Chapter 26: Cunning Demon

Doma, having witnessed what seemed to be divine power descending from the heavens the night before, had his understanding of the world shattered. For hundreds of years, he had never encountered any evidence of deities. Even when he devoured shrine maidens within sacred grounds, no divine retribution had ever befallen him.

He had long believed that gods, Buddhas, heaven, and hell were mere fantasies created by humans. If humans yearned so desperately for eternal bliss, then consuming them and making them part of him, thus granting them immortality, was his way of "saving" them.

However, after witnessing the miracle with his own eyes, Doma realized that gods did indeed exist. He also received an order from Muzan Kibutsuji to uncover the nature of this divine phenomenon. Yet, after nearly dying the previous night, he was hesitant to venture near that mountain again.

By using the followers of the Paradise Faith Cult, Doma learned that the Demon Slayer Corps had entered the mountain. He had his followers keep watch until they finally spotted two female Demon Slayers leaving the mountain. Even after they left, Doma waited until they were far from the mountain before revealing himself.

"Hahaha, trying to provoke me won't work, little Demon Slayers. I just want to know the secrets of that mountain. Why not tell me? Otherwise, I'm afraid you might die before you even realize it," Doma's deceitfully gentle voice echoed around the Kocho sisters.

"Hmph, filthy demon, your end is near. The gods of the heavens are already watching over this land," Shinobu retorted fiercely. "You must be one of the Upper Moons. If you dare come out, Raiden-sama's divine judgment will strike you down."

Despite her harsh words, her body was tense. Her swordsmanship wasn't as advanced as her sister's, and she wasn't confident in fighting even a Lower Moon demon. The Upper Moons were said to be on a completely different level of power, and many Pillars of the Demon Slayer Corps had fallen to them over the centuries. Though her sister was formidable, Shinobu doubted she could defeat an Upper Moon, hence her attempt to scare the demon off by revealing some information about the gods.

"Raiden... So my guess was correct. You did learn a lot from that shrine," Doma mused, his voice filled with feigned regret.

"But since you seem to dislike me so much, I suppose I'll have to use some more... persuasive methods."

The surrounding trees began to rustle ominously. Shinobu and Kanae stood back-to-back, their senses on high alert.

A clawed hand pushed aside the branches, revealing a grotesque demon face. The creature lunged at them with a shriek.

"These women are mine! I want to eat their brains!"

"Breath of Flowers, Fourth Form: Crimson Hanagoromo!"

Kanae immediately entered her breathing technique, gripping her Nichirin Blade with both hands as she executed her sword skill. The blade swung down in a beautiful yet deadly arc, slicing the demon's head off just as it was about to strike, turning it to ash almost instantly.

The rustling grew louder, and soon, eight more demons burst from the forest, ravenous and desperate.

"Demon Slayers! It's the Demon Slayers! They're the ones the master wants!"

"I don't care! I just want an arm!"

"As long as they're alive, it doesn't matter! I want a leg!"

As the demons charged, Kanae took a deep breath. It was clear the Upper Moon intended to capture them alive, using these weaker demons to exhaust their strength. This cunning was far beyond the mere survival instinct of ordinary demons.

"This is an Upper Moon... So clever, so dangerous," Kanae thought, readying herself for the fight of her life.

"Although I know you were once pitiful and tragic humans, I'm sorry, I have to kill you now."

Kanae Kocho's voice was gentle. She understood that before turning into demons, they were humans who had lost control to their cannibalistic instincts, often killing their own loved ones. Surely, they too were suffering from immense inner turmoil. All of this evil stemmed from the progenitor of demons, Muzan Kibutsuji.

"Breath of Flowers, Fifth Form: Peony of Futility!"

With incredible speed, Kanae's Nichirin Blade slashed in all directions, the blade's trajectory resembling a peony blooming instantly. The demons charging from all sides were sliced into pieces as the peony bloomed, their grotesque faces still etched with a greedy hunger for human flesh.

"Cunning Upper Moon! Come out! No matter how many of these weaklings you send, my sister won't need a second strike!"

Shinobu Kocho, ever perceptive, understood the demon's tactic—to drain their stamina.

"Hehehe, provocation won't work on me. Pillars are indeed formidable, but humans are such inferior beings with limited stamina. Once you're exhausted, we can have a proper chat about the secrets of that shrine," the demon's falsely gentle voice made Shinobu grit her teeth.

"Damn, cunning demon!"

"Sister, it's trying to wear us down. Leave these weaklings to me, and go find it. If we run out of strength, we're done for," Shinobu whispered, her voice tense with determination.

"Yes, that's the best plan. But Shinobu, be careful," Kanae responded, slicing through three charging demons with a single stroke before rushing towards the direction of the demon's voice.

"Even though the mountain's echo is strong, I've learned to discern sound direction from our days in the mountains with our parents, gathering herbs and evading wild beasts."

As Kanae pursued the Upper Moon, Shinobu shattered a vial of wisteria flower powder on the ground, releasing a cloud of the potent powder.

The five charging demons were immediately enveloped in the smoke, coughing and screaming.

"Cough, cough! What is this stuff? My eyes! I can't see, I have no strength!"

"Damn Demon Slayer! What poison is this?"

Without wasting any words, Shinobu swiftly thrust her Nichirin Blade, coated with wisteria extract, at the demons.

"Breath of Insects, Butterfly Dance: Caprice!"

The thin blade, too slender to decapitate, left delicate yet lethal stabs on each demon's neck.

"Ahhh! It hurts!"

The wisteria extract took effect, causing the demons' faces to turn purple and rot as they clutched their necks, vomiting blood.

"Ahh, what did you do, you vile woman?"

Before they could utter another word, the five demons died in agony.

"Hmph, you don't always need to cut off their heads to kill demons! The wisteria poison you fear so much works just as well." Shinobu faced the approaching demons, pulling out five more vials of powder from her pouch.

"All demons deserve to die! Die already!"

She shattered the vials on the ground, raising another thick cloud of smoke. In the ensuing chaos, Shinobu and the demons clashed, the air filled with their curses and screams.

Meanwhile...

Kanae Kocho halted her steps in front of a Jizo shrine, looking ahead with steely determination.

"Finally, I've found you, Upper Moon."