Ant King Extermination Battle 6

"Your turn. Have you decided? One by one, or all together?"

"We don't want to admit it, but it's the truth. One by one against you, we have no chance. So—move!" Zeno and the others answered Meruem with action: they weren't going for a duel. They were ganging up.

To be honest, Meruem also wanted to be the one ganging up on others. But the rest of the Chimera Ants were just too disappointing—good enough to handle ordinary human strongmen. Against true experts, they were nothing but cannon fodder. The only ones who could fight human elites were the Royal Guards. Even they lacked real combat experience, despite their intelligence and immense talent. And then there were the deadweights of the Chimera Ant army, before the swarm reached critical mass and their abilities were fully developed and pushed to the limit. Soldier Ants were pathetically weak against top-tier fighters. But once they reached a certain number and fully mastered Nen, even the strongest could be overwhelmed by sheer numbers. So when facing humanity's peak, Meruem had to handle it himself. It was like the Naruto World—against Madara or Kaguya, no amount of Genin or Chunin mattered. But what about a massive force of Elite Jonin and Kage-level fighters? Especially if the leader was no weaker than them—even Kaguya and Madara would have to retreat. How many Kage-level could Madara take down at once? And Kaguya, without the Chakra Fruit, how many could she handle? Sure, the gap between an average Kage and those two was enormous. But that didn't mean numbers couldn't close it.

Meruem wanted to challenge the strong, but he sought martial artists.

Except for Lovskiy, who had already left injured, the remaining five attacked Meruem simultaneously.

One-on-one, Meruem wasn't afraid of any of them. But all at once, though he wasn't scared, it still threw him off balance.

Silva's sharp hand blade, thick with Nen; Zeno's Nen dragon; Beyond's fists; the Long-Haired Man's vines; and the Bearded Uncle's black orb—all came flying at Meruem at once.

But Meruem was the Ant King, the pinnacle of physical evolution in this world. Flustered at first, he soon grasped their rhythm and adapted. Not only did he trade blows evenly, but he even started to counterattack. Of course, most fights didn't start with ultimate moves—that would drain stamina and Nen too fast. The 100-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva was great, but he couldn't use it constantly. And Meruem had more than just that—he also had Hyakki Yagyō.

"No good. We can't keep fighting like this. That monster's already figured out our rhythm. Time to pull out some tricks."

"Dragon Head Play - Fang Thrust." This was Zeno Zoldyck's Nen ability—concentrating Nen in his hands and shaping it into a dragon to attack. Zeno Zoldyck's signature move, one of the strongest Emission-type techniques.

Too bad Meruem blocked it with just his right hand.

"Decent attack power and destructive force. But unfortunately, useless against me." Meruem dismissed Zeno's Nen ability.

"An opening." While Meruem was busy trash-talking Zeno's ability, Silva spotted a tiny gap and drove his hand blade hard into Meruem's abdomen.

"I told you, attacks like that don't work on me." Even hit by the hand blade, Meruem was completely unfazed. He struck back with a palm, injuring Silva. If Silva hadn't reacted fast enough and only been grazed, he might have lost something. As it was, just a light wound.

"What a terrifying monster. I could tell from his fight with Lovskiy, but actually fighting him—the gap is insane." Silva quickly stopped the bleeding, restoring his combat ability in seconds. Against a monster like Meruem, Silva and Zeno had the worst of it among the group. Their fighting styles leaned toward close combat.

Having absorbed the martial essence of Lovskiy, Jed, and Netero, Meruem was now practically invincible in close quarters. Bring it on!

"Beyond, you and Father hold him off. I'll try this!" Silva flipped his hands, and a faint green glow appeared on both palms. Poison—a terrifying toxin from the Hunter World called Fallen God, said to kill even a god if it touched blood. If you can't win, use poison. That was a killer's way. But then again, who cared what the method was, as long as you won? Whether black cat or white cat, the one that catches the mouse is a good cat.

"Alright. Heart Source Style Martial Limit—Benevolence!" Beyond lifted his right foot as if to leap, moved both hands to his chest, and slowly brought them together in a heart shape. Netero had used this move before. Meruem was hearing the name for the first time, but even though he'd learned the technique, he'd never use it—the embarrassment was too much. You had to make a heart shape at your chest, right in front of your opponent. People who knew would recognize it as your move; people who didn't would think you were trying to hit on them.

Now, with that big bearded face, cross-shaped scar in the middle, and bulging muscles, Beyond striking that pose was just nauseating. Didn't you see Zeno, who was supposed to attack with him, looking disgusted?

"Dragon Head Play—Twin Dragons Playing with a Pearl!" Two massive Eastern-style divine dragons flew from Zeno's hands, one left and one right, converging on Meruem. The "twin dragons" were obviously the two manifested Nen dragons. As for the "pearl"—that was the opponent.

"Emission, Manipulation, Conjuration—all used. Nen really is a fascinating thing. You can even conjure legendary creatures like dragons so vividly." Meruem praised even as his hands never stopped. From behind him, he manifested a giant hand and grabbed both massive dragons.

"Even if you are divine dragons, so what? Today, I'll subdue them."

"Beyond." Zeno muttered under his breath. This monster's strength was too much—he could barely hold on. No wonder someone at Lovskiy's level had been defeated. Forget Lovskiy alone—none of them could take him one-on-one.

Beyond's attack followed, with the roar of a tiger and the cry of a dragon. Meruem had no idea why a heart-shaped move produced those sounds, but the power was impressive. At least it made him feel a hint of pain—just a hint.

"Nice one." Meruem turned again, manifesting another giant arm and slamming it at Beyond, intent on flattening him into a pancake. But Beyond dodged like a nimble monkey.

"World Tree Vines—Binding Power." Suddenly, vines appeared from nowhere and bound Meruem's limbs tight.

"Got him." The Long-Haired Man kept his hands in a seal-like position as he stepped out from the side.

"Don't bother struggling. No one can escape this binding power. Even your strength won't help. It drains your power to restrain you—in other words, another you is holding you down. Unless you can surpass yourself, you'll never break free from the World Tree's vines."

"Even if you could break free, it'd be too late." Silva's voice came from behind Meruem. His hands joined together, spinning like a drill, and slammed into Meruem's waist.

"Even if normal attacks can't hurt you, I can still break your skin with all my strength, right? This poison only needs a tiny wound to enter your body."

Sure enough, a minuscule cut appeared on Meruem's waist, and a drop of purple blood oozed out.

"Now die under the combined attack of the five of us, monster!" Silva leaped back to join the others, watching Meruem calmly, waiting for him to die.

"Nice teamwork. Nice moves." Meruem let his limbs stay bound by the vines as he spoke slowly to Silva and the others. "If I were just an ordinary human expert, I might have died under your combined attack. But unfortunately, this poison only makes me slightly uncomfortable. Unless it's something that can alter DNA, like nuclear radiation, it can't defeat me. Biological toxins are strong, but with my immune system, I can neutralize this poison in seconds. Too bad you can't kill me in those seconds."

"But it's useless against me."

"Impossible! Even the strongest Nen user would die from this poison without fail." Silva's face showed disbelief. No matter how strong the opponent, Fallen God had never failed.

"Even if the poison doesn't work, you can't escape my vines. These are the World Tree's vines, powered by the earth itself," the Long-Haired Man said. "Even if we can't kill you now, we'll find a way eventually."

"Oh? You mean these pathetic World Tree vines?" Meruem pointed a finger at the vines binding his limbs.

"Today, I'll show you power that brings terror and despair." Purple Nen aura radiated from every part of Meruem's body, different from the golden aura of the 100-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva. This was the aura of Hyakki Yagyō.

"Die in despair. Hyakki Yagyō—Lord of Chimi Mōryō."

One of Meruem's trump cards, Hyakki Yagyō—Lord of Chimi Mōryō, a terrifying technique no less than the 100-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva's Ninety-Ninth Hand.

A hundred grotesque apparitions appeared behind Meruem, then slowly merged into a single massive black shadow.

The vines binding Meruem snapped like dry grass.

PS: Thanks to the reader "Sold Little Girl's Yogurt" for the tip! Whoa! Truly grateful! Thank you, mwah mwah (づ￣3￣)づ!!

Thanks to the reader "Old Qing Ke" for the tip! Mwah mwah (づ￣3￣)づ

PS2: Daily request for votes!!

PS3: The Hunter arc's ending might be a bit cheesy! Hope you don't mind! QAQ