Chapter 144: Lower One
The one who flew out from the Mugen Train was naturally Riezel.
He broke through the train's flesh walls and soared out from within, leaping high in front of Tanjirou and Inosuke, like an arrow released, slicing through the night sky and landing ahead on the train tracks.
*Toot—!*
At the same time, the train, with its long whistle and the sound of its wheels, rushed like a rampaging steel beast toward Riezel, who had landed on its tracks.
"Danger!"
Seeing this scene, Tanjirou, standing on the roof of the train, was greatly terrified.
"Oy! Bento Eater! Get out of there fast!"
Even Inosuke was panicked, roaring angrily in Riezel's direction.
Although both of them were from the countryside and grew up in the mountains without much exposure to the world, it didn't stop them from understanding how dangerous Riezel's current actions were.
It was obvious that being hit by such a large steel vehicle would result in serious injuries, not to mention that the train was still moving at an astonishing speed. Once hit, it was absolutely impossible for Riezel to survive without severe injuries.
Moreover, the train was now merged with a demon, making it basically impossible to stop, not even to slow down.
Riezel's act of landing on the train tracks and standing in front of the train was tantamount to seeking death.
Even so, Tanjirou and Inosuke were shocked to find that Riezel not only didn't choose to evade but instead stood firm, facing the rampaging steel beast heading toward him with an extremely calm expression.
"Dammit!" Inosuke couldn't help but rush forward.
Not only him, but Tanjirou also drew his black sword and charged forward.
"Inosuke!" Tanjirou shouted anxiously. "We have to cut off the demon's head before Big Brother gets hit!"
"I know!" Inosuke responded loudly.
Both of them tightened their grip on their swords, emitting a barely noticeable warmth.
Their swords were known as 'Nichirin Swords', weapons specially made for the Demon Slayer Corps, forged from special materials called 'Scarlet Crimson Iron Sand' and 'Scarlet Ore' that absorbed sunlight, possessing properties that emitted energy similar to sunlight.
The reason why the Demon Slayer Corps could hunt demons was two—firstly, because its members all mastered the 'Breathing Style', which allowed them to unleash powers comparable to those of demons, and secondly, because of these Nichirin Swords.
Generally speaking, demons were unkillable as long as they were not exposed to direct sunlight. Not only their injuries would quickly heal, but even limbs could be reattached or regenerated effortlessly. It was accurate to say they had an immortal body.
However, if their head was severed by Nichirin Swords, they would be killed instantly, without a chance of recovery.
After all, this weapon was forged from special ore that absorbed sunlight, cutting off a demon's head with a Nichirin Sword was almost the same as exposing them to sunlight.
Therefore, when Demon Slayers were successfully selected to join the Demon Slayer Corps, they each received a Nichirin Sword tailored for them as their weapon for slaying demons.
Now, since the demon controlling the Mugen Train had merged with the train itself, turning it into the demon's body, there must be a vital point somewhere on the train similar to a demon's neck. By severing this point and cutting off the demon's head merged with the train, they could kill him and stop the train.
Tanjirou and Inosuke had climbed onto the roof for this purpose, while Zenitsu remained inside the carriage, protecting the passengers.
However, now that Riezel suddenly appeared and was about to be hit by the train, the two of them had to behead the demon as soon as possible and slay him; only then could they save Riezel.
Unfortunately, they barely had time to find the demon's vital point, let alone cut off his neck.
Tanjirou and Inosuke knew that the demon's neck was likely buried under the front of the train, so they tried to locate and sever it as soon as possible, but time simply didn't allow it.
"No! It's too late!"
"Quick, dodge! Bento Eater!"
Tanjirou and Inosuke could only run on the roof of the train, shouting urgently.
In this situation, Riezel, bathed in the glaring light of the charging train, slowly raised one hand.
"Decompose."
A red vortex surged in Riezel's palm.
*Toot—!*
With the whistle of the roaring locomotive, the train finally collided, hitting Riezel's body hard.
Tanjirou and Inosuke showed expressions of despair one after another.
However, the scene of blood splattering and flesh being torn apart they imagined did not occur.
*Buzz—!*
With a sound resembling a tremor, Riezel's hand, reaching out toward the oncoming train, first made contact with the locomotive, allowing the red vortex to pass through his palm like a hurricane, instantly transmitting to the entire body of the train.
Following that, Riezel suddenly punched with his fist.
*BANG!*
Amidst an ear-splitting roar, the train, completely covered by red waves, was dismantled under the influence of Riezel's fierce punch.
*BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!*
With a series of exploding sounds, the train burst apart section by section, the front separated, and the carriages disconnected from each other, becoming fragmented.
Riezel did not completely decompose the train into nothingness; he just roughly dismantled it. After all, there were passengers on the train, including Kyoujurou and the three main characters. He didn't want to risk decomposing them all into nothingness.
Therefore, he only dismantled the train, causing the front to separate, the carriages to disconnect, and the wheels to burst, turning into fragments falling all around the train tracks, making various parts fly in the air.
Undoubtedly, this scene was an exceptionally magnificent sight.
Of course, Tanjirou and Inosuke, standing on top of the train, naturally were thrown off.
"AAAHHHHHH—!!!"
"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME—?!"
Witnessing the spectacular scene of a train being crushed by a punch before their eyes, Tanjirou and Inosuke found themselves flung into the air, screaming in shock as their shouts echoed far into the distance.
Naturally, neither of them knew what 'magic' was.
In their eyes, Riezel appeared to have punched the oncoming train with his bare fist, causing it to fall apart.
In reality, when Riezel used decomposition magic on the train, it had already begun to decompose. However, because he only broke down its structure, the train hadn't completely decomposed yet.
It was like a set of building blocks; before being knocked over, it could still maintain its train appearance. Consequently, Riezel simply punched it, breaking apart the blocks and causing the train to be dismantled.
Nonetheless, Tanjirou and Inosuke were oblivious to the complexities of the situation. All they knew was that Riezel had punched the train and it fell apart.
"That was way too strong, right?! Too strong, wasn't it?! Too strong!" Tanjirou continued shouting like crazy while still in midair.
"That guy is amazing! Amazing, I tell you! Mwahahaha! He blew up the Lord of the Land, Santarou!" Inosuke danced around in midair excitedly, thoroughly thrilled.
"I'm Tanjirou!" Tanjirou protested.
After flying through the air for a while, the two of them finally landed on the ground together.
"Tanjirou! Inosuke!"
At this moment, Zenitsu emerged from the wreckage of the train carriage, carrying a wooden box on his back, tears streaming down his face in a mixture of fear and relief.
"T-T-T-T-The train fell apart! It derailed! Am I missing any body parts?! Am I?! Please tell me I'm not! That was scary!"
Zenitsu cried out in a dramatic display, genuinely believing that the train had derailed and worried he might have lost a limb.
Meanwhile, Kyoujurou, upon sensing the train start to stop just as Riezel had said, wasted no time in unleashing the full power of 'Flame Breathing - Fourth Form - Blooming Flame Undulation'.
A vortex of flames spiraled through every carriage, stabilizing the derailed train with the impact on each carriage, bringing it to a halt on the train tracks.
"So it really did dismantle!" Kyoujurou remarked, emerging from one of the carriages.
He strolled leisurely as he surveyed the chaotic scene around him, especially the dismantled train before letting out a hearty laugh.
As for Riezel, he glanced briefly at the locomotive, which had been flung off the train tracks and lay beside him.
"Ugh... AAAHHH...!"
In the next moment, flesh walls surged continuously from the locomotive.
"How is this possible?! How could something like this happen?!"
Within the flesh walls, a boy's voice cried out in agony and disbelief. Without a doubt, this was the demon's voice that merged with the Mugen Train.
Riezel happened to know the identity of this demon.
Lower One, Enmu, the most powerful Lower Rank among the Twelve Kizuki, second only to the six Upper Ranks, possessed the power to hypnotize people and manipulate dreams at will.
On top of that, he was the only surviving Lower Rank at present.
Due to the Lower Five being indirectly defeated by the three main characters and some Lower Ranks eventually being hunted down by the Hashira, Enmu was the last of his kind. This was because the Demon King, the progenitor of all demons in this world, had recently disbanded the Lower Ranks, executing most of them, except for Enmu.
As the only surviving Lower Rank, Enmu indeed had some amazing abilities. Being able to hypnotize the Flame Hashira and the three main characters, as well as merge with a train, this kind of ability was beyond the reach of ordinary demons.
Unfortunately, this last surviving Lower Rank would also meet his end here.
"Impossible! I haven't lost yet! I must devour everyone here! Kill the Hashira and that little rascal with earrings!"
"GAAAAAHHHHH—!"
Enmu struggled, causing the locomotive to lurch.
*Tap* *Tap* *Tap* *Tap*
At the same time, Riezel calmly approached the locomotive step by step, his face serene like a still lake.
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