With that final strike piercing its core, the enormous demon known as the "Mugen Train" met its death.
But for the passengers aboard, the real nightmare had only just begun.
"Rumble-!"
Freed from the connections and restraints of flesh and blood, the eight steel carriages let out an agonized metallic groan under their tremendous momentum.
Like a runaway horse, the entire train lurched off the tracks and tumbled toward the mountain forest to one side in a destructive roll!
Inside the carriages, the world spun.
The passengers were thrown helplessly into the air, slamming into the walls and ceilings.
Screams, sobs, and the sounds of metal twisting and snapping instantly merged into a symphony of the apocalypse.
"Everyone! Hold on to whatever is beside you!"
At the center of this chaos, Kyojuro Rengoku's voice rang through every carriage like an unshakable anchor.
His feet were planted on the floor like iron stakes. No matter how the carriage rolled, he remained as steady as a mountain.
"Flame Breathing, Fourth Form: Blooming Flame Undulation!"
He attacked no target. Instead, he plunged his Nichirin Blade into the floor at the junction between carriages. A violent vortex of flame erupted around the blade, forcibly welding two carriages that were about to break apart back together!
"Umu! As a Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps, protecting the people is only natural!"
He laughed heartily, his gold-and-red haori snapping in the tumbling carriage like a blazing sun.
"As long as I'm still standing here, I won't let a single one of you die!"
He rushed toward the side wall of a carriage, where the violent rolling had torn open a huge gash and countless passengers were about to be flung outside.
"Flame Breathing, Fifth Form: Flame Tiger!"
A fierce tiger made of blazing flames roared forth.