Roben felt a sense of relief.
Then, his attention shifted to Kaizen.
Roben still held some curiosity about the Zoldyck family.
And now, Kaizen had earned the right to enter the Land of Nirvana—something nearly unheard of before.
In Nirvana, only members of the Fiora royal family were traditionally allowed entry.
"Kaizen, from the Zoldyck family. A good friend of mine," Wendy said with a smile, looking at him.
Then, he glanced at Roben and Ted. Linco remained silent, listening intently.
"I know what you want to ask," Wendy continued. "I can only tell you this—Kaizen's strength surpasses mine. Even if I went all out, I wouldn't stand a chance against him."
Roben asked instinctively, "What was the result of your match?"
Wendy shook his head. "To put it simply, I couldn't win even once. It was a clean sweep—ten to zero."
Roben's pupils shrank, his gaze sharpening.
As a prodigy, he had unwavering confidence in his own abilities. He firmly believed that among his peers, no one could match him.
Yet, in this Nirvana Conference, he had lost.
Granted, Wendy had used an unconventional strategy, but even he acknowledged this.
Roben didn't believe Kaizen could be stronger than him. But based on Wendy's evaluation, Kaizen was on a completely different level.
Roben refused to accept that.
Ted, on the other hand, was visibly excited after hearing Wendy's assessment of Kaizen.
"That strong? Then how about a match with me?" Ted grinned. "Let's have a direct, intense battle!"
Ted was always straightforward—if he had a thought, he voiced it.
After Ted spoke, Roben added, "If possible, I'd like to fight you too, Kaizen."
Linco still remained silent.
Kaizen thought for a moment before responding, "That's not impossible. Watching your fight got me eager to test myself, too. After I leave the Land of Nirvana, I'll visit your Star Dojo and Beast Dojo as a guest. How does that sound?"
Kaizen had already been to the Dragon Dojo.
Now, he was interested in the Star Dojo and Beast Dojo.
Ted and Roben's challenge conveniently aligned with his plans, so he took the opportunity to bring up his own idea.
Roben and Ted exchanged glances.
Something felt off, but they had already reached this point in the conversation. Refusing now would be awkward. Besides, Kaizen had already visited the Dragon Dojo and gained entry to the Land of Nirvana.
There was no questioning his legitimacy.
"Alright," they both agreed.
Achilles glanced back.
He had heard about Kaizen's strength from Dominica.
At first, it seemed unbelievable.
But after Dominica confirmed it again, Achilles accepted it—and was deeply impressed.
'Incredible,' he muttered. 'If everyone in the Zoldyck family possessed this level of talent and their numbers grew, they wouldn't just be the world's top assassins. They could establish their own nation, like Fiora.'
The six of them continued deeper into the palace through a passageway.
Fewer and fewer people were around.
Kaizen could feel eyes on him and the others.
That was to be expected—after all, they were in the Fiora Kingdom, the domain of royalty.
Eventually, they reached a forest.
Following a narrow trail, they arrived at a valley.
A towering mountain wall loomed before them.
Achilles stepped forward and pressed his palm against the rock.
Ripples spread across the stone's surface.
Achilles turned to Kaizen and the others. "Go in."
Wendy entered first, followed by Kaizen, then Roben, Ted, and Linco.
The order of entry didn't matter—only the tokens did.
As Kaizen stepped through, it felt as if the mountain wall didn't exist. In the blink of an eye, he found himself in another realm—barren and lifeless.
Kaizen surveyed the area.
"No wonder this place is called the Land of Nirvana. No wonder they call it the Nirvana Conference."
The surroundings were vast and desolate.
Nothing lived here—aside from the newcomers.
The ground was littered with bones.
Not animal bones—all human.
"If I'm not mistaken, this must be the burial site of Fiora's royal lineage."
"Nirvana signifies both death and rebirth."
"Many members of the Fiora royal family must have perished here."
"And their descendants, those with tokens, can enter this place and claim its rewards."
"In a way, it's similar to an elephant graveyard."
Kaizen recalled how, before their deaths, elephants would travel to specific locations to die, leaving behind their ivory once their bodies decomposed.
He then noticed the crystal ball in front of him. The progress indicator was increasing at an alarming rate.
"Now that we're here, what are we supposed to do?"
From Wendy and the others' reactions, it was clear that entry to the Land of Nirvana was incredibly rare for outsiders.
Zeno had secured this opportunity for him.
He must have paid a steep price.
That meant Kaizen couldn't leave empty-handed.
Otherwise, Zeno's efforts would have been wasted.
Kaizen lowered his gaze to the token in his hand.
"Could it be this token?"
He channeled his aura into the token.
Nothing happened.
Frowning slightly, he pocketed the token and continued walking forward.
"Gyo."
"En."
Using both Nen techniques simultaneously, Kaizen heightened his awareness of his surroundings. Logically, the Land of Nirvana shouldn't pose any immediate danger.
But there could always be exceptions.
"Ryunosuke Akutagawa—Manifest!"
A dark figure materialized beside him, standing guard.
Meanwhile, outside, Achilles remained stationed near the mountain wall.
His thoughts drifted back to his own past.
Years ago, he had participated in the Nirvana Conference, achieved remarkable results, and entered the Land of Nirvana.
That experience had been invaluable.
It had laid the foundation for his current strength.
Without it, Achilles wouldn't have reached his present level.
"I wonder what kind of rewards these young ones will obtain."
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