Hunter x Hunter: The Strongest Zoldyck

Chapter 101 The Second Step of Cultivation

"Boss, how are you?"

Below the ring, Fica looked at Roy, who had just finished his second match and was walking off the stage, his tone tinged with a cautious worry.

His gaze swept over Roy several times, especially on the left hand that had just unleashed its second "Half-Step Collapse"... the left hand with red knuckles, no deformed bones, but cracked skin.

"It's nothing, just some superficial injuries."

As Roy descended the last step, his steps were steady and his breathing rhythm was normal.

"As long as you don't use too much force, there won't be any problems."

He smiled slightly and gave the red-haired boy a reassuring look.

He then approached Fica and reached out to ruffle the boy's messy red hair.

His movements were casual and natural, carrying a brotherly intimacy that was not common in Roy, so Fika was stunned for a moment.

Then he grinned, like a large dog whose fur had been stroked.

"How are you? Have you reached the hundredth floor yet?"

"It'll be over soon, just one more game!"

Fica puffed out his chest, a hint of smugness in his voice.

"If I win one more game, I can go up to the hundredth floor."

"That's good."

Roy nodded, withdrew his hand, and looked past Fica to the quiet figure beside him.

"And you, Serapika—"

The girl stood half a step behind Fica, her pale yellow dress clinging gently to her legs in the breeze of the corridor.

Her hands hung down in front of her, her fingers interlaced, her posture elegant.

"One hundred and fifty-three floors."

She spoke, her voice not loud, but as clear as water droplets falling on glass.

"Two more games and we should reach the 200th floor."

As she said this, she slightly raised her eyelids, her azure eyes gazing towards the arena, as if anticipating the battle to come.

"Not bad." Roy smiled. "Frer than Fica."

"Feed me...feed me..." Fica immediately complained.

"Boss, that's hurtful! I'm your first underling, can't you give me some face?"

"Respect is something you earn yourself."

Roy replied expressionlessly, but his tone was not cold.

Fica pouted and muttered "biased," but her eyes crinkled into a smile.

Serapika watched the two bicker, and the corners of her mouth curved slightly, like the first ripples spreading after a pebble is thrown into a lake—subtle, yet real.

"Alright." Roy withdrew his gaze and turned to walk deeper into the corridor.

"You guys go back and get some rest. You don't need to wait for me tonight."

"Boss, aren't you going back?" Fika asked, taking two steps after him.

"There's no time..." Roy said without turning his head, his voice drifting from the shadows ahead.

"Don't lose, let's meet up on the 200th floor."

"How is that possible!" Fica shouted at the retreating figure.

He then turned to Serapika and lowered his voice, "Don't you think the boss is much stronger than yesterday?"

Serapika didn't answer; she simply watched Roy's retreating figure in silence.

Her short, silvery-white hair shone like frost under the lamplight, and her steps remained steady, but she seemed less imposing than when she arrived.

It's lighter now.

The figure walked into the elevator, and the doors slowly closed.

The corridor fell silent, save for the faint clamor coming from the distant arena.

Seeing that the girl did not respond, Fika remained silent for a long time before suddenly sighing, "Three days—Boss is risking his life."

The moment he finished speaking, the image of Roy returning from the canyon that evening involuntarily flashed into his mind.

He probably won't forget that look for a long time.

His silvery-white hair was covered in a hazy layer of grayish-yellow sand, sticking to his forehead in strands, with dark red scabs at the ends. His face was covered in dirt, with only a few faint white streaks of sweat around his eyes and on the sides of his nose.

What Fica remembers most clearly are those hands.

Almost no part of the skin on his ten fingers was intact; his fingernails were split in several places, with dried, dark brown bloodstains embedded in the cracks; his palms were also covered in calluses, but not the kind of thick calluses that come from years of practice, but rather the result of repeated friction and repair with sand and soil.

"Otherwise what?"

Serapika held her hands tightly at her sides, a hint of resentment flashing in her eyes: "Next time, I won't be a burden."

Her voice was soft and cold, yet carried an undeniable firmness.

Fica glanced at her but didn't say anything; he just clenched his fists.

In his heart, wasn't that also what he thought?

But the reality is, he's already struggling to even clear two hundred floors, let alone face that monster...

Fica felt powerless whenever he thought about what happened in the ring before.

No matter how much he analyzed and reviewed the game in his mind, he couldn't find any chance of winning for that contestant number 567.

That eerie red-haired man filled him with such despair.

Deep down, he even vaguely believed that he would never reach that level in his entire life.

This undoubtedly intensified his sense of despair.

Da————Da————.

The two turned around and walked in opposite directions.

In the corridor on the 135th floor, the lights stretched two shadows very long, which slowly overlapped and finally disappeared around the corner.

Inside the elevator, Roy leaned against the wall, closed her eyes, and unconsciously placed her right hand over her left chest, her heart beating steadily.

one time----.

one time----.

Another one————.

"Two more days—" he muttered to himself.

Hisoka, right? I'll give you a big surprise.

Feeling the surging power within himself, Roy closed his eyes and began to comprehend the application of the points.

Snap! ————

The elevator doors opened, he opened his eyes, and stepped out.

At the end of the corridor, Bisky was leaning against the doorway, a new candy in her mouth, tilting her head to look at him.

"You won?"

"Um."

"How much force did you use?"

"Thirty percent."

Bisky raised an eyebrow and stepped aside to clear the doorway. "Come in, I have something to tell you."

Roy entered the room.

The door closed behind me, shutting out the lights in the corridor and the faint noise from afar.

The night was darker.

The Sky Arena remained brightly lit, but Roy's training had only just begun.

Inside the room, a blonde, blue-eyed girl with pigtails lay back on a gray sofa. In front of her, Luo Yi, with her fair white hair and a distinctly aloof demeanor, sat on the floor with her legs crossed, her hands outstretched, and her eyes slightly closed.

"What are you going to do?"

In the quiet room, Roy's soft voice rang out.

"You've forgotten what I said."

Snapped!

A small pebble hit Roy in the back, the force penetrating his spine.

hiss----.

Roy winced in pain, let out a soft groan, and dared not speak again.

Because Bisky had given him instructions at the beginning of the training that he should follow her arrangements for all his actions for the next three days.

You cannot refuse, you cannot resist, you cannot ask questions.