The sequence of events was as follows.
A few days earlier, after the Final Selection ended, Hinata and another Explorer named Arashi Ren successfully joined the Demon Slayer Corps.
The two of them had originally felt that they had chosen the wrong faction in the Demon Slayer world and that there was basically no way to play anymore. But during the Final Selection, they discovered that their side had a god-tier carry. Instantly, hope for the future was reignited.
As a result, they didn't slack off. While waiting for their new Nichirin swords, they diligently trained their Breathing techniques. Though they hadn't truly grasped the fundamentals yet, they had made some progress. With the naturally enhanced physique of Explorers on top of that, killing demons outside of the Twelve Kizuki was no problem.
They began attempting Demon Slayer Corps missions, and after killing several demons, they were pleasantly surprised to discover that they could also earn End Coin rewards. This greatly boosted their enthusiasm for work.
But that, in turn, awakened their greed.
Ordinary demons only gave dozens or at most a hundred End Coins per kill. But if they could kill a member of the Twelve Kizuki, they could obtain rare-grade—or even purple-grade—treasure chests. The income from killing regular demons simply couldn't compare.
Obviously, the Demon Slayer world didn't have an endless supply of low-level demons for farming. On top of that, everyone's time in the world was limited. Considering that the later stages of the world would only grow more dangerous, they decided that while they still had an information advantage in the early phase, they should go big.
Thus, their target was quickly set on Natagumo Mountain.
In the original story, this was where the Twelve Kizuki mini-boss Rui first appeared. As Lower Rank Five, Rui's strength was practically the gatekeeper level of the Twelve Kizuki—perfect for them to use as a stepping stone and farm a chest.
Since they couldn't accurately gauge the strength of the Twelve Kizuki in this world, they decided to play it safe and bring along the protagonist squad, who came with built-in luck and explosive growth cheats.
After some persuasion, Tanjiro easily boarded their pirate ship, and Zenitsu was dragged onto the war chariot by Tanjiro.
Well—ever since seeing Tanjiro's sister, Zenitsu had already decided that this was a friend he was definitely keeping.
At the beginning, things went fairly smoothly. The two Explorers teamed up with Tanjiro and Zenitsu, sweeping through low-level demons after leaving the mountain. They even encountered the boar-headed Hashibira Inosuke in the Drum Demon writer's house.
For a time, the two of them were brimming with confidence, already envisioning a bright future of clinging to the protagonist team's thighs, grinding monsters, leveling up, and eventually scavenging Upper Rank treasure chests.
Then reality swiftly dumped a bucket of cold water over their heads.
Upon reaching Natagumo Mountain, they did indeed encounter a "Fifth" of the Twelve Kizuki.
Unfortunately, it was two Fifths.
One Lower Rank Five, and one Upper Rank Five…
Even more absurdly, aside from Rui, there was also a Lower Rank One with a god-tier support Blood Demon Art—Enmu.
Enmu's ability could instantly drag someone into a dream. Unless you committed suicide within the dream, you couldn't wake up. Even if you reacted quickly enough to kill yourself, you'd still expose a brief opening.
Enmu himself might not be able to capitalize on that opening due to limitations in his physical combat ability—but he wasn't alone.
There was also Upper Rank Five, Lower Rank Five, plus seven or eight Explorers from the demon faction. It was basically a free-for-all slaughter.
It could be said that the moment you made eye contact with Enmu, you were practically declaring your own death.
So why weren't they dead yet?
What made Hinata and Arashi Ren despair was that they didn't think they were alive because they were strong—but because they were weak.
In the eyes of the opposing Explorers and the several members of the Twelve Kizuki, their strength was completely negligible. Keeping them alive was actually more useful as bait.
That was exactly how Sound Hashira Uzui Tengen had been lured in—and now he, too, was trapped in a bitter fight. The opposing Explorers had executed the tactic of encirclement and reinforcement-baiting to perfection.
The Sound Hashira's strength was indeed formidable. At first, Hinata and the others had even entertained a bit of hope, fantasizing that he might awaken a Demon Slayer Mark and instantly wipe out all enemies present.
But reality was cruel.
Not only did the Sound Hashira fail to awaken a Mark, even his powerful analytical ability—his "score"—was difficult to utilize while being besieged by multiple strong enemies. The opponents simply didn't give him the time to analyze.
What made Hinata and the others even more desperate was that after the Sound Hashira arrived, Enmu hadn't even used his ability yet.
Just Upper Rank Five Gyokko's playful Blood Demon Arts were already enough to leave the Sound Hashira gasping for breath.
At this moment, Uzui Tengen steadied his breathing, dual blades in hand. Facing Gyokko's taunts, he wore a flamboyant smile.
"Turn me into art? I'm already plenty flamboyant. Isn't that art enough?"
He slashed aside a sneak attack from an Explorer, lowering his stance into an attacking posture.
"Let me pull off a flashy comeback and send everyone down the mountain alive!"
As he spoke, he lunged forward at extreme speed, beheading a Muzan-faction Explorer before the man could even react.
"You filthy tunes are really noisy."
Seeing this, the other Muzan-faction Explorers instinctively retreated, opening some distance between themselves and Uzui Tengen.
They realized that even if Uzui was being toyed with by Upper Rank Five and Lower Rank One, he was still not an enemy they could face head-on.
Team coordination between demons was already disastrous enough—forget about notions like mutual protection or self-sacrifice.
So even though Gyokko and Enmu could have saved that Explorer just now, neither had any intention of intervening.
There were nine Explorers on Natagumo Mountain. They didn't belong to the same adventure party, and most of them had been strangers before entering this world. But they all shared one common trait—
They were weak.
They were in the middle-to-lower tier of first-rank Explorers. Even after obtaining demon bloodlines, their strength wasn't particularly impressive. Whether they could even defeat someone like Rui was questionable, which was why Muzan hadn't granted them any numbers.
But being weak didn't mean they couldn't profit in this world.
The weak had their own way of clearing worlds.
That way was called borrowing momentum.
The powerful Explorers had all been given numbers by Muzan. The new Twelve Kizuki under Muzan's direct command had gained immense power—but they had almost no freedom. By contrast, these weaker ones could move freely.
Thus, someone among them proposed cooperating with Upper Rank Five and Lower Rank One, setting up a bait-and-ambush operation on Natagumo Mountain.
If things went smoothly, they could kill at least two or three Hashira—an absolute windfall.
And with "performance results" like that, perhaps they could receive even more blood from Muzan afterward, further purifying their bloodlines.
Who said you needed overwhelming strength like the top three Upper Ranks to kill Hashira?
As long as coordination was good enough, a team of "weaklings" could still slay gods.
They firmly believed that with this lineup, even if the Stone Hashira arrived—lacking prior intelligence—he could be eliminated.
Playing dead and reviving?
Impossible.
In front of Explorers, that kind of thing would never happen. Once the Stone Hashira was controlled and knocked down, they would swarm him and tear him apart.
"Lord Uzui!"
Tanjiro was overjoyed to see the Sound Hashira decapitate a demon. He had always been an optimist, possessing an unyielding spirit in battle. Even in such dire straits, he still wanted to lead Inosuke and Zenitsu out of the encirclement.
"I'll open a path for you," Uzui said with a smile. "Don't worry about me—just charge straight down the mountain."
His expression looked as though everything was under control, but deep down, he knew that today he would probably die.
He kept smiling so the rookies of the Demon Slayer Corps wouldn't be too afraid. If even a Hashira fell into despair, how could anyone else possibly survive?
"Lord Uzui, I want to fight with you!"
Tanjiro said firmly. During his earlier clash with Rui, he had already comprehended the Hinokami Kagura, greatly increasing his strength. However, constantly switching between Water Breathing and Fire was extremely taxing on his body, making sustained combat difficult—hence why he'd been carrying Inosuke and running.
"Mm—!"
Nezuko followed closely by his side, bamboo muzzle in her mouth, emitting low, beast-like warning sounds as she guarded against the surrounding demons.
"Don't be stupid—get out of here! Go down the mountain and call for reinforcements!"
Uzui roared as he struggled to fend off Gyokko's attacks.
"Hehehe… still dreaming of breaking through?"
Gyokko's small hands covered his mouth as he let out a grating laugh.
"Looks like you're handsome, but not very bright. You haven't recognized the gap between us. Just like you don't understand my art—you also don't understand what kind of perfect pot I can turn you into."
As he spoke, waves surged behind him. Massive silhouettes split off one after another—monstrous fish over five meters tall.
Each of these creatures radiated powerful auras. Any single one surpassed Lower Rank Five Rui, and some even approached the presence of Lower Rank One Enmu.
In Hinata's eyes, Gyokko's power was even more apparent. Using scouting items, she could tell that in pure stats alone, these fish monsters were not inferior to Lower Rank One.
And yet, these were merely derivatives of Gyokko's Blood Demon Art.
In the span of casual conversation, he had already summoned dozens of such monsters, completely surrounding the forest clearing—clearly intending to let no one escape.
One of the Muzan-faction Explorers began laying it on thick.
"Ah, Lord Gyokko's Blood Demon Art is as beautiful as ever—truly a paragon of art! If after this battle I could receive a pot personally bestowed by Lord Gyokko, I would display it in my home and admire it every day, experiencing the pinnacle of artistic beauty."
The blatant flattery made Uzui and the others feel nauseated, but Gyokko clearly loved it. He nodded and looked at the Explorer.
"Mm, you're quite good. You have an eye for art. When we return, I'll give you a pot."
"That would be the greatest honor," the Explorer replied eagerly. "I truly wish to appreciate more of Lord Gyokko's art. Don't you think we should let some more information leak out?"
He continued carefully, "If we kill everyone here and no one comes afterward, wouldn't Lord Gyokko's magnificent performance come to an end? Everyone would feel so regretful."
As he spoke, he looked at the other Explorers. "Don't you all think so?"
The others nodded in agreement. "Yes, we also want to keep appreciating Lord Gyokko's art."
Bathed in praise from the crowd, Gyokko became thoroughly intoxicated.
When had he ever enjoyed treatment like this before?
As a lonely artist never understood by others, he usually researched and created art alone. Rarely had anyone—human or demon—acknowledged him.
Of course, he never thought his art was flawed. Those who didn't recognize it simply lacked artistic appreciation.
But just a few days ago, Lord Muzan had transformed a new batch of demons. These newcomers actually possessed excellent artistic sensibilities and outstanding appreciation, quickly letting Gyokko experience the joy of being recognized.
That was why he was willing to listen to their suggestions and come to Natagumo Mountain for this grand baiting operation.
At first, Gyokko had doubted the intelligence provided by these new demons. But not long after arriving at Natagumo Mountain, a batch of Demon Slayer members conveniently delivered themselves, leaving him quite satisfied.
Following the advice of these loyal "audience members" who appreciated his art, Gyokko deliberately let one or two people escape to spread the news—thus luring in fresh artistic materials, and eventually the Sound Hashira himself.
"Since you're all so reluctant to see my performance end," Gyokko nodded, "then I'll continue to show you my art."
He no longer had the fish monsters attack the weak Tanjiro and the others, intending instead to let them continue calling for help and lure in even more Hashira.
Afraid?
Not at all.
He was Upper Rank Five. Over the years, he had eaten dozens of Hashira. In his eyes, Hashira were nothing more than materials for art.
As for the siblings Gyutaro and Daki who were killed at dawn yesterday—he considered them defeated only because they were too weak.
He was no gatekeeper Upper Rank.
His strength far surpassed Gyutaro's.
The day before yesterday, Lord Muzan had issued a summons. But after learning what Gyokko was doing, Lord Muzan had tacitly approved his actions and did not order him to head to Asakusa.
What did that mean?
It meant that Lord Muzan trusted his strength, acknowledged his intellect, and believed that he could kill even more Hashira.
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