The power of the fire dragon wasn't actually that overwhelming—but unfortunately for Chrollo and the others, the place they were standing in was already a half-collapsed ruin.
Under the impact of the flames, the building gave a deafening rumble and completely caved in.
"That was a bit overkill…"
Kurapika couldn't help commenting as he jumped down from the rooftop.
They'd been standing on the roof just moments ago. If they weren't Nen users, they would've died right there.
Cause of death: teammates randomly spamming skills.
Was this supposed to make the enemy laugh to death?
Hisoka, meanwhile, just wore his usual twisted smile, offering no comment.
The three of them landed on the ground, staring at the collapsed building shrouded in dust.
Hyūga Akira casually flicked his blade.
"As long as it works."
Three figures slowly emerged from the dust.
Phantom Troupe leader Chrollo Lucilfer, and members Feitan and Phinks.
Seeing that all three were completely unharmed, Akira muttered under his breath,
"Looks like the effect wasn't great."
He immediately began assigning targets.
"Hisoka, Chrollo's yours."
"Gladly." Hisoka's smile twisted into something unmistakably sick. He'd been waiting for this moment far too long.
"Kurapika, blondie Phinks is yours."
Kurapika didn't respond verbally. His eyes turned a brilliant scarlet as chains extended from his fingers.
Chrollo calmly observed the three of them.
"Chain user. Traitor. And the Troupe's enemy."
From Kurapika's eyes alone, he could already tell—this was a man here for revenge.
Hisoka's betrayal was expected.
The only one he couldn't understand was Hyūga Akira.
He'd planned to set Akira up, to make him bear the Spider's fury—but they'd arrived far too fast.
"Traitor?" Hisoka chuckled. "I never said I was a Troupe member."
He reached behind his back, tore off the cloth bearing the spider emblem, and tossed it to the ground.
"From the very beginning, my target was you, Chrollo."
With a light step, Hisoka rushed forward. Chrollo leapt back, hands still tucked in his pockets, and the two disappeared into the ruins—one chasing, one retreating.
Feitan and Phinks moved to intercept.
"Fire Release: Great Fire Dragon Jutsu!"
A blazing dragon roared out from Akira's mouth, crashing between them and forcibly splitting the two apart.
Kurapika lunged straight for Phinks, swinging his chains.
"Your opponent is me."
"So we're being split up just like that?" Phinks scoffed as he dodged.
The irony wasn't lost on him—this was usually the Troupe's tactic. Now the tables had turned.
Feitan landed lightly, his gaze dark as he locked onto Akira alone.
"So you're the source of all this."
Akira took a slow breath and closed his eyes.
Feitan's ability could reshape the battlefield itself—and before that, he was a pure speed-type fighter.
Akira still had over thirty thousand experience left. Enough for two more level-ups. He had to use them carefully.
After a full night of leveling, his strength had undergone a massive transformation.
Raw power and speed still fell short of a true jōnin, and his chakra pool couldn't compare either—
—but with Demon Back, Clone Technique, Transformation, and Nen stacked together, his taijutsu was no longer inferior even among elite fighters.
"No answer?" Feitan advanced step by step.
The instant Feitan closed in, Akira's eyes snapped open. Veins bulged around his Byakugan as all four buffs activated at once.
Their figures vanished.
Two black shadows collided at extreme speed.
Kunai flashed through the air, letting Akira move even faster—far faster than Feitan could keep up with.
They separated in a blur.
"Bastard!!"
Feitan staggered back, clutching his wrist.
Akira's flash-like movement had severed his hand.
"I'll kill you!!!"
A massive wave of malicious Nen erupted from Feitan's body—far beyond the average Nen user, perhaps the strongest Akira had seen in the Hunter world.
Now!
Akira didn't flinch in the slightest.
At the moment Feitan unleashed his ability, there was always a brief delay—absolute confidence in his own power meant he wouldn't dodge.
That delay was Akira's opening.
Level up! Full restore!
"Brain Caffeine—ON!!!"
Even Ignition—which he'd avoided using to keep things quiet—was activated now, wrapping his entire body in flames.
In that instant, Akira became fire itself.
A blazing slash passed straight through Feitan's body.
Behind him, Akira dropped to one knee, gasping for breath.
Feitan froze in place. His raging Nen began to subside as a thin line of blood appeared across his neck.
His head slipped from his shoulders and fell to the ground.
"How… is this possible…"
His eyes were filled with disbelief.
"It can't be—!!!"
That disbelief twisted into madness as his Nen surged again—stronger than before.
Feitan's body began to glow, heat radiating outward like a newborn sun.
"Post-mortem Nen…" Akira cursed under his breath.
He immediately leveled up again, restoring himself to full, then hurled a kunai and repeatedly used Substitution to retreat at full speed.
Behind him, Feitan burned like a fallen sun, searing everything it touched into molten ruin.
[Experience: 18587]
[Skill: Unforgivable Sins]
[Skill: Rising Sun]
[Transmuter +1]
The scorching shockwave caught Akira midair, flinging him forward. He slammed into the ground and rolled twice, his back charred black.
Thankfully, the experience payout was worth it.
"Level up."
[Name: I'm Xiao Ming]
[Class: Hunter]
[Level: Lv34 (0/21500)]
[Chakra / Nen: 3180 / 2110 +50 +20 +1000]
[Experience Pool: 474]
The Phantom Troupe grind had completely drained his accumulated experience, pushing him straight to level 34.
"Now only Chrollo and Phinks are left…"
Maybe he could still steal a kill.
[Quest Complete]
Akira froze.
"…What?"
That fast!?
He hadn't even made it over to check the battlefield yet.
[Quest Rewards:
• Experience ×100,000
• Item: Phantom Troupe Summoning Scroll
• Item: Spider Ring]
"Wow, this quest payout is insane." Akira's eyes lit up.
The experience bar, which had been nearly empty, instantly filled up again.
"One hundred thousand EXP… that's basically Kage-tier."
[Name: I'm Xiao Ming]
[Class: Hunter]
[Level: Lv34 (0/21500)]
[Chakra / Nen: 3180 / 2110 +50 +20 +1000]
[Experience Pool: 100,474]
Now for the items.
[Phantom Troupe Summoning Scroll: Randomly summons one Phantom Troupe member]
[Spider Ring:
• +100 Nen regeneration
• +100 HP regeneration
• +500 Nen capacity
• Skill: Plunder (Steal the target's most valuable item)]
"Top-tier gear… but this summoning scroll…"
Akira scratched his head.
If he used this mid-fight, wouldn't the summon just team up with the enemy to kill him?
"…Forget it. Sleep."
After days of nonstop hunting, he desperately needed real rest.
The Hunter World grind was finally over.
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