"How cold and heartless! Don't forget, I was the one who activated your Nen in the first place. In a sense, shouldn't I be considered your teacher?"
Hisoka continued to use words to distract Allen and Lupos, all while slowly walking forward, adopting a harmless appearance. Concurrently, the puppet, controlled by Bungee Gum, moved forward from its hiding spot in the bushes.
"Teacher? Does a teacher who wants to kill his own student truly exist in this world?" Allen scoffed back.
"Don't you think it's wonderful? Only when a student personally kills his teacher is it the student's most profound respect. Likewise, if the student fails to kill the teacher, it means they didn't meet the teacher's expectations, and being killed is simply what they deserve."
Hisoka spread his hands, his face crazed with fanaticism as he preached his perverse and extreme ideology, while even more cautiously guiding the puppet to complete the final distance.
"Sorry, I don't see it that way. Also, could you please refrain from forcing your abnormal philosophy onto others?"
Allen retracted the Ancient Bone Bow, returning to an unarmed state. He could feel that the man before him was plotting something and was about to make his move.
Hisoka clutched his forehead, feigning sadness. "That's truly a pity. I always thought you were like me. Because during the last Hunter Exam, I saw the focused gaze in your pupils, the kind only a hunter pursuing its prey possesses."
"No, you're not wrong. We are indeed similar people; both enjoy deceiving opponents and concealing ourselves. The only difference is that compared to your simple enjoyment of the thrill and mental euphoria brought by battle, I enjoy the sense of accomplishment and satisfaction that comes from defeating a powerful opponent, and the harvest that follows," Allen corrected, a smile on his face.
Having acknowledged his inner self and his deepest desires, he was no longer lost and had a clear goal, unlike last time when he couldn't answer this question.
"Hehe~ Hunting and being hunted. Are you ready to become the prey?"
As he spoke, Hisoka's entire Aura instantly erupted, spewing killing intent and malice from every pore, as if intending to completely devour his opponent.
"Ah, I've made peace with that. Come on, let me see what you've been painstakingly preparing for so long." Allen directly exposed his opponent's hidden maneuvers.
Perhaps it was due to this being his first pure Nen combat, or perhaps his deeply ingrained memory of Hisoka's overwhelmingly powerful performance early in the story, but Allen's spirit was also incredibly excited, eagerly anticipating the Magician's spectacular show.
Though Hisoka demonstrated formidable combat power in several Nen battles, he was actually a Transmuter, and the two abilities he developed were not suited for a head-on clash. If he ever stopped actively attacking, or started talking boastfully, it was a near certainty that he was secretly utilizing his unique abilities to set a trap.
"Alright~ I'll grant your request!"
The words had barely faded when Hisoka violently raised his fist and smashed it onto the ground.
Boom!
Following the massive sound, a large amount of dust and debris scattered, completely turning the surrounding area into an obscured, non-visual zone.
The next second…
His Aura completely vanished!
Zetsu!
Allen's mind instantly recalled this highly specialized technique, which, while special, completely hides one's presence. But before he could release his En to probe the surroundings, a tall figure burst through the smoke and charged close.
Hisoka?
Acting on pure instinct, Allen kicked him away.
The moment his foot connected, he immediately felt that something was wrong. This "Hisoka" had no real substance, nor was there any Ten or Ken protection around his body. It felt as if he had kicked some kind of rubber product.
Damn it!
I was fooled!
Just as Allen converted all the Aura around his body into Ken, the real Hisoka instantly appeared behind him, holding a playing card in each hand aimed at his neck, and sneered, "It's over!"
"That's right! It is over!"
Allen instantly activated the Transmutation Nen ability that was lying dormant inside his opponent's body.
In a brief moment, Hisoka suddenly felt his lungs, oral cavity, nasal cavity, and trachea enveloped by an intense cold. He immediately began coughing violently and uncontrollably, his hand movements slowing by half a step.
It was this half-step delay that gave Allen's terrifying nerve reflex speed the opportunity to be utilized, allowing him to dodge the sudden, fatal strike.
By the time Allen turned around, Hisoka's lung alveoli had been completely destroyed by the -192°C super-low temperature, losing their ability to exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide.
"What… what ability is this? Did you create freezing cold air in my lungs?" Hisoka asked, struggling to endure the pain of asphyxiation. He knew he would suffocate to death in a few minutes and wanted to figure out his opponent's true abilities before he died. After all, Allen had displayed far too many abilities, and each one was bizarre and unfathomable.
"Don't worry. I won't let you die. On the contrary, after I give you a severe beating, I'll heal your fatal injuries. Now, close your eyes and properly experience what hell is like."
An evil smile crossed Allen's face as he swung his Nen-infused fist toward Hisoka's hateful face.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
For the next ten minutes, he repaid Hisoka tenfold for what the Magician had once done to him. By the time the one-sided beating stopped, the "almighty" Magician had lost consciousness, clinging to life by a thread. His entire face was swollen like a pig's head, completely unrecognizable from his usual flamboyant and seductive appearance.
Undoubtedly, this was a naked, undisguised act of revenge.
"Hooo… That's much better!" Allen muttered contentedly.
As soon as everything concluded, he didn't forget to pull out a Healing Potion and pour it down Hisoka's throat. In the blink of an eye, the most severe injuries on the man's body began to rapidly improve. The frostbitten alveoli in his lungs were restored to their ability to exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide under the powerful life-energy healing.
Clearly, a single Super Healing Potion was not enough to fully restore a powerful Nen user like Hisoka; it merely pulled him back from the brink of death. As for the remaining injuries, they would likely require some time to mend.
With that thought, Allen turned to Illumi, who had been hiding behind the trees for a long time and had since restored his normal appearance. "Handing him over to you is fine, right?"
"Mhm. No problem." Illumi responded expressionlessly.
If not for the flash of killing intent he had emitted moments ago, anyone would think he and Hisoka were strangers with no intimate relationship whatsoever. But in reality, these two shared a complex bond that went far beyond normal understanding, and their personalities and ideologies were equally extreme and pathological.
"Much obliged. When Hisoka wakes up, tell him for me that I welcome his challenge anytime, provided he's prepared enough Nen to pay the price."
After saying this, the Red Dragon Nen Beast near Allen's shoulder reappeared and took a deep breath aimed at the unconscious Hisoka.
Instantly, a massive amount of Aura was forcibly sucked out and consumed by the Red Dragon. According to the contract, Hisoka would be in a state of Zetsu for the next three months, completely unable to use any Nen ability.
Meanwhile, the Red Dragon's size, after devouring this Aura, rapidly grew to about 1.6 meters in length. Its eyes were no longer lifeless but filled with intelligence and vigor, as if it had gained true sentience.
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You can read the ahead chapter on Patr if you're interested: p-atre-on.c-om/Overgod [Just remove the hyphen to access normally]