Demon Slayer: The Second God Who Walks the Earth

"Brother, it was all my fault back then. I misunderstood you and said such hurtful things. I'm sorry! I've been looking for you all these years. Please let me stay by your side no matter what!"

Xuanmi spoke aloud what he had kept in his heart for many years. Due to his excitement and nervousness, fine beads of sweat even appeared on his face.

Having finally seen his brother again, and having finally mustered the courage to speak his mind, Genya nervously looked at Sanemi. However, Sanemi's next words were like a bucket of cold water poured over his head.

"Stop shamelessly calling me 'brother, brother.' I don't have a younger brother, and I don't care what you say. Now get lost." After saying this, Sanemi turned and left.

Xuanmi was left standing there, stunned and at a loss. He had always imagined the scene of reuniting with his brother. He imagined that his brother might scold him or even hit him for his behavior back then. After all, he had gone too far. Even if his brother was gentle, he probably wouldn't forgive him immediately.

But he never imagined that his brother would completely disown him. His brother, who had always been incredibly gentle to his younger siblings, was now speaking so harshly.

It's all my fault... If I hadn't said those things back then... at least we would still have each other... But now...

This is what I deserve, isn't it? The younger brother I risked my life to protect ended up calling me a murderer. How much pain must my older brother have been going through? Even if he hates me, it's understandable...

Genya stood there, his fists clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his flesh without him even realizing it. Self-blame and guilt filled his heart. He didn't even notice that Sanemi had already walked away. But even if Sanemi hadn't left him, it would be difficult for him to say anything now.

"Is everything okay?"

A voice rang in Genmi's ear, and Chiba Yang patted Genmi's shoulder, looking at him with some concern.

Although it is still unclear what exactly happened between Genya and the Wind Pillar, Chiba Yo could tell that Genya must be feeling very bad right now.

"It's all my fault... I misunderstood my brother... and said such hurtful things..." Xuanmi, who had been holding back his emotions, finally couldn't hold back anymore, and tears streamed down his face.

Chiba Yo didn't know what had happened, nor did he know how to comfort Genya, so he could only stay by his side.

After a while, Xuanmi's emotions gradually calmed down, but because of what had just happened, neither of them was in the mood to cultivate for the time being, so they sat together on the steps outside the barracks and started chatting.

"Thank you." After what had just happened, Genya's goodwill towards Chiba Yang had increased considerably, and he thanked Chiba Yang.

“It’s nothing, you…” Chiba Yo was about to ask what was going on between him and Kazehachi, but he couldn’t bring himself to ask when he thought of Genya’s sad expression.

However, to his surprise, Xuanmi took the initiative to talk to him about it.

"You must be curious about what happened between my brother and me, right? My brother used to be a very gentle person, and the reason he's become like this is all because of me..."

Genya is also looking for someone to confide in, and Chiba Yo is a perfect candidate.

Hearing that Genmi was willing to speak, Chiba Yo listened attentively.

"My brother and I were born into an ordinary urban family. There are seven siblings in the family. I am the second oldest, and my brother is the eldest."

We had a father who often gambled and beat us and our mother. Whenever our father beat us, our petite mother would shield us with her body.

Later, my wicked father was stabbed to death by our enemy, leaving my brothers and me to depend on our mother. My older brother said to me then, "Dad's been stabbed to death, so from now on we'll protect everyone." What do you mean by "from now on"? It's clearly the two of us who will be relying on each other from now on!

I still remember my brother's gentle smile clearly.

Our father's death didn't cause us too much grief. When he was alive, he would only scold and beat us. After that, the seven of us brothers and our mother lived a difficult life together. Although we were poor, we were content. As long as we had each other, we were already very happy.

But this life changed one night…

At this point, a look of pain appeared on Xuanmi's face. This was clearly a memory he didn't want to recall, but he continued speaking anyway.

"That night, my mother didn't come back. I stayed home to take care of my younger siblings, while my older brother went out to look for our mother."

However, they still hadn't returned by almost dawn. I told my younger siblings to go to sleep first, but then there was a sudden, urgent knocking on the door.

My younger siblings thought their mother had returned, so they immediately opened the door. A dark shadow darted into the room and instantly killed my siblings who had opened the door. My face was also slashed by the shadow, and my last brother in my arms was also wounded to the point of near death.

At that moment, my brother rushed in, grabbed the dark figure, and ran out of the room, telling me to run away quickly.

When I came to my senses, I was the only one left in the room who could move. Looking at my brother, who was on the verge of death, I went out to find a doctor.

However, on the way, they encountered the older brother wielding a kitchen knife and the mother lying in a pool of blood…

Chapter 14 Xuanmi Becomes a Disciple

At this point in the story, Chiba Yo already had a guess in his mind: the dark figure was very likely Genya's mother. After all... for someone who had just become a demon, the flesh and blood of their blood relatives were the most attractive thing.

Sure enough, Xuanmi's next words confirmed his guess.

"My mind went blank at the time. Without thinking, I blurted out that I was questioning my brother about why he killed our mother, and I shouted that he was a murderer..."

Genmi's crossed hands trembled as feelings of self-blame and guilt washed over him once more.

"My brother didn't say anything at the time. He stood there for a while, then turned and left."

As the sun rose, my mother's body turned to ashes, and the bodies of my younger siblings also grew cold and fell silent. Only then did I gradually realize that the dark shadow that had attacked us was my mother.

To protect us brothers and sisters, the older brother fought the monster to the death at dawn. When he pushed the monster out of the house and saw that the shadowy figure was his mother, what were his feelings?

How did he feel when he killed his own mother and suffered a mental breakdown, and then heard his younger brother, whom he had risked his life to protect, verbally abuse him?

It's all my fault for being so foolish and ignorant, that my brother has to bear all this alone... He must hate me so much, right? That's why he won't acknowledge me as his brother. But that's understandable, after all..."

"No! That's absolutely not how it is!" Chiba Yang interrupted Genya, looking at him seriously.

Genmi paused for a moment upon hearing this, then looked up at Chiba Yo.

"If, as you say, your brother is a very gentle person, then he would definitely understand your situation at the time, since you didn't know that the monster that injured you was your mother. Even if you had grievances about your actions at the time, he certainly wouldn't deny it."

"There must be another reason why he's unwilling to admit it," Chiba Yo said with absolute certainty.

Chiba Yo's words made Genya understand in an instant. He had been immersed in self-blame and guilt, and naturally assumed that his brother was blaming him for what happened back then, which was why he did not acknowledge him as his brother.

After hearing Chiba Yo's words, he finally understood that his brother was clearly the gentlest person in the world, so how could he not acknowledge him for this reason?

"Could it be that he doesn't want to acknowledge you because he wants you to stay away from him?" Chiba Yang voiced his guess.

"You want me to stay away from him? Why?" Xuanmi asked, somewhat confused.

“Mr. Sanemi is a Pillar of the Demon Slayer Corps, right? He must be facing extremely powerful demons. If he acknowledges you, you are very likely to be drawn into his battle, which would be very dangerous for you, wouldn’t it?” Chiba Yo said, looking at Genya.

Upon hearing Chiba Yo's explanation, Genya gradually understood his meaning.

"Are you saying that my brother doesn't acknowledge me because he doesn't want me to get involved in danger?" Xuanmi asked.

Chiba Yo nodded and continued, "That's right. Didn't he initially tell you to leave the Demon Slayer Corps? This matter clearly has nothing to do with the topic you were discussing. The reason he suddenly said something like that must be because he didn't want you to be in danger because of your identity as a Demon Slayer Corps swordsman."

Chiba Yo became more and more convinced that his guess was correct. He hadn't seen the Wind Pillar act so roughly when he first met him at the Butterfly Mansion.

"Is that really true? Does my brother really not hold any resentment or blame towards me?"

Hearing Chiba Yo's explanation, Genya gradually became excited. If this guess was true, it meant that his brother still loved him. As long as he knew this, other things were not so important. As long as their feelings for each other were still there, all the problems would be solved sooner or later.

“Based on my speculation, it’s like this: you said your brother is a very gentle person, so it’s perfectly reasonable that he wouldn’t want his younger brother to be in danger,” Chiba Yo replied.

"That's great! In that case, I'll go and talk to my brother right now. I'm not afraid of any danger. I'll be content as long as I can stay with my brother." Genmi said excitedly, and immediately stood up to go find Sanemi.

Chiba Yang's mind went blank for a moment. He didn't expect Genmi's first reaction after hearing his explanation to be like this. Anyone could see that going to find him now would be the worst thing to do!

After regaining his senses, Chiba Yo grabbed Genya.

Genmi turned to look at Chiba Yo with a puzzled expression, not understanding why he would do such a thing.

“If my guess is true, if you go to Mr. Sanemi now, he definitely won’t admit it. He might even treat you more roughly in order to get you to leave the Demon Slayer Corps,” Chiba Yo explained helplessly to Genya.

“That’s true…” Chiba Yo’s words brought Genya back to his senses, and he gave up the idea of ​​immediately going to find Sanemi.

"Then does that mean I'll never be able to acknowledge my brother?" Genya quickly realized the new problem. If Sanemi's idea was to not let him stay in the Demon Slayer Corps and not let him encounter danger, then he would never acknowledge him.

Genmi's mood became even more depressed upon realizing this.

"Of course not. Once all the demons in the world disappear, then Mr. Sanemi won't need to stay in the Demon Slayer Corps, and he'll be able to recognize you, right? The Demon Slayer Corps might even disband then," Chiba Yo said, shaking his head at Genya.

. . . . . . .

The air suddenly fell silent, and a few seconds passed like that.

Chiba Yo realized that this condition seemed a bit far-fetched, so he coughed twice and continued, "Of course, there is another way. As long as you can put your brother at ease and stop worrying about your safety, then the two of you should be able to recognize each other."

This method is obviously much more reliable than the previous one. Genya nodded in agreement and said, "In other words, what I need to do now is to find a way to become stronger so that my brother can recognize me. If I can become a Pillar, then I can see my brother more often."

“That’s right, that’s exactly it.” Seeing Genya regain his spirits, Chiba Yo felt a sense of accomplishment.

"If you want to become stronger, you must find a powerful teacher, right? Do you know who the strongest member of the Demon Slayer Corps is?" Genya pondered for a moment and then asked Chiba Yo.

"The strongest member of the Demon Slayer Corps? I remember Rengoku-sensei mentioning it to me. According to him, it's the Stone Pillar, Gyomei Himejima. He seems to live in the mountains over there, but I don't know if he's on a mission right now."

Chiba Yo recalled what Kyojuro had mentioned to him before, and pointed in a direction next to the barracks.

"Alright! I'll go find Mr. Beimingyu and become his disciple right now!" Upon hearing this news, Xuanmi couldn't sit still any longer. He stood up and ran towards the direction of Qianye Yangzhi.

However, after running a few steps, he stopped again, turned around and waved to Chiba Yang.

"Thank you for today, Yang."

After saying that, he turned around and continued running in that direction.

They really do look alike, after all, they're brothers...

Watching Genmi's departing figure, Chiba Yo thought to himself.

"Gah! Gah! Gah! South, south, west! South, south, west! There are signs of a ghost in the southwest! Chiba Yang, run! Run!"

Chapter 15 The first mission

The loud crow of the crow rang in Chiba Yang's ears, and he picked up his Nichirin Blade and stood up from the steps.

The first mission has finally arrived? You devils, just wait, I will annihilate you all!

Following the crow's directions, Chiba Yo ran southwest. Unexpectedly, when he passed a courtyard, he saw Shinazugawa Sanemi again. At this moment, he was sitting on the steps, feeding a small dog in front of him with a piece of hagi mochi, with a gentle smile on his scarred face.

However, his smile quickly disappeared, and he seemed somewhat worried. At this moment, the puppy had finished eating the hagi mochi in his hand, barked twice, wagged its tail at him, and Sanemi patted the puppy's head before turning around and going into the house.

You were right, Genya. Mr. Sanemi is indeed a very gentle person.

Witnessing all this, Chiba Yo became even more certain of his guess. However, he had a mission to complete, so he did not linger there and continued running southwest.

As night fell, the stars twinkled and the moonlight was hazy.

Following the crow's guidance, Chiba Yo arrived at the place it had indicated, and he was now in the forest outside a small town.

If you want to find traces of ghosts, you should definitely ask the locals.

The crow could only point out the general location of the demon; the exact location would require the members of the Demon Slayer Corps to investigate on their own. Chiba Yo planned to go to this town to inquire about it.

"Little Firefly... Little Firefly..."

Just as he was about to set off, a voice calling out someone's name came from afar.

The voice was already somewhat hoarse, but it still didn't stop.

Out of curiosity, and also because he felt that it might be related to ghosts, Chiba Yo began to move closer to the direction of the voice.

"Little Firefly—Little Firefly—"

The closer you get, the more you can hear the weariness in that voice, along with anxiety and worry.

Chiba Yo quickly found the source of the voice: a boy of about sixteen years old, whose clothes were somewhat worn, whose face was haggard, and whose eyes were bloodshot, as if he hadn't rested for a long time.

Upon seeing Chiba Yo, the boy immediately ran towards him.

"Have you seen my sister? A ten-year-old girl, wearing a cherry blossom hair accessory, about this tall." The boy gestured with his hands to Chiba Yang, his tone anxious, looking at Chiba Yang with some expectation.

"No." Chiba Yo shook his head, then asked him, "Did something happen?"

Upon hearing Chiba Yang's answer, the boy's eyes quickly dimmed, and then he replied in a hoarse voice, "My sister is missing. Three days ago, she and her friends came here to play a ghost-catching game in the evening, but she never came back. I came here to look for her that night, but she and all her friends have disappeared."

The townspeople who had lost their children contacted the police. The police searched the area for two days, but only found some bloodstains. They concluded that the children had been eaten by some wild animal and dropped the investigation…

The boy's voice choked as he spoke, and his body trembled slightly. He continued, "But I've lived here for over ten years and have never seen any wild animals. Xiaoying must still be alive. I have to find her..."

As the boy spoke, he took a step forward and continued to walk unsteadily. His legs had begun to tremble, probably because he had been walking without rest.

It must have been made by a ghost...

Chiba Yo looked at the boy with pity. He hadn't been able to find her in three days, so his sister had probably met with some misfortune.

Suddenly, the boy stumbled and lost his balance, falling to the ground.

Upon seeing this, Chiba Yo immediately stepped forward to support him. The boy's body was already very weak, and it was unknown how long he had been searching like this.

"Are you alright?" Chiba Yo asked with some concern.

"It's nothing..." the boy replied, and then immediately tried to continue walking forward.

"Let me help you," Chiba Yang said to the boy.

Although Chiba Yang felt that the boy's sister had little chance of surviving, he still wanted to help him. Moreover, what the boy was talking about might have been done by a demon, so following him would increase the chances of finding the demon.

Turning his head and seeing Chiba Yo's sincere eyes, the boy nodded and agreed.