At this moment, at the rear of the villagers’ convoy, Chrollo was sitting steadily on the carriage, driving it calmly. Behind him, Rin was in a peculiar posture, flipping through the deep purple “Devouring Spirit Book.”
“It seems that this book currently only records these four guys…” Rin murmured. Below him, the four bandits were tied up, looking weak and pale, in a semi-conscious state. Ignoring their condition, Rin squatted down, and the book, held by misty tendrils, slowly moved before him.
“It seems that just being touched by my Nen leaves a mark…” Rin whispered, raising his pale hand. A faint layer of purple Nen slowly covered his hand, and Rin began to sweat from the effort, showing that controlling Nen to this extent wasn’t easy for him yet.
With his hand wrapped in deep purple Nen, Rin gently touched one of the bandits on the shoulder. Immediately, he noticed a change in the book: one of the four black figures on the page now had a spreading red mark on its shoulder.
Although Rin saw the change, his expression remained serious. He had anticipated some connection between the book and the four bandits, but what effect did it have? He still didn’t understand how this Nen ability book had suddenly manifested.
“What kind of ability could it be? Is it something I wished for?” Rin pondered, rubbing his chin, his small face wrinkled in thought. Unable to figure it out, he continued experimenting by covering the black figures on the page with red marks.
The bandit he had touched became his test subject. Rin’s hand, covered in deep purple Nen, brushed over the bandit’s body, nearly enveloping him in the Nen. In this process, Rin didn’t notice that the misty tendrils connected to the bandit were becoming more solid, and he himself was growing more excited.
As the black figure on the page turned completely red, the connecting Nen tendril became a rich, deep purple.
“Ahhh—” Suddenly, the bandit, who had been unconscious, woke up with a painful scream. His face, now emaciated, looked ghastly, with sunken cheeks and an appearance of impending death.
Rin, startled by the scream, quickly jumped back. “Swoosh!” The sudden noise also alerted Chrollo, who swiftly joined Rin and calmly observed the situation.
The bandit, in extreme pain, glared at Rin with bloodshot eyes, reaching out his skeletal arm before it dropped lifelessly. Chrollo’s expression remained unchanged, but Rin looked gravely at the “Devouring Spirit Book” floating in front of him.
The book, previously adorned with four black figures, now had one entirely turned blood red. The rich red seemed to bleed from the page, eerily lifelike.
“Gulp—” Rin swallowed hard, sweat forming on his forehead. He looked at Chrollo, his voice trembling, “Chrollo… it seems my Nen book absorbed that guy…”
Chrollo glanced seriously at the emaciated corpse of the bandit and nodded, “It seems so. However, judging by this, Rin’s Nen book isn’t purely a materialized Nen ability…”
Turning to Rin, Chrollo said, “Rin, your book might be a Conjuration type, like my ‘Bandit’s Secret.'”
Rin, surprised, muttered, “Conjuration?”
Just then, the “Devouring Spirit Book” started to change. The misty tendrils began to flow into the book, and from Rin’s chest, a red Nen line extended, connecting to the book. In an instant, the deep purple book materialized in Rin’s hand, with intricate red patterns and the title “Devouring Spirit Book” in blood-red letters.
“This is…?” Rin was stunned, staring wide-eyed at the materialized Nen book. Chrollo, equally serious, watched the book in Rin’s hand.
“Chrollo, does Conjuration Nen always manifest this quickly?” Rin asked uncertainly. Chrollo paused, then said, “I don’t have any examples for comparison, but Rin’s abilities have always been unique…”
He continued, “Perhaps, subconsciously, you’ve set restrictive rules for your Nen ability.”
“Rules?” Rin asked, confused. He knew about vows and limitations from the original series, where Kurapika used them to gain strength quickly. But he couldn’t recall setting any such rules.
Chrollo looked at Rin, saying, “Your book seems similar to my ‘Bandit’s Secret,’ which has its own constraints. For example, to steal someone’s Nen ability, I had to meet four conditions:
- Witness the target’s ability.
- Ask the target about their ability and receive an answer.
- Have the target place their hand on the book.
- Complete the first three conditions within an hour.
“Failing any condition means the theft is unsuccessful, and I must materialize the book to use the stolen ability. It’s complex but effective. Rin, your ability might have similar restrictions.”
Rin, listening intently, looked at his book, worried. “So, my ability also requires many conditions?”
Chrollo glanced at the dead bandit, saying, “It seems so. This person didn’t just die; it looks like all his Nen was stripped away, leading to ‘Nen exhaustion death.’ Such rapid degradation isn’t natural…”
Chrollo’s gaze shifted to the book in Rin’s hand, “It was caused by your Nen ability. Your ‘Devouring Spirit Book’ likely forces the extraction of one’s Nen and possibly their spirit after meeting certain conditions, which you might have just discovered.”
Rin, shocked by Chrollo’s analysis, stared at his book, pondering its true power.
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