As top-tier fighters, Beyond and Ging handled the rotting corpses with ease, while the others had to exert more effort.
Muheer' wielded his spear single-handedly, its straight shaft exuding an air of elegance, the tip gleaming with a cold light.
Both Akira and Muheer' knew their earlier conversation had merely been pre-battle banter—just a way to ease their nerves.
As a legendary mercenary who had weathered countless storms, Muheer' understood the principle that "there's always someone better."
Though a ripple of unease still stirred within him, he didn't let it show.
"Hah—"
Facing the horde of indifferent-eyed corpses, Muheer' exhaled slowly, gathering his momentum in an instant.
In a flash, his right arm moved subtly, leaving behind a series of near-invisible afterimages.
With a twist of his wrist, the silver spear, forged from aura, flicked through the air, tracing dazzling patterns before thrusting forward like a silver dragon.
It impaled one of the corpses and hurled it back into the horde.
Thud! Thud… Thwack!
After flinging a larger corpse into the crowd, it pinned several others, momentarily halting their advance.
Without pause, Muheer''s spear tip blurred into afterimages, striking a single corpse countless times in the blink of an eye.
Clearly, their bones were terrifyingly tough.
Even with his silver spear, each thrust against their skeletal frames only produced dull thuds—unable to pierce through.
Muheer' frowned but resisted the urge to amplify his aura like Beyond, who simply shattered bones with brute force.
That approach was straightforward but would drain his reserves too quickly—and he wasn't just fighting one or two enemies.
Beyond chose to shatter bones simply because his fighting style relied on hands and feet.
He had no habit of using weapons in combat.
Thus, he could only attack with fists and kicks, then determine the most cost-effective expenditure of energy based on his assessment.
He never wasted aura.
Beyond avoided weapons partly due to his personal fighting style.
On the other hand, weapons had significant limitations.
Even the finest weapons were prone to damage when facing creatures of the Dark Continent.
For those accustomed to weapons, losing them would drastically reduce their combat effectiveness.
In such cases, one would need to expend additional Aura to protect their weapon—otherwise, it would easily break.
In contrast, Muheer''s Nen ability was extremely convenient, allowing him to materialize various weapons anytime, anywhere.
After several attempts, a hissing sound finally rang out and Muheer''s face lit up with joy as he swiftly twisted his silver spear, shattering the rotten corpse in the middle!
Through repeated probing, he had managed to thrust the spear between the gaps in the bones, crushing the core inside.
He had anticipated such a scenario during materialization, which was why he deliberately made the silver spear slightly smaller.
Apart from these few, the others' fighting styles were equally distinctive.
Golem and some members of the Stone Wall wielded high-powered Aura Weapons, unleashing torrents of flames and shells.
The overwhelming firepower temporarily suppressed the movements of the rotten corpses, filling the battlefield with dust and dirt kicked up by the explosions.
However, the damage still fell short of expectations.
Chunks of rotting flesh fell from the corpses, some even reduced to fragments blending into the surrounding dust.
Only the unusually thick bones remained completely unaffected.
It was clear they hadn't suffered any substantial damage—the cores inside their bones remained largely unharmed.
Only a few unlucky ones collapsed and stayed down.
Fortunately, everyone could see the health bars of the rotten corpses, and according to the feedback, their HP was indeed steadily decreasing.
Pekotero's petite figure darted like a ghost, flitting between the rotten corpses.
In his vision, with every strike, powdery particles resembling game effects would scatter from the corpses.
When enough damage was dealt and their HP bars hit zero, the massive corpses would split apart and collapse to the ground.
At the same time, several glowing green orbs would drop to the ground before being absorbed into Pekotero's body.
While everyone could see the same battlefield as Pekotero, these glowing green orbs were visible only to him.
These were the experience points he gained from defeating the monsters.
Absorbing them slightly enhanced his strength.
As the battle progressed, people finally got a clear look at the cores of the rotten corpses.
In the midsection of each corpse's body, there was something resembling a heart—but not quite.
The unidentified object emitted a purple glow similar to that of the Purple Forest, pulsating continuously and faintly radiating ripples.
Inside the translucent object, something resembling an insect could vaguely be seen.
"Parasites?" Ging glanced at the core of the rotten corpse, deep in thought, before flicking his fingers and firing a condensed Aura bullet to shatter it.
Based on his experience, these insects were likely some kind of parasite, controlling the corpses by infesting them.
The question was whether the parasites had infected the creatures while they were still alive or after death.
This could also explain their abnormal behavior.
Despite appearing long dead, they could still move—thanks to the parasites inside.
The insects themselves were peculiar, encased in a large gelatinous substance resembling jelly.
It looked almost like a beating heart.
Moreover, this gelatinous material wasn't limited to just that area—countless strands of it clung to the bones.
With the insect at the core, countless gelatinous strands connected to various bones and joints.
These strands were incredibly tough, making them difficult to sever or separate.
The exceptional hardness of the bones also seemed to be related to the abundance of this gelatinous substance.
This discovery resolved Ging's confusion about 'how rotting corpses and skeletons could move'.
However, there was still one thing he couldn't understand.
Why did they seem utterly fearless, continuing to charge forward even as many fell around them?
Though their numbers were vast, their attacks lacked any semblance of coordination.
They fought independently, with no teamwork whatsoever.
In just a short while, the ground around them was littered with dismembered corpses and looked as though it had been plowed countless times.
People even had to watch their step, lest the piled-up corpses hinder their movement.
Akira's side remained calm, allowing him to observe the rotting corpses and their surroundings closely.
He naturally noticed the same things the others did.
But he also spotted something else unusual.
These parasites didn't seem solely intent on devouring them.
From the behavior of the corpses, Akira sensed a panicked demeanor!
Every action of the rotting corpses suggested they were in a desperate rush to move forward.
Their attacks on the group felt more like opportunistic snacks during their escape.
Two or three corpses pushed forward relentlessly, with the one in front even being trampled by those behind.
Then, several more stepped on it indifferently, using it as a stepping stone.
It seemed that once a corpse fell, it had no chance of getting back up.
The more Akira watched, the more it seemed like they were fleeing.
So then...
As if struck by realization, Akira turned his gaze slightly toward the depths of the forest, where more corpses continued to emerge.
A few moments later, his ears twitched slightly, and his expression shifted with understanding.
Exactly!
He was right!
These corpses were still being pursued.
Suddenly, several purple figures flew into view at the edge of Akira's vision.
They resembled birds but looked more like some kind of insect.
Their bodies were primarily purple, giving off an overwhelmingly toxic impression.
Their lower bodies and shoulders bore needle-like protrusions, secreting a purple fluid at the tips.
Their shape vaguely resembled wasps, with short, thin wings.
The largest needle took up nearly a third of their lower body.
Aside from purple, their bodies were marked with black stripes, making them look even more like bee-like creatures.
Their heads were particularly grotesque, with large, fly-like compound eyes that flickered with barely perceptible light.
Their mouths were long proboscises, similar to mosquitoes—but while mosquitoes merely sip blood,
if one of these proboscises pierced a person, it could drain them completely in an instant.
A lively adult could turn into a desiccated corpse within moments.
The appearance of these Purple Bees signaled the end of the rotting corpse horde.
The Purple Bees were even faster than the corpses, their wings beating so rapidly they left almost no afterimage.
Akira estimated only those at S-rank strength could clearly see the wings of the Purple Bees.
Others couldn't even tell the Purple Bees had wings at all.
Each Purple Bee moved with near-teleportation speed—one moment in the air, the next atop a corpse's back.
The slender proboscis pierced precisely into the decaying corpse, extracting an entire core wrapped in colloid.
The previously animated corpse instantly lost its power source and collapsed motionless on the ground.
Those Purple Bees were incredibly fast.
From the moment Akira spotted them until now—just a few breaths later—over a dozen corpses had already perished.
Clearly, they treated the parasites inside the corpses as food.
At a glance, there were six Purple Bees in total.
Yet these six creatures had sent hundreds of decaying corpses fleeing in panic, utterly defenseless against them.
While the Purple Bees' strength was indeed formidable, the corpses' lack of aerial combat capability also played a role.
"Hiss."
"That speed is terrifying."
"What do we do now?"
Beyond moved beside Akira, no longer concerned with the corpses, his expression growing graver.
Compared to these Purple Bees, the corpses were nothing.
Though the corpses had high defense, their offensive capabilities were weak—they could be worn down with time.
But these Purple Bees were different.
Not only were they fast and powerful, but they also flew.
Most of the group had no means to deal with them.
"Tell the others to ignore the corpses. They'll likely flee rather than attack us now."
"Focus more on the Purple Bees."
Akira watched the Purple Bees' every move intently as he spoke slowly.
He'd just realized why the corpses had charged earlier.
Their Safety Suits actually helped conceal their presence to some degree, making them harder to detect.
The corpses probably hadn't known they were there initially.
Even after seeing them, the corpses likely underestimated their strength.
After meeting resistance, with the Purple Bees closing in behind, the corpses had no choice but to push forward.
Their intelligence seemed limited too—after all, their bodies were controlled by mere parasites.
"Everyone, ignore the corpses!"
"Focus on those bee-like creatures ahead!"
Beyond nodded and shouted to the group still engaged in combat nearby.
Though confused, everyone immediately disengaged from battle.
The corpses that had been fighting moments ago now sprinted forward without a backward glance.
If they'd initially intended to eliminate these unknown humanoids, now their only thought was escape.
With no one blocking them, the fleeing corpses surged forward like a tide, even faster now.
The group stood on either side, silently watching the Purple Bees pursue the horde.
Seeing the terrifying speed of the Purple Bees, most instinctively stepped back, breath catching.
Without exaggeration, if these creatures attacked, several in the group wouldn't react in time.
The distance between them was still too close.
They could only hope their Safety Suits' defense would hold.
Fortunately, the Purple Bees seemed utterly uninterested in them, focused solely on hunting parasites.
In moments, the remaining corpses and Purple Bees vanished from sight with a whoosh.
"Notice anything?"
Ging held a core in his hand, its colloid still encasing a parasite, as he asked Akira beside him.
"I think I've got a general idea. They must be the main food chain in this forest."
"It's a pretty clear hierarchy."
"Those Purple Bees obviously prey on those parasites frequently and are very familiar with their habit of infesting decaying corpses."
"The way they extract the cores from the corpses is extremely practiced—even their elongated mouthparts seem perfectly adapted for it."
"This also explains why they kept chasing the parasites and completely ignored us."
"Of course, we can't rule out that the Safety Suits have significantly masked our scent."
"Without the suits concealing our presence, those Purple Bees might have turned their stingers toward us."
Akira spoke at a measured pace, his voice loud enough for everyone to hear clearly, helping them understand the relationship between the parasites and the Purple Bees.
Akira glanced in the direction the bees had departed, then looked back toward where they had first appeared.
After days of walking, they were now roughly in the central region of the entire purple forest.
It made sense for both the Purple Bees and the parasites to appear in this area, but that raised another question.
Were these six Purple Bees the only ones in the entire forest?
And since bee-like creatures grow gradually, shouldn't these six have offspring somewhere?
"I suspect that deeper in the forest, there are likely more Purple Bees—or at least their young."
"They're also probably the apex predators of this purple forest."
After a moment of thought, Akira slowly voiced his theory.
There was one thing he didn't say aloud—he couldn't shake the feeling that those Purple Bees resembled a certain Pokemon he'd seen before.
Both were covered in needle-like spikes, entirely purple, highly venomous, and capable of flight.
Namely, one of the Ultra Beasts—Poipole's evolved form, Naganadel!
"Ding!"
"Pokemon incubation complete!"
Just as he finished speaking, the notification of a successful Pokemon incubation echoed in Akira's mind.
Casually, Akira instructed the group to clean up the battlefield, especially collecting some of the bones.
Meanwhile, he turned his attention to the new Pokemon.
When he saw the newly incubated creature, a flicker of surprise and astonishment crossed his eyes.
The new Pokemon was close to what he'd guessed—but not quite.
It was, unmistakably, the pre-evolved form of Naganadel—another Ultra Beast, the incredibly adorable Poipole!
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