Try Conquering This Place!

The ocean currents propelled the boat, which drifted aimlessly in the dark waters.

The journey, which took a day and a night and covered at least several hundred kilometers, still failed to break free from the constraints imposed on the ship's power by the 'energy liquid'.

After entering the Black Sea, the ship's speed dropped sharply, and it was now helplessly anchored.

"What to do?"

As evening fell, everyone in the cabin seemed preoccupied.

The ship had lost power, and no matter how maneuverable it was, the combined effects of the ocean currents and the energy source made it difficult for them to escape.

Shall we go?

V5's prior planning was extremely thorough. One member of their team possessed a Nen called "Packing Box," which allowed them to shrink living beings for storage, while another member had the ability to fly. This meant that if they wanted to leave, they could still do so.

However, it was also stated that... the first attempt to reach the Dark Continent ended in failure.

Disagreements have arisen within the team. Staying would mean facing unknown dangers, which they don't even know what those dangers are. They might even starve to death there, and their supplies would eventually run out. Besides, leaving now wouldn't be a failure; at least they could take this energy resource with them, which would be considered a discovery.

Even when faced with the threat of death, some people still wavered.

The people involved in the dispute were almost all outside of Oboro's squad.

Menchi and the others remained calm, as they followed Long's orders.

"It's alright, if you want to leave... you can leave. My advice is to do it as soon as possible, because every minute that drags on increases the risk. Although it's already dark, it should be relatively safe at high altitudes."

At this moment, Long, who had been sitting in the chair with his eyes closed in deep thought, opened his eyes, looked at the few people who were arguing and had the idea of backing down, and smiled slightly, "If you leave now and take the new hope back, it will be a contribution to humanity."

"Um?"

Upon hearing his words, the arguing group fell silent.

Long is the team leader, and all actions and plans this time will be arranged according to his instructions.

The group thought that Long would get angry or try to calm them down so they could continue their journey to the Dark Continent... They were unwilling to give up just like that.

They knew more or less about Oboro and knew that he was an ambitious guy.

Menchi and Anthony, upon hearing this, gave ambiguous smiles.

They know their captain too well.

"The captain's decision is wise... Our trip was originally exploratory; if we encounter insurmountable obstacles, our priority will naturally be to bring the 'message' back to the human world first," Anthony chimed in. "We're on a mission this time too..."

"Really?"

One of them swallowed hard and said softly.

After Jianlong nodded, a look of joy appeared on his face.

Some people who hadn't initially expressed a desire to leave began to waver after seeing how easy the team leader was to talk to.

Just half an hour later, apart from the six members of the Oboro Squad, the remaining seventeen people turned back and went home, which was quite ridiculous.

To escape this predicament, they must rely on the two Nen user fly and carry them. Their departure, with no telling when they will return, means the others left behind will lose their means of escape. Therefore, anyone with a modicum of sense would not give up this opportunity.

Long and Menchi and the others came to the deck. Outside the window, the surging seawater kept hitting the hull, and some water splashed up and made a loud noise.

Under the lights, a Nen user with the Conjuration ability conjured a box between their hands. After opening it, everyone jumped inside one by one, their bodies shrinking until they landed inside. Then, another person found some materials and equipment on the ship and began assembling them using their Transmutation ability. In no time, they had created a small manned aircraft, and the two Nen user boarded it with the rest of the group.

Before leaving, they seemed to want to say something to Long, but seeing the team leader waving goodbye, they gave up the idea.

Then, in the darkness, a beam of light shot into the sky.

Fly to distant places.

Long walked to the side of the boat, his eyes indifferent.

Observe carefully.

The aircraft had only flown less than a kilometer when suddenly, a dark shadow shot out from the seawater and struck the carrier. A burst of fire erupted in the air, and the aircraft was destroyed, killing all on board.

The aura of the seventeen people also quickly disappeared.

He died.

Long was not surprised at all, nor were Men Menchi and the others.

It was nighttime, and even without clouds obscuring the sky, stars and moon were rarely visible. In addition, the black seawater had extremely low reflectivity, making the entire space look like a huge black cage. Most of the visible light was absorbed by the Black Sea, creating a very eerie environment.

Even the slightest bit of light was extremely dazzling.

"It seems the captain was right; hope and disaster coexist."

"Hmph, they insisted on coming along... Since we're exploring the Dark Continent, the fewer people the better. Too many people mean that the risks we take will be several times higher than the help we can provide... Because group actions increase the risk of being targeted. After all, from now on, we are the prey, so we need to be careful."

"An extremely low survival rate..."

Several people burst into laughter one after another.

I had already realized that the captain was sending these people to their deaths.

"Did you see it clearly?"

Menchi walked up to him and asked.

"Um."

His gaze was serious.

His senses were incredibly sharp; he had clearly 'seen' the object hidden beneath the water.

A tentacle.

A monster exists beneath the sea.

But what killed the fleeing man was a gushing stream of water.

"The so-called energy substance should be a liquid that it secretes or produces," Long said calmly.

"It? "Menchi's expression changed slightly.

What secretions could spread and infect an entire ocean? How big would that thing have to be?

"Go and turn on all the lights," Long instructed.

"Yes."

Gabe Vich quickly did as instructed.

Half a minute later, all the ship's lighting equipment turned on, shining brightly in the darkness.

Long unleashed his spiritual energy, stood at the bow of the ship, and was surrounded by howling Ghost Mist.

He put his hands in his pockets, stared at the suddenly churning black sea before him, and his heart sank. "Come out."

He didn't speak, but instead emitted a strong mental wave directly in front of him.

Then... a terrifying scene unfolded! A massive surge of seawater rose high into the air, the entire sea level beginning to meet the sky, a real tsunami playing out before the six people's eyes... An object as enormous as a land island emerged from the deep sea. It had pink skin, and one after another, enormous tentacles danced with it.

The 'natural disaster' that is happening is caused by its actions.

Their ship was in danger of capsizing at any moment... like a small boat in a stormy sea, appearing insignificant and hopeless.

"Octopus...?"

Anthony's mouth dropped open, his mind went completely blank.

Looking up at the monster that filled the entire sky.

The octopus's body was only half above the surface, and it was at least several kilometers away from them, but because of its terrifying size, it created the illusion that it was right in front of them. The most terrifying thing was that their boat was about the size of a single sucker on the octopus's tentacle... This meant that the creature in front of them didn't even need to exert any force; a gentle slap from one of its tentacles could kill them instantly.

The ship rocked violently and lost its balance several times, but fortunately it managed to remain stable.

However, the overflowing black seawater had already turned the deck and cabins black, and the falling tsunami did not hit the ship.

This octopus is controlling the water flow.

Anthony remembered something. He recalled that Oboro had said that the human World Tree was just a Little Tree on the Dark Continent... Given this height comparison, it was normal for the monster in front of him to have such a physique.

But... it's still too amazing.

"Aww!"

The octopus let out a long roar, like that of a ferocious beast.

A gust of wind swept in, and Menchi and the others immediately used their mental powers to stabilize themselves and cover their ears.

Only Oboro, who was at the very front, appeared very calm.

Long's heart pounded wildly, not in shock... but in joy.

He had seen this octopus in the illustrations of the original work, which shows that even though the information revealed in those illustrations was limited, it was correct!

This also includes some other species from the Dark Continent.

"As expected, he can understand... his IQ is not low."

Long murmured, gazing at the two round pupils above her head, which resembled full moons, and said calmly, "Get out of the way!"

The octopus's howls were a way of communicating with him.

Because... it sensed that the tiny creature in front of it belonged to the same circle as itself.

It is also a member of the food chain.

This is... a conversation between forces at the level of the Dark Continent.

The octopus didn't attack the ship because it sensed a threatening presence.

"Although they have some intelligence, their ecosystem is different. It's a purer survival of the fittest, where the strong prey on the weak, right?" Faced with Oboro's warning, the octopus raised its tentacles almost without hesitation.

It can understand, but it seems not to accept communication.

For it, the most effective way is not communication, but power.

Big fish eat little fish.

"That makes things easier..." Long understood.

His body instantly became a soul, his entire being bursting with ghostly flames, billowing black mist that billowed out, and Long, along with the thousands of ghosts within the mist, flew out together.

The distance of several kilometers was swiftly closed.

It flashed to a spot on the octopus's body.

Immediately afterwards, he bent his elbow and clenched his fist.

As he moved, the surrounding black mist suddenly exploded, creating a vacuum zone.

Then, Oboro's fist swung out like a thorn, piercing the octopus's body.

A series of eerie ripples spread slowly from the point of Oboro's attack across the octopus's entire body, causing no physical damage and no bleeding.

Because Oboro's attack was aimed at the soul!

Boom! A deafening explosion rang out, but Menchi and the others couldn't hear it.

This is a fluctuation and collision of souls.

The octopus's enormous body trembled violently, and an immense surge of soul energy was blasted out of its body by Long's fist. Just as it was about to dissipate with the wind, it was instantly swept away by the black mist, absorbed, and enveloped.

A single, decisive blow!

The octopus died instantly, but its tentacles, which had crashed into the ship, still fell freely along their trajectory.

Before the tentacles even touched the hull, the downward pressure of the air caused the seawater to sink and sag, along with Unstoppable Force ocean current.

Bang! The tentacle slammed into the sea, instantly shattering the small boat. The wreckage was swept away by the current and disappeared without a trace.

Long Ling stood in the void, looking back at the blasting sea surface, his brows furrowed.

Expanding perception...

A few moments later, several figures appeared on the sea.

It was Anthony and his group.

In just a short while, Rita, one of the team members, had been swept several kilometers away by the underwater current. Fortunately, Oboro's perception range was large enough, otherwise they would not have been able to lock onto her.

These people truly lived up to their reputation as having been tempered by Long.

In the dark sea, guided by the ghosts floating overhead, they swam toward the octopus's corpse.

Almost everyone looked as if they had been stained with ink, their faces completely disfigured.

Fortunately, this energy source poses no harm to the body.

However... Rita was still injured.

The others were pale.

They jumped off the ship in time, but the tentacles slammed into the seawater, and the turbulent currents beneath them caused tremendous damage and hardness. It was only thanks to Oboro's timely killing of the monster that the tentacles' power was reduced to zero, becoming merely a downward force.

Otherwise, they could all have died from that one blow.

Long's body returned to normal, she broke free from the Ghost Mist, stood on the octopus's corpse that had not yet sunk into the sea, and pulled the others onto the 'physical land' one by one.

"Let's take a break."

Long offered no comfort or further explanation; this was the Dark Continent.

Before they arrived, Menchi and the others were already prepared to die.

This can also be seen as letting them know what the power of the Dark Continent is.

This kind of octopus, Oboro is certain, is at the very bottom of the food chain in the Dark Continent... because, at least it doesn't involve rules, the bizarre, or extraordinary powers.

"Dead?"

Fante and his companions, however, were unable to calm down for a long time.

Before such a monster, they are not ants, but dust.

Even if you use Nen to attack, hitting an octopus would probably feel about the same as being bitten by a mosquito...

But even such a creature was killed by the captain in one move!

"Is the item still usable?"

Long looked at Rita, who was covered in filth.

"Yes! Reporting to the captain, I have been protecting it very well!"

Despite her serious injuries, Rita still appeared very energetic and shouted loudly.

At the same time, he picked up the specially made backpack that was placed to the side.

The other people's packages were also intact, and because of the special materials used, they were not soaked by seawater.

"Um."

Long nodded.

Then, look ahead into the darkness.

"We're having a bit of bad luck... We've encountered this terrifying creature before we even reached the Dark Continent. We're the only ones who have done this. According to Netero and Beyond's travel reports and data, they both made it to the other side without any problems." Anthony lay on the ground, panting heavily, and grumbling.

"After all, the routes are different..."

Fante opened his backpack and took out a pack of his prized possessions: cigarettes.

After lighting it, hold it in your mouth.

His fingers, holding the cigarette, were trembling slightly. Although his tone was calm, it was clear what he was feeling.

Gabe Vich then took out a small tube, walked to a distance, extracted energy substances from the seawater, and then took out a pen, paper, and recording equipment from his bag to record.

Long lowered his head, clenched his fist, and glanced at the attribute panel.

"The numerical values are no longer displayed... Instead, they are directly represented by the food chain sequence of the Dark Continent."

After speaking, Long laughed, his eyes cold yet filled with excitement.

"But I definitely feel stronger... That's awesome!"

"This is an undiscovered treasure trove..."

"Try... to conquer this place."

Evolution.

It keeps evolving.