"How did you get out?"
Oboro retorted.
According to human records concerning the Dark Continent, at least outside the Dark Continent, apart from demi-human species like gatekeepers, no 'skeleton' soul beings had appeared.
Although the gas life form 'Ai' from the Five Great Calamities also resembled a soul species, it might be a special type of microorganism that reproduces through parasitic transmission and possesses special powers.
This was different from the skeleton before him.
Because this was a human whose soul had been preserved after its flesh and blood were stripped away.
It possessed human characteristics.
This kind of being should be 'inside the gate.'
"Demi-human? Offspring of the Demon King... bloodline?" However, the skeleton tilted its head, and its soul fluctuations conveyed a sense of confusion.
Then, the skeleton's soul began to chant, and the two balls of soul fire in its eye sockets blazed.
In Oboro's eyes, the soul notes floating in the air were suddenly imbued with an extremely terrifying will.
Some notes rearranged themselves, forming entirely new musical scores.
As a result, the beautiful melody sounded smoother and more pleasing to the ear.
Then, without warning.
Flames ignited on Oboro's body, and his limbs were instantly scorched black.
The silk clothing on his body was unable to resist this power.
For ordinary Nen users, this soul energy would be invisible. They might only see a human suddenly losing vitality, their flesh blackening and withering, and dying abruptly.
Terrifying soul energy and pressure.
"Mhm... Is this the original tune of the Dark Sonata? Truly remarkable... It's a soul-based technique, and even I can be affected. It seems... the power sequence the Demon King has ascended to is on the same upgrade path as mine." Under the skeleton's gaze, the figure engulfed in flames before him suddenly muttered to himself.
Then, the flames surrounding his body suddenly turned a sinister, spectral green.
His chant abruptly stopped.
Boom!
The soul fire burning Oboro exploded, revealing a bone face similar to the skeleton's but more ferocious and evil.
It was Thresh's appearance.
In an instant, Oboro broke free from the influence and restraint of the 'music' and flashed before the skeleton.
With Thresh's terrifying green eyes fixed on the two clusters of soul fire in the skeleton's eye sockets, he revealed a wicked smile, "After all, you're not the Demon King... You're still a bit lacking."
"However... I thank you for your appearance. You've been a great help..."
With that, the chain of Thresh's Light of Ruin, like a long snake, coiled around the skeleton's bone structure covered by the black robe and began to constrict.
And in Oboro's hand, at the other end of the chain.
A scythe-like giant axe, hanging there, was already in his grip.
"If I get the chance... I'll find him myself and enjoy the Dark Sonata with him..."
With that, the giant axe swung down.
It struck the skeleton's skull.
It didn't destroy the bone but passed through the skeleton, touching the target's soul fire.
Subsequently, images flashed through Oboro's mind.
He was reading the skeleton's soul memories!
And thus, understanding this unknown world.
...
Through a kaleidoscope of scenes, he saw many humans. 'He' seemed to be in a magnificent castle.
Or perhaps it was a meticulously excavated underground space, exquisitely built, with various human artifacts displayed, beautiful and resplendent...
Then the scene shifted, and 'he' appeared in a grand hall.
A blurry figure sat on a high platform.
In the room, others were present: women in sheer, revealing clothing danced to the music, while some were raising goblets and drinking a scarlet liquid.
Not all of them were human.
But it seemed that every face was either entranced or maniacally possessed.
It felt like a 'dance of demons.'
Oboro was like a 'bystander' from a different time and space, observing everything.
He turned his head and looked towards a high platform where a naked child with pure white wings was playing a harp.
Its appearance was holy.
The eerie part was that beside the child lay a seemingly drunk beauty, 'serving' it, creating a discordant scene.
Oboro turned his head again and looked elsewhere. Another being, also playing music, was playing a violin while manipulating some energy, twisting a human body into a pretzel from a distance, as if squeezing out the life essence from the body, causing blood to flow out and fill the wine glasses on the table.
In the hall, most of the beings retained some human features, unlike the bizarre life forms Oboro had encountered before.
"These... are all highly intelligent life forms with extraordinary power."
Oboro realized with a start.
There were humans... but they were all servants, objects of sacrifice and manipulation.
Then, he finally looked at the blurry shadow lying on a throne in the center of the hall.
He knew... this was the Demon King.
However, he couldn't discern its appearance.
The moment Oboro's gaze met the Demon King's, all the scenes in the hall froze, as if paused, and the music ceased.
"Human..."
The shadow stirred, as if sensing the intrusion of Oboro, an uninvited guest, and let out a sigh.
"A pathetic worm crawling ashore from that island in the lake."
The mockery in this statement was palpable.
Oboro did not respond.
At this moment, the Demon King's arm suddenly extended from the shadow, reaching out a hand with long, sharp black claws towards him. "You have been chosen... Come, become my servant."
The Demon King willed it, so Oboro could see a part of its form. If the Demon King hadn't willed it, Oboro wouldn't have been able to see the Demon King's true form.
Even though... this was merely a memory born from a soul.
"Has it become this strong... able to control all things related to the soul?"
Oboro mused, stroking his chin.
He ignored the Demon King's invitation.
This already touched upon a rule of temporal displacement.
"Or perhaps... as a higher life form, its understanding and control of the source of energy have reached a transcendent level, not just the soul alone... does it refer to all energy?" Oboro muttered again, then looked at the Demon King.
"You are very powerful... looking down on me from a superior position, even just through the medium of a soul, you instantly knew everything about me. In terms of understanding the soul, you are far more pure. I still need to rely on abilities to search for soul fragments... You knew everything with just a glance."
"You are very special... coming from a parallel world evolved from time and space, your soul... has a different flavor."
The Demon King retracted its arm back into the shadow.
Although Oboro didn't directly answer, his intention was clear: refusal.
"So... you're interested in me not because of my soul abilities, but because... of my identity as a transmigrator."
Oboro raised an eyebrow. "In other words, you have a way... to travel to other worlds?"
"Or... there is a power on this continent that can break through dimensional barriers."
"…"
The Demon King remained silent.
Exploring the soul's memories was also very dangerous.
If Oboro hadn't possessed this strength, in this situation, the Dark Sonata that had just been played might have already annihilated him.
It was precisely because Oboro's soul was powerful enough that the Demon King, existing here through the medium of 'memory,' could not harm Oboro.
After all, it wasn't the main body.
Just a small part, a residual power.
Then, before Oboro could ask further questions, the scene before him suddenly vanished like smoke.
It shifted to another scene.
It was other memory fragments of the skeleton, transformed into a vision.
The Demon King had actively 'driven away' Oboro.
This was a high-mountain tribe, inhabited by humans... Under Oboro's gaze, he discovered that the humans in the tribe could coexist peacefully with the creatures of the Dark Continent, helping each other. Humans cared for the giant creatures, while the latter helped the tribe defend against external dangers.
Furthermore, Oboro noticed that some humans had peculiar appearances... showing signs of beastification.
And these species that could coexist with humans possessed a certain level of intelligence and were gentle in nature.
However, in the end, humans had not changed their tendency to cling to powerful creatures.
Although the relationship was not as direct.
"No wonder it asked if I was human... On this land, the distinction between species is not appearance, but the form of power..." Oboro understood.
There were two points that couldn't be bypassed: evolution and reproduction.
Humans were also evolving and changing.
Humans were not unique; they were also part of the food chain. Moreover, they had existed on the Dark Continent for a long time. Consequently, it was inevitable that they would combine with other species and give birth to 'new life.'
Most importantly, reproduction and procreation on the Dark Continent were not as simple as understood in the human world...
The life forms on the Dark Continent were bizarre, with asexual reproduction, reproduction without intermediaries, and perhaps even humans getting infected by some spores or microorganisms during their travels, leading to the birth of 'mutated genes.'
Strictly speaking, the Ant King Meruem was also like this, except it was born after the Queen consumed humans.
This method of gene mixing and reproduction was beyond common sense.
Alluka from the Zoldyck family also counted...
They were all the result of humans combining with other species to seek novelty and change.
"No wonder there are demi-humans, and even some magical beasts, like the Feral Fox family that led Gon and the others to the Hunter Association Chairman... Is that how they came to be?"
"If that's the case, then the humans on the Island in the Lake are pure humans, unaffected by bloodline contamination."
With this thought, Oboro withdrew from the memory fragment and returned to reality.
Pure humans also meant the most basic genes, unevolved, representing absolute weakness.
Oboro, wearing Thresh's face, slightly opened his mouth and inhaled the soul fire burning in the skeleton's eye sockets like gas into his stomach.
"The soul's potency has weakened... Hmph."
Oboro returned to his original appearance, a smile playing on his lips.
He knew it was the Demon King's doing...
____________________
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