With a reputation of 70,000, one leader travels across countless worlds with his adventure team.

At this moment, Zenitsu, with his clear objective, killed two demons and seemed to sense something. He turned to look at a closed room across the way, closed his eyes, took a step back, and used Thunderclap Flash to leap into the opposite room.

Sheathing his sword and standing still, Zenitsu looked at the closed door in front of him and said:

"I heard you. Come out. I know you're inside."

The sliding door slowly opened, and a frivolous and manic voice came through the opening door:

"The way you talk to your senior brother is really inappropriate, although it seems much better than before..."

Kaigaku, having completely left the room, stood opposite Zenitsu. Zenitsu looked at his former senior, who was still wearing the Demon Slayer Corps uniform, except now with a blue ribbon around his waist.

Kaigaku's face has four black, tiger-stripe-like demon stripes and uniquely shaped eyebrows, making his face look extremely arrogant. One of his eyeballs is marked with "Upper Moon" and the other with "Riku".

Kaigaku was also observing Zenitsu, and seeing that Zenitsu was still wearing the same yellow striped haori as before, he said sarcastically:

"You're still the same poor wretched person, Zenitsu. You haven't changed at all. Are you still as cowardly as ever? Are you still spending all your time chasing after women?"

Zenitsu looked expressionlessly at the Upper Moon Sixth in Kaigaku's eyes and said:

"Ah~ If we hadn't killed the original Upper Moon Six siblings, I wonder if you would still be a candidate for the last Upper Moon. You seem quite happy now~"

Veins bulged on Kaigaku's face, but he still suppressed his anger and said:

"I don't know if people are powerful or not, but Zenitsu, your tongue is certainly getting sharper! What, did the old man teach you to train your tongue with Thunder Breathing before he died?"

"I studied breathing techniques so diligently back then, and the old man actually made me inherit Thunder Breathing alongside a piece of trash like you. Even if he's the former Sound Pillar, his senile personality is truly awful."

Upon hearing Kaigaku's words, Zenitsu's face contorted with rage, and he pointed at Kaigaku, sarcastically remarking:

"If I'm useless, then you're scum. With me only knowing the first form and you only knowing the first form and not the second, it's truly tragic that no one can inherit my mantle."

Don't compare me to a piece of trash like you!

Black lightning erupted from Kaigaku's body as he drew his sword and unleashed the Blood Demon Art-enhanced Thunder Breathing - Fourth Form: Far Thunder, striking Zenitsu.

Zenitsu dodged Kaigaku's attack without using much force, and even managed to slash Kaigaku's neck with his sword, saying:

"too slow!"

Kaigaku touched his bleeding neck. If Zenitsu had cut a few more times, Kaigaku would have split up and attacked. Kaigaku couldn't believe that Zenitsu, who used to be so cowardly and always crying, was now stronger than him.

"Type II: Rice Spirit, Type III: Mosquito Swarm Thunder, Type V: Heat Realm Thunder, Type VI: Lightning Boom"

Kaigaku unleashed a barrage of attacks with his Thunder Breathing technique, crackling with black lightning, but Zenitsu dodged them one after another, managing to escape the final blow before landing in mid-air.

Zenitsu lowered his head, closed his eyes slightly, took a step back, and assumed a sword-drawing stance, muttering to himself:

"I'm sorry, brother."

"Breath of Thunder - Seventh Form: Fire and Thunder God"

Like a lightning dragon flashing by, Zenitsu streaked past Kaigaku with yellow lightning before Kaigaku could react.

Zenitsu leaped forward with incredible speed and decapitated Kaigaku with a single strike. Kaigaku, still conscious, stared at Zenitsu, who had turned his back to him and sheathed his sword, muttering, "This is impossible..."

Before he could even warm up the Upper Moon Sixth Realm in his eyes, Kaigaku followed in the footsteps of the Upper Moon Sixth Realm siblings, turning into ashes scattered all over the ground.

 …

Just as Zenitsu and his senior Kaigaku were exchanging insults, the Mist Hashira, Tokito Muichiro, who had been teleported away once again, stood in front of an open space with a huge double door. Before Muichiro could explore his surroundings, a figure laughing wildly fell down from above.

In the Infinity Castle, Inosuke was like a wild boar plunging into the jungle, hacking and slashing through rooms and demons alike. He finally cleared the castle from one end to the other, and the boar that had lost its footing landed next to Muichiro.

"Oh~ it's Muichiro-kun. Are there any ghosts around here? I'm going to chop them to pieces, hahaha...hahaha!"

"..."

Muichiro stared speechlessly at the excited Inosuke, knowing that Inosuke had completely forgotten what was said at the war meeting.

At this moment, Muichiro and Inosuke both sensed something and drew their swords towards the room in front of them. At this moment, a strong pressure emanated from the room, and Inosuke's sensitive senses detected the monstrous aura within the room.

Inosuke, covered in sweat, said to Muichiro:

"Brother Muichiro, I sense a very powerful monster in the room."

At this moment, a slow and authoritative voice came from inside the room:

"Is it my turn yet? Demon Slayer Corps..."

The tall sliding door seemed to be slowly pulled open, and a figure kneeling on the ground came into Muichiro and Inosuke's view. Kokushibo raised his head, and six eyes on his face looked at Muichiro and Inosuke.

Kokushibo turned slightly to look at Muichiro, and said as he drew his sword:

"You give me a...familiar...feeling, a...nostalgic...aura."

Piggy, suppressing his trembling, read out the words that appeared in the middle of Kokushibo's eyes:

"Upward...One!"

Inosuke and Muichiro won the grand prize and faced Kokushibo, the Upper Moon One of the Twelve Demon Moons.

Kokushibo used his Transparent World to observe Muichiro and Inosuke's bodies. He saw that the two had firm muscles and that there was an energy flowing through their bodies with every move. Kokushibo did not know that this was the effect of the true energy of the Yi Jin Jing.

Kokushibo asked Muichiro:

"Kid, what's your...name?"

Muichiro exerted all his strength to control his trembling body, using his inner energy in conjunction with his breathing techniques to stabilize himself. He took a deep breath and said:

"Tokito... Muichiro"

"I see, so the surname Jiguo has disappeared."

"When I was still human, my name was Tsugikuni Iwakatsu. You are... the child I left behind in the Tsugikuni family, that is... my descendant!"

Muichiro's eyes widened in surprise. He hadn't expected that the person in front of him was actually the first generation of Breathing Technique swordsman, and also the brother of Yoriichi Tsugikuni, the founder of Breathing Technique, and the ancestor of his own family!

This news immediately shocked the two people present. Muichiro was shocked for a second, then his eyes regained their composure, and he raised his sword to look at Kokushibo and said:

"Since you are a swordsman who inherited the name of Tsugikuni, how can you be used to serve the Demon King Muzan?"

"Breath of Mist - Fourth Form: Horizontal Slash"

Muichiro didn't want to waste any more words with Kokushibo, so he immediately unleashed his breathing technique and started fighting!

Muichiro, rushing towards Kokushibo, saw Kokushibo make no move before the man vanished. At that moment, a voice came from nearby:

"Xia? Excellent breathing technique, excellent attack speed, but unfortunately, she's too inexperienced!"

"Beast Breathing - Third Fang: Fang Tear"

While Kokushibo and Muichiro were talking, Ino finally overcame the beast-like feeling that Kokushibo had given her when she first met him, and swung her twin swords at Kokushibo.

"Breath of the Moon - First Form: Dark Moon - Palace of the Night"

Kokushibo drew his sword faster than Muichiro and Inosuke could see. A crescent moon, carrying a bunch of tiny crescent-shaped blades, struck Inosuke. Inosuke twisted his flexible body in mid-air and did a somersault to dodge Kokushibo's attack.

"Beast's Breath - Fang of the Fourth Order: Shattering Slash"

Inobu used its breathing technique atop Kokushibo's head. The moment the attack was launched, the figure beneath the blade vanished. Muichiro sensed Kokushibo's movement and used "Fourth Form: Horizontal Slash" to chase after him, blocking Kokushibo's second attack aimed at Inobu.

"A good response, but...not enough."

As Kokushibo spoke, he held his sword level.

"Type Three - Aversion Moon - Erosion"

Two large crescent moons, one facing forward and the other backward, slashed towards Muichiro and Inu. The surrounding crescent-shaped blades shredded everything in their path, leaving marks on the floor, the wooden doors of the cubicles, and the ceiling.

At that moment, a meteor hammer suddenly flew in from above Kokushibo's head. "Second Form: Sky Shatter" smashed directly onto the two crescent-shaped sword energies, and Gyomei the Stone Pillar jumped down from above.

"Namo Amitabha!"

A rock pillar appeared, wielding an axe in one hand and retracting its flail in the other. Piggy, seeing the newcomer, happily shouted:

"Haha, the big monk has arrived too!"

The three then spread out and stood in formation, looking at Kokushibo who was standing there motionless. Without saying much, they took a deep breath, filled their bodies with the Yi Jin Jing, gripped their weapons tightly, and launched the 'Crimson Blade' to attack Kokushibo.

"Type One Serpentine Bipolar"

"Land Form - The Moon's Glow Fades"

"Beast Breathing - Eighth Form: Explosive Advance"

The three knew that if they couldn't kill the demon in front of them, they had no right to say they had killed Muzan, so they went all out and went into desperate mode!

"Hmph~ What a boring skill."

Kokushibo, seeing the three charging towards him, raised his sword and activated his breathing technique:

"Type 5 - Lunar Calamity Vortex"

A barrage of large, crescent-shaped attacks came toward the three of them. This time, the three of them coordinated their movements well, advancing and retreating with precision. Piggy leaped forward and attacked, stepping on the chain that Xingming had swung at him.

Muichiro activated "Seventh Form: Oboro," enveloping himself in a layer of mist and haze, thus dodging Kokushibo's crescent moon and continuing his attack on Kokushibo.

After two special training sessions, the Pillars are no longer the same as before. Having been trained by Hakutaku's super-fast attack speed, the Pillars can deal well with Kokushibo's attacks.

Gradually, Kokushibo also discovered that Muichiro and the others were not afraid of his injuries at all. Sometimes, the three people hit by his attacks did not dodge at all, but continued to attack him despite their wounds.

However, during the interval between the three's attacks, Kokushibo noticed that Ino took something out of his waist and took a sip;

The pig's arm, which had almost been severed, began to regenerate at a visible speed, and then the pig excitedly shouted and charged at Kokushibo again.

Kokushibo's forehead veins bulged with anger. He unleashed "Second Form: Pearl Moon Dance" to repel Gyomei. Observing that Gyomei also took out something to drink, Kokushibo angrily said:

"Is this how you, the swordsmen of this generation, fight? Are you trying to humiliate me?"

The pig said with a smile:

"Hahaha~ The potions that Lord Bai Ze and Flower Butterfly prepared are beyond the reach of a ghost like you. Just obediently get chopped into pieces and roll back to the underworld!"

Having already opened the Transparent World, the three were not afraid of Kokushibo at all. Gradually mastering Kokushibo's attack methods, the three prepared to take down Kokushibo in one fell swoop.

"Ding! Ding! Ding!"

The four people's attack completely destroyed everything in the room, and the air currents and breathing techniques that were like explosions were thrown in all directions from time to time.

Gyomei seized the opportunity Muichiro had created for him, and his meteor hammer smashed directly into Kokushibo's sword. Kokushibo's sword was instantly smashed into three pieces, leaving only the small part above the hilt in his hand.

"Humph~"

At this moment, Kokushibo gripped the sword in his hand, and the blade began to slowly lengthen, with several horizontal blades growing out from the top and bottom edges of the blade.

Xingming and the other two gripped their knives tightly once more. Was this the real beginning?

"Form One: Dust Whirlwind - Slash!"