Not long after, Fang Hao's eyes fell upon a demon devouring a corpse.
"It's this guy, alright." The one before Fang Hao's eyes was none other than the boss of Mount Fujikasane from the original story—the Hand Demon. Fang Hao calmly observed the hideous, monstrous demon before him, choosing to conceal himself and watch how events unfolded.
This demon was about three to four meters tall, looking like a mountain of flesh from a distance. With bloated flesh, tree bark-like skin, grotesque, twisted protruding veins, and an uncountable number of hands covering its entire body… it was impossible to distinguish its limbs from its neck; one could only barely make out where its head was.
It was the monstrous demon hidden within Mount Fujikasane. Even the Demon Slayer Corps itself didn't know when such a monster had been nurtured in their beginner's village. It had been "Sneak"ing here for an unknown number of years, carefully controlling the number of humans it devoured, which was why it had never been discovered by the Demon Slayer Corps.
Ever since it was captured and brought to Mount Fujikasane by the former Water Hashira, Urokodaki Sakonji, the number of people it ate here gradually increased, and its lifespan grew accordingly, slowly becoming a monster that new Swordsmen absolutely could not defeat. Any newcomer entering the mountain, once targeted by it, would almost inevitably become its snack.
However, this selection was slightly different. Although it had attacked many Swordsmen, one young man was able to withstand its attacks and was currently confronting it.
The young man was the youngest disciple of the former Water Hashira, Urokodaki Sakonji, and the last inheritor of the Hinokami Kagura Dance—Kamado Tanjiro.
He trembled as he looked at the Hand Demon devouring the corpse before him. This trembling was different from the Swordsmen who had fled earlier. The trembling in Tanjiro's heart was not fear, but a raging fire of anger.
Tanjiro had never been as angry as he was today; he had always been a gentle person. Even when his family was murdered by a demon, his feelings were only sadness and pain. The heartbreaking grief at the time left him no room for other thoughts, not even the strength to be angry.
But today was different. Every word and action of this demon stimulated Tanjiro's anger. Tanjiro felt his whole body burning, as if a ball of fire was raging in his chest and abdomen. He seemed to have fallen into his own world, hearing nothing. Everything in his eyes seemed to turn red. He only wanted to slay the demon before him at all costs.
"Sabito and the others, you…" Tanjiro gripped the nichirin blade in his hand. Thinking of Sabito and the others, and then of his teacher's teachings, he forced himself to calm down, but the fire in his heart could not be extinguished; instead, it grew more intense.
Tanjiro had always held the greatest goodwill and gratitude towards those who had helped him, especially since two years ago, when his parents and siblings were killed by a demon and his only surviving sister turned into a demon. Even the slightest kindness from others would be infinitely magnified by him.
And Sabito and the others were precisely the ones who had helped Tanjiro on his training journey. Tanjiro had once thought they were orphans taken in by his teacher and living nearby. Of course, that was indeed the truth, but they existed in another form.
They had already passed away.
Long before Tanjiro became Urokodaki Sakonji's disciple, they had already graduated and also came to Mount Fujikasane to participate in the Final Selection, and then… were devoured by the demon before him.
The benefactors on Tanjiro's training path were their souls, or rather, their thought-forms. And Tanjiro, knowing the truth, developed a hatred and… killing intent for the demon before him that he had never felt before!
"With such a physique, just how many people have you eaten?!" Tanjiro suppressed his rage and questioned the demon he deeply hated in a loud voice.
"How many? Fifty-three? Fifty-four? Fifty-eight? Anyway, I can't remember." The demon's voice conveyed pleasure, indifference, and undisguised mockery.
A hand transformed by Blood Demon Art sneered, "You don't remember how many rice balls you've eaten, do you?"
"Bastard!!!"
The Hand Demon's ability to survive so long on Mount Fujikasane relied not only on its luck and Blood Demon Art, but more importantly, on its caution. This disciple of Urokodaki Sakonji was indeed not simple, so the Hand Demon had to find ways to provoke him.
It didn't think such a young boy could endure such anger. What it wanted was for him to rush forward recklessly so it could easily deal with him using its Blood Demon Art, just like before.
"Not enough? But it doesn't matter." The Hand Demon clearly knew its ability to provoke. It hadn't expected this young boy to endure so much, but unfortunately, he was Urokodaki Sakonji's disciple, so…
"I really don't remember how many people I've eaten, but I know exactly how many disciples that bastard Urokodaki has."
"Let me count… one, two…" Hands stretched out from its bloated body, a clumsy sight that nevertheless sent shivers down one's spine.
"Thirteen, and then the fourteenth…" One of its hands pointed at Tanjiro, "Urokodaki's disciples are indeed excellent. I enjoyed eating them very much. Now it's your turn, little boy."
"Ah! Ah! Ah…" Anger completely overwhelmed Tanjiro. He could no longer control himself, and he charged forward.
The Hand Demon let out a joyful laugh and activated its Blood Demon Art. Thick arms stretched out, continuously attacking Tanjiro.
Although Tanjiro was in a rage, he still swung his long blade, constantly severing the Hand Demon's arms, but no matter how many he cut off, those arms would immediately regenerate, as if endless, and humans have limits…
Just then, Tanjiro suddenly revealed an opening. "Got you!" The Hand Demon immediately seized the opportunity, quickly drawing out an arm, about to strike Tanjiro fiercely.
"What?!" Just then, a bolt of lightning pierced through the Hand Demon's arm, and that section of its arm instantly vanished without a trace.
The Hand Demon was stunned by the scene before its eyes. It looked intently, and beside Tanjiro, another person had appeared at some unknown moment—Fang Hao had made his entrance.
Fang Hao had been here for quite a while, and he had personally heard the Hand Demon's provocations. The Hand Demon probably didn't expect its mouth to be so effective, inadvertently mocking another person.
"Who are you?" The Hand Demon asked viciously, "Do you want to die?"
Fang Hao did not want to answer the Hand Demon's question. Although the Hand Demon had been provoking Tanjiro and luring him forward earlier, its demeanor had truly ignited Fang Hao's anger.
After all, Fang Hao was human, and a human seeing that scene just now would only have one thought.
"Together?" Fang Hao raised an eyebrow and asked Tanjiro. After all, Tanjiro was the one who most wanted to kill the Hand Demon here. If he killed the Hand Demon directly, Tanjiro would have no way to take revenge.
Tanjiro did not look at Fang Hao, only nodded. Although he really wanted to personally slay the Hand Demon, Fang Hao had no reason to stop him from killing a demon, especially since Fang Hao had just saved him.
Seeing Tanjiro agree, Fang Hao took a small step forward. Cooperating to kill this damned monstrous demon was, of course, a good thing.
"Die! Die! Die!" Seeing that the new young boy not only saved the previous young boy but also didn't answer its question and instead spoke to the previous young boy, the Hand Demon felt immense rage. It wanted to kill these two young boys!
One of these two was Urokodaki Sakonji's disciple, damn him! The other was a rude young boy who obstructed it from killing Urokodaki Sakonji's disciple, even more damned! "Today, they will both die!" The Hand Demon's face became even more hideous, and it activated its Blood Demon Art again.
Under the control of the Blood Demon Art, the arms were exceptionally agile yet did not lack strength. The demon hands continuously lashed out at the two, their astonishing speed creating intense wind pressure that assailed them.