bookbashuk Page 279
Page 279
"No, so why are you shedding tears again in such a dramatic way..."
"Hmm! That's true! Uzui, what you did was also great!"
Kyojuro Rengoku was as energetic as ever, his rooster-like eyes burning with fierce fighting spirit, and his words were punctuated by exclamation marks. "By the way! I still have absolutely no idea what the purpose of this early meeting is!"
"Huh?" Uzui Tengen raised an eyebrow in surprise. "It's really not glamorous that you, who are always the most serious, would continue to love someone like this."
"Hmm! I happened to be reporting to headquarters and was kept behind! So I didn't hear the Crow's orders!"
“That explains it. However, the purpose of summoning you here wasn't explicitly stated, so I have no idea either. But I suppose it's something to do with the Swordsmith Village.” Uzui Tengen shrugged. “After all, two more Upper Moon demons were exorcised in a spectacular fashion.”
Once again, Gyomei Himejima shed tears of emotion.
"Amitabha Buddha, to defeat two Upper Moons without dying is truly remarkable."
"Ah—ah—, I'm so envious." Even Sanemi Shinazugawa, who had been silent, reacted. "Why haven't we ever encountered an Upper Moon demon!?"
Unlike Giyu Togashi and the Butterfly Sisters, whose families were simply killed by demons, his mother was turned into a demon by Muzan and killed her younger siblings with her own hands.
Then he indirectly died at the hands of Shinazugawa Sanemi.
This led to his intense hatred for evil spirits, a hatred so intense he wished he could die alongside them.
Obanai Iguro, the Serpent Pillar who was closest to Sanemi, chimed in:
"That's undeniable. If you can't meet someone, you just can't meet them at all, but every time it ends up being Narukami Light who gets involved."
"Kanroji, since you were involved, why don't you tell us the details so we can also get a sense of the Upper Moon's fighting power?"
Upon hearing this, the other Pillars also turned their gazes to Kanroji Mitsuri.
Although Tengen Uzui had previously fought alongside Natsuhiko to eliminate an Upper Moon demon, it was essentially a two-on-one battle.
This time it was two against two.
So they were also very curious about how Mitsuri Kanroji, the last girl to become a Pillar, managed to defeat two Upper Moons together with Natsuhiko.
"Eh! Ah, um! Actually... I don't really know either, I didn't put in much effort."
Suddenly becoming the center of attention made Kanroji Mitsuri blush with embarrassment, and her tone became somewhat excited.
"At the time, I was only responsible for stopping Upper Moon Five from running away, and I only managed to stop him for less than ten minutes. I was already giving it my all and almost died at the hands of the Upper Moon demon..."
"It was Xia Yanjun who found the Upper Moon Four's true form in a short time, then subdued it and used the true form as a threat—he said that the Upper Moon Four is a demon that can create clones—forcing the two Upper Moons to fight."
"Anyway, a fight broke out in a flash, and then it ended with a whoosh and a bang."
"..."×10
The other pillars watched Mitsuri in silence.
This emotionally charged, animated stream-of-consciousness explanation left them feeling as if they had listened to nothing at all.
Shinobu Kocho sighed and rubbed her forehead in exasperation, while Sanemi Shinazugawa's face was bulging with veins in a grid pattern.
Did Kanroji Mitsuri explain the details?
As mentioned above.
Did she really tell?
As mentioned above.
Did they talk about it or not?
For example, 0.....
An enigmatic silence filled the air.
"Private Marseille, if there were a hole, I'd love to crawl into it..." Realizing she'd said something meaningless, Mitsuri lowered her head in shame.
"Mommy, it's okay. Speaking of which, it seems like Xia Yan hasn't arrived yet?" As her best friend, Shinobu Kocho stepped forward to help Mitsuri Kanroji out of the predicament and changed the subject to Xia Yan.
“Xia Yan arrived quite early.” As a guard who always stayed by the lord’s side, Yu Zui Tengen waved his hand and said, “He’s discussing other matters with the lord, and he’ll probably come over together in a bit.”
"Tch, that guy..."
Upon hearing this, Shinazugawa Sanemi and Tokito Ichiro both pursed their lips in unison, clearly annoyed.
A moment later, Hinai and Hinata helped Kagaya Ubuyashiki out of the inner room.
Xia Yan, without anyone noticing, sat down between Shinobu Kocho and Mitsuri Kanroji.
"It's been a long time. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, my lovely children. I'm sure the weather is nice today."
"It makes me so happy to see you all here in good health."
Kagaya Ubuyashiki's voice was as gentle as ever, bringing a sense of peace.
Even though the ice and snow outside hadn't completely melted, it already gave people a feeling of being bathed in a spring breeze. 3.5 makes people unable to help but trust it.
"The reason for holding this Pillar Meeting ahead of schedule is firstly to celebrate Natsuhiko and Mitsuri's successful elimination of Upper Moon Four and Upper Moon Five, bringing us one step closer to final victory."
There was a round of applause.
Although Sanemi Shinazugawa and Obanai Iguro were quite unhappy with Natsuhiko's practice of keeping ghosts at home, they genuinely admired his achievements.
Kagaya Ubuyashiki waved his hand and said that the applause had stopped.
"But more importantly—"
His tone became impassioned, and his empty gaze swept over everyone present.
Even though they knew he was blind, the Pillars still felt as if they were being watched.
"It's time to prepare for the final counterattack!"
Chapter 425 Marks, Crimson Blade, Transparent World
"Everyone! We now possess the key item that will surely lure Muzan Kibutsuji out, and there is only one Upper Moon left!"
"The power of demons has reached an unprecedented low! Therefore—"
"—It's time to prepare for the final counterattack!!"
Upon hearing Kagaya Ubuyashiki's words, the Pillars fell silent at first, but after a moment the atmosphere in the room became restless!
Rengoku Kyojuro's eyes shone brightly, Himejima Gyomei clasped his hands together and shed tears, Tokito Muichiro's face was full of excitement, Shinazugawa Sanemi and Iguro Obanai exchanged a glance, both of them boiling with fighting spirit.
Giyu Tomioka remained expressionless, but his hand gripped the hilt of his sword tightly.
Since the Demon Slayer Corps suffered a major blow four hundred years ago, it has been operating in the shadows.
Although they are still fighting against demons, they are always at a disadvantage and have never been able to touch the Demon King Muzan.
As for Kagaya Ubuyashiki's words, it means that nowadays...
Offense and defense have changed shape!
However, not every pillar is so full of confidence.
"My lord, if we retaliate... are our forces truly sufficient?"
Shinobu Kocho frowned slightly.
She is one of the few swordsmen in the Demon Slayer Corps who has directly confronted an Upper Moon demon, and that Upper Moon Two is Doma!
Although she defeated her opponent without sustaining any injuries, it doesn't mean she was unaware of the gap between them.
Even though her physical abilities and swordsmanship might still be the weakest among the Pillars after receiving Natsuhiko's training, she is definitely among the best in terms of killing demons!
She may not be as good as the other Pillars in one-on-one demon hunting, but if she faces multiple demons at the same time, she will definitely be the first to win!
Shinobu Kocho, who was fully aware of her own strength, knew that without Natsuhiko, she and Kanao alone would not have been able to achieve final victory against Doma.
The overwhelming, lung-damaging ice mist that specifically suppressed breathing techniques, and the terrifying ice Buddha, remain vivid in her memory to this day.
To be honest, in her opinion, without Xia Yan, it would probably take two more Pillars, including Himejima Gyomei and her own poison, to guarantee killing Upper Moon Two.
Not to mention Upper Moon One and Muzan, who are above them.
She didn't believe that the Demon King Muzan was just an empty shell without any power.
If a real fight breaks out, it might... no, it will definitely result in heavy casualties!
"Don't worry, it's just preparation. Everything has been planned out. We're not going to have a final battle with Muzan right now. Cough cough..." Kagaya Ubuyashiki coughed twice and continued:
"Furthermore, in order to prepare for Muzan's counterattack, you will undergo special training."
"Special training!?"
The pillars asked in unison.
As the Demon Slayer Corps' top swordsmen, although they still maintain high-intensity training, their breathing techniques and swordsmanship have almost reached a point where they can no longer make any progress.
They couldn't think of any training methods to make themselves stronger.
"That's right, special training..."
Kagaya Ubuyashiki nodded, his voice sounding weak, perhaps because he was too excited or tired today.
"Actually, it is said that the swordsmen who started using breathing techniques during the Warring States period possessed other powers besides breathing techniques!"
"The power called markings."
"The swordsmen who once cornered Muzan Kibutsuji all had marks on their bodies that resembled demonic markings."
"!!?"
"This is the first time I've heard of such a thing not being made public!?"
The most impatient of them all, Sanemi Shinazugawa, asked directly, but then realized his behavior was too impolite, and quickly bowed his head to apologize. "I'm sorry, my apologies, my lord."
"No need for an apology, I understand your feelings, Sanemi."
Kagaya Ubuyashiki simply smiled and shook his head.
"This is actually just oral tradition. There are many ambiguities regarding the transmission of the markings, probably because it was not valued at the time."
"The Demon Slayer Corps has been on the verge of collapse several times to this day, and it is possible that the lineage was interrupted during those times."
"In short, the legend of the markings has not been verified. On the contrary, many people have been driven to a dead end because they did not develop the markings, so the spread of this news has been gradually prohibited."
"There is only one explicitly recorded statement: 'Whenever someone with markings appears, it will resonate with those around them, causing them to also develop markings.'"
“I was just in the inner room with Xia Yan, and that was to verify this point.”