Fang Hao then said, "The earrings on your ears once belonged to Yoriichi. These must be a family heirloom, right?"
Tanjiro nodded upon hearing this. "But what does that prove?" Tanjiro still didn't believe his family had any inheritance from Yoriichi. Could the only inheritance be these earrings? And Muzan, just because of these earrings… Thinking of this, he clenched his fists.
"You can try to recall carefully if there are any other inherited items in your family. Yoriichi's inheritance is probably Sun Breathing and his sword techniques. Think carefully if you've ever learned any movements."
"Movements? It seems…" Tanjiro scratched his head, thinking hard, and finally, "I remember now! Father taught me the Hinokami Kagura Dance! Could the Hinokami Kagura Dance be Sun Breathing?!" As he spoke, he could no longer suppress the excitement in his heart, blurting out in surprise.
Sun Breathing! Tanjiro heard Fang Hao say that Yoriichi was a powerful individual who severely injured Muzan. If the Hinokami Kagura Dance was Sun Breathing, and if he could learn it, wouldn't he be able to…
Seeing that Tanjiro had finally thought of his family's Hinokami Kagura Dance, Fang Hao was very pleased. He unhurriedly began to explain Sun Breathing: "Sun Breathing is the earliest breathing technique, or rather, the original breathing technique. This is because today's mainstream breathing techniques all originated from Sun Breathing."
"Yoriichi taught Sun Breathing to the first generation of swordsmen, but they couldn't master Sun Breathing. However, they did derive their own breathing techniques from Sun Breathing: Water Breathing, Flame Breathing, Stone Breathing, Breath of Wind, and Thunder Breathing."
At this point, he paused for a moment, hesitated for a while, and then added, "There's also Moon Breathing."
"Moon Breathing!" Hearing Fang Hao's previous words, everyone present, though surprised, didn't react much. The five major breathing techniques originating from Sun Breathing, while unbelievable to them, made sense given Yoriichi's strength; it was absurdly powerful yet reasonable.
But Moon Breathing was different. Just by the contrast between sun and moon, they could probably understand the power of Moon Breathing, yet they had never heard of this breathing technique, which truly surprised them.
Fang Hao originally wanted to keep them in suspense, but seeing their curious gazes, he felt a sense of accomplishment. So, he continued, "The creator of Moon Breathing is Yoriichi Tsugikuni's older brother, Michikatsu Tsugikuni. He is also Upper Moon One · Kokushibo."
After enjoying the shocked and disbelieving expressions of the others, Fang Hao continued, "Michikatsu Tsugikuni wanted to surpass his younger brother, Yoriichi Tsugikuni, but he realized that with his talent, he would never be able to do so in his lifetime. So, he decided to extend his lifespan, becoming a demon, hoping to surpass his brother Yoriichi with endless life."
"He chose to become a demon just for that reason?" Tanjiro was extremely disgusted by such an act. Becoming a demon meant eating humans, and choosing to eat humans for power was something Tanjiro could absolutely not accept. In his mind, power was never the most important thing; family was. Everything he had ever done, whether it was revenge or turning Nezuko back into a human, revolved around his family.
"Well, that's about all I know." At this point, he rubbed his hands, saying apologetically, "Um, Tanjiro, Sun Breathing, that… could you teach me?"
Tanjiro gave a hearty laugh, "Of course, no problem." But then his smile froze, "But I'm not even sure if the Hinokami Kagura Dance is Sun Breathing. I'll try it first."
With that, he drew his sword, ready to begin practicing the Hinokami Kagura Dance.
"What are you doing in a clinic? This is not what good children do." Tamayo narrowed her eyes again, revealing a benevolent smile.
Tamayo was extremely excited to hear that Tanjiro might possess the inheritance of Sun Breathing. She had personally witnessed Yoriichi Tsugikuni's battle with Muzan back then, and precisely because of this, she understood Yoriichi Tsugikuni's power even more. The appearance of Sun Breathing gave her hope of killing Muzan. Of course, this excitement was quickly replaced by other emotions, thanks to the head-strong nature of the Head Pillar.
Tanjiro: …
He sheathed his sword, bowed, "My deepest apologies, Miss Tamayo." And then apologized again, his movements seamless. After finishing, he sat down properly like an elementary school student.
"Miss Tamayo is truly majestic," he thought, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.
Fang Hao quickly picked up the conversation, "Miss Tamayo, Nezuko doesn't seem to crave human flesh that much, nor has she eaten it. She could be considered a special case, right? Is there any way for her to turn back into a human?"
Hearing Fang Hao's question, Tanjiro gave him a grateful look, then looked expectantly at Tamayo, awaiting her answer.
"Miss Nezuko has not eaten animal or human flesh since becoming a demon, yet she has maintained her sanity. Normally, after just becoming a demon, if one doesn't eat, they will fall into a frenzy. She is indeed a special case, and possibly the hope for curing this demon disease."
"So, what should we do?" Tanjiro asked eagerly.
"Aside from extensive experimentation, there is probably no other way," Tamayo sighed softly. "To find an antidote, one must have a thorough understanding of demons, which requires a large number of experimental samples, in other words, demon blood."
"Demon blood?" Tanjiro nodded.
"The blood of ordinary demons is not very useful. To obtain valuable results, at least more advanced samples are needed. For example, demons who have received more of Muzan's blood, Muzan's direct subordinates — the Twelve Kizuki."
"Twelve Kizuki?" Tanjiro was very puzzled. He had never heard of the Twelve Kizuki. "Is that a name?"
"The Twelve Kizuki is a collective term for Muzan's most powerful subordinates," Fang Hao explained. "Ordinary demons have limited strength; even after eating many humans, their strength reaches a limit and they no longer grow stronger."
"But the Twelve Kizuki are different. They were given a significant amount of blood by Muzan from the beginning, possessing great strength, and their upper limit is much higher than that of ordinary demons."
At this point, fearing that Tanjiro might not fully understand the strength of the Twelve Kizuki, he gave an example, "For instance, the Hand Demon we encountered earlier, it's nothing but trash in front of the Twelve Kizuki."
"Trash!" Tanjiro was utterly shocked to hear this. In his opinion, the Hand Demon was already an extremely powerful demon. He found it somewhat difficult to imagine the strength of the Twelve Kizuki.
"Yes, the Twelve Kizuki are also divided into Upper Ranks and Lower Ranks. The Upper Ranks are much stronger than the Lower Ranks, and only Pillars have ever slain Lower Ranks. As for the Upper Ranks… they haven't been replaced, no, they haven't had any demons replaced."
"To think…" Tanjiro's heart was filled with unwillingness. Since only Pillars had ever slain Lower Ranks, he certainly didn't think he could slay a Lower Rank now, but seeing hope only to be limited by his own strength, that feeling was truly unpleasant.