Chapter 47: The Spider Extermination (Part 4)

September 3rd, 9:39 PM. Yorknew City Cemetery Building.

In the fifth-floor banquet hall, which had not yet been reached by the thick smoke and flames, two figures were engaged in fierce combat.

Hisoka was bare-chested, the spider tattoo on his back—forged using his Transmuter Nen ability, "Texture Surprise"—having long since been torn away. He held two playing cards pinched between the fingers of each hand, continuously flicking them toward Chrollo.

Even as Chrollo constantly shifted his position, the four playing cards traced bizarre arcs in the air, relentlessly closing in on him.

It was his Nen ability, "Bungee Gum"! Chrollo instantly deduced that Hisoka had used "Bungee Gum" to attach the four playing cards to himself, with the other ends anchored to his own body. Did he use "In" earlier to mislead me? Just like you, Hisoka.

The Transmuter Nen ability, "Bungee Gum"! It allows the user to give their aura the properties of both chewing gum and rubber, attaching it to enemies to restrict their movements. The further the aura is stretched, the greater the snapping force when it recoils, but if the aura leaves Hisoka's body and stretches beyond ten meters, it will snap. This aura possesses both the adhesive properties of gum and the elasticity of rubber.

Chrollo's black trench coat was already gone, leaving him in a tight black martial arts outfit with numerous scratches and bloodstains on his body. His right hand cradled a book with a bloody handprint on the cover, while an ivory-white revolver materialized in his left hand.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Each playing card was precisely intercepted by bullets glowing with blue fluorescence. The playing cards, normally peerless and sharp enough to slice through bullets, were effortlessly pierced and then disintegrated into flying ash.

This was one of the abilities Chrollo had stolen: the Emitter ability, "Order of the Guard of the Law" (5/6 Mercy).

The specific manifestation of this ability is the materialization of an ivory-white revolver with six bullets in the cylinder. Five of them are blue fluorescent bullets that automatically target and home in on any object within a 10-meter radius centered on the user, provided the object weighs 300 grams or less and moves at a speed exceeding 50 meters per second. These bullets are guaranteed to hit and destroy their target. Additionally, there is a single red fluorescent bullet that does the exact opposite, accelerating the speed and destructive power of whatever it hits. All bullets can be fired without a target, but they will never cause harm to human beings. Reloading is only possible after firing the red fluorescent bullet. During the reload process, there is no need to manually insert bullets; simply popping out the cylinder and snapping it back in is considered a completed reload. Upon completion, all bullets are automatically refilled, and their order of arrangement is randomized.

It seems my luck is good; all four bullets were blue fluorescent ones.

Chrollo casually fired two shots to the side and immediately reloaded, completely unconcerned about whether Hisoka had figured out the mechanics of this Nen ability.

Both men knew that neither could easily do anything to the other for the time being. They stood at opposite ends of the banquet hall's main stage, their killing intent and aura escalating step by step.

"Hehehe... Chrollo, I'm so excited!"

Hisoka's face was a mask of madness and battle frenzy as he let out a strange laugh:

"Teaming up with Heather was such a wise choice; he really did create a one-on-one situation for me! I will kill you with my own hands!"

Chrollo remained calm. The book in his right hand flipped a page, and the ivory-white revolver in his left hand dissolved into wisps of aura, replaced by a large, ancient-patterned wrapping cloth.

"You know, Hisoka, I don't resent your betrayal. A subordinate's betrayal implies the incompetence of the leader; that's my problem. But I must provide an explanation to the other members, and I also hate having someone constantly hound me. So, today, I will settle things with you."

"Aren't you worried about the other members?"

"Five against two, I don't think they'll lose. Besides, once I deal with you, I'll go support them immediately."

"Hehehe, I love that confident streak of yours... A fight to the death?"

"OK."

Both figures suddenly erupted with intense, suffocating aura!

.........

On the seventh floor, which had been reduced to a ruined sea of fire and completely obscured by smoke and dust, neither man released "En".

Releasing "En" at this moment meant exposing one's precise location, and no one wanted to make themselves the prey.

Feitan stood with his back against the raging inferno, his right arm hanging unnaturally at his side in a strange shape. When the explosion occurred, he had instantly used his speed to leave the spot, but Machi hadn't had time to treat him before getting caught in the blast, and his reliable umbrella-sword was lost.

This is a bit troublesome...

I wonder if the other comrades are safe. Heh, given those guys' strength, they should at least be able to escape safely to the next floor... Feitan had full confidence in his comrades' strength.

Boom!!

Suddenly, not far from Feitan, the sound of an impact and a muffled grunt rang out. Immediately after, a dark shadow burst through the smoke and dust, hurtling fiercely toward Feitan's position.

Feitan's dynamic vision was exceptional; at a glance, he recognized the figure as fellow Phantom Troupe member Nobunaga Hazama.

Yet, out of caution, he didn't reach out to catch him, instead silently leaping aside a few paces.

Nobunaga scrambled to his feet after hitting the ground, his face and head still covered in blood, fresh crimson continuously overflowing from the stitched wound at his neck.

He caught sight of Feitan nearby and anxiously tried to speak, but the moment he opened his mouth, a large mouthful of blood spewed out. When he was attacked by Hisoka, both his trachea and vocal cords had been damaged; Machi's emergency first aid had only allowed him to breathe smoothly, but his vocal cords had not yet healed.

Feitan kept a wary eye on the movement in the surrounding smoke while glancing over at Nobunaga. Hm? What is Nobunaga trying to say?

A pale yet powerful hand quietly reached out from the sea of flames behind Feitan, targeting the back of his neck with lethal precision!

Slap! Though Feitan didn't turn back, a chill shot straight from his tailbone to the top of his head. Without a second thought, he instantly burst into maximum speed and vanished from the spot.

"Ah la la, I already overestimated your kind's sensitivity to killing intent and weapons, which is why I didn't use my sword. To think you could still notice that?"

The raging sea of flames distorted as Heather stepped out leisurely, dressed in a black suit with a suit-and-tie, holding a gorgeously crafted golden cross-sword in his left hand. The merciless flames licked across Heather's skin and the surface of his suit yet failed to cause even the slightest bit of damage.

Feitan gritted his teeth in hatred: "...Immune to fire damage?"

"Think what you will." Heather shrugged: "Any last words?"

"Save that question for yourself!!"

Feitan vanished from the spot instantly. The next second, he reappeared at Heather's side, his left hand shaped into a blade, slashing fiercely toward Heather's neck!

Heather's lips curved upward as his elbow snapped outward, violently smashing into the incoming hand-blade. Feitan instantly realized that continuing with the hand-blade strike would shatter his left hand into pieces, forcing him to alter his trajectory and meet blow with blow using his own elbow. With a deafening crash, Feitan was blasted backward by the immense force. Simultaneously, the "Absolute Sovereignty" held in Heather's left hand swept out in a semicircle, clanging heavily as it parried a samurai sword that had slashed down diagonally from his blind spot.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Holding the cross-sword in one hand, Heather effortlessly parried Nobunaga's successive blade strikes. Nobunaga felt massive waves of force transmitting through the blade; even though he held his katana with both hands, the webs of his thumbs cracked open, blood instantly staining the hilt of his sword.

Such a formidable guy! His raw physical strength already surpasses Uvogin's! Not to mention this master-level swordsmanship... Has he been practicing the sword since he was in the womb?

Nobunaga didn't dare let the enemy's blade touch him, desperately swinging his katana to fend off the cross-sword blade attacking from every conceivable angle.

"Hey, you're so weak. Are you really a member of the Phantom Troupe? That girl who uses threads was stronger than you."

Heather bantered while swinging his cross-sword:

"Killing her took me a bit of effort, but you... tsk tsk, do you need me to fight you with one hand tied behind my back?"

"You... killed Machi?"

A gloomy, menacing voice came from behind Heather.

Feitan's right arm was shattered into multiple fractures, his left elbow joint bent at a grotesque angle. He stood crookedly not far behind Heather, his aura beginning to surge violently.

Heather's lips curved. He flicked his blade upward, swatting away the katana in Nobunaga's grip, and then delivered a vicious kick straight to Nobunaga's stomach, sending him flying backward into the ruins amidst a spray of shattered rubble.

"Not just her, but also a hot-tempered lady with a hooked nose. To be honest, I felt a little reluctant when I struck her down."

Heather crooking a finger at Feitan:

"Want revenge? Come on, let's see what you're really made of."