Chapter Summaries

Shinobu Kocho, Xia Xi, and Ye Ying accompanied Kanae to Hachiman Shrine for her Coming-of-Age Ceremony before planning to travel to Tokyo. The chapter ended as the four prepared to catch the train, with Kanae keeping her shrine wish secret.

• Shinobu Kocho registered the many congratulatory gifts sent to Kanae, including a lavish furisode from Kagaya Ubuyashiki.
• Xia Xi arrived at the Kocho residence and admired Kanae in her formal kimono as Shinobu and Ye Ying got ready.
• Kanae, Shinobu, Xia Xi, and Ye Ying traveled to Hachiman Shrine, where Kanae completed the ceremony and made a private wish.
• Xia Xi suggested taking a group photograph during their planned visit to Tokyo, and Shinobu teased him for making the suggestion for Kanae's sake.
• Kanae kept her wishes secret, and Shinobu urged everyone to hurry so they could catch the train to Tokyo.

Xia Xi spent a day exploring Tokyo with Kanae, Shinobu Kocho, and Ye Ying, then accompanied Kanae home. After Kanae thanked him and embraced him, Xia Xi discovered that her cognitive filter had been removed when she turned eighteen.

• Xia Xi took Kanae, Shinobu Kocho, and Ye Ying around Tokyo to enjoy sweets, coffee, a photography studio, Ginza, and their first movie.
• When the group worried about getting home late in their formal clothes, Xia Xi learned that Ubuyashiki had arranged a reserved streetcar for them.
• After they returned to Kanae's Old House, Kanae asked Xia Xi to stay and thanked him for the happy day.
• Kanae leaned against Xia Xi and gently embraced him, leaving him stunned.
• Xia Xi checked his system log and saw that Kanae had turned eighteen and her cognitive filter had been removed.

Kanae confessed her feelings to Xia Xi, but their moment was interrupted when Xia Xi spotted Doma, Upper Rank Two, among a group of white-robed believers. Elsewhere, Kie reminded Tanjuro of their tenth wedding anniversary and took him to a biwa performance.

• Kanae told Xia Xi she had made her third shrine wish about him and hoped they could keep spending time together.
• Xia Xi recalled their shared memories and realized how close he had grown to Kanae, then prepared to answer her confession.
• A procession of white-robed believers passed nearby, and Xia Xi recognized Doma, Upper Rank Two, lounging in their palanquin.
• Xia Xi told Kanae to change into her Corps uniform and bring his sword so they could confront Doma.
• Kie reminded Tanjuro that it was their tenth wedding anniversary, and they exchanged affectionate words over dinner.
• Kie led Tanjuro to Yanagi-za for a special biwa performance.

Tanjuro discovered that the acclaimed Hizakura Tayū’s performance was secretly being played by a demon hiding behind the stage. He left the theater to deal with the threat and promised Kie he would explain his dangerous work when he returned.

• Kie and Tanjuro attended a biwa performance and heard audience members speculate about Hizakura Tayū’s origins and inherited stage name.
• Tanjuro sensed fear from the veiled performer and used the Transparent World to discover that she was miming while a demon played the biwa behind the curtain.
• After the performance, Tanjuro led Kie home instead of staying for the rest of the show, and she realized something was wrong.
• Tanjuro told Kie he needed to go out and promised to tell her about his work after he returned.
• Kie watched Tanjuro leave, clutching the comb from their first meeting and worrying that his work was dangerous.

Nakime’s history revealed how her murderous biwa performances led Muzan to turn her into a demon, and how she continued staging them with coerced stand-ins. As Nakime prepared to kill her latest stand-in, Tanjuro Kamado crashed through the theater roof and confronted her.

• Nakime threatened the old musician who had served as her stand-in and refused to let her leave.
• The chapter recounted how Nakime killed people before performances, then became a demon after Muzan recruited her and gave her that name.
• Nakime later used coerced stand-ins while playing behind the curtain, killing them when they tried to escape or resist.
• Nakime let the old woman believe she could flee so she could drag her into Infinity Castle and devour her.
• Tanjuro Kamado smashed through the theater roof and landed before Nakime, declaring that the performance was over.

Tanjuro confronted Nakime in Asakusa and fought through her spatial Blood Demon Art, adapting to her unpredictable attacks. He transformed his battle axe into a greatsword and struck her with a Sun Breathing technique, blasting her through the theater wall toward the wilderness.

• Tanjuro asked Nakime to spare the elderly biwa player, but she refused, so he attacked her with Sun Breathing and his battle axe.
• Nakime evaded Tanjuro’s blows with her speed, then used her biwa’s Blood Demon Art to fold space and attack him with invisible blades.
• Tanjuro used the Transparent World to block Nakime’s attacks and gradually adapted to her shifting spatial assaults.
• Tanjuro’s battle axe transformed into a two-handed greatsword as he switched to Total Concentration and used Mirage Sun Rainbow to evade Nakime’s spatial targeting.
• Tanjuro struck Nakime with Sunflower Thrust and drove her through the theater wall toward the wilderness beyond Asakusa.

Tanjuro overwhelmed Nakime with his speed, collected her blood, and forced Muzan to confront a swordsman who looked uncannily like Yoriichi. When Nakime tried to escape to the Infinity Castle, Tanjuro awakened his Heavenly War Mark and pursued her at terrifying speed.

• Tanjuro switched his Nichirin Blade into sword form, pierced Nakime, and secretly collected her blood before attacking again.
• Nakime recognized Tanjuro’s Nichirin Flower Earrings and connected him to the swordsman Muzan had ordered the demons to find.
• Muzan saw Tanjuro through Nakime’s vision, mistook him for Yoriichi at first, and reacted with fear before ordering Nakime to kill him and bring back his corpse.
• Tanjuro nearly beheaded Nakime and severed part of her forearm, so Muzan allowed her to retreat to the Infinity Castle.
• Nakime opened a portal to the Infinity Castle, but Tanjuro’s Heavenly War Mark turned gold as he prepared to stop her escape.

Tanjuro killed Nakime with his mechanical Nichirin Blade, triggering the collapse of Infinity Castle. He then faced Gyokko, whose attacks failed as the castle began to disintegrate.

• Gyokko complained to Nakime as she returned through a doorway, then sensed a human and demon blood nearby.
• Tanjuro stabbed Nakime with his red Nichirin Blade and used [Power of Struggle: Release!] to tear her apart.
• Gyokko admired Nakime’s remains as Tanjuro spotted him and recognized him as the newly appointed Upper Rank Four.
• Gyokko attacked Tanjuro with his Blood Demon Art, but Tanjuro cut through the tentacles and destroyed Gyokko’s concealed pot.
• After Nakime’s death removed Infinity Castle’s [Core], the castle began to collapse and disintegrate.

Tanjuro failed to reach Gyokko before Nakime’s collapsing Infinity Castle sealed shut, but collected blood from Gyokko’s tentacles for Tamayo. Muzan grieved the loss of Nakime and her castle, then saw through Doma’s eyes that Matsushita Shousha and an unknown swordswoman were fighting Upper Rank Two.

• Gyokko panicked over his pottery as Infinity Castle shook, while Tanjuro hesitated to enter the collapsing space.
• Nakime’s paper door shattered, trapping Gyokko inside, and Tanjuro collected blood from the remains of his tentacles.
• Nakime’s death caused Infinity Castle to collapse, sending ruined houses bursting through the ground in Tokyo.
• Muzan mourned the loss of his hideout, considered strengthening Kyogai to replace Nakime, and found Gyokko stranded among the ruins.
• Muzan contacted Doma to send him after the Sun Breathing axe man, but discovered Doma was already fighting a female swordswoman and Matsushita Shousha.

Xia Xi and Kanae confronted Doma, Upper Rank Two, while he led his followers on a nighttime visit. After Doma sent the believers away, Kanae drew her new Nichirin Blade, and the chapter ended as the two prepared to fight him.

• Xia Xi and Kanae blocked Doma’s procession and identified him as a demon from the Twelve Kizuki.
• Doma calmly spoke with the Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen while his followers defended him and refused Kanae’s warnings.
• Xia Xi asked Doma about Upper Rank Five and Upper Rank Six, but Doma declined to share details, citing Muzan.
• Doma dismissed his followers and claimed that consuming them was a form of salvation, while Xia Xi judged that he sincerely believed his own delusions.
• Kanae drew her new Nichirin Blade, Morning Glory Ichimonji, as Xia Xi noticed her eagerness to fight Doma.

Kanae fought Doma to test herself, using her War Mark, an anesthetic-coated blade, and a bright red Nichirin Blade to withstand his ice-based Blood Demon Art. When Doma unleashed a wide freezing attack, Xia Xi intervened and ended her trial, preparing to take over.

• Xia Xi let Kanae fight Doma but told her to activate her War Mark and leave the finishing blow to him.
• Kanae struck Doma with Flower Breathing and wounded him, while Doma countered with freezing fans, mist, and ice crystals.
• Kanae's anesthetic slowed Doma, allowing her to press her attack and force him onto the defensive.
• Doma launched ice vines and icicles, but Kanae broke through the attack with a bright red Nichirin Blade and Fruitless Peony.
• Doma summoned two ice statues that unleashed a broad freezing current, and Xia Xi cut through it before telling Kanae her trial was over.

Xia Xi took over the fight against Doma after noticing the demon’s freezing Blood Demon Art was damaging Kanae’s lungs and slowing her down. He countered Doma’s attacks with overwhelming strength and walked through freezing mist unharmed, leaving the battle poised to continue.

• Xia Xi noticed that Doma’s energy had barely changed and that Kanae had mild lung damage from inhaling ice dust.
• Xia Xi reassured Kanae, then stepped in to fight Doma and explained three ways swordsmen could counter the ice dust.
• Xia Xi activated his Bright Red Nichirin Blade and attacked Doma, cleaving through his iron fans and arms before aiming for his neck.
• Doma used Threefold White Princess to push Xia Xi aside, then sent freezing mist at him with three Ice Crystal Maidens.
• Xia Xi walked through the freezing mist without dodging and remarked that it was only a little cold.

Xia Xi fought Doma outside Kanae’s hometown, using the Wall of the Heart and Dawn Breathing to withstand and counter the demon’s Blood Demon Art. Doma then turned his attention to Kanae with Crystallized Children, and the chapter ended with Xia Xi battling several of the powerful ice clones at once.

• Xia Xi’s Wall of the Heart weakened Doma’s ice constructs, and Xia Xi destroyed them before striking Doma with Dawn Breathing.
• Doma survived by using an ice clone, praised Xia Xi, replaced his wounded arm, and unleashed increasingly powerful ice attacks as Xia Xi drove him away from the city.
• Xia Xi and Doma’s battle ravaged the town’s outskirts, and Xia Xi kicked Doma into a mountainside while Kanae caught up with them.
• Doma created a Crystallized Child and sent it to attack Kanae; Kanae fought it off and cut through its neck with Grip of Ten Thousand Jun.
• Kanae looked up and saw Xia Xi fighting six or seven Crystallized Children at once.

Xia Xi faced Doma’s hidden trump card, a mountain-sized Ice Buddha whose freezing domain and attacks pushed the battle to a new level. After sending Kanae to safety, Xia Xi met Doma’s assault as the Buddha’s fists smashed down, leaving the fight’s outcome unresolved.

• Xia Xi judged that Doma’s Little Cells were not enough to explain his strength and urged him to reveal his remaining trump cards.
• Doma unleashed the Blood Demon Art Rime-Water Lily Bodhisattva, summoning a towering Ice Buddha amid spreading frost and lethal ice mist.
• Xia Xi cut a path through the mist and escorted Kanae out of the danger zone before turning back to face Doma.
• Doma strengthened the Ice Buddha with the Cycle of Rebirth: Water Lily Bodhisattva-Eight Cold Hells, and its energy surpassed 3000.
• Doma attacked Xia Xi with freezing pillars and razor-sharp ice vines, but Xia Xi countered with blazing crimson slashes.
• The Ice Buddha swung its massive fists down at Xia Xi, sending dirt and ice into the air and shaking the distant town.

Xia Xi battled Doma and overcame the Upper Rank Two’s Water Lily Bodhisattva with a devastating Twelfth Form. Doma barely reassembled his body as Xia Xi approached, leaving their fight unresolved.

• Doma unleashed the Water Lily Bodhisattva, but Xia Xi severed its hands and dodged its renewed attacks while advancing toward him.
• Kanae watched from a distance as Xia Xi climbed the ice giant and counterattacked with his blazing blade.
• The Bodhisattva’s six arms struck Xia Xi into the air, but he smiled and prepared a powerful attack as Doma sensed danger.
• Doma unleashed the Bodhisattva’s Finale: White Lotus while Xia Xi used Dawn Breathing’s Twelfth Form: Keyao · Star Bones.
• Xia Xi’s slash cut through Doma’s beam, the ice giant, and most of Doma’s body before Xia Xi approached the demon as he reassembled himself.

Xia Xi and Kanae defeated Doma, but Muzan killed the Upper Rank Two before Xia Xi could question him. Xia Xi gained a huge amount of Dawn Breathing proficiency, while Doma’s former human name went unnoticed.

• Xia Xi kicked Doma apart, destroyed his remaining Crystallized Children, and demanded information about Muzan and the Upper Ranks.
• Doma revealed that Muzan was watching through his eyes, and Xia Xi taunted the Demon King with a message from Yoriichi.
• Xia Xi prepared to use the Mind Shield on Doma, but Muzan silenced Doma by killing him from within.
• Xia Xi destroyed Doma’s remains and gained 12,167 proficiency, advancing Dawn Breathing’s progress.
• Doma’s panel changed to show the name Miyano Makoto, but Xia Xi ignored it.

After Xia Xi and Kanae defeated Doma, his final thoughts revealed the distorted life he had lived as Miyano Makoto. Xia Xi collected Doma’s blood, explained his growing strength to Kanae, and agreed to treat her injuries at home.

• As Doma’s body disintegrated, he recalled his life as Miyano Makoto, a faithless child raised as a cult’s Holy Son who felt no grief when his parents died.
• Xia Xi hurried to collect Doma’s blood for Tamayo, after Kanae reminded him that an Upper Rank’s blood would be valuable.
• Kanae asked why Xia Xi had seemed excited, and he explained that killing powerful demons tempered his heart and brought him closer to a perfect realm.
• Xia Xi noticed Kanae’s injuries from inhaling Doma’s ice-crystal dust and offered to treat her when they got home.
• Kanae linked arms with Xia Xi and said Shinobu would report the victory to the Intelligence Department, then asked him to keep his promise to treat her first.

After the battles with Nakime and Doma, Kanae brought Xia Xi to her childhood home and confessed that she wanted to live with him, Shinobu, and Ye Ying. As Kanae asked him to treat her injuries, the two grew intimate, while Shinobu overheard them outside and Persimmon sensed something was wrong far away.

• The Demon Slayer Corps worked through the night to cover up the damage caused by the battles near Asakusa and the unusual summer snowfall.
• Kanae took Xia Xi to her old home and told him that he had saved her from Doma and that she wanted to live with him, Shinobu, and Ye Ying.
• Kanae asked Xia Xi to treat her injuries, and the two became intimate as a rainstorm began.
• Shinobu returned from the Intelligence Department, overheard Kanae and Xia Xi, and decided to speak with her sister the next day.
• At the Northern Region dojo, Persimmon noticed a chip break off her teacup.

After Xia Xi and Kanae spent the night together, Kanae reconciled with Shinobu, who declared she wanted to become like her sister when she grew up. At Corps Headquarters, Kagaya learned that Tanjuro had slain the demon Nakime and that Xia Xi and Kanae had killed Upper Rank Two, strengthening his belief that Muzan could finally be defeated.

• Xia Xi woke beside Kanae, prepared breakfast, and then called Ye Ying and Shinobu to join them.
• Kanae pulled Shinobu aside to talk privately, and Shinobu eventually made up with her and said she wanted to be like Kanae when she grew up.
• Kagaya reviewed Tanjuro's report and intelligence suggesting Nakime's alternate space had been Muzan's safe house.
• Kagaya honored his ancestors and concluded that the destruction of Muzan's safe house and the deaths of multiple Upper Ranks brought the Corps closer to victory.
• Kagaya received news that Xia Xi and Kanae had slain Upper Rank Two and credited Xia Xi with another miracle.

Tanjuro told Kie about the Demon Slayer Corps and she accepted his decision to fight demons, though she worried for his safety. Muzan, troubled by Doma’s battle and the threat of Matsushita Shousha, visited Xiang Kai at the Drum House and offered to make him his right-hand man.

• Tanjuro returned home before dawn and explained to Kie about demons, Muzan Kibutsuji, the Kamado family’s Sun Breathing, and his membership in the Demon Slayer Corps.
• Kie revealed she had suspected the truth and accepted Tanjuro’s choice to protect people, while asking him to take better care of himself.
• Muzan learned that Doma was fighting two Hashira, including Matsushita Shousha, and grew angry that Kokushibo had failed to keep track of Matsushita.
• Muzan traveled to the Drum House to visit Lower Rank Three Xiang Kai, whose spatial domain reacted to his arrival.
• Muzan praised Xiang Kai’s rise through the Lower Ranks and offered to make him his right-hand man.