The car entered the city. It was already nighttime, but the streetlights were bright, and shops on both sides of the street were still open, making the area lively and bustling. Ron had no intention of lingering and instructed Ruco to drive straight into the massive underground garage of Heaven's Arena.
After parking the car, everyone got out, all of them having changed into fresh clothes. The outfits they had worn into the desert had already been destroyed, because Ron didn't want to leave behind any evidence or clues linking them to the desert's depths or their encounter with Kroll and the others. Outwardly, their excursion would simply appear as an ordinary sightseeing trip.
Upon returning to Heaven's Arena, Ron resumed uploading Baki the Grappler and Bungou Stray Dogs. The manga platform was developing nicely, and both series had achieved exactly the success Ron had anticipated. These were manga that had already proven themselves in another world, and here, they were still considered top-tier works. In the new manga rankings, these two series occupied the first and second places respectively, with a massive number of readers, favorites, and votes.
"Once a few more chapters are uploaded, I can start considering releasing physical editions," Ron thought. "It would be easier to license them out rather than trying to operate a publishing company alone."
Aside from managing that, Ron spent most of his time carefully working on using his aura to control Rosgell. It wasn't something that could be accomplished overnight; it would require patient, meticulous effort. It was even harder than mastering the Rotten Life Blade had been back then. However, Ron's current strength was far beyond what it had been at that time, so the actual time needed might not necessarily be longer.
Meanwhile, Misty and Ruco immediately threw themselves into intense training upon their return. Ruco had witnessed firsthand the gap between her abilities and those of the others in the team, while Misty had been deeply shaken by her defeat at the hands of Kroll's subordinates. Ponzu and Nina resumed their previous routines. Sally also continued diligently working to strengthen her abilities.
Due to the changes caused by the failure surrounding Kroll and Rosgell, there was growing unease among certain factions in Mingbo Republic. Kroll's personal failure wasn't too serious—but the loss of Rosgell's corpse was an enormous issue.
Rosgell was a hero to Mingbo. People began arriving one after another at the desert's depths, hoping to find clues and retrieve Rosgell's remains, but they found nothing.
Deep beneath the desert, that mass of black liquid had hidden itself well underground. Moreover, it seemed to possess a form of intelligence. It could sense danger, make judgments, and when it realized the situation was unfavorable, it retracted itself. Even though it was tempted by the many Nen users appearing above, it managed to restrain itself and did not act.
Gradually, fewer people came to the desert.
At the borders, the number of people began slowly returning to normal. Despite the dangers that had occurred, the lure of profits would always draw people back. Human nature was such that as long as enough time passed without new incidents, they would forget or take the risk again.
Meanwhile, on the arena stage, a battle had just ended. A few years earlier, Killua had already qualified for the 200th floor. Now, years later, he was even stronger. Along the way, no one could truly threaten him. With a clean and decisive victory, Killua once again earned the right to enter the 200th floor. However, because he had previously forfeited once, if he gave up again, he would permanently lose eligibility to enter the 200th floor.
"Today, you must go register for the 200th floor," an official announced.
Killua glanced toward the audience. Gon stood up and waved excitedly, cheering for Killua's victory. Killua smiled, then left the stage and rejoined Gon.
Killua's match had been in the morning, and Gon's was scheduled for the afternoon. The gap between them wasn't long, so the two decided not to return to Wing's place but instead stayed at Heaven's Arena for lunch and a short rest before Gon's match.
"Congratulations, Killua," Gon said enthusiastically.
"For your match this afternoon, are you confident?" Killua asked.
Unlike Killua, who had breezed through his matches with ease, Gon had faced more challenges. There were still many capable fighters among Heaven's Arena contestants. Gon could no longer win in just one move; now it took ten or even dozens of exchanges.
"No problem," Gon said, his eyes shining. "I want to enter the 200th floor with you!"
"That's good," Killua nodded, then frowned slightly. "But Wing still hasn't taught us Nen yet. Gon, if you qualify for the 200th floor, when do you plan to schedule your first match?"
"Of course, as soon as possible," Gon replied excitedly. "I can't wait to experience the world of Nen users!"
"But we haven't learned Nen yet," Killua said with concern.
"I know," Gon said seriously, "but I can't wait any longer."
"Do you think Wing-sensei has a reason for not teaching us?" Killua asked carefully. He hadn't wanted to bring this up, but now, with the situation urgent, he couldn't avoid it anymore. He didn't want to watch Gon get baptized the hard way—or worse, twisted into one of those arena monsters.
Gon fell silent for a moment, then shook his head. "I don't know. But I believe Wing-sensei has his reasons. I can feel it—he has no malice toward us."
Soon, Gon's afternoon match began. He stepped onto the stage, facing a sturdy middle-aged man. After more than a dozen exchanges, Gon finally defeated his opponent.
"Winner: Gon!"
With this victory, Gon also obtained the right to enter the 200th floor.
"Killua, I did it!" Gon said, running over.
"Yeah!" Killua grinned. "Let's go up to the 200th floor now!"
The two of them got into the elevator, ascending toward the 200th floor of Heaven's Arena.
Meanwhile, back at Wing's residence, a flustered Zushi burst into the room.
"Wing-sensei, bad news! Gon and Killua are heading to the 200th floor!"
Wing opened his eyes slowly, his face darkening.
"So soon?" he murmured.
"Yes! And from what I heard, Gon is eager to immediately schedule a match," Zushi added nervously.
Wing's face grew even more grim.
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