The night was Kiyokawa Izumi's home field.
The mindless Spider Demon Father fought solely on instinct, relying on brute force. He couldn't even see the shadows of the blades being swung, let alone dodge those silent, multiple slashes.
It was no surprise that he was killed instantly.
But the Spider Demon Sister clearly didn't think so.
She knew very well what kind of terrifying power this fake father possessed.
In just an instant, both Father and Mother had been killed.
A sense of terror lingered in her heart. Accustomed to betrayal and lies, she was frightened by the calm man before her. Without the slightest hesitation, she turned and fled, as if she had made a firm decision.
I'll die!
If I stay here, I'll be killed by this terrifying man.
Her fear of death eventually outweighed her dread of Rui.
Kiyokawa Izumi naturally heard the movement behind him, but he didn't turn to give chase.
Compared to the one in front of him, the demon that escaped was not important.
"Father and Mother are dead, Sister chose to run, and Brother never appeared from start to finish. Is this the fake bond you've built?"
"If you hadn't shared your blood with them, Lower Rank Five wouldn't be your limit."
"Do you feel some regret?"
Kiyokawa Izumi's voice drifted slowly; he had said this intentionally.
The nichirin blade in his hand could only cut tangible objects, but the words he spoke could break a fragile soul and sever intangible things.
"Shut up!"
Fine threads sliced through the air, and thick trees were cut in half.
"Do you really not understand this logic?"
"In the end, they share no blood relation with you. It's only natural they'd choose to flee when facing danger. Normally, they only choose to play house with you because they fear your strength."
Kiyokawa Izumi's voice became ethereal and illusory.
"I told you to shut up!"
An expression of rage appeared on Rui's face as he continuously searched for Kiyokawa Izumi's figure.
'Fourth Form: Five Senses Reflection: Myriad Phenomena of the Forest!'
Kiyokawa Izumi spoke silently in his mind.
High explosive power or extreme speed were never what he pursued.
The true advantage of the Dark Breathing he created lay in hiding his own presence and sharpening his five senses.
Although he had also learned Water Breathing, the state of mind required for Dead Calm—tranquil and waveless—was something he couldn't achieve.
He couldn't imitate it, nor could he integrate it into his own Breathing Technique.
Deriving his own Fourth Form based on Water Breathing's Eleventh Form: Dead Calm had been a bit like hitting a dead end.
It was only when he recalled his battle with lower rank six that he truly understood he could construct his Fourth Form in coordination with his five senses.
These eyes could see; no matter how fine the threads were or how fast they were swung, these eyes could capture them.
The whistling wind made different sounds as it swept over the ground versus the leaves; there were always differences in the details.
The scents permeating the air also had distinctions when broken down.
Sight, hearing, smell, and even touch were all pushed to their absolute limit at this moment.
The current battlefield environment seemed to be reconstructed; where the torrent of the five senses converged, the essence of things was revealed.
He was reconstructing his perception little by little.
There is a saying: if you are blinded by a single leaf, you cannot see the tree itself; if you are attracted by a single tree, you cannot see the entire forest.
By observing the situation from a bystander's perspective, he wasn't distracted by the demon's swinging fists, nor was he limited by the Blood Demon Art being used.
By viewing the whole picture, he could see everything, even clearly seeing the demon's subtle movements.
'Next, it will use a Blood Demon Art.'
'Ordinary threads would be easily cut by me. Knowing this, it shouldn't do something useless.'
'So, it will be blood threads, right?'
"Blood Demon Art: Cutting Thread Cage!"
The pale hands were replaced by blood-red; that was his own blood.
The threads were forcefully hooked by Rui's ten fingers, and fresh red blood soaked into them, spreading at a speed visible to the naked eye.
The moment the threads pulled taut, boundless killing intent had already arrived.
Spiderweb-like blood threads crisscrossed, tightly surrounding Kiyokawa Izumi's somewhat thin figure.
There was no space to maneuver, no room to dodge.
But he could see everything.
He could sense the spreading blood threads and could even trace them back to their source, judging which of Rui's fingers were exerting the most force.
Without dodging or retreating, without panic or confusion, Kiyokawa Izumi simply walked forward slowly.
He passed through the surrounding blood threads just like that. His body wasn't cut into countless small pieces, and not a single mark was left on his brand-new black haori.
The Fourth Form he created was less of an absolute defensive skill and more of a supportive one.
It used sharpened senses to re-understand the battlefield environment.
If he could see it and react in time, he could naturally cut through it.
The blood threads behind him snapped one after another as if brushed by a light breeze.
Rui's pupils shrank slightly; he hadn't even clearly seen this human swordsman's movements.
'He accurately predicted the positions and swung his nichirin blade in advance... is that it?'
'But how could he possibly judge the exact positions of the blood threads?'
'And why could he walk through so confidently?'
'If there were even a single oversight, that fragile body would have been sliced open!'
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This chapter is due to five reviews, and I will publish a new chapter if I receive five more reviews.
Only a few power stones remain for the extra chapter.