Traces X A Thread of Resentment

In the forest.

Kevin looked around at his surroundings.

He examined it carefully.

Men Qi and the others around them were doing the same, scattered around searching for clues.

"So you witnessed them flying over this area that day, right?"

Men Qi shielded her eyes with her hand, avoiding the sunlight as she looked up at the sky, which was obscured by the large trees.

"Nothing particularly noteworthy has been found yet, "Pakunoda nodded.

"Based on our eyewitness observations and calculations at the time, it should have been in this area. Even if there's some error, it shouldn't be too significant."

Pakunoda is clearly very confident about this.

Before becoming Hunter x Hunter Phantom Beast Hunter, he was already a proper Hunter x Hunter.

Pons walked around, sometimes crouching under the tree stump, sometimes jumping up to the top of the giant tree to examine every detail in every corner.

"It should be in this area. The insects here are clearly not behaving properly. It must have been affected when that Phoenix flew overhead."

Nature's creatures are naturally very sensitive to such threats.

Pons' Nen ability and her experience allowed her to perceive the differences in these changes.

Apart from that, no one noticed anything different.

It's safe to say that the Phoenix may have indeed flown overhead, but finding any traceable clues from this location is clearly impossible.

What are you thinking, Kevin?

Men Qi looked to the other side and asked.

Kevin stood motionless among several large trees, his head slightly raised, gazing at the sky, seemingly lost in thought.

The group walked over.

Kevin raised his right hand and extended his index finger. Under everyone's gaze, a transparent white Nen Orb flew from his fingertip.

Like a dandelion seed, it drifts in the wind.

Although the others were puzzled, they did not disturb him, but focused their attention on the white Nen Orb, trying to understand Kevin's purpose in doing so.

I watched as the Nen Orb drifted and drifted, like a dandelion seed blown by a gentle breeze, until it disappeared from sight.

When they could no longer see him, everyone lowered their heads to look at Kevin.

However, Kevin didn't even look over; instead, he was deep in thought.

"So, you've noticed something?"

"No, I just tossed it around for fun."

"Are you crazy?"

Men Qi cursed silently.

Buhaci placed his hand on Men Qi's shoulder, signaling her not to get so agitated.

"The purpose of Emission that Nen Orb was to probe; it was a little trick."

Kevin held up his index finger to explain.

"It was a highly sensitive thought, untouched by any external contamination."

This kind of Nen ability technique is impossible for a normal Nen user to use, because every Nen Aura that originates from life inherently carries the characteristics of life.

A key reason Kevin is able to use this is his Nen ability— [Nen quantity battery].

This is a characteristic that he discovered after studying it for a long time after returning.

The energy stored in the Nen quantity battery is part of the body, but it is not a colorless energy.

You can even transfer this colorless energy into other people's bodies to replenish them.

That's why it can be called a battery; the gas stored inside is like electricity, which can be used by various electrical appliances.

Unless a specific Nen ability is developed, it's impossible to achieve such an effect.

For this reason, when one begins to accumulate and store mental energy, the Nen Aura that was originally personal will become colorless.

Or rather, it's more like the most ordinary Life Energy, without any added willpower.

"Therefore, once this Nen Aura is Emission, it cannot be controlled."

In other words, once that Nen Aura flew into the sky, it was no longer under control and would soon dissipate into the air.

"So?"

Men Qi looked at him.

"So that Nen Aura didn't react, making it difficult to find any clues here."

Kevin casually walked forward as he spoke.

He added, "At times like this, we should find some professional Hunter x Hunter, people who are very good at finding things."

There are many Nen ability like this.

"Are we just going to wander around aimlessly like this?"

Of course not.

As Kevin spoke, he raised his right hand and extended his index finger, radiating Nen Aura outwards from his fingertip as he walked.

These Nen Aura, like those of an ordinary person who hasn't learned how to chant, floated upwards casually and then dissipated.

To Nen user, Kevin was like a smokescreen.

"Let's just wander around like this. There will always be some remnants, and they'll become very obvious eventually."

Hearing this, the group had no choice but to follow behind him, wandering aimlessly around the area, occasionally glancing up at the constantly drifting Nen Aura.

"It changed color!"

Pons suddenly said in surprise.

The drifting Nen Aura, at their very tip dissipating into the air, had somehow turned a faint red.

Kevin stopped.

The Nen Aura, which had been drifting like smoke, instantly transformed back into pollen-like particles that danced freely in the air.

It covered a large area in an instant.

These swirling Nen Aura rose high into the sky and then changed color.

It quickly formed a long, thin ribbon, pale red in color.

"See, we've shown you the way."

Kevin said with a smile.

Seeing this, Men Qi helplessly, muttering, "I'm starting to get confused."

"It's alright, you'll naturally learn it once we take you to the Dark Continent."

Potions made with the high-grade materials from there can alter the form of life, and the special Nen ability they grant are unavoidable.

"So all we need to do now is follow the trail of the ribbons to find the Phoenix's nest?"

"This seems a bit too easy, "Pakunoda couldn't help but ask, feeling that this was all too easy.

Kevin shook his head and gestured.

The ribbon, already discolored, floated down.

Didn't you say it was beyond your control?

"I didn't control it either; I forcibly pulled it down."

Upon hearing this, Men Qi focused her mental energy on her eyes and saw an invisible Nen Whip wrap around the ribbon, pulling it down.

Kevin's hands seemed to be able to touch air as he grasped the color-changing ribbon, but everyone knew it was just a wisp of air.

He studied it diligently.

"It was indeed affected by the energy of other life forms, giving off a scorching feeling. It seems to be the Phoenix."

To study the affected Nen Aura, Kevin simply sat down at the base of a tree stump. The others were not in a hurry and sat around him, watching Kevin's actions.

Kevin's series of actions, which seemed somewhat magical, piqued their curiosity.

What if I could secretly learn a little something?

This continued until noon.

Men Qi finally couldn't help but ask, "So what did you figure out?"

Kevin nodded. "I think I've figured it out a bit. I'm just curious, though, Pakunoda and the others saw this Phoenix several days ago."

"It's been a week already. What kind of Nen Aura would leave a trace in the air for at least a week without dissipating?"

You said that if a battle had taken place here before, then leaving such traces would be normal.

But if the other party was just flying through the sky, leaving a trace in the air like that would be a bit too far-fetched.

And that's Phoenix.

How could a normal living being constantly and continuously emit Nen Aura?

Not all life forms can understand Nen ability like humans.

For some abnormal, extraordinary Beasts, their special abilities are more like evolved physical abilities, only they become somewhat magical under the influence of Life Energy.

It's actually a different thing from human Nen ability.

Kevin's other simulated Nen ability are more like human Nen ability, except for the [Nen quantity battery] brought about by the A-Rank drug, which is more like these creatures.

"Our understanding of Nen ability isn't as in-depth as yours, so we really can't understand what you're saying."

Men Qi shook her head helplessly, reminding him to look at Kevin.

They are Gourmet Hunter, not Nen ability Hunter x Hunter. Although they have been Hunter x Hunter for a long time and have a lot of experience, their understanding of Nen ability is also derived from that experience.

"Idiot, so listen carefully to the teacher's lesson."

Kevin quipped, then explained directly, "Simply put, the more willpower is mixed in, the longer the traces left in the air will last."

"Therefore, if it's a battle between two Nen user, the traces left behind at the site of their fight could potentially last for many years."

In extreme cases, creating Demonic Realm is not impossible.

After listening to the brief explanation...

Men Qi frowned, her mind racing, and said, "You mean to say that it will leave traces that last for a week? The Phoenix can't just be a simple bird flying through the sky. If it just flew through the sky, then there must be something abnormal about this Phoenix?"

They knew nothing about Phantom Beast or these giant beasts, but Kevin certainly did, after all, he had been to the Dark Continent and seen countless strange creatures, and there was even a very outrageous one in the Manor.

Kevin's experience in this area far surpasses that of the others present.

"That's right. All they witnessed was flying overhead, meaning there was no battle here. Based on the traces we've seen along the way, it wasn't predation either."

In other words, it really just flew by, but left a trace. There are only two possibilities for this: one is that the Phoenix was constantly using some kind of special ability similar to Nen ability during its flight.

To put it simply, it's like Griffin's ability to control the wind, but Griffin can fly, so they don't use Nen ability inexplicably during normal flight.

Even Phoenix possesses intelligence, it still operates within the law of the jungle, and its life instincts won't be excessively depleted for no reason, as that would be too dangerous.

Injury during a major battle means risk, and many predators will even avoid hunting if they are injured.

"And there's another very important point."

As Kevin spoke, he used his hand to pull out a thin strand of hair from the pale red color.

But this thing is definitely made of Nen Aura.

"Resentment... I feel like I've been dealing with Resentment ever since I went to the Food Village."

Kevin muttered, clutching the strands of Resentment in his hand.

But this also indirectly shows that something is wrong with that Phoenix.

How could a normal living being possibly harbor Resentment?

"Hmm, interesting."

Kevin smiled slightly, patted his bottom, and stood up.

"If it's Resentment, then it's easy to find."

Kevin held the hair-thin strand of Resentment in his hand, and with a gentle flick, a large amount of Nen Aura surged out from his hand, forming a dust-like structure.

In an instant, it spread along this strand of hair, which resembled a thread of Resentment, and carved a path for everyone, extending into the distance.

"You really are an expert at Resentment."

Seeing this, Men Qi couldn't help but complain.

Buhaci nodded and said, "You should become Exorcist now; you'll definitely make a lot of money."

The profession of Exorcist is extremely rare and precious within the entire Nen ability world.

Whether there are more than ten Exorcist alive in society today is unknown.

The abilities of each person are also quite different.

"I only understand Resentment; most of the problems that are removed by the mental power of others are actually problems that are created by other people's Nen ability."

1

Kevin muttered a complaint and left with his Resentment.

Although Resentment is dangerous, it is precisely because of its danger that there are very few requests from Resentment Exorcist.

Since the harm has already been done, or the person is already dead, there's nothing left to eliminate.

On the contrary, because of the various restrictions Restriction on the Nen ability of those who have made vows, these restrictions will continue to exist and be prohibited, making it precisely the kind of behavior that most needs to be eliminated from Nen.

These are all normal thoughts, thoughts that carry the will of others, and have nothing to do with Resentment, unless the other party is dead.

In this situation, the prohibition either results in the immediate death of the person being prohibited, or the conditions for the prohibition are lifted.

Many of these forbidden Nen ability persist even after the person who cast them dies, and they are not Resentment.

Nen ability are highly subjective and have almost nothing to do with science.

The power of life combined with the mind can become something like Wish Machine, which is a complete black box for current technology.

The group followed the line that stretched out from the Resentment.

Looking at the dark line, Pakunoda couldn't help but ask, "So what kind of being is this Phoenix? It doesn't seem very likely to be life."

"There are many possibilities. One possibility is a corpse controlled by Resentment, but it's not very high."

Because Resentment is too rare.

"It could be a Nen Beast, an illusion created by some kind of Nen ability, or it could even be a living Phoenix, only carrying Resentment for some reason."

"It could also be a trap."

I suddenly said Buhaci said.

No one present uttered a word of objection to this.

Because it really is very strange.