Cheng Mo looked at the devastated explosion marks in the distance, a hint of satisfaction finally flashing in his eyes.
Although the consumption was not small, and the condensation speed needed practice, the power, speed, and range all met his expectations.
More importantly, he had finally made up for his shortcoming of lacking powerful long-range attack methods.
"Black Feather." Cheng Mo retracted the electric arcs around him, his tone returning to normal.
A black shadow glided down silently, landing on a branch near him.
"Master, please give your command."
"Continue the previous mission, expand the search area, prioritize locking onto demons with special Blood Demon Arts, and mark their locations and energy characteristics."
"As you wish."
Black Feather bowed in acknowledgment, flapped its wings, and merged back into the night sky.
In the following days, Cheng Mo's hunting frequency and range significantly increased.
Relying on the terrifying speed brought by Thunder Breathing and Lightning Release Armor, as well as the high-altitude vision and intelligence support provided by Black Feather, he moved like a ghost between towns and mountains.
A large number of demons, whether ordinary demons, slightly stronger ones, or even a few that had mastered rudimentary Blood Demon Arts, met their demise.
Often, before they could even react, a flash of lightning passed, and they were reduced to ashes.
The signs of demon activity in Cheng Mo's jurisdiction and its surrounding areas sharply decreased.
Demon Slayer Corps members suddenly found that their pressure was greatly reduced, the chances of encountering demons during patrols were significantly lower, and casualty figures also dropped noticeably.
"Have you heard? All the demons in the western mountains were gone overnight!"
"And that guy near the southern river who kept attacking fishermen has also disappeared!"
"It must be Lord Cheng Mo who did it! He's truly amazing!"
"Yes, thanks to him, our casualty rate here has dropped a lot..."
Rumors about this mysterious guest circulated among the Demon Slayer Corps members, their words filled with admiration.
The news naturally reached Kochou Shinobu's ears.
She held her teacup, listening to Kanzaki Aoi's report, a hint of surprise appearing on her face.
"Oh my, is Teacher Cheng Mo so keen on eliminating demons recently?"
She took a small sip of tea, a flicker of doubt in her purple eyes.
Based on her understanding of Cheng Mo, he was extremely goal-oriented in his actions and didn't seem to be large-scale hunting demons purely out of "justice" or "enthusiasm."
He seemed more like he was... searching for something?
Or... testing something?
However, regardless of Cheng Mo's purpose, the result was a great relief to the pressure within her jurisdiction.
It also allowed more civilians and Demon Slayer Corps members to be safe.
Thinking of this, Kochou Shinobu's face showed a sincere, somewhat relaxed smile: "However, this is a good thing. Being able to see fewer casualties is always a happy occasion."
Her aversion to demons made her welcome any action that could eliminate a large number of them.
However, Cheng Mo himself was not entirely satisfied.
Although many demons were hunted, only a tiny fraction of them possessed Blood Demon Arts.
And those that could offer insights into his Lightning Release development were extremely rare.
Most demons only provided some crude ideas for energy manipulation, which were of limited significance.
What concerned him more was another matter.
Several times, when he used the Eye of Truth to share Black Feather's high-altitude vision for large-scale scanning, he keenly captured several "targets" with abnormal energy reactions, clearly different from ordinary demons.
The energy fluctuations they emitted were peculiar and restrained, indicating they possessed special abilities.
But these targets were either far from human habitation, hidden deep in old mountains and forests, or extremely low-key, never having had direct conflict with the Demon Slayer Corps.
And Black Feather, during its routine reports, had intentionally or unintentionally lowered the priority of these targets.
It hadn't even mentioned them proactively!
Cheng Mo remained outwardly calm.
He continued to listen to Black Feather's daily reports of "active," "threatening human," and "suitable for hunting" target lists, and followed its guidance to clear them out.
But he had secretly noted this anomaly.
Late at night, in a quiet room at the Butterfly Mansion.
Cheng Mo stood by the window, looking at the deep night outside.
His fingertips were unconsciously tapping on the window frame.
The generous gift from Ubuyashiki... was indeed not that simple.
Black Feather was gifted by Kagaya Ubuyashiki, highly intelligent, and loyal to the contract.
But it must also carry certain wills of the Ubuyashiki Clan.
Perhaps Black Feather's loyalty was first to the Ubuyashiki Clan, and not to him, its new master.
His face was as calm as water as he silently noted this discovery, not mentioning it to anyone, nor even questioning Black Feather.
However, deep in his eyes, there was an almost imperceptible hint of caution and cold light... In the largest town near the Butterfly Mansion, the surface still maintained the unique hustle and bustle of a Taisho-era town.
People flowed through, vendors called out, seemingly no different from anywhere else.
In the evening, a man dressed in inconspicuous traveler's clothes, his face hidden in the shadow of a straw hat, was seemingly aimlessly wandering.
After several days of lurking, Rokuro keenly sensed that something was amiss.
He walked to a dark alley, his eyes, marked with the character "Lower Rank Two," vigilantly scanning the street.
"The number of Demon Slayer Corps members... is simply too many," he mused.
Although they were all disguised in plain clothes, their postures, which were more upright than ordinary people after rigorous training, and their steady steps while walking, as well as the occasionally inadvertently revealed, sharp, knife-like gazes, could not escape his perception.
This density far exceeded the defense level a normal town should have.
What made him even more suspicious was that there were several rather large medicine shops in town, with an endless stream of "merchants" coming in and out to purchase goods.
Many of them had long breaths and deep auras, clearly not ordinary merchants.
They were swordsmen who had practiced Breathing Techniques!
They were buying large quantities of medicine for external injuries, strengthening the body, and even some quite precious medicinal ingredients.
"An important logistical base... or even more...?"
Rokuro's heart pounded, excited by his discovery.
He could almost imagine the rich reward he would receive for bringing this news back to Lord Muzan!
But he immediately recalled Lord Muzan's cold warning before he left— "There are very dangerous individuals there. You only need to investigate and collect useful information; never act rashly or alert the enemy."
Intense desire and fear of Muzan tugged at his heart.
Ultimately, reverence for Muzan gained the upper hand.
He forcibly suppressed the urge to act immediately, deciding to continue lurking and gather more extensive intelligence.
He silently activated his Blood Demon Art.
An invisible, faint mental fluctuation merged into the underground water veins beneath his feet.
Like sowing seeds, countless tiny "mental seeds" were scattered.
These seeds were consumed by residents through the town's wells, quietly embedding themselves deep in their minds.
Soon, through the "vision" of those possessed ordinary residents, Rokuro saw more.
Demon Slayer Corps's Hidden Division members, disguised as shop assistants, were busily repackaging medicine in the backyard of the medicine shop.
Female Demon Slayer Corps members wearing straw hats quietly discussed the recovery of the injured.
He could even occasionally see "Hidden" members wearing haori with special patterns quickly moving through the alleys... Everything confirmed his suspicion—this was definitely one of the Demon Slayer Corps's core strongholds!