Mount Natagumo

A few days later, Kurozawa returned to Mount Sagiri with Iguro Obanai.

Along the way, he had worried that Hongyue might be following him. He had taken many detours and repeatedly tried to test for her presence.

But in the end, it seemed he had merely been outwitting the air. There was no sign of any demon tracking him.

After every Demon Slaying Mission, there was a period of rest for the swordsmen to recover physically and mentally. This time was no exception. Half a month after returning to Mount Sagiri, no new missions had been issued, nor had any swordsmen come to arrest Kurozawa over the Hachijo Island incident.

Kurozawa spent a peaceful half-month on Mount Sagiri. He had already put the matter of Hongyue behind him. No matter how strange Hongyue acted or how completely she let down her guard around him, he could not possibly court death by marrying a female demon.

At that moment, atop Mount Sagiri, Kurozawa sat beneath the rising sun. The breath within him flowed as he used his Breathing Technique to temper his body. The view here was the best, offering a panoramic look over Mount Sagiri, and the air was fresh. It was Kurozawa's favorite place to be.

He had already handed Iguro Obanai over to his master for training, and Sakonji Urokodaki was delighted as well. Iguro Obanai truly deserved to be the future Serpent Pillar; his talent was exceptionally formidable. Breathing Techniques, sword forms, and everything else came to him at the slightest instruction.

What was even more outrageous was that Iguro Obanai found Water Breathing somewhat obscure to practice, and was researching a self-created Breathing Technique—Serpent Breathing.

Judging by the progress Iguro Obanai had displayed so far, he would likely master the Constant Total Concentration stage in less than half a year and become another powerful swordsman under Sakonji Urokodaki.

"These past half-months on Mount Sagiri, I've been tempering my body every day, yet all my attributes have only increased a little, reaching just over 0.6."

With a faint sigh, Kurozawa looked at the more than five hundred Potential Points accumulated in his vision.

He still had not raised Water Breathing to its fifth stage.

That was because increasing it with Potential Points also came with a healing effect. He intended to upgrade it during battle. Though that meant giving up the chance to familiarize himself with it in advance, as a human with a body all too easily injured, Kurozawa decided to save his Potential Points for now.

Besides that, Kurozawa was also somewhat wary of the fifth stage.

He had asked Sakonji Urokodaki about it. In an era long ago, powerful swordsmen beyond the Constant Total Concentration stage had appeared. They were called Marked Swordsmen. Every one of them bore savage patterns across their bodies, similar to the Demon Marks on demons. They looked terrifying, but their power was likewise akin to that of demons.

Kurozawa guessed that the fifth-stage Breathing Technique assessed by Gray-White was most likely the Marked stage.

The Demon Slayer Corps of the era that possessed Marked Swordsmen had also been at its most glorious. Hunting demons had been as easy as reaching into a bag for something.

Of course, if Marked Swordsmen were merely powerful, Kurozawa would have upgraded without the slightest hesitation. Unfortunately, Marked Swordsmen had a fatal flaw.

Lifespan. Marked Swordsmen all had short lives. If powerful swordsmen did not die in battle or from hidden injuries, then with their physiques, living past a hundred should have been effortless. Yet many Marked Swordsmen died suddenly, and those who died in their sleep were far from rare.

"This is troublesome. I'd better look into it some more." No matter how much Kurozawa thought about it, he did not dare casually raise Water Breathing to its fifth stage.

If he had the chance, he would ask the Demon Slayer Corps Leader about the marks. He surely knew more than his master did, and perhaps he would know how to avoid the marks' side effects.

As for the Potential Points, he could save some for upgrades and use the rest to improve his physical attributes as circumstances required. That was also a good choice.

A moment later, Kurozawa calmed himself and prepared to continue tempering his body.

But just then, a piercing, unpleasant cry rang out nearby.

"Caw! Caw! Caw!"

Turning his head, he saw a pitch-black Kasugai Crow flying over from the distance. One look told him it brought no good news.

It landed on a boulder, tilted its head at Kurozawa, then opened its beak.

"Kurozawa Danryu, I have come to deliver an order."

"People have been disappearing one after another on Mount Natagumo. A large number of swordsmen have gone missing. Go and investigate."

Once the mission had been issued, the Kasugai Crow flapped its wings and flew away without another movement, not giving Kurozawa any chance to catch it.

"Mount Natagumo? It doesn't sound like a pleasant place."

"And every time, they assign me missions where swordsmen have gone missing. They really think highly of me."

Kurozawa's first mission had been the trip to Hachijo Island, where three Rank Tsuchinoto Swordsmen had vanished. Sending the lowest-ranked swordsman to deal with the disappearance of Rank Tsuchinoto Swordsmen showed that whoever assigned missions clearly regarded Kurozawa differently.

And now, with a large number of swordsmen missing, they had once again sent him to handle it. Kurozawa had already vaguely guessed the reason. He was definitely a swordsman receiving special attention. Otherwise, why would he receive missions that sounded dangerous every time?

Kurozawa rose to his feet, steadied his body, and a series of crackling sounds erupted from him.

Rolling his neck, he quickly headed down the mountain and found Sakonji Urokodaki, who was instructing Iguro Obanai.

"Master, I have a new mission."

Sakonji Urokodaki had stepped down from the position of Water Pillar some time ago and now devoted himself wholeheartedly to training swordsmen on Mount Sagiri. Iguro Obanai could be said to be quite fortunate. In the past, Sakonji Urokodaki had still needed to undertake Demon Slaying Missions, but now he could devote himself entirely to guiding his disciple.

At present, only the bruised and battered Iguro Obanai enjoyed such treatment.

Seeing Kurozawa approach, Sakonji Urokodaki stopped his one-sided beating—no, instruction—of Iguro Obanai and asked evenly, "Where did something happen?"

Kurozawa answered truthfully, "Mount Natagumo. They said a large number of swordsmen have gone missing."

A large number of swordsmen missing. Sakonji Urokodaki mulled over those words, then turned and said seriously, "Kurozawa, whenever a mission involves a large number of missing swordsmen, it means the demons involved are powerful."

"There is a good chance you may encounter a Demon Moon. Be cautious."

Killing a Demon Moon gave one the qualifications to advance to Pillar.

Sakonji Urokodaki was actually somewhat looking forward to Kurozawa encountering a Lower Moon. In his eyes, this disciple of his had matured late, but his rate of improvement now made even him take notice. Nearly every time he saw Kurozawa, he had improved considerably.

As for safety, so long as he did not encounter an Upper Moon, Sakonji Urokodaki would not worry about Kurozawa. Upper Moons had always been mysterious; how could one be encountered so easily?

Under the sunlight, Kurozawa nodded with a smile. "Don't worry, Master. I'm the man destined to conquer the Demon Progenitor. A mere Demon Moon can be destroyed with a flick of my finger."

Ignoring Kurozawa's boasting, Sakonji Urokodaki gave him a few simple reminders before resuming his instruction of Iguro Obanai.

Iguro Obanai was being beaten terribly, but he did not utter a word. Clenching his teeth, he did his best to evade Sakonji Urokodaki's attacks. He looked remarkably resolute; his past experiences had forged Iguro Obanai's strong heart.

Kurozawa glanced at the peaceful atmosphere of Mount Sagiri, then headed down the mountain beneath the increasingly warm sunlight.