"Hehe, it seems we've both been rejected," Pariston remarked, the corners of his mouth curling slightly as he stared at Beyond.
From the expression on his face, it wasn't hard to tell that he thrived on being hated and loathed—a textbook sociopath.
Beyond, however, didn't seem to care much. He merely let out a soft chuckle of admiration. "He truly lives up to his reputation as the Grim Reaper, the one feared and revered by countless wanted criminals!
"After experiencing the cruelty and ruthlessness of this world, he still attempts to preserve his moral compass and conscience. But I wonder how long that resolve will last? With the power he currently possesses and the heights he's destined to reach, it won't be long before he's forcibly dragged into political affairs. When he eventually faces a difficult choice between two evils, he'll understand that a 'moral compass' and 'conscience' are merely obstacles to progress."
"But is it really alright to just let him be?" Pariston asked, stroking his chin with a malicious glint in his eyes.
"It's fine. Didn't the young man just state his position clearly? He's no fool; he knows that no matter how powerful an individual is, they cannot contend with a nation the size of the Kakin Empire. The only thing we need to worry about is what he might do after the Chimera Ants are deployed," Beyond explained nonchalantly.
"You mean..." Pariston seemed to realize something, a playful expression surfacing on his face.
"I mean we accelerate the timeline. Give the Chimera Ants some protection during their initial breeding phase, then hand-deliver a group of Nen users to them so they can learn and understand this power. That way, even if there are a few extra variables, it won't matter," Beyond bared his teeth as he revealed his plan.
As a man who would use any means to achieve his ends, he didn't care if this caused larger-scale civilian casualties. Nor did he believe a swarm of insects that had just evolved intelligence from beasts could cause any real trouble.
To be precise, in the face of humanity's endless ambition and greed, what could a mere pack of Chimera Ants possibly do?
If things truly spun out of control, they could simply "wash" the land with nuclear weapons, plowing the entire island housing NGL and the Republic of East Gorteau from one end to the other.
Pariston nodded thoughtfully. "Understood. I'll arrange everything. But you'd better be careful; I have a feeling the Chairman has already noticed our little maneuvers."
"It doesn't matter. Given the old man's personality, he'll step into the trap even if he knows it's there. Because that's exactly the kind of man he is!"
With that, Beyond turned and walked into the depths of the dense forest without looking back.
Pariston watched him until he vanished completely before letting out a soft sigh. In a voice audible only to himself, he murmured, "You're right. Chairman Netero is the type of person who will charge forward without fear, even knowing the path is filled with thorns, traps, and death. It's precisely because of this that countless people are drawn to his charisma, including me."
…
Following the conclusion of the match between Allen and Chairman Netero, the Hunter Association's blimp quickly turned back. The spectators who had rushed over to watch the battle began to disperse.
Allen took this opportunity to pick up a high-risk mission at the Association Headquarters: an ecological survey of a remote, uninhabited desert island.
Since arriving in this world, he had been desperately focusing on increasing his strength. Now, he could finally relax a bit, enjoy the thrill of exploration, and prepare for his eventual journey to the Dark Continent.
And so, the trio first took a blimp to the edge of the continent, then rented a medium-sized exploration vessel, heading straight for their destination according to the nautical charts.
After drifting on the vast ocean for over half a month, they finally dropped anchor near a bay and set foot on land.
"This is Neldrant Island, the place reputed to be extremely dangerous?" Bodoro asked, glancing at the endless expanse of towering ferns around them.
"Yep! According to the map markers, this should be the place. But based on the records in the intelligence report, the reason the danger level is ranked 'B' is that both the animals and plants here are several times, even dozens of times, larger than elsewhere. Plus, there's supposedly a species of super-giant worm living underground that can easily swallow adult carnivores weighing several tons," Allen explained with interest.
Clearly, he hadn't chosen this place just for fun or to kill time; the ecological environment of this island was the closest thing to the Dark Continent depicted in the manga.
"Oh my god! Look over there!" Baise suddenly shouted, pointing toward a small hillside in the distance.
Following her finger, they saw two giant lizards, over five meters tall and fourteen meters long. They were tearing at each other with blood-red maws, their bodies and tails entangled. Crimson blood splattered into the air, and even from several hundred meters away, they could feel the ground vibrating.
As a martial artist, Bodoro was clearly interested in such a primal, wild scene. He asked excitedly, "What are they doing? Fighting for the title of King of the Island?"
"King?" Allen chuckled and shook his head. "If this level of strength were enough to rule Neldrant Island, the danger level wouldn't be a B."
The words had barely left his mouth when the ground suddenly shook even more violently, making the three humans and one wolf struggle to keep their footing.
The next second...
BOOM!
A super-giant red worm erupted from the ground, opening a mouth lined with rows of circular fangs. In one gulp, it swallowed both large lizards and began to constrict its body, its teeth grinding them to shreds.
The bloody, shocking sight was enough to make anyone's skin crawl.
Seeing this, Allen immediately smiled. "Look! That is the undisputed King of Neldrant Island! And it's also our hunting target for this trip. According to the contract, we need to kill one and bring back a complete carcass for biologists to dissect and study. Of course, capturing a live larva would be even better."
"What? You're saying that's our target? You've got to be joking!" Baise couldn't help but shiver.
Just watching the super-giant worm hunt was enough to give her nightmares.
"Do I look like I'm joking? Stop complaining! Let's go. We need to follow it to see where its nest is, whether they are solitary or social, and how they reproduce."
As he spoke, Allen raised his hand, revealing a thread of Nen extending from his finger, the other end hooked into the giant worm's body.
Clearly, this was the ability he had plundered from Machi. It was perfect for tracking low-level animals with little self-awareness. As long as the needle at the end wasn't discovered, the thread wouldn't break, even if the target fled for hundreds of kilometers.
"Give me a break!" Baise groaned, rubbing her forehead.
Despite her complaining, she ultimately followed the team as they moved quickly through the damp, sweltering primeval jungle.
Along the way, the group saw a multitude of incredible giant insects: spiders three or four times larger than an adult man and covered in colorful patterns, and birds larger than small blimps...
One could say that the most ordinary creatures and plants had been magnified dozens or even hundreds of times on this island. The sight of those massive compound eyes alone was enough to make one's hair stand on end.
Not to mention the skyscraper-high behemoths that occasionally lumbered past them.
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