Ron attempted to attack the Desolate God. Due to the regional restrictions on the Desolate God's movents, Ron and the others had a significant advantage. Even Misty and the other two had a chance to take action. Controlling his Nen Beast, Ron continued pushing forward, further and further.
Chii collected information on the Desolate God and created a tiered classification system.
First-tier: Creatures with many animalistic features in appearance. These were nad grunts.
Second-tier: Fewer animal traits, overall appearance more harmonious, and significantly stronger than the first-tier. These were nad squad leaders.
Third-tier: Capable of commanding large numbers of first- and second-tier beasts. These were nad division commanders.
This naming convention directly followed the structure of Chira Ants—but in terms of raw power, these were far stronger than Chira Ants.
Grunts possessed strength equivalent to an A-rank Nen user.
Squad leaders matched the elite among A-rank Nen users.
Division commanders were completely beyond the capability of fighters like Machi. Even Hisoka and Chrollo couldn't handle them.
"We don't know if even stronger ones exist above them."
"But even at this level, they're already extrely difficult to deal with—more challenging than the Five Great Calamities."
.............
......
.
Elsewhere, on the Gatekeeper Continent, the ti ordinary humans could survive there had reached its limit. Most elite Nen users had already withdrawn—only mbers of the Hunter Association remained. Now even those were being forced to leave.
However, the missions completed by the Hunter Association on the Gatekeeper Continent were far from enough. They couldn't transport every human to the Dark Continent. There were simply too many people. Even though many had died during the journey, the remaining number was still overwhelming.
Mizaistrone sighed. Beside him, Gel patted his shoulder.
"We've done all we can. As mbers of the Hunter Association, we've fulfilled our duty. The rest is up to them. They made their choice—now they have to bear the consequences."
"They're all adults. They can take responsibility for their own lives. And even if they reach the Dark Continent, given their condition, they won't survive long. That goes for us too—let alone them."
Those ordinary humans who had yet to et a Gatekeeper had no idea what fate awaited them. All they noticed was that fewer and fewer people were around.
........
.....
.
Night fell.
Bang!
It sounded like so protective barrier had been shattered. The power of the Gatekeeper Continent invaded their bodies, triggering mutations—like they had been infected by so kind of virus. A blaze ignited inside their bodies. If Ron had been present, he would have recognized it imdiately: it wasn't fire, but Origin—the core of both Gatekeepers and Deep Dwellers.
Boom!
One person couldn't endure it. The blaze grew rapidly and engulfed his entire body. A terrible scream followed. When the flas vanished, nothing remained but a pile of ashes. Many people vanished in the sa way.
Only then did the rest understand what fate awaited them.
"No!"
"Why is this happening?"
"What's going on?"
"Where are the soldiers? Where are the Hunter Association mbers?"
"Why aren't they protecting us?"
"Did they abandon us?"
"Or was this all part of their plan?"
Panic, fear, shock, anger, unwillingness, hatred… countless emotions swirled together.
Eventually, one person survived the change. A transformation burst forth from their body. Flesh and blood disappeared, replaced by chanical parts. Origin was reshaping these humans into sothing else—into Gatekeepers.
Or rather, a new Gatekeeper was being born—using this human's body as an incubation chamber. On the surface, it seed the person had survived. But what lived on wasn't that person—it was a newborn Gatekeeper.
In other words, whether they succeeded or failed, the result for humans was death. New Gatekeepers would simply be born from their remains. And in the future, these new Gatekeepers might be the ones to ferry others to the Dark Continent—thus the cycle continued, an inescapable fate.
The birth of chanical life required a dium—flesh-based life. For Deep Dwellers, that dium was sea creatures. For Gatekeepers, it was humans. In essence, there was no difference between the two—just opposing factions. The difference in hosts might result in slight variations in personality or thinking. That was why Deep Dwellers opposed Gatekeepers.
"Will they all die?" a woman already aboard a Gatekeeper ship asked, glancing back—but all she saw was ocean.
A young man stepped forward. "I don't know. But since we've already made it this far, we should look ahead. Once we reach the Dark Continent, we need to think about what we can do."
"That land is completely untouched."
"It's filled with countless treasures. If we can obtain even one and return to the Human World, we'll live in luxury for the rest of our lives."
At that mont, the Gatekeepers began to feel uneasy. They sensed an unusual number of Deep Dwellers nearby. Attacks from Deep Dwellers during passage to the Dark Continent were common knowledge to every Gatekeeper. The ocean was vast, so the risk was usually low. But this ti was different—the Deep Dweller presence was far too intense.
This, in part, was due to Ron's actions. Bumblebee and Specter had drawn many Deep Dwellers. One after another, Deep Dwellers fell to their attacks. Even the Origin within them was absorbed by Bumblebee. The two of them had incredibly high kill efficiency. With Sequence-level power, Deep Dwellers didn't stand a chance. A single strike was lethal—true suppression.
As the number of dead Deep Dwellers increased, others began to notice. A large number erged from the deep, moving into shallower waters to investigate the disappearance of their kin.
The Gatekeepers had been dragged into this ss.
"Be careful!"
In one trench, Bumblebee's aura grew stronger and stronger—as if hitting so kind of limit. It was out of control. That overwhelming aura was like a beacon to Deep Dwellers.
"It's over there, in the deep!"
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