The resilient, inspirational, never-give-up persona of Hisoka.
Various scenes emerged in Moses's mind.
'Let's take down the preliminary match first, win miserably at the beginning, and secure passage to the 20th floor.'
Moses lightly pinched his chin, already having written the script in his mind.
In the arena.
The burly man No. 5211completely disregarded the referee's customary introduction. Before the match began, he started mocking and taunting 3D Hisoka with all sorts of insults.
The referee showed no reaction and wasn't influenced by the burly man No. 5211, proceeding with the usual opening introduction.
Referees had seen many participants like the burly man No. 5211, so he wasn't surprised anymore.
However, 3D Hisoka's unresponsive reaction did earn a nod of approval from the referee.
'No. 5380... Seems like another potential talent worth looking forward to.'
The referee, while announcing the opening, thought to himself.
Among the nearly 6,000 contestants today, the ones that impressed him and his colleagues the most were No. 3079 Menchi and No. 3080 'Illumi'.
But now, he felt this Hisoka doesn't look bad either.
Based on years of experience in this industry, the referee believes that No. 5380, Hisoka would have quite an impressive performance.
"Then... begin."
After announcing the start, the referee quickly backed away and looked at 3D Hisoka expectantly.
However-
What happened next made the referee's eye twitch.
The burly man No. 5211 charged towards 3D Hisoka with a fierce expression, and upon closing the distance, he flew up and kicked Sisko's chest.
His reckless attack was full of flaws.
It's just that 3D Hisoka didn't seem to be able to react, and his agile body is almost like a decoration. He was kicked to the ground by the burly man No. 5211 without making any defensive moves.
Immediately afterwards, the two engaged in a struggle.
Mostly, it was 3D Hisoka taking the hits, but the offensive method of the burly man No. 5211 did not have a strong knockdown effect.
"…"
The referee watched the fight in silence.
The time limit for a duel was three minutes, and this struggle on the ring lasted until the last second before a winner was determined.
The winner is 3D Hisoka, who was battered all over. He successfully landed a punch on the chin of the burly man No. 5122 at the last moment, thus securing a hard-won victory.
"No. 5380, you can go to the 20th floor."
The referee's mood was very complicated at this time.
3D Hisoka silently took the ticket from the referee's hand, limped off the stage, and walked towards the exit.
The referee watched 3D Hisoka leave.
Despite his misjudgment, he once again saw the cruelty of fighting competitions in 3D Hisoka.
'I sincerely hope you can go further.'
The referee shook his head slightly.
He could see that with 3D Hisoka's ability, he would not be able to go far.
But that tenacious will moved him.
'I can have two matches a day, so let's strike while the iron is hot.'
In a corner of the lobby outside, Moses leaned against the wall, glancing sideways at 3D Hisoka who was limping out of the combat arena.
In the lobby, besides Moses, there were many contestants and spectators.
They quickly noticed 3D Hisoka, who was covered in wounds.
"It's so brutal...!"
"This is the gold content of Heavens Arena."
People looked at 3D Hisoka as he approached the elevator with varied expressions.
Being able to get into higher floor indicates that 3D Hisoka has won the preliminary round.
But the extremely conspicuous injuries also illustrate the brutality of 3D Hisoka's victory.
Under the gaze of many, 3D Hisoka walked into the elevator.
Ten minutes later.
3D Hisoka successfully ascended to the 30th floor.
'Two matches a day. With a perfect record, it only takes 10 days to reach the 200th floor.'
Moses calculated in his mind: 'But 10 days is still too fast, let's take it slow.'
He himself could reach the 200th level within ten days, but there's no rush for 3D Hisoka.
Leaving the Heavens Arena, Moses directed 3D Hisoka to a secluded corner, then deactivated his ability and returned to the room where Menchi was.
As soon as he entered, he smelled a fragrance. It turned out that Menchi had prepared food for him, which is very considerate.
"Master, from here on, can you only advance by 10 floors every time you win a match?"
After eating, Menchi flipped through the Heavens Arena's booklet.
"Well, winning one match allows you to ascend by 10 floors, and losing one match will drop you by 10 floors."
"Then I won't compete for now. I'll wait for you to reach the 100th floor before we continue together!"
"That's fine, you can just concentrate on training in your room these days."
"Okay, are you going to compete today, Master?"
"Tomorrow."
Moses wasn't planning to fight today. Starting from tomorrow, he will fight two matches in a row every day.
The next day.
Moses went to the rest area on the 60th floor.
Menchi followed closely behind.
Before going out, Moses wanted Menchi to stay in the room and continue training.
However, Menchi insisted on going to watch his match.
Helplessly, Moses could only agree to Menchi's request.
Five minutes later.
Moses and Menchi arrived at the contestant's rest area on the 60th floor.
There were already nearly a hundred contestants waiting to fight.
As Moses and Menchi entered the rest area, most of the participants looked over.
"Two more brats are here…"
A scar-faced man sneered.
From the corner of his eye, he glanced at a chair in the rest area, where a boy with silver hair who looked only six or seven years old was sitting.
That silver-haired boy is Killua, who just reached the 60th floor yesterday.
Moses scanned the rest area and quickly noticed Killua sitting in the corner.
"So young."
Menchi also saw Killua and couldn't hide her surprise.
Although the registration conditions for the Heavens Arena are very lenient, contestants nearing the age of six are still extremely rare.
The group of contestants in the rest area were unfriendly towards Killua.
This was because they felt it was shameful to be on the same floor as a child nearing six years old.
On the chair.
Killua yawned out of boredom.
Of course he also saw Moses, who had just entered the rest area, but he didn't pay much attention.
"So slow."
Killua complained softly.
Just as he finished speaking, the loudspeaker in the rest area rang.
"Mr. Killua, Mr. Illumi, please come to the 66th floor arena."
The announcement was repeated three times before it stopped.
Hearing that he and 'Illumi' were matched, Killua looked at Moses in surprise.
However, he saw that the other party had already walked out of the lounge with the accompanying girl.
'I don't care what your name is, but I can't lose this duel.'
Killua stood up and, facing the unfriendly gazes around him, walked straight to the open door.
He had spent all the money he earned from yesterday's victory on branded-name candies, so now, he had no money left.
If he lost this match …
He would be demoted to the 50th floor, and even if he won the next match, he would only be able to ascend to the 60th floor and wouldn't receive the prize money for the 70th floor.
This is the crucial point!
If he loses, he won't have any money to eat today!