"...Understood." Kokushibou hesitated for a moment, put away his cry of emptiness, and stepped back two paces.
Seeing this, dissatisfaction welled up in Muzan's heart.
That guy Kokushibou... could he actually be hesitating at his command?
As expected, whether it's the Lower Rank or the Twelve Demon Moons, they are all unreliable fellows.
In this world, it is enough to have only him as a demon.
Muzan secretly decided that once he successfully conquered the sun, he would never need other demons again.
"Retreat?"
Mizuki did not feel the pressure drop; on the contrary, she became even more vigilant.
The Infinity Castle?
She was not clear about how many backup plans Muzan still had, but if there were any, the Infinity Castle would certainly be one of them.
The Demon Slayer Corps wanted to keep the battlefield on the surface, while Muzan wanted to drag it into the Infinity Castle.
They had not been able to gain an advantage on the surface, but in the Infinity Castle, Muzan would certainly not fall into a disadvantage. It was an alternate space with no distinction between day and night.
It could be said that Muzan was invincible in the Infinity Castle.
The best method was to lock Muzan on the surface.
But Mizuki knew this idea was a bit too wishful; as long as the battle continued, the Blood Demon Art that opened the Infinity Castle would be hard to block.
So... after entering the Infinity Castle, find that female demon playing the biwa and take her out.
If that happened, the Infinity Castle would collapse, and the failure of the Blood Demon Art should allow them to return to the surface.
While Mizuki pondered, Muzan was no longer prepared to hold back. Since he had already decided to deal with the Demon Slayer Corps later, he could not afford to have any thoughts of testing her now.
Even if this woman had evolved into an existence like him, as long as he dragged her into the Infinity Castle, he would still be the victor.
Muzan's crimson eyes became even more scarlet, his vitality erupting suddenly like a volcano, and his Aura pouring out like a torrent.
Just by standing before him, anyone who saw it would understand.
This guy... had a gap as wide as heaven and earth compared to the Twelve Demon Moons.
This Aura was quite overwhelming, but as an existence whose life level was on par with his, Mizuki only felt a slight palpitation and was not shaken by this Aura.
She even had the mind to scrutinize Kokushibou on the side.
"Look, do you understand now, brother? Whether human or demon, abilities have limits. It has nothing to do with short or long Lifespan; finding the right method is the path to progress."
What kind of era was this to still believe in ghosts and gods? Science was the true path.
Mizuki looked around nonchalantly, and finally, under the perception of the Transparent World, she detected the figures lurking in the distance.
Had they arrived?
Any later and it would be time to collect her corpse... no, she would likely be eaten until not even dregs were left; it would likely be time to set up a memorial tablet for her.
Mizuki first glanced at Kokushibou and, finding nothing unusual about him, felt relieved.
Yushiro's Blood Demon Art was a good thing; even Muzan could not sense it.
But the perception of the environment by the Transparent World could potentially see through their positions.
If that guy Muzan also knew the Breathing Technique and the Transparent World, they really wouldn't have a chance to play.
Mizuki's golden eyes looked at Muzan.
Their eyes met, and it was as if sparks could erupt between the crimson eyes and the golden eyes.
"Then... first restrict this woman's movements."
"Then... first restrict Muzan's movements."
Almost identical thoughts filtered through their minds, and their figures vanished from the spot instantly.
Facing the meat-whip slashes that could easily create sonic booms, Mizuki kept dodging using her Transparent World.
The once decent courtyard landscape was instantly subjected to a disaster-like strike.
The surface was slashed with gullies, the house behind collapsed suddenly, and the surrounding walls fell down one by one.
The rumbling sound was incessant.
"My body cannot compare to his; I cannot go head-to-head with him."
Seeing this, Mizuki focused her energy a bit more.
Muzan's speed was very fast, so fast that even she found it hard to keep up, but his straightforward attack style was countered by the Transparent World.
No, even with Transparent World, this speed was hard to keep up with. Mizuki's Transparent World was operating as never before.
Even so, the meat whips that Muzan's arms transformed into covered a range of nearly ten meters around him, making it almost impossible to get close.
But similarly, Muzan also began to realize how troublesome Mizuki was.
His attacks could not land.
He couldn't help but think of the time he encountered that monster hundreds of years ago.
Clearly, she was just a weak human, and clearly, just a graze would be enough to crush her like stepping on an ant.
Yet, her unimaginable dodging ability just made it impossible for him to land a hit.
It was like dancing gracefully on the tip of a knife among flowers; often, the moment Muzan made a move, Mizuki had already made a dodging posture.
Realizing she couldn't get close, Mizuki quickly abandoned the plan of close-range restriction. Blood continuously overflowed from the wounds she had deliberately left on her arms.
After losing Mizuki's direct control, it attacked the nearest Muzan as if out of control.
The blood droplets first extended into the form of blood threads, attacking Muzan either by piercing or by entanglement.
Muzan brandished his long whips and easily severed the blood threads that the Hashira had needed to attack frequently to cut.
But the blood threads did not fail because of this; instead, they turned into more and denser short lines, as if endless.
Even if he hacked them down to the last bit, they would, like living things, continue to gather towards other blood droplets.
Moreover, because of Muzan's attacks, both the quantity and density far exceeded the beginning.
A chilling Aura continuously erupted from these blood droplets, quickly producing an effect on the surface and in the air.
His movements gradually became slow, his lungs felt as if they had been eroded, and even breathing felt a bit difficult.
For the first time, Muzan had the thought that this was troublesome.
That Blood Demon Art... it didn't look like it was under control... it was as if it had self-awareness.
He had never seen a Blood Demon Art of this level.
It was very similar to Douma's, but the ability was more comprehensive, and the level was completely different.
It didn't just rely on cold air and ice spikes to cause damage.
Strictly speaking, that woman's Blood Demon Art should be controlling her own blood; the cold air was a byproduct, and shaping was just the form of expression.
Sensing his body becoming increasingly stiff, Muzan's expression darkened.
If this continued, he really wouldn't be able to drag it out.
Did he have to call Kokushibou?
That would be too embarrassing.
He had just used his authority as the boss to call the person away, and now he was calling them back.
Too embarrassing, too embarrassing.
Muzan's face darkened as he hesitated for a moment, deciding to carry it himself.
?
Noticing Muzan's fluctuating expression, Mizuki raised an eyebrow.
If he wouldn't move, then she would.
But just as she was preparing to manipulate the blood to compress Muzan's attacks bit by bit, Muzan's body underwent a new change.
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