Wang Xu remained expressionless, uninterested even in replying. The four Lower Moons he had just destroyed — Rokuro, Gyū Mōo, Mukago, Kamanue — though part of the Twelve Kizuki, were merely inferior prey. Slaying them brought only modest power compared to pillars or Upper Moons.
But Wang Xu was in a foul mood. He had let Nezuko and Giyu Tomioka escape before, and had spent the last twenty days hunting them relentlessly.
Still, devouring those four demons made him stronger, and granted him fragments of their memories at a cellular level. Surely Nezuko and Giyu must be nearby; they came here after following a lead.
Perhaps the Serpent Pillar and even another Upper Moon lurked in nearby Yoshiwara. This was promising.
At Infinity Castle, Muzan — who was busy adjusting medicines — paused, closing his eyes. Ten seconds later he opened them. His plum-red pupils glowed cold.
He sensed the deaths of Rokuro, Gyū Mōo, Mukago, and Wakuraba. Four of his Twelve Kizuki were gone.
Only five remained: Upper Moon Two Douma, Upper Moon Three Nakime, Upper Moon Four Hantengu, Upper Moon Five Gyokko, and Lower Moon One Kaigaku. The ranks thinned.
---
Two days later, under the heavy afternoon sun, the streets of Yoshiwara pulsed with life. Crowds bustled through the commercial districts as vendors hawked their goods.
Among them, Lucien sat at a takoyaki stall, the upper half of his face concealed by a fox mask. He savored his food slowly. He'd only arrived that morning.
After twenty days spent cultivating in remote forests and mountains, he finally emerged to take the measure of the world again.
On a whim, he walked until he stumbled into Yoshiwara. The stall owner told him that the Flower District had recovered, and scheduled a Lantern Festival for tonight.
After finishing his takoyaki, Lucien planned to find a modest inn, soak in a hot spring, and in the evening stroll the restored Flower District.
Tomorrow, he intended to investigate. He needed to know what had become of the Demon Slayer Corps, Muzan, Wang Xu, Nezuko, and the rest.
He recalled with mild amusement how, after defeating Kokushibo, he had come away with five boxes of Erguotou — potent liquor that still weighed on him.
Night came quickly. Lucien soaked in a hot spring, enjoyed a massage, then walked the streets.
The city's nightlife glowed with red lanterns and neon lights. The air pulsed with wealth, indulgence, and dark pleasures. People wandered, some chasing carnal thrills, others chasing oblivion.
As Lucien approached the Flower District — though not the original part, but a side street — something unexpected happened.
A sudden explosion. Flames shot up, light and heat ripping through the crowd. Screams and panic snapped the night into chaos.
Lucien froze, sensing several powerful auras nearby. They felt familiar.
Instinctively, he leapt onto a nearby rooftop for a better view. From there he saw the fight:
Serpent Pillar Obanai Iguro, Nichirin blade at the ready, sweeping a coiling, serpent-like sword path. "Serpent Breathing, Third Form: Coil Choke."
On the left, Giyu Tomioka attacked as well, water swirling around his blade. "Water Breathing, Fourth Form: Striking Tide."
Facing a pincer assault, Wang Xu created a clone. The night shook as buildings crumbled, debris flying. The blast of battle destroyed the surrounding structures.
Wang Xu's cold voice rang out to the demon-form of Giyu Tomioka: You've become a demon. Five threads appeared, blocking the Nichirin blade.
On the rooftop, Lucien suppressed his own aura, watching quietly.
Giyu Tomioka bore the telltale signs — demon eyes, bloodlust, unnatural vitality — but the Serpent Pillar looked unchanged.
Wang Xu, however, radiated terrifying strength. The clone's thread-body reminded Lucien of Doflamingo's String-String Fruit ability. Some things had changed off his map.
Lucien felt a dangerous thrill. Today, perhaps he would be the fisherman — harvesting the chaos others had stirred.
As the battle roared on, Wang Xu and his clone overwhelmed Giyu and Obanai.
He readied his kukri, amethyst eyes narrowing, but held back, waiting for the perfect moment — a one-hit kill.
In Lucien's calculation, Wang Xu was the far greater threat and of higher "value."
A minute later Giyu created a tiny opening.
Golden lightning crackled over the night sky, striking like a bolt of divine judgement. Time slowed from Lucien's perspective.
The kukri in his hand glowed red, temperature peaking. It swung toward the empty air where Wang Xu's neck had been — just a decimeter from striking.
But Wang Xu moved.
His head flew free from his shoulders. He turned to look, triumphant.
Lucien's blood ran cold. His kukri cut only empty space.
In an instant a transparent thread sliced him in half at the waist. He had walked willingly into the trap.
Pain exploded through his body. Blood sprayed his upper half as he hurtled backward, uncontrollable.
To survive, he had to transform.
A golden lightning bolt tore down from the sky, like a missile crashing into the earth. The ground bucked and cracked under its force.
Ruins flew outward in a storm of dust and rock, scattering the battlefield. Giyu Tomioka and Obanai found themselves forced to retreat.
Wang Xu's head reattached to his body as he landed on the shattered ground. Steam rose from the crater's center.
He crouched, watching carefully.
He sensed — this adversary wasn't dead.
When the steam cleared, Wang Xu's eyes widened with excitement.
A towering, fifteen-meter giant stood where Lucien once was. The giant gleamed faintly under street lanterns — unmistakably the Armored Titan from the Attack on Titan world.
Wang Xu realized what this meant: Lucien had come from another world. He possessed the power to cross worlds.
This was even better than he had hoped.
The ability to travel between worlds — for someone like Wang Xu, that was the ultimate temptation, a fatal cheat.
_____
The rate at which I get little to no power stones, lol💀
Well, if you want to at least read ahead (60+ to 90+) chapters in advance.
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