core, gains insight from observing the sun; Sword Intent Domain condensing.....]
[Prompt: Sword Intent Domain condensation complete]
[Self-created Swordsmanship generating....]
[Prompt: Self-created Swordsmanship generation complete....]
[[Atomic Fusion Slash]: Simulates the fusion reactions on the sun's surface; the slash is enchanted with [Nuclear Fusion]. With a single swing, it can trigger a "nuclear explosion," followed by "ultra-high temperature" and "Super High Pressure" to kill the enemy.]
[Note: The yield of the "nuclear explosion" depends on the host's "Nen" quantity and their understanding of "Nen."]
"Vmm~" Consciousness and body separated; at the center of the [Sun], Roy, in his true form, melted into the fusion... In the Demon Slayer World, Roy, using Kamado Eiichiro's body, in a daze, struggled to his feet, facing Yamamoto Genryuusai Shigekuni head-on. He stretched out his hand and grabbed...
"Shoo!"
[Solar Eclipse]flew to his hand!
Then... Roy suddenly clenched it in his open palm. With another lift of his hand, chaos swept lightly toward Yamamoto Genryuusai Shigekuni... that "single slash of fusion" branded deep in his consciousness, replayed hundreds of millions of times, was unleashed in an instant!
A perfectly straight, golden fine line, bearing boundless light and heat, slowly reflected in Yamamoto Genryuusai Shigekuni's old eyes, dense with wind and frost.
At once, the old man narrowed his eyes; in his shock, his expression grew more grave than ever before.
Ever since he crossed over through the [Gate of Cognition] to this world, this was the first time he used... [Shikai]!
"Shikai......"
"All things in the universe, turn to ash. Ryūjin Jakka!"
"Giin——" A piercing sword cry suddenly shot into the sky!
Ryūjin Jakka released; Spiritual Pressure released; his white-and-gray beard bristled and streamed... a sword far more intense than before emerged once again!
"Clang... clang... clang....." The silence had barely lasted, when the Nichirin Swords belonging to Tomioka Giyu, to Gyomei Himejima, to Kyojuro Rengoku... and to all the Hashira and former Hashira, once again began trembling and rampaging uncontrollably!
Tomioka Giyu, Gyomei Himejima, and Kyojuro Rengoku's faces all changed at once; this time they directly unleashed[Nen], each using [Ten] with all their might, struggling to suppress it!
"My sword!"
"What's going on?! Again?!"
On Sagiri yama, Shinsuke Fukuda cried out. His sword flew from his hand, slipped from the two of them in an instant, and shot into the sky. After that... Watanabe's, Shimizu's... the blades of all of Urokodaki Sakonji's disciples, and the countless swords of ordinary people, just like before, were summoned by the "King of Swords," and with "whoosh... whoosh..." they flew into the dusky night sky.....
"Don't chase them!"
"The battle isn't over yet!"
A sudden, harsh shout cut off Shinsuke, Fukuda, Watanabe, Shimizu and the others just as they were about to charge into the night after their swords.
Tomioka Giyu's hands were wrapped in [Ten]; his brows knotted tightly. He could clearly feel that this summons was even more violent than the previous two. He drew a deep breath, looked far into the depths of the sky, and spoke.
As his words fell, Sabito and Makomo pressed down on their swords with difficulty, barely keeping the blades from flying away, already using every ounce of strength they had!
"Giyu is right. What must go can't be kept. Wait... and watch....." Urokodaki Sakonji pinned the Engraving Knife in his arms with all his might. The old man, temples gray, soothed the others. "Steady yourselves."
Then he raised his eyes again and, together with Tomioka Giyu, gazed far into the sky, murmuring with deep worry, "Eiichiro....."
On the horizon at the edge of the sky, before that fractured boulder,
The boy's long fiery red hair draped down his back; his consciousness was still immersed in the rhythm of Sword Intent. His hand rose and fell, unconsciously swinging a comprehending strike... and the boulder behind him began silently to melt......
"Vmm~" The golden fine line arrived!
The fusion-charged slash rushed up before Yamamoto Genryuusai Shigekuni and detonated in an instant!
The old man's white-and-gray beard, carefully braided into a rope nearly dragging on the ground, snapped as he reversed his grip and likewise drew a slash!
[Shikai]——[Torch]!
"Whooosh~" A tornado of flame roared into the sky, slamming head-on into the explosion!
And then—
"Rumble!" A deafening boom!
Then,
The earth shook and the mountains quaked!
The tremors could be clearly felt even in distant Kyoto, in the Ancient Temple, at the Ubuyashiki Clan estate, and even in... Roy's home—on that nameless great mountain where Tanjuro and Kie Kamado were now living with Tanjiro and Nezuko!
"Uwaa....." In the middle of the night, Hua Zi was startled by the massive boom and burst into loud wails...
The aged grandmother's eyes snapped open. She reached out and scooped the child into her arms, crying out in panic, "Kie, Tanjuro..."
Inside the house, Nezuko,
Kie Kamado, who was sewing clothes by lamplight,
Tanjuro, sipping tea on the wooden veranda,
and Tanjiro, Takeo, and Mao, who were sleeping in the side room like dead pigs—
one pricked her finger with the needle, one rolled over and sat bolt upright in bed, one didn't even bother to put on proper clothes, one grabbed the veranda pillar and sprang up. Together they shoved open the doors and tumbled outside, gathering in the moss-covered fenced yard,
Staring up at the sky in shock, in terror, in stupefaction!
At this moment of the earth dragon's roll, a tornado of flame surged up, wrapped around a mushroom-shaped cloud, and pierced the heavens, turning the entire night sky crimson!
Everyone, including the Kamado Family, gaped with mouths wide open. Some simply fell on their backsides, gasping and babbling... as if their souls had been scared right out of them!