Time flew, and another six months passed in the blink of an eye. A full year and a half had gone by since Lin Ye arrived in Meteor City. His body had grown from that of a scrawny ten-year-old into an eleven-year-old's. He had shot up in height, his frame becoming straight and sturdy, his muscles sleek and packed with explosive strength. He was no longer the frail, dying little boy he had been when he first arrived. Over those six months, Lin Ye's strength had undergone another qualitative leap. Under Fei Lan's guidance, he had fully integrated Haki, the Six Powers, and Nen into a complete combat system uniquely his own. He had mastered all of the Six Powers. Shave had evolved into its advanced form, Flash Shave. He could stamp the ground more than fifty times within 0.2 seconds, instantly covering two hundred meters. He could also change direction at will while moving at high speed. Combined with Observation Haki's predictions, this allowed him to appear in any of an opponent's blind spots during battle and launch an attack they had no answer for. He could easily catch up even to bullets, using Flash Shave to circle around their flight paths and intercept them. Iron Body had evolved into its advanced form, Diamond Body. With Nen's Ken at its core and Armament Haki covering his entire body, it formed two layers of defense, inside and out. Now, even if he stood still and took a shotgun blast at close range, he would feel only a slight vibration and suffer no damage whatsoever. Even an ordinary Nen user's full-strength attack could not breach his Diamond Body defense. Only penetrating attacks on the level of Ryuo could threaten him. Kami-e had evolved into its advanced form, No-Mind. With Observation Haki at its core, combined with the extreme bodily control afforded by Manipulation Type Nen, his body could dodge automatically on instinct. His brain did not need to think. Simply by sensing aura flow and attack trajectories through Observation Haki, his body could execute the perfect evasive movement on its own. Even if more than a dozen Nen users attacked from every direction at once, he could easily evade every strike with No-Mind Kami-e without so much as the hem of his clothes being touched. Finger Pistol had evolved into its advanced form, Emperor Pistol. With Nen's Ko at its core, combined with Armament Haki and Ryuo, it achieved the ultimate in single-point penetration. He could concentrate all the aura in his body into his fingertip and thrust at tremendous speed. With Ryuo's penetrating effect, he could bypass most Nen defenses and strike directly at a target's internal organs and aura nodes. He could punch through thick tank armor with a single finger, let alone an ordinary human body. Tempest Kick had evolved into its advanced form, Dragon Tempest. With Emission Nen at its core, combined with an ultrafast kick, he could release highly compressed aura infused with Armament Haki to form a dragon-shaped cutting wave. A Dragon Tempest launched by his kick now had a maximum range of two hundred meters and enough power to easily cleave apart an abandoned building. He could precisely control its trajectory, even making it turn in midair to sweep an entire area. Over those six months, Lin Ye had also fully mastered the last of the Six Powers, Geppo, and developed it into its advanced form, Sky Step. At its core, Geppo was an airborne extension of Shave. By repeatedly stepping on the air and using instantaneous bursts of aura to generate counterforce, he could stay aloft and fly. At first, Lin Ye could only take a few steps in midair and remain airborne for several seconds before falling. But under Fei Lan's guidance, he had perfectly integrated Nen's Ten into Geppo, using it to stabilize the aura bursting from beneath his feet so that every step generated the greatest possible counterforce. Now, with Sky Step, he could fly freely through the air, reaching altitudes of several hundred meters and moving even faster than he could with Shave on the ground. Terrain no longer restricted him. By this point, Lin Ye had mastered every one of the Six Powers, developed all of them into their advanced forms, and perfectly integrated them with Nen and Haki. His Haki training had also entered an entirely new realm. Armament Haki could now cover his whole body without any gaps for over an hour, consuming very little aura. His use of Ryuo had also reached perfection. He could add its penetrating effect to any attack, whether a punch, Finger Pistol, or Tempest Kick's cutting wave, breaching his opponent's Nen defenses to strike directly inside. He could even coat a katana in Ryuo, giving its blade's slashes a penetrating effect that truly let him cut through iron as though it were mud. Observation Haki had made an even more dramatic breakthrough. Seeing Lin Ye's talent for it, even Fei Lan could not help marveling that he had the keenest sensitivity to presences of anyone he had ever met. Over those six months, Fei Lan had systematically taught Lin Ye the advanced Nen technique En. En was an advanced application of Ten and Ren. By spreading one's aura into the surrounding space, it created a circular sensory field that could precisely detect the slightest disturbance within its range. An ordinary Nen user's En could extend dozens of meters, while even most top-level experts could only reach a few hundred meters. Lin Ye, however, had perfectly integrated En with Observation Haki. Instead of fixing his En into an indiscriminate circular field like an ordinary Nen user, he had incorporated Observation Haki's flexibility into it. He could freely adjust the range and direction of his senses like radar, extending his aura wherever he wanted to perceive without having to cover the entire area indiscriminately. As a result, his sensory range was far greater than conventional En, while consuming far less aura and being much harder to detect. His Observation Haki now had a maximum range of fifty kilometers in every direction. Within that range, no living creature's presence, flow of aura, or change in emotion could escape his senses. He could even use Observation Haki to predict an opponent's attack trajectory and next move five seconds in advance, always seizing the initiative in battle. Fei Lan had once said that, in terms of perception alone, Lin Ye had already surpassed the vast majority of elite bounty hunters. Even the Hunter Association's dedicated intelligence hunters might not possess senses as powerful as his. Lin Ye's Nen training had also firmly brought him into the ranks of experts. He had perfected the Four Major Principles and mastered all four advanced techniques-Shu, Ken, Ko, and Ryu-integrating them perfectly with Haki and the Six Powers. His total aura had increased dozens of times over compared to a year earlier, giving him tremendous endurance in combat. Even after fighting continuously for several hours, he would not run out of aura. Fei Lan had once sparred with Lin Ye. At first, Fei Lan used only thirty percent of his strength, but as the fight went on, he had to raise it to fifty percent. In the end, he had needed seventy percent just to barely keep Lin Ye suppressed. After the spar, Fei Lan looked at Lin Ye and said with a smile, "In another two years, I won't be a match for you." Those words were the greatest acknowledgment of Lin Ye's strength. After all, Fei Lan had spent more than a decade as an elite bounty hunter. Even after losing half an arm and hiding in Meteor City for over a decade, he remained a top-level Nen user. Even the District Chief of District 13 might not be a match for him. And now, at eleven years old, Lin Ye could already withstand attacks made with seventy percent of his strength. Besides Lin Ye's rapid growth, Lina's progress also delighted them both. Over those six months, Lina had fully mastered the basics of the Four Major Principles and successfully awakened a Manipulation Type Nen Ability. Her ability let her control her own hair, infusing it with aura to make it as hard as steel wire. She could use it to attack, defend, and sense movements around her. It perfectly suited her Manipulation Type and made up for her lack of close-combat ability. Although Lina was still not as strong as Lin Ye, she could now easily handle ordinary gang members and novice Nen users. She was no longer the little girl who could only hide in a corner and tremble. Day after day passed in this peaceful, fulfilling routine of training. In the little courtyard of the abandoned factory, the three of them lived a rare, peaceful life, far removed from Meteor City's conflicts and bloodshed. Sometimes, Lin Ye even felt that carrying on like this forever would not be so bad. But he also knew that Meteor City had never been a place where one could truly settle down. Their peace was only temporary. Fei Lan's enemies from back then were like a time bomb that could explode at any moment. And Lin Ye had never forgotten his promise to Fei Lan. He would help Fei Lan track down the people who had betrayed him all those years ago. That evening, the three of them sat in the courtyard eating dinner. The kerosene lamp cast a dim, warm glow over the table, where Lina had served three dishes and a soup. In resource-starved Meteor City, a hot meal like this was already an extraordinary luxury. As they ate, Lin Ye looked at Fei Lan, hesitated, then finally spoke. "Master, there's something I want to discuss with you." "Hmm? What is it?" Fei Lan set down his chopsticks and looked at him. "I want to investigate the people who betrayed you back then," Lin Ye said earnestly. "My Observation Haki can cover all of District 13 now, and even reach into other districts. Information travels quickly at the supply exchange points. I want to try looking into where those people are now." At those words, Fei Lan's hand paused slightly over his chopsticks. He remained silent for a long time, and the courtyard instantly grew quiet. Lina also stopped eating and watched the two of them cautiously, not daring to speak. After a long while, Fei Lan slowly raised his head and looked at Lin Ye. A flicker of complicated emotion crossed his eyes-nostalgia, hatred, and acceptance. He sighed softly, set down his chopsticks, and gazed at the murky night sky beyond the window. Then he slowly began recounting what had happened all those years ago. "Back then, I had a five-person bounty hunter team. We faced life and death together for more than a decade and caught countless wanted criminals. We had made something of a name for ourselves among hunters." "The one who betrayed me was my closest brother, and our team's second-in-command. His name was Karen. Two other members of the team joined him in betraying me." "We had taken on a bounty job worth an astronomical sum. The target was a gang boss called Bloodhand, with a bounty of three billion Jenny. We spent a full six months preparing and finally found his hideout. But on the night before our raid, Karen sold our entire plan to Bloodhand." "We walked into an ambush. Hundreds of gunmen and more than a dozen Nen users surrounded us. Two of my other brothers died on the spot covering for me. I risked my life to kill Bloodhand and lost half an arm before I managed to break out of the encirclement." "After that, I hid in Meteor City and never left again. As for Karen and the Bloodhand Gang, I never heard anything about them again." Fei Lan spoke calmly, but both Lin Ye and Lina could hear the overwhelming hatred hidden beneath that flat tone, along with the pain of being betrayed by the brother he had trusted most. Lin Ye clenched his fists and looked at Fei Lan earnestly. "Master, don't worry. I'll find Karen and the people who betrayed you. No matter where they are, I'll track them down." Seeing the resolve in Lin Ye's eyes, Fei Lan smiled and patted his shoulder. "Thank you, Lin Ye." "But there's no need to rush. Someone like Karen will do anything for money and power. He won't simply vanish without a trace. We just have to wait. Sooner or later, he'll give himself away." He paused, his tone turning serious. "And remember, the peace we have now didn't come easily. Don't recklessly take risks over my affairs and put both yourself and Lina in danger. Do you understand?" Seeing the concern in Fei Lan's eyes, Lin Ye nodded. "I understand, Master. I won't act rashly." But in his heart, he had already made up his mind. He would uncover the truth of what had happened back then for his master and find those traitors. What he did not know was that danger was already silently closing in on their peaceful little courtyard. The traitors from all those years ago had already found Fei Lan.
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