Demon Slayer: I am a Demon.

"Hesitation is a major taboo in ghost hunting."

Su Mu raised his eyes and looked at Shinobu Kocho, who had retreated to a short distance away after the two swords clashed. His expression was calm: "Although Miss Shinobu is quite strong, it is still difficult for her to hurt me. Let's go all out."

The girl was too weak to cut through the ghost's hard neck, and naturally, she couldn't cut it either.

Shinobu Kocho pursed her lips. She was worried about hurting her opponent with her sword, but instead, she was lectured for being 'hesitant'. This made the girl feel a tightness in her chest. Almost without hesitation, Shinobu Kocho launched another attack.

This time, there was no hesitation, and the speed was very fast.

"clang!"

But the attack was still blocked.

"The strength... is too weak. With this kind of strength, it would be difficult to sever the demon's neck, would it?"

Su Mu blocked Shinobu Kocho's Nichirin Blade once again, a slight smile appearing on his lips.

Anger flashed across the girl's tense face. She didn't say anything more, her figure flickering around Su Mu.

Shinobu Kocho is very fast, moving lightly and silently. When she goes all out, her speed increases several levels.

Several times, the blade almost struck Su Mu, but the girl's disordered breathing made her seem irrational, unlike when she usually dealt with ghosts, where she would find a weakness and deliver a fatal blow.

So, after his first strike was blocked, he was flustered and eager to teach Su Mu a lesson, but his hasty strike was blocked again.

After 'Fujiyama' devoured a number of evil spirits, Su Mu's strength had improved considerably. Although Shinobu Kocho was fast, she wasn't fast enough to be unresponsive, especially since her opponent was clearly underestimating him.

After several unsuccessful attacks, Shinobu Kocho became increasingly agitated.

"It's my turn."

A slight sound suddenly came, making Shinobu Kocho feel a little uneasy, and she unconsciously tightened her grip on the hilt of her Nichirin Blade.

At the same moment, Su Mu squatted down and bent over.

In an instant, he leaped up and rushed towards Shinobu Kocho. Almost instantly, as he approached Shinobu, he drew his sword and slashed with extreme speed.

The next second, a sharp slash was already aimed at Shinobu Kocho.

Feeling the sharpness of the blade, Shinobu Kocho almost instinctively wanted to dodge the attack, but then she immediately thought that her opponent had taken so many of her attacks while she hadn't taken a single one. Wouldn't that make this man who talked behind her back look down on her?

Almost without hesitation, the girl gripped the hilt of the knife and blocked with her sword.

"clang!"

The moment the blades clashed, a clanging sound like metal striking metal was produced.

Although Shinobu Kocho blocked the attack in time, the powerful strength of the demon, combined with the super speed of the 'Flying Sword Style', gave Su Mu's attack extremely strong destructive power.

You should know that even with the stone-hard neck of the Hand Demon, he could still slice it open with a single stroke.

Therefore, almost the instant the two blades made contact, that extremely powerful force was transmitted through the blades to the girl's hand.

Shinobu Kocho was not very strong to begin with, and the sudden surge of force almost instantly caused her to lose her grip on the blade, the Nichirin Blade slipping from her hand.

The sharp blade, carrying a powerful killing intent, fell towards Shinobu Kocho's head.

As the blade tip touched the girl's brow, Su Mu sheathed his sword, looking at the petite girl standing there dumbfounded, and said calmly, "What awaits a swordsman who can't even hold a sword properly?"

The girl stood there, her teeth clenched.

"It seems that Miss Shinobu is not yet able to guide me."

Su Mu shook his head, his expression filled with deep disappointment:

"I thought Miss Shinobu would be really amazing."

The girl's delicate face flushed red and then pale. Thinking about what she had just said, Shinobu Kocho was both ashamed and angry. Her well-developed breasts heaved at that moment.

Her small, drooping hands were now clenched tightly.

"I lost."

The girl gritted her teeth, reluctant to admit the truth, but she did anyway.

Su Mu glanced at Shinobu Kocho with surprise, thinking that she would not be convinced and would challenge him again, but she calmly admitted her defeat, which made Su Mu look at her with higher regard.

"Next time, when we spar again, I will beat you."

Butterfly gritted her teeth, her tone serious.

"Then I'm really looking forward to it."

Su Mu nodded and smiled.

"Feel sorry."

The girl said softly, "I apologize for my rudeness earlier. If you want to insult me ​​or humiliate me now..."

"I'm not as boring as you think."

Su Mu shook his head, turned around, returned to the bluestone, and sat down to rest. While looking at the results of everyone's training, his gaze soon fell on Shinazugawa Genya, who had also rushed over. This younger brother of the 'Wind Pillar' had also come over before his injuries had fully healed.

Shinobu Kocho was prepared to be ridiculed, but she wasn't. This man who liked to talk badly about her behind her back didn't seem to be the person she had imagined.

It was completely different from what I had imagined.

Silently watching the other person rest, the girl lowered her head and looked at her still trembling hands. The fierce slash from just now, the force transmitted through the blade, even though she had desperately gripped the hilt, the Nichirin Blade was still uncontrollably flung away.

She was too weak.

This has always been her weakness. Not only is she petite and not as tall as her sister, but she is also much weaker than her sister.

The girl's eyes dimmed slightly. She silently took a few steps forward and picked up her Nichirin Blade, which had fallen to the ground.

The girl gently stroked the blade, gritting her teeth. She was secretly annoyed with herself for not being able to hold the knife properly just now.

…………

After resting on the bluestone for a while, Su Mu called Tanjiro, who was training, to stop.

"Come with me."

Although Tanjiro was puzzled, he stopped training, picked up his Nichirin Blade, and followed the adult.

Along the way, Makomo also stopped practicing her sword and followed with light steps.

Soon, Su Mu led Tanjiro and Makomo to a clearing in the woods, in front of a huge rock.

Makomo was no stranger to this boulder. Every time her senior brothers and sisters left, they would leave marks on this boulder. This boulder was very hard, almost as hard as the neck of Fujisaki Yamato Oni.

Thinking of the Hand Demon's neck, Makomo vaguely understood why her master had brought her here.

"Does the master intend to teach her how to sever a neck as hard as stone as that of a hand demon?"

Thinking of this, Makomo couldn't help but show excitement.

"Now, Tanjiro, find a way to cut this boulder."

Su Mu pointed to the boulder in front of him and said to Tanjiro, "This is the next training target."

Tanjiro looked at the huge rock in front of him, hesitated for a moment, stepped forward, gripped the hilt of his sword, and began to 'breathe'.

choke!

The sword, imbued with all the strength of his body, struck the massive rock with a metallic clang.

Sparks flew.

With a single strike, not only was the rock not severed, but the powerful resistance and recoil from the hard rock caused Tanjiro's hand holding the sword to go numb.

"It cannot be eradicated at its root."

Tanjiro turned around and looked at the adult.

"Back then, the Hand Demon's neck was as hard as this rock. If we can't cut this boulder, it will still be very difficult to fight the Hand Demon again. What's more, there are many demons that are even stronger than the Hand Demon, and some demons have skin as hard as the Hand Demon's."

Su Mu said in a low voice.

"Then how did you manage to sever the hand demon's neck, sir?"

Tanjiro asked with some curiosity.

"The combination of power and speed."

Su Mu gave an explanation.

Tanjiro felt a slight pang of sadness upon hearing this. He knew he could never reach the level of an adult, neither in strength nor speed. If he couldn't…

"Then... how should I cut this huge rock in half?"

Tanjiro looked at the huge rock in front of him with some confusion.

Su Mu stepped forward, patted Tanjiro on the shoulder, and said in a gentle tone:

"Nothing in the world is perfect; there are always oversights. For example, humans have very hard bones and skulls, which can even be used as weapons, but they are very fragile in some parts, such as the human throat, which can strangle a strong person with just a little force."

"This applies to humans, demons, and everything else, even the stone in front of us. If Tanjiro can find the flaw in this stone, he can easily cut it open."

Su Mu patted Tanjiro on the shoulder: "Find the weakness in this boulder, and then cut it down."

Makomo, who followed behind, opened her mouth slightly, her small face showing surprise, and her gaze unconsciously fell on the huge rock, searching for a flaw in the stone.

This...this seems a bit...too unbelievable.

Chapter 168 Want to know anything... anything is fine.

"Find the flaw in this stone?"

Tanjiro looked at the huge rock in front of him and hesitated.

"How can we find the flaw in this stone?"

Tanjiro looked at Su Mu with a puzzled expression.

"I can't find it either; it's something I can't do. However, I think Tanjiro can."

Su Mu patted Tanjiro on the shoulder: "Try your best to find the weak point of this boulder, and then, following the weak point, cut it."

Tanjiro suddenly became less confident. How could he possibly do something that even adults couldn't do?

"Can I do it?"

The question was asked with a very lack of confidence.

"I believe you can do it, Tanjiro."