"Doma-sama!! Take this seriously! That person is clearly dangerous!" Mugen shouted, assisting Daki against a group of demons.
Muzan was some distance away, yet the former delinquent could distinctly feel the murderous aura radiating from the silhouette of the Demon King.
Cold sweat ran down his back.
"I already thought Akaza was terrifying… but this creature is in a completely different league," he couldn't help thinking as he tightened his grip on his Kuri knives.
Despite his "talent," he knew full well that he was useless right now.
It was precisely at that moment that the true leader of Shadow revealed herself, holding something in her hand.
"Indeed, Dôma-dono. The Demon King cannot be underestimated," Lin added, backing up the words of her direct subordinate.
The demon woman who had been leading the shadows from even deeper darkness finally stepped into everyone's light.
(Image)
Lin's appearance hadn't changed in over 98 years of activity.
Her figure blended an athletic body with a predatory aura, further intensified since she had abandoned her humanity for eternal youth.
"P-please! I didn't want to be part of any of this! I was forced!" pleaded the head that Lin was casually carrying as she arrived.
"Shut up, or I'll carve you up," Lin snapped in an icy tone.
Even reduced to nothing more than an intact head, the demon reacted sharply to the threat.
Her teary eyes were answer enough to Lin's warning.
"Danna-sama!! Take your time!" shouted a familiar voice Doma hadn't heard in weeks.
"Indeed, we're not in danger… or are we~?" Kikyo replied confidently, then gave him a tender smile.
Neither Kikyo's nor Kaguya's voice showed the slightest trace of fear after Muzan's transformation.
The two women had trust—no, they had faith in their husband's strength.
"Don't look away!!" Ubume cried out, instantly lunging at Kikyo the moment she sensed an opening.
"That idiot really dared to drop her guard in front of me? She's going to pay dearly…" she thought as she attacked beneath her signature illusion.
Unfortunately, she had been too hasty and failed to assess the situation properly.
The reckless former mother crashed into a barrier and nearly lost a limb to a flesh whip strike.
'No, not those flesh whips…' she thought, dread filling her heart.
Ever since their last fight, Ubume knew:
Kikyo inflicted wounds that could not be recovered from unless the demon remodeled their body with fresh biomass.
And even then, remodeling the body didn't truly heal the victim of Kikyo's attacks.
It was a soul wound!
No demon knew how to deal with that kind of injury, which was also why Ubume both hated (envied) and subtly feared Kikyo.
"Why does such power belong to a woman so gentle?" she muttered, glaring at Kikyo while nocking another arrow.
Kikyo's kindness was the only reason Ubume found the courage to challenge her again.
Yet she had forgotten that even herbivores can turn into predators under the right circumstances.
Thus, another flesh whip glowing with unknown energy was already aimed straight at Ubume.
…
"Your toys really do care about you, Doma," she said in a neutral voice, without the slightest hint of visible anger.
Even though the ice demon's next words surprised Muzan, she wasn't thrown off for long.
After all, she was one of the few people who truly knew Doma.
"I admit I'm a little curious about your method of 'education' or persuasion," Muzan declared, glancing toward Dôma's companions.
That was also why the Demon King decided to remain calm in the face of what seemed like childish behavior from the former Upper Moon.
She knew it would be a fatal mistake to face Doma impulsively.
"Oh, you're choosing to ignore my remarks? *sigh* What a shame," Doma said in a fake-sad tone from behind his fan.
"As for the method? I simply let my followers choose of their own free will, Muzan-san~" he explained, looking at the white creature.
Muzan remained silent, as if trying to grasp the logic behind Doma's actions.
Unfortunately, there wasn't really any.
Dôma was merely imitating Ogai Mori's approach from Bungo Stray Dogs and Aizen's from Bleach, adding his own life experience into the mix.
He had never forced anyone to follow him, nor his life principles, and certainly not to trust him.
The worshippers at the temple had done so willingly. The same went for the shadow group, who could have fled after their training.
There were no chains in the cult.
"I chose the path of respect, and you chose the path of fear…" Doma didn't finish his sentence because Muzan suddenly appeared right in front of him.
"Ridiculous!" Muzan roared in reply, throwing a punch at Doma's face.
"Yet it's not me who's losing~" Doma countered, throwing a punch of his own.
The air trembled from the impact, and the result quickly became clear to everyone.
Muzan's arm was pulverized due to the overwhelming gap in strength, but neither Doma nor Muzan dwelled on it.
Muzan instantly regenerated the arm that had been vaporized by the clash and sprouted tentacles ending in monstrous maws.
(Images)
"Blood Demon Art: Ice Lotus Vines," he murmured.
The monsters created from Muzan's flesh and blood were instantly bound in chains of ice while Doma dashed along an ice vine and engaged Muzan in close-quarters combat.
The duel was an impressive contest of strength, speed, dexterity, hax, and Battle iQ.
Muzan was strong.
Doma had already fought several close-combat opponents, including the former Kokushibo who had reverted to Michikatsu.
Yet he had never faced an opponent this troublesome in a direct confrontation.
It wasn't a matter of raw power like Heracles, nor strategy like Jack the Ripper.
Muzan was difficult to fight because of his unpredictable attacks and inhuman regeneration.
The tentacles the latter created were fast, but that wasn't all. Each one carried a bit of his blood, and if Doma got infected, he could be in some trouble.
Beyond that, they were unpredictable, with no unusual reliance like the Truth Paradise.
If the ice demon didn't manipulate his perception, he would have struggled to handle Muzan.
As if that weren't enough, Muzan had a temporary counter to Doma divine weapon, aka Hlökk.
A Valkyrie is an incredible weapon, capable of slicing a person's spiritual body.
Yet Muzan simply remodeled his flesh after every cut through pure cellular multiplication.
True, this recklessly drained the vitality of his cells.
Muzan even estimated he would have to eat a lot to recover the cells lost in these battles.
Above all, Muzan's action didn't fully heal the wounds inflicted by Doma.
The spiritual body remained damaged—a serious injury in the long term.
Despite everything, Muzan ignored it.
No, it hurt—she really was in pain, because Doma could now read her emotions.
She just wanted to remain dignified in front of a creature she still considered her former subordinate.
'If I wanted to kill him, I could, but…' he thought, finding it somewhat regrettable.
Thus, Doma eventually settled on an endurance contest with Muzan.
Even though the idea sounded strange—since his opponent was naked during the fight—Doma considered it the only viable solution.
He never imagined his "good deed" would have such complicated consequences later.
"Stop toying with me! Where is your ice Buddha? Where are your blizzards? Your winter priestesses? And all the power of that strange barrier of yours? Doma… d-do you look down on me? Do you think you can beat me without even being serious?" Muzan pulled back, spitting out her frustration.
The Demon King's breathing was ragged, and her appearance pitiful, her entire body covered in blood.
Doma had literally been carving her up with his fan.
"Muzan-san, I neither underestimate nor look down on you, but we simply aren't playing in the same league anymore," he said calmly, then used Absolute Zero.
From Muzan's perspective, Doma was speaking—and the next instant, her head was in his hands.
"See? It's not me who doesn't know their place or understand the full situation," he said, lifting the Demon King's head to face her own headless body.
"You couldn't recognize Mount Tai ~"