Chapter 71

"Grandfather Zeno, don't worry. I'm an Emission-Type Nen user, specializing in Beast Conjuration," Ron reassured him.

This much was clear. Even without Zeno's reminder, Ron was always mindful of his own safety. He wasn't the type to rush recklessly into battle. For him, preserving his life was always the top priority.

Zeno nodded.

The two exchanged a quick glance, and in the next moment, they surged forward with incredible speed, leaving Park and Peter far behind.

The person lurking in the shadows felt a pang of panic upon seeing this. Zeno and Ron's speed was extraordinary, covering a vast distance in the blink of an eye. Realizing the urgency, the pursuer had no choice but to abandon his cover and give chase, knowing he was now exposed.

Zeno glanced back briefly and spotted the pursuer—a middle-aged man who had just entered his line of sight.

Zeno's eyes narrowed, and he came to a sudden halt.

**Bang!**

In the blink of an eye, he changed direction and charged straight toward the middle-aged man. Ron quickly turned to join him.

To be precise it was Hanma Baki. 

Zeno's speed was so overwhelming that the middle-aged man had no time to react, unable to counterattack.

Hanma Baki kept pace alongside them, gradually building up his own intensity. Piece by piece, his aura grew stronger. His back muscles shifted and contorted, eventually taking the shape of a demonic face.

"Demon-Back Form!"

This transformation made Hanma Baki far more formidable than in his regular state. The middle-aged man began to feel genuinely threatened. Zeno's pressure alone was overwhelming, and with Hanma Baki's added strength, even the slightest misstep could lead to the man's defeat—and here, defeat likely meant death.

The middle-aged man realized he couldn't afford that outcome.

"Damn it! These two weren't trying to escape at all—they're here to kill me!"

"Not that it's surprising," he thought bitterly. "But I never expected them to be this strong."

"It's one thing for this old man to be so powerful—after all, he's a known figure capable of facing calamities. But that kid? How can someone so young be this strong?"

"Is my only option to flee?"

The man's frustration bubbled up. He and his allies had spent considerable effort to control these disasters, paying a high price for it. Just as they were on the verge of success, someone else swooped in to steal everything. To make matters worse, now there was a real risk of the whole operation being exposed.

"When is Old T going to get here?" He wanted to glance back for reassurance, but he didn't have the time.

---

Ron observed the unfolding scene, and a specific image from the original story flashed in his mind: the moment when Zeno and Silva Zoldyck had teamed up against Chrollo. This situation was strikingly similar, though with one key difference: instead of Silva, Ron was now fighting alongside Zeno.

Ron knew that his own strength was still far behind Silva's, but the intensity of Zeno's attacks against this middle-aged man reminded him of the assault he had witnessed against Chrollo in the original.

"Now's my chance!" Ron thought.

"Attack with everything you've got!" Zeno's voice rang out. "Even if you kill me in the process, it doesn't matter!"

The middle-aged man's heart raced in alarm. "Is this old man insane?"

Just as Zeno finished speaking, Hanma Baki rushed toward them, his hands radiating with a dense aura of Nen.

**Boom!**

A powerful blast hit both Zeno and the middle-aged man.

The impact forced them to momentarily halt, bracing against Hanma Baki's assault while stepping back to absorb the force.

The middle-aged man sighed in relief. After the initial shock of Hanma Baki's attack, he realized it wasn't as overwhelming as he had feared. By reinforcing his defence with "Ken" technique, he had come away with only minor injuries.

Zeno, on the other hand, appeared unaffected. Glancing coolly at the middle-aged man, he said, "It looks like we both managed to keep our lives."

At that moment, Hanma Baki charged again, throwing a powerful punch straight at the middle-aged man.

The middle-aged man watched Hanma Baki charge toward him and scoffed coldly.

"If that last attack couldn't hurt me, what makes you think this one will?"

Previously, overwhelmed by Zeno's relentless assaults and misjudging Hanma Baki's intensity, the middle-aged man had overestimated the threat of Baki's attack. Once the punch landed, he realized his mistake. Now, he was underestimating his opponent.

In this state, the middle-aged man barely acknowledged Baki's incoming strike.

**Bang!**

The middle-aged man threw his fist forward to meet Baki's in a head-on clash.

But what he hadn't noticed was that this time, something was different about Baki's punch. Hanma Baki was wearing a glove—no ordinary glove, but one imbued with the power of "Killer Queen's First Bomb."

Because Baki had concentrated his aura around his fist, the explosive energy was hidden from the middle-aged man's senses. With the man's dismissive attitude, he failed to sense the danger.

It wasn't until their fists collided that the middle-aged man realized something was wrong.

His face darkened, and he instinctively tried to pull back.

The middle-aged man was fast—if Ron had used Killer Queen's First Bomb in its standard detonation method (where the bomb itself explodes), the man might have evaded serious harm. But Ron had activated the bomb in its secondary form. Instead of the glove itself exploding, it caused anything that touched it to explode.

As soon as the middle-aged man's fist connected with Hanma Baki's, an explosive force surged up his arm.

There was no way to dodge.

A silent yet intense explosion erupted, forcing the middle-aged man to channel a massive amount of aura to suppress it. However, he couldn't contain the blast completely. His arm began disintegrating—flesh and bone vaporized—until the lower half of his arm was completely gone, leaving only a charred stump at his upper arm.

Grimacing, the middle-aged man quickly used his aura to control his muscles, contracting the wound and stemming the blood flow—basic wound management all Nen users were taught.

He glared venomously at Hanma Baki, then shifted his gaze to Ron.

"You little brat!" His eyes burned with fury and spite.

Zeno's gaze flickered as he moved to react.

**Bang!**

The middle-aged man raised his remaining arm and unleashed a massive wave of fire toward Zeno. No, it wasn't just fire—it was molten lava. Streams of lava shot out, creating a fiery barrier that forced Zeno to hold his ground.

"Ron, go," Zeno's voice called out firmly.

Without hesitation, Ron sped off in the direction Zeno indicated.

Meanwhile, Park and Peter were also moving swiftly, making their way toward the Elder's City. Within moments, they vanished from the middle-aged man's line of sight.

The middle-aged man, however, retreated further, wary that Zeno's departure might be a feint. After all, he knew he was no match for Zeno in his current state and suspected Zeno might double back for a strike.

Zeno and Ron continued to move swiftly, not pausing for anything.