She clenched her small fists and smiled through gritted teeth. "Su Chen~ why did you dodge so fast? It's not like I'm going to eat you."
But Su Chen did not fall for it at all. Instead, he said with complete seriousness, "You never know. I've heard there are Demon Eaters in this world. If some people can even eat demons, eating humans would be nothing."
Shinobu Kocho's face instantly darkened.
She wanted to draw her sword, but Su Chen pressed down on its hilt first.
He stopped her movement.
"All you ever do is..." Shinobu Kocho's lips parted, but she swallowed the rest of the words: "pick on me."
She was a Hashira. Saying things like that would undermine her dignity.
But Su Chen really was getting cheekier by the day!
Was this what her butterfly footwork was meant for?
Shinobu Kocho had only taught Su Chen everything she knew yesterday, and today he was already turning the tables and picking on his teacher?
Very well.
Shinobu Kocho closed her eyes and rapidly drew a breath of oxygen into her lungs.
Su Chen's pupils contracted at the sight.
Looks like I took it too far...
But just then-
A crow suddenly appeared in the courtyard.
"Caw! Caw! Orders! Traces of a powerful demon have been found on Autumn Sky Mountain. Shinobu Kocho is hereby ordered to proceed there!"
"Caw! Caw! Traces of a powerful demon have been found on Autumn Sky Mountain. Shinobu Kocho is hereby ordered to proceed there!"
The cries swiftly stopped Shinobu Kocho in her tracks.
Su Chen seized the opening. "Looks like there's trouble somewhere again!"
"It's fine. The mission comes first. You should get going, Sister Shinobu!" Su Chen put on an understanding expression, making Shinobu Kocho clench her little canine teeth.
"Train hard!" Shinobu Kocho said fiercely.
"All right, all right." Su Chen nodded.
Next, Shinobu Kocho gave Aoi Kanzaki and Kanao Tsuyuri a few more instructions.
Then she went into the house and made some preparations.
Her figure flashed, and the girl's retreating form vanished from the courtyard.
The expression on Su Chen's face immediately faded.
He asked Xiao Caihui beside him, "Is Shinobu this busy every day?"
"Yes!" Xiao Caihui said matter-of-factly. "There are actually lots of demons in this world. Lady Shinobu has to kill demons every day."
Kiyo and Sumi, standing nearby, could not help adding their thoughts.
"Lady Shinobu actually has it really hard. Ever since Sister Kanae passed away, she's been looking after the Butterfly Mansion all by herself."
"But Lady Shinobu never complains to us about anything outside. She always talks to us with a smile, just like a big sister."
"Is that so?" Su Chen sank into thought.
When it came down to it, Shinobu Kocho was only an eighteen-year-old girl. Everyone could see the effort she had put in to get this far.
But even though simply living was already exhausting, Shinobu Kocho still quietly persevered.
Perhaps hatred was the only thing that had kept her going this far.
Su Chen had been living at the Butterfly Mansion for a while now and had experienced how wonderful it was here.
Shinobu Kocho, in particular, really was like an angel.
She put on none of the airs of a Hashira and treated everyone at the Butterfly Mansion with warmth and approachability.
Now that he had learned Shinobu Kocho still had to go on missions every night, Su Chen suddenly felt he had been slacking off.
So, before it grew completely dark, Su Chen began practicing with Kanao Tsuyuri again.
He learned all the remaining forms of Flower Breathing from her.
And so, Su Chen spent a few more days at the Butterfly Mansion.
There was only about a week left until his duel with Shinazugawa.
He sorted through all the skills and insights he had gained recently.
First came the obvious improvement in his physique.
Su Chen had brought modern training methods over to this world.
Every day, he unfailingly went running with weights and did a hundred push-ups, a hundred sit-ups, and a hundred squats.
The training volume gradually increased over time. Coupled with Su Chen's Heaven-Defying Comprehension, by the fourth day, he could already clearly feel that his physical fitness had improved!
Not only did his stamina recover significantly faster, but he also ran faster than before, and his lungs had grown stronger.
Su Chen began refining the way he breathed.
Running all day had overworked his lungs with rapid breathing, so now he needed to breathe slowly, slowly.
He let the air circulate all the way to his fingertips.
Meditation could improve concentration, so Su Chen also meditated from time to time.
While meditating, Su Chen discovered that he could consciously enter a peculiar state.
He called this state Bullet Time.
During Bullet Time, the movements of everything around him would automatically seem slower in his eyes, while his powers of observation increased without limit.
Su Chen could perceive not only people's movements but even the slightest stir of wind or grass around him.
Like the compound eyes of a bee, it allowed Su Chen to see many things he normally could not.
And in this state, Su Chen's learning ability was also terrifying.
Because he often overworked his brain, Su Chen frequently felt drained, leaving him unable to use that time to train his body.
So he allocated half his comprehension to this so-called "Bullet Time."
Whenever Su Chen felt he needed to learn something, he activated this state.
Conversely, when he did not need it, he could devote his abundant energy to other things.
Using this method, although Su Chen had not mastered any new moves recently,
he had pushed every muscle and cell in his body to its limit.
It was exhausting, but as long as he persevered, he could grow.
In the blink of an eye, another two days passed.
Only five short days remained until his duel with Shinazugawa.
Shinobu Kocho still had not returned from her mission.
The treatment room was becoming overwhelmed, so Su Chen learned medicine on the spot and helped Aoi Kanzaki in his spare time.
This made him a familiar face among the Demon Slayer Corps members.
And to Aoi Kanzaki's and the patients' surprise, Su Chen could treat any injury, no matter how severe!
This made the Demon Slayer Corps members see Su Chen in a new light.
A few days later, rumors even began circulating that the Butterfly Mansion had a male miracle doctor.
Su Chen's response was that he was merely lending a hand. As for medicine, wasn't that quite simple?
"Big Brother Su Chen, could you please go to the basement and find some bandages? We've used up the ones Lady Shinobu brought back before."
Kiyo called toward the inner room while tidying up.
Su Chen came out of his state of enlightenment and casually answered, "Sure."
Then he headed toward the Butterfly Mansion's basement.
He did not find the bandages, but he did discover Shinobu Kocho's laboratory.
Seeing no one around, Su Chen quietly slipped inside.
The instruments in the room were in considerable disarray. Some specialized literature and research notes lay on the desk, covered in densely written annotations.
Overall, however, the room still looked very tidy. It was clear that Shinobu Kocho was a girl who liked to keep things clean.
Suddenly, Su Chen happened to discover a notebook on the desk.
The ink on its pages had already dried. It looked as though it had been written a few days ago.
It was probably a diary Shinobu Kocho had hastily written before leaving.
Su Chen opened it and took a look.
"Tuesday. Weather: sunny."
Before you continue