The moon was dark, and the wind howled.
Fierce winds swept through the mountains, whipping up countless fallen leaves.
The surrounding trees swayed incessantly, their rustling rising in an unbroken chorus.
Shrouded in night, the trees looming all around swayed like ghostly silhouettes, lending the shrieking wind an eerie, terrifying atmosphere.
Moyu walked onto a man-made platform. The guide lights on either side had fallen into disrepair and barely gave off a faint glow.
Yet in such pitch-black surroundings, even that faint light stood out sharply.
Was it a coincidence...
Or had they come prepared?
Sensing that elusive trace of killing intent, Moyu betrayed nothing.
He could not tell whether his opponent had come for the enormous bounty on his head or for the Nitro Rice he had brought back from the Dark Continent.
If it was the former, then these money-obsessed people had presumably noticed his movements over the past few days and planned to ambush and kill him here.
If it was the latter...
Then that was hardly good news for Moyu.
It meant that certain interested parties had been watching his expedition to the Dark Continent from very early on.
Then, either believing he could return safely or preferring to expend manpower rather than miss their chance, they had waited for him for nearly a year.
Whichever possibility was true, Moyu had to give serious consideration to Hawk's safety.
And the unknown person concealed in the darkness was certainly no one to underestimate in terms of strength.
Had his perception not been tempered on the Dark Continent and improved beyond recognition, he probably would not have detected that presence immediately.
His opponent had come prepared and seized the initiative...
But now, that was open to question.
*I'll get closer to the summit first, then send a shadow