Nakime sat on the platform at the center of the Infinity Castle, plucking the Yueqi in her hands.
Clang!
The strings rang out, and a square passage instantly appeared above the Infinity Castle.
Splat, splat-
A mass of minced flesh and thick blood poured out of the passage, all landing on the platform in front of Nakime.
Nakime had never seen anything like it.
She wanted to ask what had happened, but her subconscious desperately stopped her.
If I actually ask, I'll definitely die!
Sure enough, the next instant, the thick blood and masses of minced flesh gathered together, gradually forming a human shape.
But several blade wounds then appeared, causing the figure to collapse into a pile of flesh again.
The pieces tried several more times before finally managing to cobble together a human form.
Then the figure slowly regained his original appearance. It was none other than Muzan Kibutsuji!
Throughout this, Nakime kept her gaze and senses restrained, not daring to make so much as a sound.
The resonance from the blood within her allowed her to sense not only Muzan Kibutsuji's wretched state,
but also his overwhelming fear and hatred.
Yet Nakime did not dare entertain even a single unnecessary thought.
She could only keep her head bowed low, terrified of angering Muzan Kibutsuji and becoming the target of his vented rage.
Muzan Kibutsuji had only just regained human form.
Because he had split into countless chunks of flesh to escape, his suit and dress hat were still on Mount Kumotori.
He did not have a single piece of clothing to cover himself.
"Urgh..."
Muzan Kibutsuji suddenly doubled over like a shrimp and violently vomited a large mouthful of blood.
When he raised his head again, his appearance and hairstyle had changed.
He had originally looked like a man, but now he had become a woman with her hair pinned up at the back of her head!
"Looking like this, that bastard shouldn't recognize me anymore... right?"
He slowly straightened, ignoring the blood still spilling from the corners of his mouth, and fixed his eyes on Nakime.
"Hmph. At least you know your place!"
Detecting no thoughts in Nakime's mind, Muzan Kibutsuji nodded in satisfaction.
But the next instant, he reached out.
His outstretched arm swelled in an instant, its surface turning scarlet as countless yellow eyeballs appeared.
Where his palm had been, a huge mouth bristling with countless fangs and dripping with viscous fluid formed, then savagely bit into Nakime's body.
"But I'm furious right now!"
A scalp-crawling sound of devouring rang out.
When Muzan Kibutsuji released her with his "arm," all that remained of Nakime was her head, neck, half a shoulder, and an arm.
Everything else had vanished.
Even though she had become a demon, injuries like these and the excruciating pain of being devoured still far exceeded what Nakime could endure.
Yet she did not dare make a sound, terrified that Muzan Kibutsuji would punish her further.
"How boring!"
As though discarding a rag doll, Muzan Kibutsuji casually tossed the mutilated Nakime aside.
He picked up Nakime's black kimono and draped it over himself.
He had returned to the Infinity Castle, where he felt safest, changed his appearance, and tortured his subordinate.
The hatred and fear in his heart subsided somewhat, and Muzan Kibutsuji finally regained a little of his reason.
"Summon Kokushibo!" he ordered coldly.
Using her sole remaining arm, Nakime struggled to drag her mutilated body over to the biwa.
Then she plucked a note.
Clang!
A square passage suddenly appeared in the floor before Muzan Kibutsuji.
A man emerged from it, dressed in a purple haori with black patterns and wearing an uchigatana made of flesh at his waist, his overall appearance that of a samurai.
This man also had dark red Demon Slayer Marks on his face.
Yet what was astonishing, even sickeningly horrifying, was that he had no fewer than six eyes!
The words "Upper Rank" and "One" stood out on the middle pair.
Upper Rank One, Kokushibo!
Kokushibo did not seem surprised to find himself suddenly inside the Infinity Castle.
But when he slowly raised his head and saw Muzan Kibutsuji's current appearance, his face filled with shock.
Of course, what shocked Kokushibo was not why Muzan Kibutsuji had become a woman or why he was wearing Nakime's clothes.
All six eyes were fixed on the wounds on Muzan Kibutsuji's body that his clothes did not cover.
Those wounds stretched across Muzan Kibutsuji's body, with masses of flesh buds writhing around them, seemingly trying to "stitch" them shut.
Yet the moment those flesh buds touched the wounds, they turned into flecks of ash.
These familiar wounds...
Kokushibo fell into a momentary daze, followed by intense disbelief!
"This... this is impossible!"
Muzan Kibutsuji's face was exceptionally grim, his voice utterly cold:
"There's nothing impossible about it. It already happened!"
"Didn't you say you saw Yoriichi Tsugikuni dead with your own eyes, and even cut him in half at the waist?"
Hearing Yoriichi Tsugikuni's name again after three hundred years still caused a violent shift in Kokushibo's expression.
His mind uncontrollably began replaying his final meeting with Yoriichi Tsugikuni all those years ago.
Yoriichi Tsugikuni was definitely dead!
And I cut his body in half at the waist with my own hands.
Along with the flute I made with my own hands and gave him, it was severed in two.
Muzan Kibutsuji continued:
"And you and I did kill every last Sun Breathing swordsman, didn't we?"
Kokushibo answered instinctively:
"Yes, I..."
Before he could finish, the disbelief in Kokushibo's six eyes had become almost tangible!
He knew very well that Muzan Kibutsuji would never ask such questions without reason.
And if he was asking him this, there was only one possibility!
Sure enough, Muzan Kibutsuji pointed to the wounds on his body and exclaimed:
"The same wounds, inflicted in the exact same places!"
"And that bastard told me he'd come back from hell!"
"Yoriichi Tsugikuni was only human! How could he possibly come back from the dead?!"
Kokushibo lowered his head, having no idea how to answer Muzan Kibutsuji's demands.
Thud!
With a dull impact, Muzan Kibutsuji slammed his hand down on Kokushibo's shoulder.
Grotesque veins now covered his once-beautiful female face:
"Tell me where that bastard is buried. I'll go there myself right now..."
"No! You go find that bastard's grave yourself!"
"Dig up his grave and take a good look for me. See whether Yoriichi Tsugikuni's remains are still inside!"
"I have to find out whether the one I encountered was Yoriichi Tsugikuni himself or an impostor who somehow obtained his legacy and memories!"
Before you continue