Chapter 62: The Selection Concludes

In truth, the majority of the demons captured by the Demon Slayer Corps and placed on Mount Fujikasane are quite weak, serving precisely as training fodder for newcomers.

Demons like the Hand Demon, which grow stronger after devouring a massive number of their own kind, are rare, and such accidental occurrences are difficult for the Demon Slayer Corps to foresee.

On the second day of the Final Selection, Makomo woke up, though her legs were temporarily incapacitated due to injuries.

Throughout the period of hunting demons within Mount Fujikasane, Chuyang carried her on his back the entire time.

Yet, even with an extra person on his back, his movements were not hindered in the slightest.

It was then that Makomo realized the terrifying extent of Chuyang's strength.

Fighting demons alone and fighting demons while carrying someone else are two entirely different matters.

This proved that Chuyang's strength existed in a completely different dimension from the demons on this mountain and the young swordsmen participating in the selection.

By the seventh day, Chuyang began descending the mountain with Makomo.

Upon reaching the torii gate halfway up the slope, he discovered that the number of people who had ultimately returned here was far greater than anticipated.

Most of the participating swordsmen survived, and while this was entirely thanks to Chuyang, a good number of those survivors chose to leave early, also because of Chuyang.

The powerful demons had basically all died at Chuyang's hands, making these seven days feel more like a routine wilderness survival exercise for the rest of them.

Many among them had witnessed firsthand the scenes of Chuyang mercilessly slaughtering demons.

Seeing this monster-like youth once again, everyone's expressions turned profoundly complicated.

Fear, dread, awe, and gratitude.

Regardless of which emotion weighed heavier, their gazes remained fixed squarely on Chuyang.

Chuyang did not care what they thought of him; he couldn't even be bothered to spare them a second glance, walking straight toward the official personnel presiding over the selection.

The young swordsmen consciously cleared a path for him, causing the official to cast a sidelong glance and measure Chuyang with a meaningful look.

Chuyang lowered Makomo from his back onto the ground and said in a clear voice, "Please help send this girl to the Butterfly Mansion. Her legs are injured and require medical treatment."

The moment his voice fell, members of the Kakushi immediately stepped forward, took Makomo from Chuyang's hands, and administered emergency treatment.

"I heard them say you almost wiped out all the demons on the mountain entirely by yourself?" the official teased with a half-smile. "Thanks to you, many people passed this trial without getting any training at all. The Demon Slayer Corps has suddenly welcomed a lot of useless fresh blood."

Chuyang sneered in sarcasm, "Most of them will die anyway, but dying later is better than dying sooner. Instead of perishing here during these seven days, it's better for them to live on, drag a few demons down with them as cushions later, and die then."

"To be honest, I don't understand why you are in such a hurry to send this group of swordsmen with zero combat experience here to throw their lives away. Rather than calling it a selection, it's more like feeding the demons on the mountain."

"This is a foolish and irresponsible form of selection."

They could easily allow the trainers to let these newcomers accumulate more combat experience against demons, yet they never do so, insisting instead on forcing novices who only know breathing techniques into extreme survival trials.

If they were going to hold such trials, they should at least ensure the participants had some practical combat experience first!

Chuyang's dangerous remarks caused the official's expression to shift drastically. Since the Final Selection was a tradition inherited through successive generations of the heads of the Demon Slayer Corps, his words were undoubtedly a direct attack on the Ubuyashiki family.

With a hostile gaze, the official warned Chuyang, "Didn't your trainer teach you that you can't just say whatever you want?"

"Every single demon on Mount Fujikasane was personally captured by us after we confirmed they were suitable for novices to fight. If they can't even get past this hurdle, it only proves that their strength is insufficient to make them members of the Demon Slayer Corps."

"Heh~" The corners of Chuyang's lips curled upward as he mimicked the official's previous half-smile, "There was a demon in there that continuously devoured fifty of its own kind and ate a dozen participating swordsmen. Take a guess—how strong do you think it was?"

The official froze. However, looking at Chuyang's expression, it didn't seem like he was lying. If a demon like that truly existed, it would at the very least be a powerful demon capable of using Blood Demon Arts.

Most of the swordsmen participating in the selection had indeed entered merely to feed this monster.

Gradually, however, the official's expression hardened into one of resolute determination, and he spoke with striking resonance, "Once you officially become a member of the Demon Slayer Corps, situations like this are countless. Most of the time, we are fighting demons far stronger than ourselves."

"Ever since demons were born a thousand years ago, it has always been this way. We have no choice..."

His words actually made Chuyang look at him in a new light. Upon careful reflection, it was indeed the truth.

For a long time, everyone in the Demon Slayer Corps had been fighting while upholding this exact resolve.

Admiration was admiration, but Chuyang still felt that the method of the Final Selection was foolish, especially when better training models clearly existed.

After a brief silence fell between the two, the official stopped arguing with Chuyang and instead addressed the others, "Since the number of survivors this time exceeds our past historical averages, the amount of ore and Kasugai crows we prepared beforehand is insufficient. Therefore, your right to choose has been canceled."

A wave of uproar erupted among the crowd.

"You should all be well aware of the reason why you were able to pass the Final Selection..." The official's cold gaze swept across the crowd, his overwhelming presence crushing down on everyone until the murmurs gradually subsided.

"Of course, not everyone loses their right to choose." The official's tone shifted abruptly as he looked back at Chuyang. "In light of your individual performance, your right to choose is preserved."

Chuyang smiled, driving his massive zanbato deep into the earth. The terrifying force caused the ground to shudder, sending a ripple of vibrations through the gathered crowd.

"Is there ore this large available?" Chuyang pointed at the massive sword and asked bluntly, "If not, I'll just take this blade. Nominally, it still belongs to the Demon Slayer Corps anyway."

Having gone through the slaughter on Mount Fujikasane, Chuyang was intimately familiar with the weight and dimensions of the zanbato, and his use of it had grown increasingly effortless. Changing weapons rashly would only force him to waste time readjusting.

Faced with Chuyang's audacious demand, the official readily nodded in agreement, surprising even Chuyang, who had already prepared himself for a war of words.

The official responded to Chuyang's astonishment with a single sentence, "This is the privilege granted to a genius. The Demon Slayer Corps exists for only one goal, and that is to wipe out all demons. To achieve this objective, we will never stint on resources."

Right after speaking, the official let out a whistle. A black shadow glided down from the sky and landed on Chuyang's shoulder—a crow with dim, grayish eyes.

"This is your Kasugai crow, responsible for daily communication with the Demon Slayer Corps and transmitting intelligence regarding demons."

Chuyang gently stroked the crow perched on his shoulder. From now on, this little fellow would be the one providing him with the locations of demons.

With this, the Final Selection drew to a close amid an unprecedented and startling turn of events.