"I know you're waiting for your leg to recover—but unfortunately for you, this is my first time fighting a demon. I'm going to make absolutely sure there's no room for error, so…"
Chu Yang's words jolted the young demon awake. Panic surged through it as it forced out the last of its strength and tried to flee. The moment it turned around, a streak of white blade light tore through the darkness and swept across its neck.
The demon's head flew high into the air.
As it spun, it first saw its own body—then its severed arms.
The head landed neatly between the two arms. The three formed an eerie, grotesque composition, like some twisted piece of art.
The head began to burn.The demon's life entered its final countdown.
"Who… who are you? Are you from the Demon Slayer Corps? Ordinary members can't possibly be this strong…"
The dying demon tried to speak again, but Chu Yang leapt high into the air, raising the horse-slaying saber and smashing it down onto the demon's head with overwhelming force.
The earth rumbled.
Then the temple fell silent once more.
At dawn the next morning, Gyomei Himejima returned to the temple with the first rays of sunlight. The air still carried the lingering stench of a demon. His expression changed instantly as he strode forward.
Memories surged from the deepest recesses of his heart—nightmares long buried—and a violent killing intent erupted from his body.
A wrathful guardian.A compassionate bodhisattva.
But just as quickly, that killing intent vanished.
Chu Yang yawned as he pushed open the door and stepped outside. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes, then spotted Gyomei and immediately brightened.
"Sir Gyomei, you're back!"
Living alone in a remote mountain temple wasn't easy. With no one to talk to, even someone like Chu Yang—who preferred quiet—couldn't help feeling a little lonely.
Gyomei had already returned to his usual calm, as though the man on the brink of rage moments ago had never existed.
"Did a demon appear here last night?" he asked slowly.
"Yeah. Just a small fry," Chu Yang replied casually. "Took me two… no, three slashes to finish it."
Thinking back to how it had taken him three strikes to behead the demon, Chu Yang felt slightly embarrassed. His training still wasn't good enough. If he'd handled the saber more smoothly, the last two strikes wouldn't have been necessary.
Two… three slashes?
Gyomei was filled with question marks.
"Tell me exactly what happened last night," he said.
So Chu Yang recounted the entire battle in detail—and even offered a serious self-critique, saying his cultivation was insufficient and that it should have been settled in a single strike instead of dragging on to the third.
After listening, Gyomei fell into a long silence.
He didn't speak for a very long time.
He truly didn't know how to evaluate Chu Yang's performance.
Even now, as the strongest among the current Hashira, Gyomei vividly remembered his own first battle after officially joining the Demon Slayer Corps—it had been fraught with danger, a narrow escape from death.
By comparison, Chu Yang's fight could only be described as calm and effortless.
Should I just recommend him for the Final Selection right away?
The thought surfaced in Gyomei's mind. Letting someone participate in the Final Selection after only a month of training was almost unheard of.
At this point in time, Muichiro Tokito had not yet joined the Demon Slayer Corps and was still an ordinary boy. Otherwise, with Muichiro's feat of becoming a Hashira in just two months as a comparison, Gyomei might not have found Chu Yang's talent so shocking.
After careful consideration, Gyomei finally decided to send Chu Yang to the Final Selection. At Chu Yang's current level, further improvement could only come through real combat.
Moreover, the Demon Slayer Corps had suffered an extremely high casualty rate on the front lines for years. They desperately needed fresh blood. A genius like Chu Yang joining would be a tremendous boost.
"Prepare yourself. You're going to Mount Fujikasane for the Final Selection," Gyomei said firmly. "The time has come. The sooner you become an official member, the sooner you can begin slaying demons."
Chu Yang nodded heavily.
"Alright."
Three days later, Chu Yang set out alone for Mount Fujikasane to take the trial.
As the site of the Final Selection, Mount Fujikasane was located deep in the mountains, much like the temple where Gyomei trained. It was remote and isolated.
But the mountain had one unmistakable feature.
From the foot of the mountain all the way up to its midsection, it bloomed year-round with the very plant demons hated most—
Wisteria flowers.
The wisteria incense stored in the temple was made from these very blossoms.
From afar, the mountain looked like it was wrapped in a sea of pale violet. Chu Yang only needed to follow the flowers to reach his destination.
Before long, a stone path appeared beneath his feet.
Continuing forward, Chu Yang climbed a flight of steps, at the top of which stood a torii gate.
Passing through it, he arrived at a wide platform.
People stood all around him. Everyone had a sword at their waist—except Chu Yang, who carried his on his back.
"Whoa! That sword is huge!"
With that exclamation, Chu Yang instantly became the center of attention. Curious gazes swept over him, though most were fixed on the massive blade behind his back.
Compared to Chu Yang's horse-slaying saber, the swords everyone else carried looked as thin as matchsticks.
As they observed him, Chu Yang also studied the crowd. One person caught his eye immediately—a girl wearing a mask.
It was a fox mask with a blue floral pattern painted into a smiling face.
Chu Yang felt it looked familiar, as though he'd seen it somewhere before.
Soon after, members of the Demon Slayer Corps arrived to explain the rules of the Final Selection. There were no surprises—survive on Mount Fujikasane for seven days.
Such a simple requirement.
Yet it would still eliminate over ninety percent of those present. Those confident-looking youths would ultimately die on this mountain blanketed in violet flowers.
As soon as the explanation ended, some people couldn't wait any longer and rushed down the paths where wisteria did not grow. In Chu Yang's eyes, they were as good as dead—confident youths marching straight into a mountain crawling with demons.
After a while, only Chu Yang and the fox-masked girl remained on the platform.
Chu Yang glanced at her once, then calmly stepped onto the path that seemed ready to devour anyone who entered.
The girl followed behind him at an unhurried pace.
Chu Yang had no idea she was only following him out of curiosity—curiosity about the enormous blade on his back.
The trial began at dusk.
Once everyone had entered the mountain, the sky gradually darkened—perfect timing for demons to roam.
Chu Yang walked through the forest for a while without encountering any demons, but his irritation steadily grew.
Because there was a little tail sticking to him.
"Hey. That's enough already," Chu Yang said impatiently as he turned around. "How long are you planning to follow me?"
The fox-masked girl stopped in her tracks and replied weakly, "I'm sorry…"
Chu Yang sighed helplessly. "Then why are you following me at all?"
The girl answered awkwardly, "I've never seen a sword that big before… I guess I couldn't help staring."
Chu Yang was speechless.
If not for the fact that she clearly meant no harm, he would've already acted.
(End of Chapter)