"What in the world is going on?! Why couldn't I sense his attack? This has never happened before!" The demon felt an unprecedented panic.
His attack methods were limited; he relied on sensing danger to dodge attacks and then finishing off opponents when they were stunned.
But why wasn't it working here?
"This is bad! This is bad! This is bad!"
The intense pain in his abdomen made the demon break out in a cold sweat.
Such a wound could probably heal about four more times, but the problem was he couldn't sense the attacks of this strange demon in front of him!
"What should I do? Run?"
The moment this thought arose, the demon began to plan his escape route.
He was severely injured and desperately needed to replenish himself, otherwise, he might die.
This demon in front of him truly wanted to kill him!
"I'll go back, back to where I was.
There are still a few Demon Slayer Corps members there.
As long as I eat them to regain my strength, I'm confident I can escape!"
So the demon's dark red eyes widened, and he tried his best to suppress the fear in his heart, blustering,
"So that's it, I already know how you attack! I'll defeat you with my next strike!"
The pain gradually disappeared.
Yōsen clearly sensed that the Blood Demon Art he had just used had consumed a large amount of his stamina.
His Blood Demon Art had a fatal flaw: extremely high consumption.
After the five Demon Slayer Corps members from before, he roughly understood that this demon had the ability to sense the direction of attacks.
He was even surprised himself that the attack he just launched had hit him.
Now, he could probably use his Blood Demon Art about two more times.
These two chances must render it immobile, otherwise, those five people would be in danger!
A drop of sweat slid down Yōsen's forehead, but he remained calm, his eyes fixed on the demon's movements, attempting to seize an opportunity in the demon's actions.
The demon was thinking the same thing.
"What's going on?! Why isn't he attacking anymore? Did he see through my plan? That shouldn't be possible; my plan was flawless!
He couldn't have noticed.
Or was he scared by my words, so he doesn't dare to act rashly?"
"He must have been intimidated by my powerful strength! As expected, I am the most beautiful and intelligent demon! Now, run!"
The demon turned and fled, looking back at Yōsen's stunned eyes, feeling even more triumphant.
"Just you wait! I will never let you go.
If you can't be my meal, then I'll tear you to pieces! It's just a shame about that good appearance."
However, he couldn't relax yet; his speed was far superior to mine, so it was better to continue using his Blood Demon Art.
"Blood Demon Art: Danger Perception."
Why couldn't he feel his killing intent at all?
As this question arose, his left shoulder was pierced again, and his running faltered, nearly making him fall.
He quickly regained his balance, supported his shoulder with his right hand, and continued to run.
"Why! Why! Why!"
A look of terror slowly emerged on the demon's face; he couldn't feel his killing intent at all!
"Did I miss?"
Yōsen followed closely behind.
Since he had just learned the Blood Demon Art, he wasn't quite used to it yet, but he couldn't miss this last chance.
This demon was still heading towards the Demon Slayer Corps!
Large beads of sweat rolled down his cheeks, making his already pale face even more ashen.
The consumption was much greater than Yōsen had imagined.
What would happen if he activated it a third time, he didn't know.
Would he be unable to move?
Would he still have the strength to leave the demon in the sun, and could he still avoid the sun himself?
Perhaps sensing a threat to his life, the demon's speed broke his own limit, becoming much faster than before.
Yōsen struggled a bit, with about three body lengths separating them.
"I see them!" When the fallen Demon Slayer Corps members appeared in his vision, the demon was overjoyed.
He quickly locked his gaze on the person closest to him, his right hand no longer caring about the wound on his left, reaching straight out.
10 meters.
5 meters.
1 meter.
Just as he was about to touch the person, the look of greed on the demon's face became increasingly obvious.
He had said before that they weren't worth eating, but to survive, he had gone against his own principles.
"As long as I eat him, I can turn the tide!"
His fingertips had just touched the clothing when his vision suddenly uncontrollably shifted elsewhere.
"Eh?"
He moved his eyeballs down and saw his own body.
"My head... fell off?"
"What happened?"
The demon's head rolled several times on the ground before stopping.
He was still in a daze.
"Pat-a-pat-a, tap."
Rapid footsteps approached from afar.
The golden-haired young man appeared, casually pulling out a nichirin blade that had fallen from a Demon Slayer Corps member and was stuck in the ground.
He pushed off with his foot, leaping high into the air, his golden hair flowing freely.
He gripped the nichirin blade tightly and descended diagonally, severing the demon's remaining neck.
The demon's blood splattered onto his face.
The young man casually wiped it away, but the blood left a trace on his face, adding a touch of color to him.
His indifferent eyes quietly watched the demon's head gradually dissipate on the ground.
It was then that the demon finally understood.
Why he could feel himself, why he couldn't feel his killing intent.
Because he just wanted to do it! He just wanted him to die! So there wasn't even any killing intent.
This demon, no! Not a demon, but a devil!
"You devil!" The demon's hoarse voice uttered these last words before completely dissipating.
"Cough!"
Yōsen could no longer support himself.
He plunged his nichirin blade into the ground, knelt on one knee, and pressed his hands to the ground, his consciousness becoming somewhat hazy...
"You devil!"
"You're just a heartless monster!"
"You..."
Each malicious word continuously entered Yōsen's ears.
He seemed to have gotten used to it, remaining quiet without any emotional fluctuations, until a pair of warm hands gently covered his ears.
"Don't listen to their nonsense!"
"Yōsen is the best child!"
"You haven't done anything wrong."
Finally, those warm hands gently stroked Yōsen's head, and a soft voice comforted him.
"It's okay... it's okay..."
..."Yōsen-san."
"It's okay~"
When Yōsen opened his eyes, this was the scene: his head was resting on Shinobu's lap, and her hand was stroking his head.
Seeing Yōsen wake up, Shinobu smiled and greeted him,
"Good evening, Yōsen-san~"