Soldier X Infiltration Begins

Inside the Palace.

The Ant King scrutinized the being that had emerged from its cocoon before him.

It was a humanoid creature with a sickly pale complexion, standing naked.

If we were to pinpoint what makes him significantly different from normal humans, the focus would inevitably fall on his bizarre face—a body indistinguishable from a human's, yet topped with a pair of excessively round and ridiculously large eyes.

Those eyes were empty and lifeless, gleaming with a cold, mechanical quality.

His body appeared unusually thin, with many bones clearly visible, and he looked sickly, making one worry that he might collapse at any moment.

"These are the soldiers you've created?"

The Ant King asked the question expressionlessly, his voice low and deep.

Standing to the side Youpi immediately bowed slightly and respectfully replied, "Yes, Your Majesty. This is an individual we just selected from among humans, and I have made some preliminary modifications to it. However—please forgive me, this work is not yet perfect."

"It's alright," the Ant King waved his hand casually, acknowledging the achievement, "As long as it works."

As a king, he was more than just powerful and tyrannical.

In his view, this work has reached a relatively perfect level at this stage.

He wouldn't criticize his subordinates based on his own preferences.

"Thank you for your recognition!" Youpi's voice carried a hint of barely perceptible excitement.

"Then let's begin," the Ant King commanded. "Select usable soldiers from among these humans. Also, prepare some food for me."

As soon as the Ant King finished speaking, the Palace fell into a breathtaking silence.

"What?" The Ant King glanced sideways, an invisible pressure spreading out.

"I wouldn't dare! I'll make the arrangements right away!" Youpi quickly replied, and then together with Neferpitou beside him, they swiftly left the Palace.

We arrived at the spacious corridor outside the hall.

Neferpitou sighed softly, his cat ears drooping. "It seems our whereabouts—maybe—can no longer be hidden."

Unconcerned, Youpi's face instead lit up with fanatical adoration. "The King is invincible! And he's getting stronger and stronger!"

He slightly opened his arms, looking down at the wide square below.

In the center of the square, a strange tree has been erected, covered with countless pink Cocoon.

A few days ago, they had some concerns, but after a few days, those concerns were dispelled by the Ant King's rapidly growing strength.

As they begin to select and convert Nen user from ordinary people on a large scale as "food," the Ant King's power is expanding at an alarming rate.

Meanwhile, some of the modified Nen user will also become soldiers for future conquest.

"You're too impatient," Neferpitou jumped, lightly crouching on the stone railing beside him, his tone tinged with displeasure. "We should have waited. You've only produced one prototype, and you're already eager to present it to the King—"

Having hastily left their old nest, they had almost no one left to use except for the Ant King and the Royal Guards.

Only through the threat of force can a small number of officials maintain the most basic functioning of the country.

Everyone else? They've already been wiped out.

With manpower extremely scarce, the things that can be done are extremely limited. Actions like the previous large-scale hypnosis and manipulation of the public were all done by Youpi himself, which was inefficient. The only advantage was that it was relatively covert.

Neferpitou believed that they should patiently wait for the first batch of modified soldiers to awaken and have enough manpower before proceeding with the plan.

"Too slow!" Youpi retorted, his eyes sharp. "Besides, our enemies are no fools. They can easily pinpoint our hiding place."

"After all, there are only a handful of countries on this island that meet the criteria. If they were able to form an encirclement in the first place, they must have already Blockade the entire island. Our whereabouts are probably no secret by now."

Although Youpi, he was by no means stupid.

None of the king's Royal Guards were of low intelligence.

Even the seemingly reckless Youpi was simply someone who didn't like to think, not someone who couldn't.

Their understanding of humanity, especially after arriving here and rapidly acquiring information from across the world through the internet, is already very profound.

After listening to Youpi's analysis, Neferpitou remained silent for a moment and did not argue further.

She leaped a few times with swift, decisive movements, her figure moving with lightning speed, and instantly landed on top of the commemorative High Tower in the center of the square, resuming her vigilance duties.

The only reason she stopped trying was that, deep down, she partially agreed with Youpi's assessment—the enemy likely already knew their movements.

Through the internet, Neferpitou found the Hunter Association and also found information about Netero.

This elderly man, hailed as the "world's number one Nen user," has maintained his position for decades.

In Neferpitou's view, this almost meant that he was the strongest fighting force on the human side.

If even he couldn't defeat the Ant King — the Hunter Association's Extermination Team that was tracking them probably had no idea of Ant King's terrifying strength.

Once the king defeats that old man, there will be no more obstacles in the world!

With this in mind, Neferpitou felt a slight relief from the immense pressure from Kevin and the others. His tense nerves relaxed a little, and he no longer needed to be on high alert like a cat with its fur standing on end.

Boundary the East Gorteau Republic.

As night fell, several figures quietly dispersed and slipped into the country.

Deep in the Dense Forest, two young figures were moving cautiously.

Qi Zheng lowered his voice and explained to Gon the unique characteristics of this country.

"See? Infiltrating the border isn't too difficult," Qi said, scanning his surroundings warily. "But we have to cross the entire East Gorteau to reach the capital. If nothing unexpected happens, the enemy will definitely be entrenched there."

This island is an alliance of several countries, with East Gorteau located on the outermost edge, close to the mainland.

Its capital city is located at the tip of the island that juts outwards.

The long coastline and layers of border Blockade have created an environment that makes this country almost completely isolated from the world, much more so than the NGL Autonomous Region.

"Almost every settlement in this country harbors a vast, state-controlled intelligence organization," Qi explained rapidly. "What's even more troublesome is the spontaneous network of informants among the people! Any attempt to escape, to rebel, or to engage in espionage will be swiftly reported."

"The harsh system of collective punishment is like a giant net, shrouding the entire country in ignorance and oppression."

Although we prepared camouflage clothing and fake badges, we were still too conspicuous; it was best to avoid all settlements. Besides, in this country—"

He kept emphasizing the key points in a rambling manner.

Listening to all this complicated information, Gon felt like his head was about to explode; he was clearly Overload.

"Hey! Pay attention! You have to remember these!"

Kiy solemnly reminded him again that this was no child's play.

The mission they were shouldering this time was extremely important, and the dangers ahead also put them under pressure.

Therefore, necessary caution is essential.

Under the cover of darkness, the two traveled quickly and soon arrived at a remote village.

They have begun to approach the settlement.

"It looks so small, and—" Gon wanted to say "outdated," but he was too embarrassed to say it.

Kiy seemed to understand his thoughts and added in a low voice, "This isolation is deliberately created by the higher-ups. They spread extremely outrageous fake news domestically to prevent citizens from leaving. Communication tools like cell phones are absolutely forbidden here. That's why it seems so closed off."

It's at least better than NGL, which is the real pristine place—although they advertise it as a return to nature, so people have certain expectations.

East Gorteau is completely different.

"But... why is it so noisy?"

Gon listened intently, a look of confusion on his face.

In the dead of night, such a small village should be completely silent, with only a few people around if there are any activities taking place.

Kiy also noticed something was wrong. "You hide here, I'll sneak in and take a look. I'm a professional at this." He confidently made a gesture.

Gon nodded, then nimbly leaped onto the branch of a nearby tree and hid.

Kiy, as if blending into the shadows, silently crept towards the village.

Sure enough, as they approached, the village was bustling with noise.

Many villagers, carrying flashlights, oil lamps, and even torches, were gathered together in a chaotic manner.

A man who looked like Village Chief stood on a simple wooden platform, speaking loudly.

Soon, the crowd began to stir, and the villagers packed their simple bags and hurriedly left the village into the night, heading straight for the capital.

"Huh? What happened?"

Kiy filled with surprise and doubt.

He observed for a moment, then carefully sneaked into several empty houses to check, confirming that the villagers had indeed all left.

He quickly returned to meet up with Gon and shared what he had seen.

"They've all left? And with their luggage, heading towards the capital?" Gon asked in surprise.

"You're looking in the right direction."

Killua affirmed.

"They're converging on the capital? Why? What major event has happened that we don't know about?"

Before infiltrating, they learned about East Gorteau through Hunter x Hunter, and at the time everything seemed normal, with no prior warning.

"Never mind!" Kiy decisively decided, "Let's disguise ourselves first, and then secretly follow them."

"Following a group of ordinary villagers is too easy for us."

The two quickly changed into disguises, blended into the night, and hung far behind the villagers' group.

Meanwhile, infiltrators from other directions encountered the same situation.

Meanwhile, Morel, who was moving the fastest, was already approaching the capital.

"I see—" Morel, hidden in the shadows, looked down at the endless stream of people winding their way to the capital, his face grave.

"Issuing a mandatory meeting order through the national channel? Requiring all citizens to attend, including those on duty and patients? That's insane."

Even the most authoritarian countries would not easily issue such an order.

The news must have already spread, and international news channels are undoubtedly reporting on this outrageous event.

Why expose yourself now?

Morel absolutely refused to believe that the Chimera Ant were unaware of the consequences of their actions.

This is tantamount to actively revealing one's location.

"Could it be that the Ant King is choosing a queen? That doesn't make sense!"

Morel immediately rejected this idea. The Chimeric Ant Queen reproduces by consuming and combining genes.

The Ant King, however, is different. She mates with females, forcing them to reproduce and create a new colony. The new colony will produce a new Queen, and then the Ant King will leave to continue expanding.

Therefore, the scene before them appeared extremely strange.

Thinking of this, Morel suddenly slapped his forehead. "No! We can't look at them from the perspective of ordinary Chimeric Ant anymore. They've been influenced by human genes, and their habits have long since become irrational."

He quickly realized, "So—are they changing soldiers? Or—are they sorting food?"

Upon realizing this possibility, Morel's heart sank instantly.

This is not good news.

"Oh no!"

He had a bad feeling.

"At this rate, settlements near the capital will soon be emptied out. They'll probably gather in the capital within a week, causing massive casualties. Whatever the Chimera Ant are up to, this is strengthening their power."

Simply put, they are not racing against time, but against countless lives.

They must defeat the Ant King as soon as possible to stop the disaster, but the more urgent the situation, the less reckless they must act—because failure means even greater disaster.

"We must first approach the capital to scout out the situation."

Morel suppressed his anxiety and made a decision.

The next morning.

Morel finally arrived at the outskirts of the capital. What he saw was a desolate, empty city.

"Damn Chimera Ant!"

Morel gritted his teeth and clenched his fists.

--

"Were all the people in a city eaten?"

The killing efficiency of these Chimera Ant is truly terrifying.

The four Chimera Ant — the Royal Guards and the Ant King —could cause such a catastrophe.

Observing the scene inside the city, Morel dared not approach rashly.

Because he saw that chilling sight once again—a vast expanse of land, obscuring the sky and with an extremely irregular shape.

A massive "circle" that almost completely covered the core area.

At the very top of this "circle," he could clearly see that damned Neferpitou, crouching like a feline.

"First, try to gather intelligence."

Morel put down the huge Pipe he had been carrying on his shoulder and took a deep breath.

He exhaled several thick plumes of purple smoke, while simultaneously Emission powerful Nen Aura.

The smoke billowed and condensed, and humanoid [Purple Smoke Machine Soldier] made of purple smoke quickly took shape.

Following Morel's command, these mechs leaped silently and swiftly like a tide, surging into the depths of the desolate city.

They inevitably intruded into the coverage area of that huge "circle".

This is tantamount to declaring to the enemy.

They've arrived.

At the top of the High Tower, Neferpitou keenly sensed the surging Purple Smoke Machine Soldier.

"Tsk, they came really fast."

She gave a helpless pursed-lip look.

"As expected, our concealment was pointless." Judging from this response speed, the other side likely already located this place before they even issued a nationwide notification.

"You guys," Neferpitou casually gestured downwards, "Go and get rid of those annoying little things."

Several figures immediately rushed out from the shadows to meet the invading Purple Smoke Machine Soldier.