Born to Kill Demons

The next day, Han Zhiqi woke from his daze. He propped himself up on the floor and managed to sit up, looking around.

The yellowish-brown wooden walls, the bamboo basket hanging on the wall – everything was exactly as he had seen it last night. He confirmed that everything that had happened wasn't a dream.

How fortunate he was to have truly escaped death.

Han Zhiqi lowered his head, unable to suppress a smile.

Although he had survived a great disaster, his body was in terrible shape. His head felt heavy, his mouth tasted bitter, and his stomach churned with nausea. The worst part was that every inch of his body ached, as if it no longer obeyed his soul.

Han Zhiqi struggled to get up from the floor. Just a few ordinary movements made him dizzy and his vision blacken. If he hadn't leaned against the wall, he would have probably collapsed back onto the floor.

Leaning on the wall, Han Zhiqi carefully felt his way towards the door. The short distance of a few steps felt as long as a century. Finally, he reached the door and sat down on a stone stool, leaning against the wall.

The sunlight was so dazzling. Judging by the sun's height, he guessed it was around eight or nine in the morning.

The sun, the air, the trees, the flowers, and grass – everything was so peaceful and quiet, so beautiful.

But who could have imagined that just yesterday, on this very mountain, there had been a ferocious demon, and he had almost become its meal.

Even now, a chill ran down his spine when he thought about it.

A blurry figure appeared at the path leading down the mountain.

The figure was dressed in gray and white hemp clothing, with a sturdy build and steady steps. He held a short-handled hoe in his right hand and a bamboo basket on his back. In a moment, he had approached.

Lang Beiwei walked directly into the wooden house. As he passed Han Zhiqi, he chuckled, "Yo, rude boy, finally awake."

Han Zhiqi leaned against the wall, not replying. He smelled a faint scent of blood and fish from the bamboo basket.

Indeed, not long after Lang Beiwei entered the house, he returned, carrying an iron basin filled with water. A smaller basin floated on the surface, containing a dead pheasant and a carp.

Lang Beiwei picked up a low stool and sat down next to Han Zhiqi by the door. He began to bleed and pluck the pheasant, and a strong smell of blood filled the air.

"I caught these for you on the mountain this morning. They say old hen soup is good for the body. We don't have old hens here, so a pheasant will have to do, but the effect should be about the same."

Han Zhiqi, already feeling queasy, became even more dizzy and nauseous from the smell of blood. He couldn't help but wonder if the old man was doing this intentionally.

"Can't you clean them somewhere else? Do you have to do it here?" he asked, gagging as he held onto the wall.

Seeing Han Zhiqi's miserable state, Lang Beiwei burst into laughter, looking smug as if his plan had succeeded.

"Haha, look at you, you were quite capable last night, weren't you?"

Han Zhiqi thought to himself, so this old fellow was deliberately getting back at him.

After laughing, Lang Beiwei carried the basin to a spot not far from Han Zhiqi, where Han Zhiqi wouldn't smell the blood but could still hear their conversation.

A brief silence fell between them.

"Hey, rude boy," Lang Beiwei broke the silence first. It felt wrong to just sit there with a living person and not say anything.

"Why did you decide to fight a demon yesterday? You're just a novice. You've barely seen a few demons, and you don't even have a Nichirin Blade. The only outcome of fighting was being eaten. What were you thinking?"

Han Zhiqi hadn't expected the old fellow to be curious about this. When it was brought up, a strange anger surged within him, and he couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.

"Hmph, you have the nerve to say that. A demon appeared in your territory, and you, the mountain's Trainer, didn't even bother to investigate. I'm truly unlucky to have run into you people. And that woman too. She said she could only send me this far, and then she had to leave with that parting nonsense. It was completely unnecessary."

Han Zhiqi unleashed all the resentment in his heart. After speaking, he leaned against the wall, panting heavily, leaving Lang Beiwei stunned and bewildered in the wind.

A moment later, Lang Beiwei recovered and angrily retorted, "Nonsense! Who told you this mountain was my territory? I'm not some mountain god. Besides, even if there was a demon, what's it to me? I'm just a Trainer, not a professional demon slayer. Do you expect me to chase after demons all day? If all the Trainers went around killing demons, what would be the point of you people?"

After listening to Lang Beiwei's tirade, Han Zhiqi vaguely understood the role of a Trainer.

According to the old man, it was indeed unfair to blame him. White Dragon Mountain was vast, and it was far from human settlements, so it was normal for one or two demons to appear.

If anyone was to blame, upon reflection, it was only himself for overcomplicating the entire situation.

Silence fell between them again, and Lang Beiwei grumbled as he cleaned the pheasant's innards.

After an unknown amount of time, it was Han Zhiqi's turn to break the silence.

"I thought that demon was a test to get up the mountain. That woman sent me to the foot of the mountain and said, 'I can only send you this far; you have to walk the rest of the way yourself.' Coupled with the fact that a demon appeared in the Trainer's territory, the whole thing was very suspicious."

"So, you thought I set up a test for you?"

Han Zhiqi's silence was his answer.

"Running away is the worst option. If you run out of stamina and get caught by the demon, you'll have no hope. I originally wanted to stall for time and wait for you to make a move, but you never appeared. I vaguely guessed that this might not be a test, but that I had actually encountered a demon. At that point, running was no longer realistic, so I could only use my Martial Skill to temporarily immobilize it. I used its screams to tell you my location. The whole thing... that's how it happened."

Although Han Zhiqi described it lightly, Lang Beiwei could imagine how dire the situation had been.

To be able to hold out for so long against a demon with such a battered body, besides immense willpower and a strong survival instinct, the young man's calm mind and precise analysis and control of the situation were even more admirable.

Muzan Kibutsuji had disappeared for nearly a hundred years, only daring to show himself after Tsugikuni Yoriichi's death.

This gap spanned almost an entire generation, and the Demon Slayer Corps had also become complacent for a generation. It was rare for someone with such a sharp mind to be found in the Demon Slayer Corps nowadays.

"Hmph, you're quite smart. In such a dire situation, you were still able to think calmly and use the demon's screams to send me a distress signal. It wasn't a waste of my effort to save your life. Have you encountered demons before?"

If he didn't have some experience, how could he have handled it so smoothly? An ordinary person would have been scared to death upon encountering a demon, let alone fight it.

Mentioning demons, Han Zhiqi remembered the night his sister was taken away, and his wounds throbbed as if burning.

"You could say that. These injuries were left by a demon. I've survived two encounters with demons without dying. It seems I'm destined to kill demons."