The small object that had smashed through the first wild pig's snout and penetrated its entire body didn't stop. It continued to shoot forward at an incredible speed, striking the second pig in line.
Snap!
Another snout shattered, and the pig collapsed.
Then a third one fell, followed by a fourth, and so on...
The examinees watched helplessly as the seventh and final porcupine-nosed pig hit the ground. The small object that had caused the destruction fell, seemingly drained of energy.
A rock.
Just an ordinary little stone!
The object that had pierced through the seven wild pigs wasn't a sharp weapon but a simple stone you could pick up off the ground.
The candidates stood in stunned silence, their eyes fixed on Ronnel, who remained calm and collected as if nothing had happened.
"Hm Chi, Hm Chi~"
The seven wild pigs Ronnel had felled lay on the path ahead of him. Meanwhile, a few more of the beasts that had been traveling alongside them continued down the road, oblivious at first to the carnage.
They soon turned their heads and froze, staring in disbelief at the bodies of their fallen comrades and the broken snouts beside them, much like the stunned examinees.
Ronnel slowly turned to face the remaining wild pigs, his expression cold and unflinching.
"SQUEEEE!!!"
The pigs shrieked in terror. In an instant, they scattered, racing away like headless chickens. In their mad dash, they crashed into one another, trampling and stumbling over themselves, but none of them cared.
Despite their lack of intelligence, some primal instinct screamed at them to flee.
This human was terrifying. Absolutely terrifying. They had to escape!
As they watched the wild pigs retreat in panic, the examinees were left in a daze.
It was almost as if what they had just witnessed hadn't happened at all. But the seven pig corpses lying in pools of blood, still warm, told them otherwise.
It had been real.
"Seven wild pigs killed in one shot with just a single stone, even shattering their hardest snouts? Such incredible Nen..."
Buhara's massive stomach momentarily stopped growling, and the drool at the corner of his mouth ceased.
Menchi stared at the scene, sweat beading on her forehead. A sudden chill ran down her spine.
She knew Buhara's favorite food well, and she had studied it extensively. The wild pig, one of the most ferocious creatures in the world, had a particularly tough snout. Its horned nose was its strongest weapon, and the reason for its fearsome reputation.
Menchi herself had once tried to sever one of those horns. She had to infuse her precious blade with a significant amount of Nen to slice through it cleanly.
Yet Ronnel had done it with an ordinary stone.
That alone proved that his Nen was far stronger than hers. And what's more, the stone hadn't fallen until after piercing through all seven boars. It hadn't lost power until it had completed its task.
Either Ronnel's Nen was at an extraordinary level, or he had calculated exactly how much power was needed to break through all seven wild pigs, attaching just the right amount of Nen to the stone.
If it was the former, he was already incredibly powerful. But if it was the latter…
Menchi shuddered at the thought. The level of control and precision required to master Nen to that extent was beyond her comprehension.
She glanced at Ronnel once more, who was now casually approaching the slain wild pigs. Fear gripped her heart.
"This examinee... it's best not to provoke him!"
Menchi recalled the story from last year about a candidate who had beaten up an examiner so badly that the examiner had been left disfigured. That examiner had disappeared for a long time while recovering.
Disfigured...
Menchi gave a start, quickly nudging Buhara, who was still standing frozen in shock.
"Oh! Right, the phase! It's officially started!" Buhara snapped out of his daze, his voice booming as he announced the start of the phase.
The group of examinees slowly regained their senses.
But they didn't dare get too close to Ronnel. Instead, they glanced at him with wide, terrified eyes before scattering in all directions like birds fleeing from a predator.
"You're amazing, Ronnel!"
Gon approached, his voice filled with admiration.
Kurapika and Leorio stood beside him, their faces reflecting a similar sense of awe, even if they remained silent. Killua, meanwhile, picked up a fragment of the broken snout, weighing its hardness in his hand, his eyes wide in disbelief.
"It's no big deal. You guys could've taken down these seven wild pigs just as easily. With your strength, it wouldn't be a problem." Ronnel smiled and waved his hand dismissively, playing it off as if it were nothing.
"Well! Then we won't hold back. Thanks, Ronnel!" Gon grinned, as he and his friends each dragged a wild pig away to start cooking.
Though the wild pig were massive, weighing about a ton each, the examinees were hungry, and there was no better way to pass the exam than to roast the prey.
Ronnel, too, dragged the remaining wild pigs to a more secluded spot. With a flick of his wrist, he pulled out a set of cooking utensils and seasonings from his space backpack.
"Alright, let's get started."
Ronnel picked up a long kitchen knife, spun it around in his hand, and fixed a sharp gaze on the lifeless wild pig before him.
He had learned advanced culinary skills from a Floor Master in Heavens Arena.
As time passed, the other candidates struggled with the wild pigs, many failing to hit the weak point, resulting in them being knocked around by the wild animals.
This only made Ronnel's earlier feat even more impressive in their eyes.
Meanwhile, Satotz watched from the shadows of the nearby forest, shaking his head at the chaos unfolding before him.
The contrast between Ronnel's effortless display and the candidates' frantic attempts could not have been starker.
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