Power Beyond the Ordinary

"Um?"

Long's expression changed.

He noticed that the wild animals emerging from the forest had an unusually large and magnanimous air about them.

There is a significant increase... or rather, a strengthening.

"It doesn't seem like an awakening of Nen, it's just a stimulation of life energy... Is it a stimulus?" Oboro thought to himself.

"Aww!"

Swoosh.

Within the vast herd of beasts before them, some were alive, and some were dead.

The emanation from the dead corpse... was not a thought.

It is also a form of energy... but its nature is different.

It's faint, yet incredibly dense!

"It's not Post-Mortem Nen ... it's more like a resentment... but it feels different..." A group of creatures roared and rushed over in an instant, the ground trembled, and the scene was terrifying.

Long muttered something to himself, preparing to make a move.

However... even Hisoka was positioned behind, the first person to be attacked was actually Hisoka.

A gray rabbit darted forward first, bouncing back and forth like a spring, and in the blink of an eye, it leaped in front of Hisoka, baring its teeth with a ferocious aura and biting him.

Oboro noticed this and was somewhat surprised.

The reason he didn't attack me... is it because he doesn't currently have the desire or hostility to attack the Botswa Tribe?

Hisoka was just about to go find the Botswa Tribe...

With a whoosh, Hisoka lightly flicked his arm, and the playing card tore through the air, cutting the rabbit into many pieces.

He and Oboro simultaneously sprang into action, charging into the horde of beasts.

Due to their weak constitution, even after being strengthened, they remain in a passive state, without being developed or trained... When faced with two humans who are like killing gods, these creatures are almost unable to resist.

Hisoka uses the playing cards to find weaknesses and then attacks relentlessly.

Oboro, on the other hand, simply uses martial arts, relying on powerful and swift punches and kicks to sweep away the incoming targets.

Soon, one species after another, like harvested leeks, fell one after another...

However, due to the intensity and sheer number of attacks, they were unable to completely destroy every single one, causing some of the corpses to rise again.

Bang! Long One-Punch Man punched a green-skinned, mane-covered, tiger-like Magical Beasts's body... Suddenly, as if sensing something, the monster's expression changed, and it reached out to grab its own neck.

With his movement, an inconspicuous little black insect was pinched in his hand.

Upon seeing the insect, a chill ran down Oboro's spine.

His body was protected by Nen power, yet this little thing was able to silently gnaw at his psychic energy, trying to break through the barrier and burrow into his skin...

"Walk!"

Oboro dodged an attack from a ferocious beast and called out to Hisoka.

Then, it jumped onto a tree and used the trunk to leap from a high place down the mountain.

Using the Bungee Gum, Hisoka was pulled up by Nen and also flew up, disappearing into the lush shade of the trees along with Oboro.

Not only would we have to kill all these wild animals, but we would also have to completely destroy them, which would waste a lot of time and be pointless.

The objective has been achieved! The horde of beasts clearly had no intention of letting them go, but due to the vast difference in speed between the two sides, they ultimately... lost track of the two humans.

A few minutes later, Oboro and Hisoka appeared on the flat ground at the foot of the mountain.

"Is this the kind of thing..."

Hisoka walked over, opened his palm, and saw seven or eight insects wrapped in his Nen power and entangled together.

Oboro also has one in his hand.

"It's 'eating' your thoughts..."

"Oboro said."

Upon closer inspection, the insects that Hisoka had attached to him, resembling chewing gum, were struggling and shaking their thoraxes while simultaneously gnawing at Hisoka's Nen power with their mouthparts opening and closing... In a short while, Hisoka's Nen power was noticeably reduced.

"Hehehe..."

Hisoka chuckled softly, finding it quite amusing as well.

He had never seen such a 'strange' insect before.

Half an hour later, the two returned to the team's hiding place.

"That's it..."

When Kaji and Lance saw the bug, they were also taken aback.

After listening to Long recount their ordeal, I couldn't help but feel a chill run down my spine.

After all, Oboro and Hisoka are both very strong. This inconspicuous little bug can actually eat Nen. Doesn't that mean that even Nen user can be attacked if their defenses are breached?

"There are also Nen user in the East Gorteau army. If it weren't so dangerous, they wouldn't have found it troublesome," Oboro said calmly.

He then looked at the group of people.

Everyone shook their heads... clearly unsure which family the insect belonged to.

It was the first time I'd ever met them.

Including the villager who was taken hostage...

It is not a native species.

It would be great if there was a Hunter x Hunter in the team who does biological research.

"Kaji... escort Dama back to base first, send the photos to the Association, and also search online for information to see if any related incidents have occurred before this..." Long instructed.

"Good."

Kaji nodded.

"These insects move very subtly and are difficult to detect... even if they are Nen-eating insects. Find a bottle and put them in carefully." Oboro handed the insects to Kaji and gave him instructions.

"Yes."

Then, the latter took Dama away from the team.

As long as they have the necessary entry documents, they can sneak across the border without any problem...

The key is to use the 'normal channels' when leaving the country.

Long looked at Hisoka without saying a word.

Hisoka understood immediately. "I think it's a bit like berserk mode... but with the effects and functions of a drug."

The corpses that died and then rose again possessed even more terrifying physical strength... all because of these insects.

Long nodded, raising the insect he was holding between his fingers towards the moonlit night sky. "This is... its power."

Looking intently at the tiny, chirping insect between his fingers, he felt a heavy heart.

Unlike the wild creatures that are parasitized in the forest, this insect possesses initiative akin to 'awakening Nen '.

It was just a tiny insect, lacking even self-awareness... possessing only biological instincts.

How did they do it? "Don't you feel... like it's fulfilling a mission?"

At that moment, Hisoka approached, poked his head over Oboro's shoulder, and examined the insect in his hand with a playful expression.

"It's been imbued with some kind of will..."

Long calmly replied.

He thinks so too.

Although this insect was very small, it was filled with thoughts—thoughts...not breath.

Moreover, this thought... doesn't seem to have arisen on its own.

The reason why Oboro felt so awkward was because this spark-like thought... was very evil.

"Let's rest first."

He gave the order.

He gave Lance a look.

"You can leave now!"

Seeing this, Lance said to the villager.

"Thanks."

The man was overjoyed upon hearing this, and then ran away.

Lance followed at a leisurely pace.

Perched on a tree branch, Long sat idly, one leg raised, her figure silhouetted against the silvery moonlight.

The insects were crawling and spinning in his palm, unable to escape.

Hisoka sat on the ground under the tree, with his favorite playing cards laid out.

"This aura... it's very similar to Cursed Grudge..." A thought flashed through Oboro's mind.

Cursed Grudge is a product of the original manga and the theatrical version.

Simply put, it is the energy opposite to the nature of thought... It is influenced by personal will and spirit, and is full of negative emotions such as darkness and depravity. It is the filth that grows from the 'human heart'.

But its basic function and effect are still the same as reciting...

The difference lies in the fact that, due to the different 'angles of birth', the two types of energy have unique properties.

Cursed Grudge has some innate functions that are very close to death.

In the theatrical version, he comes into view along with Jed, the leader of the 'Dark' organization who served V5 alongside the chairman back then.

In his early years, Netero was in the light, while Jed was in the shadows... the latter was the shadow, hidden in the sunlight.

They led a group to do all sorts of dirty and strenuous work, including assassinations, silencing witnesses, and other bloody tasks...

Ultimately, this group was abandoned.

Jed also died at the hands of the chairman, but then he was resurrected and reappeared...

Even in later generations at the Heavens Arena, those tower masters controlled by the Cursed Grudge... were like walking corpses.

Jed's resurrection... Oboro is willing to believe it's due to the new power of Cursed Grudge, an ability or effect that comes with it, something Nen can't do... Most importantly, it's Jed's personal will, his intense resentment and desire for revenge. But it's clearly not Post-Mortem Nen... It's also possible that some object acted as a medium, providing the opportunity.

Of course, these are all his thoughts after watching the theatrical version, and some guesses he made.

He didn't know exactly how Jed was resurrected or what secrets were involved.

Both thought and Cursed Grudge originate from the power of the human heart... Thought is life, Cursed Grudge is somewhat inclined towards the concept of death.

"It's not the same type as Cursed Grudge ... If it were, there would be no need for it to be so complicated..." Oboro closed his eyes, leaned his head against the tree trunk, and pondered.

The insect is imbued with some kind of will, transmitted through thought...

In this respect, it seems quite like the thoughts that come after death.

But there are still many things that cannot be explained.

The Nen that arises after death is not so easy to produce... Do you really think that just anyone with a strong enough will can unleash it? The more familiar and understanding Oboro became with Nen, the more he realized... just how difficult that is.

Pure, the ultimate in purity.

Even if it is truly Post-Mortem Nen, it is still a matter of personal will... Can one person's spiritual energy radiate so much? In other words, a person with such will has no need to die; they were unimaginably powerful in life... If there were such a person among the Botswa Tribe, the army of East Gorteau would have been helpless, and it would have been impossible for them to have almost wiped out the Botswa Tribe.

Speaking of Post-Mortem Nen... he does have a case in his life.

Thinking this, Oboro opened his eyes a crack and glanced at Hisoka playing cards under the tree.

Hisoka's senses were incredibly sharp. The moment Oboro's gaze fell on him, he raised his head with a smile and waved in greeting.

Long closed her eyes again, out of sight, out of mind.

To say that all Botswa Tribe have awakened to the Post-Mortem Nen... that's absurd.

They weren't even Nen user in their lifetimes... their mental fortitude was extremely weak without any training.

Even if you manage to do it, your Post-Mortem Nen will only affect yourself.

After analyzing various factors and gaining an understanding of the Botswa Tribe, Oboro concluded that... the only possibility is the origin of this ethnic group.

Some kind of force beyond the current human world...

It is related to the Dark Continent.

All the knowledge and information in his mind now is within a fixed framework.

Based solely on the descriptions of the human world and Nen user in the original work, very little is known about the Dark Continent.

However, this world is inherently mysterious and colorful, Dark Continent must contain all sorts of things beyond imagination... It is definitely not limited to any particular form or individual.

"For ordinary people to perpetuate this power... it's mostly through physical objects, or a means or method existing in their memories... If it's a memory inheritance, after so much time, the effect will inevitably decrease, or even be incomplete... Therefore, I'm more inclined to believe... it's something else..."

"But if it's truly a method, the transfer of memories across generations, even disregarding the dilution of memories over time and the varying degrees of individual acceptance, if it can still have this kind of power after a long period of time... how terrifying would the most original 'first version' be?!"

Long exhaled a breath of stale air, opened his eyes, and murmured.