"You"
"Is it because you can't understand human emotions?"
These were just ordinary words, yet they plunged the battlefield into an instant silence.
The little ice figure, which had been standing still and eager to move, also stopped in its tracks when Doma fell silent.
All I saw was...
At this moment, Doma seemed to freeze in place, without making any movement.
The smile that had been lingering on his lips for so long had completely vanished; his mouth was flat, and his entire face was expressionless.
How did you find out? Was my performance bad?
The words that came from Doma's mouth were completely devoid of any emotion, unlike anything Kanae had said to Doma before.
There was no curiosity, no shock, no anger, and no indifference; there was only a detached sense of bewilderment.
Kanae shook her head.
"Because your words don't sound like something a person with normal emotions would say; they sound more like a pathetic imitation."
"Yeah."
The words that came from Doma's mouth were bland, merely conveying the meaning that he knew.
The two stood facing each other across the street.
At this point, neither side wanted to continue the conversation.
Doma felt that since he had already been exposed, there was no need to continue pretending.
Kanae was due to cold air invading her lungs.
There's still some time before dawn, so the original plan to stall for time is no longer viable.
Even though he knew he was unlikely to defeat Upper Rank Two, he still had no choice but to go.
With his Nichirin Blade hanging diagonally on the ground and his body slightly tilted, he swiftly attacked Doma's position.
Seeing this, the little ice figures nearby immediately sprang into action, surrounding Kanae and attempting to prevent Doma from approaching Kanae.
Kanae nimbly dodged the attack from the little ice man in front of her, quickly bypassed it, and continued charging towards Doma without any regard for the consequences.
The little ice figure behind them was chasing after them with all its might.
Suddenly, Kanae turned around and faced the little ice man.
" Flower Breathing, Fourth Form: Crimson Hanagoromo "
" Flower Breathing, Sixth Form: Whirling Peach "
Kanae's body was enveloped in a faint red light, as dazzling and radiant as a blooming red flower.
The sudden attack, coupled with the use of two sword techniques in quick succession, caught the little ice man, who had been hot on his heels, off guard.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
With five loud bangs, the little ice man's body shattered into ice crystal fragments one by one.
However, Kanae did not relax. Although she temporarily eliminated the Ice Man as planned, she knew that her opponent was never just the simple Ice Man.
He turned to face Doma.
Doma stood there silently staring at Kanae, his face expressionless, seemingly unmoved by the fact that all the little ice men had been wiped out.
With his hands behind his back, he tapped his folding fan rhythmically.
"Cough cough..."
A soft cough came from Kanae's mouth.
Kanae felt a warm breath coming from under her nose and raised her left hand to wipe it slightly.
"Has the lung been damaged to this extent...?"
Seeing the bloodstains on the back of her hand, Kanae's heart sank.
He gripped the Nichirin Blade tightly in his hand, raising his head to stare intently at Doma in the distance.
"Suck..."
"Call..."
Ignoring the stinging pain in her lungs, Kanae did her best to activate her Breathing Style.
As she took a deeper breath, Kanae felt an unprecedented power surging within her. She gripped the Nichirin Blade tightly, as if she wanted to pour all her power into this one strike.
She knew this was her last chance.
"Now!"
Realizing that her body had reached its peak condition, a resolute glint flashed in Kanae's eyes.
Her figure shot up like a ghost in an instant, heading straight for Doma. Her speed was so fast that the surrounding air seemed to be torn apart, emitting a sharp whistling sound.
However, despite Kanae's lightning-fast attack, Doma's face remained expressionless.
When the Nichirin Blade was less than a hand's width away from him, he slowly raised his right hand, which had been behind his back, while his left hand remained behind his back.
"Clang!"
The Nichirin Blade and the folding fan clashed once more, producing a deafening metallic clang.
The folding fan firmly blocked the Nichirin Blade.
The Nichirin Blade had clearly been charging up its power for a long time, while the folding fan that was blocking it had clearly no room to charge up its power, yet the folding fan simply stood between Kanae and Doma.
He stood firmly in place like a pillar supporting the sky, his hand holding the folding fan motionless.
With a slight exertion, Doma slammed the folding fan towards Kanae, and the Nichirin Blade sliced through the fan, producing a piercing clang.
Using this force, Kanae leaped more than ten meters away.
Doma's attack followed immediately.
" Blood Demon Art: Scattering Lotus Petals "
A barrage of tiny, icy petals shot towards Kanae, each petal as sharp as a blade.
He knew that after he shattered these creations of the Blood Demon Art, ice crystal powder would scatter into the air and eventually be inhaled, worsening his lung damage.
Kanae also tried to avoid the ice crystal powder scattered in the air by moving to another location.
However, unlike the Blood Demon Art used by the Ice Man, Doma his full power and without being weakened, was completely beyond Kanae's ability to withstand, and she couldn't even escape.
The Blood Demon Art hurtled towards Kanae at a speed invisible to the naked eye.
" Flower Breathing Second Form: Honorable Shadow Plum "
Kanae subconsciously used the Second Form, Honorable Shadow Plum, which is the most suitable sword form for defense in Flower Breathing.
The plum blossoms bloomed, enveloping Kanae within them, and the icy petals that shot towards them were all cut down by the sword light.
Just as Kanae had expected, as more and more petals were chopped up, a pale blue mist began to spread around them again.
" Blood Demon Art: Frozen Lotus "
The calm voice rang out again on the battlefield, and dozens of lotus-shaped ice crystals floated towards Kanae.
" Flower Breathing, Sixth Form: Whirling Peach "
Peach blossoms fell on the battlefield, and lotus-shaped ice crystals were shattered.
The two figures clashed wildly on the battlefield.
Kanae tried to avoid inhaling the powdery ice crystals that filled the air, but Doma's attacks never stopped.
Kanae had no choice but to keep using her Breathing Style at full power to resist.
With her Breathing Style operating at full power, streams of blue mist were inhaled into Kanae's lungs.
"Cough cough cough..."
A violent cough came from Kanae's mouth.
Seemingly satisfied with the current state of the Demon Slayer before him, Doma paused his attack, and a smile returned to his lips.
"Cough cough cough..."
He coughed up a mouthful of blood.
"Call--"
"Call--"
Kanae stood there, breathing heavily, gazing at Doma in the distance, a feeling of despair welling up from the bottom of her heart.
In the distance, Doma slightly raised his right hand.
Dozens of icicles slowly condensed in the air.
He was ready to end the life of the Demon Slayer he loathed.
Kanae stood there, staring blankly at the dozens of icicles in the distant sky.
Am I going to die today?
Clearly, clearly, he hasn't fulfilled his wish yet...
"Wow, sister, congratulations on becoming a Pillar! I'll definitely become a Pillar someday!"
In a hazy vision, Kanae seemed to see Shinobu Kocho.
His gaze hardened instantly.
No, no, I can't die like this!
If I were to die like this, Shinobu would definitely do everything in his power to avenge me!
In the distance, Doma watched the Demon Slayer before him, his eyes shifting from despair and confusion to determination and unyielding resolve, and a slight smile crept onto his lips.
interesting!
However, he had no intention of probing the Demon Slayer's mental state.
The right hand, raised in the air, gently lowers the folding fan.
The icicles in the sky shot towards the delicate figure on the street.
" Flower Breathing, Final Form: Red Spider Lily..."
The resolute words shone like a beam of light onto the battlefield.
" Wind Breathing "