A destructive aura, like the immense pressure of billions of tons of seawater, enveloped the entire Infinity Castle.
The twisted architecture began to silently disintegrate and annihilate under this aura, even their material foundations forcibly erased.
All the powerhouses present, whether the Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps or the guests from other worlds, couldn't help but cast their gazes toward the epicenter.
This was no simple energy explosion.
This was a power mixing the energy of the sun and the origin of demons, enough to drag this twisted alternate dimension along with everyone present into nothingness!
Facing this apocalyptic scene, Hashirama Senju and Sasuke Uchiha showed serious expressions for the first time.
The defenses constructed by Susanoo and Wood Release seemed fragile before this power that annihilated all things.
However, the Ultimate Being Kars, Muzan's primary target, let out a joyous laugh.
He leisurely reached out a finger, gently adjusting his smooth purple hair, as if the world-destroying scene before him was nothing but a poorly produced play.
His gaze no longer focused on that expanding dark sun.
Instead, it fell upon the empty space before the throne.
Kars slowly raised his hand. Behind him, a blurry and divine golden silhouette, composed entirely of pure light, quietly emerged.
"In your incompetent and lowly life, you have never understood what 'Ultimate' means."
His voice was not loud, yet it clearly transmitted into every soon-to-be-frozen mind present.
"Ultimate means creating rules, transcending rules, and mocking rules!"
"Za Warudo!"
He let out a low shout.
In an instant, the entire world lost its color and sound.
The expanding dark sun, the crumbling architecture, the horrified expressions on the faces of the Demon Slayer Corps, and even the dust floating in the air were forcibly frozen in this exact moment.
Time stopped.
In this gray, deathly still world, only Kars and the purple-gold Stand behind him could move freely.
He took elegant steps, leisurely walking toward the self-destruct energy frozen in the air that seemed capable of destroying everything.
He reached out and gently touched the stationary dark sun, his fingertips feeling the violent energy within that was enough to annihilate matter, yet a trace of disdain appeared on his face.
"Exiled in the endless void of space, in those years enough to drive any lifeform mad, I did not waste my time."
"I have been observing Earth, and I have been paying attention to the man who defeated me and his descendants. I have witnessed countless wondrous abilities, and ultimately saw through this miraculous power originating from the soul, known as a 'Stand'."
His gaze swept across a stationary space not far away.
There, a small, easily overlooked piece of flesh was paused at the exact moment before tearing open a tiny spatial rift.
Within it carried all of Muzan Kibutsuji's vitality and hope for escape.
Kars curled his lips in contempt.
"Trying to pull a disappearing act and escape right in front of me?"
"Meaningless."
He slowly, deeply took a breath.
The golden Stand behind him made the exact same movement.
"Ora ora ora ora ora!!!"
The next instant, golden fist shadows that could blot out the sun bombarded the stationary dark sun with absolute precision at a frequency surpassing the limits of human vision!
Every punch contained terrifying power enough to shatter matter!
Every punch ruthlessly smashed the mighty power of the Sun Hamon into every single one of Muzan's cells!
At the same time, Kars extended a finger, a tiny yet incomparably dazzling light, like the core of the sun, condensing on his fingertip.
It was the power of perfect Hamon condensed to its absolute limit.
Swish!
That light silently pierced through the flesh clone carrying Muzan's final hope.
"Time resumes its flow."
Kars snapped his fingers.
The gray world instantly regained its original colors and sounds.
The apocalyptic explosion did not occur.
That dark sun capable of destroying everything seemed to have been erased by a power from a higher dimension.
The moment time resumed, it frantically collapsed inward. All its energy and matter were crushed and annihilated.
Finally, it turned into an imperceptible speck of dust, silently vanishing into the air.
The members of the Demon Slayer Corps and the guests from other worlds only felt a momentary daze in their minds, as if a dozen seconds had been plucked out of thin air from their lives.
When they snapped back to reality, the world-destroying crisis was completely gone.
That man who had plagued the Demon Slayer Corps for over a thousand years, known as the Demon King, Muzan Kibutsuji, had been thoroughly reduced to ash, not leaving a single trace behind.
'Dead?'
'Is it over?'
A trace of unbelievable bewilderment still lingered on the faces of Kyojuro Rengoku and the others. They hadn't even exerted themselves yet, how was Muzan just gone?
Just when everyone thought this would be a long and tragic battle, they never expected it to come to a close at this exact moment.
'So Muzan didn't really have much power after all!'
High above in the heavens, the figure who had been leisurely watching the battle gently shook his head.
Ian seemed to feel a hint of boredom at this overly clean and decisive ending.
He casually snapped his fingers.
"Snap!"
A crisp snap echoed across the empty heavens.
The next moment, in the Infinity Castle below, the laws of the entire world seemed to have been forcibly rewound by an invisible giant hand.
Light, dust, sound... even everyone's movements began to rapidly flow backward.
The fist shadows Kars had unleashed retracted back into his body.
The solemnity on Sasuke Uchiha's face reverted to coldness.
The destroyed architecture miraculously reassembled.
Time precisely returned to the moment right before Muzan Kibutsuji accumulated all his power, preparing to split his core and self-destruct.
"I will make all of you return to nothingness with me!"
The newly reborn Muzan Kibutsuji blurted out the exact same line filled with anger and unwillingness.
But the next second, he froze.
'Wait...'
'Didn't I already self-destruct?'
'No, that's not right!'
'I think I was instantly killed by that purple-haired sissy in a completely incomprehensible way!'
That absolute, irresistible memory of death—of countless fists bombarding his soul, and his final hope of escape being pierced by a single finger—was so clear, so real!
He abruptly looked up and saw it.
He saw Kars, who was looking at him with an elegant yet cruel smile, taking his sweet time.
In that instant, only one thought remained in Muzan's mind.
'Run!'
'Run as far away as possible!'
He didn't dare to linger for even a fraction of a second longer. Abandoning even his plan to self-destruct, he fled in a panic in the exact opposite direction of Kars.