Gon! Get stronger!

Ponzu looked at Gon and the others.

Seeing the same terrified expressions on their faces,

she began to gain a new understanding of this world.

Once the suffocating sensation ended,

the chill around Cordis gradually began to fade as well.

Strangely, though, nothing around them seemed to have changed.

Neither the dead Babon nor the snakes waiting for their chance to strike had changed at all.

Just as Ponzu began to think Cordis was putting on an act,

Cordis reached toward Babon without hesitation.

The snakes coiled overhead stopped waiting too, opening their gaping jaws and lunging at Cordis.

Ponzu couldn't bear to watch.

She could already picture Cordis covered in bloody puncture wounds from their bites.

Strangely, however, the snakes seemed to have been blocked off.

They were kept away from Babon and Cordis.

It was as though an invisible barrier surrounded Babon and Cordis.

No matter which direction the snakes approached from, they couldn't break through.

Ponzu found it utterly astonishing.

Although she was afraid of the snakes, her curiosity got the better of her.

She forced down her fear.

She walked behind Cordis.

She reached out to press against the barrier.

Strangely, though, there didn't seem to be anything in front of her.

Ponzu was bewildered.

Then what was going on with those snakes? There clearly wasn't any barrier here.

Ponzu continued walking toward Cordis.

She reached out to touch him.

But just as she was about to make contact, a force bounced her hand back.

At first, Ponzu refused to believe it.

After several attempts, however, she had no choice.

That meant she could get as close to Cordis as she wanted, but could never actually touch him.

Ponzu looked back at Kurapika and Gon, who stood a short distance behind her.

After watching everything Ponzu had tried, both of them looked utterly baffled too.

But they also understood one thing.

Being a Hunter was far more complicated than they had imagined.

It seemed the Hunter Exam was merely the most basic step toward becoming a Hunter.

And if their guess was right,

Hisoka probably had an ability like Cordis's too.

That realization dealt Gon another blow.

Only after witnessing this did Gon realize how much he had underestimated this world.

And how much he had underestimated Hisoka.

Cordis seemed far stronger than Gon had imagined.

Yet even someone as strong as Cordis had still been defeated by a single punch from Hisoka.

If I fought Cordis, what chance would I have of winning?

Gon didn't dare think about it.

But the answer was already obvious.

Almost none.

That made fighting Hisoka even more out of the question. The gulf between them was simply enormous.

If Hisoka were an ordinary person, Gon might still have had a chance.

But now...

As those thoughts ran through his mind, Gon clenched his fists.

Once again, he hated his own helplessness so intensely.

He loathed how weak he was.

Just then, a hand stroked Gon's head.

Gon looked up to see Cordis smiling at him.

"You're strong too, Gon. And you're younger than Hisoka. You'll surpass him someday."

"If all else fails, wait until Hisoka's old and frail, then pull out his oxygen tube."

It was as though Cordis could read minds.

Whatever Gon was thinking, Cordis seemed to know it all with a single glance.

And his words rekindled Gon's hope.

Pulling out someone's oxygen tube was a little unethical.

But if he never managed to surpass Hisoka,

it was still worth considering.

Meanwhile, Cordis had already handed the antivenom to Kurapika.

Kurapika immediately injected it into the unconscious Leorio.

As Leorio's breathing gradually steadied,

everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Cordis gave Ponzu a look, signaling that she could release the gas.

Ponzu now had a new understanding of Cordis too.

After catching his signal, she took the Sleeping Gas out of her enormous yellow hat.

Watching Gon prepare beside her, she asked worriedly,

"Are you sure this will be okay? If you can't hold your breath long enough, we'll be stuck here with our lives left to chance."

Then she looked at Cordis and suggested,

"Wouldn't it be better to have Cordis use that strange ability to get us out?"

Cordis shook his head.

"No. I haven't figured this ability out yet. It's not just you who don't understand it-even I don't know how it works."

Hearing that, Ponzu couldn't say much more.

After Gon opened his mouth and took a deep breath,

Ponzu activated the Sleeping Gas.

A white gas spread through the air.

The others quickly collapsed after inhaling the Sleeping Gas.

Gon pinched his nose and held his breath.

Once he saw that all the snakes blocking the cave had passed out, he didn't dare waste another moment.

He loaded everyone onto his back and ran toward the entrance.

He counted silently in his head.

He managed to carry everyone out of the cave before he ran out of breath.

Gon laid them on the ground one by one.

While Ponzu was still unconscious, he successfully took Leorio's target badge, number 246.

"Great! Now Leorio can become a Hunter too!"

"Gon, do you really want to become a Hunter?"

Cordis's voice came from behind him.

Gon turned to find Cordis already standing on the grass.

From where Gon sat, an endless sea of stars spread out behind Cordis.

Shooting stars flashed behind him.

It was the most beautiful sight Gon had seen since arriving on Sabir Island.

"Yes! I want to become a Hunter! We're all going to become Hunters together! Every last one of us!"

Cordis held out a hand to Gon, the same gentle smile still on his face.

"Gon, get stronger."

Looking at the hand held out to him, Gon took it without hesitation.

He nodded firmly.

"I'm going to be as strong as you, Cordis! I'm going to be even stronger than Hisoka!"

Cordis pulled Gon up from the ground.

He wiped the dirt off Gon's face.

"Keep at it, Gon."

Cordis smiled fondly at Gon. Gon had a long road ahead of him.

There would be sadness as well as joy.

Cordis couldn't stay by his side forever.

He only hoped that the next time they met, Gon would have grown stronger.

At dawn, with the blare of the ship's horn,

the fourth phase of the Hunter Exam finally came to an end.

Aboard the ship, Kara announced over the loudspeaker,

[The fourth phase of the exam is officially over. All candidates must return to the finish line within one hour.]

The candidates who had collected all their required badges began heading toward the finish line.

All right!

Killua will be making an appearance next!

There'll be more interactions with Killua from here on.

Killua fans are in for a treat!