What Xia Xi had not expected was that, after tearing into Kazami Kōgi, the sharp-tongued woman still seemed far from satisfied.
She turned her attention to the other Cultivators and continued her critique.
"Matsuyama?"
"That big oaf is like a rock. No, he is a rock. That would be fine on its own, but even his teaching method is just playing with rocks."
"I bet his entire curriculum comes down to three words."
"Stand, shoulder, smash!"
"Breathing techniques?"
"Tactical variations?"
"None of that! With Stone Breathing, all you need to do is swing!"
"Train with him for three months, and even your speech slows down half a beat. And he has the nerve to call it cultivating and tempering your character."
"Kid, let me ask you. Aside from the Breathing Style itself, how many sword forms did you learn?"
"And how many practical combat techniques?"
Uh... well, not a single one, actually.
Xia Xi felt a little embarrassed.
"As for Urokodaki? He's a good man, just too quiet."
"I suspect he's worn that wooden Tengu Mask for so long that he's forgotten how to talk to people."
"He communicates mostly through looks, and his teaching consists entirely of running up and down mountains. Once he's taught you the basic theory, he leaves you to figure it out yourself."
"And the result?"
"His students are either obedient little angels who don't know how to adapt, or problem children who are just as silent as he is."
Thinking of Sabito and Giyu, who were still training on Mount Sagiri,
Xia Xi found himself unable to argue.
She grabbed the bottle of shochu beside her, tipped her head toward the moon, and took a long swig. Perhaps it was his imagination, but Xia Xi felt a slight shift in her mood.
Something like an indescribable wistfulness seeped into it.
"Of course, their methods aren't entirely without merit..."
Kazami's instruction in the fundamentals was solid, and the Wind Breathing swordsmen he trained could always adapt to changing circumstances.
Matsuyama's teaching methods might have been simple, but they were all the more straightforward and effective for those practicing Stone Breathing.
As for Urokodaki...
Aside from the kid in front of her, it had been years since she had heard of any new recruits he had trained joining the Corps.
In short,
"So you see, Kazami is too roundabout, Urokodaki is too quiet, and Matsuyama is too dull."
"I respect them. In this line of work, where we fight demons for people's lives, they've kept at it for decades. They turn children into warriors in their own ways, send them onto the battlefield, then watch some of them never come back... not everyone can bear that job."
"But I still say my way of teaching is the most practical and efficient."
She patted her sword's hilt.
"I fight every student with real blades."
"I use my strength and experience to force out their potential and broaden their horizons. That way, when they join the Demon Slayer Corps, they at least have what it takes to stay alive."
"I might not measure up to the Rumble Hashira and Thunder Hashira of past generations, but my Thunder Breathing is no slouch."
"It'll serve those little rookies well for a long time."
"As for you..."
Nikaido rested her hand on her old eye patch.
It seemed the wound from so many years ago had begun to ache again.
"As for you... you're different from all of them."
"You're the first monster I've ever met who's tried to learn several Breathing Styles by mixing them together."
"Don't waste it, kid."
"Your talent, the things you learned from them-train every last bit of it properly."
"Come back alive, and let even this blind eye of mine see for itself... just how strong a monster of the new era can become."
She might not have thought much of the other Cultivators' teaching methods.
But all of them had independently placed considerable hopes in this kid.
So she, Nikaido Mei, did not mind joining them in that gamble.
All it meant...
Was spending a little more time polishing him.
Xia Xi fell silent for a moment.
He seemed to be taking in the emotions beneath her words.
Rather than focusing on the distant future, Nikaido's teaching method leaned toward cashing in his potential early.
Still, when it came down to it, they all seemed to think pretty highly of him, didn't they?
Although he already knew the answer, Xia Xi ventured, "So tomorrow..."
Nikaido broke into a smile of utter bliss.
As a result, the liquor she had yet to swallow spilled down her smooth chest.
She said excitedly, "We keep fighting to the death, of course."
So everything before that was just an excuse. You're nothing but a battle maniac, you crazy woman!
Xia Xi could not help grumbling inwardly.
"Then let's keep going... but seriously, doesn't acting like this all the time scare some of your students away?"
He remembered how the other students had looked almost used to it during their afternoon sparring.
He continued, "The ones who stay really have it rough."
Nikaido's smile froze.
Whether it was excitement at the prospect of battle or the alcohol going to her head,
she actually flushed a little as she said, "Impossible! I have plenty of students! The strongest one is even about to become a Hashira!"
Xia Xi said, "Huh? Someone can actually put up with you?"
Nikaido: ???
She snapped, "Are you saying I have a bad temper?!"
Xia Xi spread his hands.
The intense sparring continued.
Nikaido Mei was not as strong as Urokodaki or Kazami, standing only on roughly equal footing with Matsuyama.
But her more aggressive, explosive Thunder Breathing, her more supple frame and long reach, and the blazing resolve she brought to battle
all put Xia Xi under far greater pressure than the other Cultivators had.
And that pressure brought visibly rapid growth.
On the second day, Xia Xi was knocked down sixteen times.
On the third day, he was knocked down fourteen times.
By the fifth day, that number had shrunk to fewer than five.
Then came the ninth day.
During Xia Xi's second week at the Dian Ci Dojo,
he finally knocked her down in earnest for the first time.
Nikaido's assault, once as relentless as thunderstorms in the rainy season, had been broken.
The lightning had been halted.
After using a Wind Breathing sword form to deflect her thunderous slash, Xia Xi unleashed a weaker yet equally sharp flash of lightning.
The back of his blade
came to rest gently against Nikaido's wheat-colored neck.
[Thunder Breathing] LV.0 (1/250)
Silence lasted for three seconds. Then the crazy woman, whose bluntness went a little too far, burst into laughter.
"Hahahahaha! Good! That's fantastic!"
She slapped Xia Xi hard on the back. "You know what? My last student, that flashy idiot called Tengen, took two months to learn this move!"
"And you?!"
"It only lasted an instant, but that was definitely the First Form powered by Thunder Breathing!"
"Just nine days! No wonder you're called Kurumazuka Natsumi! Hahaha!"
Tengen was a genius who infuriated her.
And this Kurumaji was likewise a genius who got her all fired up.
She spat inwardly.
You little brat, don't waste what us old folks have put into you.
At that moment, even she began to wonder what kind of new Breathing Style the swordsman named Kurumazuka Natsumi might develop after comprehending and analyzing the five major Breathing Styles.
Xia Xi turned his head away, avoiding Nikaido's burning gaze and her unrestrained laughter.
He shifted his attention to the system.
Point allocation preview.
[Experience +420] [Please note: current Breathing Style compatibility: 84%] [Achievement point conversion loss: 16%]
This was the highest compatibility he had seen so far, far exceeding even Wind Breathing, his primary style.
So it was thunder.
Xia Xi had a clear premonition.
Even Flame Breathing, which he planned to study next, would probably struggle to reach that figure.
Before you continue