Chapter 35

Words came from the darkness—

Kol was shocked, unable to believe it.

Even the question "Who are you?" slipped out of his mouth.

It was a question that would hardly get an answer.

But it was his instinctive reaction, a mix of shock and disbelief.

Because—

The figure that emerged from the darkness had likely seen through his ability.

That was the only way to explain the poor harvest.

What he found most incomprehensible was—

If the person had discovered his ability on the way here and wanted to stop him, they should have immediately destroyed the plants on the armed forces.

If they had destroyed one of the "corpse soils," he would have noticed immediately and chosen to harvest early to minimize losses.

But the person did not destroy the "corpse soils." Instead, they interfered with the "nutrients" needed for growth without affecting the "growth process."

In other words—

The person likely deduced his ability from limited information and realized that uprooting the plants might draw his attention...

Then they chose to play along, using this method to make his harvest poor, thus wasting his potential energy.

If this speculation is correct, then this person's understanding of "Nen" and their perceptiveness...

Is terrifyingly strong!!!

Kol couldn't control his expression; the question that slipped out naturally received no response.

He could only stare intently at the silhouette that suddenly fell silent in the darkness.

He could clearly see the Nen on that person, but it was so weak that it only emitted a faint, almost hazy glow.

To confirm, he used "Concentration" to observe the surroundings but saw no other hidden Nen.

At least from his perspective, he could only see the Nen on that person.

Such weak Nen...

It could probably be dealt with by a single punch, but—

"Is it intentional? Trying to lure me into making the first move?"

"So, is it a passive defensive type...?"

"There's a possibility. I can't make the first move rashly. I could use 'Circle' to probe the situation... No, my 'Circle' can't reach that far, and there's a risk of being hit while using it..."

"What should I do? Just wait and see, and wait for Gengbu and the others to come?"

"Or should I try to probe... Damn, I don't have the habit of carrying a gun."

Kol's thoughts were a bit chaotic. Just by staring at the motionless silhouette in the darkness, he felt an immense pressure.

"My ability was not only seen through but also used against me."

This realization not only made Kol deeply aware that the person was a formidable opponent but also inevitably disrupted his thoughts.

So, when he saw the person only release a tiny amount of Nen and remain motionless in the darkness, his first reaction was that the person was deliberately showing a weakness.

With this preconceived notion, Kol dared not make any rash moves.

Thus, the two sides were at a stalemate, neither moving nor speaking.

In contrast, the battle on the other side was intense.

Gengbu's "Gambler's Frenzy" and Kol's "Harvest Time" were of the same type of ability, requiring a certain preparation phase to reach their full potential.

So, how to smoothly get through the preparation phase—

Relying on the strength of teammates was one option, and improving one's own response capabilities was another.

Gengbu chose both.

So his frontline combat ability was not weak.

Similarly, Kol's frontline combat ability was not weak either.

Therefore, even if their abilities were interrupted, they could still do something.

At least Gengbu could handle Hawk's attacks and was even at an advantage.

"What's going on with Kol..."

Ducking to avoid a Nen projectile, Gengbu charged at Hawk and quickly glanced at Kol, who was standing still, his brows slightly furrowed.

He had been counting on Kol's "Harvest Time" to give them the power to end the battle quickly, but it turned out to be a lot of thunder and little rain.

The culprit behind all this was that elusive person.

But so what?

In terms of numbers, they still had the advantage.

However, Kol's inaction was wasting their advantage.

Unable to focus on Kol, Gengbu closed the distance and suppressed Hawk with a fierce attack.

"Damn, my left hand hasn't healed yet."

Hawk struggled to defend against Gengbu's attacks.

Despite being a "preparation-type" ability user, he also possessed excellent close combat skills, likely a key member of the Qinglin team...

"Mo You..."

Hawk wanted to check on Mo You's situation, but being suppressed by Gengbu left him powerless.

He thought Mo You had only awakened Nen less than half a month ago, so even if he had developed a Nen ability, he was probably no match for the Qinglin team members.

On the other side—

Qido calmly dealt with the combined attacks of Ken and Sivir.

"Although I don't know what the long-haired man's 'preparation-type ability' is, it seems to have been interrupted. Was it Mo You?"

Qido glanced at Mo You, her eyes gleaming, while dodging attacks from Sivir and Ken.

If Hawk's reinforcement surprised her and delighted her with the removal of "Afterlife Nen,"

then Mo You's arrival and the interruption of the opponent's Nen ability user was a pleasant and exciting surprise.

The more outstanding Mo You was, the stronger her impulse to take Mo You with her.

Ken, who had been attacking Qido for a long time, still had patience, but Sivir was clearly becoming more and more agitated, and her attack patterns were becoming chaotic.

Ken noticed this but did not remind Sivir to calm down.

Because "agitation" was the necessary fuel for Sivir to activate her ability.

The battle on all three fronts showed no significant changes.

The situation in the pitch-black darkness remained at a stalemate—

Mo You was somewhat surprised.

By revealing the long-haired man's ability first, making him form a preconceived notion, and then setting up a seemingly trap-like formation,

this was to make the long-haired man actively think and imagine, thus restraining him as much as possible, at least to alleviate the pressure on Hawk and Qido.

After all—

Apart from Nen abilities, this long-haired man was also a top-notch Nen ability user.

"Such suspicion is beyond my expectations."

Mo You didn't expect this kind of psychological manipulation to restrain the long-haired man for long.

He had set up a trap, but it could also be seen as a paper tiger.

But he didn't expect the long-haired man to be so cooperative.

Human nature...

Is it really amplified by "Nen"?

Just manipulating the long-haired man didn't make Mo You feel smug; instead, it made him think about the influence of "Nen" on human nature.

Sometimes it could be used as a weapon, but it should never be underestimated.

Now—

Think about what methods can be used to take down the long-haired man with all available means...