Since a demon can ignore injuries to its flesh, even a pierced heart isn’t a fatal blow for one. Kawagishi was willing to let his heart be impaled if it meant gaining a more advantageous position.

  As Black Wolf Fang’s claw dug into Kawagishi’s chest, just when the older demon was about to withdraw and strike again, Kawagishi, gritting his teeth against the pain, stepped forward. In that split second, he spat a mouthful of fresh blood right onto Black Wolf Fang’s face, obscuring his vision.

  "You! I wouldn’t resort to such underhanded tactics—are you too chicken to fight me fairly?" Kawagishi shouted.

  Black Wolf Fang shook his head vigorously, trying to fling the blood from his eyes. One of his hands had already penetrated Kawagishi’s chest, and his other hand wasn’t idle either—it lunged ferociously toward Kawagishi’s neck. If Black Wolf Fang managed to seize and twist his opponent’s neck, Kawagishi would be left no chance to resist; the older demon wouldn’t spare him any time to recover.

  Not willing to engage in a direct confrontation, Kawagishi exploited the momentary blur in Black Wolf Fang’s sight. His attack route had become less cunning as Black Wolf Fang’s speed lagged by a few beats. Swiftly, Kawagishi grabbed hold of Black Wolf Fang’s wrist. Using his foe’s own strength against him, he hoisted the wrist upward just enough to throw off the precision of Black Wolf Fang’s assault. At the same time, with his right hand shaped like a knife, he delivered a vicious blow to the demon’s arm—the very arm that was still stuck inside his body.

  Seeing Black Wolf Fang nonchalantly recover from his earlier head injury, Kawagishi immediately understood a crucial truth: when demons fight demons, one cannot fear getting hurt. Although pain still exists, for demons any injury is hardly life-threatening.

  Black Wolf Fang hadn’t expected such ruthless cunning from a newly turned demon—a devious tactic he had never encountered before. All he felt was a searing pain from his right arm, starting at the forearm, as his elbow twisted painfully and his arm’s bones shattered. In an instant, Black Wolf Fang’s entire right arm went limp, utterly devoid of strength.

  For all his life, Black Wolf Fang had despised the way Kawagishi fought—using tricks and deceit rather than a straightforward brawl. To him, true combat was about direct, head-on clashes; no matter whether you could win or lose, the thrill of an honest, blood-pumping fight was what a demon should strive for.

  "Little demon, you’ve truly infuriated me now," Black Wolf Fang growled. "The gap in our strength can’t be bridged by cheap tricks. I’ll tear your limbs off, decapitate you, and when the sun rises, reduce you to ashes."

  Initially, Black Wolf Fang hadn’t planned to use his full strength against a newly turned demon. In this hunting ground, there were originally two demons sharing the territory, but somehow a Demon Slayer had arrived—and that hunter was exceptionally strong. The other demon was even taken down in an instant by that Demon Slayer.

  At that moment, Black Wolf Fang had been watching from afar, and after witnessing the battle’s outcome he was truly shaken—he had originally planned to stir up trouble with that Demon Slayer, but was outpaced by another demon. By all rights, he should have left this hunting ground and avoided that Demon Slayer. Yet, for some reason, deep down Black Wolf Fang was unwilling to leave—even if it meant risking his life. During this period, that Demon Slayer had been residing in the nearby town below, which kept Black Wolf Fang from acting rashly. Besides, that town was his main source of food; just last night, a child lost in the blizzard had given him a hearty meal. If he used all his strength now, he’d end up starving again. He could only hope that the Demon Slayer would leave soon.

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  “Blood Demon Art: Blade Prison!”

  Black Wolf Fang was no ordinary demon—he had mastered the Blood Demon Art. Though his command of it was still a bit unrefined, it was more than sufficient to deal with a newly turned demon. In his left hand appeared a massive slashing blade nearly 1.5 meters long and over twenty centimeters wide. Its iron-bound hilt was sharply faceted. Since the distance was so short and his left hand was still extended, unable to strike Kawagishi directly, Black Wolf Fang swung the hilt forcefully at Kawagishi’s side.

  The roaring wind made Kawagishi’s heart skip a beat; he quickly tilted his head to avoid the crushing blow of the hilt. But the blade had appeared suddenly in Black Wolf Fang’s hand, and the hilt was long enough that the distance between it and Kawagishi was all too short. Not expecting Black Wolf Fang to use the Blood Demon Art, Kawagishi found himself at a disadvantage. That’s the nature of battle—it changes in an instant.

  Despite his best efforts to dodge, Kawagishi was struck by the razor-sharp hilt. A horrifying gash immediately appeared on the right side of his face, the skin and muscle tearing away. With his head severely injured, Black Wolf Fang then delivered a brutal kick that sent Kawagishi flying. Colliding with the cave wall, Kawagishi was overcome with excruciating pain.

  Barely having hit the ground, Kawagishi scrambled to adjust his body and stand up. But Black Wolf Fang wasn’t about to grant him that chance. The giant slashing blade came down in a savage arc, slicing through Kawagishi’s head and severing it completely. Then, with a twisting kick, Black Wolf Fang hoisted Kawagishi’s head high and drove the tip of his blade through it, nailing it to the wall.

  Kawagishi was overwhelmed by the shock of his first decapitation. Had it not been for the searing pain in his head—and the sight of Black Wolf Fang’s gleeful, mocking expression—he might have truly believed he was dead.

  “Pah! Still trying to fight me, little demon? You might as well wait for death,” Black Wolf Fang sneered as he looked down on Kawagishi. He then proceeded to stomp and snap off the limbs of Kawagishi’s headless, sprawled body before seating himself on it.

  Kawagishi said nothing; the bizarre sensation he felt was indescribable. Yet witnessing his own headless body having its limbs crushed was a terrible experience.

  “So weak I am…” he thought bitterly.

  Black Wolf Fang, still seated on Kawagishi’s dismembered body, couldn’t be bothered to reset his own bones. He casually tore off his left arm, and after a few breaths the arm regenerated perfectly. “Hey, little demon, earlier I kindly offered you a meal and you refused—what do you have to say about that now?”

  It was time for the victor’s taunt.

  Kawagishi remained expressionless and silent, unwilling to give up. He was busy trying to reestablish contact with his body, testing if he could control it. He could sense that even though his head and body were separated, there was a tenuous connection between them. With his focused will, that link was growing stronger—he felt that it wouldn’t be long before he could control his body remotely.

  “Little demon, I’m talking to you,” Black Wolf Fang goaded.

  “Talk, then—weren’t you impressive just now?” he added with a malicious, subtle grin.

  Kawagishi’s indifferent demeanor didn’t provoke further anger in Black Wolf Fang; instead, it sparked a mischievous idea. He simply watched Kawagishi without taking any additional action. After three minutes, Kawagishi finally managed to fully control his body again. He planned to covertly restore his limbs first, and then reengage in battle—there was still plenty of fight left in him.

  However, just then, Black Wolf Fang suddenly burst into raucous laughter……