Tanjiro holds the sword with both hands.
His gaze was fixed on the white-haired boy not far away.
An unparalleled sense of oppression emanated from the little boy, making Tanjiro's breathing heavy.
"Hey kid, what did you just say?!" Rui stared indifferently at Tanjiro: "Say what you just said again!"
"Oh, I'll say it as many times as you want!"
Tanjiro gritted his teeth and replied:
"Your feelings are fake!"
sieve--!
A spider silk thread ripped through the air, lashing out towards Tanjiro.
Tanjiro swiftly dodged the attack of the spider silk, then tightened his grip on his Nichirin Blade and charged towards Rui with a step.
Looking at the Demon Slayer attacking him, he slowly raised his right hand.
The spider silk, barely visible to the naked eye, swayed past again.
" Water Breathing, First Form: Water Surface Slash!"
The blade, carrying ripples of azure water, slashed towards the spider silk.
Clang!
The Nichirin Blade clashed with the spider silk.
Tanjiro was somewhat surprised to see the spider silk blocking the Nichirin Blade so tightly.
Is it that hard?
The next moment, another spider silk was drawn.
Tanjiro quickly dodged.
Before Tanjiro could even regain his footing, the next attack came right after him.
laugh!
A spider silk thread brushed against Tanjiro's cheek, leaving a Tanjiro mark on his face.
Before Tanjiro could have much time to spare, the spider webs swept in again.
The clanging sound echoed continuously through the forest.
Despite doing everything in her power to avoid it.
However, the Tanjiro silk was too dense, and Tanjiro still found it difficult to completely dodge it, with wounds appearing on his body from time to time.
After a long while, Lei paused, looked at the blood-stained Demon Slayer before him, and said:
"If you take back what you said before, I can give you a quick death! How about it?"
Tanjiro gritted his teeth and didn't reply.
"I see. I understand now! If that's the case, then..."
He suddenly pulled his right hand in front of him, his five fingers clenched.
"Just go die!"
A rustling sound continued.
Several spiderwebs instantly wove in mid-air, covering Tanjiro.
" Water Breathing - Second Form - Modified Lateral Water Wheel!"
The Nichirin Blade slashed through the air, deflecting the spiderweb that was looming overhead.
However, Tanjiro was not happy at all, and his gaze shifted upwards.
The same spiderweb was already closing in on him.
Tanjiro froze.
Oh no, it's too late!!
Click!
Nezuko burst out of the box and shielded Tanjiro with her body.
Nezuko!
Tanjiro shouted anxiously.
hiss hiss hiss...
Spiderwebs seeped into his flesh, and streams of blood flowed continuously from the wound, dripping onto Tanjiro's face.
" Nezuko! Nezuko!" Tanjiro called out anxiously.
He then quickly got up to check Nezuko's injuries, and seeing Nezuko, Tanjiro kept comforting her.
"It's alright, Nezuko, you'll be fine soon! You'll be fine soon!"
The opportunity was perfect, but Lei didn't attack again. Instead, he stared blankly at the two people in the distance.
His sister... is that his sister?
Did his sister become a ghost?
Even so, are they still together?
and...
The younger sister was willing to risk her life to shield her brother from attacks.
Thinking of this, his exhausted body trembled involuntarily.
Family ties...
This is the kind of family love I've always wanted!!
Lei took two steps forward and said, "Hey kid! Let's make a deal."
"A... transaction?" Upon hearing this, Tanjiro looked at Rui warily.
He answered with a tired smile:
"You should have realized the gap between us by the battle just now, right?"
Generally speaking...
You will be killed by me!
But things are different now!
Just give me your sister.
So...
I can let you leave this place!
"What... what are you saying?!"
Tanjiro was somewhat taken aback. He could understand every word the little boy said, but when they were put together, he seemed to understand nothing.
Lei explained, "It's simple! From now on, your sister is my sister! And you can leave this place! Isn't that great?"
"What nonsense are you spouting!" Tanjiro shouted angrily. "Family isn't something you can buy or sell! Besides, Nezuko isn't an object; she has her own thoughts, and she wouldn't agree to be your sister!"
Lei said indifferently, "What a hassle. Fine, since you refuse to trade, I'll just kill you and take it from you!"
Tanjiro slowly stood up, moving slightly away from Nezuko Nezuko avoid her being caught in the ensuing battle.
"Before that, I'll cut your head off first!"
"Wow, that's quite imposing! If you're capable, then come on! But first, you have to be able to defeat me, one of the Twelve Kizuki!"
Lei revealed a mocking smile and slowly brushed the hair covering his left eye away.
The character "Lower Five" (Xia Wu) was etched into the pupil of his left eye.
Upon seeing this, Tanjiro's body stiffened slightly.
The scene of his training in Shimizu City seemed to appear before his eyes.
Seeing Tanjiro collapsed on the ground, Teiichi said:
"Your current strength is still a long way from that of Lower Rank. If you ever encounter Lower Rank in the future, remember to take it easy!"
"Even training under your tutelage won't get me Lower Rank?" Tanjiro asked.
Teiichi chuckled lightly, "It's possible later, but definitely not now! You've only been cultivating with me for less than ten days now. Do you think I'm selling cheat codes?"
"Hang?"
"It's a method that can make someone's strength improve by leaps and bounds," Teiichi explained.
Tanjiro nodded. "And what have you been teaching me all this time?"
"Those are all things that require consistent effort over time to see results! Short-term training won't significantly increase your strength! However, as long as you persevere, even an ordinary person can become a Pillar!"
The scene before my eyes became clear again.
Tanjiro tightened his grip on his Nichirin Blade.
Is this the Lower Rank?
Can I really win?
No! That's not right!
It's not a question of whether I can win!
Instead...
Tanjiro looked up at the Lower Rank Five opposite him.
This battle is unavoidable!
Lei gently raised his right hand and waved.
Upon seeing this, Tanjiro immediately assumed a high-level defensive stance.
However, after waiting for a while, they still didn't smell any spider webs coming towards them.
Just as Tanjiro was feeling puzzled, drops of blood fell from the sky onto the blade.
Tanjiro quickly looked up and saw Nezuko hanging upside down in mid-air, Nezuko body tightly bound by spider silk, with drops of blood constantly dripping down.
" Nezuko!" Tanjiro called out anxiously.
Lei said indifferently, "It's so noisy. She's a ghost, this little injury won't kill her!"
"You bastard, separate Nezuko from me!" Tanjiro roared, charging forward once more.
Rai raised his hand and flicked it, sending the spider silk shooting towards Tanjiro like arrows.
Tanjiro began to run quickly across the battlefield, spinning and tumbling as he went.
" Water Breathing - Tenth Form: The Constant Flux!"
The azure water flowed alongside the blade as it danced across the battlefield, resembling a long dragon.
The power of the Tenth Form increases with the number of rotations.
Whoosh--!
The blade sliced through, successfully severing the spider silk.
Joy spread through Tanjiro's heart.
Can.
As long as I keep going, I can...
Blood-red spider silk suddenly filled Tanjiro's field of vision.
The distinctly different scents told Tanjiro that he couldn't cut through this spider silk in his current state.
Am I... going to die?
Past memories began to surface in my mind.
Her mother looked at her tenderly, a smile playing on her lips.
" Tanjiro, remember this, you'll have to do it too sometime."
" Hinokami Kagura!"