Chapter Summaries

Kastro and the others identified the severed limb at the Nampis Auction as belonging to a giant Chimera Ant queen and decided to search the isolated NGL region. In the Ataxus Mountains, Bai broke its altar seal, released the humans it had captured, and told Leo it wanted to return to the Dark Continent before trapping him in mist for ten more days.

• Nico identified the display case specimen as a Chimera Ant queen's arm, and the group discussed the danger of the queen nesting and multiplying.
• Sophia told the group that Vivian had directed her to the NGL autonomous region, and Kastro's team agreed to leave for it the next morning.
• Bai lifted the captured humans out of the cavern and told Leo it wanted to return to the Dark Continent, but needed the gatekeepers' permission to leave Mobius Lake.
• The altar seal broke, and Bai formed a humanoid shape from mist as Leo's attacks passed harmlessly through it.
• Bai turned the connected creatures into mist, warned Leo that someone waited outside to ambush him, and said it would not attack humans.
• Bai refused to answer further questions and trapped Leo in a mist cage, telling him he would have to remain there for ten more days.

While Leo remained imprisoned by Bai, the Chimera Ant Queen ordered her Squadron Leaders to bring her fifty humans a day and began preparing for the King's birth. Sophia and the others reached the NGL border to investigate the nest and entered the embassy after Kastro explained their mission.

• Leo waited silently inside Bai's Mist Cage while Bai stayed beside it.
• The Queen ordered the Squadron Leaders to bring her fifty humans a day and let the turtle-like Squadron Leader devise defenses.
• The Squadron Leaders asked for names, and the Queen allowed them to choose their own.
• The Queen visited three enormous eggs and said she would name the warriors who would serve directly under the King.
• Sophia, Kastro, and the others arrived at the NGL border, where they learned other groups had come before them.
• Kastro presented his Hunter License at the NGL embassy and said a species designated for quarantine had escaped into the country.

Kastro and the others entered NGL after passing strict inspections, then retrieved their hidden equipment and set out to investigate the region. Elsewhere, Chimera Ants killed humans and discussed disappearing soldiers as armed ants raided a settlement.

• Kastro and the others surrendered prohibited items, changed into natural-material clothing, and underwent scans before entering NGL.
• After their escorts left, Sophia had Shizuku release the group’s stored equipment from Blinky, and Nico turned on a laptop as they rode farther into the country.
• A koala Chimera Ant killed a defiant man with a spit-shot through the skull, while Meleoron watched and later left the forest after a tense exchange with the koala.
• Chimera Ant Squadron Leaders reported that three soldier ants had been killed, their heads pierced by a powerful weapon.
• Two days later, a fish-headed Chimera Ant fired pistols into a settlement, and soldier ants carried the human corpses back to the nest.

Pokkle and his companions were ambushed by Chimera Ants while trying to escape NGL, and Shacan captured Pokkle. Ponzu fled to get help, but a Chimera Ant shot at her before a figure appeared and blocked the bullet.

• Ponzu received a note showing that all six Hunter groups they had contacted had been killed, and Pokkle decided they should leave NGL to alert the world.
• A Chimera Ant burst from the ground and killed a young Hunter, so Pokkle shot it with his Nen arrow.
• A human-faced spider Chimera Ant caught Pokkle’s arrow, killed another Hunter, and was joined by Shacan, who knocked Pokkle unconscious and carried him away.
• Ponzu watched Pokkle’s capture, then ran toward the border to find help.
• A fish-headed Chimera Ant fired at Ponzu, but a figure appeared behind her and blocked the shot.

Kastro and his companions fought Chimera Ants in the NGL forest, saving Ponzu from a gun-wielding ant but refusing to rush after the captured Pokkle. The chapter then flashed back to their earlier search, where they rescued villagers from soldier ants and continued toward their mission of finding the queen’s nest.

• Kastro blocked a bullet aimed at Ponzu and killed the fish-headed Chimera Ant as the others arrived.
• Ponzu told the group that a scorpion-tailed woman had taken Pokkle, but Shoot and Goreinu urged caution rather than charging in blindly.
• Morel led the group away from the site before other ants could find them.
• Two days earlier, Kastro and his companions arrived at a village where soldier ants were attacking and capturing villagers.
• Kastro’s group killed the soldier ants and rescued the survivors, while Morel warned that the ants’ growing numbers threatened a biological catastrophe.
• Kastro left the village with his companions to continue searching for the queen’s nest.

Kastro and the other Hunters struggled to contain the growing Chimera Ant forces and began planning a larger assault on the nest. After ten days trapped in Bai’s Mist Cage, Leo was released and left the cave intent on fighting back.

• Kastro’s teams used Morel’s smoke rabbits and Nico’s Network Canopy to hunt Chimera Ants, then withdrew when the ants’ coordinated responses grew more dangerous.
• Kastro told the group they had located the nest but could not approach it safely, and the Hunters discussed killing the queen and seeking more help.
• Bai told Leo it was time and withdrew the Mist Cage and the fog covering the Ataxus Mountains.
• Leo left the cave after ten days of captivity, determined to vent his anger, while Bai remained behind.

As the mist over the Ataxus Mountains receded, Saiyu led twenty contracted specialists into the mountains to ambush Leo. Leo left the cave, learned that Chimera Ants were ravaging NGL, and knowingly walked toward Saiyu’s prepared trap.

• Flynn watched the mist recede and learned that the people who had emerged from it were alive but had lost their memories.
• Saiyu gathered twenty contracted specialists and led them into the mountains to ambush Leo on behalf of Beyond’s plans.
• Leo left the cave after confirming White had not followed him and summoned Little Azure back to the mountains.
• Leo called Sophia, who told him the Chimera Ants were running rampant in NGL, and promised to reach her after handling a few loose ends.
• Leo sensed Saiyu and the specialists waiting in a gorge, recognized their ambush, and continued toward them without revealing that he knew.

Leo entered a canyon where Saiyu and the Association Special Forces had prepared an ambush, but he showed no concern as they surrounded him. After Leo effortlessly killed one attacker, Saiyu and the remaining fighters launched their assault, while a man with a hidden linking ability waited at the rear.

• Leo arrived at the canyon and told Saiyu to reveal the people hiding nearby.
• Saiyu brought fifteen Association Special Forces members out to surround Leo, while five others remained concealed.
• Leo let the attackers strike first, withstanding a laser, a Nen projectile, and a spiked gauntlet without injury.
• Leo tapped the gauntlet-wearing attacker’s forehead and killed him with a single blow.
• Saiyu summoned his three monkey Nen beasts and the Golden Cudgel as the remaining fighters attacked Leo.
• Leo activated Ken and tracked the attackers, noticing the sunglasses-wearing man at the rear who planned to link their injuries with Thorn-Filled Love.

Leo effortlessly countered Saiyu’s coordinated attack, destroying the Nen beasts and incapacitating the attackers. He stood unharmed in the center of a huge crater and fixed his gaze on Saiyu.

• Saiyu’s group attacked Leo from every side with fighters, Nen projectiles, Nen beasts, and an iron chain.
• Leo pinned the chain underfoot and sent Saiyu’s three monkey Nen beasts, the cheetah, and the giant wolf flying with air bullets.
• Leo defeated the four charging attackers with precise, brutal strikes, raising his level from 85 to 92 percent.
• Leo caught one Nen projectile, swatted another into the canyon wall, and let the third dissipate against him without causing damage.
• Leo stomped hard enough to crack the ground and form a crater more than twenty meters across, then looked toward Saiyu.

Leo killed Saiyu and the remaining attackers, then faced the last survivor, who detonated a Poor Man's Rose bomb hidden inside himself. Leo braced for the blast with Final Moment and Conversion activated, while the canyon was devastated and Flynn saw the explosion from the camp.

• Leo rushed Saiyu and pulverized him, then killed the other attackers, leaving the man in the gray robe and sunglasses alive for questioning.
• Leo asked the man in the gray robe and sunglasses who had sent him, but the man warned that his enemies were beyond Leo's reach.
• The man in the gray robe and sunglasses smashed his own skull and began glowing, prompting Leo to activate Final Moment and Conversion.
• A Poor Man's Rose bomb implanted in the man detonated, engulfing the canyon and devastating the surrounding Ataxus Mountains.
• Flynn saw the mushroom cloud rise over the mountains from the temporary camp, while the blast's aftermath left the canyon unrecognizable.

Leo barely survived the explosion, and Little Azure reached him in time to find his heart still beating. Little Azure sheltered him and used its life energy in an effort to keep him alive.

• The explosion overwhelmed Leo’s defenses and left him charred, mutilated, and barely conscious.
• Bai watched from afar and realized that Little Azure was an ancient dragon from the Dark Continent.
• Little Azure flew into the deadly mist and found Leo lying among the still-burning ruins.
• Little Azure sensed Leo’s faint heartbeat and Nen Aura, then curled around him and covered him with its wings.
• Little Azure’s scales began to glow with life energy as it tried to keep Leo alive.

After the Miniature Rose explosion left Leo on the brink of death, Bai used its life energy to restore his body while Little Azure watched. Leo awoke alive and stronger, thanked Bai, and watched it disappear into the clouds.

• Bai sensed that Leo was barely alive and restrained Little Azure, promising to save him because it owed his kind a favor.
• Bai poured its life energy into Leo, gathering his remains and enabling his regenerative ability to rebuild his body.
• Little Azure sensed Leo growing stronger and cried softly in gratitude as Bai weakened from the effort.
• A dragon’s roar jolted Leo awake, and he recognized Little Azure and remembered the explosion and the Miniature Rose.
• Leo found his body fully restored and stronger than before, thanked Bai, and watched it fly away into the clouds.

Leo survived the Miniature Rose explosion thanks to Little Azure and Bai, then treated Little Azure and headed back to Toth City. In the NGL, Kastro’s group joined forces with Kite’s team to hunt the Chimera Ants, while Ponzu was sent out of the country to recover.

• Leo regained consciousness on the scorched ground, thanked Little Azure for rescuing him, and realized the explosion had raised him to level 88 (35%).
• Leo used a stone tablet to ask Flynn for clothes, then healed Little Azure of the radiation and toxins before flying toward Toth City.
• Kastro’s group met Kite’s injured team in the grassland and agreed to work together against the Chimera Ants.
• Kastro arranged for Kite’s teammates to escort the exhausted Ponzu out of the country, while Kite stayed behind to fight.
• Kite learned that Leo led Kastro’s team, as Morel coordinated their hunts and Shizuku cleaned up the battlefields with Blinky.

Peggy searched the Chimera Ant nest for Pokkle, who had secretly recovered enough to hide from the ants. Neferpitou arrived and exposed Lamodo’s weakness before sensing Pokkle in the bone pile, leaving his hiding place compromised.

• Peggy asked the boar-headed cook about Pokkle, but the cook believed the Queen had already eaten him.
• Pokkle listened from a crevice in a skull pile, still weak after using an antidote to counter the neurotoxin.
• Peggy questioned Lamodo’s newly awakened Nen aura, and Lamodo boasted about his supposed talent and ambitions.
• Neferpitou entered the cavern, terrifying Lamodo and inviting him to speak with her alone.
• Neferpitou sensed a living person in the bone pile and turned her gaze toward Pokkle’s hiding place.

Neferpitou tortured Pokkle to learn Nen, and the Chimera Ants began rapidly awakening their own abilities. After returning to Colton Manor, Leo learned that Nen-using ants had appeared, prepared to support Sophia’s team, and went to meet Netero about traveling to NGL; he was shocked by whoever entered the room.

• Neferpitou tortured Pokkle into explaining Nen, including its six types and Water Divination.
• Neferpitou ordered Lamodo to forcibly awaken Nen in selected Chimera Ants, and the nest began growing stronger.
• Leo returned to Colton Manor and learned from Sophia that Kite had joined her team and Nen-using Chimera Ants had appeared.
• Leo warned Sophia to avoid the nest and told her to have Kastro and the others watch the ants closely.
• Netero called Leo and asked him to go to NGL, so Leo traveled with Asher to the Hunter Association headquarters.
• Leo entered Netero’s office and turned toward the door when it opened, then reacted with shock.

Leo and Netero tested their restored strength at the Hunter Association while, in the NGL, Neferpitou sensed the approaching hunters and launched toward them. The hunters were left scrambling to escape as Pitou homed in on their hiding place.

• Netero used ninety pills of the Witch's Rejuvenation Potion, restoring his body to the age of thirty and unleashing his powerful aura alongside Leo's.
• Leo and Netero withdrew their auras after several minutes, both eager to fight each other again.
• Kite, Morel, Sophia, Kastro, and the others observed the growing Chimera Ant patrols and prepared to receive reinforcements.
• Neferpitou sensed the hunters' auras, left the cavern, and released a terrifying surge of Nen that overwhelmed them.
• Kite and Morel shouted for the others to flee as Neferpitou found their location and leapt toward the forest.

Leo arrived with Netero and Asher just in time to save Kastro and the others from Neferpitou. Netero took over the fight, and Neferpitou eagerly attacked and studied his Nen as the chapter ended.

• Neferpitou charged Kastro and the others, but Leo emerged through a gateway and kicked her away before she could reach them.
• Leo arrived with Netero and Asher; the group recognized the rejuvenated Netero and retreated to watch from a distance.
• Netero faced Neferpitou and summoned his 100-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva, while Leo warned him that the Ant King and other Royal Guards were still to come.
• Neferpitou attacked Netero, but the Guanyin Bodhisattva struck her into the woods and then slammed her into a crater.
• Neferpitou stood back up, excited by the fight and by Nen, while Leo watched and encouraged Netero to enjoy himself.

Leo left Netero’s battle with Neferpitou to stop approaching Chimera Ants, killing Leol’s squad and reaching Level 89. He returned to Kite and the others as Netero continued to overwhelm Neferpitou.

• Leo sensed Chimera Ants approaching and vanished from the clearing where Netero was fighting Neferpitou.
• Morel and Kite noticed they were surrounded, while Sophia, Kalluto, and the others remained confident that Leo would handle the threat.
• Leo killed the toadlike Haga and more than a dozen Chimera Ants who had encircled him, raising his level to 88 (99%).
• Leo appeared before Leol and Flutter on the hillside and defeated Leol, causing the other approaching Chimera Ants to retreat.
• Leo returned to Kite and assured him that everything was taken care of, then watched Netero continue attacking Neferpitou.

Netero overwhelmed Neferpitou with the Ninety-Ninth Hand, and Leo delivered the killing blow before the group withdrew to find a safer location. At the ant nest, the Ant Queen sensed Neferpitou’s death and feared the humans’ growing threat to the king’s birth.

• Netero unleashed the 100-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva’s Ninety-Ninth Hand, leaving Neferpitou gravely injured in a massive crater.
• Leo asked Netero to let him deliver the final blow, then killed Neferpitou with a Nen-enhanced stomp and gained experience.
• Shizuku cleaned up Neferpitou’s remains with Blinky, and Leo praised her before the group departed to find a safer place.
• The Ant Queen sensed Neferpitou’s death and lamented the loss of one of her Royal Guards.

The Ant Queen ordered the Chimera Ants to capture more humans and accelerate the King's growth, then learned that unconscious humans and unknown creatures had appeared outside the nest. Leo split the Hunters into two teams to clear the surrounding ants while he and Netero flew toward the nest on Little Azure.

• The Ant Queen ordered the Squadron Leaders to deliver three hundred humans and five hundred human meatballs each day.
• Peggy reported that humans and unknown creatures had appeared unconscious outside the nest, and advised the Ant Queen to accept the prey while strengthening the guard.
• Leo assigned Morel and Kite to lead separate teams to clear the ants around the nest and block the entrance, while he and Netero handled the stronger Squadron Leaders.
• Morel's and Kite's teams left in opposite directions, and Leo told Netero that he wanted to help the others grow stronger by fighting the ants.
• Leo and Netero mounted Little Azure, which expanded into a huge dragon and flew toward the ant nest.