Muzan Kibutsuji is the main big bad in Demon Slayer, standing as the leader of the Twelve Kizuki as well as the most powerful demon to have ever lived. He has it all — genius-level intellect, shapeshifting, blood-bending, superhuman strength, regeneration, and an age so ancient he’s practically seen it all. But that’s not all. Muzan also claims the title of being the very first demon and the creator of almost every demon we encounter in Demon Slayer (give or take a Yushiro or two). By sharing his blood with humans, he can grant them unique powers and turn them into blood-hungry demons.
But what makes Muzan’s blood so unique? And if he is the creator of all demons, who created him? The article below will going over Muzan’s entire origin story and how he turned into the Demon King we’ve come to know in Demon Slayer.
Muzan’s Life Before He Became a Demon
Muzan isn’t your average “born-a-bloodsucker type”. A 1000 years ago, long before Tanjiro even thought of picking up a Nichirin Blade, Muzan was fighting death before he even drew his first breath. His heart stopped beating multiple times while he was in the womb, and after he was born, he had no pulse. Midwives pronounced him stillborn and were preparing to cremate him. But then, fate intervened. The seemingly lifeless infant suddenly coughed and gasped for breath, refusing to die.
Sadly, though, life wasn’t going to get any easier for Muzan. Throughout his young life, sickness followed him like a shadow. The doctors eventually diagnosed him with a terminal illness and told him that he’d die before he turned 20. But Muzan, unwilling to give up, kept looking for a cure.
Muzan’s Transformation Into a Demon
Muzan’s quest for survival led him to a physician who promised him a few extra years of life by experimenting on him. Muzan agreed, and the physician began treating him with a potion made from a mystical flower called the Blue Spider Lily. However, the treatment seemed to be having no effect, and Muzan’s condition kept worsening. And then, one day, in a fit of rage, Muzan ended up murdering the doctor.
That’s when things got really weird. Muzan suddenly felt insane power surge through his veins; he felt like he could lift a house! Muzan realized that the doctor’s treatment had been working; it just didn’t show until he tried to use all of his strength. Turns out, the doctor’s mysterious Blue Spider Lily potion had had a surprising reaction. Muzan wasn’t human anymore. He had become something else. The very first demon.
Muzan’s Search For the Blue Spider Lily
Being a demon wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows, though. With all the extraordinary powers also came a few weaknesses, such as an insatiable hunger for human flesh. Yet, Muzan remained undeterred. He happily accepted the gifts and costs of becoming immortal, all except one: the inability to survive in sunlight. Any exposure to sunlight ignited his cells and severely limited his regeneration, causing his skin to burn and turning him to ash.
You see, fate had played another dirty trick on him. After a lifetime of being sickly, when he finally had super strength and eternal life, he was once again limited by weakness, confining him to a life of darkness. And Muzan couldn’t bear it. He figured that finishing the rest of the physician’s treatment might unlock immunity to the sun, making him the ultimate, invincible being. Unfortunately, the physician’s notes were inconclusive. The flower’s location and its alchemical mix was all gone with the physician.
Muzan desperately began searching for the Blue Spider Lily, but fate mocked him again. The flower only bloomed two or three times a year and always during daylight. As soon as the sun set, the flower would wither away, meaning there was no way for Muzan to find it. Frustrated and unsuccessful, Muzan turned to another desperate gambit. He started creating more and more demons, hoping one might be able to withstand sunlight. And that is the Muzan we see in Demon Slayer — a creature of darkness driven by his twisted desire for a life without weakness. And the Twelve Kizuki and all the other demons? They’re essentially just Muzan’s lab rats in his ongoing experiment. If you’re a die-hard fan of the show, check out these five most heartbreaking deaths in Demon Slayer.
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