Hunter x Hunter: Card Master, the Strongest in the World

Judging from Leorio's discovery of Law's "Kikoku" (Demon Cry), it's highly likely that he can influence a person's development, thereby causing cards to appear in a specific direction.

For example, Leorio now possesses a Nen ability that is very similar to the Op-Op Fruit's ability, which is why Law's sword was revealed.

Next time, who knows, we might get a [Operation Fruit].

Of course, this conjecture isn't entirely accurate. Perhaps it's because Leorio and Law are both doctors that the "Kiko-wa" (demon's cry) was revealed.

However, the probability is very small. He still believes more in his previous idea that as long as he selectively changes and shapes a person, that person will have a chance to obtain the corresponding card.

In this way, once Leorio and Kurapika become the twelve Earthly Branches, it may be possible for a talisman to be unearthed.

Before that, he needs to quickly deal with the other Earthly Branches. If any Earthly Branch fails to produce a talisman, he will have to consider how to replace that person with his apprentice.

Collecting his thoughts, Lynn flipped his right hand and magically produced the [Demon Cry] in his hand, then handed it to Leorio.

"This is a gift for you. It's a nice knife, and it'll suit you perfectly."

"For me? Thank you, Master!" Leorio was taken aback at first, then thanked him first, deciding to express his gratitude regardless.

His master would never betray him.

Leorio then took the Kiku and examined the sword closely. He found that it was different from any sword he had seen before, and it had a unique feel that made him particularly fond of it.

It was as if his subconscious was telling him that this was a knife that suited him perfectly.

"A fine sword." Leorio exclaimed instinctively. "Looks like I need to practice my swordsmanship too; I can't let this sword go to waste."

He used scalpels before, which had nothing to do with normal swords.

Even so, Lynn believed that it was most suitable to give it to Leorio, since the effect of [Kikoku] was that it was easier to cut within space, which perfectly suited Leorio, a "bootleg Ope Ope no Mi user".

In addition, it's a bit of a hassle for Leorio to carry a scalpel around all day to cut things. It's fine for small objects, but when it comes to larger things, a long knife is much more useful.

As for Kurapika, he also prepared a gift, but he will give it to him after the ceremony begins.

It's mid-February now. Kurapika has been training for over a month, and his physical condition has changed dramatically. He has also reached the 170th floor of the Heaven's Arena.

He planned to wait until Kurapika had settled down for a while and reached the 200th level before he could start practicing Nen.

A few days later, more than half a month after the interview.

The pressure from public opinion finally made one of the posters unable to sit still and choose to challenge Lynn to prove his strength.

This person was none other than the original owner of the 238th floor, the leader of Jiao Qi's small group, and the owner of the 244th floor, the "Dancer" Jeslev.

Lynn was naturally pleased with this, as floor 244 was considered a high-quality target in the Sky Arena.

Soon, the day of the competition arrived.

Sky Arena venue.

The audience seats were packed with people, with no seats available.

Thanks to Lynn's previous remarks, the popularity of this match far exceeded that of the usual host matches. Many scalpers have inflated the price of tickets to ten times the original price, but even so, tickets are still hard to come by.

In the audience, Leorio, Kurapika, and the two little ones, Gon and Killua, sat together, waiting for Lynn to appear.

"Finally, we can see Lynn's match again." Yun Gu pushed up his glasses and said in a warm tone. If you didn't look at the exposed corner of his clothes and his slightly disheveled hair, you would think he was a very clear-headed person.

"So, Mr. Yung-ku had watched Mr. Lynn's matches before?" Xiao Jie exclaimed in sudden realization.

"Yes, although there weren't many, every single one was unforgettable." Yun Gu closed his eyes, as if reminiscing.

"Sigh~ I wonder who's stronger between you two? Have you ever fought in private?" Killua asked curiously, his hands behind his head.

"Ahem." Yun Gu coughed twice unconsciously, recalling the result of his previous sparring with Lin En, and forced a smile, saying, "My skills still need improvement."

"If we're talking about sparring, perhaps it would be more appropriate for my master to fight Lynn..."

Chapter 144 Uchiha Kurapika! A warrior of the Judon clan!

Xiao Jie nodded and subconsciously said, "Mr. Yun Gu's master? He must be a very powerful person."

“And she’s very old, definitely an old man or an old woman,” Killua said casually.

Yun Gu felt ashamed. If his master were here, he would probably lose his temper on the spot. He then said, "My master is indeed not young, but she looks very young. If you see her in the future, please don't say that she is old."

“Otherwise, something truly terrifying will happen,” Yun Gu said ominously, as if he were referring to an urban legend.

During the conversation, both contestants arrived at the arena in the center.

Under the spotlight, Lynn stared calmly at his oddly dressed opponent, scrutinizing the Nen energy emanating from his body.

B+...maybe even A-? Anyway, it's alright.

The other party is the host of the 244th floor, [Dancer] Jeslev, who is burly, but his whole body is wrapped in bandages, and his face has a device similar to the mouthparts of a mosquito. This kind of attire covers most of his body.

Such eccentric individuals are not uncommon among the tower masters of the Sky Arena.

As seen in the movie, the Heaven's Arena is like a monster association from another world, with all sorts of bizarre and grotesque creatures. Among them are beings even more abstract than the Shadow Beasts, who are no longer like normal humans but rather aliens. Only one blonde woman has a relatively normal appearance.

While Lynn was observing, Jeslev was also staring at Lynn. After a few moments, he suddenly spoke, his voice low and deep: "I've always remembered the death of Jiaoqi."

"Don't underestimate me just because you defeated Jiao Qi!"

“He’s just a mere newcomer!” Jeslev said viciously.

In his eyes, Lynn was an absolute thorn in his side. With Jiaoqi killed, his small group lost a key member and was subsequently suppressed by other groups, suffering heavy losses in the past few months.

In his opinion, Lynn might be stronger than Jiaoqi, but it was definitely because Jiaoqi was too careless that he was defeated in one round.

As long as he is on guard and wary of Lynn's sword, he can defeat this arrogant newcomer and use his fame as a stepping stone to reach a higher level!

Lynn remained silent, lost in thought, seemingly not taking Jeslev seriously, which only fueled the latter's anger.

Finally, with the referee's whistle, the match officially began.

Almost simultaneously, a surge of intense Nen energy erupted from Jeslev's body, shattering the bandages on his body and leaving him only in a pair of shorts, revealing his dark-skinned body.

His massive body was covered with regularly spaced dark holes. A gentle breeze swept through Deslev's body, as if playing some kind of music.

Lynn narrowed his eyes, thinking of the Phantom Troupe's [Peeling Lev]... So that's how it is, are they from the same ethnicity?

Like the Borolev, the Jeslev belong to the Jutondu tribe, whose men undergo circumcision at the age of three and have small needles inserted all over their bodies.

As the needle hole takes shape, it is gradually replaced with a thicker wooden stick, and finally fixed with hollow bamboo tubes, wood, stone, etc.

They are warriors of dance, capable of producing a variety of sounds depending on the size, shape, and range of motion of those wind caves.

They believed that the more beautiful the sound produced, the more advanced the spirit that would descend. Before engaging in battle with hostile tribes or beasts, they would use their own bodies to play a warrior's song and bravely fight the enemy.

"See that? This is the beautiful body of my Judondu tribe. No matter who it is, they will be defeated by the music I play!"

Jeslev stared directly at Lynn, his eyes full of provocation. He stretched out his hand, which was covered in holes, and started dancing an unknown dance as he spoke... As soon as the other person heard the voice, they would be affected as if under a spell, their mind would become muddled, and their movements would be restricted.

Seeing Lynn's discomfort, Jeslev's body surged with spiritual energy, instantly transforming him into a warrior wearing a heavily painted mask, wielding a spear, and rapidly closing in with a leap.

Success!

Jeslev grinned, and his spear pierced Lynn's body. The next moment, "Lynn" vanished like a bubble.

Jeslev was startled: "What?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Jeslev saw the scene before him suddenly change. He was still standing in the same spot, not having transformed into a warrior, when Lynn appeared in front of him at some point and raised his hand to strike.

A flash of blade light.

A line of blood suddenly appeared on Jeslev's body, which was full of black holes, and then blood gushed out. He collapsed to the ground with everything going black before he died, and his last look was one of disbelief.

What exactly happened just now?

With this thought in mind, Deslev died with regret.

Lynn glanced at the fallen Jeslev, and beneath her beautiful contact lenses, her Sharingan with its three tomoe was in operation.

At the start of the battle, he took advantage of the eye contact with Jeslev to pull him into an illusion. Everything Jeslev had just experienced was an illusion, and by the time he realized it, it was too late.

Because the Sharingan is quite noticeable and easily exposed, and it can easily be associated with the Kurta clan, it may bring unnecessary trouble.

So he simply wore colored contact lenses, which looked no different from normal black eyes, thus concealing the Sharingan's features.

Illusion magic is indeed very effective, especially against those weaker than oneself. It has a higher success rate and the control lasts longer.

By the time the enemy reacts, you've already delivered a fatal blow. Relying solely on the usual [Entangle] technique is simply not enough for effective defense, saving you time and effort.

There are only three ways for the enemy to remain unaffected.

First, those whose strength is similar to or greater than his will be less affected.

Second, avoid eye contact with him. At least for now, he needs to make eye contact with the enemy in order to use his Sharingan to perform genjutsu. This is also where the information gap lies.

Third, the other party possesses the ability to counter illusions, or has special intuition, and can quickly realize that they are in an illusion.

After Jeslev fell to the ground, the arena fell into an eerie silence, so quiet you could hear a pin drop, with everyone staring blankly at the ring.

The host was the first to react, exclaiming in surprise:

"This is it! Lynn has once again demonstrated his exceptional strength!"

"In the very first round of the match, in less than three seconds, the 244th floor's leader, the renowned 'Dancer' Jeslev, was defeated!"

"We still don't know the upper limit of Lynn's skill! Could he really have surpassed all the other players?!"

Let's look forward to Lynn's future performance!

"Congratulations to contestant Lynn for becoming the new floor master of the 244th floor!"

Cheers erupted from the audience only after the host finished speaking.

They witnessed a miracle once again!

The poster on the 244th floor! To date, the fastest time for a poster at this level to be judged to lose is more than 2 minutes, but Lynn successfully broke this record and ended the battle in less than three seconds once again.

From that moment on, many people's image of Lynn changed. They had previously thought Lynn was too arrogant, but the facts dealt them a painful blow. Lynn had every right to speak like that.

But it was too late for some people to change their minds.

Because they had bet everything on Deslev winning, they lost everything after the battle. Similarly, for every person who loses money, someone else wins.

At the back of the audience, Machi leaned against the wall, casually putting her bank card into her pocket, a slight smile involuntarily curving her lips.

Needless to say, she naturally bet on Lynn to win this match and successfully won a large sum of money.

Machi glanced at Hisoka, who was standing beside her with his arms crossed, and said calmly, "I don't know if your eyesight has deteriorated or you've become braver, but you actually took him as your target."

Hisoka shrugged and sighed dramatically, saying, "Things aren't as simple as you think~"

“From your perspective, Lynn has always been very powerful and unfathomable, but my perspective is different.” Hisoka flipped over a 6 of hearts with his right hand, and then with a flick of his wrist, a King of clubs was revealed behind the 6 of hearts. He said helplessly, “I played against him at the beginning of last year, and he was far inferior to me back then.”

"But now, I've been completely forgotten by him."

"Only a year has passed since then."

March frowned. Hisoka's words were indeed unexpected. She only knew that Hisoka had met with Lynn and regarded him as a target. A few months ago, Hisoka asked her to pass on a message to Lynn.

But unexpectedly, Lynn's growth rate was so fast. In just one year, he went from being far inferior to Hisoka to surpassing Hisoka.

Hisoka glanced at Machi, who seemed lost in thought, and continued playing cards. He had come to the Heavens Arena to have some fun and, incidentally, to fulfill a promise he made two years ago to a green, unripe fruit.

As a result, he ran into Lynn, who was "unleashing his power" and trying to break through the Sky Arena. It can only be said that fate was truly unpredictable.

So... is it possible for Lynn to break through the Sky Arena?

This is not just Hisoka's thought; it's a shared sentiment among countless people.

The first battle ended in a thunderous victory, leading more and more people to believe that Lynn could live up to his words.

The poster on the 244th floor has already lost; now the pressure is on the other posters.

Some people chose to turn a blind eye, while others subtly indicated that they were not as good as Lynn, in order to avoid public pressure.

Fame is important, but no matter what, life is the most important thing.

Since both Jiaoqi and Jeslev were killed on the spot, the other posters assumed that Lynn was bloodthirsty and had a habit of leaving no survivors, which frightened them even more and made them afraid to fight.

But the truth is that Jiao Qi and others had a grudge against Lynn, and even took the initiative to provoke him, which is why Lynn dealt with it casually.

He would generally not kill someone who is unrelated to him.

Another month passed. During this time, only two posters dared to challenge him, namely the posters on floors 247 and 249. They didn't go all out, but unsurprisingly, both of them lost.

As it turned out, he had overestimated the prestige of the Sky Arena's leader; even the higher-level leaders were only A- rank.