"Click, click"
With his left hand casually resting on the hilt of his Nichirin Blade at his waist, Tanjiro Kamado strode into the outer forest of Mount Fujikasane.
"The Wisteria here are so beautiful, and the fragrance in the air is so comforting."
Tanjiro took a deep breath of the cold air and couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
Then, he sniffed, his superhuman sense of smell quickly picking up a few faint, putrid odors in the air.
"Rustle--"
A slight shaking sound suddenly came from the dense bushes, which were taller than a person, on the right!
"Hehehe!"
"Whoosh--"
A hideous monster covered in green pustules, drooling from its mouth, and with bulging eyes suddenly leaped out of the bushes!
The demon was baring its fangs and claws in mid-air.
"Heh heh! You delicate-skinned human brat! Your luck is absolutely terrible, running into me!"
"So scared you can't even pull out your knife, huh? Be a good boy and become my midnight snack tonight, then I'll bite your neck off. Prepare to die!"
This entrance, these lines, this aura—in the eyes of this evil spirit itself, it was absolutely perfect!
He had even begun to fantasize about the beautiful scene of the red-haired boy in front of him, so frightened that he wet his pants and knelt down begging for mercy.
However...
Tanjiro simply stood there, his face darkening as he watched the demon slowly flying towards him in mid-air, his lips twitching slightly.
"I knew all along that the ghosts on the outer perimeter were weak..."
Tanjiro couldn't help but shout out his complaint.
"But this is way too slow! Were you asleep in mid-air?!"
The evil spirit slowly pounced towards him.
Tanjiro sighed.
He deftly shifted half a body length to the left, narrowly avoiding the demon's attack.
"Why?"
The demon missed its target, its bulging eyes staring in mid-air with great confusion.
Immediately afterwards,
Tanjiro casually raised his Nichirin Blade, still in its scabbard, and gently slammed it down on the back of the demon's head with a "thud."
"Bang!"
"Awoo--!"
One second they were arrogant and domineering demons, shouting that they wanted to eat people.
Like a rapidly spinning top, it comically spun more than ten times in mid-air!
"Boom!"
The ground was smashed into a huge crater shaped like a human, with mud and water splashing everywhere!
"Ouch, my back..."
The ghost was stuck upside down in the mud. Although it was beaten senseless and had several bones broken, the ghost's strong vitality prevented it from dying on the spot.
"Heh heh! You idiot human! You may be strong, but as long as you don't cut my neck, I'm definitely not going to die!"
"Give me ten seconds to recover, and I'll tear you apart!"
"..."
Tanjiro remained in the striking posture, shaking his head helplessly.
"Ah, right, I almost forgot this basic fact. Without Nichirin Blade, you really can't kill a demon."
He slapped his forehead, looking utterly enlightened.
"What... what nonsense are you spouting? Get back to trembling!"
The demon in the mud puddle gritted its teeth in anger at Tanjiro's nonchalant attitude.
"Excuse me, I'm about to officially begin the harvest!"
Tanjiro's eyes sharpened instantly.
"Zheng--!"
With a push of his thumb, the deep blue Nichirin Blade sliced through the night like a cold, full moon!
"Sizzle--!"
Before the demon's words were even out of its throat, a head covered in pustules flew smoothly into the air, then, with eyes full of terror, turned into a pile of ashes.
"This level of trial is simply not enough to showcase my true strength!"
Tanjiro flicked his sword, sheathed it, and continued deeper into the forest, following the faint Demon Aura in the air.
In the next fifteen minutes, Tanjiro charged into the flock of sheep like a tyrannical dragon in sheep's clothing.
Although he knew he had to use Nichirin Blade to kill demons, he always preferred to beat the demons until they questioned their existence before drawing his sword to finish them off, all in order to hone his physical reflexes.
Soon, Tanjiro encountered two unfortunate aspiring swordsmen who had been cornered by three demons in an open field.
The two swordsmen looked to be only fifteen or sixteen years old. They were sitting back to back on the ground, their Nichirin Blades lying to the side.
"Don't eat me! Waaah, Mommy, I want to go home! This is no place for a human being!"
Before them, three hideous demons drooled as they approached step by step, as if eyeing two plates of delicious desserts about to be devoured.
"Hehehe, look at these two little devils, so fair-skinned and tender! What good luck today! I'll eat the one who's been crying the whole time first!"
Just then!
"Boom--!"
A figure with a dark red afterimage crashed directly between the two swordsmen and the three demons!
The dead leaves on the ground were instantly swept away by the violent downward airflow!
Who goes there?!
The three evil spirits were startled and retreated abruptly.
Tanjiro straightened up, his eyes instantly becoming sharp.
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
Three crisp, clean arcs of light flashed across the darkness.
"Sizzle--!"
Before the three demons could even see Tanjiro draw his sword, their arrogant expressions still frozen on their faces, their three heads had already smoothly flown into the air before turning into ashes and disappearing.
The entire process took less than a second.
After defeating the three demons, Tanjiro shook the dust off his blade and sheathed his Nichirin Blade.
He turned around and looked at the two passerby swordsmen who were completely in a daze.
Tanjiro immediately withdrew his previous chilling killing intent, and a bright smile, as warm as the spring sun, instantly bloomed on his face.
He extended a calloused hand and asked gently:
"Are you all alright? Are you hurt anywhere? Get up quickly, the ground is cold!"
"I've cleared out most of the evil spirits on the outskirts; you're safe now!"
However...
Faced with Tanjiro's angelic smile and outstretched helping hand...
The two unfortunate swordsmen were so frightened that they convulsed!
"You... you stay away!"
One of the swordsmen was so frightened that tears streamed down his face. He frantically thrashed his hands on the ground, desperately trying to back away.
"Monster! You're absolutely a monster! What are you?! Are you a human or a ghost?!"
The two swordsmen scrambled into the bushes and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Tanjiro's outstretched hand froze, and the sunny smile on his lips also froze.
He stood there, looking utterly exasperated, as a gust of autumn wind blew by, swirling up a few fallen leaves.
What?!
Tanjiro angrily began to complain loudly, hands on his hips.
"I clearly meant well by saving them! Why are you treating me like a monster?! Mr. Giyu was way scarier than this when he hit me!"
Tanjiro sighed helplessly, shook his head, and decided to stop dwelling on such hurtful trifles, continuing his journey to clear out the outer perimeter.