With Ope Ope no Mi in Hunter x Hunter

Chapter 256: Chapter 255: Hundred-Type Guanyin (Part 1)



"You're not following the rules here. I've already paid you," Daniel Davis said with a smile as he looked at the young man in blue, Alvis, who was standing about ten meters away in a small, rarely visited grove on the outskirts of the Bounty City. Though Daniel's face bore a smile, anyone who knew him well would recognize that he was already angry based on the look in his eyes.

"Cut the crap. If you want to make the trade, it'll be three times the price. That amount is just pocket change for someone like you," Alvis said smugly, holding a Travel Companion card in his hand as he stared at Daniel.

"Understood. I'll give you the money right now," Daniel responded, his smile growing even wider. Just as he spoke, his left index finger twitched, and a sudden scream echoed through the grove, emanating from Alvis's mouth.

"Greed isn't an issue, but you shouldn't be greedy with me," Daniel said as he slowly walked toward Alvis, who was now tightly bound by Nen threads. Alvis's right hand had been severed at the wrist, and both the Travel Companion card and his hand had fallen to the ground.

"Spare me! I won't dare do this again. I don't need the money anymore; I'll give you the card," Alvis pleaded, his voice trembling. He didn't dare scream loudly, as the Nen threads clung so closely to his skin that even the slightest scream might cause the threads to dig into his flesh.

"This technique is really effective for capturing people," Daniel mused. By concealing the Nen threads or chains with In, he could suddenly materialize them when close to his target. This tactic was nearly foolproof against those much weaker than himself.

It was especially useful for ambushes, allowing him to achieve twice the results with half the effort. Even Chrollo, with his considerable strength, had fallen prey to Kurapika's ambush using a similar tactic.

"Hand over the card, and I'll spare your life. Don't even think about escaping. Even if you could use a Travel Companion or Magnetic Force card right now, you wouldn't make it out alive," Daniel warned. Bound by the Nen threads, Alvis would be sliced to pieces if he tried to activate any flight-related cards.

"You can't kill me! If you kill me, the card will disappear. Let me go, and I'll give you the card. I don't want the money," Alvis tried to negotiate, his initial desperate pleas giving way to a more calculated approach now that he had calmed down.

"That's fine. If the card disappears, I'll just find someone else to complete the task. It won't take much time," Daniel said, tightening the Nen threads in his hand, causing Alvis's face to contort in pain. But the presence of the threads prevented him from making any sound.

Hearing Daniel's words, a flash of resentment appeared in Alvis's eyes. Despite his anger, he had no choice but to take out the card from his book—Card No. 75, Alexander's Lucky Gem, one of the cards Daniel was missing. The card wasn't particularly difficult to obtain, with only an A-rank difficulty level, and a total of twenty such cards could exist. However, only one had been obtained so far, by Gon and Killua.

The reason this card was so elusive was not due to its difficulty, but rather the tedious nature of the quest required to obtain it. The quest was so mundane that only those truly enjoying the game would bother to complete it. The game's tasks were triggered randomly and required the player's full commitment—giving up all their assets, not just in-game currency but also all their cards. Essentially, the player would start from scratch.

This daunting requirement deterred most players. While some might risk everything in a typical game, this was a game embedded in reality. The quest was designed to prevent loopholes—players couldn't cheat by giving their assets to someone else beforehand. The task was a true test of a player's resolve.

Ultimately, only Gon and Killua had the courage to complete the task. Had Daniel not learned about the quest's strategy from them, he might never have triggered it himself. The prerequisite task involved helping a group of bandits escape, a task most players would solve by simply defeating the bandits rather than aiding them.

In short, the task was full of traps. Daniel had no intention of completing the quest himself, as risking all his game assets wasn't worth it. Instead, he hired someone to do it for him, paying with real-world Jenny. As the saying goes, great rewards attract brave men.

Alvis was the person Daniel hired to complete the task. However, after obtaining the rare card and realizing that Daniel was close to clearing the game, Alvis decided to extort Daniel for more money.

If this had happened to Gon or Killua, they might have had to accept the loss. As long as they got the card, they might have let it slide. But unfortunately for Alvis, Daniel wasn't the kind of person to back down.

"Goodbye." After receiving the Card No. 75, Daniel didn't give Alvis a chance to speak further and ended his life swiftly.

"Now, all that's left is 'A Strip of Coastline,'" Daniel said as he used a Travel Companion card to head to the coastal city of Sofrabi, where a dojo run by Razor and his crew was located.

"Fifteen people required, huh? I need to hire fourteen more. Fortunately, this game is full of players, especially those who aren't doing too well," Daniel thought. This time, he didn't hire people with money but with cards that allowed them to leave the game.

Many players started the game with high hopes, dreaming of clearing it and becoming something extraordinary in the real world. But reality quickly sobered them, and many of them wanted nothing more than to leave the game. Despite their struggles in the outside world, they were still Nen users, and even the worst among them were better off than ordinary people.

Seeing this reminded Daniel of how some TV shows portray poverty. Even the poorest characters have houses, cars, and all the utilities they need. Daniel couldn't help but wonder if those directors had ever seen real poverty.

"Well, well, it's rare to have visitors," said a female NPC as Daniel and his fourteen companions arrived at Razor's dojo, initiating the mission to face Razor and his fourteen demons.

"What?" Daniel's confidence in clearing the challenge faded as he listened to Razor explain the mission. 

Initially, Daniel thought he could clear the challenge alone. Although Razor was strong, Daniel didn't consider him a threat. However, the mission's rules prevented him from doing so.

There were eight rounds in total, with the final round being a team dodgeball match. But the first seven rounds were one-on-one, with no player allowed to compete more than once. To win the game, the players had to win all eight rounds, while Razor and his demons needed to win just one.

The rules made Daniel curse Ging inwardly. 

"It seems like teamwork is essential. Ging really emphasized the importance of a team. Who set these rules in the anime?" Although disappointed that he couldn't clear the challenge alone, Daniel participated in the first round—a boxing match.

"Interesting, a fist imbued with Emission-type Nen combined with a 'God' character for instant movement," Daniel thought. With his strength, he could have easily ended the match quickly, but he deliberately prolonged it to study the opponent's Nen ability and the mysterious 'God' characters inscribed on the ring. It wasn't until his opponent's Nen was exhausted and he collapsed from fatigue that Daniel ended the match.

Razor watched Daniel intently, his eyes narrowing as he observed.

"Not a bad Nen ability, with rare spatial properties. Unfortunately, the user's strength is too weak," Daniel concluded after analyzing the opponent's ability. The opponent couldn't teleport himself but could teleport his fist. If he had been stronger, this would have been a formidable ability. However, because of his weak overall strength, he had to rely on the 'God' character on the ring to amplify his Nen and extend his reach. Without the 'God' character's enhancement, Daniel estimated that his opponent could only extend his fist about half a meter.

"Hundred-Step Divine Fist, huh?" Although Daniel failed to obtain 'A Strip of Coastline,' he gained a 'God' character and a decent Nen ability, which he considered valuable rewards.

"Come to think of it, Leorio's Nen ability seems to have a similar effect," Daniel mused, but his excitement waned as he remembered Leorio's ability. Given his relationship with Leorio, learning that ability would be easy, so in the end, all he gained was a 'God' character that amplified his Nen.

"The first seven rounds... Gon, Killua, and Biscuit aren't enough to win them all," Daniel thought as he gave the fourteen players their Leave cards. Though they hadn't been useful in the challenge, Daniel honored his promise.

As for Alvis, Daniel wouldn't have gone back on his word if Alvis hadn't been so greedy.

"There are three 'A Strip of Coastline' cards in total. To ensure victory, I need to form another strong team. That way, three teams can each secure a card," Daniel concluded after a moment of thought. He decided to approach Gon, Killua, and Biscuit, as well as Razor's group. As long as the first seven rounds were won, Daniel could handle Razor himself in the final dodgeball match.

Aside from Gon, Killua, and Biscuit, Razor's group was the only other team Daniel had interacted with in the game.

"Each team

 gets one 'A Strip of Coastline' card. No problem," Razor agreed readily when Daniel proposed the plan. Although obtaining 'A Strip of Coastline' would give Daniel a total of ninety-nine cards, Razor had no reason to refuse, especially since the conditions for acquiring the final card remained unknown and Daniel hadn't revealed exactly how to obtain 'A Strip of Coastline.'

As for Gon, Killua, and Biscuit, convincing them was easy. After teaming up to deal with Genthru earlier, they were already used to working together.

"So it takes fifteen people to trigger this mission," Razor marveled when he learned from Daniel that the mission required fifteen participants. This task had stumped the entire player base, including him.

"It seems like we're still short of people. What do we do now?" Killua asked, looking at Daniel.

"We'll just hire a few more people. I tried the mission earlier," Daniel replied, explaining the need to clear eight rounds to win.

"No wonder you came looking for us."

It was Killua who spoke, but Daniel didn't mind. To him, Gon and Killua were the most important players at the moment; the others were secondary.

With ten people already gathered, they hired five more, promising them they wouldn't have to fight and could just stand by. With a full team of fifteen, they triggered the mission.

"You're back," Razor greeted with a smile when he saw Daniel return with the group. But Daniel knew the smile was meant for Gon.

"Well then, let's get started."

"No problem."

The challenges hadn't changed, nor had the opponents. With their preparations, Daniel and his team easily overcame their foes, even though their opponents had unique Nen abilities enhanced by the 'God' characters. Gon, Killua, Biscuit, and Razor's team members defeated their opponents in almost no time, and Razor dealt with the defeated opponents himself.

Razor's subordinates were all criminals, and serious ones at that—mostly death row inmates who should have been locked up in prison. Ging had brought them into the game as NPCs as a form of redemption, with Razor acting as their warden.

In fact, during the beta test of Greed Island, these criminals were the primary testers. Given that Greed Island was a real game with spatial teleportation, ensuring safety was a priority before releasing it to the public.

The Marvel-like concept of the USA, where criminals are granted certain rights, had no place in the Hunter world. Of course, such things needed to remain secret.

"Well done. Now for the final match," Razor said after they had cleared the first seven rounds. On the dodgeball court, Razor himself stepped up, creating fourteen clones that startled Gon and Killua.

"Come to think of it, Hisoka's Nen ability would have been very useful in this situation. It seems wasteful to have dismissed it earlier," Daniel thought as he entered the arena. Hisoka's peculiar ability had stemmed from his deep childhood resentment over not being able to afford gum, which led him to develop Bungee Gum, and his "Texture Surprise" derived from a type of adhesive paper.

"Let's begin," Razor said, raising the dodgeball as powerful Nen surged in his palm.

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