The Upper Rank Demon named Hantengu had been driven into desperate straits countless times over his long years.
And his intense, almost instinctive desire to protect himself...
Had countless times spurred his Blood Demon Art into action, giving physical form to those emotions and splitting them off.
At first, there had only been [Joy].
Later, under the pressure of pursuit by the Demon Slayer Corps' Nine Hashira and Rank Replacement Blood Battles with other Upper Ranks...
The separate bodies of [Rage], [Sorrow], [Pleasure], and [Hatred] had gradually come into being.
They were not mere clones or puppets under his control.
Every one of them was him.
Or rather, each was a part of the being named [Hantengu].
The greater the threat an enemy posed to him, the stronger these emotions born of [Fear] became.
Naturally, the separate bodies grew stronger as well.
And [Fear], the original emotion and the one at his very core...
Was the most important of all the Hantengus.
He was the source from which the other emotions arose.
In the past, those separate bodies had not always managed to defeat his enemies.
Yet Hantengu had still survived to this day, alive and well.
The crucial reason for that was the being now standing before Xia Xi...
[Zohakuten].
This was a demon who looked like a young boy.
He wore a suit of close-fitting golden armor and carried an enormous Taiko on his back.
His appearance was strikingly similar to the thunder god depicted in the mythology of the Far East.
"Heeheehee... hehehe, hahahahaha!"
But this demon had none of the dignity a thunder god ought to possess, nor did he pay the slightest attention to Xia Xi's probing.
He merely tipped his head back and laughed wildly at the moon overhead.
"How many years has it