"Quick! Fire! Fire! Don't let this thing break through the blockade!"
On a major city street, a uniformed police sergeant raised his gun, shouting orders to the officers behind him while pulling his trigger without a moment's hesitation.
Directly ahead of them, a yellow blur, resembling a bolt of lightning, streaked forward at a speed nearly indistinguishable to the naked eye.
There was no need to ask: this was none other than the Squadron Leader nicknamed "the Stupid Leopard"—Cheetu.
At the sergeant's command, every officer pulled their trigger, unleashing a frantic torrent of lead. For a brief moment, they actually managed to form a relatively dense web of suppressive fire.
Normally, any living creature facing such a hail of bullets would have to take cover or rely on sheer physical toughness to endure it.
But Cheetu, possessing terrifying speed, merely curled his lips into a disdainful smirk, whispering a taunt: "Too slow! Way too slow!"
Massive amounts of aura instantly enveloped his feet.
The next second...
Whoosh!
He vanished from the spot!
No, it wasn't just vanishing. He reappeared directly behind the blockade line.
As for the bullets flying toward him, they struck nothing but empty air.
Before the sergeant or the officers could even process what had happened, Cheetu swung his claws, tearing their throats to shreds in a blur of motion.
Watching the blood spray from their arteries, he burst into a triumphant, arrogant laugh: "Hahahaha! I really am too strong! No one can beat me in speed or reflexes! I am the King of Speed in this world!"
"The King of Speed? Are you sure about that?"
Accompanying the meaningful inquiry, Allen descended from the sky like a falling star, hitting the pavement with a heavy thud that left a massive crater in the ground.
"You?!"
Cheetu clearly recognized the human youth before him, and his expression instantly became guarded.
Although he hadn't participated in the recent battle at the nest, he had heard other Squadron Leaders mention him. This was the one who had used some sort of terrifying poison gas to wipe out an army of two thousand elite ants, the one whose strength even the Royal Guards, Pitou and Youpi, had acknowledged.
"Yeah. That's right. It's me."
Allen glanced at the dying policemen on the ground, a sharp, cold glint flashing in his eyes.
There was no doubt that this leopard's wanton slaughter of civilians had crossed a serious line for him.
However, Cheetu, who usually only had one track in his mind, was oblivious to the danger. Instead, he asked eagerly, "So, do you want to have a contest of speed and reflexes with me?"
"Sure, why not? But the stakes are your Nen and your life. If you lose, I take them both. No objections, right?" Allen spoke as he began to close the distance with slow, deliberate steps.
Though his movements seemed like slow-motion to the leopard, they exerted an inexplicable and overwhelming pressure.
Gulp.
Cheetu instinctively swallowed hard, suppressing the growing dread in his heart as he replied, "Fine... fine! Provided you can actually catch me, that is!"
"The contract is sealed. I admire your courage. In return, I'll make your death relatively quick."
As the last word left his lips, Allen instantly activated Aura Burst. In a flash, he was right in front of the ant.
If this had been any other Chimera Ant Squadron Leader, they likely wouldn't have had time to react at all.
But in that split second, the leopard transformed into an afterimage and vanished, leaving Allen grasping at thin air.
"Oh? What kind of ability is that?"
Allen turned around to stare at Cheetu, who had reappeared over ten meters away. Surprise was written plainly across his face.
Given his own speed and reflexes, there shouldn't have been anyone in this world capable of escaping him at such close range.
Unless...
"That was close! So close! I almost got caught."
Cheetu patted his chest vigorously, his eyes filled with the relief of a survivor. He knew with certainty that if he had been caught just now, he would have been killed instantly without any room for resistance.
"Interesting! It looks like this game can last a bit longer after all."
With that, Allen launched another attack using Aura Burst, intending to figure out the exact nature of that sudden disappearance.
This time, however, Cheetu was prepared. Before his opponent could even get close, he used his ability to teleport roughly twenty meters away. Then, without a word, he took off in a full sprint, not daring to stop for even a second.
Allen followed closely, repeatedly using Aura Burst to catch up, forcing the leopard to use his ability over and over again.
Thus, the two of them became a blur of pursuit and flight.
Because both were moving at such extreme velocities, they cleared the city limits in no time and entered a vast, endless forest.
"Hey, hey, hey! Are you kidding me?! Is your aura infinite or something?"
After sprinting for over ten kilometers, a look of panic finally surfaced on Cheetu's face.
He couldn't help but panic. He had used his ability dozens of times in rapid succession, and his aura reserves were nearing exhaustion.
But Allen?
He was still trailing behind with effortless ease, occasionally accelerating to close the gap and keeping Cheetu on edge. One lapse in concentration and the leopard knew he was finished.
"Sorry to disappoint you, but at this pace, I can keep this up for an entire day without an issue. Also, your ability isn't actually related to speed; it's a form of teleportation. Furthermore, each jump is strictly limited to within twenty meters, and you can only teleport in the direction you are facing."
Allen revealed his conclusions with a faint, knowing smile after observing the patterns.
It had to be said: because the Chimera Ants had received systematic Nen training earlier than in the original timeline, this leopard had developed an ability far different, and much more powerful, than his original one.
But no matter how powerful an ability is, if the user is a fool, it is difficult to realize its true potential.
And unfortunately, Cheetu was a total idiot.
"Wh... what?! How did you know?" The leopard's eyes widened in shock.
"Simple. Observation. Why do you think I had so many chances to catch you but never followed through, instead letting you escape by just a hair's breadth every time?" Allen asked meaningfully.
"Dammit!"
No matter how dim-witted Cheetu was, he realized he had fallen into a trap.
But he had already exhausted too much physical and mental energy during the flight. He was at the end of his rope, a prey fallen into a pit. No matter how he struggled, the final result would not change.
Noticing the fear and despair in the leopard's eyes, Allen smiled and offered a suggestion: "Here's a tip regarding your ability. Why limit yourself to teleporting forward? You could make the ability center on yourself and teleport in a full 360-degree radius. If you did that, the difficulty for anyone trying to catch you would increase exponentially."
"Oh! Right! Why didn't I think of that!" A look of sudden realization dawned on Cheetu's face.
However, less than a second later, he felt a sharp, searing pain in his chest.
He looked down to see a strangely shaped dagger protruding from his torso; it had been thrust through his back, and the tip glowed with a light as bright as a flame.
"You lose. Now, your ability and your life belong to me. Vaelstrasz, devour him!"
Allen wrenched the dagger out and issued the command for the Red Dragon to feed.