Was this man also a Hashira? Why was his strength so much weaker than that woman's?
Zohakuten could not understand it, and he had no time to think further.
Facing Raiden, who stood right in front of him, Zohakuten immediately launched a cross kick.
He specialized in controlling wooden dragons, but that did not mean his close combat ability was weak.
"Is that all the strength you have?"
Raiden looked at Zohakuten calmly, his voice indifferent. He did not even react to the powerful wind from the incoming kick.
Zohakuten felt both surprise and anger.
His movements were slower than Raiden's, that much was obvious. The other man must have noticed it as well.
Yet Raiden made no attempt to dodge.
That meant his attack was not even worth taking seriously.
Utter arrogance.
Zohakuten forced more strength into his body and concentrated it into his thigh. If this kick landed cleanly, Raiden's head would explode like a crushed watermelon.
"Chi!"
A sharp slicing sound echoed.
The sound was clear, and at the moment it rang out Zohakuten realized something was wrong.
Pain.
A scorching pain beyond description.
Zohakuten lowered his gaze toward his thigh. The limb had been severed.
The shock in his eyes could no longer be hidden.
Even at this distance, he had not seen Raiden move at all.
Was his sword speed truly that absurd? Since when did the Demon Slayer Corps have a Hashira like this?
Although Zohakuten's thoughts were chaotic, he did not stop resisting.
After the failed kick, he opened his mouth as a pale golden ripple gathered inside his throat.
This time he learned from the previous attacks.
He knew he could not compete with Raiden in speed.
So instead of waiting for the ultrasonic wave to reach maximum power, he fired it the moment it formed.
Even so, Zohakuten still underestimated Raiden's speed.
The instant the ultrasonic wave left his mouth, a crimson gold Nichirin Blade pierced directly into his mouth.
The attack barely caused Raiden's loose white hair to sway slightly.
"Stop shouting. Don't you know how noisy that is?"
Raiden's voice sounded cold and distant, as if he found the demon's behavior mildly irritating.
Noisy?
This was his ability. What was he supposed to do?
A surge of humiliation rose from Zohakuten's chest. The hatred on his face deepened.
He clenched his teeth and tried to speak, but before any words came out he suddenly felt his body tighten.
It was as if an invisible force had bound him.
Zohakuten struggled violently, trying to break free, but it was useless.
Then a sharp pain erupted inside his mouth.
His head was pinned in the air by Raiden's Nichirin Blade.
A freezing chill spread through Zohakuten's body. His eyes widened in horror and fury.
His body lost all control and crashed heavily onto the ground.
Only his head remained suspended on the blade.
"Oh right, I almost forgot. You're not the main body. Cutting off your head is pointless."
Raiden frowned as he watched flesh slowly regenerate beneath Zohakuten's neck.
The regeneration process looked rather disgusting.
Suppressing his disgust, Raiden sniffed the air lightly.
There was no strong smell of blood nearby, so locating the real Hantengu should not be difficult.
A faint trail of scent drifted through the dense forest, guiding him.
The source was hidden behind three large overlapping trees, wrapped tightly by the coils of several wooden dragons.
"Kanroji, I'll leave this one to you. I'm going to kill the main body."
Raiden flicked his blade, sending Zohakuten's head flying toward Mitsuri Kanroji.
Mitsuri stared at the regenerating demon, then looked back at Raiden in confusion.
"Oh."
Her mind struggled to process what had just happened.
Did Raiden really cut off this demon's head with just a few strikes?
For a moment she wondered if she was dreaming.
Raiden looked so cool just now.
Mitsuri pressed a hand against her rapidly beating heart as her thoughts slowly returned to normal.
Even so, she could hardly believe what she had seen.
Raiden was far stronger than her.
She suddenly felt as if she had not contributed anything at all.
How embarrassing.
Would Raiden think she was weak?
Meanwhile, Raiden had already rushed into the dense forest. The scent he followed became clearer with every step.
Hantengu's main body had likely realized what happened to Zohakuten and quickly ordered the wooden dragons to carry him deeper into the forest.
However, the escape speed was disappointing.
In front of Raiden's full speed, it was no different from a crawling turtle.
Raiden leapt forward and landed lightly in front of Hantengu's escape route.
His sharp gaze pierced through the layers of stone surrounding the demon.
He could clearly see everything inside.
Raising one finger, Raiden casually drew a line through the air toward the stone sphere.
A thin strand of nearly invisible silk shot forward like a blade.
When the invisible edge touched the surface of the stone sphere, there was no explosion or violent impact.
It was like a knife slicing through water, producing only faint ripples.
Yet within those ripples, the stone sphere slowly split apart.
An unseen force spread from the center outward, cutting the stone with surgical precision.
As the sphere opened in two, the trembling figure inside was revealed.
Hantengu crouched within, clutching his head and shaking uncontrollably.
"Don't kill me, don't kill me."
"Relax," Raiden said calmly. "I'm just here to make friends."
"Make friends?"
Hantengu raised his head with tear filled eyes. Fear and confusion filled his gaze.
A Demon Slayer wanted to be friends with a demon?
Why?
He could not understand.
But he knew something else very clearly.
Zohakuten had just been beheaded within seconds after refusing Raiden.
If he refused as well, would he suffer the same fate?
Hantengu did not dare gamble.
He only wanted to survive.
If refusing meant death, then agreeing might give him a chance to live.
Hantengu swallowed nervously.
"I... I am willing to become your friend."
A faint sound echoed in Raiden's mind.
Ding.
Successfully added Upper Rank Four Hantengu as a friend.
Friendship level detected at initial stage. Random reward granted.
Obtained reward: Blood Demon Art, Interdimensional Evil Tree, Mastery Level.
Fuse Blood Demon Art Interdimensional Evil Tree now?
No.
Raiden's eyes brightened slightly.
His luck was excellent this time.
Both Gyokko and Hantengu had rewarded him with Blood Demon Arts.
And both were powerful ones.
Gyokko's Blood Prison Pot was already useful, but Hantengu's Interdimensional Evil Tree was considered his strongest ability.
It allowed the user to control several wooden dragons and launch large scale attacks simultaneously.
When Zohakuten used it, the power seemed unimpressive.
But that depended entirely on the user.
With Raiden's current strength, if he used Interdimensional Evil Tree, even Doma might struggle to withstand multiple wooden dragons attacking at once.
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