A Vast Disparity

The villagers at the scene had all been knocked unconscious by Tanjuro and his companion.

They were simply not moved to a safe place.

Meanwhile, the two Pillar-level swordsmen were already engaged in fierce combat with Upper Moon Five.

The two worked together to keep the battlefield within a certain area, preventing it from moving towards the villagers, otherwise... it could cause a large number of casualties during the battle.

This is not what Tanjuro and Shiwei wanted to see.

They should have evacuated the villagers beforehand, but they misjudged the situation on the ground and the level of the ghost, which has caused the two of them to be under immense pressure.

The Water Breathing takes on a wild form, a tide of impact.

Hearing the sounds coming from the battlefield, Oboro turned around and saw Shiwei wielding his blade. His swordsmanship sliced through Mireimaru's body at incredibly precise angles, inflicting multiple hits of damage. The exquisite sword power was like a tide flowing through the void.

However... it completely missed the target.

In the instant the blade flashed, Upper Moon Five Mireimaru's body was torn to pieces, his limbs separated, as if his own body had been dismembered, thus narrowly avoiding the trajectory of the blade's slash.

Not only that, the moment Shiwei landed, the ghost's arm suddenly lengthened, wrapping around the meat cleaver like a whip and striking his back.

If a streak of fiery light hadn't shot out from the side and blocked the meat cleaver, the water column would have been seriously injured.

"You two pieces of trash, get out of my way!"

Mireimaru appeared quite angry, completely disregarding Tanjuro and Shiwei; his mind was now solely focused on Oboro.

After only a short while of intense fighting, the two pillars in front of them were already showing signs of exhaustion, drenched in sweat.

Mireimaru could see Oboro's figure; the man was standing not far away, not leaving, but just watching the battle.

"Flame Breathing Second Form, Ascending Blaze!" Rengoku Tenjuro completely ignored the demon's roar, his mind highly focused and utterly fearless. After helping his companions resolve the crisis, he took the initiative to rush forward, using super speed to dart to the side and rear of Upper Moon Five, speaking in a deep voice.

Straighten your back and hold the knife with both hands, making a cut from bottom to top.

A full moon-shaped halo, burning with flames, suddenly appeared.

However, the powerful blade only cut a dozen centimeters into the demon's body after it pierced through, without completely severing it.

Instead, because his power was blocked by the blade, his body stiffened for a moment, which the ghost seized upon. He was struck hard in the abdomen by a leg, coughed up blood, and tumbled away.

"Hmph... You overestimating yourself!"

Mireimaru's expression was mocking as the knife wounds inflicted by the Flame Pillar on his body slowly healed.

Ding ding ding! Coming to his Shiwei saw the demon about to catch Tanjuro off guard and immediately tried to rush forward to buy his friend a chance to catch his breath. However, before he could even get close to Upper Moon Five, he was surrounded from all sides by a horde of monsters made of flesh and blood, leaving no opening whatsoever.

This is too tricky.

Putting aside his physical resilience and strength, the various Blood Demon Art alone were difficult for him and Tanjuro to handle.

The first type of Blood Demon Art is the ability to lengthen or shorten the arms at will.

Then there's the ability to split and recombine the body, which is a great advantage when dodging slashing blades.

Another type of Blood Demon Art involves the opponent's abdomen opening into a mouth that can spit out a 'monster' made of a mixture of minced flesh. This monster has the ability to reproduce, which means that in addition to dealing with the main target's attacks and defenses, the two must also be constantly wary of interference and sneak attacks from these monsters.

Moreover, according to the Shiwei, this Upper Moon demon likely still has some Blood Demon Art that it hasn't used yet.

The other party always held a scale in his hand, which seemed to be one of his weapons.

He and Tanjuro had considerable combat experience, but they had only ever killed low-level demons... He had killed fifty demons to become a Pillar. Tanjuro, on the other hand, was one of the few Pillars in their group who had killed the Twelve Kizuki, but he had only killed Lower Moons, a world apart from the Upper Moon present.

Different demons, due to their different Blood Demon Art, have different fighting styles... Lower-level demons mostly like to 'take shortcuts,' combining their Blood Demon Art to create an advantage. However, Upper Rank demons, due to their differences, have frighteningly high base attributes, allowing them to launch completely overwhelming attacks.

Strength, defense, recovery, etc., are not even in the same league as Lower Moon or low-ranking demons.

The Shiwei moved nimbly, frequently wielding his sword, cutting all the approaching monsters into pieces.

The web between his thumb and forefinger, where he was gripping the knife, was torn open and bleeding.

The mere collision with the Upper Moon Five's meat cleaver, the inertia transmitted by the blade, was enough to overwhelm him.

He can't help Tanjuro for the time being.

Perhaps... they will both die here.

Thinking of this, the Shiwei glanced at the distance during a break in the attack.

The man stood there, smiling, motionless...

Tanjuro was in excruciating abdominal pain, and even his vision became blurry.

He had barely managed to steady himself when he heard a sharp sound tearing through the air.

He instantly retreated and jumped away.

Immediately afterwards, a long arm swung a machete down, blasting a shockingly deep crater where he stood.

Putting aside the sharpness of the blade, the sheer power of it is enough to make anyone tremble with fear.

Upper Moon Five walked forward step by step, his sword-wielding arm transforming into a long, swaying serpent, 'biting' at Tenjuro Tanjuro was retreating and swinging his sword to defend himself.

Compared to the struggling Pillar, Mireimaru was calm and composed, seemingly not exerting his full strength at all.

That is indeed the case.

He was wary of the man outside the arena...

Using the battle as a pretext, they observed from the shadows.

He was angry, but he wasn't really stupid.

Compared to those two fragile pillars, the man put more pressure on him.

Not only did he send him flying with One-Punch Man, but he also smashed his stomach to pieces...

This power was completely out of character for a 'newborn,' and... it possessed an aura that made him lose consciousness.

Are there really guys who, right after becoming demons, can reach a level comparable to an Upper Moon demon?

How could this be?! Mireimaru was also in a state of utter confusion.

"Eating these two pillars should temporarily enhance my strength..."

The secret passage of Mireimaru.

"Flame Breathing, Form of Five, Flame Tiger!"

At that moment, Tanjuro cleaved his arm with a single slash, then advanced instead of retreating, using offense as defense, his heels bracing against the ground as he suddenly gathered his strength.

After a soft shout, he immediately thrust his knife forward, creating a massive, tiger-like slash.

"Idiot."

Upper Moon looked at Flame Pillar, whose eyes were full of fighting spirit but who hadn't yet grasped his own situation and seemed like a clueless fool, and coldly uttered two words.

Immediately, a silent streak of light flashed past Tanjuro as he rushed towards him.

Bright red, scalding blood splattered everywhere.

Before Tanjuro could even unleash his swordsmanship, he had already collapsed.

As an Upper Moon Five, besides his physical strength and Blood Demon Art, he naturally has other killing moves... otherwise, how could he have so easily taken down so many Pillar-level swordsmen?

For example, his knife, no matter how much force it carries or how fast it moves, can always be 'silent'.

The previous clash of weapons was merely a deliberate act.

"Tanjuro!"

The Shiwei broke free from the monster encirclement and leaped onto the top of the demon's head.

The body rotates in coordination with the angle and momentum of the attack.

Water Breathing, Eighth Form: Waterfall Basin! This powerful strike ultimately failed to achieve its intended effect.

Mireimaru, who was standing below, instantly disintegrated and scattered to different locations, causing the Shiwei's attack to miss its target.

The arm holding the sword, as it dodged and flew away, instantly turned back... and plunged the tip of the sword deep into the side of the water column's abdomen.

Although Kawai Ichie managed to contract his muscles by breathing, he was clearly seriously injured and could no longer straighten his body.

"The moment you realize my Upper Moon identity, the best thing you should do is run away... I'm not interested in you, maybe... you can leave alive."

The several body parts that had flown off merged back together, forming the demon's body. Mireimaru asked cruelly, "What price do you two think... you can sell your skin and flesh for?"