Although he had anticipated that the V5 would inevitably focus on him, Beyond still dared to barge straight into the Hunter Association headquarters. He had even deliberately chosen to appear when almost all the Zodiac Twelve were present.
This extreme, arrogant confidence was likely a cut above even what Netero possessed in his lifetime.
However, the attitude Beyond displayed inevitably enraged the Zodiac Twelve present.
Especially after hearing him personally emphasize that he had killed Netero, the crowd's fury erupted like a volcano, and they all glared at him with murderous eyes.
Under the influence of this intense emotion, the Zodiac Twelve achieved a rare synchronization, directing their powerful, anger-fueled aura to press down hard on Beyond.
Faced with the ferocious aura surging from the Zodiac Twelve, Beyond remained as calm and unruffled as ever, completely unaffected.
I thought you'd pounce on me like wild beasts.
A confident smile played on his lips, but his rugged face, which bore some resemblance to Netero's, showed a hint of amusement.
I didn't expect you to just stand there, baring your teeth and claws.
His right hand rested casually on the hilt of the regalia "Sword of Good Omens," which was wrapped in paper talismans. Beyond shook his head.
"It seems I overestimated your mettle."
"Beyond."
The current chairman, Cheadle, took a step forward. Her gaze, sharp as a knife from behind her glasses, was cold as she spoke.
"Do you think you can just walk in here alone and leave in one piece?"
"Leave in one piece?"
As if he had heard a joke, Beyond raised his left hand to his forehead and chuckled.
"Since I've come, I wouldn't consider something so boring. I'm here to make you all see reality."
He paused, the smile on his lips deepening.
"Besides... who said I came alone?"
Almost as the last word fell, the surrounding space suddenly bloomed with a pale blue hue, which then spread in all directions at a visible speed.
This phenomenon, which dyed real space an unnatural color, was clearly a Conjuration-type Nen space.
Led by Cheadle, the Zodiac Twelve, with the exception of the recently promoted two-star Blacklist Hunter Bushidora, all narrowed their eyes at the sight but showed no signs of panic.
The reason was simple.
A Nen space like this, which could be forcibly deployed regardless of the target's will, usually didn't grant the user an absolute advantage. In fact, it could be beneficial to those pulled into it.
Although some members of the Zodiac Twelve were not combat types, and some even had Nen abilities with no direct combat capability, they were all highly experienced in the domain of Nen.
Therefore, they all immediately identified the nature of this pale blue Nen space and remained composed in the face of danger.
"Not bad. You haven't disgraced the name of the 'Zodiac Twelve'."
Seeing the Zodiacs' composure, Beyond moved his left hand from his forehead to stroke his long beard.
Just then, a slightly steady voice came from nowhere.
"I think it's necessary to introduce myself first. After all, a minor character like me, a contract Hunter, has had no presence before you esteemed members of the Zodiac Twelve, neither in the past nor the present..."
"Phyllis, keep it short," Beyond interrupted the rambling speech, tilting his head back slightly.
"My apologies, it's a professional habit."
The voice paused, then continued:
"I am the Gourmet Hunter, Phyllis. This is my ability. As you can see, it's a Nen space-type ability that can be directly anchored to reality. You can think of it as a 'refrigerator'. Now, here's the important part..."
"Everything stored in this 'refrigerator,' including your physical states, will be in a 'frozen' state. That is to say, no matter how you act inside, you will not alter your initial state from before you were frozen."
"But please note, each item, each person... can only enjoy the effect of the ability once. For example, if something has already been broken and is broken again, its state in reality will be directly broken."
"There's one more thing. I think even if I don't explain it, you esteemed members of the Zodiac Twelve should be able to guess..."
A hint of amusement suddenly entered Phyllis's tone.
"Just as I can activate my ability regardless of your will, you can naturally leave this refrigerator at any time according to your own will. However..."
"However, you will never 'flee'," Beyond suddenly cut in, his rugged face still wearing that confident smile.
Phyllis, having been interrupted, seemed a little frustrated.
But before he could say anything, Beyond waved his hand dismissively.
"Alright, you're done here, Phyllis."
Phyllis could only retreat behind the scenes, aggrieved.
After hearing Phyllis's ability explanation, Kanzai quickly glanced at the hall, which was covered in a pale blue hue but otherwise identical to reality. His gaze finally landed on Beyond's confident face, and he had a realization.
What the hell? You act so high and mighty, but it turns out you just prepared a "one extra life" Nen space for yourself in advance. That's why you're so arrogant.
"You seem to have misunderstood," Beyond said, looking at Kanzai with a grin.
"This Nen space, which you call a 'one extra life,' was specially prepared for you all. After all, you are rare talents. Rather than dying here meaninglessly, it would be better for me to make good use of you later."
"You talk a big game. Aren't you afraid of biting your tongue?" Pyon (Rabbit) put down her phone and pouted.
Cluck coldly interjected, "How much longer are you going to let this bastard ramble on?"
"Cheadle."
Ox Mizaistom looked at Cheadle.
The V5 had already personally issued a special order to hunt down Beyond.
Now that Beyond had delivered himself to their doorstep, his motives were irrelevant.
What needed to be done was to follow through and complete the order, preserving the V5's trust in the Hunter Association.
Cheadle naturally understood the stakes and made an immediate decision.
"You go out first, Beans."
Beans nodded with a grave expression. Thinking of Phyllis's explanation of the ability, he mentally willed himself to leave.
The next second.
His figure flickered and vanished into thin air.
When he came to his senses, he was standing at the edge of the real-world hall.
Before him, a pale blue sphere that covered almost the entire hall floated silently, emitting a visible, bone-chilling cold.
On a chair at the edge of the hall.
Phyllis, wearing a tall chef's hat and a white chef's uniform, was sitting on a chair. Seeing Beans emerge, he kindly reminded him, "Since you're out, you should stay far away. If you get frozen into a popsicle, don't blame me for not warning you."
Beans spun around abruptly and looked at the nonchalant Phyllis. The thought of calling other Pro Hunters to restrain him immediately crossed his mind.
But Phyllis seemed to see right through him and said calmly:
"I'd advise you to save yourself the trouble. How should I put this... I'm 'very weak.' If you accidentally kill me, I can't guarantee that this 'refrigerator' won't remain in the form of Post-Mortem Will."
He raised his index finger and tapped his brow bone lightly.
"If Post-Mortem Nen really is left behind... then I'm even less able to guarantee that they won't be 'frozen' inside forever."
Hearing this, cold sweat instantly trickled down Beans's back.
He understood that in this duel of top-tier Nen users, his non-combatant status left him completely powerless to influence the outcome.
Inside the Nen space.
After Beans left, Cheadle, as the current chairman, gave the order without hesitation:
"Engage! Kill or be killed!"
The battle was about to begin.
Kanzai, who had long since lost his patience with Beyond's arrogance, was the first to charge, with Horse Saccho close behind.
However, Botobai Gigante, the most senior and oldest of the Zodiac Twelve, did not act immediately. Instead, he retreated several steps.
"Give me some time," he said, offering a brief explanation to his comrades with a serious expression.
His ability required preparation time.
And the opponent before them was a top-tier master capable of defeating Chairman Netero with his own hands.
Botobai naturally treated him with the utmost seriousness. He did not rush into an attack but had to face the enemy in his most prepared state.
The other members, though unaware of the details of Botobai's ability, naturally cooperated fully since he had said so.
Mizaistom, using Sheep Ginta's tall frame as cover, silently conjured a yellow card capable of directly restraining a target.
However, his ability could only be activated when the target was committing a criminal act.
Since Beyond had not yet made a move, he could only wait for the "mutual assault" to begin.
Ginta's attention was completely focused on Beyond, and he didn't notice Mizaistom's positioning.
He quickly took a heavy metal CD from his person, inserted it into his portable player, and then reached up to turn on his over-ear headphones.
The moment the rough, passionate music surged from the headphones, Ginta's demeanor and aura underwent a dramatic transformation.
Mizaistom, who was behind him, was the first to notice this change.
Is this Ginta's ability?
Even without seeing Ginta's face, Mizaistom could feel the distinct change in his violently fluctuating aura.
The usually sentimental and sensitive Ginta now seemed to have transformed into a rock singer, desperately releasing his emotions through a roar.
Before Mizaistom could think further, Ginta's sturdy body, wreathed in an aura that undulated like sound waves, had already charged toward Beyond like a thunderbolt.
At the same time, other members skilled in frontal assaults, such as the newly appointed Zodiac and Enhancer Bushidora, also launched their attacks.
In an instant, Beyond was facing a joint preemptive strike from four Zodiacs: Kanzai, Saccho, Ginta, and Bushidora.
And behind them, Gel, Cluck, Pyon, Cheadle, and Mizaistom lay in wait, along with Botobai, who was preparing his ability and might become the greatest threat.
For now, the biggest threat is...
Beyond's gaze passed over Kanzai and the others, finally landing on Gel.
Judging by aura strength alone, this woman was undoubtedly the strongest.
This guy... he's still assessing threat levels?!
Seeing that Beyond even had the spare capacity to look away, Kanzai, who was at the forefront, felt a surge of anger.
Black, tiger-like stripes instantly appeared on his face and exposed skin.
The activation of his ability finally drew Beyond's gaze back.
Beyond looked at Kanzai with a silent, cold smile.
Even without the intelligence his companions had gathered from Kanzai's professional history, he could tell at a glance that Kanzai was an Enhancer.
And his acquired Specialization ability, "Nothing External to the Mind," was best at dealing with Enhancers.
The only exception was Netero.
The pinnacle of that man's skill had long since transcended the confines of the Nen ability system.
If not for the power of the Kakin Empire's great treasure, the "regalia · Sword of Good Omens," Beyond might never have been able to surpass the mountain that was Netero in his entire life.
As for an Enhancer of Kanzai's level, he was not worth worrying about.
Nothing External to the Mind · Lethal Assault.
Beyond's gaze fell on Kanzai. Without moving a muscle, an invisible Nen strike shot toward Kanzai's vitals in an instant.
Hn!?
Although Kanzai didn't perceive the attack's trajectory, the wild instincts enhanced by his "tiger stripes" made him suddenly sense danger.
Without even time to think, his body instinctively twisted to the side.
That slight turn caused the point of impact to shift.
Pfft!
Without any warning, half of Kanzai's shoulder and waist exploded, sending flesh and blood flying.
What...!?
It was only at the moment he was hit that Kanzai truly registered the attack.
Seeing Kanzai's gruesome state, Saccho, Ginta, and Bushidora, who were also charging forward, had their expressions change drastically. A single thought flashed through their minds: an invisible attack?!
Before Kanzai's body was torn apart, they had not detected any form of attack, not even the slightest hint of aura fluctuation from Beyond.
Although they couldn't see through Beyond's ability for the time being, Saccho decisively seized the opportunity to attack.
The longsword was unsheathed!
Three Thousand Threads of Affliction, Taking Only One Blade.
Saccho's figure darted forward, the chilling glint of his blade slashing through Beyond's body.
It was a Blade of Heart that even Nen could not defend against.
As long as it made a clean hit, it could shake the target's mind.
"Oh?"
However, Beyond, who was struck, showed no reaction and didn't even spare Saccho a glance.
It was as if to say: You think you can shake my will?
But what truly shook Saccho to his core was not that his blade had no effect on Beyond.
It was that in the instant the Blade of Heart struck, he realized an unbelievable fact.
In that moment, Beyond was convinced that he would not be affected by the Blade of Heart, not even by any physical damage, which was why he allowed the blade to land on him.
It was a near-absolute confidence.
Confidence that since the blade at his body could ignore Nen defense, it certainly wouldn't cause physical harm.
And confidence that he was immune to the true damage of the Blade of Heart.
This confidence even surpassed "seeing through" the ability itself.
Beyond paid no mind to Saccho's shock, his gaze turning directly to the approaching Ginta and Bushidora.
He attacked!
The same formless, traceless strike from Nothing External to the Mind shot straight toward the two of them.
Although Bushidora was an Enhancer, he lacked Kanzai's sharp, wild instincts. He had no time to react before his body was instantly blasted apart, flesh and blood flying everywhere.
Ginta, on the other hand, barely managed to withstand the blow with the help of his ability, "Heavy Metal Heart Web."
Pain Fugue.
The moment his body suffered heavy damage, Ginta activated his ability's effect.
The pain he endured would be reflected back to Beyond, multiplied and in real-time.
This ability was originally his means of punishing poachers.
Accustomed to empathy, this was the only way he could make poachers personally experience the suffering of animals.
Now, using it on Beyond, he hoped it would at least force a crack to appear in his opponent's defense through the intense pain.
However, as Ginta's burly body crashed to the ground, all he saw was Beyond frowning slightly.
Despite enduring the intense pain amplified by "Heavy Metal Heart Web," it was... just this?
What kind of terrifying willpower was this?
A storm raged in Ginta's heart.
Equally shaken were the other members of the Zodiac Twelve present.
In just a single exchange.
The combined assault of Kanzai, Saccho, Bushidora, and Ginta had not only failed to achieve anything but had resulted in two being seriously injured and one killed!
What terrified them even more was that even after observing from the sidelines multiple times, they still couldn't determine the nature of Beyond's ability. The only thing they could faintly grasp was that the invisible attack only revealed a subtle trace of its trajectory the instant before it hit its target. And under this effect of extreme concealment, it still maintained such terrifying power...
Mizaistom suppressed his shock and raised his yellow card, aiming it at Beyond.
"Bind!"
He activated his ability.
In an instant, an invisible, box-like cell materialized, imprisoning Beyond within.
Beyond felt the restraining sensation coming from all over his body. Even with Gyo, he couldn't see anything unusual. He understood that Mizaistom's binding ability was similar in form to his own Nothing External to the Mind.
They were both ability effects that existed outside of real space but could still directly affect reality.
And what cannot be seen or touched...
Also means it cannot be broken.
A bit tricky.
Despite being imprisoned, Beyond's tone still carried a certainty that victory was already decided.
Nothing External to the Mind was, at its core, a will-based Specialization ability.
The more firmly one believed they could advance unstoppably, the stronger the ability's effect became.
And the Power of Luck bestowed by the regalia · Sword of Good Omens was what could push this confidence to its absolute limit.
It must be known that Luck is inherently fickle and unpredictable.
No matter how much an ordinary person believes in their good luck, they are still bound to lose at the gambling table.
But what made Beyond, with his Sword of Good Omens, different was...
He could firmly control Luck.
Once he was certain of this, he could be undefeated in any gamble.
This predetermined outcome was such that even if the Sword of Good Omens did not explicitly activate its ability, it would invisibly and greatly elevate the upper limit of Beyond's abilities.
One could say, the regalia · Sword of Good Omens and Nothing External to the Mind were a match made in heaven.
At least in Beyond's view, as long as he possessed this great weapon and the power of Luck sacrificed from countless lives, he was invincible!
This point had already been proven by Netero's defeat and death.
But it's just imprisonment.
Beyond could feel the restraints on his body, but his ability was not limited.
He merely turned his gaze to Mizaistom.
An invisible Nen strike followed immediately, instantly obliterating the entire arm Mizaistom was using to hold the yellow card.
This one blow instantly caused Mizaistom's face to change drastically, his pupils trembling.
What in the world is this ability?!
His face pale, he took two steps back.
However, the binding ability he had activated, and the resulting attack from Beyond, had indirectly created an opening for his teammates.
The serpentine Nen beast conjured from Gel's arm struck suddenly from Beyond's blind spot.
Her arm had been damaged during the expedition to the Dark Continent, but after returning to the six continents, it was fully restored with the help of one of Ging's friends.
Thanks to that powerful healing ability, the regenerated arm's strength was not diminished in the slightest.
This allowed Gel's strike to be both fast and vicious, accurately biting into Beyond's body.
Tsk...
Beyond had actually been wary of Gel's move, but her timing and speed were simply impeccable.
This woman must have had some special experiences.
It was those experiences that had tempered such an unpreventable surprise attack.
Gel's expression was icy as she mercilessly injected a lethal toxin into Beyond's body through the Nen beast's fangs.
After consuming Nitro Rice, her aura output had already leaped to the human limit. Piercing Beyond's Nen defense was not a difficult task.
Beyond was not surprised by this result.
Before the fight began, he had seen that Gel's aura strength was even slightly higher than his own.
Beyond's gaze swept over the serpentine Nen beast biting him, but Gel unhesitatingly dispelled her ability.
This alertness and decisiveness were equally outstanding.
"Not bad," Beyond praised sincerely.
In his eyes, among the Zodiac Twelve present, those who excelled at frontal assaults like Kanzai were no match for him, thanks to the conviction granted by his regalia · Sword of Good Omens.
As for non-combat types like Cheadle, Cluck, and Pyon, they were even less of a threat.
The only one he held in high regard was Gel.
Gel had retracted her ability in time, avoiding a potential counterattack.
But seeing the unshakable certainty still on Beyond's face, an ominous premonition inexplicably rose in her heart.
Beyond paid no mind to the bite wound from the serpentine Nen beast, nor the potential poison attack. He simply tore off the paper talismans wrapped around the regalia · Sword of Good Omens.
As the talismans fell away, an ominous aura, black as ink, instantly spread out.
This was the true source of Beyond's effortless confidence.
Gel watched the ominous aura seeping from between the gaps in the talismans, her pupils contracting sharply.
Cheadle and the others also saw the strange short sword revealed after the talismans fell off.
Almost simultaneously, the same thought occurred to them.
No matter what ability that short sword possessed, it must not be unsheathed!
Driven by this thought, Gel, Cheadle, Pyon, and Cluck all rushed toward Beyond.
Ginta, Mizaistom, and the others who could still fight made the same judgment.
Nothing External to the Mind: Forceful Suppression.
Beyond grinned. The moment he drew the sword from its sheath, the Nen around him instantly transformed into dense, black-lined patterns, descending like a gravitational field.
An immense pressure bore down on them.
All the members of the Zodiac Twelve who attacked him, with the exception of Gel, were mercilessly crushed to the ground!
The highly compatible synergy between the Sacred Treasure: Sword of Good Omens and Nothing External to the Mind seemed to have truly bestowed upon Beyond an air of invincibility.
At least, as long as Beyond believed it to be so, the strength of his will-based ability could be raised to its absolute limit.