In the Blink of an Eye

One day.

In a completely dark labyrinth.

Long stood alone, unable to see anything but darkness.

They couldn't even sense his soul abilities.

To be precise, his ability 'disappeared'.

It was temporarily suppressed by some kind of rule.

That's the scary thing about rules; once triggered, they can happen without reason or warning, like a bug... You can only deal with them by following their 'rules of the game'.

A few minutes ago, he encountered a Magical Beasts that was very similar to the Magical Beasts in the human world; it was a small life form.

More importantly, after all these years of travel, this was the second intelligent being he had encountered besides the skeleton in the City in the House. This being could even speak human language. He approached it and asked where Oboro wanted to go; it could lead the way.

Oboro noticed something was wrong at that moment, but he... still responded.

If he doesn't respond, the rules won't be triggered, and he won't join the game.

The moment the two sides exchanged words, the 'situation' was formed. The next second, everything around them vanished, and a mirage-like transformation occurred. Several high walls seemed to appear in the void, converging and gathering. Then, a magnificent building was constructed. As his soul abilities were 'erased,' in the final moment before plunging into darkness, Oboro saw layers upon layers of staircases and passageways being built inside the building, much like a maze.

After thinking it over, Long looked up and saw the only golden clock in the dark space, its hands moving as if it were counting down the time.

"It was created by humans..."

Long smiled gently.

Along the way, he encountered too many rule-based life forms, and their rules and methods of playing were all kinds of strange and wonderful.

There are countless ways to enter the survival zone, such as hopping on a grid according to numbers, or judging the authenticity of counterfeit goods, which causes the danger level to fluctuate and change...

He is now adept at navigating the power of rules.

"So... what kind of game is this?"

Long stared at the Golden Bell.

Needless to say, this thing cannot be destroyed; it's merely a hint given to the participants within the situation.

The best way to break the rules is to understand them and find loopholes by operating according to them.

Alluka's wish was like that... so was the Seed Urn in the Kakin Empire, including Oboro's game back then.

"I'm here."

"You want to know where that door is? Catch me... and I'll tell you."

In the darkness, a voice kept coming from all directions, confusing everyone.

Unfortunately, Oboro couldn't see anything at all; he only had his physical strength left.

"Hide and seek?"

I vaguely understand, but not quite.

The next second, he darted forward and rushed towards the source of the sound.

His body slammed into a hard object, the immense force causing it to collapse, much like a wall.

Creating a real-world maze out of thin air using energy, in the same way as Conjuration, is unthinkable in the human world— the Nen power consumption alone would be endless. But on the Dark Continent, this level of energy is... readily available everywhere.

"The darkness isn't empty; there are tangible cover structures, which makes catching the target even more difficult." Oboro nodded.

He was able to kill the instigator, the talking Magical Beasts, before this rule-based domain was even fully established.

The premise is to avoid any interaction.

That Magical Beasts should be able to sense the longing in his heart, that he was seeking himself from the source of desire within the 'door'.

This is also the hunting method of this creature. Even if it were not it that it encountered today, but another creature, the other creature would probably still be able to communicate with the target, carrying the items or information that the target wants.

"Let me play with you."

Then, Oboro began his capture. As soon as there was the slightest unusual sound in the dark space, he could rush over instantly with pure explosive power. However, firstly, he couldn't see anything, and there were walls and passageways to interfere. Secondly, his opponent was very agile, and his originally weak strength seemed to be enhanced by the rules, which made Oboro constantly running around and his strength was constantly being depleted.

An hour later, the Golden Bell hanging overhead suddenly rang out, deafeningly loud.

As soon as Long raised his head, he frowned; his sense of smell had vanished.

"Depriving the five senses?"

Long laughed.

Continue playing the game.

The bell will ring once every hour.

First comes the sense of smell, then the sense of taste, touch, sight, and hearing.

As time goes on, the deprived senses become increasingly crucial; when hearing is erased, it means that Oboro has failed.

In this dark space, his most important tool for catching his target is his hearing.

When he lost his hearing, the Magical Beasts that had been hiding in the darkness revealed itself in a provocative manner, hovering around Oboro and even flicking the human's forehead with its finger, but Oboro did not react at all.

It resembles a stone sculpture.

The Golden Bell did not disappear, indicating that the game is still ongoing.

But Long was no longer able to move; he could feel nothing but his own thoughts.

Another hour passed, and with the sound of the bell, one of Oboro's arms was suddenly dismembered. His pain did not disappear, so Oboro knew that he had lost an arm.

Magical Beasts with white fur, sharp teeth, and rabbit ears jumped around in front of Oboro, lay on the ground laughing heartily, and rolled around.

They seemed to find the scene unfolding before them pleasing to the eye.

Another arm, plus both legs...

Only half of Oboro's body remained, lying flat on the dark ground. The Magical Beasts's eyes widened in surprise; even so, this human was still alive. Flesh and blood life was terrifyingly powerful; the body seemed to have reached the point of being able to manipulate cells, so... as long as the wounded muscles contracted, it could still linger on.

Of course, such a magical sight is not considered extraordinary in the Dark Continent.

The Magical Beasts yawned, feeling sleepy, and lay down next to Oboro, wanting to see how long the human could last.

It became increasingly relaxed because humanity had no room to resist... The latter was completely unaware of the 'outside world,' let alone its existence.

After a long time, blood began to flow from Long's mouth and nose, and his internal organs suffered serious injuries as time went on.

"That's about it."

Long's heart stirred.

Immediately afterwards, in darkness.

The Magical Beasts, which had been sitting with its legs crossed and on its tiptoes like a human, was about to lie down and sleep when it opened its eyes to collect Oboro's corpse.

Suddenly, a human with only half a body was seen, and a burst of blood suddenly gushed out from his body, spraying out from his pores in dense streams.

In an instant, a hail of bullets erupted around them.

What's terrifying is that these blood droplets, though they didn't splatter very far, completely destroyed all the shelters within a radius of several thousand meters in the darkness.

The Magical Beasts that were right next to them were also instantly riddled with holes.

This rule-based life form could not escape its fate, and before dying, it stared at Long with eyes full of fear.

This was its first failed hunt! With the Magical Beasts dead, the entire dark space scattered like a torn rag in the wind, and the Golden Bell crumbled like shattered glass.

The surroundings returned to their original state.

The clear sky, the shade of the trees, and the grass all came into view.

The 'Magical Beasts's' soul entered his body, and all of Oboro's senses returned to normal. The blood that had flown out also gathered back into his body after a brief pause in the air. Then, granulation tissue sprouted from all the wounds on his body, and limbs grew out. In just a few minutes, he was completely healed.

Stand still.

Long stepped forward, kicked a piece of minced meat, and said calmly, "Too naive..."

This place is not even close to the core area of the Dark Continent, where intelligent beings are rarely seen. Therefore, this 'Magical Beasts' must have never interacted with intelligent beings. Its hunting experience is based on other simple-minded life forms. How could it understand the wickedness of human nature?

First the five senses, then the limbs, and then the internal organs...

According to Long's judgment, this rule game lasts for 24 hours, and only at the very last moment will the 'brain' be destroyed.

The life form that enforces the rules is aware of them, and the power of the rules will inevitably be used to its advantage.

However, this is not absolute.

As participants, one is proactive and the other is passive, but there is always a certain 'potential' balance hidden within them.

Upon entering the labyrinth, not all abilities disappear, but only those deemed 'strongest'. Therefore, he temporarily loses only his soul power, but Senna and Ekko's additional abilities remain, namely area-of-effect attacks and Time Reversal.

The rules are the other party's home turf. After playing for several hours, Long realized that it was impossible for him to catch it in a sense! So, instead of wasting his energy, he decided to create a false impression and lure the target into taking the bait.

The rules of hide-and-seek, in contact with both sides, his blood... is also a part of himself.

Oboro guessed that once she was no longer a threat, the Magical Beasts would lower its guard and might approach or keep its distance... but it shouldn't be too far away. Senna's attack range was still effective, and even with the help of blood drops, Oboro could still apply her abilities.

The attack range he can create in the blink of an eye is extremely wide.

If the other party wants to observe you, you can't escape it.

Understanding the rules, knowing the rules, breaking the rules... that's all.

Of course, the first step is the most crucial.

These are the rules, not just a pure fight. Simply releasing blood droplets won't kill the Magical Beasts... Before hearing could even register, the Magical Beasts kept yelling, 'Come and catch me!' This wasn't something it shouted on its own; it was something it had to do based on the rules.

Therefore, when unleashing a deadly move, Oboro must silently repeat in his mind, "I've got you."

Otherwise, the Magical Beasts would probably revive now, and the dark space would not be dispelled.

"There were obvious signs."

Long opened his palm, and a ball of Nen power floated up like a bubble. He sensed it for a moment and murmured.

He didn't fall for the trap on purpose; he didn't have the time or inclination, nor would he risk any danger.

Rather, it was because he had long ago discovered that absorbing the souls of beings governed by rules seemed to... allow him to also possess a trace of 'rule power'.

But it's not very obvious.

It takes time to accumulate small gains.

So far, of all the life forms he has encountered, whether extraordinary or bizarre, the strongest... is still the rule.

"Other living beings are born from the environment, various elements, mortal bodies... Only life forms based on rules seem to be born because they are tainted by the 'power of rules'... The Transmission and compatibility of their energy in space and time, and the resulting changes, are far beyond what other life forms can achieve. Various changes in energy, such as the attributes of mind, such as manifestation, transformation, enhancement, and specialization, can all be done with ease... They are closer to the origin of heaven and earth, and are more like a kind of origin medium."

Long slowly bent down and squatted down, then reached out and gave it to him.

The energy contained in his palm, imbued with the power of rules, enveloped the small blade of grass in front of him.

Then, he reached out his fingertips to snap the grass branch.

But no matter what, it was impossible.

The rule he imposed was extremely simple and straightforward.

"It cannot be destroyed by non-fire elements."

Indeed, that's how it is.

"Because it's just a blade of grass, the rules applied aren't complicated, so it's easy to succeed... But if it's a living organism, the difficulty will undoubtedly increase. The stronger the external factors, the more powerful the rules need to be. Simply put, it's not much different from Nen power; it also requires personal will."

"Nen power... a 'power system' that is even higher up in the life energy spectrum?"

The power of rules is also a form of energy.

"So, Alluka's ability to suddenly appear the spaceship above the Zoldyck Family's territory and shower down a large amount of cash... involves too many factors. First, there's the range that the energy can influence. Due to the special nature of the power of rules, the area in the human world isn't actually that large on the Dark Continent. Even if she can't cover the entire area, at least a third of it is no problem. Then, she first finds the target carrying a large amount of cash, or directly converts other substances into money. Then, she manipulates the spirit and things of the relevant individuals, changing their 'trajectories' to traverse space and alter the flow of time, so that a series of actions are completed at the same time as the wish is granted. It involves the power of Manipulation, Transmutation, and Specialization..."

"It seems that there is a reason why Nen have appeared in the human world."

After speaking, Long stood up again.

Let him accumulate it first... The power of rules he currently possesses is still relatively weak.

Oboro's eyes flickered at the thought of Alluka.

Although he didn't remember it very clearly, he vaguely estimated the time.

It has been more than a decade since Menchi and his two companions left...

Even with his current strength, he only managed to cross a few volcanoes on the map from the initial sinkhole. Further ahead, there was another cluster of buildings and three human figures that were as tall as the sky!

Because his physical body and vital energy were too strong, and his lifespan was constantly increasing, and he had consumed countless 'Hope Fruit' over the years, his appearance remained unchanged.

He had already gotten used to life on the Dark Continent.

The only thing that made me feel uncomfortable...

It's probably just a matter of time.

Here... time seems to have no bearing on anything.

It has a bit of a "time flies" feel to it.

"Clear sky".

Long looked up at the dark red sky. The further they went into the continent, the darker and redder the sky became. Now, they could still see a sliver of white light leaking through the clouds, which could be called a 'clear day'.

Let's keep going...

Long didn't know how much longer they would have to travel.

Only then can you find that door.

At least the dead Magical Beasts didn't know.

Everything the other party said was a lie.

Simply because I sensed his thoughts.

This thing is not a truly intelligent life form; its level of cognitive maturity is slightly higher than that of the one inside Alluka.

It wasn't much better.