Under everyone's watchful eyes, the tombstone-carrying tortoise gradually became motionless.
A few seconds later-
The head of the tombstone-carrying tortoise slumped weakly to the ground, with emerald green blood oozing from the bottom of the head.
At the same time-
The vines emitting emerald green light that extended from the body of the tombstone-carrying tortoise withered at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Without the vines to restrain it, the gray-white tombstone on the tortoise's shell fell to the ground.
Bang-
With a dull impact-
The tombstone that hit the ground rapidly crumbled into a pile of ashes.
A light breeze swept by, and the ashes vanished without a trace.
It was not blown away by the breeze, but turned into nothingness like fragments of Nen.
Even though the tombstone-carrying tortoise was undeniably dead, Morel had no intention of dismissing the smoke soldiers.
Without even needing Moses's instructions, Morel had already controlled the smoke soldiers to approach the lifeless tortoise for inspection.
After thorough checks, they finally confirmed the threat was neutralized.
However, considering the possibility of other tombstone-carrying tortoises lurking in the forest, Morel kept his smoke soldiers stationed along the perimeter, serving as sentries.
Meanwhile, Cluck, Gel and Ginta, whose professions are more or less related to the biological field, have already gathered around the corpse of the tombstone-carrying tortoise to study it.
Cheadle and Sanbica also joined in, collecting the blood and even body tissues of the tombstone-carrying tortoise.
As the first creature with strange abilities that they dealt with after arriving here, the tombstone-carrying tortoise held significant research value in multiple aspects.
The immediate and thorough involvement of the professionals made Menchi abandon any thoughts of checking whether the tortoise had any culinary value.
Moses and Ging had also wanted to inspect the corpse of the tombstone-carrying tortoise up close, but Cheadle and the others had already formed an impenetrable circle around it, leaving them no choice but to give up.
Best to leave professional matters to the professionals.
…
That night.
The team rested nearby.
By the next morning, everyone had a simple breakfast as usual and then set off immediately.
As for the tombstone-carrying tortoise that was killed yesterday, it had been thoroughly dissected, with its parts distributed among the Hunters who had professional needs for them.
"Let's call it the 'Tombstone Tortoise'."
As the one who had successfully hunted it, Moses earned the right to name the creature.
When Ginta heard the name Moses called out, he immediately recorded it in the biological handbook.
During their journey, these Pro Hunters hadn't been idle. Instead, each of them had been fulfilling their roles, doing their utmost to gather information on everything around them.
One of their duties is to give a 'name' to strange things that have never been seen before.
From there, all related information would begin with that 'name'-
To encounter the world, to understand the world, to record the world.
This was the essence of exploring the unknown.
…
Time passes.
Half a month flew by in the blink of an eye.
Moses's team had been traversing the forest for nearly twenty days, but they still hadn't found their way out.
While exploring the forest, they inevitably encountered several creatures with bizarre abilities like the Tombstone Tortoise, as well as multiple other Tombstone Tortoises.
Fortunately, the team's coordinated efforts allowed them to overcome each danger.
But everyone was acutely aware of one fact-
This was merely the edge of the Dark Continent.
That was why they had managed to explore safely for twenty days.
Once they went deeper, they will only encounter increasingly exaggerated dangers.
"It has been verified that the blood of the Tombstone Tortoise has the effect of 'accelerating plant growth'. Without dilution, just 10 milliliters of the blood can shorten the growth cycle of wheat to within two days."
The process of exploring the forest hadn't hindered Cheadle and the others' research on the Tombstone Tortoise's remains.
Finally, after taking some time, they confirmed the miraculous effects of the blood of the Tombstone Tortoise.
Not only did the blood have an astonishingly long preservation period, but it could also reduce a plant's growth cycle by roughly a hundredfold.
Such an effect could already be called 'Hope'.
This also meant that their team had achieved remarkable results in less than a month since arriving in the Dark Continent.
Unfortunately, the research equipment they had brought wasn't advanced enough to further study the possibility of 'replicating the blood'.
"Shortened to within two days…?"
Upon hearing the research results mentioned by Cheadle, Moses, Ging, Menchi, and the others all showed expressions of astonishment.
A hundredfold reduction in growth cycle-
What does this mean?
It meant that if you planted a fast-growing crop today, you could see it transformed into a delicious dish on the dining table by tomorrow night.
This absurdly rapid speed almost gave the illusion of playing a 'farming game'.
But this is reality, not a farming game.
If this kind of Hope could be popularized in the Six Continents, many impoverished lands would usher in a brand-new tomorrow.
However, soon after, a strange thought flashed through Moses's mind.
'The Tombstone Tortoise's blood, which accelerated plant growth-'
'Paired with Trinity Elixir, which is the mother solution for all sorts of liquids.'
'Herb for All-illnesses, which is capable of curing all kinds of diseases,'
'Nitro Rice, a longevity food,'
'And Metallion, an alchemical plant-'
'Theoretically, it is entirely possible to rely on the effects of the blood of the Tombstone Tortoise and the Trinity Elixir to cultivate plants such as Nitro Rice in an extremely short time.'
'Because shortening the growth cycle had another advantage.'
'It drastically reduced the likelihood of plants withering and dying due to insufficient nutrients.'
'However, theory was one thing, and practice another-'
For humans to collect multiple known Hopes from the Dark Continent in one go would be a challenge akin to ascending to heaven.
Moses even felt that 'ascending to heaven' might actually be easier.
'A bit too wishful…'
Moses laughed at himself in his heart and subtly shook his head.
Suddenly, he noticed Ging's gaze directed at him.
"Hmm?"
Following his gaze, he looked at Ging, only to see that the other party had a thoughtful look on his face.
Then, the two of them stared at each other from a distance, and their eyes gradually became dull.
There was no need for overt communication, as both of them realized that the other party had the same idea as them.
The blood of the Tombstone Tortoise and those plant-type Hopes are a perfect match.
To some extent, it can solve the most difficult 'transportation' problem.
So there is no need to expect to find Metallion and Nitro Rice. Even if it is just obtaining the Herb for All-illnesses, they can return with a full haul, thanks to the Tombstone Tortoise's blood.
It was a good idea, but there were more pressing matters at the moment.
Suppressing these thoughts, Moses shook his head slightly at Ging before continuing to lead the team forward.
The blood of the Tombstone Tortoise can be considered a Hope. As long as they brought it back to the Six Continents, this expedition wouldn't have been in vain.
Beyond that, it was best not to entertain overly greedy thoughts.
After all-
This was the Dark Continent.
…
Meanwhile, on the black-tide-churning sea-
An ocean-going ship cut through the waves, heading towards the coastline ahead.
After several months of arduous voyage, Beyond's team finally caught sight of the Dark Continent's coastline.
This journey also made everyone in Beyond's team deeply aware of the importance of 'Guide'.
Only Beyond, who had once traveled to the Dark Continent, wasn't overly surprised by this.
"Finally…"
Gazing at the coastline faintly visible through the sea mist, Beyond's eyes gleamed with anticipation.