They had actually been killed just like that—without making a sound, without releasing even the slightest ripple of aura!
And their heads had even been severed!
Every Shadow Beast codename was tied to some animal that matched the trait created by their Nen ability.
Rhino. Crocodile. Just from those codenames alone, it was obvious that these two Shadow Beasts had extremely tough bodies, especially Crocodile, with those defensive scales on his body.
And yet even so, they had been killed with ease, without leaving behind the slightest trace of battle.
For a moment, everyone turned to look in the direction the heads had been thrown from.
Then, the very next instant—
"Boom!"
Instead of the hidden infiltration the Ten Dons had imagined, a huge explosion erupted from that direction!
The shockwave from the blast sent the room's tables, chairs, and benches flying. Debris filled the air, and some of it even came crashing down toward the Ten Dons' heads.
If the Shadow Beasts had not been there guarding them, six or seven of the Ten Dons might already have been crushed to death.
As the sound of the explosion gradually faded, several figures emerged.
"Who is it?!" The old man with the cane had even had his cane blown away by the shockwave just now.
"So you're the famous Ten Dons? I've heard so much about you~"
Although the newcomer spoke as if he had long admired them, his gaze swept across everyone present without the slightest courtesy. That look was no different from the way one would inspect livestock raised at home.
When had the Ten Dons and the Shadow Beasts ever been examined with such a look? Rage instantly rose in every one of them.
"I don't care who you are, whose men you are, or how you found this place. None of that matters anymore, because what you're about to see is hell!" the scar-faced old man roared in a low voice.
The other Ten Dons were just as grim, though none of them threw out threats the way the scar-faced old man did.
The enemy had clearly come prepared. Even Crocodile and Rhino had already had their heads cut off. Their strength was definitely no joke.
Although they were confident that Lion and the others could wipe out these intruders, it would be troublesome if the Ten Dons' safety was harmed by accident.
At this moment, as the smoke fully cleared, everyone's figures could finally be seen.
Including the man who had spoken first, there were eight of them in total.
Aside from the one at the front with a greatsword on his back, the others varied in height and build—some tall, some short, some muscular, some thin—but all of them wore strange masks and equally strange clothing with the words "All Villains" written on them.
"Those strange masks again?! Who exactly are you people?! What is your connection to the woman who claimed the bounty last night and the masked bastard who caused chaos in Yorknew City this morning?!" The goat-bearded old man reacted instantly and asked in a deep voice.
"Looks like you're not completely stupid. Calling this revenge wouldn't be far off. After all, you people chased my woman last night and made her unhappy."
Roy spoke with a smile on his face, but there was not the slightest warmth in it.
"Strictly speaking, though, haven't you ruled the underworld for a little too long already?" The moment he said those words, the atmosphere froze solid.
"And besides, you're all old now. Isn't it about time you thought about stepping down and making way for someone worthier? After all~ the underworld only needs one dark emperor~" Roy said softly.
Everyone understood exactly what Roy meant, and because of that, the Ten Dons found him even more intolerable.
"Tiger! Giant Bear!"
The scar-faced old man shouted with a savage expression.
"Rip out that man's tongue. The rest of you hold formation!"
With a swish, two people shot out from among the Shadow Beasts.
Under the effect of Nen, both of their arms visibly changed.
One of them had nails that rapidly lengthened into tiger claws, and he moved at astonishing speed. The other had the flesh in his palms swell at once, while black fur sprouted along both sides of his arms, turning them into something like a black bear's paws as he charged forward with overwhelming force.
Of the remaining Shadow Beasts, two stayed behind to guard the Ten Dons, while the other four moved to the front and stood ready, covering Tiger and Giant Bear.
"A meaningless struggle." Roy shook his head. Someone on his side also shot out from the rear.
"The fact that we made it all the way here, and even killed two Shadow Beasts on the way, should already have made you understand—"
The figure from Roy's side moved at terrifying speed and, in the blink of an eye, arrived in front of Tiger and Giant Bear.
Under the astonished and disbelieving gazes of the Ten Dons and the other Shadow Beasts—
with a single flashing pass, Tiger and Giant Bear were instantly split in two!
Bang!
Their severed bodies lost all balance and collapsed straight to the ground. Blood gushed from the cut surfaces and quickly spread into a pool.
Bisected at the waist!
In a single exchange, Tiger and Giant Bear had been cut in half at the waist!
Not even the few Shadow Beasts covering them had managed to see clearly what had happened.
"That's impossible!"
That was the first thought to rise in the hearts of both the Shadow Beasts and the Ten Dons.
Then they remembered how Rhino and Crocodile had died.
At once, an extremely ominous thought surfaced in their minds.
Maybe... we're going to die!!!
A chill mixed with terror and fear shot up from the soles of the Ten Dons' feet straight to the crowns of their heads.
Meanwhile, Giant Bear and Tiger, lying in the middle of the room, struggled to raise their heads and used their last scraps of consciousness to look at the man who had cut them in two.
"Oh my, oh my. So this is what cutting someone in half at the waist looks like. In that case, I guess decapitation suits me better after all!"
Reflected in the eyes of Tiger and Giant Bear, whose pupils were already beginning to scatter, was a masked man casually commenting on his own method of killing in a flippant tone.
Ilo smiled as he watched Tiger and Giant Bear breathe their last. Then he shifted his gaze toward the remaining Shadow Beasts and the Ten Dons.
The Shadow Beasts were still in shock over how easily Tiger and Giant Bear had been killed, but the moment they looked up and met Ilo's gleaming eyes, every one of them shuddered.
This man... can't be beaten!
"So, who's next?"
Ilo spoke casually, while the six people behind Roy spread out and blocked every exit in the room. At the same time, enormous amounts of aura burst from their bodies.
The expressions of the Shadow Beasts and the Ten Dons immediately turned ugly.
Judging from the aura these people were giving off, they were clearly all Nen users, and all of them were highly skilled at using Nen.
Just as Flying Eagle had said earlier, among this group were people only a notch stronger than Rabid Dog.
But those people were not the strongest.
They were the weakest in this crew!
(End of Chapter)
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