Gourmet Hunter - Chapter 426 (Patreon)

Chapter 426: Strategy

Shakespeare Theatre is elegant and refined, though not particularly large. It would be challenging for the black cat to explore thoroughly within ten minutes, but not impossible.

The black cat is no ordinary Nen Beast; he is an independent soul, capable of making judgments and assessing situations without needing commands. In terms of reconnaissance, there is no more formidable Nen Beast.

When put to use, the black cat is indeed very effective. However...

"One hundred pages."

After the terms were agreed upon, the black cat turned into black smoke and swiftly infiltrated the silent theater.

Ten minutes later, the black cat returned.

"Killua is suspended directly above the stage, about three meters high."

"There is only one enemy, sitting in the center of the audience. He’s not hiding, possibly aware of the risk of being detected. I didn't dare to get too close."

The black cat reported the findings of the past ten minutes.

"Only one?" Luo was slightly surprised and asked the most crucial question, "Is Killua alright?"

"He's still alive, but his limbs are severely broken. It looks pretty bad. Moreover, I don't know if the enemy has a peculiar fetish, but Killua's clothes have been stripped off," the black cat replied.

"Stripped naked?"

What could be the purpose? Anyway, he’s alive, that’s what matters.

Luo sighed in relief, and knowing there was only one enemy made things easier.

Thinking this, Luo assigned the black cat the task of diverting the enemy's attention, and subsequently rescuing Killua from the battle zone.

"If it's just to distract, that's fine, but I won't engage in combat," the black cat stated indifferently. His Nen is finite, so he avoids fighting whenever possible.

"I don't expect you to fight," Luo glanced at him.

"Tch," the black cat pouted, thinking to himself that if he could steal a few thousand pages, he’d show how strong he really was.

"Don't make any mistakes," Luo reminded, then immediately began the rescue operation.

Saving Killua was the top priority.

The stage in the theater was large, and in the vast hall, only the stage lights were on. The audience area was shrouded in darkness, creating a dim atmosphere.

Killua hung naked above the stage, swaying slightly, still unconscious.

Saiyu, with his legs crossed, sat in the center of the audience like a regular ticket-holding viewer, enjoying the scene on the stage.

Suddenly, Saiyu's eyes turned cold. He leaped from his seat and rushed towards the main entrance at the end of the aisle. Just now, a wave of Nen had been detected, indicating the presence of an enemy.

He moved incredibly fast, passing through the main door within two seconds of the Nen wave appearing, only to find the area empty.

The Nen wave was deliberately emitted by the black cat to attract attention. Once released, he quickly fled.

As Saiyu exited the main hall, Luo used his "God's Hand" ability to clear the way, reaching the backstage area in the shortest distance possible. With Saiyu lured away by the black cat, Luo immediately headed to the stage.

At the same time, on the second-floor balcony of the VIP seats, an irregular pattern resembling a spell was drawn on the floor. Beside it lay a handgun.

When Luo reached the stage, the spell vanished, transforming into a nearly two-meter-tall monkey. As it materialized, it grabbed the handgun and fired at the stage.

"Bang!"

The gunshot echoed through the silent theater hall.

A bullet sliced through the darkness, heading straight for the suspended Killua.

Luo tensed up, leaping into the air to deploy his "God's Domain," blocking the bullet shot from the second-floor balcony while simultaneously cutting the ropes binding Killua.

At the moment Luo jumped, another irregular pattern drawn on the hidden area beneath the stage transformed into a large-mouthed monkey Nen Beast, lunging at Luo who was in mid-air.

"Hmm?"

The appearance of the Nen Beast was so sudden that it caught Luo off guard. Additionally, there was a more pressing problem at hand.

Luo's eyes grew cold as he gathered Nen in one hand, firing a basketball-sized Nen bullet at the attacking monkey Nen Beast while holding Killua with the other, also subtly gathering Nen.

The Nen bullet hit the large-mouthed monkey, tearing it into energy that dissipated into the air.

At this moment, Saiyu opened the main door, coldly observing the situation on stage, with his lips moving slightly.

"Boom!"

Before Luo and Killua landed, they were engulfed in a violent explosion.

Whoosh!

A strong wind rose, and red curtains were engulfed in flames. The steel frame overhead disintegrated and fell onto the stage, thick smoke spreading, and the seats in front of the stage were blown into disarray.

"Didn’t see that coming, did you?"

Saiyu smirked, descending the aisle towards the stage wrecked by the explosion.

The dense smoke obscured visibility, but Saiyu was certain that the silver-haired boy was dead, and even if Luo survived, he would be severely injured.

The reason being that Saiyu had placed several mini remote-controlled bombs inside Killua's stomach.

The blast radius of these mini bombs was fifty meters, highly lethal. Even an Enhancer with considerable Nen skills, if unprepared, would be severely injured if not killed.

The key factor in ensuring effective damage was the element of surprise!

As for the two Nen Beasts created using the "God character," the one on the balcony was to force Luo into an airborne state to save Killua, while the one under the stage was to distract Luo into focusing on attacking, neglecting defense as much as possible.

This design was all to serve the bombs inside Killua.

Saiyu had put a lot of effort into this, not expecting to kill Luo, but believing that without preparation, being caught in an almost point-blank explosion would at least seriously injure Luo.

"Hmm?"

Saiyu suddenly stopped in his tracks. The smoke on the stage seemed to be pushed away by invisible hands, revealing Luo holding Killua unharmed.

"How is this possible?"

Saiyu's confident expression froze instantly.

Standing on the ruined stage, Luo coldly looked at Saiyu in the aisle among the seats, barely recognizing him as the Monkey Zodiac from the original story. However, this iteration of the Zodiac didn’t include him.

Is this the enemy?

"Didn't expect you to understand the 'God character.' Given the advantage of pre-arrangement, using the 'God character' to minimize the presence of traps is indeed more effective than using 'In.'"

Luo raised his smoke-stained right hand towards the bewildered Saiyu and said, "Your meticulous setup at least dirtied my hands. You should feel honored for that, but..."

His calm tone suddenly carried a murderous intent.

"You dared to use such ruthless methods on a child."

"You… are dead."

If not for the unique nature of the "God's Hand" ability, Killua would have certainly died in that situation, and Luo would have narrowly avoided fatal injuries.

Based on these hypothetical scenarios, Luo's murderous intent was now resolved, his aura unleashing fully, making the air seem to solidify.

Saiyu forcibly calmed his inner turmoil. Even if Luo survived unscathed, the fact that the boy also remained unharmed was unbelievable.

Since the trap had failed, a frontal confrontation was inevitable. There were still cards left to play, so there was still a chance of victory.

Luo set Killua down, with the black cat making its way over. Once he took Killua away, Luo could eliminate Saiyu without any burden.

When the monkey Nen Beast materialized using the "God character," Luo's previous analysis of the recording had been concluded. However, now a new layer of dust had been gently lifted.

Saiyu might have employed a strategy of misdirection.

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