Chapter 11: The Secret of the Zoldyck Family
After a long silence, Maha Zoldyck continued demonstrating the Zoldyck family's assassination techniques, no longer bringing up the previous topic.
"It's something from the Dark Continent, isn't it."
Su Xiao broke the silence, probing. From the Reincarnation Paradise prompt earlier, he knew there was a chance to trigger a hidden mission within the Zoldyck family.
After thinking it over, anything within the Zoldyck family that could reach the level of a hidden mission would definitely involve two people: one was Maha Zoldyck, and the other was Alluka Zoldyck.
Hearing Su Xiao mention the Dark Continent, Maha Zoldyck's hand paused. He had traveled to the Dark Continent in his youth and brought back something from there.
"How much do you know about that place?"
Maha Zoldyck's expression remained unchanged. He had seemed ready to say something to Su Xiao earlier, but Su Xiao's unknown origins prevented Maha from trusting him—not even the most basic trust.
"I know the general information, but I've never been there myself. I got the intel from V5."
Su Xiao continued probing. Other contractors might fear the Zoldyck family's terrifying combat power, but Su Xiao wasn't afraid at all. At worst, negotiations would break down and they'd fight. The Zoldyck family couldn't do anything to him.
"Kid, do you know about the 'calamities' of the Dark Continent?"
Maha Zoldyck hesitated, debating whether to cooperate with Su Xiao. Although he didn't trust Su Xiao, finding a human as powerful as him was extremely rare. He had once tried to collaborate with Hunter Association Chairman Netero, but the latter had refused—Netero pursued individual strength.
"The 'calamities' of the Dark Continent."
Su Xiao immediately understood what Maha was referring to. The so-called "calamities" of the Dark Continent weren't plagues or natural disasters, but several special creatures, plants, or even elemental collectives.
If the hidden mission involved this, Su Xiao's interest would plummet sharply, because the "calamities" of the Dark Continent were far too dangerous for him to handle at his current level.
"I know a bit. If the secret to your immortality is related to those 'calamities,' then I'm not very curious about this matter."
"Let me explain slowly."
Maha sighed, feeling that Su Xiao's attitude was very similar to Chairman Netero's.
"I once... went to the Dark Continent, and then died there."
Maha leaned back against a tree, a look of confusion in his aged eyes.
"When I opened my eyes again, the people traveling with me were looking at me with a very strange expression. From them, I learned that a mass of darkness had entered my corpse, and then I came back to life. They thought I had been parasitized by some creature."
Pausing here, Maha took a breath.
"After a period of observation, I had indeed been resurrected from the dead, no different from before. Although it was strange, in that mysterious continent, it wasn't something unacceptable.
We continued exploring there. After something happened, we retraced our steps and returned to the continent where humans live—the continent we now inhabit. Compared to the Dark Continent, the natural environment here is practically paradise."
Maha briefly recounted his exploration of the Dark Continent, while Su Xiao listened silently.
"After returning to this continent, I went back to my family, married, and had children. Everything was normal... until I discovered that my lifespan was extremely long."
Maha Zoldyck stared blankly ahead, as if reminiscing.
"I witnessed my grandson Zeno grow from childhood to old age. I was even fortunate enough to accompany my great-grandchildren as they grew up... until the changes that occurred when Alluka was young."
At this point, Maha's gaze turned fierce.
"After that freak was born, I finally understood why I wouldn't die of old age. I wanted to kill that freak many times. He isn't my bloodline at all—no, he has half of my bloodline, and the other half... is 'darkness,' a darkness similar to the 'calamities' of the Dark Continent."
For some reason, Maha's body was trembling—trembling with anger.
"If I really couldn't find anyone to cooperate with, I wouldn't tell you this. Zeno's time is running out. Before that, I must resolve this matter."
Maha's words were strange. He actually said Zeno's time was running out. Compared to Zeno, Maha's age should be far more terrifying.
"What I'm about to say, whether you agree or not, don't reveal it to outsiders. Actually, even if you do, it doesn't matter much. Consider it the price of cooperation—you must keep this secret."
Maha stared intently at Su Xiao, and a glimmer of vitality finally appeared in his murky old eyes.
"Alright."
Su Xiao wouldn't refuse such a simple request.
"Then I'll continue. Earlier, you asked me why I can still live to this day..."
Maha clenched his withered fists, joints cracking.
"The reason I can live until now is because I've been siphoning the lifespan of my closest relatives! Ever since that freak was born, I confirmed this. There's no mistake. I drain about fifty years of life from each generation of my family. My son died in an accident, and I didn't notice it at the time.
As for my grandson Zeno, he actually had an older brother who died of old age very early. Everyone in the family was puzzled at the time—how could a Nen user of the Enhancement type die of old age at fifty-seven?
As for my other grandson Zeno, he should only have had a small amount of his lifespan drained, at most less than ten years. Even so, it had a considerable impact on him. He's only sixty-seven now. For a Nen user, that's not too old. Nen abilities should be at their peak or beginning to decline, but there's no way he should have white hair all over. Zeno's current appearance is like a Nen user in his eighties."
Maha's expression was numb and pained. It could be imagined that living by draining the lifespan of his own flesh and blood was far from a pleasant experience for him.
"My black Nen actually represents that I am already dead."
Maha released Nen from his palm. The black Nen had the viscosity of liquid and the ethereal quality of gas.
"Draining fifty years of life from a relative allows me to live another ten years. No, that's not really living—it's just barely clinging to existence for another ten years. I once tried to end myself, but at that moment, I clearly felt that if I died, all my descendants would suffer something extremely terrible.
Netero can live to this day because he broke through the 'shackles' of his body. He comprehended the power of 'heart,' maintaining his current strength at the age of one hundred and ten. I couldn't achieve that. I am the curse of the Zoldyck family. Ever since that resurrection, this curse began."
The matter Maha described was astonishing. The reason he could live until now was by draining the lifespan of his descendants. For an elder who valued family, this was an extremely painful thing.
"The birth of that freak initially made me despair, but not long after, I saw hope again. One of my descendants could actually make unconditional wishes with that freak. He is hope—the hope for me... to die."
Maha said this, then looked at Su Xiao.
"I roughly understand."
"..."
Su Xiao's calm attitude stunned Maha. He didn't know that Su Xiao had personally experienced things dozens of times more fantastical than this. This was just a drizzle in comparison.
"You've said so much. In summary, you want to use my combat power to help you accomplish something. Then let me ask in return—what do I get?"
Su Xiao felt that the hidden mission was not far off, and it seemed unrelated to the Dark Continent. Instead, it concerned the protagonist Killua Zoldyck.
In Su Xiao's view, the Hunter world had two pseudo-chosen ones: one was Gon Freecss, and the other was Killua Zoldyck. When those two brats teamed up, they became the true chosen ones.