Luo Ning's waist injury recovered quickly; even his broken arm would likely be completely healed in another week. This was probably related to him being an Enhancer, which greatly bolstered his self-healing abilities. It was a pity his Sharingan hadn't evolved enough; otherwise, if he could perform A-rank ninjutsu, he should have recovered even faster.
His first battle upon arriving at Heaven's Arena failed to pique his interest because his opponent was simply too weak. With just a slight effort, his opponent was sent flying out of the ring. This easy victory allowed him to relax a bit more.
"Number 2025."
The referee's voice came from the side. Luo Ning turned his head and received the news that he was being sent straight to the 50th floor. On his way up, Luo Ning stopped to collect the prize money for his first victory: 152 Jenny. Just enough for a bottle of juice.
Furthermore, after winning, Luo Ning was permitted to fight one more match today. Heaven's Arena's schedule for contestants dictated that if a fighter won, they could be arranged for another match on the same day as long as they agreed. In other words, a fighter could compete in a maximum of two matches per day.
At this rate, Luo Ning could reach the 60th floor today. To reach the 200th floor, it would take exactly one week, excluding today. That was assuming he didn't suffer any setbacks in the meantime. Luo Ning planned to use this place to properly hone his combat experience.
The battle on the 50th floor held no surprises either. Unfortunately, he didn't make it to the 100th floor yet, so Luo Ning had to rent a room within the arena himself. He didn't have much money left in his pocket. Fortunately, winning on the 50th floor earned him a prize of 50,000 Jenny.
Luo Ning didn't choose to be frugal. Since he could easily earn hundreds of millions of Jenny here, a few tens of thousands were nothing worth saving. Over the next few days, Luo Ning spent his time browsing the internet to gain a clearer understanding of this world while rapidly increasing his floor count.
Gradually, he became a rising star in the arena. After all, over several consecutive days, he had reached the 170th floor without losing a single match. Although he didn't one-shot every opponent, his victories were always clean and decisive.
As the floors increased, Luo Ning noticed that his opponents possessed decent combat experience. This was also why he didn't choose to end every fight instantly; he wanted to master more martial arts techniques through sparring. Luo Ning even considered joining a martial arts gym to learn some fighting skills when he reached the 150th floor.
However, he ultimately rejected the idea. If the masters at the gyms were Nen users, it might be worthwhile, but after visiting several, he found they were just ordinary people running classes, which killed his interest.
In the afternoon, Luo Ning arrived at the waiting room on the 170th floor. When he received the notification for his match, a trace of surprise appeared on his face because his opponent was a familiar face.
"Mr. Luo Ning, Mr. Killua, please proceed to Arena A on the 173rd floor for your match."
Luo Ning was visibly stunned when he heard the name. Based on the timeline, Killua should only be eight years old right now. But then Luo Ning recalled what Killua had once mentioned. When Killua accompanied Gon to Heaven's Arena, he had said he first came here when he was six and spent two years finishing his climb. Back then, he had reached the 190th floor. It all lined up.
However, as he walked toward the ring, Luo Ning saw someone waiting for him in the hallway. The man wore a proper tuxedo, had a small goatee on his chin, and wore triangular glasses. Seeing Luo Ning approach, he offered a polite, practiced smile.
"Hello, Mr. Luo Ning. I am Gotoh, the butler of Master Killua's household."
Luo Ning narrowed his eyes slightly. "Is there something you need?"
"Yes," Gotoh replied, maintaining his harmless appearance. "In the upcoming battle, I hope you will refrain from using Nen. To show our sincerity, I will gift you 10 million Jenny as compensation."
Luo Ning didn't even need to think about it before nodding. "Fine."
Ten million for doing nothing? There was no reason to refuse. Moreover, Gotoh's presence here confirmed his suspicion—the Zoldyck family likely had a specific plan for Killua's training. Otherwise, Luo Ning didn't believe for a second that Killua, after staying at Heaven's Arena for two years, would have had zero contact with Nen.
Gotoh smiled with satisfaction, reached into his pocket to pull out a card, and bowed slightly as he stepped aside. As Luo Ning passed him, he took the card and gave Gotoh a nod.
When he finally stepped onto the ring and looked at the young Killua across from him, Luo Ning felt a strange sensation. At eight years old, Killua was barely over a meter tall. The moment Luo Ning stepped onto the stage, Killua immediately dropped into a combat stance, his hair bristling like a startled cat.
Clearly, even though Luo Ning hadn't attacked yet, his constant state of Ten put immense pressure on Killua. Luo Ning didn't intend to lose, nor did he intend to break his promise. Even without using Nen to attack, he was confident he could beat Killua.
So, as soon as the referee announced the start of the match, he immediately burst forward with speed, appearing behind Killua. However, Killua's reflexes were incredibly fast. The moment Luo Ning approached, Killua spun around and raised his arms in a cross-guard.
The sound of the impact echoed. Luo Ning's knife-hand strike hit Killua's arms, the massive force sending the boy back several steps. The moment Killua stopped, Luo Ning saw his hands transform slightly, and a fierce killing intent flared in his eyes.
In the next second, Killua accelerated toward Luo Ning. But his movements were completely seen through by Luo Ning. He stepped aside slightly, and as Killua brushed past him, he aimed another knife-hand strike at the back of Killua's neck.
But this strike missed.
With a sudden burst of speed, Killua dodged the blow and thrust his hand toward Luo Ning's heart. Luo Ning pivoted slightly, evading the lethal strike. Simultaneously, he whipped his leg up, kicking Killua squarely and sending him airborne.
He wasn't finished. As Killua reached the peak of his trajectory, Luo Ning's fist slammed into the boy's back, smashing him down onto the ring floor. Watching Killua hit the ground hard, the referee immediately began the count.
The audience below erupted into cheers. Luo Ning saw Killua's body twitch as he tried to stand back up. After a thought, Luo Ning stepped back a few paces. In that instant, he sensed a flicker of killing intent—not from Killua, but from the audience.
Luo Ning followed the sensation and saw a stiff young man sitting below the stage, his face decorated with numerous pins.
'Illumi!'
Luo Ning thought the name to himself as he quickly retracted his gaze and looked back at Killua. By the time the referee reached five, Killua had crawled up from the ground. His face was filled with a mix of frustration and even thicker killing intent. His dark eyes looked at Luo Ning with no emotion, only coldness.
'The training of a family of assassins is truly twisted,' Luo Ning thought. As the referee announced the continuation of the match, Luo Ning spoke calmly. "Just surrender. You are no match for me."
Losing this match would only drop Killua to the 160th floor. With his strength, as long as he didn't run into Luo Ning, he could easily return to the 170th floor. Besides, losing a single match shouldn't mean much to the current Killua. Since it took him two years to reach the 190th floor, he must have lost many times during that period.
Killua stared at Luo Ning for a long time before slowly withdrawing his killing intent. He shoved his hands into his pockets and struck a cool pose. "Fine, you are indeed stronger than me. I surrender!"
Luo Ning nodded. He had no intention of striking up an acquaintance with Killua and turned to leave the arena. However, Killua's voice drifted from behind him once more.
"I feel a disgusting, sickening aura coming from you that I really hate. I'll challenge you again someday, and by then, I'll figure out exactly what it is!"
"If you can make it up here, I won't mind," Luo Ning said, waving his hand.
With Killua's current strength, he wouldn't be able to reach the 200th floor at all. Thus, Luo Ning wasn't worried in the slightest. However, he could feel that the killing intent from beneath the stage grew even more intense as he spoke those words.