Chapter 74.2: The One Who Ends It All!

A moment later, the two sisters parted. Shinobu, having let go of her earlier mood, solemnly apologized to Chu Yang again.

Chu Yang waved it off, clearly not bothered by it.

Then, Chu Yang and Kanae left the Butterfly Mansion, accompanied by the Kakushi, and headed for headquarters. Although the situation was urgent, they followed protocol and had their eyes securely covered.

In critical moments like these, maintaining a calm mindset and sticking to routine were essential.

Chu Yang, being quite tall, required considerable effort from the Kakushi to transport him to headquarters. By the time they arrived, the sun had already set.

Kagaya Ubuyashiki and the other Hashira were waiting for them.

Before his blindfold was even removed, Chu Yang already sensed the familiar presence.

Gyomei Himejima stood at the front of the group, walking towards Chu Yang with a compassionate smile on his face. He personally removed the blindfold from Chu Yang's eyes.

"Well done," Gyomei said softly before turning to lead Chu Yang and Kanae into the courtyard.

Kagaya Ubuyashiki stood in the courtyard, quietly observing Chu Yang. Although he wasn't fully blind yet, his vision was quite blurry, and he could only make out a vague silhouette of the young man.

As their gazes met, even for just a moment, a flurry of images flashed through Kagaya's mind.

The images flickered rapidly, eventually freezing on one.

Kagaya's breathing quickened.

He walked briskly to Chu Yang and grasped his hand, trembling with excitement.

"You are the one who will end it all!"

The one who will end it all.

Everyone's expressions drastically changed. The weight of Kagaya's words was immense, symbolizing the hope of the Demon Slayer Corps after nearly a thousand years of conflict with demons—a light at the end of the long struggle.

Not far behind Chu Yang, Kanae, covering her mouth, was overcome with emotion, tears glistening in her eyes.

She had come here today just to hear those words from the Master.

"The one who will end it all," Gyomei murmured, hands clasped together, bowing his head in prayer as tears streamed down his face.

"Hahaha, looks like my luck is pretty good. I haven't been a Hashira for long, and I might actually get to see the day when all the demons are slain."

While everyone else was still in shock, a boy about the same age as Kanae let out a hearty laugh. His sun-like, red-gold hair caught Chu Yang's attention.

Most of the Hashira of this generation were around the same age, including Kanae, all around seventeen or eighteen—quite young, like high school seniors in modern times.

They had all become Hashira around the same time.

Tengen Uzui and Gyomei Himejima were a bit older, one being twenty-three and the other twenty-five.

"Rengoku Kyojuro, stop joking around. That kid's so young and has only been in the Demon Slayer Corps for a few months. You don't seriously believe he could have killed an Upper Moon all by himself, do you?"

The boy who mocked Chu Yang had a long scar across his face, running over his nose, and his spiky silver hair was particularly striking.

Most noticeable of all was his attitude; of all the people Chu Yang had met, he was by far the most arrogant.

Chu Yang could clearly sense it—this silver-haired boy didn't think much of anyone else in the courtyard.

"Shut up, Sanemi!" Kanae glared angrily at the boy, her voice cold. "Do you think I can't tell the difference between truth and lies? Or do you believe that just any random demon could leave me utterly defenseless?"

As she spoke, Kanae placed her hand on the hilt of her Nichirin Blade, her tone heavy. "If you doubt my abilities so much, why don't you try me yourself?"

"I didn't mean it that way, Kanae!" Realizing his mistake, Sanemi Shinazugawa became flustered and quickly tried to explain, "What I meant was, those demons might have been Lower Moons. Even if they weren't as strong as an Upper Moon, they—"

His explanation only made Kanae's expression darker.

"You really don't know how to talk, do you, Sanemi?" Mitsuri Kanroji, the youngest Hashira, widened her eyes and shook her head in exasperation. "How have you survived with such a sharp tongue?"

"You, watch your mouth!" Sanemi snapped, his teeth gritted as if he was about to bite someone.

Chu Yang reached out and gently pressed down the blade Kanae had half-drawn, smiling, "There's a better way to prove it."

With that, he walked toward Sanemi, beckoning with his finger. "Why don't you test it out for yourself?"

Sanemi grinned wickedly. "You don't think I'll go easy on you, do you?"

Kanae frowned deeply, clearly unhappy with the situation.

"You look like a lovesick, rebellious teen," Chu Yang clicked his tongue, smirking. "You're eighteen, aren't you? Surely you're not still like that?"

"Bastard!" Sanemi lunged at Chu Yang with incredible speed, air currents swirling around him as he clearly activated his breathing technique, though he hadn't drawn his sword to use any combat forms.

As a practitioner of Wind Breathing, Sanemi was known for his speed. Among all the Hashira, he was the fastest—both in attack and movement.

To the others watching, Sanemi seemed to vanish, only to reappear right in front of Chu Yang. Before Chu Yang had a chance to react, Sanemi's fist was already flying towards his face.

Gyomei and Kyojuro immediately moved to shield Kagaya, while the others began to gather around. No matter Chu Yang's strength, Sanemi himself posed a potential danger to the Master.

Kagaya, however, remained focused on the two of them, his eyes unblinking.

Sanemi Shinazugawa was at least fair; he didn't use any weapons and attacked Chu Yang with his bare fists. Perhaps deep down, he felt Chu Yang wasn't even worthy of facing his blade.

However, just as Sanemi's fist was about to strike Chu Yang's cheek, he saw something that made him hesitate—was it a hallucination? Chu Yang seemed to be smiling at him. To be precise, he was looking directly at Sanemi with a smile.

Sanemi froze for a moment.

Why was he smiling?

As his fist landed on Chu Yang's cheek, a crisp sound suddenly rang out.

The sound of bones breaking.

Sanemi's lips curled slightly upward.

The pain from a fractured facial bone was excruciating, and he hoped this kid wouldn't scream too loudly, lest it seem like he was bullying him.

But in the next second, Sanemi's expression changed dramatically.

An unbearable, piercing pain was coming from his knuckles, growing increasingly intense.

Sanemi finally realized that the bone that broke wasn't Chu Yang's—it was his own.

This guy didn't even dodge; he just took the punch head-on!

A chill ran down Sanemi's spine. Instinctively, he tried to pull away from Chu Yang, but the moment he attempted to withdraw, he felt his arm being tightly gripped by something.

Sanemi looked up. Chu Yang had already caught his arm, his smile deepening, laced with an icy coldness.

Sanemi shuddered, a flash of fear crossing his face.

In desperation, he reached for his Nichirin Blade with his other hand.

Chu Yang noticed Sanemi's move but didn't stop him. In his eyes, Sanemi's resistance was no more threatening than Doma's.

He wanted everyone present to witness his overwhelming power.

Sanemi was just a pitiful comparison.

Burning with rage, Sanemi no longer held back. He drew his Nichirin Blade and, without hesitation, slashed at Chu Yang's hand.

He didn't believe that even under these circumstances, Chu Yang would still not let go.

Everyone held their breath, watching this intense scene. Gyomei Himejima wanted to intervene, but Kagaya Ubuyashiki gently tugged at his sleeve, stopping him.

"Don't move," Kagaya said softly, keeping everyone in place.

Kanao seemed relatively calm, as she had a suspicion that Sanemi's Nichirin Blade might not be able to cut through Chu Yang's hand.

Under everyone's gaze, Sanemi's Nichirin Blade clashed with Chu Yang's arm, producing sparks in an instant, like two equally hard metals colliding.

Everyone's pupils contracted, their faces filled with disbelief.

The most astonished person of all was Sanemi!

But Chu Yang didn't give him time to react. As the Nichirin Blade fell, Chu Yang raised his right fist and punched Sanemi square in the face.

Thud!

Blood blossomed like a flower in the air.

"Aaaargh!!!"

Sanemi let out a scream as he flew through the air, the agony he was enduring unimaginable.

Even though Chu Yang had held back, Sanemi's facial bones were likely fractured.

After landing, Sanemi's head was spinning. He struggled to get up, but his limbs wouldn't respond.

Blood blurred his vision as he squinted, glaring at Chu Yang.

Just one punch!

Just one exchange!

He was utterly defeated by this man in front of him!

The other hadn't even drawn his Nichirin Blade!

And he had given it his all!

Complete defeat!

Undoubtedly, an utter defeat!

With his pride, how could Sanemi tolerate such a loss? He gripped his Nichirin Blade tightly in defiance.

"Wind Breathing, Ninth Form: Idaten Typhoon!"

Sanemi charged toward Chu Yang again, unleashing a full-force attack. His blade slashed out numerous wind blades that swirled around Chu Yang, like a real typhoon.

Chu Yang stood in the eye of the storm, enduring the most terrifying assault!

Kanae, worried about how intense the battle had become, took a few steps forward. She feared that if things continued, Chu Yang might accidentally kill Sanemi.

At this level of combat, it was difficult to hold back.

Countless wind blades slashed across Chu Yang's body. Through the tornado-like winds, people could faintly hear the sound of metal clashing and occasional bursts of sparks, brilliant as fireworks.

Only Sanemi, like Chu Yang, could clearly see within the storm's center. He noticed that Chu Yang wasn't actively defending against the dense wind blades. Instead, he stood there, watching Sanemi with amusement.

It was as if his gaze was saying…

Is this really your full strength?

Sanemi, unwilling to accept this, wanted to roar, but all he could taste was bitterness.

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