Jin X Beyond

On the edge of a forest.

Kim's team.

They had reached the edge of the forest and were heading towards the direction of the Unmanned Stone Range.

Jin squatted on a tree branch.

He held a simple map in his hand. It was simple because the map only marked some strange landscapes in general directions.

For a map, it's incredibly crude.

But at least this gives them some direction.

"The Abyss lies ahead."

Jin muttered to himself.

Just then, Tuk's voice came.

"Further outwards, the vegetation becomes sparser, and we enter a vast wilderness. We need to be even more vigilant."

"Alright, let's move on."

After resting there for a while, they continued on their way.

Traveling such a long distance.

The group was in relatively good condition. Although they looked somewhat disheveled and even had some minor injuries, none of them were seriously injured.

Jin took out a Pocket Watch from his pocket.

It's called Pocket Watch, but the hands on it are divided into several segments, constantly turning, seemingly unrelated to time.

The time markers have changed to different colors, from dark to light.

"It seems there's considerable danger ahead, but we have to get through."

Tewashi came to Jin's side, looked at the Pocket Watch in Jin's hand, and said.

Jin nodded.

The Pocket Watch in his hand was a Nen tool, a treasure he had used for many years and kept close to his heart.

In the Dark Continent, the function of this Nen tool is beyond doubt, because it has only one purpose.

Anticipating danger.

In the perilous Dark Continent, the Pocket Watch is of utmost importance.

The longest one, shaped like a second hand, kept spinning.

This means they have been in a relatively dangerous environment, and the pointer has not stopped since they set foot on the Dark Continent.

At this moment, both the hour and minute hands are turning towards a dangerous situation.

This means that the danger ahead is undeniable.

"That's the only way we can go; we have no choice but to give it a try."

Jin felt somewhat helpless.

Apart from the Unmanned Stone in the Unmanned Stone Range, other products of the Dark Continent were not their targets.

After all, they came here only to explore.

The fundamental solution is to stay away from your target, unless it's impossible to stay away.

Stay alert and move forward slowly.

The surrounding trees became increasingly sparse, and then scattered, leaving only some weeds and bushes.

More and more Rock were laid on the ground.

From a distance, it looked almost desolate.

The area is desolate with almost no life, appearing completely silent.

"Aren't there even any birds?"

Tuk looked up at the sky and muttered to himself.

Such vast wilderness is a favorite hunting ground for various birds, given its open view and expansive area.

There aren't even any birds here, which shows how desolate it is.

It's hard to believe that such a desolate place exists in the Dark Continent.

As they continued forward and climbed over a shoal, an extraordinarily spectacular sight appeared before them, enough to fill the entire field of vision.

Abyss.

"Is this the terrifying area that even East Fuglits felt threatened by?"

As mentioned before, in Travelogue, authors rarely mention dangerous situations in their books; instead, they focus on providing detailed descriptions of locations, landmarks, and obvious reference points.

Simply put, you can think of this Travelogue as a treasure hunt guide along the coast of the Dark Continent.

Where is the treasure? In what direction is the treasure? What object can be used as a reference point?

These are the main contents of the book.

But the danger was not mentioned at all.

However, Abyss are rare; they can serve as environmental reference points, but they are also extremely dangerous areas.

Because the author clearly sensed the danger of the place, he suggested taking a detour.

And now they see it.

That region is called the Abyss.

A huge, boundless, bottomless pit, as wide as the ocean.

It almost filled their entire field of vision, extending into the unseen distance.

"What on earth caused this deep pit? It doesn't seem like a natural environment at all."

Looking at the exaggeratedly deep pit, Tuk muttered to himself.

Jin was stunned by the scenery before him, standing there speechless for a moment.

This is a landscape that is absolutely unseen in human society.

"It's so vast, it feels like it's sucking my very soul into it."

Tewashi said this.

But no one refuted it.

They slid down the hillside toward the edge of the exaggerated pit.

They quickly reached the edge.

This place remains desolate.

However, if you look slightly into the cave, you can see some birds flying in the upper part of the cave.

They hover at the cave entrance, but to the creatures inside, they appear to be flying high in the sky.

"It seems that the entire ecosystem around here is dominated by the Abyss, and all life has gathered inside the pit."

This may explain why the surrounding area is so desolate; all life is moving towards the deep pit.

"Are there enough supplies inside? Do we have to abandon our other homes and enter this bottomless Abyss?"

A gust of wind blew upwards from the edge of the pit, brushing against their faces.

"I feel like even those of us who don't have a fear of heights are about to develop one," the Pink-haired Girl muttered to herself, looking down.

"It makes you want to jump."

Tuk muttered to himself.

People standing at a high place, looking down, will always feel this impulse.

This is determined by a certain aspect of human nature.

Jin frowned.

"We can't watch anymore, we have to get away."

He stood up abruptly, creating some distance between himself and the others, who followed suit.

After they had gone a certain distance, they stood still and fell silent for a moment.

"Did I act a little strange just now?"

Tuk recalled his actions just now and asked, puzzled.

"Maybe? I think I might too—" Tewashi didn't know what to say.

Was his behavior just now strange?

It doesn't seem too strange, but once the distance is increased, something seems amiss.

"Is this the Abyss? Even though it exists only on the edge, I am still drawn to it, unable to resist placing myself within it and jumping downwards."

Jin had already seen through the process of being influenced, and as he spoke, he was also reminding everyone.

"We were affected like this? How were we affected?" Tuk, somewhat confused.

He didn't feel affected by anything, after all, he remained vigilant.

"Let's keep our distance and go around it. It will take more time, but it also means our journey shouldn't be too dangerous, since all the creatures around us have already been lured into the Abyss."

This is why the surrounding area is so desolate.

Possessing free will, they simply approached and gazed into the abyss, as if drawn in. For creatures that have long lived on the edge, the allure of the Abyss had long since become an unconscious part of them.

Such an exaggeratedly deep, bottomless pit would naturally arouse curiosity, but not to the point of costing someone their life.

There are too many things to be curious about in the Dark Continent; it would be a terrible waste to risk one's life for just one thing.

To bypass the bottomless Abyss and reach the Unmanned Stone Range on the other side is clearly not an easy process.

On the other side of a distant continent.

Only by crossing an endless ocean can one finally see this place.

The southern shore of the Dark Continent.

A place hundreds of kilometers from the coastline.

At the bottom of a desolate hillside, inside a metallic cave.

The burly Beyond crouched down and dug out a plant.

"Fifty years! Fifty years! I've got you again, hahahaha!"

Beyond laughed heartily, holding in his hands what he held dear—one of his hopes.

Alchemy Plant.

--

Fifty years ago, he had owned a plant that eventually withered and died due to illness.

He was surrounded by his team members, as well as some mercenaries who looked miserable.

The mercenaries were surrounding a witness from the International Voyage Bureau.

He watched Beyond picked up the plant, taking notes in his hand.

The Ox (丑) and the Sheep (Wei Yang) of the Twelve Zodiacs, Maitai and Yinda, followed behind.

However, Maitai's expression was not good at this moment.

Three posts have passed since they landed on the Black Continent, taking nearly three posts' worth of time. Beyond and his team, they have finally obtained one of their hopes.

Moreover, this was done after having the experience of successfully obtaining it once.

Even so, they still suffered heavy casualties.

Beyond's force of over two thousand men suffered a loss of more than a thousand, a full 50% reduction, even with his experienced leadership.

This loss of one hundred is unavoidable.

Because these people are all "sacrifices".

There weren't many Alchemy Plant in the cave; there were only nine in total.

By Beyond, he dug them all out.

Then, Beyond took out a skull-like object from his pocket.

Open the skull, then place the plant inside; the tiny skull actually allowed the plant to fit completely inside.

This is clearly a craft Nen tool.

This time, I won't let you get hurt again.

"By Beyond muttered to himself."

The reason the plants withered last time was because they weren't properly cared for.

The reason why the protection was inadequate was that the Nen user possessed the ability to create space through Emission Type, died during the exploration.

But this time I won't ride.

This is why he carries the magical Nen tool; he wants to personally protect himself.

"Time is running out."

A companion nearby reminded him.

"In that case, let's leave quickly."

Beyond spoke, he led his team away from there without hesitation.

As they passed through the area, screams could still be heard in the distance.

But they remained unmoved.

They seemed to finally be safe once they were far away from that area.

"We'll tally the casualties, rest for a while, and then continue our journey."

Beyond Deye's instructions, the rest of the group quickly sprang into action.

Afterwards, all the important members of the team were pulled aside for a brief meeting.

"We have our objective. Now, with our treasure in hand, we must board the ship, leave this place, return to human society, and claim our glory."

He spoke Beyond a bold and unrestrained tone, as if he were encouraging everyone and envisioning a bright future.

Some people excitedly echoed this, while others remained silent.

Looking at the silent crowd, Beyond said without changing his expression, "This is the necessary price to pay for exploring danger."

Hope is hope because every hope is protected by a powerful being.

These guardian creatures either coexist with hope, or their hope is a product of the other, or the other needs hope.

In any case, wherever there is hope, there will always be danger.

However, Exploration Team from other countries perished before they could even see any hope, all because of these Guardian Beasts.

Beyond then received the ride.

The price for this was sending a group of people to their deaths as sacrifices to distract the Guardian Beast, allowing them to quickly infiltrate the cave and retrieve the items.

There are at least dozens of such caves in that area.

And they paid such a heavy price just for exploring one aspect of the art.

This is not something that can be acquired in the long run through a single skill.

This is a shortcut. Does it mean they'll have to sacrifice thousands of lives every time they come to the Black Continent to explore and obtain Alchemy Plant?

"Good time, things aren't completely over yet. We can't afford to be careless now, and the Alchemy Plant might be causing illness."

The so-called illness is Undying disease.

"Didn't you get that disease because you got lost before? This time, as long as you return via the normal route, you won't have any problems, right?"

The Recorder asked from the side.

"Hehe, that was just an excuse. Later, as I reviewed the entire operation time and time again, I became certain of it."

"That wasn't a disease I contracted from getting lost at sea; it was something that Alchemy Plant would attract."

"The so-called Undying disease is itself a form of parasitism, and I believe you all have relevant information about it."

The Undying disease: After infection, the infected person gradually loses their mind and becomes a Numb creature, only thinking about spreading the virus.

Under the influence of this disease, infected individuals will find it difficult to die, and may even survive by eating their own flesh.

The parts that Qi devours can quickly regrow, far exceeding what humans can comprehend.

It's like a perpetual motion machine, stubbornly eating itself to keep living.

However, upon closer examination, it becomes clear that it is not actually a viral infection, but rather a type of biological parasite.

These tiny creatures enter the human body, occupying important parts of the body, and then exert overall control over the human body, turning it into a breeding ground.

Some of the nutrients are also used to support the growth of the Parasitized.

What kind of Parasitic organism is it? How to eliminate and capture it? These are all questions that need not be asked.

So the only surviving Undying disease was imprisoned in the laboratory.

"You mean, as long as we want to bring the Alchemy Plant back, we'll be plagued by that Undying disease the whole way?"

"That's right, so we need to split up and return, forming different small teams. Eventually, one team will survive and not be infected with the Undying disease."

Simply put, it's another case of baiting workers.

This is why, even after exploring the Black Continent once, Beyond still insisted on bringing ordinary soldiers with him.