On the mountain at night, the evening breeze blew gently. The beautiful mountain during the day became somewhat eerie and terrifying at night.
From a distance, the howls of wild beasts could be heard occasionally, the sound of leaves crunching underfoot, and the dark forest ahead created a very terrifying illusion.
Although Tanjiro Kamado grew up on the mountain and started making a living at a young age, he mostly moved around during the day and rarely ventured out at night. Even though Roa held an oil lamp, Tanjiro still felt a bit uneasy. Roa chuckled, patted Tanjiro's shoulder, and pretended to be relaxed, saying, "Do you know why I lit the oil lamp?"
Tanjiro shook his head, and Roa made a mischievous expression, saying, "That's because demons and monsters tend to go where there is light. As long as we have the lamp lit, if they see it, they will come towards us. After all, a place with light usually signifies that there are people."
Tanjiro Kamado:
Roa looked at Tanjiro's expression and smiled, saying, "Alright, alright, don't look so nervous. We don't even know if we'll find anything tonight. Although there are many demons, it doesn't mean we can just stumble upon one like finding a cabbage. And didn't I say before? Demons look very much like humans; they aren't necessarily scary."
After thinking for a moment, Roa added, "Of course, that's except when they eat people."
Tanjiro's face darkened, and he looked at Roa with a somewhat speechless expression.
Roa smiled and suddenly said to Tanjiro, "You need to keep your breathing steady at all times. You have to master it as much as possible. Only by mastering your breathing can I teach you the Breath of the Sun."
Tanjiro Kamado moved aside a branch that was blocking his way, kicked a stone in front of him, and tugged at the corners of his mouth.
As they walked out of this mountain and headed towards the next one, Roa raised his eyebrows slightly.
His gaze instinctively turned towards another mountain peak, falling into deep thought.
There seemed to be a strange aura over there?
Seeing Roa fall silent, Tanjiro curiously asked, "Brother Roa, what's wrong?"
Roa shook his head, continued walking forward, and said to Tanjiro behind him, "It's nothing, just feel like something is off over there."
After staying in the town for a while, Roa asked Tanjiro, "Are you hungry? Do you want to grab a bite first? We might stay out late."
Tanjiro sniffed the air, catching the delicious coming from a shop, and awkwardly touched his pocket, saying, "But I didn't bring any money."
Roa raised an eyebrow and said, "I asked if you were hungry, not if you had money."
Tanjiro was taken aback, then showed a touched expression. He reached out to grab Roa's hand, but Roa dodged with a look of disdain, saying, "It's just a meal. It's not that serious."
At this time, it wasn't too late, and the shop was still open. After Roa took Tanjiro inside for a hearty meal, they prepared to continue up the mountain.
The shop owner, seeing Roa dressed in the Demon Slayer Corps uniform with a long sword at his waist, casually said, "Going up the mountain this late? That's tough. I saw a group of people dressed like you earlier, heading up this path."
Roa, who had been somewhat disinterested, immediately perked up and asked the shop owner, "How many people?"
The shop owner didn't expect that his casual remark would interest Roa. After thinking for a moment, he shook his head and said, "I didn't see exactly how many, but probably four. The leader was a very pretty girl who always had a smile on her face."
"Uh-huh."
Roa grabbed Tanjiro's collar and prepared to run up the mountain, saying to Tanjiro, "This is bad; we need to hurry."
Tanjiro looked confused and asked, "Why is it bad?"
Roa said seriously, "The girl the shop owner mentioned is quite strong. If we arrive late, even if there are demons, they will probably be killed."
Tanjiro Kamado:
The light from the oil lamp could only illuminate a few meters around them; beyond that, everything became somewhat unclear. Strange things would always jump out from the dark forest.
Crossing the mountain path and heading up, they could see clear footprints on the ground. Roa slightly quickened his pace, and Tanjiro struggled to keep up behind him.
Although Tanjiro was used to running up and down the mountain selling charcoal and was quite fast, it depended on who he was comparing himself to. Running so quickly along the way, even Tanjiro felt a bit fatigued.
Roa glanced at Tanjiro and continued walking while urging, "Don't stop breathing. Just maintain the rhythm you had before. The more flustered you are, the faster your stamina will deplete."
Roa paused, looked at the bright moon hanging high above, and continued, "It's the same when fighting demons. If one strike doesn't solve the problem and the battle turns unfavorable, you must remain calm."
Tanjiro nodded helplessly with a smile.
Roa's pace was quick, and they didn't take long to reach the group of people.
The four Demon Slayer Corps members sensed movement behind them and turned around, instinctively placing their hands on their Nichirin Swords.
Seeing this, Roa smiled and waved his hand, greeting them, "Everyone, don't be nervous. Look at me; I don't have any demon aura, right?"
After saying that, he gave Tanjiro a look and walked up to the smiling Shinobu Kocho, showing her a smile.
Roa spoke again, "Nice to see you again, beautiful lady."
One of the Demon Slayer Corps members couldn't help but frown and scold, "Hey, how are you addressing the Insect Hashira?"
The Hashira holds a special status and is in a leadership position. Shinobu Kocho indeed showed a beautiful smile. Although her smile always gave Roa a sense of falsehood, it was undeniable that she looked very pretty when she smiled.
Shinobu Kocho said to Roa, "Oh my, the future Thunder Hashira, what brings you here?"
The three other Demon Slayer Corps members were slightly taken aback by her words, and the one who spoke earlier silently took a few steps back.
Normally, a regular member would definitely be reprimanded for saying such a thing, but this person was different. Moreover, since the Insect Hashira herself wasn't angry, they didn't want to make things awkward.
Roa smiled and pointed to Tanjiro beside him, saying to Shinobu Kocho, "I'm just training a newcomer."
Shinobu Kocho frowned slightly, looking at Tanjiro's face, examining him for a moment, then glancing at his attire, she curiously said, "He shouldn't be a member of the Demon Slayer Corps yet. His strength is so weak."
Tanjiro Kamado felt a bit hurt to be told that his strength was weak right in front of him, which would somewhat impact this innocent boy.
Roa dragged out the tearful Tanjiro hiding behind him and pointed at him, saying, "Don't underestimate him! I see great potential in him; he is naturally suited for demon hunting, so I brought him along to train him."
Tanjiro Kamado smiled innocently at everyone and said, "Hello, everyone. My name is Tanjiro Kamado. I hope to get your guidance in the future."
Shinobu Kocho nodded slightly, while the other three Demon Slayer Corps members looked at Shinobu Kocho with some curiosity.
Shinobu Kocho didn't dwell on Tanjiro's situation and continued to ask, "So, why are you following us?"
Roa replied, "As you can see, I'm taking my disciple out to train and also want him to see what real demons are like."
Shinobu Kocho nodded, gesturing for them to join, still wearing a faint smile, "Alright then, let's travel together."
Roa unceremoniously took a few steps forward, walking beside Shinobu Kocho, and said to Tanjiro behind him, "Tanjiro Kamado, you need to keep your breathing steady. Remember, I'm going to chat with this beautiful lady for a bit."
Tanjiro Kamado:
Tanjiro had never encountered such a speechless situation in his life.
The other Demon Slayer Corps members raised their eyebrows at Roa's words.
Although Shinobu Kocho always appeared to be smiling, it was precisely because she always wore a smile that gave off an impression of being hard to approach.
Because you couldn't tell from her expression what she intended to do next.
Roa leaned closer to Shinobu Kocho, looking at her rather handsome face, and asked, "Insect Hashira, is there something you need this time?"
Shinobu Kocho glanced at the blonde guy beside her, still smiling, and said, "The master's mission is to investigate the surrounding demons and eliminate them. It is said that there seems to be a trace of an Upper Moon here."
Upon hearing "Upper Moon," everyone's expressions turned somewhat grim.
Roa felt a bit curious, his golden pupils fixed on Shinobu Kocho's purple eyes, and asked, "If it's an Upper Moon, even you might not survive, right?"
Shinobu Kocho fell silent for a moment, then nodded and continued, "We're just gathering information to see if the intel is accurate. The Water Hashira is also on this mission."
Roa instinctively looked back, and Shinobu Kocho said somewhat helplessly, "The Water Hashira isn't here; we are acting separately."
Roa lightly responded with an "oh," then continued to curiously ask, "What will you do if you encounter an Upper Moon?"
Shinobu Kocho shrugged and said, "Killing demons is our duty as demon slayers. Even if we die here, it's only natural. And, future Thunder Hashira, please refrain from asking such foolish questions again."
Roa was momentarily taken aback by her response, forcing a smile while cursing her sharp tongue in his heart. This topic had just been completely shut down.
Roa took a step back, walked to Tanjiro Kamado's side, and pulled him away from the three Demon Slayer Corps members he was chatting with, saying seriously, "Tanjiro Kamado, I'm here to teach you."
Tanjiro looked at Roa with a resentful expression, and Roa pretended not to notice as the group continued walking forward.
The four people in front were silent, with only Roa and Tanjiro engaged in a continuous discussion about how to use the breathing technique.
Shinobu Kocho, in front, was also curious, listening to their conversation.
Roa's teaching wasn't particularly outstanding, at least in Shinobu's opinion, but just by listening a little, one could discover the peculiarities of this breathing technique.
Unfortunately, she had already found her own path and wasn't interested in this type of breathing technique.
Is the Breath of the Sun easy to learn?
Not really; only Tanjiro Kamado could learn it.
When Yoriichi Tsugikuni was alive, he had always wanted to teach someone to master his Breath of the Sun, but after searching through the Demon Slayer Corps, he found that no one could learn it. In the end, out of desperation, he had to assist in developing various derivative breathing techniques based on the fields in which others excelled.
By combining the breathing techniques with the swordsmanship they originally used, the five basic breathing techniques of Water, Flame, Rock, Wind, and Thunder were derived.
One could say that the Breath of the Sun is the ancestor of all breathing techniques. To put it bluntly, other breathing techniques are merely watered-down versions of the Breath of the Sun.
Along the way, only the conversation between the two could be heard, while the other three Demon Slayer Corps members curiously slowed their pace.
However, one of the members quickly frowned and said curiously, "Lord Thunder Hashira, that doesn't seem to be the Breath of Thunder, does it?"
Roa looked at him in surprise, and the member smiled shyly, saying, "I'm a swordsman of the Breath of Thunder. Although my Breath of Thunder isn't very good, I can still distinguish the basics."
Roa smiled and didn't explain much. Seeing that Roa didn't want to elaborate, the member regretfully stepped back.
Although he encountered Shinobu Kocho, Roa's luck was still quite good. After walking a short distance up the mountain, he discovered a demon.
The demon was openly squatting on the ground, holding a spoon, cooking a huge pot over a campfire.
The pot was boiling, and steam was rising continuously.
Unlocking a new keyword.
Deep mountains, night, alone, a pot steaming.
Goodness, it was undoubtedly a demon.
Shinobu Kocho's expression visibly turned cold; without thinking, she drew her sword.
But a figure was faster than her. With a thunderous sound, Roa appeared in front of Shinobu Kocho.
Shinobu's expression turned serious as she looked at Roa, coldly saying, "What are you doing?"
Roa smiled at Shinobu Kocho and said, "Leave this demon to me. It's good for Tanjiro Kamado to train a bit."
Shinobu fell silent. She glanced at the demon, her face showing a look of disgust. Roa stared at Shinobu with his golden eyes, and in the end, Shinobu could only nod helplessly.
Tanjiro, who had been happily following behind, was taken aback by this and looked pale as he asked quietly, "Brother Roa, do you really want me to go?"
Roa nodded, tossed the Nichirin Sword hanging at his waist to Tanjiro, and pointed at the demon, who was still sitting with its back to them, saying, "Stop talking and go."
Tanjiro nodded helplessly, holding the Nichirin Sword, and walked up unsteadily.
As Tanjiro got closer, he heard the demon muttering some strange words. Once he understood, his face immediately turned ashen.
"Is it ready yet? It smells so good~"
Just thinking about the fact that the pot was cooking a living person made Tanjiro feel nauseous, and he tightened his grip on the sword.
Suddenly, the demon turned around, revealing a bright smile as it said to Tanjiro, "Do you want to eat?"
The demon was not very tall; it was a female demon with a noticeable scar on her face, blood smeared on her mouth, and a fierce look in her eyes.
The moment Tanjiro saw her, he instinctively gripped the Nichirin Sword with both hands, his expression a mix of seriousness, tension, and fear.
The female demon stood up and walked to the side, revealing the large pot in the center.
Roa didn't look; he was afraid of feeling nauseous, but Tanjiro saw it clearly. Suddenly, a strong urge to vomit overwhelmed him, and his stomach churned.
At that moment, as Tanjiro felt sick, the female demon moved quickly, adopting a beast-like stance on all fours, and in the blink of an eye, she charged at Tanjiro.
Her pale fingers turned into sharp swords, stabbing fiercely at Tanjiro.
The female demon laughed wildly, "Since you don't want to eat, then please be my ingredient."
Tanjiro couldn't dodge, but the Breath of the Sun kicked in at a critical moment. He thrust the Nichirin Sword fiercely at the female demon.
Although Tanjiro's attack was simple and straightforward, the power behind the Nichirin Sword made the female demon feel slightly challenged. She stepped back a few paces, ready to charge at Tanjiro again.
Shinobu Kocho looked at Roa with some confusion and said, "You really haven't taught this kid anything."
There was no helping it; the boy in front of her was too inexperienced, like a child who had just learned to wield a sword.
Roa frowned. Tanjiro's combat experience was too lacking; he was completely unable to cope with the demon's attacks, and he realized he was being a bit too hasty.
Thinking this, Roa's figure disappeared from his spot again, and when he reappeared, he was already standing in front of the female demon.
Roa gripped her neck tightly with his right hand, lifting her up. The female demon didn't show any panic due to Roa's speed; instead, her pale face flushed with excitement.
She stabbed her hands toward Roa's neck and kicked at his lower body.
This was the fighting style of demons; they could completely abandon defense and attack recklessly, trading injuries for injuries.
Unfortunately, this was based on the premise that the two sides were not too far apart in strength.
Roa raised an eyebrow, quickly bringing the female demon down to the ground, delivering a kick that broke her spine, smashing her hard against the ground.