It was late March.
By this time, after a long period of training, Menchi and the others could maintain their composure and practice Nen even under the interference of ghosts.
Furthermore, when their senses were disturbed by the ghost fog, they could react quickly to hidden dangers, such as sudden attacks.
Under Oboro's tutelage, their improvement was particularly evident.
In addition to their senses becoming sharper, they also gained insight into danger and a sixth sense.
Human intuition!
Intuition can also be trained. Intuition or a sixth sense is actually the brain processing visible information during the process of receiving certain signals… leading to a vague prediction. It's just that the 'information' wasn't fully analyzed, resulting in a lack of awareness.
Of course, there are also some exceptionally talented individuals in this world, possibly due to innate abilities.
And the method Oboro trained was merely post-natal refinement for ordinary people.
"Let's go."
The next day, the six members of the team packed their belongings, preparing to set off.
To NGL.
Oboro was going to start hunting Chimera Ants and absorb souls and black mist on a large scale.
They had to act before the Association did.
According to the original timeline, Kite led Killua and Gon on a month-long biological investigation in Kakin Empire in early April, then traveled to a region called Nantoka in the southern part of the Yubian Continent, finally confirming the existence of Chimera Ants.
However, in Grusia Kingdom previously, Killua's return to Greed Island was delayed due to Jed's matter. Perhaps the meeting time between the duo and Kite would also be postponed, which naturally benefited Oboro's plan.
Whether it was hunting Chimera Ants or absorbing souls… he didn't want outsiders to know.
Otherwise, the Association might convict their team on grounds of safety.
Accusing them of discovering the Chimera Ants long ago but failing to report to the Association.
Yorkshire of the Twelve Zodiacs would definitely not miss this opportunity…
The Fels family's spaceship slowly descended from high altitude. The wind generated by the rotors caused the grass and trees in the surrounding wilderness to sway.
"How is it?"
Before boarding the spaceship, Oboro looked at Menchi, who had just returned from a phone call from dozens of meters away, and asked.
"Kite is indeed in Kakin Empire… It seems his team has found some clues and has submitted data to the Association, but it's all small ant samples, and the source of the dangerous species cannot be determined for now. NGL is, after all, a closed country located in the Mitne Federation. Coupled with NGL's special national conditions, it's harder for Association members to enter than Donggoutuo… almost impossible. Moreover, no one expected the Chimera Ant Queen to be there…"
Menchi said softly.
"Good."
Oboro smiled.
Then, the two boarded the spaceship one after another and left the place.
Initially, most of the Chimera Ants in NGL were ordinary soldier ants, the lowest species produced by the Chimera Ant Queen. They needed to build nests and collect food, which is characteristic of ants. Moreover, at that time, the Chimera Ants still retained their original ant-like appearance, without any anthropomorphic thoughts or consciousness. But as the Queen consumed more food and nutrients, the ants she produced naturally became stronger, and evolution occurred.
A typical example of feeding and mating.
As long as they eat, they can lay eggs.
During the Queen's egg-laying process, she retains some biological characteristics, which is why the subsequent squad leaders and division chiefs have such bizarre appearances.
In other words, the richer the variety of food, the more diverse the genes.
Ordinary soldier ants are infertile.
Chimera Ants are inherently warlike and extremely aggressive. Due to this characteristic of feeding and mating, the Queen gives birth to stronger offspring who become greedy and constantly seek food with perfect genes. Therefore, any life form targeted by Chimera Ants and deemed 'delicious' is often ultimately driven to extinction.
Initially, the ant nest was mostly composed of soldier ants, and the food provided to the Queen was mostly from various wild beasts… But after they ate humans and laid eggs, various genes merged, creating the optimal life form… accompanied by human thoughts and memories.
This is also the reason why some squad leaders or division chiefs later awakened memories of their past human lives.
When Menchi and the others went, the ants in NGL were rampant, but still within a manageable range, and were almost all soldier ants.
With the delay until now, the number of ants has inevitably increased exponentially. As for those division chiefs, Oboro guessed they were likely born long ago…
The spaceship flew towards NGL.
For ordinary international powers, entering NGL is extremely difficult, but for the Fels family, who now control the entire world's black market, it is relatively easier… because the purpose and original intention behind NGL's creation were to disrupt the human world.
This closed small country continuously supplied drugs, firearms, and other items to the world, and the Fels family happened to provide channels for NGL's sales. Thus, the two sides hit it off and became business partners.
This was something Oboro had been planning for years.
The market share provided by the Fels family to Zege was actually a very small portion, but for NGL, which had long been a thorn in V5's side, it was already very important… Most importantly, to Zege, the Fels family, with its gang background, felt like kindred spirits.
In the living room of the cabin, Oboro briefed his teammates on the information related to NGL and Zege.
"Zege is a rare ambitious figure. His ability to maintain NGL as a separate entity under V5's targeting and suppression, and even develop its own economic chain to survive to this day, is quite remarkable. However, this person is also extremely cautious… I originally intended to meet him under the Fels family's name, but was refused. He doesn't want to expose himself in front of outsiders, and even his subordinates have rarely seen his true face…"
Oboro said.
"Why did you want to meet him?"
Anthony asked, puzzled.
They were going to kill ants, not engage in diplomacy. What did this have to do with them?
"Kakin's bounty for biological investigation was years ago… The time Chimera Ants appeared in the human world is even harder to trace. I'm also unsure when Beyond started planning this conspiracy, but it was likely after he returned from the Dark Continent and submitted that 'Beyond's Diary' to V5. Pariston must have joined later and wasn't the mastermind. The mastermind is still Beyond."
Oboro slightly embellished his understanding of the entire chain of events and narrated it slowly.
"Actually, Chimera Ants appeared in the human world long ago but didn't receive much attention. Due to environmental limitations and human isolation, these ants looked no different from ordinary ants… scattered across the world. Because they were so similar to ordinary ants, they were overlooked… Fortunately, Kite was meticulous. If it were someone else, it might have taken much longer to discover the Chimera Ants."
"Sigh."
Hearing this, everyone exchanged glances and gasped in unison.
They lamented Beyond's ruthlessness.
He had been so meticulous in his plan to eliminate the Chairman.
"What he sought was not just Netero… I guess his original intention was more likely to bring about a great catastrophe for humanity, leading to the collapse of human society. Only then would he have an opportunity to go to the Dark Continent again… But things eventually evolved into Netero intervening, fighting the Ant King, and then perishing." Oboro said softly.
"Captain, are you really sure that the Ant King you mentioned could kill the old man?"
Anthony was skeptical. Although Oboro had told them some things about the Ant King… it was still Oboro's speculation and might not be accurate.
Moreover, the Ant King described by Oboro seemed too transcendent.
"Yes… the Ant King… was born to the Queen, it's… her son. So shouldn't the Queen… be stronger than the Ant King?"
Gabvich also looked puzzled, stammering.
"The Ant King is the product of evolution, a perfect genetic masterpiece, belonging to a different dimension of life. The Queen's own genes are fixed and won't evolve further. There's no comparison between the two," Oboro laughed.
"Then there are the Chimera Ants. In the Chimera Ant hierarchy, the lowest level is soldier ants and worker ants. These two types pose the least threat… Ordinary Nen users can kill them, like the species you filmed earlier. But now it's different… there are already soldiers in the ant colony."
Oboro affirmed.
"Soldiers?"
"Yes, ants with intelligence comparable to humans. They can launch organized and orderly attacks like a human army. Some even use human tools, cold weapons, and firearms. You need to realize that the closer the time of production, the more excellent the Chimera Ants' genes become, because during reproduction, the Queen constantly selects superior genes and eliminates inferior ones… This will make the Chimera Ants increasingly stronger, possibly in terms of size, or intelligence… In any case, with bare hands, Chimera Ants can easily kill an adult human male."
"…"
"Above soldiers are squad leaders… This level of ant is fundamentally different and has undergone a transformation from the soldiers and worker ants below."
Oboro continued. "Even Nen users, if not strong enough, might fall victim to them."
"Can't even Nen hurt them?"
Fante frowned.
"They can… but don't treat them as low-level creatures. In terms of pure physical strength, they have far surpassed humans. Simply put, they can compensate for the gap in Nen power with their physical attributes alone… If your strength isn't strong enough, and the gap isn't large enough, you naturally won't win."
"How long has it been? These ants have evolved to this level?"
Anthony couldn't help but swallow again.
"Don't be too nervous. With your abilities, dealing with them should still be quite easy…"
Oboro chuckled.
"Phew… you scared me to death."
Anthony breathed a sigh of relief.
"Above the squad leaders are the division chiefs, who are direct subordinates of the Queen… In a one-on-one situation, you can engage them, it's not a big problem. But if you encounter two or more, don't engage, retreat first."
Oboro instructed.
"Captain… have you… really not… been to… the Dark Continent?"
Saying this, Gabvich blinked and asked again.
Oboro's understanding of Chimera Ants was so profound, it was unbelievable… because Oboro hadn't been to NGL.
Moreover… even if Chimera Ants were brought to the human continent by Beyond, it's likely that Beyond himself was still clueless about the current situation of the Chimera Ants.
These things… came from the Dark Continent.
Coupled with the fact that Oboro seemed to possess some intelligence about that other land.
It was truly hard to believe… he hadn't been there.
"I really haven't been."
Oboro smiled at his teammates sincerely.
"…"
His five teammates' faces showed doubt.
But they had to believe it.
Because their captain was too young. Judging by his age, it was indeed impossible for him to have been to that continent… After all, he had only become a Nen user in his teens.
There wasn't enough time.
Also, the difficulty of going to the Dark Continent was too great.
"I estimate that this ant incident will last at least a few months, possibly until August to conclude. And that's an optimistic estimate… Therefore, this period is crucial for you all. You can consider this mission as a trial before going to the Dark Continent… If you can't even handle this level of danger, even if you beg me to take you, I won't agree."
Finally, Oboro added.
"These ants, in the Dark Continent… are like insects under human feet, understand?"
"Yes!"
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