Book 7: Chapter 26: The Shadow Beast Battle

“Growing stronger than anyone else, purely pursuing power, that’s his creed!” Nobunaga stroked his chin and muttered to himself. “Ordinary firearms used by the mafia couldn’t harm Uvogin’s body at all.”

“Yeah, he has the strongest physique out of everyone in the Troupe!” Shalnark replied with a laugh, watching Uvogin amidst the enemies below, like a gorilla among ants. “Talk about a suicidal mission for them!”

He shared the best relationship with Uvogin. Instead of playing cards with the others, he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Shalnark, who always wore a bright smile, at the cliff’s edge, keeping watch over Uvogin’s battle. He was ready to jump in if the situation turned bad.

…

“So formidable… Is this the Phantom Troupe?” Kurapika lowered his binoculars, his tone heavy. “Guns were completely useless against him. The syndicate members who arrived earlier are all finished. This group probably won’t last much longer either.”

“Really?” Dalzollene asked, unable to believe it.

“See for yourself!” Kurapika sighed, handing the binoculars over gravely. “His Nen aura around his body is sharp and clearly visible to the naked eye. And then… the scene in the valley. Corpses are scattered throughout the valley.”

“That guy tears people apart like paper. Are we supposed to fight something like that?” Squala spread his hands, his tone resolute. “It’s basically suicide. I refuse to go!”

“I feel the same. I don’t see how we could possibly win against him,” Basho shook his head, adding calmly.

“…Indeed!” Dalzollene reluctantly lowered the binoculars, forced to admit they were helpless. “But we can’t just retreat. We have to find a way…”

“Wait! It seems there’s an extra heartbeat behind us!” Melody suddenly interrupted Dalzollene, a cold sweat tracing her forehead. They weren’t far from the valley clearing; if the Phantom Troupe flanked them from behind, they’d truly have no way to retreat or advance.

Everyone jumped in surprise, whirling around. On the mountain path leading to the valley clearing behind them, a wave of earth snaked towards them, as if a giant serpent were slithering just below the surface.

The group quickly scattered, forming a semicircle around the approaching earth-wave. However, the creature underground didn’t seem hostile. The wave of earth surged up to them, and a writhing, fat purple worm burrowed out of the ground.

Before them, the chubby purple worm rapidly transformed into a tall, muscular man with elongated features and purple skin.

“I’m Earthworm from the Shadow Beasts. Which organisation do you belong to?” The purple-skinned man cocked his head and asked.

“We’re bodyguards for the Nostrade Family,” Dalzollene answered solemnly, slightly relieved.

“Looks like you’re Nen users too,” Earthworm’s gaze swept over them before he nodded. “But this battle isn’t meant for your level. You should head back.”

“Those guys aren’t ordinary prey. They’re super-criminals who kill like drinking water,” said a calm voice. From the shadows behind Earthworm, three bizarrely featured figures emerged. “Leave the professionals to professionals!”

“I’m Rabid Dog,” a sallow, tall figure from the trio stated flatly. He gestured to the squat, heavily built man and the dwarf to his left. “They are Leech and Porcupine.”

“Leave the Phantom Troupe to us Shadow Beasts.” Earthworm burrowed back underground. Together with the other three, he walked calmly towards the valley clearing.

“Captain Dalzollene!” After the four Shadow Beasts entered the clearing, a familiar voice called out from behind Kurapika’s group.

“Qin Lun!” Dalzollene looked at the young man in happy surprise. “You’re here too! Where’s Mister Yin and Miss Liza?”

“They have already left Yorknew City!” Qin Lun responded with a smile, nodding courteously to Kurapika and Melody.

“You’re not joining the fight?” Dalzollene asked in astonishment, pointing towards the four figures in the valley. “What about them…”

“Haha, the Shadow Beasts are a large organisation. Their relationship with the syndicate is merely contractual. Those are the Ten Dons’ personal Shadow Beasts. We are not.” Qin Lun waved his hand, explaining the complex nature of the Shadow Beasts’ structure.

“Yin and Liza asked me to stay only to repay a favour. Without Miss Neon’s Divination Poem, the three of us would probably lie dead in the Auction Building too.”

“Qin Lun, what are your thoughts on the upcoming battle?” Kurapika’s eyes flashed brighter as he asked cautiously.

“I don’t know the abilities of those four Shadow Beasts, so it’s hard to say.” Qin Lun maintained his smile. “We’ll see soon enough.”

The young man cast a meaningful glance towards the clearing. He didn’t hold much optimism for the Shadow Beasts’ battle. Yin and Liza had once mentioned to him that the syndicate’s personal Shadow Beasts weren’t the strongest batch of Nen users within the organisation, sounding quite dismissive of them.

Although Yin and Liza might have been exaggerating, Qin Lun believed their opinion held some truth. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have agreed so readily to leave Yorknew City the moment they saw the auction video he recorded.

Dalzollene and the others turned back nervously, continuing to observe the unfolding scene in the clearing.

…

When the four Shadow Beasts arrived in the valley, the Phantom Troupe members playing cards on the cliff edge paused slightly. Shalnark threw down his cards and stood up.

“Uvogin!” Shalnark pointed towards the valley entrance and shouted loudly towards Uvogin in the clearing. “The main event is here!”

“Tch! Don’t come down yet! I’m not done playing!” Uvogin barked back. He bared his teeth in a ferocious grin towards the approaching Shadow Beasts.

“Hey, don’t complain if you die!” Nobunaga retorted irritably, sitting back down and waving to the others. “Ignore him. Keep playing.”

Aside from Earthworm who remained underground, the other three Shadow Beasts quickly strode toward Uvogin.

“Shadow Beasts?” Uvogin eyed the three newcomers impassively. “Where are the auction items?”

“The Phantom Troupe?” Rabid Dog scanned the other members on the cliff edge with a sharp gaze. “Won’t your comrades join you?”

“One is enough to settle you,” Uvogin replied flatly, cracking his knuckles.

“Is that so?” Rabid Dog remained unfazed, a cold smirk touching his lips as he narrowed his eyes.

At that exact moment, the hard rock beneath Uvogin’s boots tore apart. Earthworm burst out from below like lightning, slamming a powerful punch directly into Uvogin’s face.

Uvogin, unmoved by machine guns, was actually forced to take a step back from the force of the blow.

Yet, what shocked everyone even more was that Earthworm’s fist instantly snapped. The bones in his knuckles twisted grotesquely from the recoil, his fingers resembling a mangled bunch.

“Ha! Interesting,” Uvogin grinned, teeth flashing white. He flexed his shoulders and in the same instant, reversed the motion. His own colossal fist drilled into Earthworm’s face with terrifying force. The impact pulverised the right side of the Shadow Beast’s face, flattening the cheekbone as if it were partially crushed.

However, Earthworm was a battle-hardened Shadow Beast. In the split second he was being knocked away, he grabbed Uvogin’s left arm tightly. With a powerful heave, he plunged back underground, dragging the burly Uvogin down with him and wedging him solidly into a narrow rock fissure.

“Now you can’t escape,” Earthworm’s voice emerged muffled from below ground. “Heh, choose your end! Suffocated slowly as I drag you deeper into the earth, or torn to shreds by my three comrades above.”

“We’ve got him!” Rabid Dog, Leech, and Porcupine closed in with triumphant sneers.

“Dumbass,” Uvogin muttered with undisguised boredom. He slowly raised his free right fist. “If you do that, you’re trapped too. Thought you Shadow Beasts might actually be fun. What a letdown.”

Dense Nen surged across Uvogin’s body, instantly converging into his raised right fist. His entire fist suddenly erupted with a brilliant, diamond-like scarlet light. He slammed it down onto the rock ground trapping him.

KABOOM!!!

An earth-shattering explosion rocked the valley clearing. A blinding flash of immense Nen energy erupted from underground. The rock layers shattered like tofu, pierced utterly. Giant web-like fissures spiderwebbed violently across the surface. Countless shards ripped loose before being instantly pulverised into fine dust by the furious wave of Nen.

Instantly, a colossal crater, over three metres deep and more than twenty metres across, appeared on the ground.

Standing at its centre, Uvogin grinned. He tore away a broken piece of arm clamped onto his left hand – likely Earthworm’s only remaining trace in this world.

…

“O-oh my god… I’ve never seen Nen abilities on that scale before!” Dalzollene and the others stared at the massive crater in the centre of the clearing, expressions filled with disbelief. “He’s on a completely different level to us.”

“Big Bang Impact,” Qin Lun murmured with a faint smile, reading the prompt on his Death Notice. Earthworm’s death held value; it had forced Uvogin to reveal his Nen ability.

Suddenly, the young man frowned. He glanced sideways at Kurapika. He keenly sensed the young man’s sudden tension. Glancing at Melody beside him, Qin Lun saw she had noticed it too.

“Look behind that man,” Melody whispered knowingly, gesturing subtly towards Uvogin.

Qin Lun turned his gaze. His eyes instantly sharpened. Uvogin’s explosive punch had torn through his shirt. On the exposed skin of his lower back lay a grotesque, terrifying tattoo of a spider.

“Provoked him, has it?” Qin Lun murmured, looking at Kurapika. He noted how Kurapika’s pupils were slowly turning a fiery red and smiled knowingly to himself.

…

“Alright, whose turn is it to die next?” Uvogin grinned fiercely, turning his gaze to the remaining three Shadow Beasts.

“Don’t overestimate yourself, monster! You’re the one who’ll die!” Rabid Dog snarled in burning fury. His comrade’s death and Uvogin’s arrogance instantly enraged all three Shadow Beasts. They surged forward as one, attacking with explosive rage.

“Haha! Excellent.” Uvogin roared with savage laughter. “I love fearless prey like you! Time to di…”

He swung his massive fist directly at Porcupine, who charged head-on. But his next words choked off in surprise. Instead of crushing bone, his fist jabbed painfully into a forest of sharp, steel-like needles coating Porcupine’s body. Somehow, the blow failed to kill its target instantly.

“I command my body’s hair freely. Soft as a cushion or hard as solid steel,” Porcupine boasted with biting confidence. “Your power is useless if it never lands a hit.”

Suddenly, a shadow blurred past Uvogin’s flank.

Uvogin’s eyes glinted with danger. He whirled instantly, launching another vicious punch. But the shadowy foe dodged nimbly out of reach. Simultaneously, fresh pain erupted on Uvogin’s shoulder. Crimson droplets sprayed into the air. For the first time, blood flowed from skin a rocket couldn’t destroy.