The world was black, a spectacle of bizarre and grotesque forms.
In that instant, Gyutaro seemed to see many things.
He saw his younger self, born at the lowest rung of the pleasure district, ostracized for his ugliness. For in the pleasure district, beauty was everything.
Thus, everyone deemed him a burden, a waste of money just for existing, even his own mother.
Until Daki was born. Back then, her name was still Ume.
Ume possessed a beauty that surpassed adults even in her youth. Gyutaro, who took pride in this, gradually shed his inferiority complex and found his footing in the pleasure district.
Everything was developing in a positive direction. Gyutaro firmly believed his sister would become a courtesan, and then they would have a good life.
They would be together forever.
Until forever, forever…
But when his sister was thirteen, she stabbed a samurai in the eye to resist him. He then set her ablaze, leaving her disfigured and barely clinging to life.
In that moment, Gyutaro felt the sky crumble.
It was a cold night, with snow swirling.
His spirit on the verge of collapse, he cried out his inner resentment in a voice filled with grief and anger.
Why?
Why was fate always so unfair?
His hatred piqued the interest of a demon. The then Upper Rank Six brought them before the Demon King to receive his blood.
Many years later…
Upper Rank Six became two individuals: one named Gyutaro, the other Daki.
His sister became a courtesan.
They remained together.
Alas, they were about to die.
In a daze, Gyutaro saw that beautiful girl, crying as she ran towards him.
At least, they were still together.
…
"You have successfully defeated Upper Rank Six of the Twelve Kizuki. Mission rewards: Upper Rank Six Random Blood Demon Art x1, Upper Rank Six Random Blood Demon Art x1, Shard of God's Stone x15."
Byakuya stood amidst the ruins, a light screen appearing before his eyes.
The final hidden mission was complete.
Simultaneously, Byakuya understood why there were two identical rewards instead of "x2."
It was because one reward was a random Blood Demon Art from Gyutaro, and the other was a random Blood Demon Art from Daki.
Ultimately, Byakuya obtained two Blood Demon Arts: Daki's Eight-Layered Obi Slash and Gyutaro's Advance and Retreat.
However, neither held much significance for Byakuya. After all, without becoming a demon, one couldn't use Blood Demon Arts.
But they could be traded. Still, trading Blood Demon Arts was somewhat difficult, as not everyone was willing to become a demon.
Fortunately, Byakuya also possessed Sound Breathing, and an advanced version at that. Combined with the Blood Demon Arts, he wondered if he could trade for another black item.
As Byakuya pondered this, he left the ruins.
If nothing unexpected happened, Tengen Uzui should be appearing with the Demon Slayer Corps. His part was over; he had completed his mission, and the Demon Slayer Corps' story would unfold next.
Soon, Byakuya vanished at the end of the street.
The inn where he was staying was far away and had not been damaged by the battle. Byakuya skillfully avoided everyone, climbed through the window, and threw himself onto the floor in a starfish pose.
"So tired!"
Byakuya was confident in his ability to kill an Upper Rank demon, especially with the Aries Cloth and the Rumble-Rumble Fruit.
But he was still exhausted. Gyutaro was not as easy to deal with as he had imagined.
Perhaps, dealing with demons of higher numbers would have been easier. After all, Gyutaro and Daki's twin abilities were truly troublesome. Without understanding their intricacies, it was impossible to kill them both.
As Byakuya was thinking,
"Burururu, burururu, burururu, burururu…"
From Byakuya's body, a Steel Slime materialized into a Den Den Mushi, and its ringing call echoed.
"Hmm? Gao Ming, is he that impatient?"
Byakuya glanced at the Den Den Mushi. He was surprised to see that it wasn't Gao Ming's Den Den Mushi that appeared, but Jin Sha's.
Byakuya casually answered, "Hello?"
From within the Den Den Mushi, Jin Sha's weak voice transmitted, "Hello, Byakuya, I'm dying."
Byakuya was taken aback and said, "Ah?"
Jin Sha repeated, "I'm severely injured, I might die."
Byakuya paused, then indifferently replied, "Oh."
Jin Sha asked, "You won't save me, will you?"
Byakuya responded, "That depends on what price you're willing to pay for me to save you."
In other words, if there were no benefits…
Then, Jin Sha's life or death had nothing to do with Byakuya.
Having cooperated in the past meant nothing. Byakuya only acted when there were benefits; without them, it was none of his concern, and he had no intention of wasting time on matters unrelated to him.
"That's exactly what you would say, so devoid of human warmth…" Jin Sha coughed violently midway through, and after a while, continued, "I want to pay anything, to beg you to save me, but I think it's useless. I'm really dying, you won't be able to make it in time."
Byakuya thought for a moment and said, "Given that we know each other, there's some sentiment. What do you plan to engrave on your tombstone? I can do it for you."
"I'd rather you didn't mention that sentiment." Jin Sha coughed violently again, then said, "I've sent you something via Pelipper delivery."
Byakuya asked in confusion, "Hmm?"
Jin Sha continued, "Your objective is definitely the Central Tower, to leave this place, right? After all, you're so strong."
Byakuya nodded, "Yes."
Jin Sha said, "Then do you know? You don't actually need to go to the central area to have a chance to speak directly with a god."
"Oh?"
Byakuya's interest was piqued. This was something he genuinely didn't know; even in his past life, Byakuya hadn't heard of it.
Jin Sha explained, "Some forbidden zones, or hidden quests, will feature gods. These gods were originally gods from various worlds. You should know that some worlds truly have gods."
Byakuya nodded, "Yes, worlds of mythological civilizations."
Jin Sha elaborated, "But gods cannot pull gods into the world battlefield. After all, they are all gods. Therefore, the gods in the world battlefield will replace the original gods and play their roles."
Byakuya suddenly understood, "By finding these types of forbidden zones or hidden quests, there's a chance to speak directly with gods?"
"Yes, however, the chosen ones from worlds of mythological civilizations are very rare, so these forbidden zones and hidden quests are naturally even rarer." Jin Sha panted, "But I found one. What I sent you is related information."
Byakuya remained silent for a moment, then asked, "What do you need me to do?"
Jin Sha replied, "Liu Shiyue, the vice president of the Hidden Dragon Society."
"Mm, I understand," Byakuya said. "He will die."
From the other end of the Den Den Mushi, Jin Sha's laughter could be heard, "Thank you."
"You're welcome," Byakuya replied. "Since I've received the item, fulfilling the agreement is what I should do."
Jin Sha was silent for a moment, then said, "Goodbye."
Byakuya responded, "Goodbye."
…