Demon Source Blood

Vincent—or rather, Lu Zeyu—had never believed that a person would remain unchanged forever.

Just like himself. He had once been a diligent employee at a major corporation, holding a job that was practically a golden rice bowl, every day of his life utterly unchanging.

But one day, during an itinerary so routine it could not have been more routine, he had acted on a whim and visited the underground shopping street beside the station. In a poorly maintained public restroom, he had glanced at a mirror covered in grime.

His life had been completely changed.

He had gained an opportunity, an opportunity to transcend every unchanging routine and class barrier. Lu Zeyu had become a Reincarnator.

But the power he imagined had not descended upon him at once. Instead, there were endless death missions and crises.

Lu Zeyu sank once more. Using the ability to read people and his talent for disguising himself, honed over many years, he molded himself into the kind of teammate everyone in the space needed—a Defense-Specialized Reincarnator.

They had the highest mortality rate and the lowest returns. No one wanted to become such a Reincarnator themselves, yet everyone wanted their teammates to be one.

Vincent began to receive some attention.

He used that opportunity to find himself a highly promising teammate—a woman who called herself Elizabeth.

Vincent noticed the woman’s pride. He did not dislike pride. On the contrary, those who could retain such an emotion in this space usually possessed considerable talent.

Talent meant opportunities. It meant resources.

His past experiences made Vincent instinctively strive to remain by the woman’s side. To that end, he had even covered her retreat during various missions and taken attacks for her.

He earned the woman’s trust and began building tacit understanding within their fixed team, mission after mission.

Lu Zeyu felt that the opportunity to change his fate as a Reincarnator might soon arrive.

In fact, that opportunity came even sooner than he had imagined. He had thought that after a few more missions, once he had fully gained Elizabeth’s trust, he could carry out a perfect kill in the real world and take everything from her.

Yet during this mission, Lu Zeyu unexpectedly found an even better opportunity.

After the terrifyingly powerful Special Reincarnator, "Mercenary Tao," made the dreadful decision to burn down the mountain, Lu Zeyu—who had already planned to remain on the Demon Slayer Corps’ side for support while avoiding the frontal battlefield—used the optical equipment left to him by the team and observed "Mercenary Tao" seize a Blue Spider Lily before the blaze spread.

At that moment, it was as though lightning flashed through his mind. In an instant, he inexplicably understood the other man’s intentions.

Perhaps Lu Zeyu was simply exceptionally skilled at discerning what his superiors meant, but at that moment, he was certain that "Mercenary Tao" had hidden away the Blue Spider Lily to strike a deal with Kibutsuji Muzan.

"Mercenary Tao" wanted to profit from both sides!

He wanted to claim the rewards from the Demon Slayer Corps while also exploiting Kibutsuji Muzan’s utter lack of principles and bottom line to seize Kibutsuji Muzan’s rewards!

Lu Zeyu’s heart pounded wildly. Almost on instinct, he rushed into the cliffs and successfully found and hid a Blue Spider Lily before the sea of flames arrived.

Afterward, Lu Zeyu, separated from his team, seemed to have suddenly gained clarity. Somewhere deep down, he realized that this mission would be his chance to rise.

Though Kibutsuji Muzan was human scum, utterly without principles or a bottom line, Lu Zeyu understood that even someone like Kibutsuji Muzan would surely be more willing to trade with him than with someone like "Mercenary Tao," who possessed Hamon.

After handing things over to the Demon Slayer Corps that night, Lu Zeyu swiftly infiltrated Kyoto and waited for the best opportunity.

Though he claimed to be a Defense-Specialized Reincarnator, he did not truly possess the abilities to support that claim. However, because the space had an extremely high demand for all kinds of survival abilities, no one doubted him.

His Constitution was indeed his highest attribute, reaching 13 points.

Lu Zeyu’s greatest trump card was a superpower called Doppelganger. It came from the special drug Compound V from The Boys World. After being adjusted by the space, it had become stable and shed its side effects, though its ability had also been limited. It could only parasitize individuals whose Constitution did not exceed his own.

Furthermore, after using Doppelganger, if the target’s Mental Power exceeded his own, the target might seize control instead.

It was an ability Lu Zeyu did not dare use casually on Reincarnators.

At that moment, he had parasitized an ordinary geisha in Kyoto and waited in the shadows for the perfect chance.

The instant Kibutsuji Muzan was about to strike a deal with "Mercenary Tao," he decisively revealed himself, holding the Blue Spider Lily as he called out,

"Lord Muzan, perhaps you have no need to trade with him."

Boom!

Vincent’s gaze remained fixed on Muzan, whose face had broken into wild delight. He felt that he had been right—compared with "Mercenary Tao," Muzan truly was more willing to cooperate with him.

But a fetid, frigid wind howled past his ears, and Kyoto beneath the Night sky seemed to darken in an instant.

Only at the final moment did Vincent realize something was wrong. He raised his head and saw only an incomparably enormous mouth crashing down at him—no, rather, at the entire street.

In the final instant of consciousness, Vincent only felt a stream of icy blood pierce his neck.

Rumble!

The refined wooden district and stone-paved roads shattered completely in an instant. With a single strike, the terrifying giant fox utterly pulverized everything within a radius of several hundred meters.

An entire stretch of street vanished. The dreadful demon fox opened its mouth as though it intended to swallow the earth itself, its body covered in blood-red eyes.

The terrible commotion instantly drew everyone’s attention. Professor and the others had already been highly wary of "Mercenary Tao." Aside from those Upper Rank Demon Moons, only he could have caused such a massive disturbance.

Himejima Gyomei was the first to appear. Kocho Kanae arrived alongside Professor and the other Reincarnators.

"Has Muzan appeared?!"

"What is this… monster…"

Everyone was on high alert, but the sources of their tension were not the same.

Elizabeth’s face turned pale. She saw the clear team notification.

Team member YU15169987 (Vincent) has been attacked. Based on the difference in Mental Power between both sides, you have obtained partial information.

Reincarnator XX53562211 (Mercenary Tao) has launched an attack on your team member. YU15169987 (Vincent) has entered a near-death state.

YU15169987 (Vincent) has used the ability: Doppelganger. YU15169987 (Vincent) is currently in a restricted state.

That bastard Mercenary Tao really wants to make a move against us?!

She instinctively wanted to raise the firearm in her hand, but Professor suddenly pressed down on Elizabeth’s arm, while Liu Qi simultaneously blocked her with the hilt of his sword.

Bai Cangshu stood beneath the demon fox’s feet.

Inside the fox’s mouth, Kibutsuji Muzan’s mangled body struggled continuously. But the dreadful demon fox suddenly flung its head, and the earth shook violently again.

The irresistible violence made Kibutsuji Muzan realize that he had lost today.

"Ha, I lost today, but you and I both understand that from now on, you will no longer be my nemesis."

"Rest assured, I will thoroughly deal with that greedy Worm. Consider this source blood a gift from me before my ascension, bestowed upon the one who has caused me my final measure of pain."

Pfft!

Bai Cangshu pulled his hand from Kibutsuji Muzan’s chest, revealing blood-red coagulated blood within, like amber.

You have obtained the item: Demon Source Blood (Purple)

"Tch, stop putting on an act, Muzan. This is not a gift. It is proof of your fear of me."

"You—"

Bai Cangshu pressed the index finger of his left hand against Muzan’s brow, a mocking smile appearing on his face.

"Because you feared me, you prepared this tribute for your defeat before you even appeared today, didn’t you?"

"As for that Worm who stole my tribute… heh. Rest assured, Muzan. He will escape from your hands, and in the end, he will die by mine."

Pfft!

With a flick of Bai Cangshu’s wrist, his index finger pierced into Muzan’s skull.

Muzan’s body gradually fell still.