Maple Leaf Town, the Demons in the Mist

Maple Leaf Town took its name from the maple forests stretching beyond it. It was late autumn, when the leaves blazed red and visitors should have been flocking to town, yet it was unusually deserted. As Moyu and Tanjiro entered, the setting sun stained the horizon a dark red like the maple leaves, while a thin, slightly chilly mist had already begun to spread through the town.

"It's so quiet." Tanjiro looked warily around, his nose twitching. "There's a faint smell of... blood in the air, and... the presence of demons. More than one, and... they're mixed in with the mist. It's hard to make them out."

Moyu had already activated his Six Eyes, his azure pupils scanning the street. Through the Six Eyes, the seemingly ordinary mist showed subtle currents of energy, and there were indeed a few traces of cold, ominous Cursed Energy mixed within it—the presence of demons. The mist itself also seemed strange, not entirely a natural occurrence.

"There's something wrong with the mist," Moyu said quietly. "It can interfere with perception and conceal a presence. Those demons probably have the ability to control or use it."

As they spoke, a white-haired old man leaning on a cane came tottering around the corner. Seeing their uniforms and the Nichirin Blades at their waists, a flicker of hope appeared in his clouded eyes. "Are you... from the Demon Slayer Corps?"

"Yes, sir." Tanjiro immediately stepped forward and answered gently. "We received a report and came to investigate the attacks in town. Could you tell us exactly what happened?"

The old man sighed, the wrinkles on his face deepening. "It's a terrible business... It started about ten days ago. At first, it was just woodcutters returning late who went missing on the outskirts of town. Everyone thought it was wild animals. Then... things started happening in town too. Always on foggy nights, especially after midnight, when the mist was thickest. The wounds on the dead... were strange, as if something had sucked them dry, but also as if they'd suffered countless tiny cuts... And there was always a thick mist left at the scene that wouldn't disperse."

"Now the townspeople shut themselves indoors as soon as it gets dark, and on days when the mist is thick, everyone is even more terrified. But at this time of year, there's more mist with each passing day..." The old man shook his head, his eyes full of fear.

"Sucked dry... tiny cuts..." Tanjiro pondered this and looked at Moyu. "Sounds like some kind of Blood Demon Art?"

Moyu nodded, his Six Eyes continuing to analyze the energy structure of the surrounding mist. "The mist itself seems to have been 'tainted' by some kind of power. It can serve as a carrier or medium. Those demons may be hiding in it, or even... merging with it."

Just then, the wooden box on Tanjiro's back shifted slightly, and Nezuko made a soft "mm-mm" sound, seemingly uneasy.

"Do you feel it too, Nezuko?" Tanjiro said softly, then turned to Moyu. "Moyu, should we split up to investigate? It would be more efficient. My sense of smell can follow the vague direction, and your eyes should be able to see what's abnormal about the mist."

Moyu considered it briefly and agreed. "All right. Stay alert and be ready to help each other. There's more to this mist than meets the eye. I suspect those demons are working together somehow."

They agreed to use a Kasugai Crow's cry as a signal, then went their separate ways. Carrying Nezuko on his back, Tanjiro followed the faint traces of demonic presence in the air toward the east of town. Moyu stayed where he was, his Six Eyes working at full capacity as he began to analyze the mist's energy composition, trying to trace it back to its source.

As dusk deepened, the mist thickened visibly. What had been a thin veil gradually grew as dense as milk, and visibility quickly dropped. An ordinary person probably wouldn't have been able to see a hand in front of their face in this mist, but Moyu's Six Eyes could still discern the flow of energy.

"Found it..." Moyu's gaze sharpened, and he raced like the wind toward an abandoned dye works in the west of town. The mist's energy was most concentrated and active there.

Inside the abandoned dye works, large vats lay in disrepair, and dyed cloth hung in disarray, like ghostly shapes in the thick mist. Moyu stepped inside without a sound, his hand on Azure Star's hilt.

"Hee-hee... Here's another one... A swordsman from the Demon Slayer Corps?" A wavering voice rang out in the mist, seemingly from every direction, its pitch shrill and eerie. "Your eyes... what a strange color. But it doesn't matter. Soon, they'll become part of us, along with your body..."

Moyu remained unmoved. His Six Eyes locked onto three rapidly moving, intertwining cores of energy within the mist. There were indeed three demons, and their energy fluctuations had almost merged with the mist. If the Six Eyes hadn't been so sensitive to energy, he wouldn't have been able to distinguish them at all.

"Hiding yourselves away," Moyu said coldly, light flowing through his azure eyes. "You're the Mist Demons who attacked the townspeople, aren't you?"

"Mist Demons? Hee-hee, that's a good name..." Another, deeper voice rang out. "In this mist we created, we are death itself, everywhere at once!"

Before the voice had faded, the mist around Moyu suddenly churned violently, transforming into dozens of almost transparent blades that slashed at him from every treacherous angle! The mist blades were silent, yet exceptionally sharp, easily tearing through the hanging dyed cloth in their path.

An ordinary swordsman would surely have been thrown into confusion, with visibility so poor and attacks coming from every direction. But Moyu didn't even draw his sword.

He simply stood still as an exceedingly faint distortion field, almost invisible to the naked eye, quietly spread around him—Limitless: Inviolability.

Every mist blade coming at him slowed drastically when it was still an inch or so from his body, as if it had struck an invisible wall whose distance continued to extend "infinitely." In the end, they froze in midair, unable to advance another inch! With a slight thought from Moyu, the halted blades broke apart and became ordinary mist once more.

"What?!" A startled, uncertain voice came from the mist. "Our attacks... were blocked? How is that possible?"

"They weren't blocked," Moyu corrected calmly. Meanwhile, his Six Eyes had completely locked onto the core of one of the demons—behind a broken dye vat ahead and to his left, where it was trying to approach stealthily under cover of the mist and objects. "They 'could never reach me.'"

The next moment, Moyu moved. Instead of rushing at the demon, he raised his right hand and aimed his palm in its direction.

After training over this period, his control over the prototype of "Blue" had improved. Though it was still a long way from the true "Blue," he could already use it more efficiently.

"Cursed Technique Lapse—Blue."

Space began to twist in front of his palm, and a black sphere roughly the size of a walnut rapidly formed. Though small, the "negative infinity" gravitational pull it contained was already far greater than that of the rice-grain-sized one he had made last time. This "Blue" was more stable, with clearly defined edges.

"Go."

At Moyu's low command, the black sphere shot out like a black line! Wherever it passed, mist, dust, and even light were powerfully drawn in and distorted! The Mist Demon hiding behind the dye vat had no time to react and no idea what the black object was. It only instinctively sensed mortal danger and tried to turn into mist and flee.

But "Blue" was too fast, its pull too strong! The demon had only turned half its body into mist when the walnut-sized black sphere struck its chest. It didn't pierce through; instead, the instant it "hit," a terrifying gravitational singularity erupted!

"Aaaah!!!"

Amid its piercing screams, the demon's body violently collapsed inward and twisted around the point of impact! Even the part it had tried to turn into mist was forcibly pulled back and compressed! The entire process took less than two seconds. Amid a teeth-grating sound like space being crushed, the demon was compressed into a distorted, fist-sized sphere of flesh and mist. Then, with a soft pop, it was annihilated, leaving only a rapidly dissipating wisp of black smoke and a faint burnt stench.

[Slain demon "Mist Demon." Gold coins +800.]

[Control over "Limitless: Blue (prototype)" increased to 8%.]

"Big brother!" The terrified cries of the other two Mist Demons came from the mist. They had clearly been frightened out of their wits by the bizarre, horrifying sight. That manner of attack was completely beyond their understanding—not decapitation, nor sunlight, but a power that... forcibly erased existence itself!

"There's something wrong with his eyes! He can see us! Stop hiding and attack together! Trap him to death with Mist Devouring Cage!" the deep voice roared furiously.

The thick mist instantly turned violent. All the mist within the dye works began spinning at high speed, forming an enormous vortex that trapped Moyu at its center. The mist rapidly grew denser and even began to take on viscous, corrosive properties, trying to infiltrate Moyu's breathing and paralyze his nerves. At the same time, countless denser, more powerful mist blades formed within the vortex and continuously battered Moyu from every direction like a meat grinder.

That wasn't all. The two demons' figures also began to flicker in and out of sight within the mist. No longer hiding completely, they used the mist as cover to launch surprise attacks from tricky angles. One was tall and thin, with sharp claws and fangs, and moved like the wind; the other was shorter and sturdier, able to control the mist and condense it into nearly solid chains and spikes to harass and restrain him from a medium distance.

Faced with the overwhelming assault, Moyu still didn't draw his sword. He maintained Limitless, and all the mist blades, chains, spikes, and even the mist trying to corrode him were infinitely slowed at a certain distance from his body, finally expending their strength and dissipating. He stood unmoving, as if at the eye of a storm.

But Moyu could feel that continuously maintaining Limitless placed an enormous drain on his mental strength and Cursed Energy. An all-encompassing, sustained attack like this in particular forced the technique to constantly calculate and counter forces from every direction, placing a far greater burden on it than blocking scattered attacks. At his current level, he couldn't keep it up for long.

I have to end this quickly. Moyu's gaze hardened, his Six Eyes rapidly analyzing the two demons' attack patterns and movements.

The tall, thin Mist Demon was exceptionally fast, but in the instant after a straight-line charge, its attacking motion caused its energy to stagnate for an extremely brief moment. The short, sturdy Mist Demon, meanwhile, moved relatively slowly while controlling large amounts of condensed mist.

A plan formed instantly in Moyu's mind.

He deliberately exposed an opening, weakening the Limitless field around him for a brief instant and concentrating it mainly at the front. At the same time, he made a movement that gave the false impression of sluggishness.

"He can't hold on!" The tall, thin Mist Demon took the bait, thinking its chance had come. It shot out like lightning from behind Moyu's flank, its claws reaching straight for the back of his neck!

Now!

As if he had eyes in the back of his head, Moyu spun around just before the claws touched the field, rotating with the Nichirin Blade in his right hand!

"Water Breathing, Second Form: Water Wheel!"

Highly compressed Breathing Cursed Energy gathered at the blade's tip, taking on an azure color like an invisible sharp blade. Driven by the rotation of his body, it traced a perfect circular arc of slashing light!

This wasn't meant to decapitate it, but to force it back!

The tall, thin Mist Demon was startled and hurriedly drew back its claws to block, rapidly retreating as it tried to merge back into the mist. But Moyu's strike had achieved its purpose: it had forced the demon back to the intended position and interrupted its transformation into mist.

Meanwhile, Moyu had already quietly gathered Cursed Energy in his left hand and aimed it at the short, sturdy Mist Demon, whose movements were temporarily hampered by its control over a large amount of mist.

"Blue."

This time, he compressed its range and power, producing a miniature "Blue" only the size of a glass marble, but with a higher gravitational density. Instead of firing it in a straight line, he used his mental strength to guide it along a precise curve!

The little black sphere traced a strange arc, going around the tall, thin Mist Demon and shooting toward the short, sturdy one at even greater speed! The short, sturdy Mist Demon was fully occupied maintaining Mist Devouring Cage and its condensed-mist attacks, and its reaction was a beat too slow. By the time it realized the danger, the miniature "Blue" was already right in front of it!

"Bastard! Condensed Mist Shield!" it roared, and the mist before it condensed wildly, forming a thick, semi-solid shield.

Yet before the "negative infinity" gravitational singularity, a defense of that level was as good as nonexistent. The instant the miniature "Blue" struck the mist shield, the terrifying force of the local collapse of space tore apart, compressed, and annihilated both the shield and the body of the short, sturdy Mist Demon behind it! This time, the range was better controlled. The destruction was concentrated mainly on the demon's torso and did not spread excessively.

[Slain demon "Mist Demon." Gold coins +850.]

[Control over "Limitless: Blue (prototype)" increased to 10%.]

[Notice: Gained a deeper understanding of the sustained consumption of "Inviolability," the basic defense of "Limitless."]

"No!!" The tall, thin Mist Demon let out a despairing wail, utterly terrified. Two companions, two companions who had been nearly unbeatable in the mist, had died so bizarrely to this blue-eyed swordsman's strange ability. It could no longer muster the courage to fight. Its body abruptly turned completely into mist, and it tried to flee the dye works.

"Trying to run?" Moyu snorted coldly. Using "Blue" repeatedly while maintaining Limitless had left him somewhat pale, but he didn't need to use "Blue" again to finish off the last demon, which was already at the end of its strength.

His Six Eyes clearly locked onto the core of the mist, where a dense concentration of demonic presence had gathered, as it tried to escape.

Azure Cursed Energy shone along his blade as Moyu's figure slipped into the mist, his speed seemingly not much slower than the Mist Demon's.

"Water Breathing, Sixth Form: Twisting Whirlpool!"

Moyu spun rapidly around his own axis, bringing up a vortex of azure water-like sword energy! The vortex not only stirred the physical mist, but also subtly disturbed the flow of energy within it! The mist the demon had transformed into was forcibly pulled and disrupted by the rotating field of sword energy. Its mist form became unstable, and its core flickered in and out of view.

The Mist Demon frantically tried to re-form its body.

But a slash wreathed in an arc of blazing flames suddenly came from the direction of the dye works entrance! The flames were not real, yet they carried a purifying, scorching presence. They instantly dispersed a patch of thick mist and precisely seized the brief opening at the demon's neck as it re-formed after being disrupted by Moyu!

"Hinokami Kagura: Dance!"

The Nichirin Blade traced a graceful crimson arc, and the demon's head flew off!

Tanjiro appeared in the dispersing mist, the Demon Slayer Mark on his forehead faintly glowing. His breathing was slightly ragged, and a determined flame burned in his eyes. Nezuko also jumped out of the wooden box and took a fighting stance in front of her brother, only relaxing when she saw that the demon had already been slain.

"Moyu! Are you all right?" Tanjiro asked worriedly when he saw Moyu's slightly pale face.

"I used up a little too much, but I'm fine." Moyu sheathed his sword and let out a long breath, slowly withdrawing the Limitless field around him. With the last Mist Demon dead, the dense, demon-powered mist inside the dye works began to disperse rapidly.

"Nezuko and I ran into another one in the east of town. It used the mist to create illusions and ambush us, which was troublesome. But Nezuko used her Blood Demon Art to temporarily clear away some of the mist, and I seized the chance," Tanjiro explained, stroking Nezuko's head. She narrowed her eyes contentedly.

Moyu nodded. "Those three demons were indeed a little tricky when they worked together in this mist." He looked around the dye works, where visibility was gradually returning, and at the night sky beyond the window, where stars were beginning to appear. "The threat to the town has been dealt with for now."

Moyu looked inward, sensing that his mental strength and Cursed Energy were almost depleted, and gained a more direct understanding of Limitless's consumption. "Absolute defense" was powerful, certainly, but if he couldn't solve the problem of sustaining it, that would be a major hidden danger in more complex, prolonged battles. It seemed that, aside from continuing to deepen his control over "Blue," his next stage of training also had to focus on improving his basic endurance.

Tanjiro, meanwhile, silently reflected on the feeling of that last "Dance." The combination of Hinokami Kagura and his Breathing Style seemed to have become a little smoother.