Chapter 97

Facing the wailing and tantrum-throwing Daki before him, Tengen Uzui suddenly recalled the intelligence regarding the Upper Rank demons he had been told about while at Zero's residence.

As well as the portraits of the Upper Rank demons.

Since she was identical to the Daki before him, that meant there was still another evil demon!

In that case, the fact that Daki had been decapitated yet did not turn to ash could be explained.

Seeing this, Tengen Uzui gripped his twin blades, preparing for battle.

"Oni-chan!"

A sudden anomaly occurred; a body crawled out from the back of Daki's headless torso.

Sensing the powerful aura of an evil demon radiating from that body, Tengen Uzui swung his twin blades and charged forward to meet the attack head-on!

Clang!

In an instant, blade light flashed, and with a violent metallic clash, the figure instantly put distance between himself and Tengen Uzui.

Tengen Uzui turned his head, finally seeing the appearance of the other figure clearly.

His upper body was bare, he had short, black and green hair, a hunched back, a skeletal frame, and many black spots on his face and body.

In his hands, he held two blood-colored bone sickles that looked like bones and were the color of fresh blood.

Upper Rank Six—Gyutaro.

"It's exactly as Zero said! Upper Rank Six is a twin demon; both must be decapitated simultaneously to die!"

Gyutaro appeared behind Tengen Uzui with his younger sister, helping her reattach her head.

"Alright, stop crying~ If your head is cut off, just put it back on~ Such a pretty little face will look ugly if you keep crying~"

Gyutaro spoke with a long, grating, and piercing trailing tone.

Stroking Daki's little face, his words were filled with doting affection for her.

"Waaah... Brother, I worked so... so hard, and I was all alone...!! They teamed up to bully me! This is too much!! Waaaaah..."

Daki was like a small child at this moment, crying and throwing a tantrum, complaining to her brother.

"Yes, yes~ Unforgivable~ I won't let a single one of those people who bullied you get away~"

Tengen Uzui charged over again from behind Gyutaro, his target being the evil demon's neck!

Bang!

The weapons collided, causing an explosion!

Gyutaro's speed was even faster than Tengen Uzui's.

After just a brief moment of exchanging blows, Tengen Uzui was already on the back foot!

Splat!

A gash was cut into Tengen Uzui's forehead, and blood flowed freely.

"Is this the strength of an Upper Rank demon?!" Tengen Uzui thought to himself.

"You're doing quite well~ To think you could block my attack~ I was actually trying to kill you just now~"

"I'm so envious of you~ That face is really nice~ Your skin is so good too~ No spots, no moles, and no scars~ Your physique is great as well~"

"I'm different~ I can't gain weight no matter how much I eat, and I look so ugly~ I'm so jealous~ So jealous! Can I ask you to die, and suffer while I peel your skin off alive...!!"

A crazed Gyutaro clawed at his own skin, blood flowing from his body as if it were worthless.

"My name is Gyutaro, and I am the one who will kill you next!!"

A maddened Gyutaro flung the two blood-colored bone sickles in his hands, harboring intense killing intent, determined to kill Tengen Uzui!

Tengen Uzui took several specially made small iron balls from his robes and threw them out; they collided with Gyutaro's blood-colored bone sickles, creating a violent explosion!

Immediately, he rushed out from the fire of the explosion, swinging his Nichirin blade across Gyutaro's neck.

Gyutaro retreated backward, dodging the strike!

Unexpectedly, the attack range of the Nichirin blade suddenly extended, still cutting a bloody gash into Gyutaro's neck!

Only then did Gyutaro notice that the two Nichirin blades were connected by a chain in the middle.

And Tengen Uzui was gripping the tip of the other Nichirin blade with his fingers, extending the attack range.

"What terrifying grip strength!?"

Gyutaro thought to himself.

Tengen Uzui retracted his Nichirin blades, and the man and the demon stared at each other.

"So jealous~ So jealous~! I didn't expect you to be such a fine man~ You must be very popular with everyone~"

"That's only natural, after all, I am the flamboyant God of Festivals, a man who even has three wives!"

Hearing that Tengen Uzui had three wives, Gyutaro clawed at himself even more crazily, seemingly even more jealous!

"Are you kidding me! You actually have three wives!! I will never forgive you!!"

Just then, Zero appeared to one side and said: "Tengen, are you injured?!"

"Damn it, why is this kimono so hard to deal with?!" Zero took off the kimono he was wearing, only to be entangled by some of the sashes on it.

Layer after layer of clothing, ring after ring of sashes; taking it off was incredibly troublesome.

Enraged, Zero used brute force to tear the Oiran kimono off his body and ripped the black stockings to shreds.

Revealing skin even better than a woman's, he then took out his own clothes, preparing to change.

Boom!!!

An explosion occurred not far away; Zero guessed it was likely Gyutaro appearing, so he quickly put on his clothes, picked up his Nichirin scythe, and rushed over.

When he arrived, he found Tengen Uzui fighting Gyutaro and having sustained some injuries.

"Tengen, are you injured?!"

Furthermore, he noticed that the wounds on Tengen Uzui's body were turning black and purple; this was clearly poisoning.

Zero stroked his forehead, ignoring Gyutaro's presence, and said: "Didn't I tell you that Upper Rank Six's attacks are poisonous? How could you forget?!"

Tengen Uzui said dismissively: "What does that matter? I am the flamboyant God of Festivals; this little bit of poison is useless against me! I'm perfectly fine! I could even eat a hundred bowls of tempura, or dance for the evil demon! Hahahaha!"

After speaking, he struck a particularly chuunibyou pose that he considered very flamboyant.

"You should go detoxify first; leave the rest to me."

Subsequently, regardless of whether Tengen Uzui was willing or not, he grabbed Tengen Uzui's waistband from behind, lifted him up, and threw him away!

"Waaaaah!! Zero, that move wasn't flamboyant at all............ ~"

Ding~

Tengen Uzui was thrown away, turning into a small star in mid-air and disappearing from sight.

"Alright, next..." Zero looked toward Gyutaro and Daki.

"It's time to settle the score; I didn't have enough fun in the Infinity Castle! I'll use you two to keep practicing! Hehe..."

A frigid killing intent radiated from his body; under the moonlight, those scarlet eyes emitted an eerie red light.

Meeting those eyes again, Gyutaro and Daki felt as if they were facing a sea of corpses and blood, their bodies trembling slightly.

"Brother, this guy dressed as a woman to tease me, and he even got me excited... You must kill him! You must kill him!! I want to eat him..."

Splat!

Before the words were finished, Daki's head was severed once again.

"Blabbering on and on, so noisy!" Zero glanced at Daki impatiently.

"So fast! When did he..." Gyutaro hadn't even seen how Zero made his move just now!

He only saw Zero give a simple flick of the scythe in his hand, and his sister's head was severed.

Ding!

The Nichirin scythe spun in mid-air and flew back into Zero's hand.

"Now... it's my turn to play! Let me play with you properly~ Hehehe!!!"

Whoosh!

He exerted force with his legs to dash in front of Gyutaro, swinging the Nichirin scythe across his neck.

Seeing this, Gyutaro immediately raised the two blood-colored sickles in his hands to block.

Sparks flew from the collision between the twin sickles and the Nichirin scythe, but Zero's strength was even greater than his.

The bone sickles snapped into four pieces, and a huge gash was cut into his neck! He was almost decapitated.

Immediately, Zero twisted his body to deliver a roundhouse kick, slamming it into Gyutaro's head!

Bang!

Whether in speed or strength, Gyutaro was kicked away before he could react, crashing through several walls, his head spinning three hundred and sixty degrees.

Zero continued his assault, leaping up to launch an attack from mid-air.

Just as the Nichirin scythe was about to descend, Gyutaro felt a powerful threat from this strike!

If he were hit, he would definitely be split in two!

Reattaching his head and completing his regeneration, he roared: "Don't underestimate me!"

Blood Demon Art. Flying Blood Sickles!

The two severed blood-colored bone sickles regenerated, immediately unleashing blood-colored slashes like thin blades; they were extremely numerous and coated in deadly poison.

However, when these blood-colored slashes touched Zero, they were all blocked by a blue light.

Consequently, Gyutaro manipulated these blood-colored slashes to turn from another direction toward Zero's back.

Unexpectedly, that blue light seemed to form an eggshell-like protective barrier, shielding Zero's body within.

The blood-colored slashes had no way to get through.

"How is this possible?!" Gyutaro could not believe the fact before his eyes.

Just in the brief moment Gyutaro was stunned, Zero's attack had already arrived before him, swinging the Nichirin scythe down!

"Oh no!!!"

Blood Demon Art. Rampant Arc!

This was Gyutaro's defensive technique; he swung his twin sickles at high speed, spinning rapidly with himself as the center point, using the slashes to form a powerful protective shield to block Zero's attack.

However, the attack falling from mid-air, combined with gravity and Zero's own strength, was not something Gyutaro could block.

Half of his shoulder was still split open by the Nichirin scythe, blood gushing out.

"Don't bully my brother!"

Daki reattached her head, and the eight sashes behind her shot out simultaneously, ambushing Zero's back.

Gyutaro took this opportunity to quickly retreat.

Zero ignored Daki's sash attack and continued to rush toward Gyutaro.

Boom!

A thunderous explosion, accompanied by a slash flying over with lightning speed, instantly knocked Daki into mid-air.

Thunder Breathing. First Form. Thunderclap and Flash!

Zenitsu, who had been asleep, arrived at this moment, unleashing a powerful burst that seemed to tear the air apart; Daki was carried into mid-air by this unexpected slash.

Seeing that her neck was about to be severed, she immediately turned her neck into sash form, making it soft and pliable.

No matter how much force was used, it couldn't be severed!

"Eeyahahaha! The flamboyant mountain king has arrived! Pig-style assault!"

Beast Breathing. Second Fang. Slice and Dice!

Inosuke arrived from another direction, leaping up, his twin blades slashing at the other side of the sash-neck, creating a tearing force with Zenitsu's attack.

Rip!

A gash had already appeared on Daki's sash-neck; if this continued, having her neck severed was only a matter of time.

However, Daki saw another person arrive not far away and hurriedly called out to her brother.

"Brother, save me!"

"Aaaaaaaah!!!"

Bang!

Tengen Uzui, who had been thrown away, fell from mid-air.

Like a head-first dive, he plunged into the ground, feet in the air!

And the spot where he landed was right next to Tanjiro and Nezuko.

"Hmm?"

Nezuko looked at Tengen Uzui, who had fallen from the sky, her eyes turning into dots, looking dazed and cute.

She reached out and patted Tengen Uzui, as if asking if he was okay.

Tengen Uzui braced his hands on the ground around his head, pulling with all his might to yank his head out of the ground.

Pop!

His head was covered in dirt, and his mouth was full of soil too.

"Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey! That guy Zero, to throw me out so unflamboyantly! And to make me crash into the ground so unflamboyantly! Truly unflamboyant!"

Tengen Uzui patted the dirt stuck to his face, but felt that something was wrong with his body.

Gyutaro's poison was starting to take effect, so he hurriedly controlled his own muscles to slow the spread of the toxin.

"Mr. Uzui, are you okay!" Tanjiro asked worriedly.

"I'm fine, I must hurry to help Zero... Hey, let go of me!"

Seeing the poison spreading on Tengen Uzui's body, Nezuko grabbed his hand.

Tengen Uzui thought she was trying to stop him.

However, the next action made him realize he had misunderstood.

Whoosh!

Nezuko's Blood Demon Art caused Tengen Uzui's whole body to start burning.

Tengen Uzui yelled: "Hey, hey, hey! I'm not dead yet! Don't cremate the flamboyant me so unflamboyantly!"

He tried to pat out the flames on his body, only to find that the fire wasn't causing him any harm at all.

Instead, the poison in his wounds had been completely cleared away by the flames.

"Th-this... what is going on?"

"I think Nezuko wants to help you clear all the poison from your body; her Blood Demon Art seems to be able to suppress evil demons and their toxins."

"I see! Hahaha... Truly flamboyant! I flamboyantly acknowledge you all!"

"Mr. Uzui, I'm going to help them; please look after Nezuko."

Having said that, he left without looking back.

Not long after, Tengen Uzui's three wives also arrived.

They had just been helping some ordinary people evacuate the Yoshiwara District, so they came over to see if there was anything they could help with.

"Lord Tengen!" x3

"You three came at the right time; take Nezuko and leave here quickly, I'm going to help Zero!"

Immediately, he stuffed Nezuko into Hinatsuru's arms and rushed toward Zero's side.

When he reached the battlefield, he saw that Gyutaro was completely on the back foot, with no power to fight back at all, only able to keep using defensive Blood Demon Arts to counterattack.

Moreover, he could tell that Zero seemed to be intentionally holding back.

Looking at the situation, it seemed he was venting something?

On Tanjiro's side, they were also cooperating with each other to fight Daki.

Seeing this, Tengen Uzui decided not to intervene for the time being.

He stood on a nearby rooftop to observe; if Tanjiro and the others couldn't solve it, he would step in to resolve it himself.

Besides, in Tengen Uzui's eyes, these three could already be considered the most excellent members.

What they needed was constant tempering and refinement.

Since that was the case, this battle would be left for the three of them to judge for themselves.

Tanjiro, who had arrived together, saw Zero fighting that male Upper Rank Six alone and wanted to help him.

But he couldn't intervene in the battle between Upper Rank Six and Zero at all; the surroundings were all dimensional space.

So he joined the battle with Zenitsu and Inosuke, helping the two of them hold back the other female demon.

Hoping that this would be able to share some of the pressure for Zero.

Water Breathing. Tenth Form. Constant Flux!

He drew his Nichirin blade and dashed forward; as the number of rotations increased, the power of this strike became increasingly formidable.

Sensing the fatal threat brought by this strike, Daki could only ask her brother for help: "Brother! Save me!"

Gyutaro took the risk and shared half of his power with Daki.

After receiving half of the sensory ability from Gyutaro, Daki had a third eye on her forehead originating from Gyutaro.

While enhancing her own sensory ability, it also allowed her brother to interfere with her, and through their interconnected senses.

The sashes behind her also increased from eight to thirteen, and her power was even stronger than before.

She manipulated these thirteen sashes to form a huge net in mid-air, determined to shred these three brats along with their Nichirin blades!

Even so, Zenitsu and Inosuke still didn't retreat at all, increasing their power to decapitate Daki.

Sun Breathing. Sixth Form. Burning Sun Scorching Bones!

Just as the sash attack was about to descend, Tanjiro forcibly switched from Water Breathing to Sun Breathing, releasing a spinning flame slash that severed all the sashes!

And the locations where the sashes were cut emitted a burning sensation like the scorching sun, unable to regenerate.

And Zenitsu and Inosuke, in order not to waste the opportunity Tanjiro had fought for them, increased their strength again, preparing to sever Daki's neck!

Thunder Breathing. First Form. Thunderclap and Flash. God Speed!

Zenitsu unleashed unprecedented slashing power and speed, cooperating with Inosuke, and finally decapitated Daki!

Rip!

The sash-like soft neck finally couldn't withstand it and was torn apart!

Inosuke caught Daki's head and shouted: "The head, the demon's head! I'll run away with the demon head first!"

"Ugly freak, let me go!" Daki, who was being carried around by Inosuke, couldn't bear it anymore and wrapped her sashes around Inosuke.

But this attack was completely ignored by Inosuke, who just slashed twice and cut them all off.

On the other side, the battle between Zero and Gyutaro hadn't ended yet.

A nameless anger had been burning in Gyutaro's heart; this guy clearly had the ability to kill him, yet he had been deliberately toying with him.

Zero was indeed doing so; after changing back into his clothes, he recalled his performance while cross-dressing during this period and the things he had said, and goosebumps broke out all over his body.

How could he have ever imagined that he would do such shameful things?!

And "Queen Zero"?

And calling himself "this palace"?

If this were to get out, where would he show his face?

If his lovers found out, what would they think?

Therefore, he deliberately didn't kill Gyutaro, instead beating him up in a hand-to-hand combat style to vent the unhappiness in his heart!

Fist to flesh, bone by bone!

Plus, being proficient in human acupuncture points, every strike location made Gyutaro feel a wave of pain.

There was even a feeling of being unable to exert strength, similar to paralysis.

Demons were all transformed from humans, so naturally, their body structures were the same as humans; this was something he had experimented with on evil demons he had captured in the past.

Gyutaro, who had been beaten black and blue, quickly completed his regeneration, but now he was in a sorry state, with no power to fight back.

Furthermore, he had just felt that his sister had been decapitated!

If this continued, the brother and sister would lose their lives here!

"Damn it! Don't underestimate me!"

Blood Demon Art...

Bang!

Before Gyutaro could even activate his Blood Demon Art, he was kicked in the waist by Zero, his upper and lower body completely separated!

"I've had enough fun, it's time to send you on your way!"

"Goodbye!"

Finally, Zero took out his Nichirin scythe and, under Gyutaro's unwilling and angry gaze, decapitated him!

The battle on Zero's side had ended; Tanjiro and the others rushed over, their eyes filled with admiration.

To be able to kill Upper Rank Six alone, this strength was truly powerful!

Seeing this, Inosuke took the opportunity to throw the head of Daki he was holding over to Gyutaro.

Tengen Uzui jumped down from the rooftop and came to Zero's side, praising him without hesitation: "Zero, your battle was truly flamboyant! Hahahaha! Alone, you have once again flamboyantly killed an Upper Rank demon; counting this, you have flamboyantly killed three Upper Rank demons already!"

Zero just smiled slightly, and just as he was about to speak, the 【Analysis Glasses】 sent an alert.

【Alert! Alert! There is danger!】

Looking at Gyutaro's headless body, he discovered that the blood on it was gathering!

Suddenly, he remembered the intelligence about Gyutaro that he had collected in the past.

He shouted: "Get away!!!"

Seeing this, Tengen Uzui immediately hoisted Zenitsu and Tanjiro, and just as he was preparing to hoist Inosuke up as well, it was clearly too late!

Boom!

Gyutaro's headless body unleashed an enhanced version of the Blood Demon Art similar to the circular rotating slash, creating a huge explosion that swept through everything in the vicinity.

The entire Yoshiwara District area was destroyed by the impact of the explosion, turning into ruins!