Chapter 298: Muzan Encounters Orochimaru—Ominous
He truly hated taking risks.
Even though he possessed an immortal body, capable of recovering instantly from any fatal wound, and was the strongest being in the Demon Slayer world—
He still felt uneasy.
Back then, the blade of Yoriichi Tsugikuni, wielder of the Sun Breathing technique, shattered the fragile confidence he had worked so hard to build.
Even though Yoriichi had been dead for years, Muzan still feared that someone like him might appear again among humans.
"No…"
Muzan Kibutsuji shook his head. "So far, only Hantengu and I have been selected by this so-called game invitation."
If he sent other demons to investigate those selected by the invitation,
It would inevitably stir curiosity among them regarding the game itself.
This hesitation—
Would not have troubled any other demon king with true dominance. But for this pathetic, cowardly, and twisted demon lord… it was real.
"Fine. I have an immortal body. If anything happens, I'll just exit the game."
Muzan finally made up his mind—
He accepted the game's invitation.
The next moment,
His figure vanished from Infinity Castle and appeared in a lush, oversized forest.
Mushroom-shaped canopies blocked out the entire sky,
and with it, the sun.
Within the dark, eerie woods, sinister roars echoed constantly.
"So this is the game world?"
Muzan quickly exited the game according to Hantengu's instructions—
And found himself back in Infinity Castle with no resistance at all.
Nakime looked confused.
Wasn't Lord Muzan just saying he would leave for a while? Why had he suddenly returned?
But she said nothing.
None of Lord Muzan's decisions were hers to question.
And so,
She could only watch as Muzan appeared, disappeared, then reappeared over and over, until finally vanishing for good.
Muzan nodded with satisfaction.
"Good. If I can exit at will, there's nothing to fear."
He resumed his true form and wandered the forest.
Boom.
Muzan extended his arm, which morphed into grotesque, fleshy tendrils—like blood-whips lashing out.
A minotaur wielding a giant axe blocked the strike with a clean swing.
But to his surprise—
The severed arm grew new flesh, morphed into a giant maw, and bit the minotaur's head clean off.
"It actually severed my arm. These monsters are stronger than I expected."
Muzan's eyes widened slightly in surprise.
Ever since creating numerous demons and the Twelve Kizuki, he rarely fought the Demon Slayer Corps himself.
His combat experience was limited—
But his nearly perfect body and regenerative flesh granted him terrifying combat ability. Aside from rare outliers like Yoriichi, no one could hurt him.
Of course, he had underestimated these foes.
But it allowed him to gauge their strength.
Even the weakest of these monsters were stronger than ordinary demons. Some even rivaled Upper Moons.
Still, they posed no real threat to him.
With that realization—
Muzan finally relaxed. He began hunting monsters freely throughout the Grand Forest.
Until he accumulated 200 Reward Points—
And exchanged them in the in-game store for an item.
"Let's see what kind of nonsense they're selling as merchandise."
Muzan sneered.
He didn't care about item stats. As the most perfect lifeform, he needed only the Blue Spider Lily.
Everything else was beneath him.
A glass vial materialized out of thin air, filled with a clear blue liquid.
[Secret Experimental Serum from the Infiltrator Organization (Low-Grade Red Zombie)]
Effect: 69% chance to become a lesser bio-zombie, 30.999999% chance to become a red bio-zombie, 0.000001% chance to become a perfect bioweapon.
"Perfect bioweapon?"
Muzan's grip on the vial tightened unconsciously.
After spending a millennium searching for the Blue Spider Lily, the words "perfect" held deep meaning for him.
Upon further inspection,
Knowledge about these bio-zombies flooded into his mind.
Muzan's eyes widened, whispering, "There's… such a miraculous science? A virus that turns humans into zombies through infection?"
This so-called Infiltrator Organization—
Used methods similar to his own.
But—
The zombies created by this serum were laughably weak compared to his demons.
Especially the high-probability outcome of becoming a lesser zombie—
they could be killed by any commoner with a weapon. Even the rare red zombies were barely equivalent to Lower Moons.
Still, Muzan saw the potential.
Especially the store description for the perfect bioweapon: ageless, undying, immune to sunlight.
He began breathing heavily,
Eyes fixed on the item's description.
Being able to walk in sunlight had been his obsession for a thousand years.
The Blue Spider Lily's disappearance had made him question whether that doctor's story was even real.
Perhaps it never existed at all?
But now—
Here was a new path to evolution. A chance—however slim—for transformation.
"Is it real?"
Though excited, Muzan didn't lose his head.
No matter how wonderful it sounded, if it was fake, it meant nothing.
He returned to Infinity Castle,
Forcing himself to remain calm as he said to Nakime,
"Summon a Lower Moon."
"Yes, Lord Muzan."
Nakime plucked her biwa string, opening a portal into Infinity Castle.
Soon after—
A Lower Moon demon appeared, with black hair, a scruffy beard, and patchy markings on his face.
At first confused,
He knelt in terror once he realized what was happening, not even daring to lift his head.
Outside, he might feast on humans and sneer at weaker demons.
But in the Infinity Castle, they were barely more than meat in Muzan's eyes.
"You're… never mind."
Muzan Kibutsuji frowned, thinking to himself.
He'd already forgotten the name of this Lower Rank demon, but it didn't matter to him.
"To be chosen by me is your good fortune."
He tossed the vial he'd brought from the game to the side of Lower Rank Two.
With a cold tone, he said, "Drink it. You'll gain even greater power."
The price of becoming a lesser zombie was the loss of rationality—reduced to a beast-like existence.
But experimentation always came with sacrifices.
Just a Lower Moon demon—he could create as many as he wanted.
"Yes, Lord Muzan!"
Lower Rank Two, named Rokuro, was stunned but flattered as he picked up the vial.
He thought his devotion—devouring so many humans—had finally earned Lord Muzan's favor.
But when he saw the liquid inside…
His brow furrowed slightly.
To become stronger, one needed Muzan's blood.
That was the unshakable belief of all demons.
But the contents of this bottle didn't look like blood at all—
Nor did it smell even remotely like it.
Still—
It was Lord Muzan's order. Despite his doubts, Rokuro didn't dare to question it. He pulled the cork.
And drank it.
"Lord Muzan… it hurts!"
The moment he swallowed the serum, Rokuro felt as if his entire body were on fire.
His flesh and bones seemed to be dissolving—
The serum was breaking down violently inside him.
His skin began to rot and decay, only to rapidly regenerate thanks to Muzan's blood—again and again in cycles.
The pain was excruciating.
The Lower Moon demon writhed and screamed on the ground.
"Endure it."
Muzan watched coldly as the transformation unfolded before him.
He didn't move a muscle.
Until Rokuro collapsed, motionless.
ROAR.
Suddenly—
The now-mutated Lower Rank demon sprang to his feet and charged at Muzan like a mad beast.
His entire body was swollen and torn, crimson muscle fiber exposed. White bones jutted from beneath his skin, encasing him in bone-like armor.
Two spike-like bone claws extended from his wrists—like a pair of deadly scythes.
Red Zombie.
Muzan hadn't expected such luck—he'd just created a rare Red Zombie.
It confirmed the serum's legitimacy.
"He's lost his mind?"
Muzan's expression remained calm.
In the instant the mutated demon lunged at him, he killed him.
The remaining flesh was tossed from Infinity Castle by Nakime.
A short while later, it was returned through the portal.
The writhing mass of blood and tissue—
still carried Muzan's blood and the zombie virus serum.
It hadn't been destroyed—only lightly scorched.
It still carried faint traces of sunlight's warmth.
Muzan Kibutsuji, who had always avoided sunlight, now clutched the flesh like a hunter holding prized prey.
He ignored the burning pain.
"Not burned… Not burned by sunlight!"
He lost his composure.
His crimson eyes filled with pulsing veins as he stared at the chunk of flesh in his hand.
The virus-based serum from the game—combined with his demon blood—
Could resist the sun!
"The Infiltrator Organization's zombie serum… can overcome the curse of sunlight!"
Muzan trembled with excitement.
All that remained was to eliminate the serum's side effect—loss of rationality.
Then this vial would become the stepping stone to his ultimate form.
The Reincarnation Game!
He no longer cared whether it hid any deeper conspiracy.
"Do I need to sell assets to exchange for Reward Points?"
Muzan didn't care about wealth. Though he had none right now—
He had nearly a thousand years of time and ability to gather whatever he needed.
If he wanted, he could seize the entire Demon Slayer Empire's resources in a heartbeat.
Humans couldn't stop him.
The Demon Slayer Corps? Even less so.
"From now on, Kibutsuji Muzan will begin the path toward becoming the perfect lifeform!"
He felt unstoppable.
The gloom of a millennium-long search for the Blue Spider Lily evaporated completely.
He logged back into the game.
Same familiar forest—
but now there was another figure.
Muzan frowned coldly. "Who are you? Get lost."
He thought of Hantengu's invitation scroll.
Clearly, there were others like himself who had received the invitation. The person before him must also be a player.
Disgusting.
He didn't know who had created the Reincarnation Game,
but the idea that pathetic weaklings had access to it angered him.
The only one who should be a player… was him.
With that thought—
Muzan's arms transformed into fleshy whip-tentacles, reeking of blood and lined with thorn-like barbs.
He lashed them forward.
"Die."
After seeing the monsters of Grand Forest and their toughness—
Muzan didn't hold back. He unleashed his full strength.
The lash cracked the air with a sonic boom.
Confident, he suddenly froze.
Hsss—
The figure that should have been shredded like meat stuck out its tongue like a snake, licking its chin.
Its hand moved like an iron clamp—
easily catching Muzan's full-power whip.
Those serpent-like eyes, filled with curiosity, fixed on the unprepared demon king.
And then a voice:
"Mutated flesh-based powers, hmm? Rare. Most players with better options don't choose something that disfigures the body like that."
"You'll make a fascinating specimen. Would you kindly cooperate with my research?"
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