The Cunning Monster and the Beetle Brought to a Halt

Outside the research base.

Begel led Kevin out.

As soon as he came out, Kevin saw the smoke and dust rising in the distance, which was now slowly dissipating.

The smoke and dust were rising from the same spot where the booming sound had just come from.

"What's going on over there? Is there a battle?" Kevin asked.

He could faintly smell gunpowder in the air, and besides some armored vehicles, he could also see main battle tanks.

The booming sound I just heard sounded a lot like artillery fire.

Begel didn't explain directly, but simply pointed ahead. "You'll see."

A short while later, the roar of an engine came from the forest, and a cloud of dust rose from the road. Soon,

A huge tractor unit slowly pulled a flatbed cart away.

The cart was carrying a giant "insect".

This insect is enormous, comparable in size to several elephants pieced together.

It appears to belong to the Beetle family, with its shell consisting of a single piece covered in sharp spikes. In front of its head and antennae, it has an exaggerated horn resembling that of Rhinoceros.

Judging from its appearance alone, if it lies normally on the ground, its entire body will be protected by its shell.

"When I left, the monsters ravaging this area weren't these kinds of insects, were they?"

Kevin said, then examined the Beetle closely; he felt he had seen this insect in a book before.

"Charging Armor?" he asked tentatively, his tone tinged with doubt, unsure of what to say.

Begel nodded.

"That's right, no doubt about it, this thing is Charging Armor, or rather, a biological weapon modified from Charging Armor."

The Charging Armor beetle is a large insect, with a normal size about the size of a human head, and the largest known size is no more than twice the normal size.

Such a size is considered enormous among insects.

This Beetle moves extremely fast, and when hunting prey, it uses its front horns and its own charging speed to launch an attack.

Its fully enclosed carapace provides excellent protection against external damage and prevents it from being detected by enemies.

Only a very few natural predators can prey on them.

The real challenge lies in the fact that these Beetle live in family units, meaning that once they appear,

Most of them were children forming a charging formation.

Even a human could easily have their leg bones broken if they are not careful, hence the name "Charging Armor".

The Charging Armor vehicle in front of us is now ridiculously large.

Its size has increased by more than several dozen times; before, its charging power was perhaps like that of a shot put thrown at it.

But now, its impact force is comparable to that of a truck traveling at full speed, and with the full-body extension and exaggerated front apex angle, the Danger Level has risen to the extreme.

"So your main problem right now is this modified Charging Armor?" Kevin asked.

However, Begel shook his head.

He said, "No, the main trouble is still the perpetrator of the massacre you encountered when you left." Before Kevin could ask, Begel slowly recounted what had happened after he left.

"After you left, we began searching for the monster's trail, and soon we made a discovery and saw what it looked like with our own eyes."

"That thing is definitely man-made; we knew that the moment we saw it."

Moreover, it was very cunning. After discovering us, it didn't attack but simply fled. There were only three of us at the time.

These three people are undoubtedly Begel, Baishu, and Shante, three Nen user.

The massacre Kevin witnessed earlier had killed more than a dozen people, and most of them were soldiers armed with firearms.

This indicates that the monster clearly sensed the dangerous aura emanating from Begel and his companions, and therefore chose to flee without hesitation.

This demonstrates both the creature's keen intuition and its considerable intelligence.

"Moreover, its size has increased, becoming larger than Baishu had estimated. At first, we thought it was because the traces left at the time were not precise enough."

"But when new traces were later discovered, it was deduced that it was larger than we had seen before."

"The further back these traces are, the larger the organism appears; it is growing at an unimaginable rate."

Hearing this, Kevin frowned and couldn't help but ask, "So you still haven't caught it?"

Begel shook his head regretfully. "We were too careless. Once we determined it was man-made, we instinctively assumed someone was manipulating it."

"Our attention then shifted to the manipulator, because it acted far too intelligently, do you understand what I mean?"

Kevin nodded, indicating that he understood.

After all, simply eliminating this biological creation is certainly not enough to completely solve the problem.

The organization behind this problem must be eradicated, otherwise the time and effort wasted will be meaningless.

Moreover, according to Begel's description, the monster behaved like a human, making them feel as if they were dealing with a human.

"But as I just said, we were careless. This monster wasn't controlled by anyone; it was simply thrown here."

"It disrupted the ecological balance here, and the Beetle you see are actually creatures that were released into this area along with it."

"However, the release locations were far apart, and they grew too fast for us to notice at the time."

"These Beetle were released specifically to provide nutrition for that monster."

I see.

According to Begel, the monster was growing extremely fast and must have needed plenty of nutrition.

Although this is a nature reserve, there aren't enough large animals to provide it with the necessary nutrients.

Even if this monster is powerful, its prey range is limited. The arrival of such a food chain disruptor will inevitably trigger a chain reaction.

Other animals, in order to survive, would naturally flee.

In this situation, the monster might face malnutrition.

At such times, the monster might migrate, continuing its destructive journey to other places until it leaves a trail of chaos in its wake.

However, the organization behind the creation of this monster clearly had planned this all along, so they also dumped these modified "food" here.

It's clear they want him to be identified as being in this area.

"Compared to that monster, these ridiculously large Charging Armor are the real ecological destroyers. They are omnivorous, and you should understand why they can grow to such a size."

Eating everything could turn a once lush forest into barren land.

At this point, Begel shook his head in frustration.

For a Hunter x Hunter like him, dedicated to protecting the ecosystem, these creatures that destroy the environment are the most detestable, especially since they live in family units and there are quite a few of them.

So what exactly do you want me to do for you?

Kevin asked curiously, "Is it about investigating the organization behind it, tracking down and eliminating that monster?"

Or should we clean up these Beetle?

Hearing this, Begel smiled.

"The organization behind it is not really something we need to worry about."

Seeing Kevin's questioning gaze, Begel explained, "Although I'm not entirely clear on the specifics yet..."

But one thing is certain: it is backed by an international criminal organization.

"The situation we are experiencing now is not an isolated case; these kinds of modified creatures they have deployed have appeared on several continents."

"Following the joint directive issued by several affected countries, the Hunter Association headquarters has dispatched several members of the Twelve Zodiacs and relevant Hunter x Hunter to investigate."

Begel himself is considered a member of the relevant team, but because of his own responsibilities, he is still here handling related issues.

Kevin nodded in sudden realization. "So, in other words, we don't need to actively investigate that organization; dealing with the impact they've caused is what we should be doing?"

Begel nodded. "That's right, we're now involved in this matter. After it's over, we'll receive rewards based on our contributions."

After saying that, he looked at Kevin and smiled, "Don't you need that kind of material? These modified creatures may have the material you need."

"Even if we don't have it here, we'll find it elsewhere. After all, this is an international organization; based on your contribution, you'll always get the materials you need."

Kevin nodded, admitting he was somewhat tempted.

More importantly, it relates to the outcome of the battle.

[Identify your purpose on the horoscope, and the favorable wind will guide your ship. Once you've lowered the anchor, don't easily raise it again. Don't look back; the pearl you seek lies hidden in the shell led by the seagull.]

This is the poem Nion gave him when he left.

Because it's the end of the month, there's only this section.

The meaning may seem complex, but for the person being divined, the more important or dangerous the information, the more difficult it is to interpret.

This poem contains no words of danger, nor any symbolic references.

This means that this information is quite important to Kevin.

"Okay, I agree. So you want me to help hunt down the Charging Armor and that monster?"

Begel nodded. "Although I'm not entirely clear about your Nen ability, judging from your physical attributes and the aura you exude, you're clearly someone who excels in direct combat."

The problem right now is that there's a lack of people like you who can fight head-on.

This is why Begel wanted Kevin's help.

Both the monster and the Charging Armor need someone with strong frontal combat skills to hold them back; otherwise, it would be too dangerous for them.

These creatures are so cunning that tracking them or setting traps can easily alert them.

The Charging Armor are alright, after all, they're insects and not very smart, but they can't withstand the sheer number of the enemy.

Processing them one by one is not easy.

Furthermore, they couldn't clear out too many at once, since they needed to leave the monster there.

If too many Charging Armor are cleared out and there's no food, the monsters will flee.

This would cause them to lose track of each other, making things even more complicated.

Looking at the Charging Armor being towed on the cart, Kevin smiled and said, "Hehe, no problem."

He had barely finished speaking when a rumbling sound came from afar again.

The soldiers began to shout.

"Quick! Drive the tank over there, those damn bugs are coming again!" A man who looked like a commander leaned out of an armored vehicle and shouted.

Seeing this sudden turn of events, Begel turned to Kevin, a meaningful smile playing on his lips.

Kevin didn't hesitate; he stretched his body and walked towards the direction from which the sound came.

"You arrived just in time."

"Set up the barrier net! Quickly set up the traps to temporarily hinder its advance. Everyone, spread out and don't gather in groups!"

"Trap with -"

Before one of the soldiers could finish speaking, he felt a tap on his shoulder and was then pulled aside.

The soldiers blocking the way quickly made way.

Kevin simply walked over there without any hesitation.

All the soldiers stared at this scene, slightly stunned, and even the tanks that had driven over stopped at the entrance.

"Hey! You there, who are you—"

Before the commander could finish speaking, he saw Begel's gesturing look.

Seeing that the commander remained silent, the soldiers who had originally wanted to dissuade Kevin also quietly stepped aside.

One of the soldiers quickly ran forward and handed Kevin something that looked like an incense burner.

"The smell here can attract insects to you, so please be very careful."

Kevin took the incense burner, nodded, and placed it directly at his feet.

His eyes were fixed on the road through the forest.

Tree after tree was snapped in two.

A colossal creature was rapidly approaching, raising clouds of dust in its wake, charging swiftly toward his location.

Kevin twisted his neck, making a cracking sound.

He assumed a horse stance and stretched his hands forward.

His aura suddenly erupted.

"This guy is really brave."

Begel raised an eyebrow at the sight.

For a moment, he doubted his earlier judgment. Could Kevin really be an Enhancement Type ability user?

He simply couldn't understand how Enhancement Type Devil Fruit user could construct Nen ability to make medicine, and he noticed that Kevin hadn't even used his own potion.

Kevin had a box of medicine at his waist, still tightly closed and unopened.

Did he intend to use brute force to stop the Charging Armor?

Although somewhat worried, Begel did not voice his objections.

At least in his view, Kevin wasn't the kind of person who was reckless and ignorant; since he dared to do this, he must have some confidence in himself.

Moreover, Kevin's burst of energy was extremely powerful.

The rumbling sound grew closer.

One soldier couldn't help but swallow hard. "Is he... is he throwing his life away?"

"Shut up, there will always be capable people in this world."

The rumbling sound was already close at hand, and dust billowed in our faces.

The monster's form gradually became visible.

It's even bigger than the one that was just being dragged on the cart!

It was like a roaring truck running straight over us.

"Hey, there's no way we can stop them!" a soldier couldn't help but shout.

Trying to stop it by force is simply outrageous.

What's the difference between this and a hardtop truck?

Standing beside Begel, Shante couldn't help but frown and remind him, "This one is too big, won't it...?"

"Trust him," Begel said, his brow furrowed and his expression serious.

Kevin watched as the Charging Armor charged straight at him.

"It really gives me a bad feeling," he muttered to himself. "Like trucks or something—hopefully I'll be lucky this time."

He muttered to himself, his eyes sharpening.

The powerful wind pressure and imposing aura generated by the giant Beetle charging towards us were overwhelming.

"Bang!"

The two collided violently.

Some soldiers couldn't help but close their eyes; they simply couldn't bear to see a person smashed to pieces.

The wind pressure generated by the collision swept towards the group, blowing the hats off several soldiers.

"Incredible!"

The officer on the tank stared in astonishment.

"My God! He's an incredible strongman!"

"God bless."

The scene presented to everyone was:

Kevin steadily withstood the oncoming Charging Armor charged like a truck.

His legs dug deep into the ground, plowing out a short furrow.

His aura erupted violently.

Although the soldiers couldn't see the aura, they could clearly feel the immense power emanating from Kevin, and the oppressive feeling that followed.

"Stop the car! You're speeding, man!"

Kevin grinned, his veins bulging.

His muscles bulged, and the short sleeves of his shirt were torn apart, perfectly showcasing his powerful and explosive physique.

He gripped the top and sides of the carapace tightly with both hands.

"Drink!"

Kevin shouted.

"He... he lifted that monster up!"

A soldier stared wide-eyed and shouted.

It's important to understand that the sheer size of the Charging Armor means it also has an astonishing weight.

Today, a seemingly tiny human being has lifted such a massive creature.

This pure, violent beauty was displayed before everyone's eyes, leaving them stunned.

Reckless driving brings tears to loved ones' eyes!

Kevin muttered strange words as he held up the Charging Armor, revealing the body hidden beneath its shell.

Those were countless, powerful, thin legs, all hidden under their shells. When lifted up, they were wriggling in a dense mass, sending shivers down one's spine.

"Get out of here!"

Kevin suddenly flung it away.

A whistling sound carrying wind pressure came from above.

The massive Charging Armor vehicle was flung out and crashed heavily into the woods.

It knocked down a large number of trees.

Even so, the beetle's strong defenses prevented it from suffering too much damage.

Even when it's knocked over and flipped to the ground, it can still struggle quickly.

Just as it adjusted its body and prepared to charge again...

Kevin had already leaped into the air and was falling from the sky like a shooting star.

His fist was raised high, and a great deal of momentum gathered on it.

"This tactic is called 'one ticket at a time'!"

"Bang!"

A tremendous roar resounded.

The impact brought wind pressure that carried mud and sand, forming black mudslide waves.

Numerous branches and leaves also flew in all directions.

The soldiers watching raised their hands to shield their eyes.