"You shrew, to dare strike down the weak with such lethal intent is truly a heinous sin!"
Zohakuten spoke abruptly. Without waiting for Mitsuri to respond, he manifested two S-shaped bone mallets and struck the drums behind him with heavy thuds.
"Blood Demon Art: Crystalline Flora!"
Boom! Boom!
Two deafening drumbeats echoed like the tolling of a great bell. Following the sound, the ground beneath Zohakuten's feet suddenly split open, revealing a deep abyss.
The fissure seemed connected to an infinite hell, and from within came the thunderous roars of ferocious dragons that shook heaven and earth.
"Roar!"
Suddenly, a massive wooden dragon lunged out of the rift, baring sharp fangs as it roared at Mitsuri.
This dragon was only the beginning. Immediately after, a second and third wooden dragon burst from the earth until a total of ten dragons charged toward Mitsuri, intent on devouring her completely!
"It seems communication is impossible then!"
Watching the wooden dragons surge toward her, the corners of Mitsuri's mouth curled upward into a confident smile. Though the dragons before her were savage and hideous, they could not intimidate this brave girl in the slightest.
"Take this!"
As one dragon snapped its jaws at her, Mitsuri let out a sharp cry. She kicked off the ground, leaping thirty feet into the air to easily evade the strike.
However, the second and third dragons followed in rapid succession. Now suspended in mid-air, she could no longer dodge with agility as the dragons' roars closed in on her.
"Roar roar roar!"
"Love Breathing, Fifth Form: Swaying Love, Wildclaw!"
As she spoke, every muscle in Mitsuri's body exerted power simultaneously. Using her flexible joints to swing with a massive range, her whip-like Nichirin Sword fluttered like a butterfly following her movements.
Though the technique appeared soft and weak, the wind generated by the coils was fierce and violent. In the blink of an eye, the sharp gusts sliced through all the attacking wooden dragons, leaving only a cloud of wood chips that drifted down from the sky like snowflakes.
"Little boy, this kind of attack is useless against me!"
Swish!
Before her voice had even faded, Mitsuri dove downward, brandishing her soft sword with the momentum of a wind-swept cloud to slash at Zohakuten's throat.
Seeing this, Zohakuten struck his drums again, unleashing various powerful Blood Demon Arts in a fierce counterattack.
---
While those few were engaged in combat, the battle between Ren and Kokushibo had reached a white-hot climax.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Fierce and violent sword qi spread outward like autumn leaves swept by the wind. Under the gale generated by their blades, the entire Entertainment District had been reduced to a wasteland of broken walls and ruins!
"Moon Breathing, Fourteenth Form: Catastrophe, Tenman Crescent Moon!"
"Water Combat Technique, Crimson Blade: Deep Sea Vortex!"
"Moon Breathing, Seventeenth Form: Sun and Moon Injury!"
"Thunder Combat Technique: Thunder God Heaven-Slaying Slash!"
"Moon Breathing..."
Kokushibo continuously unleashed various forms of Moon Breathing, but they were all easily blocked by Ren.
In fact, as Kokushibo continued his assault, Ren found it increasingly easy to handle the strikes. In his mind, the system notifications echoed repeatedly.
[Detected host is in a fierce battle with a Berserk Demon, Strength +2, Constitution +2]
[Detected host is in a fierce battle with a Berserk Demon, Strength +2, Speed +1]
[Detected host is in a fierce battle with a Berserk Demon, Strength +2, Five Senses +1]
[Detected...]
"Very good, my strength is constantly increasing..."
While dealing with the moon-shaped crescent slashes thrown with Kokushibo's full power, Ren glanced at his attribute panel.
At this moment, his four primary attributes combined had exceeded 900 points. In his Demon Slayer Mark state, they surpassed 1800 points.
Specifically, his Strength attribute had exceeded 600, which was more than sixty times that of an average person!
Combined with a peak speed over fifty times that of a normal human and the extreme destructive power of his sword swings, Ren possessed enough strength to defeat any opponent.
"This guy... he dares to look down on me so much!"
Staring at Ren, Kokushibo felt a surge of secret hatred. Setting aside the fact that he had Transparent World active at all times, he could tell even without it—just by the expression on Ren's face—that Ren's mind was wandering.
To dare lose focus during a battle was undoubtedly a supreme insult to him!
Did this not imply that his strength was insufficient to make the opponent go all out? How could he endure this!
"Bastard! To be underestimated by a mere brat is a true disgrace... Cough, cough!"
Before he could finish his sentence, Kokushibo violently spat out a mouthful of blood. Because he had been continuously using the Seventeenth Form of Moon Breathing, his internal organs had already suffered extremely severe internal injuries.
Even with his Berserk Demon physique, he could not fully heal these hidden wounds in a short time; after all, that was the power of the sun.
"It seems I am reaching my limit as well. In that case, let's settle this with a final blow. Let's see if you can withstand my Moon Breathing, Eighteenth Form!"
Puchi!
Suddenly, countless deformed blades sprouted from Kokushibo's body as he entered his third form, looking like a massive hedgehog.
Simultaneously, the dozens of deformed blades on his body erupted with a dazzling purple light. Countless eerie eyeballs trembled violently, appearing exceptionally terrifying.
Upon seeing this purple light, Ren stopped checking his attribute panel and focused his gaze entirely on Kokushibo.
"It looks like he's using his ultimate move? Fine, if that's the case, let's decide the winner with one final strike!"
Ren cast aside his dismissive attitude. A flash of madness crossed his eyes as he suddenly drew his sword and leaped forward, aiming to decapitate Kokushibo.
He wouldn't wait for the opponent to finish charging. Before Kokushibo could complete his preparation, he would kill him with one strike!
"Thunder Combat Technique: Thunder God Heaven-Slaying Slash!"
Ren was like a bolt of black lightning, crossing dozens of meters in an instant, swinging his heavy Nichirin Sword with all his might!
With peerless strength paired with rapid speed, the power of this strike was enough to split the heavens and the earth.
However, at that exact moment, Kokushibo finished gathering his strength and unleashed the final sword strike of his life!
"Moon Breathing, Eighteenth Form: Sun and Moon Collapse!"
Swish!
As he spoke, all the deformed blades on Kokushibo's body swung in unison, hacking out crescent moon slashes that tore through space, turning into a storm of sword qi that swept toward Ren.
With this strike, the very world changed color. The entire sky was dyed purple by the sharp sword qi.
Every single crescent slash within that storm possessed power comparable to the Seventeenth Form: Sun and Moon Injury.
Unleashing countless crescent slashes all at once—this was the Eighteenth Form of Moon Breathing: Sun and Moon Collapse!
By executing "Sun and Moon Injury" dozens of times in a single instant, the massive solar energy would completely explode within Kokushibo's internal organs. His Berserk Demon body could not withstand this terrifying energy and quickly began to crumble into ash.
The sword storm before him was the final strike of his career as a swordsman.
Even as his body began to turn to ash, Kokushibo felt no regret. His six eyes stared fixedly at Ren.
'I will use this strike to completely kill this favored child of heaven!'
'Tsugikuni Yoriichi, I will definitely surpass you!'
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]