"What? There's another demon!" Li Xing immediately pulled Inosuke away upon hearing Chiki's cry for help, intending to distance themselves from the demon first.
Suddenly, a dark shadow descended from the sky, stirring up thick dust. As the dust gradually dispersed, a demon, no different from a normal human, appeared before the two.
Li Xing sensed the demon's power. A demon with such subtle changes in appearance was surely not weak.
"Hello there, Demon Slayers. My name is Zonin, the lord of this place," Zonin said, even bowing politely to Li Xing and Inosuke.
"Ooh, this great me is named Hashibira Inosuke, the boss of this mountain!" Inosuke declared with utmost seriousness.
Zonin then looked at Li Xing. "And you, young man? What is your name?"
"Demon Slayer, Li Xing!"
Although Li Xing was unsure why this demon was so gentlemanly, he did not lower his guard, silently remaining wary of Zonin.
"Li Xing, Hashibira Inosuke. Only one of you can live. Decide amongst yourselves who it will be!" Zonin said expressionlessly.
"I'm sorry, but both of us will live. Save your divisive tactics. There are no cowardly members in the Demon Slayer Corps. Inosuke, Chiki is yours!" Li Xing assigned their opponents, then materialized his Nebula Sword and lunged at Zonin.
Zonin extended a single finger, blocking the tip of the Nebula Sword, and softly said, "Regrettably, neither of you will survive."
Seeing this, Li Xing immediately retreated, thinking, *How is this Zonin so strong? Even with my power suppressed, I shouldn't have been blocked so easily.*
Suddenly, two black spikes shot from behind Li Xing towards his abdomen. Li Xing leaped to dodge, successfully evading the attack but not completely. A spike grazed his abdomen.
"Thankfully, the wound isn't deep. My intestines aren't spilling out."
"Blood Demon Art, Shadow Spike Wall!"
From below Li Xing, countless spikes shot upwards. Li Xing was in mid-air, with no leverage to dodge.
"I have to go for it!"
"Sun Breathing, Second Form, Vertical: Cyan Canopy!"
Li Xing swung Nebula downwards, a circle of flames igniting in the air. Upon contact with the spikes, they instantly combusted.
"I understand. This demon's Blood Demon Art is shadows. There's no sunlight, no moonlight, just pitch darkness. This is the peak moment for his Blood Demon Art."
The moment he made contact with the spikes, Li Xing realized they were shadows. Other attacks wouldn't have been effective. Fortunately, he had used Sun Breathing.
"Zonin, your death day has arrived. Heavenly Dao! Bright Moon in the Sky!"
Suddenly, the dark clouds overhead dispersed, and a bright moon illuminated every inch of Mount Otake. Zonin's Blood Demon Art was clearly revealed.
Zonin merely smiled lightly, completely unfazed by the moonlight, and even stood still.
"Something's wrong. This demon has no shadow. This definitely isn't his true form. He's hiding somewhere, perhaps within the shadows." Seeing that the Zonin before him had no shadow, Li Xing immediately recalled legends from his past life. However, demons here had physical bodies. The absence of a shadow meant this was not the true form.
While Li Xing was contemplating, Zonin conjured a thorny whip woven from shadows and hurled it at Li Xing.
In haste, Li Xing could only swing his sword to parry, all while still searching for the true form.
...
On the other side, Inosuke had forced Chiki to retreat repeatedly. Chiki was still in pain and found it difficult to withstand the madman Inosuke, who completely disregarded his own body during combat. Did this boar-headed brute feel no pain even when bleeding?
"Hahahaha! You stinking demon, die!"
"Beast Breathing, Third Fangs, Crimson Slash!"
Inosuke swung his dual blades, his immense strength severing Chiki's arm and leaving deep gashes on his shoulders.
"Beast Breathing, Fourth Fangs, Frenzied Slashes!"
With Inosuke focusing his attacks, he unleashed several swift strikes. Chiki could no longer endure and quickly fled towards Zonin.
"Where do you think you're running, stinking demon!" Inosuke pursued him, his dual blades flashing as he aimed directly for Chiki's head. In an instant, Chiki's head was severed.
Chiki looked bewildered. "Did I lose? Am I dying? Ah, yes. I lost the moment I lost the will to fight."
...
Meanwhile, the moment Chiki died, Li Xing felt the suppression on him vanish. His body felt much lighter.
"It seems Inosuke has already killed Chiki. Ah, being suppressed for so long was truly unpleasant!" Li Xing shook his head, his neck cracking, then turned his gaze fiercely towards Zonin.
"No matter where you are, I'll just flatten this entire forest. Let's see where you can hide!"
"Snow Breathing, Third Form, Avalanche!"
A powerful sword energy filled the entire forest. Centered on Li Xing, a swirling cold current blew through the leaves. With a horizontal sweep of Li Xing's blade, the surrounding trees turned to dust.
To Li Xing's right, a black figure fell from the sky. Li Xing reacted swiftly and lunged at Zonin.
"Thunder Breathing, First Form, Thunderbolt, Speed!"
*BOOM!*
A deafening thunderclap echoed through Mount Otake. Zonin's head was severed by Li Xing. Li Xing looked at the head that fell to the ground. "You were quite formidable, but you met me!"
Inosuke, arriving at Li Xing's battlefield, saw that it had been reduced to a plain and was immensely excited.
"So strong! Fight me! Pipsqueak!"
Li Xing: ╰(⇀‸↼)╯
As expected, he's an idiot who can't even remember my name.
"Let's go, Inosuke. We'll fight again next time!" Li Xing said, then pulled Inosuke away, heading directly towards a small town at the foot of the mountain. Li Xing remembered there was a mansion with a wisteria family crest at the foot of the mountain. It would be a good place to rest and have a good meal.
...
On the way, Li Xing asked Li Yun about the Blood Demon Art that could suppress his power. Li Yun replied, "That was a barrier-type Blood Demon Art. It doesn't have great destructive power, but it can effectively suppress a person's physical capabilities."
"Then what was the reason Inosuke suddenly fainted?"
"A similar type of Blood Demon Art. Within Chiki's barrier, Chiki could concentrate the power of the area to forcefully suppress individuals. Weaker people would be instantly knocked unconscious. The weaker they are, the longer they remain unconscious."
Hearing this, Li Xing secretly glanced at Inosuke. This guy always wanted to become stronger, yet he was knocked out by a peculiar demon. Li Xing felt sympathetic. It was truly unfortunate for him to be in the same generation as a genius like myself.
"Starry Blockhead, didn't you transfer the Power of Evil Spirits to me two years ago? Didn't you thoroughly examine this Blood Demon Art?"
Li Xing immediately became displeased. "You transmitted thousands upon thousands of Blood Demon Arts to me. Can I possibly examine them all at once? It's a miracle my brain didn't explode. Do you think I'm Satoru Gojo?"
"Excuses, all excuses. How could you possibly watch a hundred gigabytes of seeds?"
Li Xing: "..."