Serpent Pillar Obanai Iguro was originally meant to take part in this mission, but worried about Mitsuri's situation, he diverted to Yoshiwara midway. Only Giyu Tomioka and Stone Pillar Himejima Gyomei arrived on Urokodaki's mountain, hoping to learn Nezuko's whereabouts and shield her from Kibutsuji Muzan.
What they did not expect was to face a demon far more terrifying than Muzan himself. In their eyes, the demon standing before them in daylight was more horrifying than any other. Even sunlight failed to harm it — a sign that this demon had no weakness. Muzan, after all, trembled at the sun. Yet this creature, basking in broad daylight, showed no sign of fear.
Unaware to them, Obanai had just reached Yoshiwara, only to discover the bodies of Uzui Tengen, Shinobu Kocho, and Mitsuri. He wept uncontrollably. He could not believe that Mitsuri, the one he loved in secret, had died like that.
"Water Pillar, Stone Pillar, your luck is extraordinary," Wang Xu said, looking down at Giyu and Gyomei. He had grown frustrated by his inability to find them, yet unexpectedly they had come to him of their own accord. Devouring these two would greatly strengthen him once more.
Without a word, Giyu and Gyomei launched their attacks. Giyu focused his energy into his Nichirin blade, breathing out, "Water Breathing, Fourth Form, Striking Tide." Simultaneously, Gyomei readied his massive weapons, calling out, "Stone Breathing, Fifth Form, Arcs of Justice."
Wang Xu nonchalantly tossed aside the dying Urokodaki and dissolved into an afterimage midair, dodging both attacks effortlessly.
Giyu and Gyomei struck again in unison. Suddenly, the ground cracked as Wang Xu's right foot swept low, tearing at the earth with unseen threads in his wake. Dirt and sand exploded out, forcing Giyu and Gyomei to fall back, then flank him from both sides.
In a sudden thrust, the area within three meters erupted beneath him, and Wang Xu propelled himself skyward like a cannonball. He extended countless threads from his right hand, spiraling and coiling them in midair until they formed a perfect clone. He called it forth: "Shadow String Manipulation."
From both the real body and the clone, countless thread‑pillars rained down like a torrent onto Giyu and Gyomei. The earth groaned and buckled beneath them, and each man retreated through the dust, faces grim.
Wang Xu landed with grace and charged toward Gyomei, while his clone struck at Giyu. Gyomei planted his foot on his chain‑connected flail, bracing himself, then swung his flail with terrifying speed. The ground fractured layer by layer, but Wang Xu vanished just before the strike.
Up close, Wang Xu's right hand extended sharp threads like flowing water, in a sudden move he called "Super Whipping Line." Gyomei raised his hammer and axe defensively, but the threads curled around and struck his back. He leapt just in time, avoiding serious injury.
As Gyomei jumped, Wang Xu followed his motion. His right foot lashed out in a devastating horizontal sweep, giving Gyomei no time to raise his guard. Gyomei cried out in pain, his body contorting like a shriveled shrimp, blood spouting from his nose and mouth. He became a cannonball, smashing through ruined trees, crashing into dirt and grass, struggling to breathe.
Wang Xu vanished and reappeared in front of Gyomei. His right hand's hook‑claws shot out five threads from above, seeking to grapple Gyomei. Despite his twisted abdomen, Gyomei swung his flail wildly to block. Yet Wang Xu was swift, closing in and kicking hard with his foot. Blood spurted again. Gyomei was too weak to resist; after smashing through tree trunks, he was hurled into the mountainside, embedding deep. His face was ashen.
Without pause, Wang Xu extended dozens of nearly invisible threads from his hand, forming a white spiral spear. It aimed straight at Gyomei's internal organs, piercing through rock and earth without any hindrance. Gyomei barely twisted his body to block, but only succeeded in redirecting the attack.
In the next instant, Wang Xu appeared behind him, his left hand launching another five threads that stabbed into Gyomei's chest without resistance, carving out empty cavities. He followed with a spinning kick to Gyomei's torso. With a sickening crack, Gyomei was driven further into the mountainside. Cracks spider‑webbed outward around him, the earth cracking into a crater. Fresh blood oozed, painting Gyomei in crimson. His breathing grew shallow and irregular.
Wang Xu stepped forward. His right hand coiled threads into a sharp suction‑tube, and he pressed it into Gyomei's chest. The threads writhed, drawing blood out and pulling it back into his own body, until Gyomei was nothing but a dried husk.
The fight was utterly one-sided. Gyomei never managed a true counterattack. Every move of his had been anticipated by Wang Xu, as if the demon predicted his every action. After devouring Gyomei, Wang Xu vanished in a swirl of motion.
Meanwhile, Giyu was still engaged with the clone. At first their battle was even, but as the clone and the original moved farther apart, Giyu gained the advantage. Had Wang Xu arrived just ten seconds later, Giyu might have eliminated the clone. But fate was cruel.
Giyu's Nichirin blade was blocked by multiple threads, and before he could recover, he found himself clashing with the real Wang Xu. The force was overwhelming, and Giyu was sent flying. In desperation, he flipped midair and used "Water Breathing, Single Form — Water Wheel" to disperse the impact.
Seeing Wang Xu reappear, Giyu's heart sank. If Gyomei were still alive, he would never let Wang Xu escape. Now he had only one possibility: Gyomei was dead.
Giyu inhaled deeply, gathering his strength. "Water Breathing, Tenth Form, Constant Flux," he muttered, his body flowing like a water dragon. He surged toward Wang Xu, Nichirin blade aimed for his neck.
Metal clashed as spark flew. Wang Xu's left hand extended threads to parry while his right hand unleashed destructive threads upward. Giyu leapt just in time.
He pivoted, launching "Water Breathing, Eleventh Form, Dead Calm." The world seemed to still. Giyu appeared behind Wang Xu with blinding speed, blade flying toward his neck. Wang Xu froze, and the Nichirin blade sliced through the back of his neck. His head flew off into the air.
But Giyu jolted in shock. A blade had pierced through his own body, from back through chest. Blood spurted. He realized: this was the clone. He had traded his life.
A voice, calm and measured, echoed from afar: "Very impressive." The head twirling in the air spoke those words. Then a transparent thread pulled it back to its neck. Wang Xu's head regrew instantly.
Giyu's eyes dimmed in despair. He understood in that moment that his effort was in vain. This demon defied sunlight, defied Nichirin blades — it outmatched every rule they knew.
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