Demon Slayer: The Second God Who Walks the Earth

What Kagaya said is not the whole story. If we add Tamayo's medicine, their advantage will be much greater.

Tamayo and Shinobu Kocho meticulously crafted a drug for Muzan that had more than one effect. The drug they developed was a compound poison, which would trigger the effect of the next poison when Muzan decomposed the previous one.

Currently, if this poison is absorbed by Muzan, it will first be affected by the effects of the human-transforming drug and the drug that suppresses the Blood Demon Art. The human-transforming drug will be more damaging to Muzan, and he will definitely prioritize decomposing this drug. However, when he begins to decompose the human-transforming drug, the drug that inhibits its division will begin to take effect. Muzan will not notice the effect of this drug if he does not try to decompose it.

This was a deliberate design by Tamayo. Among these drugs, the one that inhibits Muzan's splitting is the most important. If its effect is placed first, then after it is broken down, Muzan can escape immediately before Chiba and the others can teleport over.

To make it the second stage of the effect, the teleportation would be completed right after Muzan started breaking down the human-transforming drug, that is, right after the drug that inhibited the division had just taken effect.

At this point, Muzan would be in a dilemma. If he continued to break down the human-transforming drug, he would not be able to escape through splitting. If he turned to break down the drug that inhibited splitting, it would not only take him a lot of time, but the great damage caused by the human-transforming drug would also become apparent. Moreover, Chiba and the others had already arrived, so he simply did not have time to continue breaking down the drug.

Moreover, there are drugs that inhibit regeneration and accelerate aging waiting for it after that. So many types of poison, and each one can be said to be tailor-made for Muzan, will definitely make it feel extremely uncomfortable.

By then, its strength will be reduced to less than one-tenth of its original value. It would be considered good if it could retain even one percent of its strength while the poison is in effect.

After hearing Kagaya's answer, Chiba Yo felt that it was indeed correct, but he had other concerns.

"How about we leave two pillars behind to protect our lord? You are very important as the commander of the final battle."

Chiba Yo offered his suggestion to Kagaya.

Upon hearing this, Kagaya chuckled softly, then replied to Chiba Yo, "I am not the commander of the final battle... The situation of the final battle can change in an instant... And I am currently having difficulty even speaking... If I were to take command, it might have a negative effect..."

The final battle will be commanded by my son, Kiriya… He has been trained by me as a qualified leader since he was a child… I believe he will do a better job than I am now… I will only serve as a mentor from the sidelines…”

Upon hearing this, Chiba Yang glanced at the child beside his lord.

"Lord Chiba."

Kiriya bowed and greeted Chiba Yo. Although he was the lord's successor, his status was lower than that of the Pillars before he became the lord.

However, he may not have the chance to become the leader of the Demon Slayer Corps in the future.

"Hmm." Chiba Yo smiled and nodded to Teruya. He could sense that the child's aura was extremely similar to that of his lord.

Gentle and warm-hearted, with leadership qualities.

"Then we should send two pillars to protect our lord and your child."

Chiba Yo still felt somewhat worried after hearing what Kagaya said.

Chapter 140 The Truth About the Illness

Yaozai felt somewhat helpless about Chiba Yo's stubborn ideas.

"Don't worry about our safety... The Demon Slayer Corps headquarters hasn't been found by demons for over a thousand years... They definitely won't be able to find this place in these final moments either..."

"Wasn't I just as safe when all the Pillars went out on missions in the past..."

After hearing what his lord said, Chiba Yang didn't know what to say. He was also aware of how well the headquarters was hidden.

"I believe Miss Tamayo has already told you about the follow-up plans... Just do as she arranges... I will have Amane tell the other Pillars about this at the Pillar Meeting in three days... At that time, I will also have the other candidates for the final battle come along, in addition to the Pillars..."

Yaozai continued.

Perhaps because the continuous stream of good news gave him hope, his health seemed to be much better than when we last met.

"Yes, I understand." Chiba Yo nodded upon hearing this.

As for the other candidates besides the Pillars, Chiba Yo could actually guess them all. Among the swordsmen of this generation of the Demon Slayer Corps, there were only a few who were qualified to participate in the final battle, and they were all people he knew quite well.

Tanjiro, Zenitsu, Inosuke, Kanago, Genya.

All of them except Kanao had fought against the Upper Moons, not to mention Tanjiro and the other two.

While talking to Kyojuro, Chiba Yo learned that Genya had also participated in the battle against Upper Moon Four.

While Kanao doesn't have such a record, she was indeed the first in her generation to master Total Concentration Breathing, so she's probably no worse than the others.

Of course, Chiba Yo didn't include himself in this calculation.

After Yaozai finished speaking, he rested for a while.

Just as Chiba Yo thought everything was fine and was about to say goodbye and leave, Kagaya spoke up again.

"Yang... weren't you curious before about what disease I had... and how I contracted it?"

Kagaya lay on his back, his face above his nose completely wrapped in bandages, but even so, a smile still lingered on his lips.

"Yes, I did ask Lady Tianyin before. I wanted to see if I could find a cure for my lord after learning about these things."

Perhaps the cure simply hasn't been found yet? If we're willing to spend the time, we might be able to cure our lord's illness?" Chiba Yo nodded in response.

“It’s no use… Yang… This isn’t an illness… It’s a curse…” Kagaya said, recalling the deeds passed down through generations of his family from long ago, which was the reason they established the Demon Slayer Corps and dedicated their lives to it until now.

Chiba Yo was shocked and puzzled upon hearing this. He couldn't understand why someone like his lord would be subject to such a so-called curse, and such a severe one at that.

"Hmm...you must be wondering why I'm cursed like this...it's not just a curse targeting me alone...it's a curse on our entire family..."

In the beginning, because of this curse, all the babies born in this family died young due to their weak bodies... not one of them even lived long enough to walk..."

Kagaya's words made Chiba Yo realize even more the severity of the curse.

"The reason our clan is cursed... is because the world's first demon... Muzan Kibutsuji, came from our clan..."

Because a monster like it appeared within the tribe... the entire tribe was cursed..."

When Yaozai said these things, he actually felt somewhat relieved, because this was, after all, a stain on their clan, and he had never told anyone other than his wife and children about it.

He didn't know how the Demon Slayer Corps members would view him after he revealed this, and the usually composed man always felt a little uneasy when he thought about it.

"Our clan was almost wiped out because of this... but fortunately, we received advice from the God... which led us to dedicate ourselves to the cause of destroying Muzan..."

Our clan heeded the advice of the gods... pouring all our efforts into destroying Muzan... establishing the Demon Slayer Corps to fight against Muzan... and marrying members of the goddess clan generation after generation...

After that, no newborns in the clan died young... but even so, no one in our clan has ever lived past thirty years old..."

Kagaya revealed the truth of the matter.

"To be honest, our clan was also acting in our own self-interest... I often wonder if I did these things to remove the curse within our clan or to prevent people from being harmed by evil spirits in the world... Which reason is more important to me..."

Are we selfish for dedicating ourselves to the cause of eliminating Muzan in order to remove the curse within our clan...? Will we ever be forgiven by the heavens...?

Kagaya used a slightly confused tone, which was unusual for him, as it was the only thing he didn't quite understand.

Chiba Yo listened to his lord's words from the side, somewhat surprised that his lord, who he thought could see through everything, would one day feel confused.

"My lord, I don't think you need to dwell on the motivation behind doing this."

There is a saying that a gentleman judges by actions, not intentions. Regardless of your starting point, the deeds your clan has done throughout their lives to help countless people harmed by evil spirits are indelible and absolutely selfless.

No matter the purpose, it cannot erase the achievements of your clan, so you don't need to be confused about this matter.

Moreover, your character is evident from the genuine respect everyone shows you. Regardless of their motives, you are our respected lord.

Chiba Yo shared his insights with Kagaya.

This scene was just like when he first met his lord and felt guilty for indirectly causing the death of a human during his first mission. His lord was guiding him, but this time the one being guided was his lord, and he was the one guiding his lord.

"Is that so..."

Chiba Yo's words warmed Yaozai's heart, and he also emerged from his confusion, feeling much lighter.

"Thank you... Yang... I understand..."

Yaozai smiled, his mood improving at that moment.

"My lord, you flatter me. Didn't you guide me in the same way when I was confused?"

Chiba Yo smiled and said, then he thought of something else from the truth he had just heard.

"If it's a curse, will your symptoms disappear along with Muzan after you defeat him?"

"It's unlikely... after all, I'm already like this... but my descendants should be free from the torment of this curse..."

Hearing Kagaya's words and seeing his serious illness, Kiriya, who was standing to the side, almost couldn't hold back his tears.

"Even if there's only a sliver of a chance, I must hold onto hope. I will definitely kill Muzan."

Chapter 141 Mitsuri cried, Obanai arrived, and Genya was in danger.

"Hmm...I believe you..."

Kagaya smiled and said after hearing Chiba Yo's words.

"Please take good care of yourself, my lord," Chiba Yang said solemnly.

In his view, if the illness was caused by a curse, then after Muzan was defeated and the curse disappeared, it was still possible for the lord to recover.

"I will……"

Chiba Yo's words also gave Kagaya hope. The final battle against Muzan was just around the corner. Even if killing Muzan would not make his illness disappear, he would persevere until he saw Muzan destroyed.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye, and the semi-annual Pillar Meeting was held again, but this time the participants were not only Pillars.

Arriving first at the courtyard of the lord's residence, Chiba Yang had barely left the house in the past three days, spending most of his time cultivating in his own courtyard, so he didn't know if the others had returned yet.

Because the news of his crow killing Upper Moon One had spread throughout the entire Demon Slayer Corps headquarters, he was greeted with praise whenever he went out. He couldn't handle such enthusiasm and had to lay low for a while. However, he really couldn't stay home today.

A short while later, Kyojuro arrived second and walked towards Chiba Yo after seeing him.

Next was Tanjiro, who greeted him and Kyojuro happily and ran over.

"It's Kamado boy. Have you also been promoted to a Pillar?" Kyojuro was a little puzzled by Tanjiro's arrival. He was unaware of the changes at this Pillar meeting.

"Huh? I'm not a pillar yet. I received orders from the crow to come and attend the meeting."

Tanjiro was also somewhat confused by Kyojuro's question. He had only been ordered by the crow to attend the meeting, but he didn't know what kind of meeting it was.

"Teacher, there have been some changes at this Pillar Meeting. In addition to the Pillars, swordsmen with strength close to that of the Pillars have also been invited to participate," Chiba Yo explained to Kyojuro.

"I see! The fact that the boy from the kitchen could participate shows that your strength has increased a lot!"

Kyojuro understood what was going on and praised Tanjiro.

"Compared to Brother Purgatory, I am still far behind you."

Tanjiro scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly upon hearing this.

In terms of strength, Tanjiro could have been promoted to a Pillar long ago. After all, he killed Daki on his own. Although she was the weakest of the Upper Moons, and might not even be as strong as Kaigaku who was just there to make up the numbers, she was still much stronger than the Lower Moons.

One of the conditions for becoming a Pillar is that one only needs to kill one of the Twelve Demon Moons. According to this condition, Tanjiro's strength is definitely sufficient.

However, the Lower Moons of the Twelve Demon Moons were almost completely wiped out by Muzan single-handedly, and the Upper Moons were too powerful. At this point, it was almost impossible to become a Pillar on the condition of eliminating the Twelve Demon Moons.

"Haha, it's really impressive that you have this kind of ability at your age! Keep up the good work and you'll surpass us one day!"

Kyojuro chuckled twice, encouraging Tanjiro.

After listening to Kyojuro's words, Tanjiro subconsciously looked at Chiba Yo. He was a little curious about how old Chiba Yo was, as he seemed to be older than him in appearance and personality.

"Well, I will definitely try my best!"

Tanjiro was a little curious but didn't ask. He nodded firmly and answered Kyojuro.

Immediately afterward, Muichiro and Mitsuri arrived. Like Kyojuro, they had returned a few days earlier. Muichiro's crow had previously pecked out a feather from Chiba Yo's crow, to which Chiba Yo responded with a mixture of sadness and amusement.

Upon seeing Mitsuri, Chiba Yo thought of Obanai. He looked around and realized that Obanai didn't seem to have arrived yet, nor was she in the tree.

Muichiro stood there as soon as he arrived, gazing at the clouds in the sky as if he were thinking about something. Because of the large number of people and the fact that only one Upper Moon swordsman came, almost none of them were injured during this trip to the swordsmith village.

Mitsuri ran enthusiastically towards them, chatting happily. She seemed to be in a good mood all the time; as long as she could eat her fill, she was happy every day.

Next to arrive was Genya, who also participated in the battle against Upper Moon Four. He was quite surprised when he saw Muichiro's breathing technique, because the breathing technique he learned from Chiba Yo was extremely similar to Muichiro's.

Genya then went to ask Muichiro, only to find that Muichiro only remembered the name and moves of the breathing technique, and had forgotten everything else.

Actually, there is a difference between the Breath of Mist and the Breath of Clouds developed by Chiba Yo. These two breathing techniques are fundamentally different. The Breath of Mist is derived from the Breath of Wind, so it is more aggressive and more violent.

Cloud Breathing is derived from Water Breathing by Chiba Yo, and its nature is gentler.

Genya ran towards Chiba Yo as soon as he saw him. He had also received the order from the crow, but he did not know that this was the Pillar Meeting, nor did he know that his brother would also be attending.

"Yang, I participated in the battle to kill the Upper Moon Four!"

Genmi said to Chiba Yang with some excitement that Yang was now like a mentor and friend to him, and he liked to share things with him.

"congratulation!"

Chiba Yo said to Genya with a smile.

After receiving Chiba Yo's congratulations, Genya remembered something else and said to Chiba Yo with some guilt, "But I failed to complete the task you entrusted to me..."

He really wanted to do this well, hoping to repay Chiba Yang's kindness to him, but the task was too difficult for him.