Apparently, that kind of rapid self-repair came with a hefty cost. It must have been burning through a massive amount of energy with each recovery. And if it kept going like this without refueling, it would only get slower.
Unless it found a way to recharge.
Ging's gaze shifted to the herbs growing along the stone wall. A conflicted look flickered across his face. If his guess was right, the creature might make a move on them.
The herbs, vanilla, weren't just ordinary plants. Normally used for healing physical ailments, they also had properties that could replenish drained aura if consumed under high mental fatigue.
In other words, they couldn't let this thing drag the fight out. If it got the chance to eat the vanilla, it would bounce right back. They had to take it down completely, and fast.
As Ging was analyzing the situation, a shimmer passed over the Gold-Silver Plants's head. Something was moving under its skin, glowing faintly.
Then, without warning, a thick beam of green light burst forth and shot directly at Ging. The whole sequence, from buildup to launch, lasted barely a second.
Ging snapped back into the moment. He stared down the incoming beam, not even flinching. Dodging it would be easy. That was never the real threat.
The Gold-Silver Plants's attacks couldn't do much to him anyway. What made it dangerous was its insane recovery, not its offense.
Just as he was about to step aside, another beam shot in from the side, this one was different. It wasn't just one color. It shimmered in three distinct shades: red, yellow, and blue.
They didn't blend together, either. It was like each color was divided by invisible lines, staying sharp and separated.
And before Ging could react, the tri-colored beam intercepted the green beam mid-air.
BOOM!
The two beams slammed into each other, releasing a thunderous shockwave that echoed through the ancient maze-city like a bomb had gone off. A cloud of thick dust shot upward, chunks of stone and debris scattering across the battlefield.
"Ahem..." Ging coughed, brushing the dust from his face as he appeared beside Larry, who'd just swapped out his battle partner.
"Next time, give me a heads-up before you switch out fighters," Ging muttered, half-exasperated, glancing sideways at the new arrival, a three-headed monstrosity that had emerged from the shadows.
Another Nen beast... and a powerful one.
Ging didn't even have to probe it. The pressure it gave off was overwhelming, wild, untamed, and entirely dark. It wasn't trying to suppress its presence at all. Its aura exploded outward like a wave, filled with pure malice.
Even just sensing it, Ging could tell how evil this thing was.
The beast's skin was a slick, bruised shade of blue-black, its three heads snarling and twitching. What caught Ging off guard was its shape, he couldn't help but notice how much it resembled a dragon.
'Was this another dragon-type Nen beast?'
But compared to Dragonite, which had a strong yet gentle aura, this one... felt entirely different. The three-headed dragon radiated something fierce, an oppressive dominance that made your chest tighten.
"It's because you were taking too long," Larry replied from the side, almost too casually. "I couldn't just sit there and wait."
Larry grinned, showing no remorse for stealing Ging's finishing blow. He had also spotted the weakness in the Gold-Silver Plants's regeneration, and it was obvious Ging was about to finish the job. But Larry wasn't the only one keeping a close eye on the changes, Ging had been tracking them, too.
If he'd waited even a few seconds longer, Ging might've unleashed his ultimate move to obliterate the creature in a single hit. And if that happened, Larry would've missed out on the battle experience. He couldn't let that happen.
"ROAR!!"
The three-headed dragon threw back its necks and let out a thunderous, bone-rattling roar. All six of its glowing eyes locked onto the Gold-Silver Plants, burning with intensifying bloodlust.
Just as the dragon was about to move, the battlefield began to change.
Grains of sand suddenly materialized out of thin air, swirling along the ground. They gathered in clumps, forming small dunes. Then came a dry, whirling wind from nowhere, picking up the sand and whipping it into a wild, screeching sandstorm.
Tiny grains slammed into the metallic body of the Gold-Silver Plants, tapping out a series of crisp, metallic pings. Pyon, who had been typing nonstop, froze. She stared at the shifting field, stunned. 'Wait a second... could it be?'
A massive shadow emerged through the veil of swirling dust. A hulking metal beast stepped into view, its body a towering mass of dark green armor, covered in spikes.
Its crimson eyes glowed with violent intent, and every step it took sent tremors through the newly formed desert floor. It looked like something out of a nightmare. Like a dragon and a tank fused into one.
ROOOAAARRR!!
The beast stomped hard on the ground, sending waves through the sand beneath it as it let out a furious bellow.
Worried his previous blow wouldn't be enough, Larry had summoned another one of his nen beasts to ensure the Gold-Silver Plants wouldn't get a second chance to regenerate. His goal was clear: overwhelm the creature with raw force, leaving it no time to react, no inch to recover.
If the three-headed dragon was like the embodiment of darkness and chaos, Tyranitar was a tyrant carved from the desert itself, unyielding, unshakable, and brutal in presence.
Ging stared at the desert monarch, eyes wide with a flash of excitement. Tyranitar's aura was even more imposing than the dragon's.
For a brief moment, Ging's fingers clenched. He felt the heat of battle rise again inside him. He wanted to fight Larry. Right now. But that rush of fighting spirit faded just as quickly as it came.
A cold realization sank in. Larry had now revealed four nen beasts, each one operating at a level equal to Ging's own strength. If they really went head-to-head, Ging knew what would happen.
He'd be crushed.
Ging glanced at Larry, his expression a mix of disbelief and quiet resignation. The gap between them was bigger than he'd expected.
There was no denying it now. Larry wasn't just one of the strongest on the six continents, he was the strongest. And it wasn't that symbolic kind of "strongest" people once used for Chairman Netero.
This was real. A terrifying, undisputed reality. "The hell do you mean 'just a little bit'?" Ging muttered, eyes narrowing. He bent down, grabbing the robes he'd taken off earlier, and gave them a few sharp shakes to knock the dust off.
As he pulled them back on, he shot Larry a look and said with clear irritation, "You've still got nen beasts you haven't even shown yet, don't you?"
Off to the side, Pyon finally snapped out of her daze and nodded in agreement, echoing Ging's thought. "This is way more than just a little bit."
Not to mention, each of them was incredibly strong and had unique abilities of their own. After saying that, Ging reached into his small cloth bag and pulled out another piece of fruit.
It was an apple again, but it gave off a completely different feeling from the one before. This one radiated a vibrant life force, glowing faintly with a golden light. Just looking at it, you could tell it wasn't ordinary.
Ging took a bite, and sweet juice burst in his mouth, flowing smoothly down his throat and into his stomach. A warm current followed, transforming into streams of pure aura that quickly replenished the energy he had spent on earlier fight.