A Scheme Within a Scheme, the Allure of the Blue Spider Lily!

Dragon Breathing: Flame Form—Burning Wing!

Kashu's crossing slash was like a dragon spreading its wings. Blazing flames instantly blew apart the layered pillars of flesh, their brilliant light illuminating Enmu's face, twisted in horror.

"How? Why?! Why are you the only one who can't be hypnotized?!"

"A trash technique that doesn't even qualify as mystic eyes thinks it can affect me?"

Kashu's voice was icy. His gaze passed over the shrieking Enmu and pierced toward the locomotive behind him, which billowed with thick smoke.

Even though Enmu had completely fused with the Infinite Train, he still had a weak point.

At the connection beneath the locomotive, the densest concentration of demonic aura unmistakably revealed where his true body lay.

Kashu drew in a massive breath. Crimson magical energy spilled from his body, like a savage blood-red cloak snapping behind him.

Now that he had gathered the information and located the true body, it was time to bring this out-of-control train to a complete stop!

"You said you merged with the train and can't possibly be killed, right?"

"I'll show you just how easy it is to hit a stationary target!"

Kashu pushed off the ground, shooting forward in a burst that was somehow even faster than the speeding train.

He planted himself firmly on the tracks ahead, and wind pressure rapidly gathered around his sword.

Dragon Breathing: Wind Form—Roar!

Where his blade pointed, a violent storm transformed into a savage tornado, instantly swallowing the entire locomotive!

Countless wind blades frantically shredded the proliferating flesh pillars. Beneath the steel body of the train, stark white bones were exposed—

They were the demon's spine, hidden beneath the locomotive.

Kashu flashed into the air, drawing his sword fully back before launching another attack.

Dragon Breathing: Rock Form—Savage Tail!

Clang!!!

The deafening crash of metal rang out like the tolling of an ancient temple bell.

This strike was overwhelmingly powerful, like a colossal beast whipping its tail, utterly savage.

In a breathtaking display, the locomotive was forcibly knocked off the rails, leaving only the carriages to continue sliding forward on inertia.

This was the purest, most primal aesthetic of violence.

Screech—!

Without the locomotive to pull them, the carriages slowly came to a stop. Their wheels scraped against the rails with a piercing sound that set teeth on edge.

The flesh pillar connected to Enmu's head was mercilessly severed by the storm as well, leaving the barely alive demon to futilely re-form his ruined body.

"Damn it! Damn it! This shouldn't have happened!"

"My plan was clearly perfect, yet I failed to devour even a single person!"

"It's all because of them! It's all those damned demon slayers' fault!"

"How could just two people cut off so many of my tentacles? Why would that demon girl protect humans?"

"And that terrifying guy... why was he completely immune to hypnosis? Why could a human be this strong?"

As Enmu raved and cursed, Kashu had already arrived before him and casually picked up his rapidly decaying head.

"Tell Muzan Kibutsuji this for me: the Blue Spider Lily is with me."

Before the words had even faded, he pulled a vacuum-sealed medical bag from his coat. Inside was a carefully preserved blue flower.

Enmu: ???

The demon's mouth had long since crumbled apart, leaving him unable to speak, but what remained of his consciousness cheered wildly.

It was the craving buried in the deepest depths of every cell—a supreme desire from the Demon King who had granted him demon blood, directed at the plant before him.

A few seconds later, Kashu shook the ash from his hand and raised the so-called Blue Spider Lily before his eyes, a faint smile curling at his lips.

"Now we'll see whether he takes the bait."

Elsewhere, Kyojuro Rengoku and Tanjiro's siblings were carrying passengers to an open area, trip after trip.

Although Kashu had only deliberately damaged the locomotive of the Infinite Train, that violent tornado was not something that could simply be stopped at will.

As a result, the rear carriages had been affected as well. The passengers still under hypnosis had all suffered varying degrees of bumps and scrapes.

During a break in moving the passengers, Kyojuro Rengoku summoned his Kasugai Crow, preparing to report what had happened aboard the Infinite Train to headquarters.

"Mm, I understand the situation now."

"Mr. Kashu, will Muzan Kibutsuji truly see you as a target?"

Kashu counted the passengers and shook his head.

"As I said before, I'm only seventy percent sure at most."

After carrying down another two passengers, Tanjiro wore a puzzled expression.

"Why? Didn't you say Muzan Kibutsuji had spent his entire life searching for the Blue Spider Lily?"

Kashu shrugged helplessly. "So what? The one I have is just a fake."

"A fake?!" ×2

"Keep your voices down. We still can't be sure there aren't other demons hiding nearby."

Faced with their shocked stares, Kashu reached into his coat again and took out the medical bag from earlier—

The Blue Spider Lily inside had already vanished without a trace.

"That Blue Spider Lily was made with projection magic. Since I used research materials Miss Tamayo had accumulated over many years as a reference, it was able to achieve about seventy percent resemblance."

"Oh, and by the way, projection magic is a special ability from my homeland. It can replicate objects that have existed in reality."

"Not only is it extremely difficult and costly to use, but it lasts only a few minutes. It's really quite impractical."

After hearing Kashu's explanation, Kyojuro Rengoku and Tanjiro finally understood.

So the Blue Spider Lily had been fake from beginning to end. Kashu was completely trying to catch a wolf with empty hands!

Kyojuro Rengoku nodded repeatedly. "Not only can it lure Muzan Kibutsuji into appearing of his own accord, but it also prevents him from truly obtaining what he wants. What a thoroughly considered plan!"

Kashu waved a hand. "Save those words until this is completely resolved. All right, put some more effort into it. There are still plenty of passengers left."

While Kashu and the others handled the aftermath, a demon was rapidly approaching the place where Enmu had died.

Akaza moved nimbly through the mountains and forests, leaping and darting with the speed of a bullet fired from a gun.

He had been closest to Enmu, so he had received an order from Muzan Kibutsuji.

He was to kill the three Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen at any cost and seize the Blue Spider Lily in their possession.

As an Upper Rank of the Twelve Kizuki, Akaza knew full well how deep his master's obsession with the Blue Spider Lily ran.

Combined with the voice urging him onward in his mind, he finally arrived near the wreckage of the Infinite Train half an hour later.

"I see them! Demon Slayer Corps members!"

Surging fighting spirit exploded from Akaza's body. He flashed before Tanjiro in an instant and drove a fist straight at his head!

Flame Breathing: Second Form—Rising Scorching Sun!

An upward curving slash met the demon's iron fist head-on.

Kyojuro Rengoku's sword technique, as swift and fierce as blazing fire, not only precisely deflected Akaza's attack but also left a bone-deep wound on his arm.

Only then did Tanjiro snap back to his senses. He hurriedly drew the Nichirin Blade at his waist and assumed a guarded stance.

"A demon?!"

Kyojuro Rengoku frowned deeply. "Tanjiro, retreat to the rear carriages and find Mr. Kashu! This demon is not one you can handle!"

As he spoke, his eyes locked onto Akaza, whose demonic aura was abnormally dense.

The demon wore a martial arts robe suited for movement. Beneath his short peach-red hair, his skin was deathly pale, while the golden eyes held the clearly inscribed characters for "Upper Rank" and "Three."

"Upper Rank Three?!"

Unlike the highly alert Kyojuro Rengoku, Akaza calmly retreated more than ten meters and casually shook his arm. The limb that had been broken a moment ago healed completely in an instant.

"A beautiful counterattack. You—you're a Hashira, aren't you?"

Kyojuro Rengoku asked in a low voice, "Didn't you come for the Blue Spider Lily? Why did you attack Tanjiro first?"

Akaza gave a disdainful smile. "Isn't it obvious?"

"Weak humans don't deserve to live in this world. Just looking at them makes me sick enough to vomit!"