Chapter 304

"Stupid! Stupid!"

The handball demon, with six arms growing from its body, watched as Kanao advanced with her sword, unable to land a single hit on her, and began to panic.

"Why is this guy so fast?!"

Kanao rushed forward, her expression unchanged.

In the handball demon's shrinking pupils.

The blade swung down.

Flower Breathing: Fourth Form.

Crimson Petal Robe!

Two arc-shaped, twin strikes of peach-red blade cut from above downward along both sides of the handball demon, severing all six of its arms.

Thirteen, Demon Mark, Crimson Blade, Transparent World!

As for Tanjiro.

Though he could see the arrowheads, his movement and speed still couldn't match those strange arrowheads; one misstep left him controlled, flung wildly in all directions by the arrowhead demon, forced to rely on derived Water Breathing techniques to counter the impact as much as possible.

Shinobu pulled her gaze from the battlefield and glanced at Luo En: "You said you could help me grow strong enough to kill that thing—how exactly?"

Luo En looked at her and smiled: "Before I answer, you must first understand two things."

"What two things?"

"First: for a swordsman, what determines the strength of his power?"

"Probably… talent and effort."

Luo En nodded lightly, noncommittal: "Second: how does a swordsman become stronger?"

Shinobu answered without hesitation: "Train your sword technique day and night, gain experience through battle and slaughter."

"Not bad—but incomplete."

Shinobu looked up at his profile, frowning.

Juushirou and Yujiro also turned to him.

Luo En gazed at the battlefield ahead, smiling: "In my view, a swordsman must develop in four areas."

"Body, Art, Skill, Will."

"Body refers to physicality. For a swordsman, physicality is vital—and Breathing Techniques that enhance constitution are equally crucial. Each person's physique suits a different Breathing Technique."

"Art refers to sword techniques—for you, mastery of Breathing Techniques and their derived forms: whether you can use them fluidly with your Breathing, whether you can adapt them to circumstances… just like Tanjiro now—he's constantly repeating these techniques, deepening his understanding and control through practice."

Yujiro glanced toward Tanjiro; since the start, he had already repeated those techniques dozens of times, and two of them were beginning to merge.

"Skill refers to technique and experience—for example, your blade's poison, your footwork and movement—all are forms of skill."

"Will refers to battle intent, killing intent, resolve, death intent… all forces awakened from within the heart. If your spirit is as unyielding as iron, and you strike with unwavering determination, you unleash power beyond your limits."

Luo En paused here and glanced at Shinobu beside him:

"The one who created the Original Breathing and from it the entire Breathing system—Kokushibo—was a swordsman who reached peak perfection in Body, Art, Skill, and Will."

"Four hundred years ago, as a human, he single-handedly defeated Muichiro and nearly killed him outright."

Luo En's words caused Shinobu's eyes to widen instantly, her heart shaken deeply.

Juushirou fell silent, recalling the figure holding a red blade, wearing earrings.

That moment gave her, in utter despair, the hope of killing Muichiro.

Too bad… just a little short.

Luo En watched ahead: Kanao severed the handball demon's neck; Tanjiro severed the arrowhead demon's neck—but the arrowhead demon still used its final strength to control the arrowheads, flinging Tanjiro wildly in all directions.

"Shinobu, if a swordsman masters Breathing to its extreme, exhausting blood and even life force to gain greater power—what happens?"

Shinobu shook her head.

Luo En looked at her and smiled: "The swordsman's body will manifest a Demon Mark. Generally, those who awaken the Demon Mark sacrifice their life for power—and rarely live past twenty-five."

Shinobu stared at him, dumbfounded; she had never heard of this before.

"If a swordsman's technique reaches its ultimate limit, he enters a new realm."

Under Shinobu's dazed gaze.

Luo En calmly uttered one word.

"Transparent World."

"When the mind becomes transparent, you see the Transparent World."

"If you reach this state, you can see inside a demon—its organs, blood flow, muscle movements—all crystal clear. Time slows in your perception; every movement of your opponent becomes predictable. Even a dying, frail human could easily kill a raging bear."

Luo En glanced at Shinobu and smiled: "Shinobu, if you reach this state, you might kill Douma."

"Transparent… World."

Shinobu silently repeated it in her mind, her violet eyes glinting faintly.

Luo En unfastened the endless wine flask at his waist, took a sip: "But that realm isn't easily reached—it's a 'domain' attained only by the gifted, after exhausting themselves, enduring failure and pain."

Yujiro couldn't help asking: "Have you reached it?"

Luo En took another sip, casually: "Of course."

Yujiro froze in shock.

Juushirou and Shinobu stared at him, deeply astonished.

Luo En ignored their gazes and continued: "When Will reaches a certain level, it manifests as an anomaly—this anomaly affects the blade."

"The blade?"

Shinobu and the others looked puzzled.

Luo En extended his hand to Shinobu: "Lend me your sword."

Shinobu hesitated, then handed him her Nichirin Blade.

At this moment, Shinku and Tanjiro also returned with the blood of the Ball Demon and the Arrowhead Demon.

One was unharmed, the other crawled, looking extremely disheveled.

"I got the blood back—hey, what are you all…?"

Tanjiro hadn't finished speaking.

When he saw the slender Nichirin blade in Luo En's hand begin to turn red.

In a few moments, the once-purple blade became entirely crimson, radiating intense heat.

"!?"

Everyone was startled.

"The blade… turned red?!"

Tanjiro was utterly astonished.

Shinku was also somewhat surprised.

Ju Shi widened her eyes, staring in awe at Luo En's red blade: "This crimson, like fire burning, and this scent of searing heat—it's unmistakable, exactly like the blade that man held!"

Yu Shilang swallowed hard; as a demon, he felt intense danger emanating from Luo En's blade.

"What on earth… is going on?"

Butterfly Shin couldn't help but ask Luo En.

Under the gaze of all of them.

Luo En gripped the red Nichirin blade and smiled: "This is called a Red Blade. It has greater lethality against demons. If struck by this blade, even Muzan will be wounded, and the wounds won't heal easily."

"But turning your Nichirin blade into a Red Blade isn't easy—it requires two critical factors."

Luo En sheathed the now-red Red Blade and handed it to Butterfly Shin.

Tanjiro couldn't help but ask: "Mr. Luo En, what are those two critical factors?"

Luo En looked at him and smiled: "Strong wrist strength, and a powerful, unwavering will."

14, The Nichirin Earring Passed Through the Flames

After collecting the blood of the Ball Demon and the Arrowhead Demon, Ju Shi briefly treated Tanjiro's wounds.

Yu Shilang watched this scene, filled with envy.

Butterfly Shin sat before Luo En, gazing at him seriously: "Lord Luo En, I apologize for my earlier rudeness. If possible, could you guide me in swordsmanship?"

"You wish to reach the realm of Transparent World?"

Butterfly Shin nodded with intense seriousness.

The Blaze Mark and Red Blade are extremely difficult for her, born with weak physical strength, and even if she activated them, they would offer little benefit to her fighting style.