Before their eyes was an incredibly vast wetland plain.
The air was filled with a dense, white fog, and in the distance, layers upon layers of erald green mountains and trees could faintly be seen.
"Welco to the Nure Wetlands, also known as Swindlers Swamp. Many of the rare beasts and bizarre creatures living in this wetland area prey on humans. They are by nature incredibly cunning and greedy, so please be extra careful."
"This is the only route to the Phase Two exam venue."
"Once you fall into a trap, you will lose your life! The creatures of this wetland will use any ans necessary to deceive their prey and capture them for food! This is an entire ecosystem composed of creatures that hunt through deception!"
"If any candidates wish to quit, you still have the choice now. But once you step foot inside, you alone will be responsible for your own lives."
The mustache examiner faced everyone and explained without any expression.
Quitting at this point was impossible.
The people who had managed to run all the way here were all individuals determined to beco Pro Hunters.
After a grueling, high-speed marathon of over a hundred kiloters, having sacrificed so much, how could they easily give up?
"Liar!! He is a liar!! He is lying!!"
Suddenly, a hoarse roar echoed from the distance.
Everyone turned to look at the source of the voice.
They shockingly saw a short-haired man covered in wounds limping toward them with great difficulty. In his hand, he was dragging a creature that looked like a monkey.
The man pointed at the examiner and roared in anger.
"He is an imposter! He isn't an examiner at all. I am the real examiner here!"
This sudden turn of events left all the candidates present completely dumbfounded.
Gon-kun, Killua, Leorio, and Kurapika also watched in shock.
Even the likes of Hisoka and Hanzo were montarily taken aback.
"This guy is a Man-Faced Ape that inhabits these wetland plains! Man-Faced Apes love to eat human flesh, but because their limbs are long, thin, and weak, they disguise themselves as humans. They lure humans into the wetlands and then team up with other creatures to prey on them."
"His goal is to wipe out all the candidates who gathered here for the Hunter Exam in one fell swoop!"
The seemingly injured man spoke logically and articulately, burning with anger.
Both his emotions and acting skills were completely maxed out.
But right as his voice faded.
A figure had already darted forward.
The flash of a filleting knife glead.
Splurt!
A thin line of blood appeared right in the middle of the guy's forehead, and then his entire body split open like an overripe fruit.
By the ti his corpse hit the ground, his appearance rapidly changed.
He shockingly transford into the exact sa monkey-like monster he had been dragging in his hand.
A Man-Faced Ape!
Na: Man-Faced Ape Traits: [Shapeshifting] (Blue), [Mimicry] (Blue), [Man-Eater] (Green)
[Ding! You killed the Magical Beast Man-Faced Ape. Randomly plundering this species' traits.]
[Ding! Congratulations, you have obtained [Shapeshifting] (Blue), [Man-Eater] (Green).]
[Ding! You chose to discard [Man-Eater] (Green) and automatically converted it into EXP for [Shapeshifting] (Purple). Detected that you already possess [Shapeshifting] (Purple). Automatically absorbing [Shapeshifting] (Blue). The growth progress of this trait has increased.]
...
A voice like heavenly music rang out in Riku's mind.
The sudden attack left all the candidates present completely stunned.
Especially Hisoka, who was already pinching his playing cards and preparing to strike; he couldn't help but slightly raise an eyebrow.
"Gah!?"
The Man-Faced Ape that had been dragged by the hand and pretending to be dead let out a terrified screech and tried to flee.
But the light of the filleting knife flashed again.
Its blood was imdiately spilled.
[Ding! Congratulations on plundering the traits [Shapeshifting] (Blue), [Mimicry] (Blue).]
[Ding! Detected that you already possess [Shapeshifting] (Purple). Automatically absorbing [Shapeshifting] (Blue). The growth progress of this trait has increased.]
...
"So satisfying!"
Riku couldn't help but rejoice inwardly.
This [Mimicry] (Blue) ability was one of the natural powers of the Man-Faced Ape.
He had to admit.
The foundational traits of these magical beasts were fundantally much better and stronger than those of humans.
Especially magical beasts with specific innate abilities; their only real flaw was having intelligence that was too low.
Of course.
This was also because the human population base was so massive. Even though the vast majority of ordinary humans only had White and Green traits, there would still be instances of Purple, Gold, or even Red traits appearing among them.
Which ultimately resulted in this entire world still being dominated by humanity.
But to Riku, these magical beasts were truly the best farming materials!
Perfect!
If he could upgrade [Mimicry] to Purple, or even Red?
Could he beco a Copy Hunter just like Kakashi?
"..."
Riku's sudden violent outburst left every other candidate present utterly speechless.
Before they could even react, Riku had already neutralized the crisis.
Even the mustache examiner, Satotz, couldn't help but feel a shock deep in his heart.
"A-amazing!! Riku-nii! That is amazing!!"
Snapping back to his senses, Gon-kun cheered with excitent.
"To actually... see through the enemy's disguise in a re instant? Riku-nii is... so strong..."
Killua muttered, slightly dazed.
Leorio was even more dumbfounded. "H-how did he tell the difference? That guy just now felt way more like the real examiner!!"
"What is truly astonishing is Riku's sheer nerve. If that guy really was an examiner, attacking him head-on would get him disqualified from the exam imdiately! Not to ntion, he dealt a fatal blow!"
Kurapika spoke calmly, but he was equally astounded inside.
It wasn't just him.
Hisoka and the pinhead guy couldn't help but look sideways, while the codic Hanzo wore an expression of sheer terror.
He was chanting "Sugoi! Sugoi!" non-stop.
At the very least, in that split second, none of them had been able to distinguish whether that guy was real or fake.
Murder Clown Hisoka had even planned to launch a wide-area covering attack.
Regardless of who was real or fake, he would have just attacked them all. As long as they were a genuine examiner, they could naturally block his attack.
The Man-Faced Ape, being an incredibly weak magical beast, would be completely unable to defend itself.
But to his surprise.
This guy Riku was even more direct than he was, striking with a lethal blow right out of the gate!
Yet he showed no intention whatsoever of attacking the mustache man?
This ant that in the very instant he selected his target, he had already flawlessly judged who was real and who was fake!
That level of judgnt...
Left the three boss-level characters—Hisoka, the pinhead Illumi, and Hanzo—completely floored.
"Splendid. You are the most decisive candidate I have ever seen. That level of judgnt is truly praiseworthy!"
The mustache examiner, Satotz, did not hold back his praise.
"Thank you. Now then, can the exam continue?"
Riku smiled elegantly.
The Man-Faced Ape's corpse nearby quickly attracted so magical beast vultures, which began to feast on the remains.
This scene caused the nurous candidates present to look at each other in dismay.
It seed everyone could envision that if they died here, they would likely suffer the exact sa fate as this Man-Faced Ape.
"Alright everyone, what just happened was rely an appetizer. The fog in these wetland plains is extrely dense, so please follow closely!"
Examiner Satotz once again began to march forward with large strides.
But this ti was different.
The dense fog obscured everyone's vision. If you fell even slightly behind the examiner, you would almost completely lose sight of the figure ahead.
Coupled with the fact that no one was familiar with the terrain here, the entire group quickly scattered and began to vanish sparsely into the thick mist.
Everyone believed they were still following the examiner.
But in reality, they had already been lured away in all directions by various bizarre magical beasts.
Riku's mood at this mont was exceptionally good.
He strode directly into the fog.
This place...
To him, was absolute heaven!
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