"Alright. Bring out your strongest form already. Let's see Zohakuten."
Shuya tossed the lightning blade aside. It had lost its power after being used too much and hit the ground with a dull clang. He looked at the four emotion clones that had already regenerated.
The clones slowly gathered near Aku. All four of them now stared at Shuya with clear wariness. Just moments ago they had the advantage in numbers. Now they had been completely dismantled. If they didn't have the ability to regenerate as long as the main body lived, they would already be dead.
They knew they couldn't win. It was time to bring out their strongest card.
In an instant, the air grew heavy. Joy, Sorrow, and Pleasure's bodies dissolved into blood mist and surged into Aku. The ground cracked. Trees exploded. The four emotions fused into one overwhelming feeling.
Hatred.
From the swirling blood mist, a new figure emerged. A red-skinned youth with horns, a tongue marked with the word "hatred," and five massive taiko drums floating behind him. In each hand he held a vicious-looking drumstick.
Zohakuten had arrived.
"Hmph." Zohakuten glared at Shuya, voice cold and arrogant. "Bullying the weak… how disgusting. Put down that pathetic main body right now, or I'll make you taste true despair."
Shuya raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed. "You want to judge me? Go ahead and try."
What really caught his attention were the five drums behind Zohakuten. Each one represented an upgraded version of the clones' Blood Demon Arts, plus Zohakuten's own ability to summon massive wooden dragons.
Zohakuten snarled and slammed his drumsticks against the taiko.
"Blood Demon Art: Wood Dragon of Eternal Suffering!"
The ground for dozens of meters around Shuya exploded. Twisted, blood-red tree trunks burst from the earth, forming snarling wooden dragons that lunged at him from every direction.
Shuya didn't even flinch. He simply coated his hand in aura and slapped the nearest dragon's head.
The massive wooden skull shattered into splinters.
Zohakuten's eyes widened in disbelief. He frantically beat the drums again, summoning even more dragons and firing lightning, wind blades, and slashing attacks from their mouths.
None of it mattered.
Shuya walked forward one steady step at a time, casually destroying everything that came near him. Wood dragons, elemental attacks—none of it even made him raise his other hand.
Zohakuten's confidence cracked. For the first time, real fear appeared in his eyes. Even Upper Rank One Kokushibo had never made him feel this powerless.
When Shuya finally stood right in front of him, Zohakuten opened his mouth to unleash a sonic attack.
Too slow.
Shuya's hand shot out and clamped around his face. With a sickening crunch, Zohakuten's head exploded like an overripe watermelon.
The body collapsed.
A moment later, blood mist gathered and a new head formed. Shuya immediately stomped on it, crushing it again. Every time the head regenerated, Shuya crushed it without mercy.
Eventually, the regeneration slowed… then stopped completely.
Shuya finally looked down at the trembling main body of Hantengu still dangling from his hand.
"So? Got anything else left?"
"Don't kill me! Please don't kill me!" Hantengu begged, voice shaking.
Shuya stared at him for a moment, then asked calmly, "Do you want to live?"
"Yes! Yes! I want to live!"
Hantengu nodded frantically, eyes full of desperate hope.
Shuya wiped the blood off his hand on Hantengu's clothes. Then he manifested the glowing parchment of his Equivalent Exchange ability and held it in front of the demon.
A gentle smile appeared on his face.
"Good. Then read this carefully… and repeat after me."