"Tanjiro, you can explore the village. Perhaps you'll find a good sword there," someone suggested. They were all eating in a room after their hot spring soak, surrounded by empty bowls. Having witnessed Lixing's appetite, no one found the sight unusual.
"Really? I'll take Mr. Lixing's advice and look around tomorrow," Tanjiro replied. He knew Haganezuka Hotaru was unwilling to forge another sword for him, so he had to find another way.
The next day, Tanjiro and Lixing went into a forest together. Lixing immediately spotted the child with the key.
"Tanjiro, come with me!"
Lixing and Tanjiro approached the child. Lixing spoke first, "Kid, hand over the Yoriichi Zero Type so Tanjiro can train with it."
"Who are you? How do you know about the Yoriichi Zero Type? I won't hand it over. You should leave!"
Lixing didn't want to waste time; he still wanted to enjoy the hot springs later.
"Kid, I know the Yoriichi Zero Type is almost broken. If it had consciousness, it would probably want to die in battle. Do you want it to just rot away silently and forgotten?"
Lixing's words clearly struck a nerve. Although Kotetsu didn't want the Yoriichi Zero Type to break, he also found the thought of it decaying silently unbearable.
Tanjiro didn't know what the Yoriichi Zero Type was and could only stand by.
Kotetsu remained hesitant. Lixing grew impatient and directly grabbed and searched the child, taking a key from him.
"Tanjiro, let's go get the sword."
Kotetsu shouted from behind, "Can I come too? I want to witness the Yoriichi Zero Type's final battle with my own eyes!"
Having his key taken, Kotetsu knew he couldn't stop them, so he let them go.
"Of course, we'll need you to guide us."
Led by Kotetsu, Lixing and Tanjiro met the Yoriichi Zero Type. Its face was exactly like that of Michikatsu Yoriichi.
Tanjiro was surprised. It was a puppet with six arms.
"Tanjiro, you go first. This puppet was created based on the first Breathing Style swordsman. It can be used to train you. Furthermore, the sword is inside its body. Find a way to shatter it."
Lixing was not interested in the puppet itself; he merely wanted to witness it. It was also a good opportunity for Tanjiro to train.
"Really? Then I'll give it a try." Tanjiro borrowed Zenitsu's Nichirin Blade and immediately attacked.
As expected, Tanjiro was instantly defeated.
"A puppet can have this much strength? Its six arms are very powerful. How can I defeat it?"
Seeing Tanjiro defeated instantly, Lixing knew this would require long-term training. He decided to leave and go explore the village with Kanao.
"Tanjiro, whether you get the sword depends on you. Good luck! I'll have Nezuko bring you meals every day."
Tanjiro understood that Mr. Lixing thought he was too weak, which was why he sent him here. This was clearly more than just a vacation.
Thus, every day after that, Tanjiro battled the Yoriichi Zero Type, progressing from instant defeat to lasting a few more moves.
...
A month quickly passed. The Love Hashira, Mitsuri Kanroji, and the Flame Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku, also arrived at the Swordsmith Village. Mitsuri needed her Nichirin Blade sharpened, and Rengoku needed his sharpened as well. After a long period of inactivity, he was finally fully recovered.
Also arriving at the Swordsmith Village were the Mist Hashira, Muichiro Tokito, and Genya Shinazugawa, Sanemi Shinazugawa's younger brother.
"Yo! Rengoku-aniki, Mitsuri, you guys are here too!" Lixing greeted them with a smile.
"Mr. Lixing! It's been a while! I've been wearing the stockings you gave me!" Mitsuri exclaimed happily, not expecting to see Lixing again today.
"Lixing-kun, I've heard from Master that you were vacationing here. I didn't expect to run into you right after arriving," Rengoku said, also with pleasure.
"Mitsuri, you look beautiful wearing them. I like it. I'm here to forge a new Nichirin Blade and take a break," Lixing said, revealing his new Nichirin Blade. This time, the sword was already a Scarlet Blade upon acquisition, which had astonished everyone in the village.
"That's wonderful! Then we'll go find the village chief first," Rengoku and Mitsuri left together, heading towards the chief's house.
"Mr. Lixing, let's have dinner together tonight!" Mitsuri shouted as she walked away, her face flushed with embarrassment.
"Definitely, definitely."
After parting ways with Mitsuri, Lixing went to the hot springs. Lixing practically bathed in the hot springs every day; it was incredibly refreshing to eat while soaking.
Tanjiro was still training. Inosuke had also gone to fight the Yoriichi Zero Type. Zenitsu spent his days fawning over Nezuko, and Kanao was constantly being dragged around by Nezuko to various places, seemingly never tiring of it for a month.
"Three Hashira have arrived this time, plus me makes four. The Swordsmith Village arc should be stable, right? What about Tanjiro and the others?"
"Never mind, I won't think about it. Anyway, if they encounter me, they'll be instantly defeated. As long as the High Priestess Fi doesn't show up, this village can't withstand that kind of wide-area archery."
The hot springs were too relaxing, and Lixing unconsciously fell asleep. Genya Shinazugawa had visited once but left after a short soak.
After taking her Nichirin Blade to be sharpened, Mitsuri came directly to the hot springs. Soaking in the hot springs made her feel better, and this thought made her even more excited. She began to undress by the hot spring, completely failing to notice Lixing sleeping in the corner.
"Ah! My skin is so smooth after soaking in the hot springs, it's so comfortable!" Mitsuri happily muttered to herself in the water, even starting to play with the water.
For some reason, Mitsuri simply didn't notice Lixing was there. However, while playing with the water, she accidentally splashed some onto Lixing's face, causing him to wake up instantly.
"Who attacked me! I was careless. It seems I've been living too comfortably lately, not noticing someone approaching," Lixing immediately drew his Nebula and pointed it forward.
"Mitsuri?" Seeing Mitsuri completely unclothed, Lixing's head spun, and he nearly bled from the nose. It was truly magnificent.
"Ah! Mr. Lixing, why are you here? I'm sorry, I didn't notice Mr. Lixing was also here." Mitsuri let out a startled cry and quickly covered herself, her face turning bright red. Coupled with the heat, she nearly fainted.
"After I parted with you, I came here to soak in the hot springs and sleep. My apologies, I'll leave now. Let's eat together later. I believe it's Matsutake mushroom rice tonight."
Hearing about food, Mitsuri instantly became less shy and her mood brightened even further.
"Really? Then let's eat together later!"
When it was time for dinner that evening, the group from the Butterfly Mansion was present, along with Mitsuri and Rengoku. Tanjiro had managed to shatter the Yoriichi Zero Type that day and obtained the Nichirin Blade once used by Yoriichi. However, Haganezuka Hotaru had taken it back for re-forging. It turned out Haganezuka wasn't unwilling to forge a sword for Tanjiro, but rather wanted to train harder to forge a stronger, unbreakable sword for him. This deeply moved Tanjiro.
"Mitsuri, let's have a competition! Let's see who can eat more." Lixing had wanted to compete with Mitsuri for a while. His appetite had increased several times over compared to before.
When Mitsuri saw Lixing, she thought of their earlier encounter, and her face turned red again. She shyly replied, "Okay!"