Chapter 1: Meteor x Hunter

Ji Heping is an ordinary young man of the 21st century. His parents named him with three meanings.

First, national peace, no disasters or wars.

Second, social harmony and happiness.

Third, a life of happiness and peace.

While the first two meanings were somewhat achieved, the third one had nothing to do with Ji Heping. His father spent his days' gambling and getting drunk, often engaging in domestic violence. Young Ji Heping witnessed it all, storing the memories deep in his heart, yet his inner self remained unaffected.

At age three, his mother left the family, citing work reasons. A year later, his parents divorced, and Ji Heping was given to his father, who was only four years old at the time. His mother's face remained vivid in his mind; they parted ways at the age of four and never saw each other again. Even after twenty years, the scene from that time remained clear in his mind.

After his parents' divorce, his father went to work outside, and Ji Heping lived in the countryside with his grandparents as a left-behind child. Both his grandparents had stubborn tempers and argued every day. But no matter how they argued, Ji Heping's heart remained unaffected, as if he was born to be "cold-blooded."

At the age of twelve, his grandfather passed away, and his father, who only visited their hometown once a year, had to take leave to handle the funeral arrangements. After his grandfather's death, his grandmother developed senile dementia and passed away three years later.

His father still returned home once a year, but his time at home became increasingly shorter. At the age of twelve, Ji Heping began living alone, eating alone, watching television alone, and sleeping alone.

But he felt that this was how life should be.

It was as if he was naturally meant to be so lonely.

...

Time flies, and twenty years passed in the blink of an eye.

"What a shitty life," Ji Heping muttered, his eyes cast down, standing on the subway platform, scanning the people around him who were immersed in their phones.

"Ugh..."

The subway arrived and stopped at the station, but before the passengers inside could exit, a dozen people rushed in, afraid of being left behind.

Ji Heping stood motionless in his place, waiting for them to squeeze past before he slowly stepped towards the train doors.

"Ouch!"

Just as Ji Heping stepped onto the train, he heard a cry of pain from behind. Turning around, he saw an elderly woman with white hair lying on the subway platform, her brows furrowed in extreme pain.

"What happened to the old lady?"

"Probably a heart attack or something?"

The people heading to work crowded around the train doors, while others on the platform also looked towards the fallen elderly woman, discussing the situation.

Ji Heping coldly observed the scene, until the subway departed from the station, and no one had come forward to help the elderly lady.

"What a shitty society," Ji Heping muttered.

Every day, Ji Heping repeated the same routine. He woke up at 7:10 in the morning, washed up. At 7:40, he left the house and walked ten minutes to the subway station, waiting for another five minutes for the train. A thirty-minute journey, followed by a five-minute walk to the company's doorstep to grab breakfast, which took fifteen minutes.

After finishing breakfast, he entered the office building's lobby, where six elevators had long queues. He had to wait for ten minutes in line before he could enter an elevator. Usually, he would step into the company's entrance between 9:00 and 9:01.

"Beep, clocking in successful."

Usually, there would be a resentful gaze directed at him at this moment—it was from the administration.

From 9:00 to 10:00 in the morning, after sorting out his daily work routine, Ji Heping would get into the company car and head to the headquarters for the monthly manager's meeting.

Sitting in the car, Ji Heping looked out the window at the bright sky, the sunshine radiant, not a cloud in sight.

"Hmm?"

A black dot appeared in the sky, catching Ji Heping's attention.

"What's wrong?"

The leader who was driving asked him, and Ji Heping gazed at the black dot in the sky, gently shaking his head.

"It's nothing."

Resting his right hand on the window sill, supporting his chin, Ji Heping continued to watch, but suddenly, his brows furrowed.

"Why does it feel like... the black dot is getting bigger?"

"Could it be a meteor?"

Ji Heping murmured softly, gazing at the gradually enlarging black dot. He felt an ominous premonition rising in his heart.

Since childhood, Ji Heping had a special sense of danger. This sense had once helped him evade an earthquake.

During the summer vacation in college, he had planned to travel to a famous tourist destination. But two days before departure, Ji Heping suddenly felt that it wasn't the right time to go. Instead, he spent three days exploring tourist spots in nearby provinces and cities.

On the fourth day, he saw the news. The tourist destination he had originally planned to visit experienced a 7.0 magnitude earthquake, resulting in 32 fatalities, 665 injuries, 10 missing persons, and 120,000 people affected, including tourists.

As Ji Heping was reminiscing, the black dot was rapidly descending until it came into full view.

"What a shitty world."

This was the last thought that crossed Ji Heping's mind.

*Boom!!!*

Accompanied by a loud bang, a dark object fell from the sky, crashing through the car roof and directly hitting Ji Heping's temple.

Ten minutes later, a news story spread like wildfire across the internet.

On April 1, 2018, at approximately 10:23 a.m., a meteorite fell onto a moving vehicle on Tianfu Avenue in Huai Sha City.

One person was killed, and four were injured (due to the accident).

But what captured people's attention was not the accident itself but the person who was killed by the meteorite.

Ji Heping had the unfortunate distinction of being the first and only person in history to be killed by a meteorite, thus etching his name into the annals of history.

...

World of Hunter x Hunter, 1978. Republic of Padokea, Detora Region, Mount Kukuroo.

On this mountain, situated at an altitude of 3,722 meters, lies the semi-mountainous mansion of the Zoldyck Family.

In the forest of Mount Kukuroo, a small figure walks through the jungle, holding a tree branch stripped of its leaves.

With pure black pupils, short hair with bangs, and dressed in a black children's suit, it is none other than Ji Heping, who has reincarnated into this world.

He is now called Irumi, three years old, and a member of the renowned Zoldyck Family known for their assassinations.

*Rustle...*

Irumi pushes aside the grass before him, crouching and walking out of the thicket, spotting Illumi playing in the amusement park.

"Young Master Irumi!"

"You shouldn't go into the forest alone, sir."

The curly-haired female butler supervising Illumi quickly runs up to Irumi, squatting down and checking him.

"Irumi, where did you go just now?"

Illumi, kneeling in the sand and playing with it, stares blankly at Irumi emerging from the grass.

At this time, Irumi still has short hair and the same bangs as Illumi. The two are twin brothers and naturally have similar appearances, but if you were to point out the differences...

Illumi seems somewhat expressionless, with very few changes in his facial expressions, making it difficult to fathom his inner thoughts. And the most distinctive feature is his lifeless eyes.

But in terms of actions and speech, he is still very childish.

Irumi, on the other hand, rarely shows changes in his facial expressions but gives off a sense of composure. He acts very methodically, making it hard to believe he is just a three-year-old child.

He always gives off the impression that Irumi is an adult.

"It's nothing. I just wandered around."

Irumi casually replies, effortlessly stepping over the fence of the amusement park and crouching in front of Illumi, picking up a toy that was placed aside.