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

Looking at the cold, stiff body on the bed, Tamayo trembled with resentment, but there was nothing she could do.

A person who has died has no chance of being resurrected unless a miracle occurs.

"Let it go, Lady Tamayo." Yushiro couldn't help but whisper as he looked at Tamayo's pained expression. "This human... is beyond saving."

Tamayo slowly unclenched her fists, the light in her eyes dimming little by little. She remained silent for a moment, then turned away helplessly, her voice hoarse: "After dark... let's give him a proper burial."

She took one last deep look at the man on the bed, her eyes filled with admiration and regret.

It wasn't just because of his strength, but also because of his unwavering determination when facing an invincible enemy.

She sighed softly, and just as she was about to give up and turn away from the operating table, Yushiro suddenly exclaimed in shock behind her: "Lady Tamayo! Look!"

Tamayo suddenly stopped and turned around in astonishment.

The man, who had been lying quietly on the bed, suddenly underwent a strange and violent change in his body.

As if some ancient curse had been activated in an instant, his blood-stained black hair began to lose its pigment from the roots at a speed visible to the naked eye, instantly turning as white as snow.

Immediately afterwards, a sickeningly loud sound of bones grinding together rang out.

"Crack...knock..."

His previously collapsed and broken ribcage seemed to be forcibly reshaped by an invisible hand, slowly rising and recovering.

The stagnant blood, which had long since stopped flowing, began to surge again, and the shattered internal organs wriggled and healed wildly under the nourishment of the ghost blood.

Beneath his pale skin, bluish veins bulged like tree roots, then quickly disappeared, and his entire body exuded a chilling, new vitality.

The man who had already died was forcibly crawling back from the gates of hell in a domineering and tyrannical manner.

Strange patterns crawled all over the human body before him like living creatures, and he was frantically transforming from a human into a demon.

Yushiro's eyes widened, and he exclaimed in surprise and doubt, "It worked?"

"No, that's not right!" Tamayo retorted instinctively, her voice filled with confusion and shock. "It's not my blood!"

If it was a demon created using her blood, Tamayo should have been able to sense a slight spiritual connection between herself and the other party.

But at this moment, she could not sense any connection between herself and the human in front of her.

"Why is that..." Yushiro murmured to himself.

In a flash, Tamayo suddenly realized something and blurted out, "It's Upper Moon One! He ate that monster's flesh!"

Overwhelmed with excitement, Tamayo's body trembled slightly uncontrollably.

"A demon eater... He's actually a demon eater! He devoured that monster's flesh and blood, forcibly giving his body the characteristics of a demon!"

That must be it!

Devourers are an extremely rare and special type of human. They can temporarily acquire the powerful physique of demons by consuming their flesh and blood, such as rapid regeneration.

Yushiro swallowed hard, staring at the man undergoing a strange transformation on the bed, momentarily speechless: "This powerful human is actually a Demon Eater... Does he even know it? He probably doesn't! His luck is just too incredible..."

"This isn't luck!" Tamayo looked up, her face covered in cold sweat but filled with barely suppressed excitement. "It's God helping us! It's fate looking out for us!"

"No! Lady Tamayo! He seems to have turned back into his old self!"

Hearing Yushiro's exclamation, Tamayo suddenly looked down.

Sure enough, the strange markings on the human's body were fading rapidly, and he returned to his original human form.

However, his heart still did not start beating again.

That was just a temporary physical repair brought about by Kokushibo's flesh and blood. As that power was exhausted, his demon transformation process was forced to stop.

“Not enough…” Tamayo stared intently at the body that had fallen silent once more, a crazy thought flashing through her mind.

Before Yushiro could understand what Lady Tamayo meant by "not enough," his pupils contracted sharply. He saw Lady Tamayo pick up a scalpel and, without hesitation, cut off a piece of flesh from her wrist!

"Lord Tamayo! What are you doing!" Yushiro was so anxious he almost jumped up.

Tamayo was in excruciating pain, her face pale and covered in cold sweat, but her eyes were unusually determined: "He must be turned into a demon again! Only my flesh and blood can completely transform him!"

"Then use my flesh! Stop what you're doing! Please stop hurting yourself!" Yushiro's eyes turned red with anger, and he rushed over to snatch the knife from Tamayo's hand.

"You became a ghost through my blood, so the effect might not be as good as mine."

Tamayo gritted her teeth, completely ignoring everything else, and continued what she was doing.

She didn't say it so bluntly: Yushiro became a demon through her blood, so Yushiro's flesh might not be as pure as hers.

Yushiro looked at Lingchuan Tetsu lying on the wooden bed and was so angry that he scratched deep marks on the hard wooden edge with his fingers.

That damn guy!

Because of you, Lady Tamayo is actually going to cut off her own flesh!

You better wake up quickly, because when you do, I'm going to give you a good beating!!!

"Yushiro!" Tamayo called out softly, enduring the pain.

"I'm here, Lady Tamayo!" Yushiro immediately calmed down and moved closer.

"Help me wipe his body clean, in preparation for stitching."

"..."

"Yushiro?"

"Yes, Lady Tamayo!"

Chapter 45 Anger

Ren had a dream, a very long and warm dream, yet an incredibly distant one.

In her dream, she saw herself and her older sister as children, being rescued by their master that night; she saw their master bringing them to the Demon Slayer Corps for the first time.

She saw herself hiding in her master's house for the first time, the little girl holding her sister's hand, eagerly waiting for her master to return.

They saw their master, unusually, shed his seriousness and take the sisters to the bustling streets and the serene Xiaowu Mountain; even the wind there seemed sweet.

She dreamt that she was sweating profusely because she couldn't make progress, and her master's kind hands gently touched her head, patiently teaching her again and again.

When she dreamt that she was feeling down because of a setback in her mission, her master offered her clumsy but gentle comfort.

She also dreamed that the four of them, master and disciples, sat around a warm table, laughing and making a promise to never, ever be separated.

But at the end of the dream, the surroundings suddenly became very dark, so dark that you couldn't see your hand in front of your face.

In this endless darkness, only the master stood there, his body seemingly radiating a soft light.

He gazed at her tenderly, just as he had always, his eyes filled with doting affection and reluctance.

"Master..."

Ren desperately reached out, wanting to rush into that embrace that could shield him from all the storms, just like when he was a child.

However, no matter how she ran or reached out, that distance seemed impossible to cross.

Her fingertips trembled, but she couldn't reach her master's clothes no matter what she did.

Butterfly Shinobu woke up.

She stared blankly at the ceiling, as if someone was calling her, but the voice seemed to be muffled and distant through a thick film of water, and she couldn't even make out who was calling.

As the bed beside her dipped slightly, Shinobu Kocho slowly sat up.

Orange sat on the edge of the bed, her eyes red and swollen like two ripe peaches, clearly having been crying for a long time.

Seeing that Shinobu was awake, she quickly sniffed and forced a smile: "Shinobu, you're awake... Are you hungry? I'll go make you something to eat."

"I'm not hungry." Shinobu's voice was eerily calm, without a single inflection. "Where are my sister and Kanao?"

"Lady Kanae went to Lord's place, and as for Kanao, she..." Tachibana's eyes darted away, and she subconsciously looked towards the other corner of the room.

Following her gaze, Shinobu saw on another bed not far away, Kanao was lying there with her eyes closed. Her usually clear eyes were now tightly shut, but her small hands were gripping the sheets tightly, her knuckles white, as if she were experiencing great pain in her sleep.

"Let her sleep," Ren said softly, his tone still calm and undisturbed.

"Ren..." Ju Zi hesitated, her eyes filled with worry.

She was too good at restraint; this excessive calmness was more frightening than a hysterical breakdown.

"I'm going out for a walk." Shinobu Kocho threw back the covers and stepped barefoot onto the floor. "You don't need to follow me, I'm fine."

She walked out of the Butterfly House calmly, like a soulless marionette.

She even politely nodded slightly in response to the concerned gazes of the wounded and members of the stealth unit along the way, as if nothing had happened.

Stepping out of the Butterfly House, I came to the bustling street.

She looked up at the sky; the ravens were flying more frequently than usual today, their black wings blocking out some of the sunlight.

There were more Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen on the streets than usual, but each of them wore the same sorrow and solemnity on their faces.

Ling Chuan Che is dead.

For the Demon Slayer Corps, the loss was not just the loss of a powerful "Pillar".

As a veteran of the Demon Slayer Corps, many new swordsmen grew up listening to his legendary stories, and the number of people he has saved over the years is countless.

He has long since become an indelible spiritual totem for the Demon Slayer Corps.

As Shinobu walked down the street, the previously noisy crowd seemed to quiet down for a moment.

Everyone's eyes instinctively turned to her, their gazes filled with sympathy, regret, and sorrow.

Some people walked silently to her side, their eyes red, and whispered "condolences," before leaving quietly.

People kept approaching, and people kept leaving.

Ren listened silently, his face still expressionless, even the habitual smile on his lips looked stiff and pale.

Master, did you see that?

Everyone is sad for you.

How could you be so heartless as to abandon us all...?

Ren walked calmly down the street, one step, two steps... Her consciousness seemed to drift outside her body, and she moved her legs mechanically.

After walking for an unknown amount of time, the surrounding scenery suddenly became familiar.

When she came to her senses, her feet had already stopped in front of that familiar wooden door.