"Huh?"
Hearing Xia Feng's words, Mitsuri Kanroji froze for a moment.
Hadn't Upper Rank One… already been killed?
What was there left to worry about?
She opened her mouth, about to ask what had happened.
Before she could speak, she suddenly saw—
Centered on Kokushibo, a terrifying storm of sword energy erupted outward!
Within the storm, countless crescent-shaped blades shredded everything they touched into powder.
Trees.
Rocks.
Even the ground around Kokushibo…
Everything was erased.
Mitsuri's mouth fell open.
The scene looked like hell itself.
Xia Feng stopped running only after reaching the edge of the sword storm.
At this moment, they were already over forty meters away from Kokushibo.
Xia Feng gritted his teeth.
This Kokushibo… was seriously insane.
As the sword storm gradually dissipated, Kokushibo's figure appeared again.
But the Kokushibo now was completely different from before.
Earlier, he had felt calm and detached.
Now—
He radiated pure madness.
His sword had changed as well.
The already long blade had grown even longer—more than two meters in length.
Three jagged extensions protruded from the blade, making the entire weapon look grotesque and filled with destructive power.
For an ordinary swordsman, let alone fighting with such a weapon, even lifting it would be difficult.
"Xia Feng… I must praise you."
Kokushibo stared at him as he spoke slowly.
"It has been a very long time since anyone forced me to reveal this power."
"Even among the Hashira, only a few could achieve that."
"But… this is the end."
"The moment I reveal this power…"
"…your deaths are already decided."
Mitsuri trembled slightly, cold sweat sliding down her forehead.
She wanted to fight, but her hands wouldn't respond.
She wanted to charge forward, yet her legs felt weak.
Mitsuri was not someone afraid of death.
Since joining the Demon Slayer Corps, she had never once felt fear toward a demon.
But the demonic aura pouring from Kokushibo right now made it impossible for her to even think of resisting.
Despair crept into her heart.
Could humans really defeat such a monster?
Even Gyomei Himejima might fall before this enemy…
Xia Feng took a deep breath and stepped forward, blocking Kokushibo's pressure for Mitsuri.
Kokushibo did not attack immediately.
All six of his eyes fixed on Xia Feng.
"Why?" he asked.
"Why did you retreat earlier?"
"My true power has only been seen by a few people—and all of them are dead."
"Unless you already knew my abilities beforehand, there is no reason you would retreat so decisively while holding the advantage."
Before, when Muzan told him Xia Feng was someone who had to be eliminated, Kokushibo thought Muzan was overreacting.
But now—
He finally realized something.
Xia Feng might truly be dangerous.
"Just who… are you?"
Xia Feng smiled calmly.
Seeing that smile, irritation flashed in Kokushibo's eyes.
"If you intend to stall again with tricks like earlier, I advise you to give up. It's meaningless."
Xia Feng shook his head.
"That was just a small trick. I was playing with you."
"But since you want to get serious…"
"I'll tell you my true identity."
Under Kokushibo's gaze, Xia Feng slowly raised his Nichirin blade.
Then—
He took a battle stance.
The moment Kokushibo saw that stance, his entire body shook.
An expression of disbelief spread across his face.
"T-This is…?!"
Xia Feng smiled proudly and dashed forward.
His sword burst into blazing red light with every step.
Kokushibo inhaled sharply.
A chill ran down his spine.
Sun Breathing…
That was Sun Breathing!!
How could that be?!
Sun Breathing had long vanished from history!
Back then, he himself had personally—
Just as that thought crossed his mind, Xia Feng suddenly laughed.
"Tsugikuni Michikatsu… why don't you guess who I really am?"
As he spoke, the glow of his blade grew even brighter.
The sword traced a fierce arc as it slashed toward Kokushibo!
The light reflected in Kokushibo's eyes.
And memories flooded his mind.
Once, he had fought side by side with that light.
Later, they became bitter enemies.
And one night…
That same light had nearly severed half of his neck in a single strike.
His breathing became heavier and heavier.
Under Xia Feng's gaze—
Kokushibo suddenly moved.
He retreated!
Without hesitation, Kokushibo shot backward like a black phantom, leaping into the treetops.
Within seconds, he disappeared into the distance.
Seeing this, Mitsuri was completely stunned.
He… ran?
That overwhelmingly powerful Kokushibo, who seemed like a demon god…
Had actually fled.
Frightened away by Xia Feng's sun-like breathing!
Mitsuri stared blankly at Xia Feng.
Meanwhile, Xia Feng exhaled deeply.
Just now, he had used Sun Breathing to trigger Kokushibo's trauma and scare him away.
But the truth was—
He didn't actually know Sun Breathing.
He had only fought the Sun Breathing training puppet before and copied a few flashy moves.
If Kokushibo hadn't retreated, they would have discovered the flaw within a single exchange.
Fortunately…
He had gambled correctly.
Kokushibo's fear of Sun Breathing was even deeper than he had expected.
Xia Feng turned his blade and sheathed it.
Mitsuri hurried over.
"Um… Mr. Xia Feng, are you alright?"
Xia Feng shook his head.
"Hurry and check on the examinees. Be careful that nothing else happens."
If Kokushibo had distributed his blood to other demons before coming here…
Then things could get ugly.
This selection exam might turn into a massacre.
Mitsuri nodded quickly.
Just as the two were about to move, Xia Feng suddenly looked up.
Two crows flew across the sky.
Then—
Two figures dropped down from above!
"Sorry! We're late!"
The one who spoke had gold-and-red hair and wore a flame-patterned haori.
Beside him stood a tall, muscular man wearing a white head wrap, his body decorated with glittering ornaments, and two massive cleaver-like swords strapped to his back.
The moment they landed—
Both immediately took up combat stances.
🌟 The story is already written… waiting to be unleashed.
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