They were a pair of strange eyes—like spirals, pulling your thoughts into their depths the instant you met them, as if your soul had been laid bare.
But Joey had anticipated this from the moment he laid eyes on the man—or rather, even earlier, when he started tracking him down.
After all, the man's previous ability had clearly been observation, and from an extraordinary distance.
That kind of surveillance had no offensive output and few supplementary abilities—the only true advantage was range.
But if the advantage of distance was removed, then the ability itself must've adapted for close-quarters.
At least, that's how Joey would have done it.
If he had a long-range tracking or observation Hatsu, he'd prepare some specialized countermeasures for close combat too.
Especially if the ability had been born from a Vow and Limitation—then the need for complementary abilities became even more necessary.
Oaths and restrictions were like a double-edged drug: powerful, but once taken, it became harder to develop abilities organically without shortcuts.
Now it was clear—Joey's guess had been right.
Up close, the man had indeed activated another observation ability.
But what kind?
Was it like something from a novel—a telepathic skill that read Joey's mind?
Or perhaps it allowed ultra-accurate prediction?
Maybe it simply processed and interpreted fine details with extreme clarity?
If it was the former—mind reading—then the man would already know what Joey intended to do.
That would be the most dangerous kind of ability, as it would completely expose Joey's every action before it happened.
But Joey didn't believe that was the case.
More likely, it was prediction and detailed analysis—both rooted in observation.
In fact, they could be aspects of the same ability: reading one's micro-expressions and movements to forecast their next step.
Regardless of the specifics, Joey had to take him out.
This observer was the greatest obstruction to his upper deck operation.
And the moment that was clear—Joey struck.
No matter what the ability was, AoE attacks were the best bet.
Weather Report raised its hand; sparks leapt from the air.
In the blink of an eye, flames engulfed the room.
But then—bang bang bang—a cascade of glass shattering echoed through the chamber.
Joey raised a brow. He had noticed something odd about this room's layout earlier.
Both side walls were lined with glass jars—each containing a floating eyeball.
Clearly human eyes. Joey had counted at least a hundred jars with just a glance.
There was something deeply unsettling about it. His flames had targeted the man, but he hadn't spared the jars either.
Still, the fire shouldn't have shattered them so quickly.
It felt like they exploded the instant the flames appeared—intentional.
Along the walls, the flames began to sputter out.
Those jars didn't just hold eyes—there was also preservative fluid.
The flames were being doused.
And then Joey saw it—
The shattered jars hadn't spilled their contents.
Instead, the eyeballs hovered midair, every one of them turning to face Joey.
They didn't attack, but Joey felt his hair stand on end.
And then—the man, supposedly engulfed in fire, stepped out of the flames unharmed.
As Joey suspected—he was an Emitter.
He had released a massive amount of aura around his body to create a defensive field, blocking out all flames.
But that kind of protection wasn't absolute. Fire also meant heat.
Yet the man didn't retreat—he advanced.
The moment his eyes met Joey's, his aura shield expanded outward, like a massive fire blanket.
Everywhere it spread, the flames died instantly.
Even from afar, Joey felt a flicker of danger.
His En contracted slightly. From his tenketsu, he expelled aura, forming a Nen spear within his radius.
He thrust it forward like a balloon-popping lance—
targeting the incoming aura wave.
But the shield, already smothering most of the flames, shifted mid-air.
A mass of Nen flowed to intercept the spear, transforming into a massive sword midair.
It didn't try to block the spear—it sliced downward at the spear's weak point.
CRACK!
The spear snapped in midair.
Its integrity shattered, and before it hit the ground—it exploded.
The blast wasn't massive, but it left Joey unsettled.
This confirmed it.
The enemy's ability was precision observation.
He realized it in an instant—
the sword strike had been too precise, like it had calculated the spear's structural flaw, its speed, trajectory, angle.
The sword's angle and timing had to be perfectly coordinated.
Especially to trigger the spear's internal explosion—
a weakness Joey himself hadn't thought visible.
If the man's ability was only prediction, he would've just tried to block it.
But Joey's spear was condensed with tremendous aura.
Blocking it would've caused a larger explosion, potentially injuring the man.
Weather Report had already prepared a follow-up attack.
If the man took damage, extreme weather would strike instantly.
But he hadn't needed it.
The sword strike neutralized the threat without letting the blast touch him.
Joey could even see a secondary aura shield above the man's head, still in place.
Even if Joey tried a Weather Report lightning bolt now, it would likely fail.
He wasn't just using Emitter abilities—he had the aura control of a Manipulator, too.
To shift his aura into a sword midair, on the fly—
that took both types in harmony.
As for detecting the Nen spear's flaw…
Joey couldn't even do that himself—not in the time it took to fly a few meters.
This test confirmed everything—
The man's ability was pure observation.
Not just on enemies—on himself, too.
That's why he could control his aura so precisely.
So Nen could be used like this too?
Joey's eyes shone.
He respected the method—
Had he not already committed his path to Weather Report, he might've studied this kind of ability.
But after reflecting, Joey shook his head.
He didn't have that level of micro-control.
Even if he had the same ability, he couldn't utilize it that well.
It wasn't just skill. This guy had raw talent, too.
Still—what was the meaning behind those spiral eyes?
And the floating eyeballs?
Joey didn't immediately launch a second attack.
Instead, he focused—observing the man's eyes, and all the eyeballs staring at him.
Could those spiral eyes truly see?
Or were they like the Chimera Ant dragonfly's compound vision—just receivers of data?
It was possible. The only thing Joey couldn't confirm was whether the man could see normally.
In any case—his best option now was to destroy all the floating eyes.
One pair of eyes couldn't watch everything.
But a hundred pairs, from all angles, could analyze every detail.
Time to unleash Weather Report.
Clouds began to gather inside the room.
But before they could thicken into thunderclouds—
The man raised his hand.
The aura shield above his head shattered, exploding like fireworks throughout the room.
But unlike real fireworks, these fragments were pure Nen.
They flew into the clouds and detonated again—
tearing the storm apart before it could form.
Joey didn't give up.
He raised his hand—countless Nen bullets formed and shot toward the floating eyes.
His En let him send aura anywhere instantly.
But just as the bullets approached, they were neutralized.
This time, not by the observer—but by a piercing screech.
The same sound that had followed the cleaver's sealing!
Joey recognized the user instantly—
but they had arrived faster than expected.
Their voice carried Nen—
and the way it disrupted the bullets was precise, like it was designed to destroy Nen constructs.
Joey's eyes narrowed.
Nen bullets were fast to form, but they were basic—and easily disrupted.
The screech also triggered Joey's En.
Two new auras entered its radius—
And Joey noticed someone beside the screamer—
A giant, over four meters tall.
More importantly, in the giant's hand—
Joey sensed a familiar aura.
The cleaver.
Stronger than the two he'd sealed before.
Could this cleaver bearer also not be the true master?
Joey pondered the thought.
Weather Report didn't stop. If bullets and lightning didn't work—then wind would.
As for trying to cancel the screamer's voice to fire more bullets—
The eyeball manipulator wasn't an idiot.
When the first wave was neutralized, he'd already moved his final rear-facing aura shield into a dome-shaped defense, protecting the eyeballs along the wall.
And now, Joey saw the cleaver-wielding giant charging straight at him.
The momentum had shifted fast.
But Joey's face showed no panic.
His calm came from countless battles—
He didn't believe they could defeat him.
Just as he prepared to strike back—
New presences entered his En.
A familiar aura—multiple.
From behind both walls, directly behind the observer and screamer.
BOOM!
The walls exploded—
a wave of smoke soldiers surged into the room, striking the floating eyes.
Joey recognized them at once—
Morel's Purple Smoke Soldiers!
In that moment, everything clicked.
Morel had been tracking the observer all along,
waiting for the right time to strike.
And now that Joey was here,
Morel knew—he couldn't wait any longer.
Even though Joey hadn't located Morel's exact position—
he synchronized his assault with the arrival of the smoke soldiers.
(End of Chapter)