Journey to the Demon Wolf Graveyard

At dawn the next day, a ray of light shone through, dispelling the morning mist and its lingering chill.

Two figures stood at the edge of a cliff on Bluestone Mountain.

"So you've decided to go?"

The frail old man, who exuded an air of decay, looked at Mingye as he asked.

His complexion had improved a little, no longer as deathly pale as it had been yesterday.

But his injuries had not healed. He had merely suppressed them for the time being.

"Yes. Until then, sorry for the trouble, but I'll leave Bluestone Mountain in your care."

Mingye gazed into the distance, nodded slightly, and spoke.

"Leave it to me. These old bones can hold out for another year or two!"

The old man coughed, his gaze resolute. Even though he had stepped down, he would still defend the Demon Wolf Tribe of Bluestone Mountain to the death.

"If it's you, perhaps you really can obtain the Sacred Artifact, the Five Thunder Finger!"

The old man's expression was earnest. He had faith in Mingye. Naturally, he had once gone to test himself against the Three-Headed Demon Wolf in the Demon Wolf Burial Grounds.

Its strength was not particularly terrifying. The real problem was its immortality, which made it impossible to defeat.

But Mingye should be able to defeat that guardian beast, the Three-Headed Demon Wolf!

"You certainly have a lot of confidence in me."

Mingye raised an eyebrow. He had never fully revealed his strength to the old man, yet the old man somehow believed he could do it.

"Heh. Off you go."

The old man grinned and urged Mingye to set out. He, too, wanted to see the Five Thunder Finger shine in Mingye's hands.

Mingye nodded slightly and stepped forward, leaving the Demon Wolf Tribe's territory in a few bounds.

Mingye moved as swiftly as a phantom, covering dozens of yards with each stride, like a black shadow racing across the land.

He was not yet strong enough to fly. That required greater Demon Power and more refined control over his strength.

As he was now, Mingye still had some way to go before he could fly.

"Hm?"

Mingye darted dozens of meters sideways, and a blast of searing power struck the spot where he had just stood.

The scorching force ravaged the earth, leaving a crater several meters across.

"Oh? You actually dodged it."

A strange, flippant voice rang out, sounding somewhat surprised that Mingye had managed to evade the attack.

Mingye stood firmly atop a large tree and looked coldly toward the source of the voice.

A figure roughly a hundred feet tall emerged. Compared with Mingye, its body was enormous.

It was Blue Oni, a demon of the ghostly sort, with disgusting fluid streaming all over his body.

His entire body was an iron-blue color, and his crimson eyes brimmed with murderous intent as he stared at Mingye.

"Brat, your soul looks rather fine! I bet it tastes delicious!"

Blue Oni curled his disgusting tongue, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth as he exhaled a thick, nauseating stench.

In this Warring States era, endless warfare had brought countless demons into existence. Blue Oni was one such product of war.

He was a kind of ghostly demon that loved devouring souls. The more souls he consumed, the larger his body grew.

A demon like him would turn away neither demonic nor human souls.

Of course, in Blue Oni's eyes, human souls were naturally more delicious.

Mingye's soul differed from those of ordinary demons. It possessed the qualities of a human soul, which had drawn this Blue Oni's attention.

Judging by his size, he must have devoured quite a few souls...

Mingye remained utterly calm as what he knew about Blue Oni flashed through his mind.

"Young souls like yours are my favorites!"

Blue Oni charged toward Mingye with great strides and a wide grin, his body so tall that even the trees could not conceal him.

"Ice Breath!"

An icy chill radiated from Mingye's body, and tiny ice crystals condensed in the air.

He exhaled a terrifying blast of cold, freezing everything in its path. Though Blue Oni was enormous, the cold swept over him in an instant, turning him into a lifelike ice sculpture.

But Blue Oni did not die immediately. He struggled inside the ice, desperately channeling his Demon Power to break through his frozen prison.

Mingye would not give his enemy any opportunity. The instant Blue Oni froze, he appeared before him.

At some point, an ice blade had appeared in Mingye's hand. A flash of sword light swept past, and Mingye landed on the ground.

Crack!

With the sound of shattering ice, a head flew into the air. No blood spurted out; the ice had frozen it all.

Blue Oni's head had been severed cleanly. Several breaths later, his body finally crashed heavily to the ground.

The enormous, ice-covered body shattered from the impact of its fall.

With just two moves, Mingye had slain the gigantic Blue Oni.

This Blue Oni was certainly strong enough to wipe out any of the Demon Wolf Tribe's current settlements, yet he had died in an instant once Mingye unleashed his Ice Power.

Mingye had no intention of fighting Blue Oni at close quarters. His body had yet to fully mature, and even after years of tempering his blood and vitality, his physical strength was still inferior to Blue Oni's.

He had used the simplest method to finish Blue Oni off as quickly as possible.

Without delaying his journey, he continued toward the Demon Wolf Burial Grounds.

Perhaps it's time to consider forging a demon sword...

After slaying Blue Oni, Mingye pondered as he traveled. His swordsmanship was far from weak.

He had used his swordsmanship to kill Blue Oni just now. Though the blade had merely been formed from ice, it had still unleashed an exceptionally keen edge.

A single stroke had taken his head.

He then thought of the Tessaiga in Inuyasha's hands. That demon blade had multiplied Inuyasha's strength several times over, allowing him to slay many powerful demons.

A mighty weapon could greatly enhance its wielder's strength.

Though he was heading to the Demon Wolf Burial Grounds to obtain the Five Thunder Finger, that weapon would ultimately be less fluid to wield than a sword and would not bring out his strength as effectively.

Perhaps I can forge the Five Thunder Finger into a lightning demon sword!

Before he had even obtained the Five Thunder Finger, Mingye had already decided to melt it down and forge it into a demon sword.

If the old man found out, he would probably be unable to stop himself from cursing him out.

But to Mingye, a weapon should naturally suit its wielder.

I'll need to add some other materials... Still, I shouldn't lack sword-forging materials along the way...

Mingye spotted another demon ahead. Without pausing, he surged forward even faster!

After easily slaying the demon blocking his path, he collected the most valuable parts of its body and continued on his way.

Throughout the journey, he kept slaying demons and gathered plenty of materials, all steeped in intense resentment.

That malignant resentment had arisen from the demons' unwillingness to accept their deaths at Mingye's hands.

Mingye sat on the shoulder of a mountain ogre, driving the hill-sized demon toward the Demon Wolf Burial Grounds as it dragged the bodies of the demons he had slain along the way.

With so many demons encountered on the road, he naturally would not drag their bodies himself. Subduing a mountain ogre to haul his cargo could hardly have been easier.

What a chaotic world. The struggles between Greater Yokai really do have an enormous impact...

Mingye had gathered quite a bit of news during his journey. For instance, the conflict between the Dog Tribe and the Leopard Cat Tribe had escalated into a major war.

Two colossal powers were clashing, and the demon clans under them were also fighting bitterly, suffering many casualties.

Unfortunately, with my current strength, I'm still not ready to venture onto a battlefield like that.

Mingye shook his head slightly. He had simply had too little time to grow and could not yet take part in battles of that scale.

However, the information he had gathered made it clear that the war between the Dog Tribe and the Leopard Cat Tribe would not be decided anytime soon.

After all, Sesshomaru had yet to make a name for himself, and Inuyasha had not even been born. There was still some time before the final battle.

I'll get the Five Thunder Finger first and think about the rest afterward...

Mingye gazed at a distant valley, shrouded in mist that concealed it from view. This was his Demon Wolf Tribe's secret ground.