But while Roa wanted to run, the four demons were equally shocked. One of them had been killed, and the other three hadn't even been able to react. Aizetsu, who was the best at close combat, had been decapitated in a single strike. If this human escaped, he would undoubtedly become a major threat in the future.
"Stop wasting time! Do you all want to lose your heads?" Sekido roared.
His staff crackled with lightning, and the bolts shot toward Roa.
Urogi spread his black wings and took to the sky, opening his grotesque mouth to reveal jagged fangs. He gathered energy in his throat and let out a deafening roar.
Karaku, holding a green fan, swung it toward Roa, sending a powerful gust of wind crashing down.
Roa rolled to the side, dodging Sekido's lightning. Aizetsu closed in for close combat, but the attacks from the others were already closing in.
Roa blocked with his sword and kicked Aizetsu away, narrowly avoiding Karaku's wind blast. But the sound wave was unavoidable.
Roa took the full brunt of the attack. The deafening sound reverberated in his ears, causing his blood to churn and his ears to ring. Fortunately, with the dragon blood in his veins, he only felt slightly dazed before snapping out of it.
But in that brief moment of disorientation, Aizetsu charged at him again with his spear.
Roa took a deep breath. As a swordsman, he followed his sword heart.
Roa asked his sword heart what to do. His sword heart told him to run now and come back in a few months to settle the score.
Roa and his sword heart were in agreement.
In other words, Roa was going to run.
He'd come back later, in his dragon form, and play with these demons.
Damn it, he was unlucky. He went out looking for a romantic encounter and ended up running into Upper Moon Four.
What the hell.
Even if he had encountered Upper Moon Three or another Upper Moon, Roa might have tried to fight. But this guy's survival skills were just too damn strong.
Still, before he left, he had to shake them off.
Roa glanced at Urogi, who was soaring in the sky, preparing to unleash another sound wave.
Roa's golden hair fluttered in the wind. He didn't look too good at the moment. His once neatly tied hair was now loose, and his face was flushed from the earlier sound wave.
But his fiery golden eyes shone even brighter, and his aura remained unbroken. This showed that Roa hadn't actually suffered much damage.
Roa sheathed his sword and took a deep breath. He was about to unleash a technique he had developed in this world.
Lightning Sword—Modified.
Roa assumed a standard iaido stance, lowering his body.
Urogi swooped down, taunting, "Are you stupid? Not dodging or blocking—are you planning to take on all four of us head-on?"
The four demons had different personalities, and Urogi was clearly the type who liked to talk trash.
Sekido frowned and scolded, "Stop talking nonsense. Hurry up and finish him. He's fast. Don't let him escape."
Sekido summoned another bolt of lightning and sent it toward Roa.
Although Sekido's attacks hadn't hit Roa yet, this was because Roa had been deliberately dodging them.
Lightning was one of the most powerful forces in nature. While Sekido's lightning couldn't compare to natural lightning, getting hit by it would still leave Roa in a bad state.
The four demons had now formed a formation.
Sekido—the mage.
Urogi—the ranged support.
Aizetsu—the warrior.
Karaku—the controller and damage dealer.
And the cowardly demon who had already run off.
One-on-one, Roa could kill any of them instantly. But the problem was, unless he decapitated all four demons at once and destroyed their heads, it would be pointless.
Moreover, these three demons could merge into an even more terrifying form—Zohakuten.
At this point, there was no need to continue this fight.
But before he left, Roa wanted to give them a little surprise.
He had to decapitate all four demons before running, or else they would quickly regenerate and catch up to him, wearing him down through sheer numbers.
Roa's heart pounded as oxygen flooded his lungs.
At this moment, his aura completely dissipated, replaced by a sense of impending doom hanging over the four demons like the Sword of Damocles. It wasn't a pleasant feeling.
Sekido frowned, then suddenly his expression changed. He shouted at Urogi, "Idiot, don't go down there!"
But it was too late. Urogi had already gathered energy in his throat, preparing to unleash a devastating sound wave.
Seeing Urogi's actions, Aizetsu moved in to engage Roa in close combat, preventing him from escaping. Meanwhile, Karaku swung his fan from a distance.
Roa wasn't far from the three demons, as their attacks wouldn't reach him otherwise. And in this instant, except for Sekido, the other three were within range of Roa's Lightning Sword.
This time, there was no thunderous roar, no howling wind, not even a sound.
The night breeze continued to blow, and the moon hung high in the sky. The surrounding houses had already been reduced to rubble. In the distance, people were scrambling to grab their families and flee.
The noise of chaos echoed through the night.
But in an instant, Urogi, Aizetsu, and Karaku's heads were severed one after another, their heads falling to the ground with a thud. Roa calmly wiped the blood from his sword, then disappeared in a flash of lightning. He reappeared in front of Sekido and swung his sword.
Draw Sword Style: Thunder.
All four heads hit the ground.
Then, with a powerful kick, Roa sent Sekido's head flying like a soccer ball.
Sekido's head soared in a perfect arc, the force of the kick nearly splattering his brains. His head collided with Urogi's head, smashing into a wall.
The edge of the already ruined town was now completely destroyed. The wooden beams collapsed, crashing down on the two demons' heads.
Even for Upper Moon Four, there was a limit to how many heads he could split into. Once four demons with different attributes appeared, he couldn't split further.
Normally, Upper Moon Four's strategy was to use his main body to lure people in, letting them decapitate him. Then Sekido would appear and deal with the foolish humans.
Following his usual habits, Hantengu had come to eat people. He would hide his main body while Sekido went out to hunt.
If he encountered a tough opponent, he could sacrifice a head or two, summon the other demons, and then overwhelm them. This strategy had killed many Hashira.
Unfortunately, this time, Hantengu had run into a tough opponent.
Even Hantengu had to admit that this human's strength was absurd.
Just his speed alone completely countered the four demons.
None of their attacks could effectively hit him. He dodged everything with ease.
Even with the four demons working together, only one attack had managed to hit him.
Roa exhaled, a long trail of mist escaping his lips. Then, just as the four demons thought Roa was about to unleash another devastating attack—
Roa's figure blurred, and he fled into the distance.
He wasn't sticking around to be their punching bag.
The four demons were stunned. Sekido and Urogi, who had been kicked into the wall, exchanged a look of disbelief.
Hantengu had fought many Demon Slayers and eaten countless humans. Some of them, though weaker than Roa, had been the type to fight to the death.
But this guy, in Hantengu's experience, was a first. He had actually run away?
Watching Roa disappear into the distance in just a few breaths, Hantengu fell into deep thought.
Sekido's body walked over and reattached his head. Once his head was back on, Sekido coldly said, "It's all your fault. I told you to attack, but you hesitated. Now the human got away. What's the point of those wings if you can't even catch him?"
Urogi, unable to hold back, retorted, "You're one to talk. None of your attacks hit him either. At least I was more useful than you."
Sekido roared, "What did you say? Do you want to die?"
Sekido reached out and grabbed Urogi's head, his eyes flashing with murderous intent, as if he was about to devour him.
Urogi shrunk back, even though he didn't have a neck at the moment. He averted his gaze and said in a softer tone, "Well, it's too late now. He's already gone."
Sekido snorted and tossed Urogi's head to his body. He then picked up his staff and walked away.
Urogi frowned. His body reached out and reattached his head. He asked, "What are you doing? Are you still planning to chase him?"
Sekido growled, "Chase him? With what? Our priority now is to report this to Lord Muzan and inform him about this human."
But as soon as Sekido finished speaking, a cold voice echoed in the minds of all five demons.
"No need. I already know."
It was the voice of Muzan Kibutsuji.
In a distant mansion, in a study, Muzan Kibutsuji sat with a dark expression, staring at a book on his desk.