Human Nature

The fragmented words coming from the darkness—

Cole was shocked, unable to believe it.

He even blurted out, "Who exactly are you?"

It was a question that was fundamentally unlikely to receive an answer.

Yet under the swirl of shock and disbelief, it was also his instinctive reaction.

Because—

The figure whose outline had emerged from the darkness had most likely seen through his ability.

Only that could explain why the "harvest" had been so meager.

And what he found hardest to understand was...

If the other party had discovered his ability while coming here and wanted to stop it, they should have destroyed the plants on the armed soldiers immediately.

If the other party had destroyed even one "Corpse Soil," he would have noticed at once and chosen to harvest early to cut his losses.

But the other party had not chosen to destroy the "Corpse Soil." Instead, without affecting the "growth process," they had interfered with the "nutrients" needed for growth.

In other words—

The other party had most likely analyzed his ability from limited information and realized that uprooting the plants might draw his attention...

Then they had played along, using this method to leave him with a meager harvest and waste his Latent Aura for nothing.

If that deduction was correct, then this person's understanding of Nen, as well as their perceptiveness...

Was terrifyingly strong!!!

Cole could no longer control his expression. Naturally, the question he had blurted out received no response.

He could only stare fixedly at the figure standing silently in the darkness.

He could clearly see the person's aura, but it was so weak that it gave off only an almost hazy glow.

To confirm it, he used Gyo to inspect the surroundings, but he saw no other hidden aura.

At least from his perspective, the only aura he could see was on that person.

Such weak aura...

He could probably finish them with a single punch, but—

"Is it deliberate? Are they trying to bait me into making the first move?"

"So, could it be a passive counterattack type...?"

"That's possible. I can't rashly attack first. I could use En to check the situation... No, my En can't reach that far, and using En leaves me vulnerable to attack..."

"What should I do? Just wait and see until Genbul and the others arrive?"

"Should I test them first... Damn it, I'm not in the habit of carrying a gun."

Cole's thoughts were somewhat chaotic. Merely staring at the motionless outline in the darkness, he felt immense pressure out of nowhere.

"My ability was not only seen through by the other party, but also used against me."

This realization not only made Cole deeply aware that the other party was an incredibly formidable opponent, but also inevitably threw his thoughts into disarray.

So when he saw that the other party had merely released a trace amount of aura and stood still in the darkness, his first reaction was that they were deliberately exposing an opening.

With that preconceived notion in place, Cole did not dare act rashly.

The two sides remained deadlocked like this. Neither moved, and neither spoke.

By comparison, the battle on the other side was far more intense.

Genbul's Gambler's Rhapsody and Cole's Harvest Time were abilities of the same type. Both required a certain preparation phase to reach their full potential.

So how could one safely get through that preparation phase—

Relying on the combat strength of companions was one option, while improving one's own ability to respond was another.

Genbul chose both.

That was why his frontal combat ability was not weak.

Likewise, Cole's frontal combat ability was not weak either.

Thus, even if their abilities were interrupted, it did not mean they could do nothing.

At the very least, Genbul could handle Hawk's offensive, and he even held the advantage.

"What the hell is going on over there with Cole...?"

Dodging sideways to avoid the incoming Nen Bullet, Genbul charged forward and pressed Hawk while swiftly glancing at Cole, who stood motionless where he was. His brow furrowed slightly.

He had originally hoped that Cole's Harvest Time would give them the power to end the battle quickly, but it had turned out to be all thunder and no rain.

And the culprit behind all this was that sneaky bastard hiding in the shadows.

But so what?

They still held the advantage in numbers.

Yet Cole remained inactive. This would only squander their advantage.

With no time to keep watching Cole, Genbul closed the distance and suppressed Hawk with a fierce offensive.

"Damn it, the injury on my left hand hasn't healed yet."

Hawk struggled to fend off Genbul's attacks.

He was clearly a Conjurer with what seemed like a "preparation-type" ability, yet he also possessed outstanding close-combat prowess. He was most likely a core member of the Qinglin Squad...

"What about Moyu...?"

Hawk wanted to check on Moyu's situation, but Genbul was suppressing him so thoroughly that he simply lacked the means to do so.

He believed Moyu had awakened Nen less than half a month ago, so even if Moyu had independently developed a Nen Ability, he most likely would not be a match for a Qinglin Squad member.

On the other side.

Facing Ken and Sivir's combined assault, Cheadle remained calm throughout.

"Although I don't know what that Long-Haired Man's 'preparation-type ability' is, it seems to have been interrupted. Was that Moyu's doing?"

Cheadle glanced toward Moyu from the corner of her eye, a gleam lighting up in her gaze as she evaded Sivir and Ken's attacks.

If Hawk's arrival had surprised her and delighted her because the Post-Mortem Nen had been removed,

Then Moyu's arrival, along with his interruption of one enemy Nen user's ability, was something that thrilled and invigorated her.

The more outstanding Moyu was, the stronger her urge to take him away became.

After failing to break through Cheadle's defenses for so long, Ken remained patient, but Sivir was clearly growing more irritable, and her attacks were starting to lose their rhythm.

Ken noticed this, yet he did not remind Sivir to calm down.

Because emotions like "irritation"...

Were the necessary fuel for Sivir to activate her ability.

There were no obvious changes in the battles on any of the three fronts.

The situation within the arena remained deadlocked—

In the pitch-black darkness.

Moyu was somewhat surprised.

He had first spoken up and exposed the Long-Haired Man's ability, causing him to form a preconceived notion, then put on a display that resembled a trap.

The purpose of doing so was simply to make the Long-Haired Man actively think and speculate, restraining him as much as possible. That would at least ease some of the pressure Hawk and Cheadle faced against their opponents.

After all—

Setting Nen Abilities aside, this Long-Haired Man was also a Nen user above a certain level.

"I didn't expect him to be this suspicious."

Moyu did not expect this kind of psychological manipulation to restrain the Long-Haired Man for long.

He had indeed set up what looked like a trap, but it could also be called a paper tiger.

Yet he had not expected the Long-Haired Man to cooperate so readily.

Human nature...

Could it really be quietly amplified by Nen as well?

Simply toying with the Long-Haired Man was not enough to make Moyu complacent. Instead, it made him think of Nen's influence over something like human nature.

Sometimes, it might be used as a weapon, but it could never be underestimated.

Now—

He should think about what methods, among all the means currently available to him, could be used to kill the Long-Haired Man...