CHAPTER 298: CHAPTER 49: MUZAN’S FEAR

Inside the strange, ever-shifting layers of space that made up the Infinity Castle—

Muzan Kibutsuji appeared beside Nakime.

She was just about to ask what had happened, but the moment she saw Muzan’s expression—dark, twisted with fury—she swallowed her question immediately.

"Summon Kokushibo," Muzan ordered coldly.

"Yes, Lord Muzan," Nakime answered softly and plucked her biwa.

Moments later—

A swordsman appeared before them. He wore a purple kimono patterned with serpent scales, a black hakama, and his long black hair was tied up in a high ponytail. Six eyes opened wide across his face—the strongest of the Upper Moons. The demon of the blade.

Kokushibo.

"Lord Muzan," Kokushibo said with a deep bow to Muzan’s childlike form. "What are your orders?"

Muzan cast him a fleeting glance before coldly stating what had happened—

Doma. Hantengu. Gyokko. All of them. The Upper Moons had been annihilated... simultaneously.

Both Kokushibo and Nakime froze in stunned silence.

"All at the same time...? Other than Lord Muzan, who else could possibly do such a thing..." Kokushibo muttered in disbelief.

"That’s exactly what I want to know," Muzan growled, his face like a thundercloud.

It wasn’t that he particularly cared about Doma or the others. They were just Upper Moons. He could create replacements any time he pleased.

What truly disturbed him... was the fact that this had happened so suddenly—so flawlessly.

It gave him a sickening sense.

That something was no longer within his control.

Just like four hundred years ago—when he met that man...

That unforgettable figure flickered through his mind, and Muzan clenched his fists so hard veins bulged across his pale skin.

Could there really be another one in this era? Someone like him?!

No. Impossible!

That man, his family, and the entire art of Breathing Techniques had all been wiped out by Muzan himself—three centuries ago!

"...L-Lord Muzan..." Nakime’s uneasy voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

Then he saw it.

A strange vortex—large enough for a person to walk through—suddenly twisted open in the air in front of them.

Muzan’s eyes narrowed.

What was that...?

And in the next second—

A foot stepped through the swirling portal, setting foot into the Infinity Castle.

Then came a tall, slender young man with sharp, striking features.

Clad in jet-black robes, draped in a flowing teal haori, a scarlet ancient sword at his hip—he looked more like a warrior from a legend than someone real.

He stood with eyes glinting with amusement as he faced Muzan, Kokushibo, and Nakime.

"Lovely night, isn’t it?"

...

[Location detected: Infinity Castle. Sign-in possible. Would you like to sign in?]

"Sign in," Ron said calmly.

[Sign-in successful. Rewards acquired: +10 Vitality, +10 Mental Energy.

Bonus Reward: Ownership of Infinity Castle.]

Ron’s eyes flickered as he read the rewards. And when he saw the detailed attributes of Infinity Castle, the smile on his lips deepened as he gazed toward Muzan and the others.

Infinity Castle, huh...?

What a magnificent gift this was.

"A human?!" Nakime, the demon who controlled this strange realm, looked at Ron with a trembling heart.

Why? Why could a human enter this place?

"I didn’t summon him. I never brought him here! So how... how did he get inside the Infinity Castle?!"

Her voice trembled with growing panic and disbelief.

Ron looked at Nakime and smiled.

"Pocket dimensions are like locked rooms," he said. "As long as you can see where the door is... you don’t really need a key to open it."

He pointed to his piercing blue eyes.

"And it just so happens—my eyes can see everything."

Whoosh!

In the blink of an eye, Kokushibo appeared right in front of him. A lightning-fast Iaijutsu slash wrapped in curved moon-shaped blades, invisible to the naked eye, cut through the air toward Ron.

Moon Breathing, First Form: Dark Moon - Evening Palace.

But Ron vanished before the blade could touch him.

A hand gently landed on Kokushibo’s shoulder, and a calm, amused voice sounded behind him.

"You really want to fight me?"

Kokushibo’s six eyes shrank in alarm.

The next instant—

A storm of sword aura exploded from his body. Though he hadn’t even drawn his blade, a violent whirlpool of slicing wind and moon-shaped blades erupted from around him in all directions.

Moon Breathing, Fifth Form: Moon Spirit Calamitous Eddy!

Ron watched the wave of vicious blade winds coming at him, then casually lifted his hand and... swatted them aside. Just like brushing away an annoying fly.

Crash!

The massive arc blades shattered into nothing.

"!"

Kokushibo’s heart trembled violently.

Nakime’s single eye went wide with disbelief.

Both of them stared at that composed, untouched, smiling young man in front of them. A single thought echoed in their minds—

Is this man... really human?

Muzan’s crimson eyes locked tightly onto the stranger.

"Still want to fight?" Ron smiled at Kokushibo. "To be honest, your sword doesn’t even qualify to make me draw mine."

The moment those words landed, all six of Kokushibo’s eyes shrank in fury.

His killing intent ignited like wildfire.

He unleashed his full power—his aura becoming a vortex of pure sword energy. His demonic blade grew longer, splitting into multiple jagged edges as his strength surged to the limit.

"Die!"

He roared, six blood-red eyes flaring, and brought his now monstrous weapon crashing down in a sweeping arc toward Ron.

Moon Breathing, Eighth Form: Moon-Dragon Ringtail!

"Weak swordsmanship," Ron said gently.

He stepped forward and threw a punch.

The very air in front of him shattered like glass, and from the fracture exploded a titanic shockwave that tore Kokushibo’s full-powered strike to shreds.

Kokushibo’s eyes widened.

Even with the Transparent World activated—he still couldn’t see through Ron.

This man... was like an endless abyss. Deep. Unfathomable. Terrifying.

"This is impossible... A mere human could never possess such strength!"

He couldn’t accept it.

Roaring in defiance, Kokushibo surged forward again with his grotesque demon blade raised.

He was just a human, wasn’t he? As long as he took even a little damage, his strength would fall. He didn’t have the immortality, the regenerative power of demons!

When Kokushibo was just two meters in front of Ron, sword raised, poised to strike—

The air twanged like a taut string being plucked.

Slash!

Kokushibo’s sword-wielding arms suddenly separated from his body, neatly severed.

"...Eh?" he blinked in confusion. "Did... did he even move?"

Ron slowly raised his hand and gently pressed it against Kokushibo’s head.

With a soft smile, he said, "Compared to your brother, your swordplay is absolute garbage."

Crack!

With a slight press of his fingers, Kokushibo’s head exploded like a watermelon.

Whoosh!

Two flesh-whips laced with razor-sharp blades whipped through the air from both sides, aimed at Ron at terrifying speed.

But the moment they got within three meters of him, a sudden chill erupted.

They froze instantly, turned to brittle ice, and shattered into sparkling shards.

Ron turned his head, his blue eyes shifting toward Muzan.

"You too? Want to try your luck?"

A flash of gold and crimson gleamed in his gaze—

And in the next moment, Conqueror’s Haki - Stage Three burst forth like a tsunami, flooding across the entire Infinity Castle.

Nakime collapsed immediately, overwhelmed by the sheer force of that divine will.

Muzan felt it too—and his face turned ghostly white.

His whole body trembled.

His crimson eyes widened in horror as he stared at Ron.

"W-What are you... What the hell ARE you?!"