Divine Dogs were the most versatile Shikigami in the Ten Shadows Technique.
However, there was one thing to keep in mind when using the Ten Shadows Technique: Shikigami could die.
A Shikigami that was completely killed could no longer be summoned, but its power and traits would be inherited by other Shikigami.
That was why, of Megumi Fushiguro's black and white Divine Dogs, the Black Divine Dogs evolved into Divine Dog: Totality and became stronger after the White Divine Dogs died.
Qiao Lun had no plans to let his Divine Dogs die and pass on their power for now, so he would be extra careful with their movements. Besides, the usual strategy was actually to return a Shikigami to the shadows once it was injured and could no longer fight, allowing it to recover through cursed energy.
The Divine Dogs left on the rooftop were now running rapidly downstairs.
What the Divine Dogs could convey to Qiao Lun were location, direction, scent, cursed energy signatures, and danger signals. They could not transmit images in real time.
But that was enough.
After Nue carried Qiao Lun and Feitan away, two people appeared below the building.
One was a tall, beastlike man: Uvogin.
The other was a young woman with beautiful pink hair, a rather cold expression, and sharp eyes. She was Machi of the Phantom Troupe.
Nen threads like fishing line were still wound around Machi's fingertips, stretching taut upward to connect to Nue as it flew through the air.
Someone managing to escape the auction venue had been somewhat unexpected for Machi.
However, she had set things up outside the building from the start. Even though the people who rushed out had broken through the Nen threads she had laid down, they had not completely escaped her control. The broken threads had attached themselves to them, becoming ideal tracking markers.
But while she was still debating whether to track them down and eliminate them, Uvogin had already leaped out of the building.
That left Machi with no choice but to follow.
Now their targets had been circling in the air on a large bird for quite some time, making Machi wonder whether they had already discovered the Nen threads she had left on them.
After all, during this chase, their targets had already spotted her and Uvogin several times.
"Uvogin, wait." Machi stopped.
The fact that their targets had not removed the Nen threads might not mean they did not want to, but that they were setting a trap and waiting for them to walk into it.
Machi had to guard against that possibility. Besides, she had already contacted Shalnark by text. They could still find their targets without pursuing them.
The identity of the person who had summoned the Nen beast was still unknown, but they had already identified the woman rescued from the venue.
"What?" Uvogin had been nursing some anger ever since the surprise attack. Now, after chasing them for so long, he felt as though they were leading him around like a clown, which only made him angrier. He wanted nothing more than to catch up and tear them to pieces.
"Stop chasing. We should be able to find them faster another way." Machi waved her phone. "Shalnark already found information on the escapee in the building's computers. He's a Nostrade Family bodyguard. Also, the merchandise probably isn't on them. Let's go to the Bechta Hotel. Once we capture their employer, we won't have to worry about them not coming to us."
Uvogin stopped. If he could find them without being toyed with, he was naturally happy to do so.
If they did not dare come when the time came, he would not mind killing the hostage outright, either.
"What did the boss say? And have Feitan and the others pulled out?" Uvogin flexed his fists.
"Feitan and the others are already on the hot-air balloon. As for us, let's capture them first." Machi hailed a taxi right there on the street, making the decision for Uvogin.
If they ran there, she did not know exactly where the Bechta Hotel was.
"The mafia probably won't give up the pursuit, so Feitan and the others should still have a fight with them. If we hurry, we might still get to have some fun." Uvogin was belligerent. Had the person who attacked him not drawn his attention, he might already have been enjoying a thoroughly satisfying fight with the mafia members.
But neither of the two getting into the car noticed that two Divine Dogs had quietly appeared on the street.
The Divine Dogs were Shikigami Qiao Lun summoned using shadows as a medium, beings composed entirely of cursed energy. Ordinary people could not sense cursed energy and could neither see nor hear the Divine Dogs, much less touch them.
Nen users could see the Divine Dogs because, after mastering Nen, they could perceive the existence of energy.
And however it was classified, cursed energy was a form of energy.
The White Divine Dogs turned and left, while the Black Divine Dogs continued tracking them.
Qiao Lun, who had been watching the Nen threads all along, narrowed his eyes slightly. The distance between him and the Divine Dogs was increasing, and the angle of the Nen threads on Nue had changed as well.
That meant Machi was moving away from them. Had she decided not to keep pursuing them?
But the Nen threads had not broken yet. Qiao Lun raised a hand and pointed in the direction the Black Divine Dogs had gone. "What's in that direction?"
"Hm?" Feitan did not understand what Qiao Lun meant at first, but soon caught on. "The Bechta Hotel. The hotel where the captain is."
"Your identities and location have been exposed." Although Qiao Lun was speaking to Feitan, his gaze rested on Feitan's earpiece.
Their earlier plan had been to determine how many people were pursuing them, then lead those people to Kurapika's location, where the mafia would also coordinate with them. But now it seemed the Phantom Troupe clearly did not want to be led around by the nose.
Still, Qiao Lun was somewhat surprised that they had identified Feitan so quickly.
Phones at this stage had very limited information-searching capabilities, so they could only have obtained the information from the computers in the building.
That also meant the Phantom Troupe might leave the building later than they had in the manga.
What might happen during that interval was uncertain.
But the Phantom Troupe had made the wrong move. Qiao Lun had little to do with the Nostrade Family. Besides, if he remembered correctly, the number of Nostrade Family bodyguards listed on the computers was inaccurate as well.
Still, Kurapika probably did not yet know that the people who had attacked the auction venue were members of the Phantom Troupe.
Should I use that information to establish a connection with Kurapika?
Just as Qiao Lun had guessed, Kurapika was currently on the rooftop of a nearby building.
From his position, all he had to do was look up to see Nue weaving between the buildings.
Even observing from a distance was enough for him to tell that Nue was probably a Nen beast created by an Emitter.
His basis for that judgment was that ordinary people could not see Nue at all.
From Feitan's earlier report, he could tell that the person who had rescued Feitan probably wanted to cooperate with the mafia and them to strike back at their pursuers.
But now it seemed that rescuing Feitan had instead allowed their opponents to trace him back to the Nostrade Family, which they now intended to attack directly.
Kurapika had kept his phone call connected. Listening on the other end was the bodyguard captain, Dalzollene.
"They're very strong. Being able to kill Ivlenkov and Shachmono in an instant proves their astonishing combat strength, and being able to investigate our information so quickly proves they're very capable when it comes to intelligence, too," Kurapika warned.
"I know. We're relocating. Help keep that person around. If we can't deal with the attackers tonight, we may still have a use for him." Dalzollene issued instructions rapidly as he moved.
Light Nostrade already knew what had happened tonight. Between Neon's safety and an opportunity to advance, he clearly knew which mattered more.