Deathly Qi in the Snake Pit

Killua tore through the forest.

He had no idea where he was going. He only wanted to get away, driven by instinct-away from Gon, away from Lin Yan, away from the place that had chilled him to the bone.

Wind howled past his ears. Cold air flooded his lungs, making them burn.

But he couldn't stop.

Two scenes kept replaying in his head, like a film on an endless loop.

One was of Lin Yan.

Even facing a monster like Hisoka, that guy had still managed to smile.

He had stood on the riverbank, his slender figure like a sword driven into the earth, one that would break before it bent.

He had dared to confront Hisoka, dared to negotiate with him, and had actually gotten a number badge out of that lunatic in the end.

The other scene was of himself.

His older brother Illumi had merely appeared in the distance. He hadn't even said a word, yet Killua had become a terrified rat, barely able to stand, almost losing control in front of Gon and Lin Yan.

The stark contrast was like two invisible hands clamped around his heart, squeezing until he couldn't breathe.

Shame, anger, and... uncontrollable self-loathing.

"Useless!"

He slammed his fist into a nearby tree.

The hard trunk shuddered slightly under the blow. Bark splintered, exposing the white wood beneath.

Blood seeped from his fist as well.

But he couldn't feel the pain.

Compared with the humiliation in his heart, the pain in his body was nothing.

"Why... why was I that scared?"

He leaned against the trunk and slowly slid down, finally slumping to the ground.

His brother's expressionless face surfaced in his mind again, along with those hollow, abyss-like eyes.

"Killua, you cannot have friends."

"Friends will only become your weakness. They'll dull your edge and slow you down."

"When you encounter an enemy stronger than you, run. That is an assassin's iron rule, because failing a mission means death."

Throughout his childhood, those cold words had been driven into his mind like nails, one after another, and etched into his bones.

He had once believed his brother was right.

An assassin needed neither emotions nor friends.

But then he had met Gon.

That guy, so innocent he seemed like an idiot, would be genuinely happy over even the smallest improvement Killua made. He would risk his own life when Killua was in danger, and look at him with those utterly clear eyes and say, "Killua, I'm so glad I met you."

He liked being with Gon.

It was easy and comfortable. He didn't have to pretend.

He had also begun to admire Lin Yan.

The guy looked so frail a gust of wind might knock him over, but the sheer amount of knowledge in his head was frightening. At the most critical moments, he always found some incredible way to solve their problems.

More importantly, Lin Yan possessed a confidence Killua had never seen before. It came not from overwhelming strength, but from absolute faith in his own path.

He had thought he had changed.

He had thought he could finally escape the cage bearing the Zoldyck Family name.

But reality had delivered a resounding slap to his face.

He was still the coward who trembled all over at the mere sight of his brother.

He didn't deserve to be Gon's friend.

He had even less right to stand beside someone like Lin Yan.

A deep sense of helplessness swallowed him whole.

He found a secluded hollow in a nearby tree and curled up inside like an injured animal, burying his head deep between his knees.

Elsewhere, Lin Yan raced through the forest.

After patterns had formed on his dantian embryo, his physical abilities had risen to another level.

Now, going all out, he was considerably faster than before. He seemed to merge with the wind in the forest, leaving only blurred afterimages behind him.

As he traveled, he pushed his perception to its limits.

Leorio's aura was drawing closer.

But at the same time, the deathly qi coiling around him was growing denser.

Something's wrong... this deathly qi isn't just yin energy or killing intent.

Lin Yan rapidly analyzed the situation.

If it were killing intent, it should have come from a living person and carried a strong sense of deliberate malice.

But this energy was cold and deathly still, steeped in decay and bitter hatred.

It was more like... something left behind by the dead.

Lingering resentment? Or some kind of curse?

He recalled certain details from the original story. Nen Abilities in the Hunter world came in all sorts of strange forms. If powerful Nen failed to dissipate after its user's death, it could indeed create all manner of bizarre phenomena.

"This is trouble."

Lin Yan picked up his pace even further.

He had to find Leorio as soon as possible.

Otherwise, prolonged exposure to this deathly qi could permanently damage his soul even if he survived. It might even leave him an imbecile.

Soon, he burst out of a dense stretch of forest and found a low-lying swamp before him.

It was much darker here than elsewhere. The damp air was thick with the foul smell of rotting vegetation mixed with mud.

Both Leorio's faint aura and the dense deathly qi originated from a small, vine-covered mound in the center of the swamp.

Lin Yan stopped instead of rushing straight over.

Standing at the edge of the swamp, he closed his eyes and used the Qi Observation Technique again.

This time, he saw more clearly.

The mound wasn't a mound at all, but the entrance to an enormous cave.

Beyond its mouth lay darkness whose depths he could not see.

Leorio's vitality flickered like a feeble candle deep within that darkness.

Around him, the black deathly qi had grown so dense it was almost tangible, wrapping him tightly like an enormous mass of constantly squirming sludge.

What alarmed Lin Yan even more was that inside that sludge, he "saw" thousands upon thousands of tiny, cold points of light, each radiating faint malice.

They were packed together in overlapping layers, a sight that made his scalp prickle.

Are those... snakes?

A thought flashed through his mind.

Only cold-blooded creatures like snakes, which favored dark places, would gather here in such immense numbers.

Had Leorio fallen into a snake pit?

And judging by the situation, he had been poisoned as well.

That black deathly qi was most likely the product of resentment mixing with venom after the death of some highly venomous snake.

As Lin Yan considered what to do, hurried footsteps sounded behind him.

"Lin Yan!"

It was Gon.

In the end, he hadn't been able to stop worrying and had caught up with Kurapika in tow.

"What are you two doing here?" Lin Yan turned, frowning slightly.

"We were worried about you!" Gon said breathlessly. "Kurapika said he could still hold on. We can't let you risk your life alone!"

Kurapika leaned against a tree. His face was still pale, but his gaze was resolute.

Lin Yan looked at them, feeling both helpless and a little warmth in his heart. He knew this was what it meant to have companions.

"All right, but you have to follow my instructions. Absolutely no reckless moves," Lin Yan said sternly.

"Right!" Gon nodded firmly.

"Leorio is in that cave up ahead." Lin Yan pointed at the vine-covered entrance. "But things are complicated inside. There are a lot of venomous snakes, along with some very troublesome deathly qi. We can't just charge in."

"Then what do we do?" Gon grew anxious. He sniffed, and his expression changed as well. "I smell him! It's Leorio's scent! And... something really awful. It's sweet, but also really rank. Just smelling it makes me want to throw up!"

It was the smell of death mixed with deadly venom.

"I'll go take a look first. You two wait here."

As he spoke, Lin Yan prepared to move.

"Wait!" Kurapika suddenly said.

He took several number badges from inside his clothes and held them out to Lin Yan. "Take these. If... I mean, if something happens to us, you'll still be able to pass on your own."

Lin Yan looked at the badges he offered, then at the resolve on his and Gon's faces, as though they had already prepared for the worst. For no clear reason, his heart softened.

He reached out, but instead of taking the badges, he patted Kurapika on the shoulder.

"Don't worry. Now that I'm here, I'll get every last one of you out in one piece."

His tone was calm, but the confidence in his words was like a soothing balm. Somehow, it settled the anxiety in Gon and Kurapika's hearts.

Without another word, Lin Yan took a deep breath. His figure flickered, and he slipped toward the cave entrance as silently as a ghost.

He didn't take a straight path. Instead, he used the scattered trees and protruding rocks in the swamp to keep changing his position, never making the slightest sound.

Before long, he reached the vine-covered entrance.

A cold, damp breeze carrying a heavy stench blew out through the gaps around the cave mouth.

Lin Yan pushed aside a thick layer of vines and peered inside.

The cave was pitch-black.

But with his current eyesight, darkness posed no obstacle.

One glance was enough to make his breath catch sharply and his pupils contract.