"Hah!"
Under Jed's astonished gaze, his unstoppable fist tore straight through Ronnel's chest!
Is he throwing his life away on purpose?
The thought surfaced in Jed's mind, but he quickly dismissed it.
What a joke. We've reached this point, and you're telling me he deliberately let himself get hit?
No one would believe that!
But if he's not throwing his life away, that means he must have something up his sleeve!
Jed immediately heightened his awareness to the fullest, preparing for any unexpected moves. Unfortunately, despite his vigilance, the brief moment he spent processing his thoughts was all it took for his opponent to seize an opening.
Just as Jed's attack connected and his momentum stalled for a split second, a figure suddenly sprang from behind Ronnel's impaled body!
"Tch... Another clone?!"
Jed's eyes instinctively followed the movement, and when he finally got a clear look at the figure's face, his pupils contracted sharply.
In such a short time, it should already be a huge limitation to create just one perfect clone... And now there's more than one?
Is this a restriction and vow?!
His thoughts ran wild, but reality didn't allow him the luxury of contemplation.
A second Ronnel lunged forward and threw a devastating punch aimed straight at Jed's head!
Years of combat experience kicked in—Jed reflexively raised an arm to block the strike before his brain could fully process the attack.
But it was too late.
His hurried defense, combined with the sheer power of the punch, proved to be his downfall.
The moment his arm made contact, searing pain shot through him, and then—
A horrifying weightlessness.
He watched in stunned disbelief as his own severed arm, still crackling with residual aura, spun through the air, blood spraying from the wound!
And that wasn't the end of it.
With unstoppable momentum, Ronnel's clawed hand slashed diagonally across Jed's right chest. His fingers sliced through flesh like a hot knife through butter, burying themselves deep into muscle and bone until his palm was pressed tightly against Jed's chest.
"You know..."
Ronnel grinned as blood dripped from the corner of Jed's mouth, his expression dark and triumphant.
"Art!"
The moment the words left his lips, a scorching heat erupted from the point of contact on Jed's chest.
The temperature surged, spreading through Jed's body faster than his nerves could even register.
"BOOM!!"
A deafening explosion rocked the tower, its force emanating from Jed's chest like a massive detonation of high-yield explosives!
The technique—Nen: Little Flower—originated from Genthru, but in Ronnel's hands, it became a weapon of utter destruction.
A tiny pinch of gunpowder.
The more Nen is concentrated in the hand, the more devastating the explosion upon contact!
And Ronnel had been fully prepared.
The sheer concentration of Nen in his palm was immense—resulting in an explosion of catastrophic proportions.
"What was that?!"
On the outer walls of Heavens Arena, Killua clung to an iron railing with one hand, holding Gon with the other, his steel yo-yo wrapped around the structure for support.
The two boys swayed in the wind, their eyes wide as they stared at the rising mushroom cloud at the top of the tower.
"That was insane!"
The blast had been so intense that even from this distance, Gon and Killua could feel the lingering heat in the air.
"Killua, do you think that explosion was Ronnel's doing or that weird guy's?"
"It's probably Ronnel." Killua furrowed his brow. "I mean, that guy was using ghostly Nen abilities, right? I remember one of our butlers telling me that spirits are weak to strong yang energy... And explosions seem pretty yang-heavy, don't they?"
He sounded uncertain.
"Maybe... Killua, look! That monster!"
Gon's urgent shout made Killua snap his head toward the massive Rakshasa Jed had summoned.
The grotesque creature's form was unraveling before their very eyes, black and blue aura lines violently surging through its body before it started to disintegrate like melting ice!
"Is it... breaking down?"
"Yeah. He must have lost the strength to maintain it. That means... that explosion..."
The two boys looked at each other.
"Ronnel won."
Their shoulders sagged in relief.
"Alright, Killua, let's find a better place to land. Hanging here hurts."
"Yeah, hold on. That wall over there looks weak—you think you can punch through it?"
"I'll give it a shot... Oh, right, Killua."
Gon hesitated, his expression suddenly serious.
"Huh? What is it?"
"With an explosion that big... Do you think Chairman Netero is okay?"
Silence.
A cold gust of wind made them shiver before Killua finally spoke.
"He should be... alright?"
Back at the top of the tower—
"Hah... hah..."
Heavy, ragged breathing echoed through the ruined battleground.
Jed coughed weakly, his only remaining hand trembling as he raised it in front of his eyes. His voice came out hoarse, his gaze unfocused.
"Heh... To think I'd end up like this..."
His condition was beyond miserable.
His right arm had been severed. A gaping hole had been blown through his chest, so large that he could literally see through his own body.
His entire upper torso was charred black, his once silver-white hair burned away, and patches of scorched flesh covered his face.
Yet somehow... he was still conscious.
Barely.
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