A helping hand in the mist

Lin Yan's heart lurched.

Without thinking, he was about to shout, but another thought forced him to swallow the words.

No!

Calling out would warn Gon and the others, but it would also draw those giant toads' attention to him.

Who knew how many more monsters like these lurked in this wetland? If they caught him, his meager skills would never get him out in one piece.

Besides, Gon was a born prodigy with extraordinary animal instincts, and Killua was a genius from an elite family of assassins. Would they really be completely unprepared?

In the brief second or two that these thoughts raced through Lin Yan's mind, the situation had already changed.

"You're so damn loud, you idiot!"

Killua kicked a nearby tree.

The tree shook, sending leaves fluttering down. He yelled at Gon, "I told you to stay close to the examiner, but you just had to wander off! Now we've lost Leorio and Kurapika!"

"But I can smell Leorio! He's that way!"

Gon's nostrils twitched. Pointing into the fog to their right, he said stubbornly, "He wears a really distinctive cologne. There's no way I'd mistake it!"

"So what? This fog is so thick, he could be long gone by the time you get there, even if you can smell him!"

"The examiner said we'd die if we lost him!" Killua kept his hands in his pockets, irritation showing in his eyes.

From childhood, he had been trained to prioritize completing his mission and ensuring his own safety in any situation.

To him, Gon's reckless disregard for everything but his friends was both naive and stupid.

"I don't care! I'm going to find him!" With that, Gon turned to run in the direction he had pointed.

"Stop!" Furious, Killua grabbed his arm.

Just then, their arguing seemed to stir the lurking monsters.

"Croooak!"

A deep croak rang out, and mud exploded into the air.

Three giant toads, each the size of a calf, suddenly sprang from the marsh. Their enormous mouths opened, and long tongues shot toward Gon and Killua like three fleshy whips.

"Watch out!"

Lin Yan's pupils contracted. This time, he truly couldn't hold himself back.

But even as he shouted, Gon and Killua reacted far faster than he had imagined.

As though he had eyes in the back of his head, Gon ducked sharply without even turning around. The foul-smelling tongue swept past, practically grazing his scalp.

Killua's reaction was even more outrageously fast. He didn't so much as look at the toad. The instant its tongue shot toward him, he slid a step sideways like a phantom, effortlessly avoiding it.

"Tch. Annoying pests."

Killua curled his lip. Rather than looking the slightest bit nervous, he seemed irritated.

Gon, meanwhile, looked delighted. Not only was he unafraid, he raised his fishing rod and shouted, "Perfect timing! I was getting hungry!"

Lin Yan held his breath.

What the hell? Had these two noticed them ages ago?

Was that argument... an act? Were they deliberately luring the monsters out?

No, that didn't seem right.

Judging by how genuinely angry Killua looked, they really had been arguing. They were simply confident enough in their abilities that they didn't consider these monsters a threat.

Lin Yan felt that his earlier concern had been rather unnecessary.

He shook his head and prepared to slip away quietly, staying out of this mess.

But just as he moved his feet, something else happened.

"Croak! Croak, croak!"

A rapid series of sounds erupted as creatures broke through the earth. Mud churned all around them, and another five or six giant toads emerged, surrounding Gon and Killua in an instant.

The monsters seemed organized. They blocked every escape route, their bulging yellow eyes fixed on the two little figures in their midst.

Now even Killua's expression changed.

"Hey, Gon. This isn't looking good." Lowering his voice, he pressed his back tightly against Gon's. "Looks like these things are working together."

"Yeah! There are loads!" Gon still sounded excited, but his eyes grew serious. "Killua, want to take half each?"

"Idiot! How are we supposed to fight this many? Get ready to break through!" Killua shouted in exasperation.

But the toads clearly had no intention of giving them a chance. Their cheeks swelled as they released waves of low, resonating croaks, seemingly communicating.

The next second, every toad opened its mouth at once.

Not their tongues!

"Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!"

They spat globs of thick, foul-smelling purple liquid. The spray covered an enormous area in an almost indiscriminate attack, instantly cutting off every route Gon and Killua could use to dodge.

"Not good!" Killua's expression changed drastically. He could dodge a single attack, but not a volley that blanketed the entire area.

As the venom was about to splash onto them, Lin Yan's mind buzzed.

He knew he couldn't keep hiding.

These two were the protagonists of this world, key figures in its future.

If anything happened to them here, the course of the entire world would change in unpredictable ways.

Besides, a cultivator was supposed to follow his heart. Standing by and letting them die would stain his Dao heart, and that would be the greatest loss of all!

"Get back!"

With a sharp shout, Lin Yan burst out from behind the bushes.

He didn't charge toward Gon and Killua. Instead, he ran toward a large tree off to the side.

As he ran, he poured every last bit of the faint wisp of Qi within him into the meridians in his legs.

It was an extremely crude application. By the theories of his previous life, this was brute force, something that would damage his meridians. But with lives at stake, he couldn't worry about that now.

A searing pain immediately stabbed through his leg muscles, followed by an explosive burst of strength far beyond his usual limits.

Lin Yan pushed off hard, launching himself forward like a cannonball.

He slammed both hands against the rough tree trunk and used the rebound to flip through the air, clearing the purple venom and landing beside Gon and Killua.

"You?!"

Killua briefly faltered. Surprise crossed his face at Lin Yan's sudden appearance.

Gon looked just as astonished. "Lin Yan! What are you doing here?"

"Save the questions!"

Without pausing after he landed, Lin Yan pulled several hard black berries he had picked up along the way from inside his clothes and shouted to Killua, "Do you trust me?"

Killua had no idea what Lin Yan intended, but looking into those eyes, unusually bright in the mist, he found himself nodding. "Trust you with what?"

"Their weak spot is inside their mouths! Use your throwing skills to get these in there!"

Lin Yan spoke at a rapid clip.

While observing from the sidelines, he had used his faint Qi to sense that the energy inside the toads briefly stagnated whenever they spat venom. The endpoint of that energy flow lay deep in their throats.

That had to be where their vital point was, something like a demon core or an energy core!

He had specifically sought out these berries. Their shells were hard, but inside they contained some kind of irritating juice.

Killua didn't hesitate.

He didn't know how Lin Yan had identified their weak point, but seeing him leap into danger to save him and Gon had already earned his trust.

"Okay!"

He took the berries from Lin Yan, his gaze suddenly sharpening.

"Gon, draw their attention!" Killua shouted.

"Leave it to me!" Gon roared. Swinging his fishing rod with a fierce whistle, he charged straight at the largest toad.

Sure enough, most of the toads turned their attention to Gon. One after another, they opened their enormous mouths, preparing to spit venom again.

Now!

Killua moved.

He used no flashy technique, only the simplest, fastest throw.

In his hands, the black berries became dark streaks of light, flying with a piercing whistle.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

They shot precisely into the gaping throats of three toads.

"Cro... ak?"

The three toads abruptly froze, seemingly not yet realizing what had happened.

But a second later, their enormous bodies began convulsing violently, like punctured balloons.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Dull explosions rang out. The backs of the three giant toads' necks burst open, spraying flesh and fragments of organs as their massive bodies crashed to the ground.

It worked!

Joy surged through Lin Yan.

Killua's eyes lit up too. He glanced at the hands he had thrown with, then at Lin Yan, who stood panting beside him, his gaze full of astonishment.

How did this quiet, frail-looking guy know where these monsters' vital points were?

And that burst of speed just now... it was nothing like what he usually showed!

"There are more!" Lin Yan had no time to explain. He pointed at the remaining toads. "They're getting away!"

Seemingly terrified by their companions' gruesome deaths, the remaining toads let out strange cries and burrowed into the marsh, fleeing frantically.

"Trying to run? Not a chance!"

There was no way Gon would let these "ingredients" escape. Shouting happily, he chased after them.

Killua immediately followed. His movements were clean and efficient, and every time he struck, another toad fell.

Soon, nothing remained in the small clearing but toad carcasses strewn across the ground and three boys gasping for breath.