Danger Zone × Crushing Darkness

Keep moving forward.

Even at night, they were on their way.

Their encounter with the Abyss during the day forced them to find a way to get away from that area as quickly as possible.

The group only stopped when dawn was breaking and the sun shone brightly on the earth once more.

In the surrounding wilderness, they found a spot leaning against a rock wall to rest.

Do you really think that tentacle monster has its own intelligence?

Tewashi leaned against the stone wall, gestured with his hand, and asked.

Upon hearing the question, Jin stood to the side and shook his head slightly.

"I understand what you mean. The creatures on the Dark Continent are all quite intelligent, but I think that monster probably can't understand what humans are thinking."

"His conversations with us were clearly deceptive; the so-called deal seemed more like an attempt to stall us until nightfall."

"And once night falls, if we continue to stay around the Abyss, then without a doubt, we will be powerless against that monster."

That's why the monster made that so-called deal; its purpose was to make them wait, to wait for one night.

The only thing that could restrain that monster was the sun in the sky during the day.

There is no such restriction at night.

The monster was powerful enough to sweep them away in the night.

Men Qi then said, "But there are human corpses here. I wonder when they were left by people who arrived here."

Men Qi wasn't too surprised that people had been here before, after all, this landing point was a landing point for a certain Smuggling Route.

It's important to know that there were over a hundred recorded login activities, while the number of unregistered illegal border crossings could be several times, or even more than ten times, higher.

She herself is a Hunter x Hunter.

It's all too clear; in the past, Hunter x Hunter who were willing to log in and leave their information before exploring would definitely be in the minority.

"That person must have been from the Shitxier Empire three hundred years ago."

Jin suddenly said.

Upon hearing this, everyone turned to look at him.

"Although the clothes were tattered, there were still details that could corroborate this, such as a ring-shaped tattoo on his wrist."

"This is a distinctive feature of the people of the Shitxier Empire. They get such a tattoo after reaching adulthood, which is meant to bring good fortune and blessings."

"In addition, the corpse had an earring on its ear, and although the person was filthy, it was still possible to tell from the tattered clothes."

"However, there's one thing that's a pity----"

When Jin mentioned the regrettable things, a very obvious look of disappointment appeared on his face.

"That book, if I'm not mistaken, that book is the Human Skin Ritual Codex."

This was something that no one had ever heard of before; it was completely outside their knowledge.

However, it's clear that Jin had done his research.

The fall of the Hirsit Empire was due to being attacked from all sides; the entire empire lasted for less than a hundred years, making it a nation with a very short lifespan.

"And it was destroyed quite thoroughly, and there was no unified voice within the country, while that book was a specialty of the empire."

Seeing that everyone was indeed curious, Jin sat down and began to tell them.

"That book was the catalyst for the downfall of that empire at the end of its reign. For some reason, the King at the time was obsessed with a sect called the Human Fate Blood Offering Cult."

"It's actually a bloody ritualistic sect, very ancient, bloody, and ignorant. But clearly, from the perspective of Nen ability, this sect does possess some capabilities. Their use of Succession Ceremony, though classical, is highly technical, and the guiding text is the Bipi Ritual Canon."

After saying that, Jin shrugged helplessly and added, "But after the empire collapsed, those books were centrally destroyed—truly centrally destroyed."

Unlike those banned books, they don't actually exist in various countries.

"Because the destruction was so thorough, only some copies can be seen; not a single original can be found. It is extremely rare, and in the world of collecting, it is one of the most prestigious collections. At present, no one knows which collector has it, and there is not even anyone to show off."

This is actually a very strange point.

Collectors, without exception, all have a tendency to show off to some extent.

Without this mindset, one cannot become a collector.

"But the problem is that this book has no collectors."

Furthermore, according to Kim's investigation, the book was indeed completely destroyed.

Therefore, he suspected that it was actually related to some kind of Nen ability.

I never expected to find one in the Dark Continent.

After listening, Kevin stroked his chin.

"From this perspective, shouldn't the gem he mentioned and the Flower Bud in his hand be more useful?"

He then explained why.

"Think about it, the information he shared with us might have come from that corpse. At least to most of us, that book couldn't be associated with any so-called knowledge."

Simply put, it's not very appealing.

"But for that corpse, the knowledge contained in that book was absolutely irresistible, at least in his eyes."

"Then the Flower Bud that is opposite it, which signifies lifespan, is clearly not a lie."

"The gem in his mouth signifies wealth, and it's clearly quite valuable."

Qi suddenly made a sarcastic remark at that moment.

"It's also possible that he's just inexperienced."

Upon hearing this, Kevin was taken aback for a moment, but upon closer reflection, it did seem quite possible.

Of course, this lack of knowledge doesn't mean the other party is truly ignorant, but rather refers to their knowledge of the Dark Continent.

It's certainly not necessarily wider than theirs, at least not.

Therefore, what he considers valuable may not necessarily be of high value to Kevin and others.

"Alright, in any case, designate the area around the Abyss as a danger zone, preferably by drawing a large circle around it, and absolutely do not approach it at night."

This point needs to be made clear.

The monster learned to communicate with humans and set traps to deceive them using only a corpse.

If we add a few more mentions of human corpses, that would be terrible.

If it were the body of someone from their team, it would directly expose their information.

That would be truly extraordinary, if one could gain a deep understanding of Nen ability through information in the human mind and learn them.

Keep moving towards your goal.

We traveled along the way, stopping and starting frequently.

Each stop was to explore areas they had previously traversed that they deemed particularly dangerous.

With Kevin around, they were at least able to conduct simple explorations at the edge to determine the specific dangers in the area.

And that's exactly what they did.

Each time, I don't delve too deeply into exploration, just like the Gale Grassland, where in-depth exploration is a very troublesome thing.

And it will require repeated exploration to make it feasible.

After such a simple exploration of the periphery, at least the Danger Level can be determined, and then a simple assessment can be made.

The most dangerous part of the entire journey was undoubtedly the area around the Abyss.

There is basically no place more dangerous than the area around the Abyss.

Even Kevin might have to avoid that area at night.

Other regions are mostly within an average range.

The Danger Level depends entirely on the strength of the occupiers of this area, who are almost all at the Knight Rank.

This provides a relatively accurate understanding of the simple ecology of the entire Dark Continent.

Those are Knight-level creatures, basically capable of occupying a small area on the Dark Continent.

Of course, the surrounding environment does not change according to his strength.

The Occupier type has a very fixed and stable ecological environment and is not normally harmed.

For example, the Gale Grassland are actually quite close to the Resentful Eater Snake, at least considering the environment of the Dark Continent.

However, the Resentful Eater Snake does not affect or infringe upon its territory.

In addition, a large area around it is its hunting range.

They also control the Giant Beast Kingdom, which are their primary hunting grounds.

One's own living environment is also changed because of its existence.

This type should be the Lord Level.

Through this in-depth understanding of the Dark Continent, we can deduce the calamities faced by the five hopes known to humankind.

They might not even reach the so-called Lord Level.

The Resentful Eater Snake is Lord Level creature, but there seems to be no hope or need for human beings around it.

But in the nearest Unmanned Stone Range, is the Papu the Nurturing Beast truly Lord Level creature? Obviously not.

It seems the area where the other party is located is actually Danger Level.

It's more like a disaster caused by an ecological environment, like the Shi Yunyu.

Plant-based weapons, such as Gold and Silver Ingot, can be considered to be of the same type as the Papu the Nurturing Beast.

The only definitively identified Lord Level creature is the E, but under normal circumstances, this creature does not exhibit any proactive aggression.

Humanity's own actions led to its own demise.

They traveled on and off, stopping frequently, and it took them nearly twenty days to finally reach the Pitch Black Land.

It took longer than expected.

Standing Tree Top edge of its edge, Kevin gazed into the distance.

Indeed, that environment was very distinctive, with a clear difference in color from the surrounding earth.

The pitch-black earth stretched to the horizon, an area utterly desolate. Apart from the black stone ground, there was almost no sign of life.

We traveled all the way to the edge of the black earth.

"Entering the black area shouldn't be a problem for now, but the creatures in the black earth might all have the ability to manipulate gravity."

"At least one snail definitely has this ability; no other creatures have been found to possess it yet."

Jin reminded him from the side.

Kevin nodded, then turned to the others and said, "You all just wait for me at the edge. I'll go in and take a look."

"Then let my Nen Beast accompany you inside."

Men Qi said, clapping his hands, and several strange canine creatures with long, thin tails appeared.

"Oh! Hook-Tailed Dog!"

Jin recognized him at a glance, and was pleasantly surprised.

"You've actually eaten something like this? Was it good?"

Men Qi glanced at him but didn't say anything, clearly indicating that the food wasn't tasty.

This breed of dog is named for the hook that pops out from the tip of its tail, its ability to extend its tail, and the immense power of its tail.

Hunting occurs in packs, where large prey are hooked onto by the talons at their tails and dragged from all directions to restrict their movement.

Obviously, if Kevin falls into the Gravity Zone and becomes unable to move, this method can be used to pull him out.

Kevin nodded.

Once ready, he and the Hook-tailed Dog beside him began their exploration deeper into the Gravity Zone.

They rushed forward at high speed.

It was indeed exceptionally desolate.

There's nothing useful at all.

As they ventured deeper into the darker regions of the earth, Kevin crouched down slightly and touched the ground with his hand.

You can feel that the ground has become much thicker; the Rock are firmly embedded in the ground without any protrusions.

Clearly, this gravity is a very direct, top-down pressure, much like a hydraulic hammer with a wide average range.

This change clearly indicates that he has entered a region where gravity changes.

Its body surface was directly covered with silver scales, and then layered with barriers.

Kevin slowed his pace, exploring step by step.

They hadn't even taken a few steps.

You can see it from a distance; it's a very noticeable protruding Rock.

In such an area, a large, protruding rock speaks volumes about what it represents.

Sure enough, as Kevin approached, a heavy pressure suddenly descended from the sky.

The sudden pressure forced Kevin to kneel on one knee.

"Hmm—this feeling is definitely different."

Feeling the immense pressure emanating from within, from every cell to every nerve, Kevin couldn't help but force a smile.

This feeling.

It sounds strange, but it's fantastic!

Kevin clenched his fist tightly. Under this extreme pressure, Kevin felt his entire body begin to be activated in an instant.

This feeling is very comfortable.

It's important to understand that as Kevin's strength grows, fewer and fewer creatures can give him this feeling.

After all, the creatures of the Dark Continent include those with immense physical strength and powerful abilities.

This sensation in the body can only be activated when fighting against a creature of immense physical strength.

But Kevin isn't the kind of person who fights for the sake of fighting.

Therefore, the sudden and rapid activation of the body through heavy pressure made Kevin feel exhilarated.

The bones made a creaking, grinding sound.

Kevin slowly stood up from his half-squat position.

A snail-like creature, which had emerged from the Rock in the distance and was crawling towards Kevin, stopped when it saw that Kevin had actually stood up.

The snail immediately retracted its body and disguised itself as Rock again.

"Hehe, you're quite clever."

Kevin forced a smile.

However, he did not rush to approach, but stood in this area of heavy pressure, carefully sensing it.

"Whew—that feels so good!"

After getting used to it for a bit, Kevin even jumped twice on the spot. Of course, he actually jumped very hard, but he was only about 10 or 20 centimeters off the ground.

But that's enough.

Taking large strides, I approached the Rock.