By midnight, the rain had grown even heavier.
Inside the antique shop.
Moro carefully stored the jade figurine.
This jade figurine was his biggest find in recent times. With a little work, he could sell it for a good price.
That was how the shop's revenue usually operated.
However, most of the shop's earnings would be handed over to Morena, while Moro was more focused on the Nen aura left on the antiques or handmade artifacts.
After placing the box with the jade figurine into the cabinet, Moro shut the cabinet door, glanced at the closed front door, and then looked at the clock on the wall—it was past midnight.
"Saixin should be back soon."
Thinking about his hardworking employee's return, Moro decided to boil some water.
Saixin was the only employee in his shop. He was diligent and never complained—a perfect person to push around.
Moro had sent Saixin out earlier in the morning to meet with a client. If everything went as expected, he should return with a few handmade artifacts.
Now that the first ring of the "Year-Ring" tattoo was full, although it showed no reaction, Moro still planned to continue absorbing Nen aura to see if he could light up the second ring.
After all, removing the Nen from an antique or artwork didn't affect its sale value.
Moro poured the boiling water into a tea thermos prepared for Saixin, then sat down on the sofa.
When Saixin returned, he would first check if the items had any Nen aura...
And after that, he would leave overnight.
He wondered what Saixin's decision would be.
Would he firmly declare his loyalty, or take the money and part ways?
"Given his personality, it's probably the former," Moro thought, a small smile appearing at the corner of his mouth as he stared at the door, listening to the rain pattering against it.
Time passed silently.
Half an hour later, the sound of wind and rain was joined by a faint noise.
Moro heard the sound and knew Saixin had returned. He got up, his face still wearing a faint smile.
Creak—
The door opened.
A tall man with rugged features walked casually into the shop.
It was Saixin.
His black suit was soaked from the rain, and he was carrying two boxes in his hands.
"Boss, a big haul!"
Saixin shut the door behind him and flashed an excited smile.
Moro's eyes flicked briefly to Saixin's right foot as it stepped into the shop. His smile froze for a moment but quickly returned to normal.
He pointed to the countertop below the cabinet, where the thermos filled with tea was sitting.
"Good work. I made tea for you."
"Heh, boss, you're always so considerate. No wonder those twin sisters next door are head over heels for you."
Saixin put down the boxes and walked over, still grinning.
Moro raised an eyebrow but didn't react to the joke. Instead, he asked casually:
"Why did you get back so late?"
"The rain was too heavy. I got stuck on the way back."
Saixin picked up the thermos, unscrewed the lid, and took a sip of tea.
"Yeah, this rain... it's really heavy."
Moro's expression remained calm as he watched Saixin from the side. Quietly, he reached behind his back and pulled out a handgun.
Even though both he and Saixin were Nen users, they still carried handguns.
Guns could still be quite useful in many situations.
Like now—
Moro suddenly raised the gun and aimed it at Saixin's side.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three shots rang out.
The first shot missed on purpose, while the next two were aimed at Saixin's lower back.
Saixin's pupils shrank as he jumped away, narrowly dodging the bullets aimed at his back.
"Boss?"
After dodging the bullets, Saixin looked at Moro with confusion.
What greeted him, however, was Moro closing the distance with an elbow strike.
The confusion on Saixin's face vanished instantly as he raised his arm to block at the last second.
Thud.
The clash of elbow and arm produced a heavy sound.
The Nen-reinforced collision released a visible shockwave of air.
Despite managing to block the strike, Saixin still lost the upper hand and was forced back.
He stumbled until he reached the floor-to-ceiling window. His body didn't touch the glass, but the outward Nen aura from his defensive state did.
Crash.
Under the pressure of Nen, the entire window shattered, and the wind and rain from outside rushed in.
Saixin stood with his back to the storm, his face expressionless as he looked at Moro, who had attacked him out of the blue.
"How did you figure it out?"
"At first, it was just a suspicion."
Moro kept his gun raised, aiming at Saixin, and frowned.
"But now I'm sure."
"Heh."
Saixin smiled sheepishly, realizing why Moro had intentionally missed with the first shot.
Moro's frown deepened.
"Drop the act. Your impersonation is pathetic."
"How disappointing. I thought I disguised myself well."
Saixin's grin disappeared as he asked curiously:
"So, what gave me away so quickly?"
"When you walked in, you stepped in with your right foot."
Moro's gaze was icy.
His answer wasn't a joke.
Saixin was a devout believer in fortune-telling and would obsessively follow his daily horoscope.
Since it was past midnight, Saixin's fortune for the day was already in effect—it said that whether entering or exiting, he had to lead with his left foot. Otherwise, he'd suffer bad luck for the next week.
How did Moro know this?
Because every single day, Saixin would share his fortune-telling insights with Moro in an attempt to get him to join the world of divination.
The fake Saixin's face went blank for a moment before replying dryly:
"Oh... is that so..."
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Moro suddenly emptied the entire magazine, the deafening gunfire filling the room as bullets shot toward Saixin.
A hint of irritation flashed in Saixin's eyes as he weaved his body to avoid the incoming bullets, widening the distance between them.
The intel had said that the antique shop owner was a Reinforcement-Type Nen user, so after the second attack, Saixin's strategy was to keep his distance.
One reason was to prevent Moro from closing in again.
The other was to wait for his companions to step in.
More importantly—
His transformation ability required time and space to be undone.
If he didn't revert to his true form, he couldn't fully release his Nen aura.
Saixin backed out onto the street, expecting Moro to pursue him, but instead, Moro remained inside the shop after emptying his bullets, as if his earlier aggression had been nothing more than a façade.
"Cautious and conservative, huh..."
Saixin thought as he smirked. This made it easier—he could safely revert to his true form now.
With that thought, Saixin raised his left hand into the rain, twirled his index finger rhythmically, and began to hum a tune.
Inside the antique shop.
Moro tossed the empty gun aside and watched as the imposter Saixin's body became enveloped in swirling Nen.
Within seconds, Saixin's appearance underwent a complete transformation.
In his place now stood a shirtless, bald man wearing only a pair of shorts.
The man's body was smaller than Saixin's and covered in holes of varying sizes.
Seeing the man's true form, Moro's pupils shrank.
"Phantom Troupe..."
Bonolenov?"