Demon Slayer: After raising Shinobu, I died in front of her.

Even in the darkness of night, large swathes of dreamy purple flower spikes still hang among the lush foliage.

At the entrance to the mountain path stands an ancient torii gate, where many examinees with different expressions have already gathered.

Kanae spotted two familiar figures at a glance.

"Kanae! Over here!"

Sabito's enthusiastic voice came from afar, and he and Yiyong quickly came to meet them.

"Did you arrive very early?" Kanae asked, looking at them.

"I arrived only two hours earlier than you," Qin Tu said with a smile.

Giyu followed behind, looking somewhat reserved, and nodded solemnly to Kanae.

Kanae's gaze passed over them and landed beside the torii gate, where she suddenly saw a familiar figure: "Lord Amane?"

Not far away, Ubuyashiki Amane noticed Kanae's gaze and smiled and nodded gently at her.

Then, she turned to the crowd, her expression returning to calm and solemnity: "Thank you all for coming tonight to participate in the final selection of the Demon Slayer Corps. On this mountain, demons captured alive by the Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen are imprisoned. But don't worry about them escaping, because from the mountainside to the foot of the mountain, there grow wisteria flowers that demons hate."

Tenon slightly stepped aside, clearing the path leading into the depths of the forest: "But ahead, there will be no more wisteria protection; demons will roam here. Once you enter, you only need to survive for seven days to pass the final selection and become qualified Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen. So, I wish you all a safe journey."

Kanae nodded slightly to Amane, then stepped over the torii gate without further hesitation.

Sabito and Giyu followed closely behind, and the others gradually caught up as well.

As she passed by Amane, Kanae heard a very soft whisper, so soft that only she could hear it: "Do your best."

Kanae felt a warmth in her heart, nodded slightly, and then stepped into the depths of the forest.

The moment I stepped over the torii gate, the rich, calming fragrance of wisteria behind me seemed to be severed by an invisible barrier.

What hit you was the damp, cold, and decaying smell of the deep forest, mixed with a faint stench of blood.

She looked back and saw the sea of ​​wisteria behind her swaying in the night, like a purple curtain separating the human world from hell.

Ahead lay unfathomable darkness, and countless greedy eyes peering into it.

The trial has begun.

The people who came in with him all had solemn expressions on their faces, looking around warily, and none of them dared to make any rash moves.

"Kanae, do you have any thoughts?" Sabito asked in a low voice.

"Of course we're going to kill demons," Kanae's voice drifted from ahead. "Are you planning to spend seven days here?"

Sabito smiled confidently and quickly followed with Giyu: "I have no such intention."

The group slowly walked into the mountain. Those candidates behind them, seeing them heading in, hesitated before following, while the more daring ones remained only near the intersection.

Seeing this, Kanae felt somewhat helpless.

These people were unaware that the evil spirits kept here could not eat all year round, and their only opportunity to come into contact with living people was during the annual assessment.

If we compare these evil spirits to wolves that have been starving for a year, then they are sheep that exude an enticing aroma.

Hiding here is useless, because the human scent on your body will constantly attract evil spirits from the surrounding area, and those hungry monsters will never give up this hard-won opportunity to eat.

Suddenly, Kanae stopped in her tracks.

The next moment, she moved. The people in the distance didn't even see her move clearly before they saw her swing a slash into the air ahead.

Immediately afterwards, a demon that had just pounced down from the treetop was neatly cut in half in mid-air, its body instantly turning into ashes and disappearing.

"Wow, so fast!" Sarutobi's eyes lit up. "I was just about to make my move, but I didn't expect you to be faster than me."

Giyuu behind him couldn't help but swallow hard, inwardly marveling: So strong! Kanae's strength has improved so much in just one year!

Kanae stopped, closed her eyes slightly to sense the surrounding atmosphere, and after a moment said softly, "They've arrived."

They're here? What's here?

Before those behind them could understand what was happening, they heard a dense rustling sound from the surrounding bushes. Dozens of evil spirits suddenly rushed out, baring their fangs and claws as they pounced on the group!

"Water Breathing - First Form: Water Slash!" x3

Three slashes, each accompanied by surging waves, swept across almost simultaneously, cutting in all directions. The demons' bodies were cleanly severed while still in mid-air, black blood splattering everywhere!

The surrounding examinees, who had just drawn their swords and were preparing to retaliate, were all stunned. They stared in shock at the three figures not far away, their minds blank.

They had barely even realized that those three people had already killed all the evil spirits?!

The hawk-like rabbit sheathed its sword, grinned, and said, "How about that? We weren't bad, were we?"

Giyuu, who was also in a sword-wielding stance, slowly breathed a sigh of relief. Thankfully, he had come to his senses.

Kanae was somewhat surprised.

She had just been planning to kill all the demons by herself, but Sabito and Giyu's actions wiped out all the demons on both sides of her.

"Why are you looking at us like that? You don't think you're the only one who's improved, do you?!" Sabito patted Giyuu's shoulder helplessly. "Giyuu, Kanae looks down on us."

Yi Yong scratched his head and gave an awkward smile.

"Not bad." Kanae smiled slightly at them, her eyes full of approval. "With your strength, I don't need to worry about protecting you. I'm going deeper now. If you want to come along, please do!"

After saying that, Kanae flashed away and ran wildly into the depths of the forest.

Sabito's eyes lit up as he pulled Giyu along, asking, "Are you going deeper into the mountains?"

"Of course!" Kanae shouted without turning her head. "Now that I'm here, I naturally want to see where my limits are. I don't want to spend seven days here!"

"Ha, as expected of Lord Cangzhu's disciple!" Sabito laughed. "I have an idea, how about we have a competition later to see who kills more demons?!"

Kanae thought about it carefully. If all the evil spirits here were killed, it would indeed prevent others from being killed by them.

“Okay!” she replied with a smile.

Giyu stammered from the side, "R-really, we have to compete...?"

"Hey, don't worry about Giyuu, you're really strong!" Sabito laughed and patted Giyuu's shoulder hard.

Kanae looked intently at Giyu. Judging from the slash he had just made, Giyu's strength was already not much weaker than hers.

I thought I had completely surpassed them this year, but I didn't expect their strength to improve so rapidly.

The examinees behind them, watching Kanae and the other two run deeper into the area, were at a loss.

"They've all gone deeper into the area, should we follow them?" someone asked hesitantly.

Without a doubt, those three guys were exceptionally strong, and following them would definitely increase the chances of survival.

But the deeper they went, the stronger the evil spirits became, and they didn't think they had the ability to survive in that situation.

Just then, Sabito's voice came from afar: "You guys should just keep moving around this area! We should have already taken care of all the evil spirits around here!"

Chapter 20 The Hand Ghost

"Ah! Help me—!"

Accompanied by a piercing scream, a boy with a bowl cut was chased wildly across the mountain by a demon. In his panic, he didn't watch his step and fell heavily to the ground. Just as the hideous demon was about to pounce, the boy closed his eyes in despair.

"Water Breathing - Fourth Form - Tide Surge!"

A clear, melodious shout suddenly rang in my ears.

When the boy with the bowl cut cautiously opened his eyes, a girl dressed in a white butterfly-patterned haori stood before him, while the evil spirit that had been chasing him had already turned to ashes in the flash of the blade.

"I'm saved..." The boy swallowed hard, looked at the girl who had saved him, and stammered his thanks.

Kanae turned around and gently reassured her, "It's alright now, there's no danger. But this is the heart of the forest, how did you end up so deep here?"

So gentle...

Murata blushed and stammered an explanation that he was lost.

Kanae smiled and pointed behind him: "That's the way back. Although I've cleared out all the ghosts around here, you'd better go to the outer perimeter first, since I can't guarantee there won't be any that escaped."

They've all been killed?!

Murata was dumbfounded. What a terrifying "monster" it must be to have single-handedly wiped out all the demons here!

"Shh!"

Suddenly, a figure descended from the treetop. "Kanae, how many demons have you killed?"

Kanae looked at Sabito, tilted her head and thought for a moment: "I think there are seventy of them, but I can't quite remember."

Qian Tu sighed, "We've killed almost all the ghosts in these mountains. I've only killed about fifty. You still don't have as many as I do. No wonder you're a disciple personally taught by Lord Cangzhu. You're ridiculously strong."

"Sabito, if Master Urokodaki hears you say that, he'll be heartbroken," Giyuu muttered as he walked over from a distance.

"Haha, it's okay, anyway, Urokodaki-sensei can't hear me now." Sabito laughed heartlessly.

Murata, who had listened to the whole thing, was completely numb!

Have all the ghosts in the mountains been killed?

I already thought this abnormally strong girl was a monster, but it turns out there are two more monsters like her!?

What kind of monsters are the Demon Slayer Corps?!

I'm actually taking the test with this bunch of monsters?!

Murata scrambled to his feet, saying, "Gentlemen! I won't bother you any longer. I'll head back to the outskirts of the forest!"

"Okay, be careful!" Kanae gently reminded her.

Murata blushed, his heart pounded uncontrollably, he mumbled a thank you with his head down, and then ran away as if his life depended on it.

"What should we do? There are still two days left until the end of the assessment. Should we go back too?" Sabito looked at Kanae.

Perhaps because Kanae is the disciple of "Idol Senior Brother", Sabito and Giyuu, when facing her, are like facing the legendary Senior Brother Cangzhu, and have unknowingly begun to follow her arrangements.

Kanae thought for a moment: "I want to go and take another look around. Just in case there are other people who got lost and wandered here like that person. It would be troublesome if they encountered a ghost."

"Kanae is such a gentle and kind person!" Sabito exclaimed, then patted Giyuu on the shoulder and laughed, "Giyuu, we have to keep working hard too. We can't let Kanae outdo us. It would be too embarrassing if the two of us combined couldn't beat her!"

"I...I will try my best..." Yi Yong replied hesitantly.

Just then, Kanae suddenly raised her head, and Sabito and Giyu instantly fell silent in unison.

Kanae listened intently, her gaze suddenly locking onto a certain direction!

"It's there!"