Suddenly, new members joined the chat at this critical moment.

Ren glanced over the battlefield; things seemed manageable. Muzan hadn't yet shown himself. So he refocused on the chat group.

Sword Saint: "Such brutal slaughter—what are those monsters? Do you need aid from the royal knights?"

Half-Elf: "Eh! Where did this sudden screen come from? Who are you fighting?"

Saeko Busujima: "Welcome, newcomers. In short, we're watching another world's events—right now, they're taking down man-eating demons to save their world from an apocalypse. We can explain the rest later. You can watch for now."

Half-Elf: "Oh, all right!"

Sword Saint: "Understood."

With that, the newcomers fell silent; no one yet knew exactly who they were. Ren's attention returned to the battle. He shot a sidelong glance at the short, blue-haired fool beside him.

He raised his hand—

Thump!

"Oww! That hurts!"

Aqua clutched her head, tears in her eyes, glaring angrily. "Why'd you bop my head?"

Ren sneered. "That's for talking smack about me. Who's the 'dummy,' huh?"

"E-erm…"

She'd forgotten Ren was also in the chat group…

"…"

Standing next to Ren were Nezuko and Kie, both a head shorter than him, exchanging confused looks. They had no idea what just happened—obviously, no words were spoken aloud.

Tamayo's gaze flickered between the two as well.

Meanwhile, the clash between Kokushibo and Esdeath raged on, generating such a colossal shockwave that the Demon Slayers avoided getting close. Any approaching demons were either sliced in half by Kokushibo's dark sword aura or frozen solid by Esdeath's icy blasts. To observers, the two seemed evenly matched.

Yet Kokushibo himself felt his attacks lacked impact, as though…he were being toyed with?

Off in the distance, Gyokko and Hantengu had entered their final forms but were nearly finished, beset by Shinobu, Giyu, Obanai, and Sanemi simultaneously.

Akaza, pinned by Gyomei and Kyojuro, was also in a tough spot.

Daki and Gyutaro, the dual-bodied Upper Rank 6, relied on their linked survival trick, stalemating with Mitsuri and Tengen. The Slayers couldn't manage to chop off both demons' heads at the exact same moment—until now.

"Dominator."

Nezuko, Kie, and Tamayo noticed Ren's Zanpakuto vanish again.

"Huh? Our bodies won't move?"

Daki and Gyutaro froze in place, unable to budge!

"This is our chance! Mitsuri!" Tengen's eyes shone brilliantly.

Sound Breathing, Fifth Form: String Performance—he seized the opening, his dual blades carving toward Gyutaro's neck.

"Mm! Hah!

Mitsuri swung her whip-like flexible sword, launching a fierce slash: Love Breathing, Sixth Form: Cat-Legged Winds of Love!

Boom!

Whoosh!

"Ugh…"

"Aah…"

Gyutaro and Daki's heads were lopped off simultaneously. Their bodies soon disintegrated. In their final moments, they looked toward each other, as though finding release. Whatever their thoughts, none could know now.

"How come they just froze like that?" Mitsuri wondered aloud.

"Who cares. Let's help the others."

Tengen made a flashy dash toward Hantengu's fight. Mitsuri flicked her hair, about to follow—when, in that split second, she glimpsed a glitter of gold from afar.

"Was it him?"

Ren retracted his gaze. He'd simply dominated Daki and Gyutaro's movements for an instant. Now that the demons' side was losing ground, Muzan would surely lose patience.

"Worthless scum!"

In the shadows, Muzan seethed, cursing them all.

"I gave you blood—yet what have you accomplished?"

Enraged, he let his body shift form. White hair sprouted, blood and fur enveloping his limbs and lower body, forming jaws bristling with fangs. This was Muzan's true demonic form.

Then, bursting from underground, Muzan finally emerged. He'd set his sights on the angelic presence—Exusiai, who drew everyone's eye with her halo and wings, brandishing firearms.

From his back sprouted nine barbed tentacles tipped with sharp, bony spikes; his hands likewise turned into vicious, spiny whips. He lashed them all at Exusiai at once.

"Die!"

Exusiai was a heartbeat too slow. She realized the incoming strike too late to pivot her guns. Reflexively, she raised her arms in front of her face, hoping to block.

"Yo—you finally decided to show yourself?"

A nonchalant voice sounded. Ren's eyes gleamed like starlight as he appeared between them.

"What? My body…!"

All of Muzan's spiked whips halted in midair, not moving an inch closer. He couldn't control his own limbs!

'This is wrong! Very wrong! Gotta run!'

The thought of fleeing flared in Muzan's mind. But his body refused to budge. He strained with all his might, and blood vessels burst across his skin, yet to no avail.

"Hehe, I've waited so long for you. Now you want to run? That'd be embarrassing for me."

'Demon King or not, under my domination you're going nowhere.' And to ensure he truly couldn't escape, Ren manipulated the airflow into a barrier—a cage of swirling wind that confined Muzan within.