Ding!
Oboro reached out his hand toward Muzan.
To Muzan, that simple movement carried an aura of unspeakable terror, and he immediately prepared to resist.
Yet instinct warned him not to make a single reckless move. For with but a mere thought from this old man, his entire soul could be obliterated into nothingness.
Sensing the desperate danger Muzan was in, the clear sound of a biwa string rang out suddenly.
It was like a stone dropping onto the surface of a calm lake.
In the blink of an eye, Muzan—who had been standing directly opposite Oboro—vanished completely.
He had been relocated by Nakime's Blood Demon Art.
Not only him, but Kokushibo and Doma also disappeared instantly, expelled from the Infinity Castle entirely.
The scenery and structures within the space began to twist and shift chaotically.
Oboro merely blinked, and he himself was teleported into a room deep within the castle.
"Heh heh."
Oboro felt a hint of surprise.
Muzan's soul waves were normally projected indiscriminately, which should have engulfed Nakime as well. Yet even under such pressure, she had managed to react.
And she had done so specifically to protect Muzan. Truly a loyal servant.
Although Nakime was not ranked among the Upper Ranks, her strength was undoubtedly equal to theirs.
Unlike Doma and the others, who all harbored their own agendas, she seemed utterly devoted to Muzan alone.
The reason Oboro was able to enter this separate dimension in the first place…
Was because he had secretly placed spiritual markers upon Doma and Kokushibo earlier.
One of the abilities he had acquired during his time on the Dark Continent was the power to traverse time and space—originally applied only to the soul.
However, the barriers separating dimensions within the Demon Slayer world were weak and fragile…
Therefore, it was possible for even his physical body to break through and move freely between realms, provided he could determine the correct "direction."
---
"Hah…"
Realizing that Nakime had acted to save him, Muzan finally relaxed his tense and rigid posture.
He looked toward the long‑haired woman sitting in the distance and spoke coldly. "Go."
At his command, Nakime's fingers hovered over the strings of her biwa once more.
She was about to pluck them—
Swish!
Something terrifying happened.
Oboro, who should have been transported to the farthest corner of the castle, appeared instantly behind her as if teleporting. With a simple sweep of his arm…
Nakime's head spun into the air.
Amidst her disheveled hair, her eyes were wide open, reflecting the very same shock she had felt in her final moment.
After separating Oboro and Muzan, Nakime had never stopped manipulating the Infinity Castle.
Everything in the space, except for the area where she and Muzan stood, was constantly shifting and rearranging.
For anyone else, it would have been impossible to find direction, or even maintain a clear perception of their surroundings.
Her Blood Demon Art was not particularly destructive in terms of raw power, but when it came to complexity and sheer nuisance value, it was absolutely number one.
Yet despite all that, Oboro had caught up and killed her before she could escape.
It was worth noting that the Infinity Castle was an interdimensional fortress that served as Muzan's sanctuary.
It was not technically Nakime's creation, nor was it solely defined by her ability.
Nakime's power was merely the ability to control the castle. The true master of this space was Muzan himself.
Which meant… Muzan also possessed the authority and ability to alter and command the Infinity Castle.
The moment Oboro killed Nakime, he was instantly shifted high into the air, with no solid ground beneath his feet, falling straight down.
Oboro simply spread his arms and let himself plummet, remaining relaxed in this state of weightlessness.
Within this dimension, concepts such as height, distance, and direction were completely blurred.
Beneath him… there was no such thing as "the ground."
Oboro smiled faintly.
---
In the next second, a door opened onto the surface of the real world.
Muzan leaped out from the dimensional gap.
His face was deathly pale.
His body was shaking uncontrollably.
Nakime was dead.
In the blink of an eye.
From what his senses could perceive, Oboro had simply vanished from his previous location and then reappeared right beside Nakime.
This realization brought a terrifying possibility to Muzan's mind.
Spatial ability.
Oboro could traverse space itself.
There was simply no other way to explain what had happened.
"Damn it! Damn it!"
Muzan pressed one hand to his forehead, his expression twisted with rage.
He cursed himself. Cursed his own trembling body.
Not since the day Yoriichi Tsugikuni had nearly killed him with a single strike had he ever been in such a sorry state.
Even when facing Yoriichi, he had never been so terrified that his limbs shook beyond his control.
He had touched upon the power of the soul himself. And precisely because his understanding of it had deepened, the moment he witnessed the true magnitude of Oboro's soul, the spiritual impact upon him was far more devastating than it would be for any ordinary being.
And this was only because he had "seen" it. It was pure, unadulterated fear.
Oboro hadn't even used any actual soul‑based attacks or techniques.
Everything has its advantages and disadvantages. He had arrogantly believed he had "mastered" soul power… only to realize in the end what a joke that thought had been.
If he hadn't reached out to touch the mysteries of the soul, perhaps he could have still maintained some will to fight when facing Oboro.
But it was exactly because he understood it… that he truly comprehended the overwhelming gap in strength!
When you gaze long enough into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.
With that thought, Muzan dissolved instantly into a shadow and vanished.
He was running for his life!
Since Oboro possessed the ability to manipulate space, the Infinity Castle could no longer hold him. If Muzan stayed in one place, he would surely be caught.
The power of the soul was not something to be taken lightly. With Oboro's level of strength, he had already clearly sensed Muzan's unique soul frequency.
Which meant Muzan had only one option left: to run, and keep running, and flee endlessly.
He could no longer rely on his old tactic of hiding inside the Infinity Castle whenever a mortal threat appeared—something that had kept him safe from both the Demon Slayers and the Inheritors for centuries.
Furthermore, with the sheer intensity of Oboro's soul presence, he could probably sense Muzan's location even from vast distances away.
From this moment on… no matter how wide the world was, Muzan feared he would no longer have a single safe place to hide.
The only temporary measure left was to constantly change his location.
That way, even if Oboro detected him, as long as he moved before Oboro appeared, he might survive.
But the problem was… there were still Inheritors and Demon Slayers roaming the world who hadn't been eradicated…
---
One hour later, the sky began to brighten with the first light of dawn.
Muzan—always impeccably dressed and composed—stumbled into an old, dilapidated temple deep in the mountains, sweat pouring down his face.
He did not know how far he had run. If the sun hadn't been about to rise, forcing him to find shelter,
He would have kept running forever.
He slid down against a dust‑covered statue of Buddha and slumped onto the floor.
The anxiety churning within his heart refused to fade.
His eyes were fixed unwaveringly upon the entrance.
"It's not just the power of the soul… He possesses countless other methods. Terrifying flesh and blood, and the strength of his breath… Even though his body has aged so drastically, his physical performance is inhuman… exactly like that man."
"And that ability to completely disregard the boundaries of space…"
"How could a human possibly achieve such things?!"
"He is absolutely not human."
"Nakime was never the strongest, but she was certainly no weakling… Cutting off her head instantly is no simple feat."
"Could it be that there are things hidden in this world that I know nothing about? I have lived for so long… how could this be possible…"
"He seemed to say… 'after arriving in this world.' What did he mean by that? Unless…"
"Damn it!"
Muzan's mind raced rapidly. Suddenly, he grabbed fistfuls of his own hair, forcing himself to stop thinking.
He realized that his vision, locked on the doorway, had begun to blur.
It wasn't that something was wrong with his eyes or body… but because the shock and sheer dread caused by gazing directly at the essence of Oboro's soul still lingered and refused to leave him.
In the next second, Muzan's expression turned blank and vacant.
For just a split second his focus wavered—
Standing outside the doorway, which had been empty only moments ago, was a figure.
The night wind blew, causing that distinct, eye‑catching black haori to flutter in the breeze.
"You should understand… that the moment you laid eyes on me, you lost all possibility of ever running away again."
"..."
Muzan.
____________________
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