Chapter 21: Hashira Meeting. Upper Rank Meeting

"Zero?"

"Zero!"

"Huh? What's wrong?"

"What are you thinking about? Oyakata-sama is asking you a question."

"Sorry, where were we?"

After his second treatment, Ubuyashiki Kagaya rested for a day and then summoned all the Hashira-level swordsmen for a Hashira meeting.

Early in the morning, everyone arrived at the Ubuyashiki estate's backyard to await Ubuyashiki Kagaya's arrival.

While waiting, Zero kept reflecting on the battle with Upper Rank Five Gyokko, as well as the five swordsmen who had died.

He hadn't noticed that Ubuyashiki Kagaya had already arrived and was asking him a question.

"Oyakata-sama is asking about the situation with the Upper Ranks and hopes you can explain in detail. What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?" Kocho Kanae asked with concern.

"I'm fine. I was just thinking about the five swordsmen who died before I fought the Upper Rank demon. If I had arrived sooner, or discovered it earlier, maybe those five little ones wouldn't have died..."

"After all, they were just a group of children, living, breathing lives... At their age, they should be growing up slowly, accompanied by their parents, getting married, and having children... If it weren't for the evil demons, it wouldn't be like this... Probably..."

The others fell silent upon hearing this. Even Shinazugawa Sanemi's anger, caused by Zero not listening carefully to Ubuyashiki Kagaya, dissipated significantly.

After all, Zero hadn't heard the question because he was thinking of them.

"Zero, you don't need to be sad. Jianyi, Yong, Cangyi, Yingmu, Ye—those five children had already made their own resolutions. If possible, I wish I could have died in their place to trade for their lives."

Ubuyashiki Kagaya recited the names of the five fallen swordsmen one by one. He remembered not only everyone's name but also their pasts.

"Zero, you've changed..."

"Really? How come I don't feel like I've changed?"

"The first time I met you, I always felt you were very lonely, yet you were indifferent to everything except Xiao Yue. Even if something huge happened, you always had a calm and detached air... Now, you've become very gentle and have started to care about others slowly."

Kocho Kanae expressed her view of Zero from before until now.

Zero didn't know when he started to change. Perhaps it began the moment Xiao Yue first expressed her own thoughts, or perhaps the moment he saved Kocho Kanae...

"Gentle? That doesn't suit me at all... Let's not talk about this. Didn't you want to know about the Upper Rank demons? Then I will tell you about the Upper Rank demon I killed."

"The Upper Rank demon I fought was Upper Rank Five—Gyokko. His strength was only average to me, but his Blood Demon Art was quite troublesome, and he was a chatterbox who talked too much..."

Afterward, Zero spent some time carefully detailing the process of his battle with Upper Rank Five, including his Blood Demon Art and characteristics, as well as the results of his own analysis.

Upon hearing this, everyone except Kocho Kanae felt that the Upper Rank demons didn't seem that strong. Shinazugawa Sanemi, in particular, felt he could handle one too.

Zero seemed to see through their thoughts and warned them: "I advise you all not to have such thoughts. To me, Upper Rank Five wasn't much, but that was only because I relied on my years of accumulated combat experience and reflexes, as well as my weapons and my own analysis to win."

"If it weren't for special reasons that suppressed my strength by half, I wouldn't have needed to spend so much time analyzing and fighting."

If he were in the starry sky, an evil demon of Upper Rank Five's level wouldn't even be worth the attention of the Void Insect Mother's subordinates; they could easily swat him to death, leaving not even a scrap behind.

If one were lucky, they might at least find Gyokko's bones in the excrement...

But even so, they probably wouldn't be able to stomach it, because... Gyokko was truly too ugly!

But Kocho Kanae didn't think so, because she had seen with her own eyes how Zero had nearly wiped out Upper Rank Two.

If it hadn't been for that strange sound of a biwa at a critical moment that took Upper Rank Two away, perhaps Zero wouldn't have just killed one Upper Rank demon, but two.

"But listening to you just now, he really isn't much!" Shinazugawa Sanemi said.

Zero felt a bit helpless. Does this Shinazugawa Sanemi only have one track in his mind?

"Since that's the case, I'll let you experience what an Upper Rank demon is like for you. Besides, Kanae has encountered an Upper Rank demon before; she knows best."

Zero then looked at Ubuyashiki Kagaya and said, "Oyakata-sama, I'd like to borrow your room."

Ubuyashiki Kagaya nodded, indicating it was no problem.

Zero entered the room, took off the 【Analysis Glasses】 hanging by his ear, and activated the projection mode.

Looking at the bustling streets, the hawkers shouting, the noisy whistles of old cars, and the young couples in various clothes chatting and laughing on the street.

"You all come over and take a look."

Everyone went to the inner room and knelt down, even Ubuyashiki Kagaya, to watch the entire process of Zero's battle with Upper Rank Five on the projection.

This was filmed by Zero using the 【Analysis Glasses】 and a drone, though he deleted the part where he cursed at Gyokko; he didn't want others to see him swearing.

Because if they saw that, he would truly have nowhere to hide his face...

To let everyone feel it, Zero also turned on the sound.

Watching Gyokko put the corpses of the five swordsmen into pots, with their limbs separated and attached to others, tortured beyond life and death, everyone couldn't help but clench their fists.

Shinazugawa Sanemi was even gnashing his teeth, his eyes bloodshot, his hatred for evil demons becoming even deeper.

After being saved by Zero, one even said, "The Demon Slayer Corps will last forever," before closing their eyes and leaving the world.

Although Himejima Gyoumei couldn't see, he could hear. Ubuyashiki Kagaya also arranged for his daughter, Ubuyashiki Hinaki, to be by his side to describe what was happening.

But then, seeing Gyokko, who was provoked by Zero's words, getting scared and "scurrying away" every time he tried to speak, they wondered if Zero had some strange personality.

Zero then remembered he hadn't deleted that part and felt very awkward.

"I actually forgot to delete this part..." Zero covered his face with one hand, feeling helpless, thinking that as long as he wasn't embarrassed, others would be.

"Pfft~ No, I can't laugh! No, no, no!" Kanroji Mitsuri almost couldn't hold back her laughter, constantly telling herself not to laugh. Her cheeks puffed up, round and chubby, looking quite cute.

'Blood Demon Art: Blood Prison Pot!'

'Blood Demon Art: Octopus Pot Hell!'

In the projection, after the two giant alien goldfish created by Gyokko were roasted and solved by the black metal cross, he released two more Blood Demon Arts.

Seeing the water flow created by Gyokko's pot and the giant octopus tentacles jumping out of it, they were startled.

But their mental fortitude was good, and they quickly calmed down.

Moreover, they felt that the Blood Prison Pot definitely wasn't simple!

If they were trapped by that Blood Prison Pot, they definitely wouldn't be able to use their Breathing Techniques and would only suffocate to death.

They were very curious about how Zero solved it.

They saw a black metal cross appear in front of Zero to block the water flow, then he took out a huge metal box, mounted it on his shoulder, and fired ten missiles from it to destroy and burn those octopus tentacles, even emitting white smoke...

Except for Kocho Kanae, everyone else present didn't understand why Zero had so many strange weapons, some of which they had never even seen before.

Although there were weapons like gunpowder and firearms in this era, the government controlled them very strictly. Compared to Zero's, they were simply like a big witch meeting a small witch, not worth mentioning.

"Gulp~" Kanroji Mitsuri looked at the giant octopus tentacles emitting white smoke and couldn't help but swallow her saliva.

Everyone's gaze turned to her, making her feel especially awkward. She covered her hot, red face with both hands: "I'm very sorry, I just... I just..."

If there were a hole in the ground, Kanroji Mitsuri would probably have crawled into it without hesitation.

Iguro Obanai looked at Zero with some resentment. If he hadn't played this part, Mitsuri wouldn't be so embarrassed...

"Hiss~" Kaburamaru flicked its tongue and stared at Zero, but was scared by a single look from Zero and shrank directly into Iguro Obanai's arms.

Well, in Iguro Obanai's eyes, besides Master, there was only Mitsuri...

The projection continued.

'Blood Demon Art: Ten Thousand Gliding Slime Fish!'

Gyokko released a dense swarm of slime fish, and everyone was startled. If it were them, they didn't know if they could find a way to block it...

'Just in time, try this...'

Zero took out another weapon that looked very powerful from somewhere. The machine gun fired wildly, the deafening sound echoing around, colliding with the dense swarm of slime fish.

The drone and the cross also continuously cooperated to attack those slime fish. In just a few seconds, all the slime fish disappeared, leaving only a trail of gunpowder smoke.

Taking advantage of the smoke not yet dissipating, Zero appeared behind Upper Rank Five in an instant and took out his dual blades to cut off Upper Rank Five's neck.

But everyone saw that Upper Rank Five didn't die, but shed his skin and turned into another appearance.

Just as Gyokko was boasting smugly, they saw Zero raise the machine gun at Gyokko, instantly making him shut his mouth, and also saw Gyokko's gnashing teeth...

Gyokko launched an attack first, and the ground touched by his hand turned into fish...

'Blood Demon Art: Deathly Fish Scale!'

The attack was fast to the extreme, leaving only afterimages. Zero was protected inside the cross, and Gyokko couldn't attack him at all...

Finally, Gyokko was surrounded by the drone and the cross, and could only use his hands and the snake tail of his lower body to protect his body.

At this moment, Zero took out his dual blades again and instantly flashed behind Gyokko, beheading him when he was off guard!

"Well killed!!!" Shinazugawa Sanemi shouted, pulling everyone back from the shock.

The projection ended there. Zero picked up the 【Analysis Glasses】 and hung them by his ear, saying, "Can you understand now?"

"In other words, you are human bodies. Fighting against evil demons, injuries are inevitable, and you might even die! I think you know best how much hardship and training it takes to cultivate a Hashira-level swordsman to achieve your current accomplishments!?"

"And according to my guess, now that the Upper Rank demon is dead, Kibutsuji Muzan probably won't find a new evil demon to replace him so quickly, but that doesn't mean he won't in the future! And what about Hashira-level swordsmen? Evil demons won't give you that kind of time!"

Zero's words made everyone fall into deep thought. The reason they could become Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps, besides experiencing various hellish trainings, was that they often walked on the edge of life and death, fighting evil demons.

Among them, there were many evil demons who could use Blood Demon Arts and Lower Rank demons of the Twelve Kizuki.

That kind of painstaking effort was not something ordinary people could bear.

"Then, Zero, do you have any suggestions?" Ubuyashiki Kagaya asked.

"Not for the time being, but I will find a way to collect more information about the Upper Rank demons. When you fight them in the future, you will have a better chance of survival!"

"The prerequisite for eliminating the Upper Rank demons and Kibutsuji Muzan is: you must stay alive! One more person means one more bit of strength."

This time, Shinazugawa Sanemi showed no signs of irritability, but instead listened quietly, which was rare.

"Ara, Zero, you are also a human body, why don't you consider yourself?" Kocho Kanae expressed her thoughts.

"Human..." Zero looked down at his mechanical left and right hands, recalling the memories of fighting monsters.

These hands of his were not only stained with the lives and blood of monsters, but also included... human lives!

"Can I, who fights monsters... be considered a normal person? Or... am I still a human?" Zero thought deep in his heart.

Everyone present felt the sense of desolation emanating from Zero, as if a person was constantly walking in the dark.

"Zero..."

"Hoo~ I'm fine."

Afterward, Ubuyashiki Kagaya and the others continued to discuss the future of the Demon Slayer Corps.

Meanwhile, inside the Infinity Castle.

Kibutsuji Muzan also summoned the Upper Rank demons for an Upper Rank meeting.

One had short peach-colored hair, golden pupils, and the character "Three" carved into his left eye, with "Upper Rank" in his right eye.

His skin was pale, his whole body covered in countless deep blue tattoos representing criminals, with deep red fingernails and prayer beads hanging on his feet.

He was an Upper Rank demon among the Twelve Kizuki.

Upper Rank Three—Akaza!

Akaza looked up at the intricate, upside-down Infinity Castle, his pupils slightly shrinking.

"Appearing here, that means... an Upper Rank demon has died?!"

"It's best if that guy Doma was killed!" This was Akaza's thought at this moment.

As he stepped forward to move, a hand was placed on his shoulder, and a voice said: "Oh my~ Akaza-dono, how can you think that~? I worry about you all anytime and anywhere~ I'm afraid you'll be killed by demon hunters at any moment!"

The evil demon who said this was none other than Upper Rank Two—Doma, who had almost been wiped out by Zero earlier.

"Hand, take it off!"

"Hmm?"

"I said, take your hand off!"

"Oh my~ Akaza-dono, we are good friends~ I feel so sad that you speak to me like this."

Doma pretended to be hurt and sad by these words, but his face still wore that grinning expression.

Bang!

Akaza swung his fist directly, shattering Doma's face, blood spurting out.

Doma's face regenerated instantly, and he looked at Akaza with feigned surprise: "Oh! Akaza-dono, you've become stronger again! If you ate women like I do, you'd probably be even stronger now~ Otherwise, you wouldn't have lost to me in the blood battle for position back then~"

Upon hearing about eating women, Akaza felt particularly disgusted, and even more repulsed by Doma from the bottom of his heart.

Suppressing the anger in his heart, Doma continued to chatter on. Unable to bear it any longer, Akaza swung his fist again.

Just as his fist was about to land on Doma's face, Akaza's wrist was severed. It happened in an instant, without any warning.

"Akaza... you've gone too far... you must distinguish... the relationship between superior and subordinate... Akaza... do you understand...?"

I don't know when, but a "person" wearing a purple samurai outfit with a high black ponytail appeared in front of Akaza and Doma, showing only his back to them.

Although it was just a back, they felt an extremely strong sense of oppression.

"Kokushibo! Sooner or later, I will kill you with my own hands!" Akaza said, staring fixedly at the back in front of him.

The figure turned around, his face having three pairs of eyes, with deep red flame patterns on his left forehead and right chin to his neck.

The middle pair of eyes had "Upper Rank" carved in the left eye and "One" in the right.

Upper Rank One—Kokushibo!

The strongest swordsman demon of the Twelve Kizuki, whose strength was second only to the Demon King—Kibutsuji Muzan.

"I'm waiting for you... to come and defeat me... Akaza...!!!" Kokushibo spoke intermittently, but every word was full of oppression.

"Hmph!" Seeing this, Akaza stopped paying attention to Doma and Kokushibo and walked to the side to wait for Kibutsuji Muzan's arrival.

"Oh my, Kokushibo-dono, no need to be so excessive, and no need to stand up for me! Akaza is my good friend, I was just concerned about him~ After all, he doesn't eat women and relies on himself to cultivate and become stronger. I'm just afraid that one day he'll be killed by demon hunters."

Doma still wore an expression of seemingly caring for Akaza, but every word he said sounded like sarcasm.

"I am not... standing up for you... but hoping... to distinguish... the relationship between superior and subordinate..."

From this, it can be seen that Kokushibo had a strong sense of hierarchy, demanded high standards for superior-subordinate relationships, and did not tolerate chaotic order.

"Yi yi ya ya! Kokushibo-dono is still as scary as ever!" In a dark corner, there was an old man with a swollen forehead, two horns on his head, and a face like a Hannya mask.

His size was only that of two adult fists combined, and there were no numbers carved in his eyes, but if one underestimated him, they would be wrong. He was also an Upper Rank demon of the Twelve Kizuki.

Upper Rank Four—Hantengu.

Hantengu hid in the corner, watching the three of them, shivering, his courage especially small.

Clang!

Nakime plucked the biwa on the high platform, and two more evil demons appeared behind Doma.

A man and a woman, a pair of demon siblings.

The male was a young demon with a bare upper body, black and green medium-short hair, hunched back, thin as a rail, with many black spots on his face and body.

The female had long white hair with green tips, a flower hairpin on her head, and flower tattoos on her left cheek and right forehead.

Both siblings had the same number carved in their eyes, with "Upper Rank" in the left eye and "Six" in the right.

Upper Rank Six—Gyutaro/Daki.

But don't be fooled by them both being Upper Rank Six; the brother's strength was dozens of times stronger than the sister's.

"Ah! Gyutaro, Daki-chan, long time no see!" Doma turned his head and waved to greet them.

"Doma-sama, long time no see!" The siblings responded to them as well.

Just as the scene was a bit quiet, Kokushibo said: "Muzan-sama... has arrived...!"

Clang!

Nakime's biwa sounded again, and a wooden door opened beside her. Muzan, wearing a suit and a Western hat, walked out.

All the Upper Rank demons, except for Upper Rank One, immediately knelt down.

Kibutsuji Muzan stood on the high platform, looking down at the Upper Rank demons. There was no emotion on his face, but his heart was already filled with rage.

"Upper Rank Five Gyokko is dead... killed by a Hashira-level swordsman of the Demon Slayer Corps! And it's the same person who fought Doma back then!"

Kibutsuji Muzan said this without any emotion, as if the death of an Upper Rank demon was irrelevant to him.

But the Upper Rank demons under the high platform all knew that he was already on the verge of exploding.

"I'm curious, why has an Upper Rank demon, who hasn't changed in hundreds of years, died at the hands of demon hunters!? Not only that, but there's no news of the Blue Blue Blue Bianhua either?!"

"Have the demon hunters become stronger, or have the Twelve Kizuki fallen?"

The Upper Rank demons remained silent, not because they didn't dare to answer, but because they didn't know how to answer.

Doma was the only exception, saying with a grin: "Oh my~ Muzan-sama, my followers and I have been searching carefully and earnestly! I believe there will be news soon..."

"Shut up!" Before Doma could finish, he was scolded by Muzan.

Doma immediately shut his mouth, still kneeling there with a grinning expression.

"Doma, I want results, not clues! If you had killed that female Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps back then, none of this would have happened! And you wouldn't have almost been killed by someone who wasn't even in the Demon Slayer Corps!"

An angry Muzan wanted to get rid of this guy when he saw Doma's expression.

If it weren't for Doma's powerful strength, and the fact that his Blood Demon Art could restrain the Demon Slayer Corps' Breathing Techniques.

And the fact that he needed the followers of his Eternal Paradise Faith to search for the Blue Blue Blue Bianhua, why would he keep him around?!

"Yi yi ya ya! Muzan-sama is angry! I'm just a weakling!" Hantengu in the corner acted cowardly, shivering.

But Akaza under the high platform didn't think so. When Muzan mentioned that Doma was almost killed, he felt happy for some reason.

If a human who wasn't even in the Demon Slayer Corps could almost kill Doma, then how strong was that person who joined the Demon Slayer Corps now?

Akaza now wanted to meet him soon, fight him, and make himself stronger! If possible, Akaza wanted to turn that person into a demon and fight him forever.

"What a pity!" Akaza felt it was a pity in his heart.

But the pity wasn't that he couldn't meet him, but that this person didn't kill Doma!

Kibutsuji Muzan read Akaza's thoughts and warned him: "Akaza, I know what you're thinking! But remember! Finding the Blue Blue Blue Bianhua is the key!!"

Akaza: "Yes, Muzan-sama!"

His gaze swept over the Upper Rank demons under the high platform again, and then he said to Nakime beside him: "Nakime, send them all back!"

Before leaving, he sent a message to Kokushibo in his mind: "Kokushibo, you stay!"

"Yes... Muzan-sama..." Kokushibo responded in his mind as well, although he didn't understand why Muzan wanted him to stay.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Nakime plucked the biwa three times, sending Doma, Akaza, and Hantengu back to their own places, leaving only Kokushibo.

Then she plucked the biwa again, sending Kibutsuji Muzan and Kokushibo to another room.

"Muzan-sama... why did you... keep me here?"

Kibutsuji Muzan didn't speak, but transmitted the memories of the battle between that demon hunter and Doma, as well as Upper Rank Five Gyokko, into Kokushibo's mind...

After a while, Kokushibo began to change from expressionless to shocked. He had never seen so many strange weapons, which could not only cause huge damage to evil demons but also kill them.

Especially seeing the red dual blades, which made his body tremble slightly!

The figure of that person appeared in his mind, also holding a red Nichirin Sword.

"Kokushibo, what do you think... of this human?" Muzan turned around and asked.

"Very strong...!!! And... I can feel... his combat skills and experience... are no worse than anyone else's... I also felt... life and death... from him..."

"This human... he seems to have experienced a lot... If he were our companion... then the position of Upper Rank One... would be his..."

Kokushibo expressed his view. It was the first time Kibutsuji Muzan had heard Kokushibo evaluate a human like this.

Suddenly, an idea appeared in his mind: what if he turned this person into a demon and made him his subordinate?

And he also felt another thing from the battle between Upper Rank Five and this human: his brain seemed very sharp, so wouldn't finding the Blue Blue Blue Bianhua be faster!

This way, not only could he gain a more powerful subordinate, perhaps even one surpassing Upper Rank One's strength, but he could also find the Blue Blue Blue Bianhua faster.

Kibutsuji Muzan seemed to see the day he became the ultimate creature approaching rapidly.

"Kokushibo, if you meet this person, bring him here, and remember to leave him a breath! As long as he is turned into a demon, I believe the Blue Blue Blue Bianhua will be found soon!"

"I also want to know what the Demon Slayer Corps would think if they saw their companion turned into a demon!? Hahahaha"

"Yes... Muzan-sama..."

However, one day in the future, Kibutsuji Muzan would regret making this decision!

Because after Zero was teleported to the Infinity Castle that day, the Infinity Castle was almost destroyed in a crazy way because of Zero's arrival!

Of course, that is a story for another time!

The Hashira meeting ended, and everyone returned to their respective jurisdictions. Some returned to their residences to continue training, while others rested.

For example, Uzui Tengen returned to his residence and continued to soak in the hot springs with his three wives, enjoying the gentle hometown...

Himejima Gyoumei continued his training under the waterfall...

After the meeting, Zero returned to his residence, went to the second-floor room to call Xiao Yue, and prepared to go out together.

He hadn't forgotten his promise to Xiao Yue.

"Xiao Yue, let's go!"

"Where to, Master?"

"Did you forget? I said I'd take you out for a stroll today."

"Really? That's great!"

"Of course it's true. Get ready, I'll activate the growth function for you first, so you won't have to worry about other things."

"But Master, won't this..."

Xiao Yue knew very well that if the growth function was activated, it would consume a large amount of energy crystals.

Moreover, different growth functions required different amounts of energy crystals. Just growing into a child form required a lot of energy crystals, and one energy crystal could only maintain the form for five minutes.

The so-called growth function was an ability Zero had added for Xiao Yue when he designed her. Different growth forms provided vastly different combat power.

The growth function forms were divided into child form, young form, and adult form.

"Silly child, as long as you are happy! And you only need to turn into a child form. After all, your identity here is my younger sister."

"Mm-hmm, I understand, thank you Master!"

Afterward, Zero took 150 red energy crystals from the 【Nano Space】 and placed them on the bed. Seeing this, Xiao Yue opened the two small hair buns tied on her head.

Ten lines extended from each of them, connecting to the energy crystals, and she began to absorb the energy inside.

Absorbing energy took some time. Zero took a small cheongsam from the 【Nano Space】 and placed it by the bed, then left the room, because the following scene was not to be seen.

After all, after the growth function was activated, the body would also grow larger, and the clothes on her body would definitely need to be changed.

About twenty minutes later, Xiao Yue absorbed the energy in the energy crystals, and her body turned into a child form about 1.2 meters tall.

She put on the cheongsam, walked out of the room, and came to the living room.

Her long blue hair extended to her waist, and she still kept two hair buns. Her blue eyes were just like pearls in the ocean, and combined with the blue cheongsam, she looked exactly like a beautiful little princess.

"Master, am I beautiful?" Xiao Yue spun around on the spot, wanting to show her most beautiful side to Zero.

"Very beautiful! Remember, when we go out, you have to call me brother, otherwise others will misunderstand."

"Oh, I see, Mas... brother." Having received Zero's praise, Xiao Yue was naturally the happiest in her heart.

"Let's go!"

"Mm-hmm!"

Xiao Yue took Zero's hand and walked out of the residence together.

Arriving at the outskirts of the Demon Slayer Corps, he took out the 【Dark Alloy Field Motorcycle】, placed Xiao Yue in front of him, put in the energy crystals to start the motorcycle, and headed to a small city far from the Demon Slayer Corps.

After a journey of more than three hours, they arrived at a bustling small city. It was already night, and the city was brightly lit, illuminating the entire street.

Before entering the small city, Zero had already put the 【Dark Alloy Field Motorcycle】 back into the 【Nano Space】 and walked onto the streets of the small city holding Xiao Yue's hand.

Looking at the bustling streets, the hawkers calling out, the noisy honking of old-fashioned cars, and the young couples in various outfits on the street laughing and chatting with each other.

Xiao Yue looked at these scenes in front of her, couldn't help but open her large blue eyes, and exclaimed in her mouth.

After all, she and Zero had always been in the starry sky, either fighting or training, and had rarely seen such scenes.

Since being created by Zero, she had always accompanied him through various battles.

She had seen cities and ruins destroyed by alien beasts and monsters, and in the starry sky, she had seen flying vehicles and robots full of technology everywhere, but rarely had she seen such a flourishing small city.

"Mas... brother, it's so lively here!" Xiao Yue almost called him Master, but remembered Zero's instruction to call him brother, so she quickly corrected herself.

"Mm, it is indeed very lively!"

In Zero's mind, a very vague memory appeared again. In that memory, he could only vaguely see a man and a woman holding a child walking on the street, but he couldn't remember the subsequent scenes.

Taking a deep breath to force himself to calm down, he walked on the street holding Xiao Yue's hand. Today was time to play with Xiao Yue, and other things would not be considered for the time being.

"Let's go, whatever you want to eat or play, I'll accompany you! Tonight is your time."

"Yay!"

Xiao Yue and Zero walked on the street, and the passersby looked at them with surprise.

Xiao Yue's appearance was really cute, and some women couldn't help but go up to talk to her, while Zero was constantly being chatted up by women because of his appearance.

They thought they were sisters, but later found out they were brother and sister, which made those people a bit awkward, but Zero didn't care.

Although some ill-intentioned hooligans came to find trouble while they were shopping, constantly teasing Zero and Xiao Yue.

But in just an instant, they regretted it. The killing intent Zero revealed made their bodies tremble uncontrollably, and some even peed their pants in fear.

Those who wanted to make a move were directly pressed to the ground by Zero in one go.

Although there were some small episodes, Xiao Yue didn't care. As long as she could go out and play with Zero like today, she was satisfied.

…………

More than twenty days later, Zero received the sword sent by the swordsmith Haganezuka Hotaru from the Swordsmith Village.

Haganezuka Hotaru also saw the red blade—Nichirin Sword—recorded in the ancient books of their Swordsmith Village, so he was very excited and wanted to tell the village chief of the Swordsmith Village about this.

Seeing Haganezuka Hotaru off, he was waving his scythe in the backyard when he received a notification from the Messenger Crow Yuki that Ubuyashiki Kagaya had summoned the Pillar-level swordsmen to the Butterfly Mansion for a Pillar meeting.

Zero was a bit curious. It had only been twenty-plus days since the last Hashira meeting, which was the day after Ubuyashiki Kagaya finished his treatment.

And now another Hashira meeting was being held...

"It seems like something must have happened..." Zero thought to himself, then carried the scythe on his shoulder and headed to the Butterfly Mansion to attend the Hashira meeting. ===== CHAPTER 22 =====