That extreme speed made Child Asa completely unable to react before being struck down by Rimo! "Elegant and swift! Will Rimo achieve ten victories in one breath? Let's wait and see tomorrow's match!"
The excited voice of the commentator echoed from the television. At this moment, inside a dimly lit room, the remaining three members of the rookie-killer group stared at the screen with grim expressions.
On the TV, a close-up of Rimo filled the frame. His calm, almost indifferent expression made it seem as though what he had just done was nothing more than a trivial action.
"Di !"
The scarred man abruptly pressed the power button on the remote, shutting off the television. The room fell silent, and the air became heavy.
After a brief pause, the man with burn scars on his face spoke in a low voice, "What do we do now? Child Asa was taken down instantly. Our strengths are basically the same. If we face this Rimo… we probably won't fare any better."
"I said it before something was wrong!" another man snapped. "He agreed to fight us too easily this afternoon. Who climbs to the 200th floor and is still an idiot? The newcomers before him always sensed something was off when we approached them we had to use tricks to get them to accept fights. But this guy agreed immediately. That means he's confident extremely confident!"
"He might have already opened his aura nodes… even mastered Nen properly. We misjudged him."
The speaker's voice grew tense. Tomorrow, it would be his turn to face Rimo. If he couldn't come up with a solution tonight, defeat was almost guaranteed.
"Calm down."
The man leaning against the bed his leg missing below the knee spoke lazily, but a sharp glint flashed in his eyes. "Didn't you notice something about Rimo's ability?"
The other two paused.
"Uh… he's fast. Too fast to track…"
"Exactly." The crippled man nodded. "Child Asa lost because he focused too much aura into offense his In was sloppy, and his defense collapsed. He never properly maintained Ten or Ken across his whole body."
This was a critical mistake, one that fighters in Heaven's Arena often made if they learned Nen improperly through forced awakening like the "baptism" that opened aura nodes violently.
"So all we need to do," the crippled man continued, "is maintain full-body defense. Keep our aura stable like proper Ten and don't overcommit to attack. If Rimo really doesn't use Nen, then his physical strikes alone won't break through our aura defense."
The other two froze.
That… actually sounded reasonable.
"In other words," the crippled man said, "we wait. Let him come to us. The moment he attacks, we defend then counterattack at close range. One clean hit from a Nen user is enough. Just like what Wing taught Gon and Killua Nen users and non-users exist on completely different levels."
The burn-scarred man slowly nodded, his confidence returning.
"…Right. If he hasn't mastered Nen, then no matter how fast he is, he can't truly damage us."
"And once we land a hit… it's over."
"Yes," the crippled man said softly. "His fault tolerance is zero. Ours… is much higher."
The tension in the room eased slightly.
The burn-scarred man straightened his posture, regaining his composure. As someone who had survived multiple battles on the 200th floor, he knew how crucial mindset was.
"Thank you, Lawrence," he said. "You're right. As long as we don't underestimate him, he's just faster not stronger. We can still win."
Lawrence still leaning against the bed watched him quietly.
In truth, this was only a hypothesis.
And hypotheses needed testing.
The burn-scarred man… was the test subject.
If Rimo truly lacked Nen, then their strategy would work. But if not… Lawrence would observe, analyze, and adapt. After all, there was still one more "guinea pig" left the man with the hat, who had cleverly scheduled his match last.
No matter what, Lawrence believed he held the advantage.
I'm the one in control from the start, he thought smugly. Invincible position.
The next day, 3:50 PM.
207th Floor, Heaven's Arena.
Unlike the previous day's sudden match, news of Rimo's decision to fight for four consecutive days had already spread throughout the arena. Tickets for today's match were nearly impossible to obtain.
"Alright, everyone! Today marks Rimo's second match in his four-day streak!" the commentator announced excitedly. "His opponent today is Moore Jim, who holds a record of five wins and one loss just like yesterday's Child Asa!"
"Will Rimo continue his overwhelming performance? I'm sure everyone here can't wait so without further delay, let's begin!"
The crowd erupted into cheers.
"The match begins no time limit!"
The referee dropped his hand, signaling the start.
Rimo glanced at Moore Jim with mild curiosity. Yesterday's fight had at least shown something interesting an improvised ability born from trauma. He wondered if today's opponent would bring something similar.
But Moore Jim didn't move.
Instead, he stood firmly in place, maintaining a full-body aura defense something resembling Ken, though clearly unrefined.
Rimo raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? Defensive stance? Looks like you learned something from yesterday."
"…Then let's not waste time."
"Whoosh !"
A gust of air burst beneath Rimo's feet as he vanished instantly.
Moore Jim's pupils shrank.
Here it comes!
He couldn't track Rimo's movement, but he knew one thing Rimo would appear within striking distance.
Gritting his teeth, Moore Jim poured all his aura into defense, reinforcing his body as much as possible.
Block it… then counterattack!
" Ugh!"
A crushing impact slammed into the back of his head.
There was no time to react.
No time to counter.
His vision blurred instantly as his consciousness collapsed into darkness.
Impossible… I was fully defending…
"Thud!"
Moore Jim hit the ground.
"Unbelievable! Rimo strikes again!" the commentator shouted. "With speed invisible to the naked eye and a perfectly timed hand strike another instant knockout!"
The referee quickly checked Moore Jim, then raised his arms.
"K.O.! Winner Rimo!"
The crowd exploded.
Rimo stood silently for a moment, then turned and walked off the stage, expression unchanged.
"…Still nothing interesting," he muttered inwardly.
In the audience, Lawrence's face turned pale.
This time, he had seen it clearly.
Moore Jim had used full defensive aura and still couldn't withstand even a single strike.
There was no longer any doubt.
Rimo was not a non-user.
He was a Nen user.
And a terrifyingly strong one.
"…This is bad," Lawrence whispered, cold sweat forming on his forehead.
Speed unmatched.
Strength overwhelming.
And worst of all his true ability remained unknown.
For the first time, fear began to creep into his calculations.
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