Demon Slayer: Tanjiro becomes a ghost, Nezuko becomes a pillar!

Chapter 165 Destruction and Killing

Akaza's lips curled into a mocking smile, his golden pupils surging with a fervent desire for battle, and intricate, cold snowflake-shaped spell patterns slowly emerged beneath his feet.

As the procedure was fully performed.

An overwhelming sense of pressure, far exceeding anything seen before, surged forth and swept straight towards Tanjiro.

The surrounding night wind was forced to stop by this oppressive force, and even the air became thick and heavy, making it hard to breathe.

Tanjiro gripped the flaming Nichirin Blade tightly in his hand, the bloody hole in his abdomen still throbbing with pain.

He took a deep breath, his chest heaving violently, drawing all the surrounding air into his lungs.

The power of the demonic transformation was fully unleashed, and the flesh and blood at the pierced wound in his abdomen rapidly regenerated at a speed visible to the naked eye.

In just a few breaths, only a faint red mark remained.

However, this regenerative ability, which is terrifying to ordinary people, is ultimately insignificant compared to Akaza's speed in regenerating his arm in the blink of an eye.

"Looks like you're finally ready."

Akaza flicked his fingertips, his demonic aura becoming even more concentrated. The playfulness on his face transformed into pure battle excitement, and his voice became deep and sharp.

"Then... let's begin. Destruction Kill: Compass Needle!"

The moment the words left his mouth, Akaza's figure vanished from the spot without warning or a sound of air being cut. His speed was so fast that he left behind only a faint pink afterimage that was almost impossible to catch.

This ghostly movement, far surpassing that of the Lower Moon, instantly put Tanjiro under immense pressure. His muscles tensed to the extreme, his pupils contracted, and he focused intently on capturing every movement around him.

He couldn't see Akaza's movements at all, and could only rely on his greatly enhanced sense of smell after becoming a demon to frantically capture the strong, pungent demonic scent in the air.

The next second, a pungent demonic aura suddenly attacked from his side. Tanjiro had no time to think and, relying on his ingrained fighting instincts, he swung his Nichirin Blade to the side, the flames tracing a sharp arc along the blade.

"clang--!"

The ear-piercing, crisp sound of metal clashing exploded, making Tanjiro's eardrums ring and a sharp numbness surge through his arm, almost causing him to lose his grip on the hilt of his sword.

He looked closely, and his pupils suddenly contracted—

Akaza had appeared beside him without him noticing, and with just one fist, he steadily blocked the Nichirin Blade that he was swinging with all his might.

The sharp blade pressed against his fist, but it didn't even break the skin, leaving only a shallow white mark.

"Not enough, not enough! Your strength is too weak!"

Akaza threw his head back and laughed, his excitement growing stronger, his tone full of undisguised disdain.

Before Tanjiro could retract his sword, his other fist had already gathered a dense demonic aura, and with a whooshing sound, it slammed towards Tanjiro.

The punch was fierce and fast, so fast that Tanjiro didn't even have time to make a complete dodge. He could only barely turn his head and couldn't avoid the fatal blow.

"Bang—Crack—!"

A dull thud and a crisp cracking sound rang out simultaneously as Akaza's fist slammed into Tanjiro's shoulder.

The shoulder bone, which had just been repaired, shattered again, with bone fragments piercing the muscles, and excruciating pain instantly engulfed the entire body.

Tanjiro's body jolted violently, and he staggered back several steps as he was slammed by the immense force, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

But he did not back down at all. Despite the excruciating pain of his fractured shoulder bone, he reacted with lightning speed and twisted his wrist.

"Hinokami Kagura: Waltz!"

A burst of crimson-gold flames suddenly erupted, precisely slashing at Akaza's outstretched arm as he threw a punch. The blade was sharp and unrestrained.

Akaza didn't have time to retract his arm before it was severed in an instant, and black demon blood splattered out, sizzling as it hit the ground.

Despite the pain of losing his arm, Akaza showed no anger or pain. Instead, as if stimulated, his eyes burned with even more fervor, and he burst into laughter.

"Hahaha! That's more like it! Show me some real skill, don't keep me bored!"

He lightly leaped backward, creating distance between himself and Tanjiro.

In the blink of an eye, a completely intact arm regenerated, without leaving even the slightest scar.

Immediately, he planted his feet firmly on the ground, his demonic energy gathering around him. He assumed an extremely aggressive stance, his golden pupils fixed on Tanjiro, his tone cold yet excited.

"Destruction Kill: Chaos Style!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Akaza suddenly threw a punch, but this punch was thrown at empty air, without a clear target, and without any attack aimed at Tanjiro.

Tanjiro's broken bones in his shoulder were still rapidly repairing themselves. He watched Akaza's strange behavior without the slightest carelessness.

Instead, he became even more vigilant, his eyes fixed on Akaza's movements, his nostrils twitching as he tried to track his attack trajectory.

But it was too late. An invisible, violent impact suddenly struck him, slamming into his chest.

It felt like being struck by countless invisible fists simultaneously, the force overwhelming and unavoidable.

"Ugh—"

Tanjiro groaned in pain, his body uncontrollably staggering back several steps. A tightness gripped his chest, and a sweet taste rose in his throat as another mouthful of blood gushed out.

Relying on the incredible resilience of his demonic body, he managed to steady himself, leaving two deep marks on the ground with his feet before finally managing to stand.

He gripped his Nichirin Blade tightly, assumed a fighting stance once more, and rapidly analyzed the attack he had just delivered.

[An invisible attack... a fist without a physical form? This isn't ordinary martial arts; is it Akaza's Blood Demon Art? But he didn't move at all; how did the attack come about...?]

Tanjiro frowned, trying to find a flaw in this invisible attack, but Akaza wouldn't give him any time to think.

Akaza's excitement gradually faded as he watched Tanjiro struggle to defend himself.

Instead, a clear look of disappointment appeared on his face as he slowly approached Tanjiro, his tone full of impatience.

"You're a demon, and a swordsman, possessing the demon's powerful body and regenerative abilities. You could have become even stronger, so how come... you're so weak? You can't even withstand my most basic attack?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Akaza's figure flashed again, rushing towards Tanjiro like a ghost.

This time, his attack became even more ferocious, his fists raining down like a storm, the wind howling and carrying a dense demonic aura, sweeping towards Tanjiro.

Tanjiro quickly raised his Nichirin Blade and fought back with all his might, swinging the blade continuously to block the oncoming fist.

Kowaza's speed was too fast, and her attacks were too dense.

Even though he swung his sword with all his might, he could only block a small portion of the attacks; the vast majority of the fists still slammed into his body.

Each punch brought excruciating pain, like bones being shattered.

Tanjiro's body trembled incessantly, blood kept spilling from the corner of his mouth, and his clothes were already soaked in blood and tattered.

The fierce force of the punches kicked up dust and gravel from the ground, creating a cloud of dust that enveloped the two figures, obscuring the battle from view. All that could be heard were the continuous sounds of impacts and cracking bones.

Suddenly, a towering crimson-gold flame erupted from the swirling dust, its intense heat instantly pushing back the surrounding dust.

Immediately afterwards, Akaza's figure flew out of the dust and landed steadily on the ground, his face completely calm.

He simply stared blankly in the direction of the swirling dust, his disappointment growing ever stronger.

As the dust slowly settled, Tanjiro's figure was revealed in the arena.

At this moment, he was covered in wounds, his body riddled with holes, his clothes torn, his body covered in blood and dust, many bones broken, and his wounds gruesome.

The demonic power was operating at full capacity, and the flesh and blood struggled to writhe and repair themselves.

However, the injuries were too severe, and the recovery process became extremely slow.

He was panting heavily, his head bearing a shattered scar.

Every breath was excruciatingly painful, yet he still gripped the Nichirin Blade tightly, standing shakily in place, his gaze fixed firmly on Akaza, showing no sign of backing down.

"You really are a complete and utter weakling."

Akaza looked at Tanjiro's disheveled appearance and spoke calmly.

"With such strength, you are not worthy to fight me."

"Even if I am weak... I will... fight with all my might... to slay all of you man-eating demons!"

Tanjiro's voice was weak, yet each word was firm and resolute, carrying an unwavering determination. Every word was spoken with the last of his strength.

Akaza tilted his head slightly upon hearing this, a hint of doubt flashing in his golden pupils, his tone filled with confusion.

"Oh? But aren't you a ghost too?"

"I'm different! I'm completely different from you!"

Tanjiro suddenly raised his head, his eyes blazing with fury, and roared with all his might. His wounds reopened due to his emotional outburst, and blood gushed out.

"I have never harmed anyone, never eaten anyone. I am different from you evil spirits who feed on humans and kill indiscriminately. If I could, I would rather fight you openly and honestly with a human body!"

With an angry roar, Tanjiro's demonic power erupted once again.

The wounds on his body were healing at a slightly faster pace, and his lost strength was gradually recovering.

He straightened his broken body, slowly raised the Nichirin Blade in his hand, the tip of the blade steadily pointing at Akaza, his eyes filled with unwavering determination.

"Is that so? But don't forget, if it weren't for the ghost's body, you would have already died, and wouldn't even have had the chance to stand here and speak."

Akaza raised an eyebrow and pointed out this cruel fact in a detached tone.

"That's precisely why I will never stop! I will fight you to the very end, even at the cost of my life, to protect all innocent humans!"

Tanjiro's voice boomed, and the fiery aura around him slowly gathered once more.

But when you hear the phrase "protect all of humanity".

Akaza's expression suddenly changed.

His previously indifferent expression turned irritable, his brows furrowed tightly, and a barely perceptible hint of panic flashed in his golden pupils.

It was as if those words had stung something.

A feeling of inexplicable disgust and irritation welled up inside me.

He felt as if he had heard those words in a distant memory, which made him feel uneasy.

"You... are a bit annoying."

Akaza said in a deep voice, his tone clearly impatient.

Tanjiro ignored his emotions, gripped his Nichirin Blade tightly, and shouted loudly.

"Akaza! Come on! I'll fight you to the death!"

He was ready to face the next fierce attack.

This time, Akaza did not look at him again.

Instead, he slowly turned around, his gaze falling on the derailed, overturned, and wrecked Infinite Train not far away.

There, a completely different, fiery and domineering aura emanated, an aura that was incredibly powerful, carrying an awe-inspiring righteousness, far surpassing Tanjiro's by several times.

Akaza's eyes instantly lit up with excitement, and the playful smile on his lips returned.

He murmured softly, his tone tinged with anticipation.

"It seems... there are still... truly powerful individuals here."