After passing through the narrow, secluded Wisteria Flower path, Kurozawa and Hanada Shizuka, one behind the other, walked briskly for around twenty minutes before a wall woven from Wisteria Flowers appeared before them.
Kurozawa paused slightly, then reached one hand into the Wisteria Flower wall without overthinking it.
The sensation in his arm told him there was nothing beyond the wall, just over ten centimeters away.
"Beyond this is the interior of Mount Fujikasane."
Taking a step forward, Kurozawa's tall body pushed through the Wisteria Flower wall, and his vision suddenly brightened.
Amid soft rustling, Hanada Shizuka's little head emerged from the seemingly dense Wisteria Flower grove behind him.
A few breaths later, both Kurozawa and Hanada Shizuka stood within the somewhat silent Mount Fujikasane.
"Something feels off. Why do I feel chilly all over?"
The moment she entered, Hanada Shizuka shrank her neck, her little face full of fear.
Though it was a sunlit mountain forest, it felt exceptionally dead and silent.
Kurozawa merely glanced around before understanding why.
There were no living creatures here.
There were none of the birds and beasts commonly heard in the mountains, no rustling insects constantly appearing beneath their feet. Only silent, towering trees stood alone.
The sounds of birds and beasts they were used to hearing had abruptly vanished here. Combined with the quiet surroundings and the mottled shadows cast everywhere by branches and leaves, Mount Fujikasane held no warmth at all, even during the day.
When demons could not feed on human flesh and blood, they chose to consume the blood of wild animals to sustain themselves. That was why Mount Fujikasane was so deathly silent. Every creature capable of moving had been devoured by demons.
"It's good that you feel cold. It means this place is full of signs of demon activity."
"Shizuka, stay completely focused. One careless mistake and you'll be swallowed up."
Kurozawa put on a stern face and tried to scare Hanada Shizuka.
Sure enough, her face went pale. She looked left and right nervously, instantly becoming tense as her right hand tightly gripped the hilt of her Nichirin Blade.
Now that they had come to Mount Fujikasane, he would make sure she stayed safe, but he could not let her treat the Swordsman Trial like a game. Kurozawa felt it was necessary to make Hanada Shizuka nervous and serious.
"Fortune-Dispelling Fox Mask."
Kurozawa removed the Fortune-Dispelling Fox Mask he had been wearing at the side of his head as decoration. After examining it carefully for three or four seconds, he put it back on.
This time, he wore it as an actual mask over his face.
A patch of shadow happened to fall across the Fortune-Dispelling Fox Mask, lending him a touch of mystery.
Beside him, Hanada Shizuka tried to put on her own mask as well, but Kurozawa stopped her with an outstretched hand.
"I want to wear mine too. You look better with it on, Senior Disciple."
"Do you want the demons to notice you?"
"Huh? Why would wearing a mask make demons notice me?"
"You ask too many questions. Just listen to me!" Kurozawa's forceful attitude and authority as the Senior Disciple made Hanada Shizuka submit. Obediently, she took off her mask and once again wore it at the side of her cheek.
Sakonji Urokodaki always wore masks he had crafted himself, including the Tengu Mask. They shared similar traits, and one could tell at a glance that they had come from the same maker.
Several decades ago, Sakonji Urokodaki had worn a mask while carrying out a mission to capture demons and replenish the demon stock in Mount Fujikasane's prison.
The demons captured by Sakonji Urokodaki had firmly remembered the mask's characteristics, carving them into their minds for decades. They were filled with mad hatred and vicious resentment toward its owner.
Kurozawa felt that once he came within a certain distance of the Hand Demon, the clothes carrying Sakonji Urokodaki's scent would attract it, while this mask would confirm his identity and draw its attention toward him.
"Let's go. We'll look around first."
"The scenery here is actually quite nice."
A gentle breeze swirled through the mountain, carrying scattered purple petals in a graceful dance and making the interior of Mount Fujikasane look quite beautiful.
Though that purple beauty had become eerie amid the lifeless atmosphere.
Besides the sound of wind striking branches and leaves—the only obvious sound around them—Kurozawa faintly heard the babble of flowing water. Since there were no signs of demon activity nearby, he planned to follow the water source and search proactively.
Closing his eyes slightly, Kurozawa listened carefully for a while. Once he confirmed that the sound of water came from the southeast, he began to move.
When looking for wild animals, one could naturally search near a water source. But whether he could find demons there as well, Kurozawa did not know.
Still, having a goal was better than wandering around aimlessly. Besides, he was a little thirsty and wanted a drink of water.
More than ten minutes later, the sound of flowing water in Kurozawa's ears became increasingly clear.
He believed that after another few hundred meters, they would reach the river.
But at that moment, Kurozawa stopped and carefully shifted his gaze, examining the surroundings.
The trees around them all looked ancient. Most were at least thick enough for four or five people to encircle with their arms. Their luxuriant branches and leaves supported vast patches of shadow, and those shadows overlapped, blocking out all sunlight. Many small broken branches lay scattered across the ground, along with uneven impact marks. Interesting. The demons might know that people would search for water, so they had set an ambush along the path.
That was right. Demons did not need water, but swordsmen certainly did.
Kurozawa slowly took a step back, placing himself beneath the sunlight. At the same time, he stretched out an arm to stop Hanada Shizuka, who was looking around and still trying to move forward.
"Hmm?"
Hanada Shizuka raised her head and looked at Kurozawa strangely.
Kurozawa pointed at the dense shadows ahead. "You little thing, you have vigilance, but... you seem a little foolish."
Following Kurozawa's finger, Hanada Shizuka looked over, her face full of confusion.
"Look up," Kurozawa reminded her again.
"Oh."
Hanada Shizuka tilted her head back and looked.
An exceptionally lush canopy filled her vision.
The canopy was thick and dense, layers upon layers of branches and leaves blocking one's gaze from penetrating within.
For no reason at all, Hanada Shizuka suddenly felt fear rise in her heart as she looked at the silent canopy.
In an instant, her pupils contracted and her face turned deathly pale.
"S-Senior Disciple, there seems to be something hiding in the canopy." Her voice trembled dryly.
A pair of ruthless, crazed blood-red eyes silently watched from within the dense leaves. The moment Hanada Shizuka spotted them, they flashed away and vanished.
But Hanada Shizuka did not dare dismiss it as an illusion. She had truly, clearly seen those blood-red eyes.
The poor junior sister had never seen an evil demon before. Today, completely unprepared, she had looked up and witnessed a horrifying scene straight out of a horror film. She would probably have nightmares tonight.
Seeing Hanada Shizuka's little face turn pale from fright, Kurozawa heartlessly burst into laughter. "Take out the words 'seems to be.'"
"Today, Senior Disciple will show you that demons are nothing to fear!"
His legs bent slightly, muscles and veins bulging beneath his clothes.
Kurozawa leaped into the air.
A ring of spiderweb-like cracks radiated beneath the center of his feet.
Boom! Like a cannonball launching into the sky, Kurozawa left the safety of the sunlight and plunged headfirst into the thick, silent canopy.
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