"Keep it up, I know you can do it." Preparing to leave, Daniel Davis patted Tanjiro's head, said some encouraging words, nodded to Sakonji Urokodaki, and then turned around and left.
It's undeniable that the head Pillar is truly remarkable. Even after witnessing Daniel Davis's rapid progress, there was no hint of jealousy in his eyes, only admiration and a greater determination to continue training.
After learning about Daniel's talent, Urokodaki also shifted more of his attention to Tanjiro. Although Tanjiro's performance paled in comparison to Daniel's, he was still quite impressive compared to others.
Regarding Nezuko's situation, Urokodaki discussed it with Daniel, who had no objections at all. Despite the lack of precedents for humans and demons coexisting, Nezuko's uniqueness made her an exception.
If it had been any other demon in Nezuko's current state, they would have long gone berserk, frantically searching for food. But Nezuko merely slept.
Being special means change, and in the thousand-year confrontation between the Demon Slayer Corps and demons, change represents opportunity. Throughout this millennium of conflict, the Demon Slayer Corps has always been at a disadvantage, relying solely on countless sacrifices to keep the number of demons in check.
The turning point for the Demon Slayer Corps came four hundred years ago, during the era of the unparalleled genius swordsman Yoriichi Tsugikuni. Before Yoriichi, there was no breathing technique; everything relied on manpower. The method of killing demons at that time was to capture or hold them until dawn, exposing them to sunlight.
After Yoriichi created the breathing technique, a large number of powerful swordsmen emerged. Under Yoriichi's leadership, they cornered Muzan Kibutsuji and nearly killed him.
What defines a genius? Yoriichi is the epitome. A lifetime of hard work for others is merely his starting point.
After Yoriichi's death, the Demon Slayer Corps and demons fell back into a standoff. However, due to Muzan seemingly being scared out of his wits and the emergence of numerous derived breathing techniques, the Demon Slayer Corps grew significantly stronger. Currently, they appear to be evenly matched.
"Mount Tsukinami, huh." With Urokodaki's letter to Tomioka Giyu, Daniel headed north. According to Urokodaki, people had been disappearing there, possibly due to demon activity. This task was given to Urokodaki by the Demon Slayer Corps.
Although Daniel was not yet a formal member of the Demon Slayer Corps, his strength was already on par with the Pillars. With such power, dealing with a few demons shouldn't be dangerous as long as he wasn't careless.
Without the special mission communication birds of the Demon Slayer Corps, Daniel had to travel and find demons on his own. Of course, he wasn't aimlessly searching but was first going to find Giyu to get relevant information.
First, he needed to accumulate experience in fighting demons. Then, he would take the Demon Slayer Corps test next year to become a formal member. Once his strength and achievements reached a certain level, he could become a Pillar if there was a vacancy.
The casualty rate among the nine Pillars of the Demon Slayer Corps is quite high. While ordinary members only deal with regular demons, the Pillars face the Twelve Kizuki.
The name "Demon Slayer" also implies the slaying of the Pillars. Most of the nine Pillars perish within one or two years of their appointment.
All the current Pillars were recently replaced. By the time the main characters formally confront Muzan, nearly all the Pillars will be dead.
Perhaps because of Daniel's strength and his inquiries, Urokodaki told him a lot about the Demon Slayer Corps, including many details about the Pillars.
"The Taisho era is quite different from the history I know. Well, it makes sense; it's a different world after all. With demons existing, history is bound to be different."
Urokodaki knew little about the outside world as he spent his life fighting demons. After retirement, he focused on training new members of the Demon Slayer Corps, leaving little time to pay attention to external changes.
Speaking of which, Urokodaki is one of the few Pillars who survived to retirement. In the Demon Slayer Corps, retired Pillars are extremely rare.
A qualified Demon Slayer Corps member is not easy to train, especially someone like Tanjiro with the status of a successor. It requires a lot of effort, and Urokodaki could only train one or two at a time.
"I've heard that this era has guns and steam trains. Although there are guns, they cause minimal harm to demons, and only a few members use them."
This is also due to the low power of the era's firearms. If modern guns were used, they would pose a significant threat to demons. Even if they couldn't kill, they could cripple, waiting for the sun to finish the job.
"What a peaceful town." Daniel reached Tsukinami Town at the foot of Mount Tsukinami without encountering any incidents. The town, though small, appeared prosperous.
Living deep in the mountains with little contact with the outside world, the town was self-sufficient. The development of steam trains and guns in the outside world seemed to have no impact here.
"If Muzan hadn't killed the entire family of the head Pillar, perhaps he would have remained a humble charcoal seller for life."
"People on the streets look worried, it seems there really is a demon here." Although Daniel hadn't talked to anyone, his keen observation skills revealed that about eight boys aged ten to sixteen had disappeared so far.
Even though the authorities were informed, they had no way to solve it as no traces could be found.
"A person disappears every two days?" At night, Daniel stood on the roof of a three-story building in the center of the town, using his keen senses to monitor the situation.
Without the superhuman sense of smell of the head Pillar, finding demons without using his keen senses was indeed difficult.
"Speaking of which, the main characters all seem to have very special abilities." Extraordinary sense of smell, sight, hearing, touch—Daniel had none of these. He was just an ordinary person before.
"They're here." As the full moon rose, Daniel quickly sensed a creature wandering the streets. Due to the recent disappearances, no one ventured out at night, making anyone on the streets highly suspicious.
With this thought, Daniel moved into action. Using his speed, he quickly approached the sensed creature and saw a slender figure slithering along the walls.
"A snake demon?" Under the moonlight, Daniel saw a creature with a long tail, over three meters long, with a human face but snake-like teeth and tongue.
There are many types of demons. Initially, they are similar, all being man-eating demons. But as they consume more humans, their forms change significantly, and they develop unique abilities, known as Blood Demon Arts.
"Room, Slaughterhouse." Seeing the boy, about Tanjiro's age, wrapped in the snake demon's tail, Daniel threw a stone upwards. Instantly, the stone disappeared, and the boy, whether asleep or unconscious, appeared in his place.
"Ugh." As Daniel started his action, the snake demon sensed something amiss. Seeing the boy missing from its tail, it quickly scanned and found Daniel standing on a wall nearby, holding the boy.
Without hesitation, the snake demon charged at Daniel, moving faster than an ordinary snake. As it approached, it leaped up, opening its blood-scented mouth to bite Daniel's head.
Bang.
The next moment, the snake demon's airborne body was sent flying, crashing heavily into a wall with a loud bang.
"Luckily, he's just unconscious." While the snake demon was dazed, Daniel checked the boy and then placed him on the street. Forming a hand seal, a golden chain appeared in his hand and then wrapped around the snake demon, a spell from Kamar-Taj.
"Let's go." Seeing the lights coming on due to the loud noise, Daniel used his magic to teleport, taking the snake demon away from Tsukinami Town.
While learning the Water Breathing technique, Daniel also mastered dimensional magic. Now, if he ever encountered Muzan, he could drag him into the Mirror Dimension. In that situation, even if Muzan split into a thousand pieces, it wouldn't matter.
"Be still." Just out of the teleportation, the snake demon started to struggle, but Daniel kicked it hard. With its mouth bound by chains, the snake demon could only glare at Daniel with extreme anger, unable to speak.
"Seems completely different from Nezuko, is this a different evolution?" In the large laboratory, after injecting the snake demon with a muscle relaxant, Daniel began studying its cells and genes.
He could only draw some blood from Nezuko, but with the snake demon, he could experiment freely.
"If I eliminate this part of the gene abnormality, could it turn demons back into humans? But I need more data. If only I could get blood from the Twelve Kizuki or Muzan."
In the spacious area, the chained snake demon was placed on a peculiar array, the Philosopher's Stone Transmutation Circle.
As the transmutation began, the snake demon struggled violently but gradually weakened until it turned to ashes and disappeared.
"Leaving no body behind, it does resemble the legendary demons." Looking at the Philosopher's Stone in his hand, Daniel smiled.
"This is the greatest harvest from this world." The Philosopher's Stone formed from a snake demon was equivalent to dozens of ordinary people, with much less resentment.
"Muzan, even if I wanted to spare you, I can't now." If a snake demon had such effects, what about the demon king Muzan
?
Even if it wasn't for Muzan's body, just for the Philosopher's Stone, Daniel had to eliminate Muzan. This way, not only would he rid the world of a menace, but he would also benefit personally. Truly a win-win situation.
"I need to speed up the demon extermination. Letting the Demon Slayer Corps kill such demons is a waste." With such an effective way to obtain the Philosopher's Stone, Daniel wasn't about to let it go.
"I need to find Giyu quickly." To find demons in unfamiliar places, he had to rely on the Demon Slayer Corps.
"Sure enough, I don't have the protagonist's luck." After eliminating the snake demon, Daniel continued toward his destination, investigating any village or town along the way but found nothing.
Some places had incidents of attacks or disappearances, but they were long past. While eating humans could increase a demon's power, there was a limit. Once they reached a certain level, eating more people wouldn't make them stronger. In such cases, demons wouldn't commit mass killings.
When demons reached their power limit, killing or eating humans was just for food or amusement.
Outside the Fuji Family's gate.
Daniel knocked on the door, and when a young woman came out, he showed his Nichirin Blade and said, "Hello, I would like to see Tomioka Giyu. Is he here?"
In this era, there were no phones, and not everyone had communication birds. To quickly contact someone, the Demon Slayer Corps built the Fuji Family houses at regular intervals.
The Fuji Family provided logistics and medical support for Demon Slayer members. Most of the Fuji Family members had suffered from demon attacks.
Strictly speaking, the first Demon Slayer Corps was a group of survivors seeking revenge, gradually growing to this scale.
Unable to fight demons directly, they supported the Demon Slayer Corps logistically.
All this was due to the efforts of the Ubuyashiki family, led by Kagaya Ubuyashiki. Each generation of this family possessed wisdom far surpassing ordinary people. Thanks to their leadership, the Demon Slayer Corps persisted even in the most difficult times.
The ideals of the Demon Slayer Corps were noble, but people needed to eat. Just like Marvel superheroes needed jobs to earn money, the Ubuyashiki family financially supported the Demon Slayer Corps, enabling them to focus on fighting demons. This family's exceptional management skills allowed them to amass great wealth.
Some of the funds came from donations. Not only the poor but also the rich were victims of demons, and these wealthy individuals spared no expense to support the Demon Slayer Corps in their quest for revenge.
To meet Giyu, Daniel had to reach the specified place at the specified time. However, it was only a possibility since Pillars were often busy and might not be present.
"The master is currently here." Tomioka Giyu, the Water Pillar, was an absolute high-ranking member of the Demon Slayer Corps. Although everyone fought demons, the internal hierarchy was quite strict. Except for the main characters, others strictly adhered to the rules.
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"He really is a man of few words. If I didn't know his personality, I would think he's quite difficult to get along with."
Inside the Fuji Family house, Daniel Davis met Tomioka Giyu, who wore a half-green, half-red outfit. From the moment they met, Giyu's expression hadn't changed, even after reading Urokodaki's letter handed over by Daniel. His responses were succinct, giving the impression that every word was valuable.
Daniel didn't mind. He knew Giyu's personality, recognizing him as a person who was cold on the outside but warm inside. Otherwise, Giyu wouldn't have spared Nezuko and directed Tanjiro to Urokodaki for training.
If any other Pillar had encountered Tanjiro back then, Nezuko would have been killed without question. The later Pillar meeting confirmed this, as nearly all the Pillars, including the two female Pillars, voted to kill Nezuko. Only Giyu stood by Tanjiro, even making a vow with his teacher Urokodaki to commit suicide if Nezuko ever harmed anyone.
Most of the nine Pillars of the Demon Slayer Corps had personal experiences of family members being killed by demons. Giyu's sister was apparently killed by a demon. Under such circumstances, he restrained himself from attacking, allowing Tanjiro to take his sister to Urokodaki and even writing a letter for Urokodaki to receive them, which spoke volumes about his character.
As for whether Giyu, the Water Pillar, survived in the end, Daniel didn't know. The story was unfinished when he transmigrated, and although he was a casual reader, he knew quite a bit thanks to various content creators on certain platforms.
Despite Giyu's cold demeanor, he was very patient and detailed when explaining the workings of the Demon Slayer Corps and information about demons to Daniel. Although Daniel had heard some of it from Urokodaki, the retired mentor wasn't up-to-date on the current state of the Corps.
"There's a mission, let's go." The next day, after Daniel finished breakfast, Giyu approached and softly said these words before turning to leave.
"May your mission be successful." The head of the Fuji Family house respectfully bowed to the two as they left. All members of the Demon Slayer Corps fighting on the front lines against demons were worthy of respect, regardless of their strength or personal ambitions.
"San'en Village, huh." On the way, Giyu handed the mission note to Daniel. Giyu's Kasugai Crow was very different from the head Pillar's Crow that Daniel knew of; it barely spoke and quietly led the way, resting on Giyu's shoulder when tired.
"Pet traits often reflect their owners." Daniel recalled the head Pillar's Crow, which seemed to talk incessantly.
"That incredibly timid person has a sparrow, which seems to be quite brave despite his cowardice."
"With him around, wouldn't killing demons be a waste?" Following the silent Giyu, Daniel felt somewhat helpless. But there was no better way to leverage the Demon Slayer Corps' intelligence network to gather information on demons.
"This demon might have a Blood Demon Art, so be especially careful." When they arrived at the target location, Giyu reminded Daniel as they prepared to enter.
A demon with a Blood Demon Art was far more dangerous than one without. Ordinary Demon Slayer members could only handle non-Blood Demon Art demons. Against a Blood Demon Art demon, they usually needed overwhelming numbers or a Pillar to handle the situation.
"I understand, thank you." Daniel smiled and nodded.
For regular members, missions didn't always guarantee encountering demons; sometimes disappearances were caused by humans or wild animals. But missions at the Pillar level were different. They usually only acted where other Demon Slayer members had died, requiring the presence of a Pillar after two or three squads had perished.
"The head Pillar seemed to always face demons with Blood Demon Arts. Ordinary members wouldn't stand a chance."
Tanjiro rarely faced ordinary demons. Even during his first mission, he encountered a powerful demon who had eaten many humans and gained immense strength. His first task after the exam was facing a demon with Blood Demon Arts.
Throughout his journey, Tanjiro transitioned from dealing with Blood Demon Art demons to Lower Rank demons and then to Upper Rank demons.
Take the Swamp Demon, for instance. Without Tanjiro's superhuman sense of smell, he wouldn't have stood a chance. For other Demon Slayer members, it would have been a death sentence.
Usually, it took two or more casualties before the Corps realized they were dealing with a Blood Demon Art demon and sent a Pillar to handle it.
The ten-level standard of the Demon Slayer Corps was more about mission completion rates than strength. Killing more demons allowed for promotion, which came with better benefits. Only at the Pillar level did strength become the primary consideration.
"With such a cold expression, people keep their distance. How does he gather information?" The villagers of San'en Village hurriedly avoided the cold-faced Giyu, giving him a wide berth.
Daniel soon realized Giyu's method of gathering information—listening. Although Giyu didn't have Daniel's keen observation skills, as a Pillar using Water Breathing, he could control his breathing to hear conversations from a distance.
In fact, there was no need to listen closely. The villagers' frightened and panicked expressions were enough to indicate something was seriously wrong.
It wasn't an issue of wild animal attacks. Living in or near the mountains, such incidents were unavoidable. Fierce wild animals like wolves, tigers, bears, and even lions and wild boars were common.
In the original story, Tanjiro's family, living deep in the mountains, had been attacked by a bear, which his father had killed due to his strength. These wild animals were both a danger and a source of food and trade for the villagers.
Attacks by wild animals were considered bad luck but wouldn't cause such widespread fear.
"One on each side."
"Got it." San'en Village was located in a small gorge with only two entrances. The other two directions were sheer cliffs. Although demons wouldn't die from falling off a cliff, it would still hurt. Guarding one entrance each gave them a good chance of intercepting the demon.
Silently eliminating demons was the Demon Slayer Corps' principle, a decision by the Ubuyashiki family.
They did not publicize the existence of demons or cooperate with the government, maintaining their secrecy. Daniel quickly deduced the reason.
While government cooperation might make demon hunting more efficient, demons had an advantage over the Corps in this regard. The most feared issue for those in power was not rebellion, but the pursuit of immortality. If someone offered them eternal life in exchange for eating humans and avoiding sunlight, some would undoubtedly accept.
Despite the high price, Daniel was certain some would take the deal. History was full of examples, such as Qin Shi Huang's quest for the elixir of life, which was relatively benign compared to some modern methods.
In the Marvel world, wealthy individuals sought ways to avoid aging and death, from vampire-like blood rituals to complete blood transfusions with young, healthy donors.
Despite knowing these methods were ineffective, wealthy and educated people still pursued them, ignoring the evidence.
Ancient emperors, obsessed with immortality in their later years, took various alchemical substances despite historical records proving their futility. The drive for even a small chance of success led them to these extremes.
This obsession was similar to the king in "Fullmetal Alchemist" who sacrificed his people for immortality, believing he could rebuild his nation afterward.
Thus, for over a thousand years, the Demon Slayer Corps remained a civilian organization, with the Ubuyashiki family recognizing this danger and keeping their activities hidden.
Of course, the general public's ignorance of demons was also due to Muzan Kibutsuji's efforts. As the most cowardly boss in history, Muzan didn't trust even the demons he created. Despite controlling their life and death, he forbade gatherings of more than three demons unless explicitly permitted.
This rule, while seeming cowardly, made sense in light of recent events, especially considering Nezuko's unique situation.
In some ways, Muzan's foresight resembled that of a cautious hero in another world. Compared to him, Daniel was careful but not to the same extent.
"If the demon is too strong, don't engage." After saying this, Giyu headed to the right side.
"I understand. He chose the most likely path for the demon. Is he worried about me?" Watching Giyu's back, Daniel thought.
Acting separately was best for Daniel, allowing him to use his secrets without being discovered.
Although Daniel's strength could easily convince the Demon Slayer Corps' leader, Kagaya Ubuyashiki, to cooperate against demons, he chose caution. Approaching directly would arouse suspicion, creating unnecessary complications.
Even Muzan, despite his cowardice, had been pressured by the Corps for over a thousand years. Before Yoriichi appeared, the Corps fought demons relentlessly, despite heavy losses.
While some sought immortality at any cost, others pursued ideals with equal determination.
Daniel's upbringing made it impossible for him to take an evil path. Like Melinda May, who struggled after killing a young Inhuman girl, Daniel felt uneasy doing anything against his conscience.
For ordinary people, this unease would fade with time. But for someone on the path to power, ignoring one's inner voice could lead to inner demons.
Higher levels of consciousness, like the Transparent World in "Demon Slayer," were real. Upper Rank One, despite his strength, never reached this state because he became a demon.
"Looks like my luck is better." Seeing a demon swaggering towards him, Daniel advanced. With Giyu around, he needed to act quickly.
This demon had green-blue skin, a
burly build, and strong arms, indicating immense strength. No wonder previous Demon Slayer members had fallen here.
"A Demon Slayer, coming to die again. Although you're not a Pillar, killing you might bring one next time. Then I'll become one of the Twelve Kizuki."
The demon frowned at Daniel, waiting to ambush a Pillar after killing previous members. Muzan's demons, especially those aspiring to the Twelve Kizuki, faced fierce competition.
To become one of the Twelve Kizuki, demons needed Muzan's blood, which was crucial for their strength. Non-Kizuki demons had two paths: challenge and defeat a current Kizuki, risking death, or kill a Pillar to earn Muzan's blood.
Muzan offered bounties for Pillars, his greatest enemies. He was too cowardly to act himself but used his demons without hesitation, knowing they could be replaced.
Even Upper Rank demons, boasting about their invincibility, failed to see that equal footing would allow the Demon Slayer Corps to easily defeat them.
Even Upper Rank One nearly died facing the elderly Yoriichi, despite his demonic advantages.
"A blade demon, huh." Seeing the demon's bladed right arm, Daniel thought.
Not all Blood Demon Arts were complex powers. Most were simple transformations, like turning parts of their bodies into weapons or animals. Only a few demons had truly unique abilities.
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