"Hiss!"
Raiden could not suppress a sharp intake of breath as the Blood Demon Art fusion began.
The sensation brought by Rui's Blood Demon Art was completely different from any he had absorbed before. It felt as if countless ants were crawling through his veins and bones, an unbearable itching layered with a swelling pain, like something foreign was growing inside his body.
Raiden sank deep into his consciousness. He discovered that whenever a part of his body endured intense pain, a white cocoon of light emerged from his bones, flesh, and blood.
"Spider silk?"
Raiden stared at the glowing cocoon in stunned silence.
He had expected the fusion of Blood Demon Art, Engraved Line Rotation, to be modified into a form suitable for human use. What he did not expect was for spider silk to be produced directly within his body.
The surface of the cocoon was smooth and warm, almost jade-like. Raiden could clearly feel a connection to it, as if it were an extension of his own body, like an extra limb responding naturally to his will.
As the light flowing across the cocoon intensified, fine strands of spider silk slowly emerged from within.
They moved through Raiden's body like a hidden current, quiet yet powerful.
During this process, his awareness seemed cut off from the outside world. His perception focused entirely on the newly formed spider silk inside him.
The strands could extend and retract freely under his control. Some were as thin as hair, others carried a toughness comparable to steel.
Raiden guided the silk carefully through his body. Every movement felt precise, almost intimate, as though his nerves had extended into each individual strand.
The fusion was painful, but not unbearable.
Once the spider silk fully emerged from the cocoon, Raiden attempted to manipulate it according to the usage methods etched into his mind.
He raised his palm toward an oak tree nearly three meters thick and willed the spider silk to move.
The strands slipped out between his fingers, drifting lightly through the air like flowing light.
Raiden's eyes sharpened.
In the next instant, the spider silk shot forward like unleashed arrows, moving at a speed the naked eye could not track.
A faint hissing sound cut through the air.
The moment the silk touched the tree, it no longer felt gentle. It pierced straight through the oak without the slightest resistance, as easily as a blade through paper.
Raiden flexed his fingers slightly.
The spider silk responded instantly, carving precise, hair-thin lines into the bark.
As his will shifted, the silk danced again, the cutting patterns changing fluidly until they formed a complex design across the tree's surface.
Then Raiden exerted force.
This time, there was no finesse, only destruction.
The nearly invisible strands thickened instantly, like dozens of iron chains pulling at once.
Boom.
The massive oak snapped cleanly in half. The cross-section was smooth as a mirror, as if the tree had been twisted apart by an unseen giant.
The forest fell silent.
The fallen oak stood as proof of the spider silk's terrifying power.
Raiden retracted the strands, a flicker of satisfaction crossing his eyes.
As expected of a Blood Demon Art belonging to one of the Twelve Kizuki. Even without a Nichirin blade, this ability alone granted him formidable combat strength.
And this was without infusing his blood into the silk.
If he did, its power would increase dramatically.
Based on the growth he had experienced after each breakthrough, Raiden was confident that using Engraved Line Rotation at full power would force even a Hashira to take the fight seriously.
"Do you wish to fuse Blood Demon Art, Dissolving Cocoon (Mastery), now?"
"Yes."
Compared to Engraved Line Rotation, the fusion of Dissolving Cocoon was simple.
There were no drastic physical changes. Instead, information flowed into Raiden's mind, detailing its usage.
It felt less like a new ability and more like an alternate application of spider silk.
"There really is a hierarchy among Blood Demon Arts," Raiden muttered, resting his fingers against his chin.
He had fused six Blood Demon Arts so far, and Rui's had been the most difficult by far. The pain was greater, but so was the reward.
Which raised an unsettling thought.
If a Lower Moon's Blood Demon Art was already this powerful, then what about the Upper Moons?
Raiden's eyes gleamed faintly.
His desire to make friends grew stronger.
Not long after, the Insect Hashira, Shinobu Kocho, and the Water Hashira, Giyu Tomioka, arrived at Mount Natagumo.
They stopped short when they saw the battlefield.
The Demon Slayer Corps members were injured, but alive, already being tended to. More importantly, their expressions were relaxed.
Shinobu and Giyu exchanged glances, confusion clear between them.
Hadn't Kagaya-sama reported the appearance of a Twelve Kizuki here, along with heavy casualties?
But the battle was clearly over.
Could the intelligence have been wrong? Perhaps there had been no Twelve Kizuki, only stronger-than-average demons already dealt with by the Corps?
It was not that they underestimated their comrades, but history was clear.
No one below Hashira rank had ever killed a Twelve Kizuki alone.
Perhaps the information truly was flawed.
With that thought, Shinobu called over Murata, who was helping injured members nearby.
"What happened here?" she asked gently.
Despite her calm tone, Murata stiffened.
Standing before a Hashira was enough to scramble his thoughts. There were only nine in the entire Corps, and every one of them was legendary.
He swallowed hard.
"Th, there was a Twelve Kizuki on this mountain."
"Twelve Kizuki?" Shinobu interrupted, her eyes narrowing.
This was no time for manners.
Every member of the Twelve Kizuki was a walking catastrophe.
Giyu's hand tightened on the hilt of his Nichirin blade, ready to move at a moment's notice.
Murata's forehead broke into sweat under their combined pressure.
"The Twelve Kizuki… is dead."
"Dead?"
Both Hashira froze.
Their killing intent vanished instantly, replaced by pure shock.
Dead?
Had another Hashira intervened?
No. If that were the case, Kagaya-sama would never have dispatched both of them.
Then who?
A group of Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen?
The thought barely formed before Shinobu dismissed it.
Numbers meant nothing my against a Twelve Kizuki. More people only fed their strength.
And yet…
The impossible had already happened.
_____
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