Demon Slayer: The Second God Who Walks the Earth

After the three arc-shaped flame slashes made contact with the thorns on the back of the demon, its thorny whip quickly melted away and soon reappeared before Chiba Yo's eyes.

"Ahhhh!!!"

The burning pain made the ghost scream, and the three fiery slashes, after melting its thorny whip, continued their relentless attack on its two heads and neck.

Although he sensed that the demon could not withstand his attack, Chiba Yo still cautiously gripped his sword and charged towards it.

"Blood Demon Technique: Reversal!"

The ghost screamed in pain, and the next second, its position switched with Chiba Yang's again, and the three slashes appeared in front of Chiba Yang.

"The Breath of the Sun, Burning Bones and Blazing Sun Flames".

However, after learning that this demon possessed such abilities, how could Chiba Yang not be on guard? He wielded his Nichirin Blade, using the attacking moves as a defense, easily neutralizing the demon's previous attacks that had rendered it helpless.

"Breath of the Sun o Azure Heaven".

Immediately afterwards, Chiba Yang turned around and unleashed a circular slash emanating from him in all directions.

The slash landed precisely on the neck of the two-horned demon behind Chiba Yang. As expected, its neck was severed by the slash, and its head flew high into the air.

Damn it... why am I so unlucky... I've only been here a short while and I've already run into such a strong guy...

Looking at the figure standing on the floor, the two-horned ghost felt not only fear and resentment, but also condemnation of its bad luck.

Its name is Shen, and although it has only been a demon for three years, it has already gained strength that is no weaker than any of the Lower Moon demons.

In just two months since becoming a demon, it has devoured nearly a hundred people, relying on its blood demon magic, which it calls Mirage, just like its name.

Its ability is quite simple: mimicry. It can change its appearance and voice, making itself look exactly like a human, thereby disguising itself as a weak and pitiful human in need of help to lure other humans closer to it.

Two years after becoming a demon, Mirage's strength increased greatly due to consuming a large number of people. However, because its Blood Demon Art could only be used to disguise itself as a human, its strength in battles against demons was not very impressive, and therefore it failed to become one of the Twelve Demon Moons.

However, it soon discovered that its Blood Demon Art was not limited to that. After eating more people and becoming stronger, it discovered that it had acquired another Blood Demon Art, which could unleash a long whip of thorns. Moreover, its body was also undergoing some changes, gradually growing a new brain.

At this moment, it realized that its Blood Demon Art was not just about mimicry, but also had a much more powerful ability that was revealed as its strength increased. At the same time, it also learned about the function of this ability.

Its Blood Demon Art is indeed mimicry, but it's not just about mimicking appearances. It can control this most basic mimicry at will, but there are also higher levels of mimicry.

It can mimic blood at a deeper level by consuming blood, not only in appearance and voice, but also in body structure and abilities. The first time it used this ability was with Muzan's blood, through which it unknowingly mimicked Muzan's Blood Demon Art and a small part of his body structure.

Upon learning this, the mirage was overjoyed. It felt that with this ability, it would soon be able to surpass the current Twelve Demon Moons and replace them, serving that person.

To acquire more of its blood and become stronger.

After that, a new creature appeared on its menu: the ghost.

While devouring humans, it also seeks out weaker demons to devour, thus enabling it to mimic their blood demon magic.

However, not all demons possess Blood Demon Arts. Since it learned of its own abilities, it has only been able to mimic four additional Blood Demon Arts: in addition to Muzan's Black Blood Thorns, there is the Blood Demon Art Illusion that creates environmental illusions, the Blood Demon Art Annihilation that allows it to become invisible, and the Blood Demon Art Shift that allows it to switch places with a designated creature.

Even so, its strength has increased greatly, and with the increase in strength, its mimicry ability will also be enhanced. It can now use four Black Blood Thorns, instead of just one. However, the strength of the thorns is still far from Muzan's level, and its appearance has also become a strange hybrid due to its mimicry.

After its strength greatly increased, it planned to devour one of the current Lower Moons, acquire its power, and replace it as the new Lower Moon.

It then discovered that all six lower moons were gone.

Upon learning of this, it didn't feel too disappointed. It moved to another place to eat people and demons, becoming even stronger, and planned to go find the Upper Moon soon.

The new place it found was this mountain. It had heard that there was a ghost nearby who knew blood magic and wanted to find it and devour it. Because it was feeling a bit hungry, it thought it would have a good meal here before going to find that ghost.

After all, although it can eat ghosts, ghosts taste as disgusting to it as excrement, and its main food is still humans.

However, tonight it encountered Chiba Yang. It originally planned to use its past methods to easily devour this human, but things took an unexpected turn.

"Utterly unlucky! Utterly unlucky!" The mirage head was still flying in the air, but it kept muttering to itself. Although it could mimic Muzan's body structure, it had not yet reached the point where it could overcome the weakness of its neck.

However, even if it reaches this point, it will be of no use; for Chiba Yo, it's just an extra move or two.

Turning to look at the fallen demon, Chiba Yo was still not at ease because it had another brain inside it.

"Breath of the Sun, Radiant Grace".

The spiraling slash that descended from the sky struck the mirage's body, completely destroying its other brain. Most of its body was melted away by this attack, and the remaining part of its body had already begun to turn to ash.

However, at this point, the mirage could no longer feel its own body.

Only then did the mirage's head fall to the ground.

Seeing the ghost's body gradually turn to ashes, Chiba Yo felt much relieved.

That should be enough to completely eliminate it.

"Don't be so smug, brat! Lord Muzan will definitely kill you!"

Realizing that it would soon die, the mirage was no longer afraid of Muzan's curse and directly called out Muzan's name, in which Muzan was the most powerful.

"Do you know where Muzan is?"

Upon hearing this, Chiba Yang immediately pressed the soon-to-disappear ghost for an answer, his expression filled with excitement.

Chapter 73 Wisteria Sachet

Chiba Yo's reaction stunned the mirage. It had originally intended to scare the guy by bringing up Muzan's dying words, but it didn't expect that he would not only not be scared but would also get excited.

Before it could think any further or say anything, Shen suddenly felt the blood of Muzan in its head begin to stir.

"Woo...Woo..."

Just as Chiba Yo was filled with anticipation to learn some information about Muzan from this demon, a giant hand suddenly grew out of the demon's mouth.

Even though it was about to die, the curse left by Muzan still took effect.

The crimson Nichirin Blade sliced ​​through the giant arm, severing it. Chiba Yang had hoped to glean some information from the demon, but it was too late. The demon's head, along with the giant hand that had grown out, turned to ashes and vanished.

Seeing this, Chiba Yo felt somewhat disappointed, and at the same time confirmed that Muzan had a way to restrict other demons. As long as these demons spoke about him, they would be killed as they had just done.

It seems finding Muzan and eliminating him will indeed be no easy task...

The demon had completely vanished, and Chiba Yo's mission was complete. However, it was a pity that he couldn't find out Muzan's whereabouts.

The evil spirits vanished, and the temple returned to its original state. There was almost nothing inside, but bloodstains remained on the floor, and claw marks were visible on the walls, indicating what had happened there.

Looking at everything here, Chiba Yang recalled the experience that Chu Ming had described to him. Although he only said a few words, Chiba Yang could still imagine the changes in his state of mind at that time.

He fought the ghost until dawn with the belief that he could protect these children, but was ultimately accused of being the criminal. You can imagine how disappointed he was, and it's no wonder that he no longer trusts children.

Perhaps that old man knows more; let's ask him when we get back...

After bowing to a statue of an Arhat in the temple, Chiba Yo turned and left the temple.

The deserted temple fell silent once more, as if no one had ever been there...

Back in the wisteria grove, the old man was sitting by a wisteria tree, smoking his pipe, his eyes half-closed as if he were about to fall asleep. Zenitsu was standing to the side, looking like he had been upset.

"Yang, you're finally back! Let's go down the mountain for dinner, I'm starving."

Zenitsu ran towards Chiba Yo as soon as he saw him, looking somewhat aggrieved.

Besides being hungry, he had another reason for wanting to go down the mountain: the old man next to him had a sharp tongue, and he couldn't stand it anymore.

Zenitsu's voice startled the old man who was leaning against the wisteria tree. He was somewhat surprised when he opened his eyes and saw Chiba Yo.

"You're still alive? Strange. Maybe I guessed wrong. Is there no ghost on this mountain? Were the people who died before carried off by tigers, leopards, wolves, and jackals?" The old man touched his head, feeling puzzled.

"Your guess was right, there was indeed a ghost in that temple, but I've already dealt with it. You can walk this path with peace of mind from now on."

Chiba Yo answered him truthfully with a smile, but was met with a look from the old man as if he were looking at a lunatic.

"You... sigh, never mind, I won't say anything more. If you have the means, you should go see a doctor." The old man hesitated for a moment, then sighed and said to Chiba Yang and the other person.

In his eyes, even if there really were people who could deal with evil spirits, they couldn't possibly be these teenagers in front of him. At this age, they should be enjoying their youth. How could God let them shoulder such a heavy burden?

However, that is the truth; it was precisely this group of children who fought against the evil spirits.

"Huh? But we're not sick, so why do we need to see a doctor?" Chiba Yang didn't understand the old man's words and asked in confusion.

Zenitsu, who was standing nearby, couldn't stand it anymore. He pulled Chiba aside and whispered to him, "He's saying we're crazy. He thinks we've been lying all along and doesn't believe we can deal with the demons."

That old man has a really sharp tongue; I almost couldn't stand what he was saying here.

After hearing Wan Yi's explanation, Chiba Yo understood, but he didn't pay attention to the old man's words, after all, "he really doesn't look like someone who can defeat evil spirits."

"Grandpa, do you know anything else about that monk's case?"

Sitting down next to the old man, Chiba Yang asked him a question.

Chiba Yang did not intend to leave tonight. Since the old man was unwilling to believe them, he would probably stay here all night. Although the wisteria forest could prevent attacks from evil spirits, there was no guarantee that other wild animals would not appear. Chiba Yang planned to protect him here for the night.

Of course, he also wanted to know more about what happened to Xingming at that time, hoping to find a way to resolve Xingming's inner conflict.

The old man yawned and replied, "I didn't expect you to be so interested in this. But I don't know much more about it, since I wasn't there at the time. What I'm telling you is just hearsay and my own thoughts."

All I know about what happened after that is that of the children, only one four-year-old girl survived, and the monk disappeared before the execution.

Upon hearing this, Chiba Yang felt somewhat disappointed. What the old man said was almost identical to what he had heard from Xingming, and there was no additional useful information.

"Thank you for telling me all this." Although he didn't get the information he wanted, Chiba Yo still smiled and thanked the old man.

"It's alright. I'm happy to have someone to talk to. I still enjoy chatting with people, but there aren't many people willing to chat with me," the old man said cheerfully after taking a puff of his cigarette upon hearing Qianye Yang's words.

I thought to myself that although this child has some mental issues, he is still a polite and good child.

If you talk to people like that, not many people will want to chat with you!

Zenitsu, who was standing to the side, silently complained in his heart after hearing the old man's words.

Zenitsu understood what Chiba Yo was thinking and, despite his hunger, sat down like the other two.

"By the way, may I ask where you got this wisteria sachet?"

At this moment, Chiba Yang noticed the wisteria sachet at the old man's waist again and asked him a question.

"You mean this? This used to be quite common around here. We have a long-standing legend about evil spirits. According to the legend, evil spirits hate the smell of wisteria flowers, so people would make this and wear it to ward off evil."

However, because many people don't believe in this kind of thing, there weren't many people making this kind of thing in the past, and there are even fewer now. The one I'm wearing was given to me by a little girl who was twelve or thirteen years old.

The little girl lived in a town not far down the mountain. She seemed to be an orphan, making a living by making small trinkets. Every day, she would make many of these wisteria flower sachets and give them to passersby.

Chapter 74 Jade Pendant

After hearing what the old man said, Chiba Yang became a little curious about the girl he mentioned. Even though she was struggling financially, she would give wisteria flower sachets to passersby. And she didn't just give them away casually; she would make these sachets every day to give to people. This seemed a bit unusual.

Of course, even if things are a bit strange, this girl must be a kind-hearted person. Chiba Yang guessed that she might also believe in the existence of evil spirits, which is why she did this.

"She really is a kind child," Chiba Yo remarked.

The old man nodded in agreement and said, "Indeed, and even if someone offered her money, she wouldn't accept it."

Logically speaking, she must have spent a lot of time and effort making so many sachets to give away. She herself is also quite poor, so it wouldn't be a problem for her to accept money offered to her. But she just won't accept it. Even if someone tries to force it on her, she will return it. She is incredibly stubborn.

However, she would still charge normally for other small trinkets she made, but she would never charge for the wisteria flower sachets; she only gave them away to passersby.

After hearing the old man's words, Chiba Yang felt that the girl was a bit stubborn, but this also showed that she was a kind-hearted person.

It had been night for some time, and the chirping of insects could be heard from time to time.

After saying those words, the old man seemed a little sleepy, but because he was afraid of what might happen at night, such as encountering wild animals, he didn't dare to go to sleep directly. He forced himself to stay awake and added some more tobacco to his pipe, thinking that he could stay awake by smoking.

"If you're sleepy, you can go to sleep first. I'll keep an eye on the surroundings."

Chiba Yang noticed the old man's condition and said to him with a smile.

"Alright then, remember to wake me up if anything happens. If you're sleepy, wake me up to take over the shift. I'm really tired after running around all day."

The old man did not refuse after hearing Chiba Yang's words. He put the pipe back and then placed the luggage on his back in a suitable position to rest his head on it for a nap.

He wasn't afraid that Chiba Yang and Zenitsu would harm him. As someone who was constantly on the go, he had a lot of experience and was quite confident in his ability to judge people. From Chiba Yang and Zenitsu's words and actions, he could tell that they weren't bad people; they just liked to imagine things.

After seeing the old man fall asleep, Chiba Yo thought of Zenitsu who had complained of being hungry earlier, so he took out an oil paper package from his pocket containing two rice balls, which he had prepared before his trip.

He took out a rice ball and handed it to Zenitsu, who looked pleasantly surprised when he saw it.

"Wow, Yang, I never expected you to carry rice balls with you all the time," Zenitsu exclaimed as he approached.

"This is a habit. In the past, I often had to go to markets far away to sell firewood and herbs. Because the distance was so far, I would often prepare rice balls to take with me on the way."

After joining the Demon Slayer Corps, the places I had to go on missions were always very far away. In order to find the demons as quickly as possible and not waste time along the way, I would always bring some rice balls to eat on the road so that I wouldn't have to stop for food.

After all... the slight delay on the road could very well lead to some tragedies that should never have happened...

Chiba Yo explained softly to Zenitsu, then took a bite of the rice ball in his hand. The taste was different from before; after all, it wasn't made by the same person...

Zenitsu took the rice ball and sensed that Chiba Yo was feeling somewhat down and sad.