Illumi paid no mind to their decisions. He intended to go to the Swamp of Hell to find Longevity Food and bring it back to his company for research, hoping to uncover its secrets. Not only that, if possible, he also wanted to venture deeper into the Dark Continent.
"What do we do, Beyond Netero? The ship's gone." Sergio's face was grim as he looked at Beyond Netero, and Cervantes also wore a sullen expression. With no ship left, how were they supposed to return to the human world now?
As for relying on others to come find them, forget it. They hadn't simply gone missing; they had journeyed to the Dark Continent. If they didn't return, those who knew would only assume they were dead, and it was even less likely anyone would go to great lengths to rescue them.
"What do you think we can still do if we retreat now?" Beyond Netero retorted, causing everyone present to be startled. Right, what could they do if they retreated now? Could they build a ship to go back? Or could they cross the Dark Sea Domain,
Boundary Sea Realm Domain, Undeveloped Sea Domain, and Human-Developed Sea Domain – all four vast sea domains – to return to the human world? Forget it. Even with the guidance of the Gatekeeper, they had still endured a difficult voyage for over three months to reach the Dark Continent.
Without the Gatekeeper's guidance, let alone reaching the Dark Continent, they wouldn't even be able to reach the Dark Sea Domain. They might even encounter some colossal sea monster and their ship might be destroyed, perishing at sea on the very first day of entering the Boundary Sea Realm Domain.
"Whether one descends into hell or becomes a king, walking alone is always the fastest path." Beyond Netero suddenly spoke, uttering words that baffled everyone present. "Illumi and King Bradley, in this situation, can still advance without wavering. Either they know death is certain and are resigned to it, or they are fully confident they can return to the human world."
"Which one do you think it is?" After speaking, Beyond Netero directly turned and followed in the direction of Illumi and King Bradley's group. Cervantes, Sergio, Natalie, and the others remaining were stunned.
"That's right, can't they fly? They can carry people and fly back!" Natalie clenched her right fist and slammed it into her left palm, suddenly realizing. Everyone's faces froze. At her words,
they remembered that Illumi and the brat named Pride both possessed the ability to materialize Nen Beasts. And most uniquely, their Nen Beast forms could change at will, seemingly developed from a combination of materialization and Specialist abilities.
"That's right. With the size of the Nen Beasts they developed, if one person rested while the other flew, as long as they brought enough supplies, they could completely return to the human world." Sergio and the others also showed expressions of joy, rekindling their hope.
"But the前提 (prerequisite) is, they have to be willing to take us back." Cervantes said, stroking his chin, deep in thought.
"Leave that to Beyond Netero. Isn't he on good terms with Illumi? Besides, even if only one person can return to the human world, they can organize a rescue mission to the Dark Continent for our organization." Sergio said, full of delight, not worried at all that Illumi would refuse them, or rather, refuse Beyond Netero. But it was precisely this confidence that worried Cervantes.
"Too, too good..." Hercules, too, let out a deep sigh of relief. Just surviving had already exhausted him, but the moment he learned the ship to return to the human world was gone, all his hope shattered. But now, hearing the hunters' analysis,
concluding that Illumi and King Bradley had the ability to return to the human world, hope rekindled in his heart. This back and forth, this constant anxiety, made him feel like he was losing all his hair.
"Alright, we'll follow." Cervantes sighed, and immediately he and Sergio and the others quickly followed Beyond Netero's footsteps. The already exhausted Hercules and his three companions also had to forcibly pull themselves together and follow closely behind.
A moment later, Beyond Netero's group caught up with Illumi's group, who were scouting ahead.
"Oh~? You caught up, quite courageous." Pride looked back at Beyond Netero's group following from behind, a cold sneer on his lips. At this moment, Pride had already returned to Sloth's shoulder; he seemed to particularly enjoy sitting on Sloth's shoulder. But in reality, Pride just didn't want to walk himself; sitting on Sloth was merely to save energy.
"Tch, just don't hold us back." Greed glanced at the people who had caught up, especially the last four. As for the others, Greed had begrudgingly acknowledged them in the previous battle. Although these people were still lacking in combat, they had their merits in their respective Nen abilities and tacit cooperation.
"What is your objective?" Beyond Netero stepped forward and inserted himself between Illumi and King Bradley, walking alongside them.
"To explore the Dark Continent, to search for resources and potential new energy sources, and anything that can bring change to human society and the world." Illumi's answer was vague. After all, this was the objective of many nations exploring the Dark Continent, a mix of truth and falsehood.
"Heh heh, not being honest, are you?" Beyond Netero stroked his long beard, grinning.
"You followed us because you're relying on us to get back, aren't you?" King Bradley glanced at Beyond Netero from the corner of his eye, directly stating his true intention.
"Hahahaha, indeed I had that thought. But more than that, I want to explore the Dark Continent more deeply. I don't care even if I die here..." As he spoke of death, a powerful will radiated from Beyond Netero, giving one a feeling of surging passion.
"You will regret it." Illumi glanced at him with an indifferent expression. He never believed words like "dying without regret." Even an old person who died of old age would have regrets, unwillingness, and reluctance before death; it was merely a difference in intensity.
"Don't be so cold, you two. One is my good friend's grandson, and the other is a junior my dad thinks highly of. There's no need to be so distant with me, is there?" Beyond Netero spread his arms, resting one on Illumi's shoulder and the other on King Bradley's, creating an appearance of them being very familiar and close.
"Don't be too fanciful. The Dark Continent is more than what you've seen so far. There are many more dangerous and bizarre things you haven't witnessed yet." Illumi said coldly. Everything they had encountered so far could be resolved with brute force.
But the various strange and eerie magical beasts, biological weapons, and so on, that existed in the interior of the Dark Continent were the truly dangerous existences. Purely colossal creatures posed limited threats to them.
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