Forest and streamside.
Kotetsu rolled up his trouser legs and then walked step by step to the middle of the stream.
He bowed slightly, his eyes fixed on the water below.
Beneath the surface, stream fish frolic freely.
Time passed second by second.
The clear stream water gurgled and gurgled as it flowed.
The stream fish gradually forgot about the unusual presence in the stream and drew closer and closer to him.
At a certain moment, with a "splash," Kotetsu's hand suddenly plunged into the water.
After a while, both hands were pulled out of the water again.
Well, I didn't catch any fish. I went in empty-handed and came out empty-handed.
However, Kotetsu did not give up and returned to his previous posture.
I plan to do it again when the startled fish come back to me.
"It's going to be hard to catch you like that!"
The sudden voice rang out beside him, startling Kotetsu so much that he jumped.
He quickly looked up, and after seeing the figure on the shore, Kotetsu immediately strode over aggressively.
"Well, you rascal! You scared me yesterday, and now you dare to scare me again today!!"
"I wasn't trying to scare you today!" Teiichi.
Kotetsu retorted, "You just scared me! And you're saying you didn't scare me?!"
"I just walked over normally, you were just too focused, so you didn't hear me coming!" Teiichi shrugged.
Kotetsu said with dissatisfaction, "Hmph, even so, you still dare to come looking for me! I was laughed at quite a bit yesterday, and I haven't settled the score with you yet!"
Teiichi smiled and said, "Sorry, I was just joking, I didn't expect you to actually believe it!"
"Snort!"
Kotetsu snorted, clearly not very satisfied, but he couldn't ask for too much from someone he didn't know well.
"So, what brings you here?" Kotetsu asked.
"How did you know I needed to talk to you?" Teiichi eyebrow.
Kotetsu replied, "If you Demon Slayer come to a village, you're usually looking for a swordsmith to forge your weapons, right? Why would you bother with a kid like me?"
"Hmm, that's true." Teiichi in agreement, then said directly, "I hope to have a match with that mechanical puppet of yours!"
"No! I will not let the mechanical puppet go to the place where the person who deceived me is training!"
Kotetsu resolutely refused, then went ashore, put on his shoes, and walked away into the distance.
Watching Kotetsu's departing figure, Teiichi moment, then said:
Don't you want to see the person who lied to you get beaten up by that mechanical puppet?
These words seemed to have a magical power, causing Kotetsu to stop in his tracks.
After standing there thinking for a while, Kotetsu turned to Teiichi and asked hesitantly:
"You're not Zhu, are you?"
Upon Teiichi, Ding Yi's lips curled up slightly.
"Don't worry, I'm not a pillar!"
Teiichi followed Kotetsu to their family's workshop.
Compared to the bustling activity in other workshops.
Kotetsu's workshop looked rather desolate.
The door was pushed open, and although it wasn't covered in dust, there were only a few scattered tools inside.
There wasn't a trace of swords or iron blanks in sight.
Teiichi's gaze swept around the room, then he asked:
Doesn't anyone in your family forge knives?
Kotetsu replied, "My parents passed away a few years ago."
Teiichi hearing this, Dingyi looked at Kotetsu and whispered, "Sorry!"
Kotetsu shook his head. "It's alright, I'm used to it. Besides, what bothers me more is that I have no talent for forging swords! The family business might decline in my generation!"
Teiichi replied, "So be it, sword forging has no future anyway!"
Kotetsu glared angrily at Teiichi, "What do you mean there's no future! Let me tell you, my family has been making a living by forging knives for generations! The art of knife forging can be passed down forever!"
"I'm sorry!" Teiichi apologized sincerely.
But... there really aren't many other options after forging a knife...
There's an official ban on swords, and Muzan is destined to die anyway.
Once Muzan, there won't be many places where he needs to be stabbed.
Forging might still be slightly useful then, but it will soon be obsolete...
Kotetsu snorted coldly and said angrily:
"No need to explain, I know that some of you Demon Slayer look down on us swordsmiths!"
He believes himself to be the most outstanding member of the Demon Slayer Corps!
I admit that we are no match for you people who fight ghosts with your lives, but we swordsmiths are also very important!
"Yes, I believe that, and I agree with it. Demon Slayer are very brave, but they absolutely cannot do without the support of swordsmiths!" Teiichi and said seriously.
Compared to swordsmiths, Demon Slayer certainly have a worse future.
For elite Demon Slayer like the Pillars, it's not too difficult. Even if Muzan is gone, their superior skills make it easy to earn a living.
But the ordinary team members are out of luck. Once Muzan is gone, they will have almost no advantages over ordinary people except for being stronger. At that time, they will only be able to do their physical labor.
Of course, the Ubuyashiki Family wouldn't go so far as to discard their useful tools after they've served their purpose.
During this period, he was part of the Demon Slayer Corps.
The future shouldn't be too difficult.
Seeing that Teiichi's attitude was good, Kotetsu didn't say anything more. He walked to a large box and patted it.
"This is our family's mechanical doll, Yoriichi Type Zero!"
Teiichi walked through the forest carrying the Yoriichi Type Zero case on his back.
Kotetsu stayed close by.
The two decided to find a relatively open spot in the forest before unleashing the Yoriichi Type Zero.
Teiichi asked, "What is the power source for this Yoriichi Type Zero?"
"Power source?" Kotetsu looked at Teiichi with a puzzled expression.
Teiichi moment and explained, "Just like you need to eat and drink to move, food and water provide you with enough energy, so why can this puppet move?"
Kotetsu replied, "Because I twisted the key when I inserted it into his body!"
"A key is just a switch; what's enabling him to fight with others?" Teiichi continued to ask.
"You don't understand. Yoriichi Type Zero's body has gears of different sizes inside. Once you activate it, they can drive Yoriichi Type Zero through the operation of the gears!" Kotetsu replied earnestly.
No, you just don't understand!
Ding Yi gave Kotetsu Teiichi deep look, but didn't pursue the matter further. Instead, he asked:
"By the way, is your doll durable?"
"Huh? What do you mean?" Kotetsu looked at Teiichi in confusion.
Teiichi, "It shouldn't be easily damaged, right?"
Seeing this, Kotetsu looked at Teiichi with some suspicion. "You're really not a pillar, are you?"
Teiichi shook his head, then slowly raised his hand under Kotetsu's relieved gaze, his thumb and forefinger making a loose pinch.
"I might be slightly stronger than Zhu..."
"A little bit!"