Chapter 1477: Hungry Ghost

The thin wooden door, without any additional force enhancement, shattered instantly under Lann’s foot.

When Lann directly charged into the neighboring dwelling, the force that had dragged the man in seemed unable to act on him yet.

As Lann’s figure burst through the door, the man who had been pulled inside was already sprawled on the floor, clinging frantically to the floorboards.

It was as if his legs had been seized, his body had been dragged along the ground, and the pulling force had abruptly vanished.

The man was screaming in terror, scrambling to get up. But his legs and hands were weak, and after several failed attempts and falls, he finally crawled out of the house past Lann.

Wearing only a loincloth and a shirt, his body rolled in the dirt as he fled into the distance, the yellow dust sticking to his sweat-covered thighs and backside.

However, Lann frowned as he looked at the wooden hut with its shattered door.

Outside, his towering body blocked most of the moonlight, yet faint traces of it still slipped past him, illuminating the dim candlelit room with a flickering glow.

Watching the beam of light squeezed into a mere slit, Lann furrowed his brows.

“…not an illusion.”

Outside the house, the distant patrol’s shout of “Demon!” stirred the once quiet night into a commotion.

Inside the house, a palm-sized oil lamp emitted a feeble glimmer, barely lighting a small area in the depths of the room.

Silent and profound.

Amidst the growing noise of battle cries outside, a creepy silence seeming isolated from the outside world pervaded the room.

At the moment Lann crashed through the door, his eyes caught sight of something.

It was the edge of a fine-stitched satin ribbon, trailing on the floor, rapidly retracting into the darkness.

And the instant the ribbon slipped into obscurity, Lann heard the sound the man had described.

“Like the sound of fabric or a broom brushing against tatami mats.”

But undoubtedly, Lann’s large house didn’t even have tatami, just wooden boards, and this one certainly didn’t either.

When Lann turned toward the darkness where the ribbon had retreated, his eyes focused intensely… the darkness unveiled emptiness.

Nothing but the bare wooden floor, so simple not even a single piece of furniture adorned it.

“First, an unknown power and demon… now here’s a Japanese horror tale?”

Faced with a scene terrifying enough to drive travelers to collapse, Lann merely commented flatly.

“Really… messy business.”

Without further glance at the dimly silent hut, Lann turned away.

With the Demon Hunter’s experience in handling curses and ghosts, and his shallow understanding of Japanese horror tales, he knew.

Such supernatural things are often formless, sometimes even illogical.

They are hard to catch before they invite themselves in.

When he had kicked in the door, he had already heard the sound matching the man’s description.

Undoubtedly, this thing might ‘infect,’ or perhaps has already set eyes on him.

No regrets to speak of.

Though the man was a stranger, seeking help from him.

But honestly… Lann wasn’t afraid of these things.

His fears had been eradicated long, long ago.

Turning his back to the little house and what lurked within the dark, Lann walked toward the sounds and lights of the village.

“Demon!”

The patrol of five was the first to spot the demon in the village, and though they had alarmed the village with their cries, it was merely a somewhat famous relay station village.

The guards were mere militia, villagers on part-time duty.

They couldn’t match the order and swift organization of professional military, let alone the Japanese forces, few of which could achieve this at that time.

So amidst the clamor, the village barely managed to muster a few to help.

The five men had to first surround the detected demon.

The militia, devoid of any iron armor, clutched their weapons with sweat-soaked hands, teeth chattering at the demon.

This demon was not tall, even shorter than average, standing only to the waist of a person.

But its diminutive stature hardly offered any reassurance, only intensified the dread.

With human-like features, its head and belly peculiarly round and swollen, limbs and chest gaunt as if undernourished, bones visible beneath the skin.

Its huge head was sparsely haired, with only a few strands lifelessly plastered on the scalp, eyes bulging like those of a fish.

A sickly-glowing belly emitting a mesmerizing golden hue.

“Don’t panic! Don’t panic! It’s just a hungry ghost!”

Kikuchi Dingji murmured to himself, clutching his Mino-Style Tachi for courage.

With a shallow curve, the Mino-style blade suits both thrusting and slashing.

Though usually idle, Dingji’s heart burned in the presence of a genuine demon.

‘This is the beginning of my grand achievements!’

He inexplicably felt a burst of excitement as he thought about it.

Nowadays, the world is chaotic, and even ‘demons,’ once mere legends, are now often reported to have been witnessed openly.

His own father had personally slain one!

Warriors not only use their exceptional martial arts skills to fight on the battlefield, but slaying demons is also a way to gain fame.

Famous historical figures like Sakagami Tanmura Maru and Minamoto no Yoshiie were renowned warriors famous for their accomplishments in killing demons and slaying monsters.

And Dingji prided himself on the swordsmanship recognized by his father, confident it could surely defeat a mere Hunger Demon!

Dingji raised the tachi from his waist to the height of his cheek.

Then, with his straw sandals on the ground, he quickly stepped forward!

“Uwawa!”

The Hunger Demon made a cry, as if tortured by starvation, from its skeleton-thin mouth.

At the same time, its bulbous eyes looked with desire and resentment at all the living beings around.

Seeing Dingji approaching actively, the Hunger Demon, driven only by hunger, immediately lunged forward.

Its head and belly were large, so as it ran, its thin limbs swung, wobbling the two round parts.

Despite his inner tension, Kikuchi Dingji’s long practice allowed him to smoothly deploy his swordsmanship.

The hilt, initially at cheek height, was lifted directly above his head as he approached the Hunger Demon!

Leaning forward, his upper body powerfully chopped down!

This is the basic stance of the [Upper Technique]!

Slower and clumsier than the [Middle Technique] and [Lower Technique], but the power is the greatest!

The Mino-Style Tachi sliced through the air, catching the force of the Hunger Demon, slicing the blade right onto the demon’s big forehead!

‘Crack’ – a crisp sound!

Using the blade to hack hard objects, Kikuchi Daisuke would surely feel pained watching his son’s actions concerning the sword.

Yet, if for the first time facing a demon with calmness and deploying swordsmanship, he might also feel gratified.

But now, Kikuchi Dingji only felt the palm of his hand aching and burning!

‘It really is a demon!’ he subconsciously thought, “So hard!”

If this strike fell on a normal person, he estimated the blade could cut from the top of the head down to the nose.

But the Hunger Demon in front…

“Uwawa!”

It screamed, its rounded belly and head struck backward, turning its previous forward charge into a backward roll like a tumbling gourd.

On its bald forehead, a visible notch appeared.

One can even see inside its skull!

Yet it’s still not dead, only somewhat dazed from being knocked to the ground.

Moreover, this tumble backward extended the distance between it and Kikuchi Dingji.

Hearing the increasingly clear ‘uwawa’ crying sound, it seemed that it would soon stand up again!

“Ha!”

At this moment, one of the four militia members, somewhat braver, saw this as an opportunity. The companions armed with spears hesitated and dared not advance.

So he bit his teeth, shouted to embolden himself, lifted his tachi, and stabbed towards the fallen Hunger Demon!

Kikuchi Dingji, who had sliced the Hunger Demon into a backward tumbling gourd, was also ready to move forward after adjusting his balance.

But the initially stabbing militia member now revealed a look of horror and disbelief.

“How can it be…so hard!”

Unlike Kikuchi Dingji, who had been trained by his samurai father despite never encountering demons before.

Militia didn’t have the chance to train from an early age?

Even being able to swing a sword a few dozen times without gasping was remarkable.

The difference between insiders and outsiders, while usually seeming small, emerges in these decisive moments!

The militia’s grip was unstable, causing the sword’s tip to suddenly hit a hard object, the Hunger Demon’s back.

The stalled blade was pressed against the hilt, almost causing the militia’s chest to collide with the hilt!

But even with such effort, his sword tip only penetrated less than an inch!

To the Hunger Demon, whose forehead remained unfazed by the gash, it was merely a scratch!

On the contrary, taking advantage of this ineffective attack, the Hunger Demon was instead quicker to regain clarity!

When Kikuchi Dingji swiftly approached, the Hunger Demon was already rapidly standing back up!

Furthermore, not only did it stand up…

“Uwawa!”

Amid the howls, the Hunger Demon, now standing upright, seemed to release something from its body.