The Proud Swordsman

"Oh, not thirty-five people, it's thirty-seven!"

"You bastard!!"

Although Hongnu's tone remained flippant, he had already begun to slowly retreat towards the water's edge, looking as if he might run away at any moment.

It does have some strength, but the reason it can commit bloody crimes in various places and escape unscathed is not because it is brave and fierce in fighting with people. Its best skill is to run away when the situation is not right.

It was lucky that it was able to eat 37 people in one go. It just so happened that the village was holding a festival, and most of the villagers were drunk and unconscious, which allowed it to have a good meal.

If that's the case, I must have consumed blood from over fifty people over the years. Does that mean I've completed my mission...? I wonder when I'll be able to find that lord and beg him for a drop of his blood...

"Hey! Join forces with us! Kill this monster! We can't let it escape!"

"That's right! If it completely digests the power of that flesh and blood, it will become increasingly troublesome. We must kill it here!"

The three Demon Slayer members were agitated and, sword in hand, prepared to attack Red Swamp.

"There's no need for that!"

The bird's voice was cold and hoarse, carrying an indifferent air that kept people at a distance.

"This is my battle, and I will handle it myself."

"What did you say?!" the short-haired team member exclaimed, his face filled with disbelief and anger. "Do you think this is some kind of game?! Do you even know what a demon that ate dozens of people is...?"

"Rintaro!" The young man in the lead shouted to his companion, gesturing with his eyes for him to look in the direction of Red Swamp.

He had noticed that Red Swamp's footsteps were slowly moving towards the stream, as if it were about to run away at any moment, and the boy's gaze was fixed on Red Swamp's movements...

"He figured it out... so he's worried the demon will be startled and run away..." The young man frowned, looking at Asuka with some concern. "...That's too risky. How can one person handle such a large demon..."

Indeed, Asuka realized that Red Swamp wanted to escape. If a group of people rushed at them, the opponent wouldn't even engage in battle.

The only way to keep it is to risk your life to provoke it.

"Hehehe... Looks like the kids had a fight? That's... great!!"

Red Swamp let out a joyful laugh and slammed its paws together!

"Blood Demon Art: Thousand Needle Prison!"

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The dark red fungal carpet that was still covering the ground suddenly began to boil violently!

Countless sharp blood spikes, formed from viscous blood mud, suddenly shot out from under the feet of Fei Niao and the three team members!

In addition, countless blood spikes are condensing and forming, ready to pour down in all directions!

The young man in the lead reacted extremely quickly—"Second Form: Waterwheel!"

As the Nichirin Blade was swung, waves surged.

The young man instantly cleaved through countless blood spikes, clearing a foothold for himself, but he could only barely protect himself and could not take care of his companions.

The short-haired team member, Rintaro, swung his knife and cut off several blood spikes, but was grazed on the arm by a tricky blood spike, causing him to pause in his movements. Another female team member exclaimed in surprise, and although she managed to dodge it, she was also forced into a sorry state.

As for Asuka, although the fungal carpet around his feet had been swept away, he, being closest to the Red Swamp, was enduring the fiercest attack!

As the bird made a shallow jolt, a ring of emerald green wind blades erupted once again centered on him!

A violent whirlwind shot into the sky, instantly shredding and blowing away the dozens of blood spikes that were aimed at his body, but there were simply too many blood spikes and the area covered was too wide!

puff!puff!

Two swift blood spikes pierced through the gaps in the wind blades and plunged deep into his body!

"Tsk..." Asuka's body swayed, and blood instantly stained his clothes. The huge impact almost knocked him over.

Seeing that the bird was injured, anxiety flashed in the eyes of the leading team member. He struggled to slash away the blood spikes that were still being shot from other directions, trying to rush over to provide support.

"Don't come any closer!"

Despite the pain, Asuka straightened his body and roared with terrifying force, startling the team members who were about to help.

Konuma was stunned, then burst into a twisted laugh. "Haha! Alright, alright! I was thinking of making a quick getaway, but I didn't expect to run into such a stubborn little guy like you! You must be delicious!"

Its hands moved again, and more blood spikes condensed and took shape in the fungal carpet.

Asuka ignored the reactions of the three people behind him, his mind completely absorbed in the katana in his hand.

Call out my name...

"...Not yet!"

He sensed Asada's emotions, but did not act according to its instructions.

His lungs, pierced by the Blood Demon Art, felt like red-hot irons, each breath bringing excruciating pain.

But the bird sucked in even deeper and more fiercely!

"Full focus..."

All the wind around him began to tremble, greedily drawn into the bird's body! A turquoise vortex spun and compressed violently around him, emitting a sharp shriek!

The swirling wind... was also mixed with a gray-black, violent power originating from the depths of his soul!

"Oh? Are you going to fight to the death?" Kurenai also sensed the sudden surge of danger emanating from Asuka. His pupils contracted slightly, and he dropped his playful tone.

With both hands manipulating the countless blood spikes on the fungal carpet, they all shot into the sky in an instant, like venomous snakes poised to strike, aiming at the bird's body!

"Go to hell, you brat!"

"Wind Breathing - Eighth Form..."

With a swift movement, the bird shot out like an arrow!

In that instant, he ignored the suction of the sticky fungal carpet beneath his feet, the blood flowing through his body, and the countless blood spikes aimed at him!

There is only one objective—Red Swamp's head!

"...First Fierce Wind Slash!"

Whoosh—Boom!

A violent hurricane suddenly swept up from the flat ground!

Asuka transformed into a raging black-green tornado, hurtling towards Red Swamp with an aura that seemed to tear the heavens and earth apart, while continuously unleashing spinning slashes!

Bang Bang Bang!

Countless blood-red spikes aimed at the birds were utterly shattered the moment they came into contact with the violent wind drill! For the first time, a look of horror appeared on Hongzuma's face!

It had already realized that something was wrong. Being good at escaping, it immediately mobilized all its strength, intending to jump into the stream and become an undercurrent to escape as quickly as possible!

However, it was too late!

A flash of light!

The raging wind drill caught up with the fleeing figure of Red Swamp in an instant with lightning speed, and tore through the armor covered with flesh and energy in a devastating way. The excruciating tearing pain instantly surged through every cell!

"Ugh—!!!"

Demons attacked by the Breath of Wind suffer greatly, because those who practice the Breath of Wind are pure people who hate evil and want to torture demons to death.

In addition, Asuka's Breath of Wind contained a terrifying spiritual pressure that could plunder and crush everything, causing Beninuma to let out the most miserable howl of his life, which even made the three Demon Slayer Corps members in the distance feel a chill.

Horrifying lacerations quickly appeared on its pale neck.

Asuka knew that breathing techniques alone were not enough to kill the demon quickly, and her Asuka sword was not fully unleashed; it was just a somewhat special spiritual blade. If she failed to kill the demon, it might cause trouble instead.

So when Benima was unable to resist, he once again drew out the old Japanese Blade and, using the remaining force of the Eighth Form, slashed at Benima's shattered neck!

Swish!

Asuka appeared a few meters behind Red Swamp, her back to it, and shook the blood off her Nichirin Blade.

hiss....

The bloodline on Hongzhu's neck was finally torn off completely, and his head slowly slid off his shoulder.

The moment its head hit the ground, its body, like a burning wax figure, rapidly began to decompose, turning into a thick plume of black smoke and acrid char before disappearing.

Even as it turned to ashes, it never imagined that it would die so suddenly, at the hands of an unknown nobody.

Sheathed the sword.

Only the indifferent silhouette of the bird remained in the arena.