Beyond flicked his wrist, a flash of golden Aura shimmering as his five fingers effortlessly sank into the ground and pulled out a Flameglow Stone.
It was as easy as piercing a tofu with a steel bar.
Sizzle
The scorching stone made a sizzling sound in Beyond's hand, like meat searing on a grill.
But wrapped in aura, Beyond remained completely unaffected.
For the two highly skilled individuals, it was effortless. However, those with lesser abilities had a different experience.
"Ouch! Hot hot hot!"
Mascher held a Flameglow Stone in both hands, tossing it up occasionally, unable to keep it in his grasp for long.
Though Mascher grimaced and cried out from the heat, no one mocked him—because many others were going through the same ordeal.
Ging and Beyond could hold the stones without issue, even taking the time to observe them, thanks to their formidable strength.
Their thick Aura easily withstood the Flameglow Stone's temperature and burning sensation.
The other team members weren't so fortunate.
Most were at an A-rank level, and their Aura proved fragile against the extreme heat, often requiring significant reinforcement.
Just this single Flameglow Stone revealed the stark difference in their abilities.
Fortunately, the goal was merely to excavate the stones, not hold them, so everyone managed well enough.
With a series of sounds, Flameglow Stones were unearthed and piled together on the ground.
The total quantity wasn't large—just a small heap about a person's height.
It was unclear whether there were few here or if this ore was inherently scarce.
As usual, Akira had Porygon-Z store the Flameglow Stones in the digital space before leading the group forward.
This was one advantage of having a network storage—items like Flameglow Stones, which were difficult to carry, could be taken with ease.
However, after the Flameglow Stone experience, everyone became more vigilant of their surroundings as they advanced.
They feared missing even a single glance, lest they overlook some precious ore.
From the voyage until now, this was the first time they'd felt the "benevolence" of the Dark Continent—hope.
Before this, they'd encountered nothing but calamities.
Finally stumbling upon a potential cluster of hope invigorated them all.
But alas, fate had other plans. Before they could find hope, disaster struck again.
...
On a rocky terrain dominated by black stones,
Akira led the team onto this area filled with pitch-black rocks.
Unlike before, the stones here were mostly jet-black rather than the fragile-looking grayish-white.
Black Tremor Rock: Deep ink-black in color, possessing extreme hardness.
When struck, it rebounds a portion of the force.
These Black Tremor Rocks resembled obsidian—not only were they incredibly hard, but their surfaces also faintly gleamed like gemstones.
"I wonder if these rocks have value too?" Ging slowly crouched, running his hand over the entirely black rock ground, his expression thoughtful.
He doubted these were ores, given how ubiquitous the dark stones were.
They seemed more like ordinary rocks, just with an unusual color.
Ging curled his fingers and lightly tapped the ground twice.
Thud thud.
Two dull echoes resounded, sounding less like striking earth and more like hitting reinforced steel.
"Incredibly hard!"
"And it rebounds a lot of the force—definitely beyond what ordinary rocks can do." Ging's expression shifted slightly as he felt the rebounding force, speaking with some surprise.
It seemed his judgment had been off.
Although these rocks were numerous—nearly all the stones in this area were of this type—they weren't as useless as he'd initially thought.
They still held some practical value.
Ging's first thought was to apply this stone, or rather metal, to equipment.
He hadn't just casually tapped the rock earlier; he had infused a trace of aura into the strike.
If it had been ordinary rock, it would have likely turned to dust under that impact.
Yet this pitch-black, gleaming stone hadn't crumbled—only developing some barely noticeable hairline cracks.
It possessed extraordinary hardness!
Combined with the rebounding force, this unknown stone was perfectly suited for crafting equipment.
Not only would it offer formidable defense, but it would also inherently reflect damage.
If an opponent threw a powerful punch at it, they'd end up injuring themselves as well.
The only issue was how to forge equipment from this stone—its hardness also made processing far more difficult.
"An incredibly hard rock with a strong rebound effect, huh?"
Muheer ran his hand over the Black Tremor Rock, a peculiar glint flashing in his sharp eyes.
As a mercenary who spent years on battlefields, he knew exactly what equipment made from this stone would mean.
Without exaggeration, this was something that could save lives.
In fact, the effects of such gear might even rival certain Nen abilities.
"Either way, let's try collecting some first. It might be a little challenging."
When Ging said "a little challenging," he was understating it—especially for everyone else.
The terrain here was unusual.
It wasn't just the type of rock that had changed.
Every visible stone lacked seams, instead merging together unnaturally, as if they'd grown that way.
This was essentially a flat expanse entirely composed of Black Tremor Rock, reflecting glimmers of light under the sun.
With no gaps and a somewhat smooth surface, friction was minimal.
People could practically "ice-skate" on it.
Aside from that, there were only three protruding boulders, each about seven or eight meters tall.
The slightly taller one cast a broad shadow under the sunlight, though it wasn't very noticeable since everything else was also Black Tremor Rock.
These boulders, too, were made of the same black stone—at least from the outside.
"Since this rock is pretty tough, let us handle it."
"Compared to the ground, these raised ones might be easier to collect."
Beyond cracked his knuckles and stood beside one of the boulders with Ging.
Aside from Akira, the two of them were the strongest present—and thus the most suitable for the task.
Anyone else would likely exhaust their strength and aura without gathering much stone.
The two stood by the boulder, their auras rapidly intensifying as they prepared to deliver a powerful simultaneous strike!
Their plan was simple: two synchronized punches should shatter a significant portion of the boulder.
Meanwhile, Akira suddenly frowned.
Perhaps due to some instinct, he sensed something off about these boulders.
Almost unconsciously, he used his Pokedex Ability on one.
Name: Black Rock Giant (Awakening)
Power Level: S-
Origin: Originally an ordinary rock giant with a grayish-white color, prolonged consumption of Black Tremor Rock caused its body to undergo changes.
Not only has its defensive capabilities strengthened, but it also possesses considerable counter-shock abilities.
Due to its massive size and high energy requirements for movement, it remains dormant most of the time.
However, when living creatures approach, it awakens from its dormant state and begins hunting.
It is the lowest-tier existence among the rock giant species, possessing only the most basic racial abilities.
Rock Giants:
They are a subhuman-type mineral magical beast inhabiting the fringes of the Dark Continent, exhibiting omnivorous tendencies and primarily feeding on ores.
They possess an innate ability to consume different ores and gain corresponding abilities.
By consuming higher-quality ores, they can continuously evolve.
Some rock giants that consume special ores may mutate into beings with unique abilities.
Rock giants are ranked from low to high as Rock Giants, Silver Giants, and Golden Giants.
The higher the tier, the more formidable their racial abilities become.
Higher-tier giants also possess greater intelligence.
At regular intervals, a higher-tier giant will shed a piece of rock from its body, which transforms into a lower-tier giant.
This can be understood as their impurities—by continuously shedding these impurities, they can further evolve.
The insides of rock giants are filled with crushed stone and mud-like substances, which possess extreme corrosive properties, capable of easily dissolving even the hardest ores.
...
It's actually a living creature?
Akira was startled, having never imagined that this massive boulder could be a rock giant.
From every angle, it appeared to be nothing more than a large rock, showing no signs of life.
But Akira knew the Pokedex Ability couldn't be wrong.
He truly hadn't expected that a spur-of-the-moment use of the Pokedex Ability would grant him such a huge surprise!
Moreover, the most crucial detail was that this Black Rock Giant had reached S- tier in strength—yet it was still the weakest among rock giants.
As Akira pondered, Miro, who was on guard duty, suddenly paled in horror.
At this moment, the world she saw was different from everyone else's.
What she sensed was that the surrounding boulders were actually terrifying giant beasts, their auras rapidly intensifying.
Just moments ago, the surroundings had been peaceful, with no other living beings besides them.
But now, the biological fluctuations emanating from those boulders had abruptly appeared.
It was as if they had awakened from slumber.
"These boulders aren't right!"
"They're alive!!"
Miro shouted urgently, her sudden warning causing everyone to freeze in shock.
No sooner had she spoken than the three surrounding boulders began shaking violently, producing loud rumbling noises.
In the next instant, a massive rocky hand swiped through the air, its palm wind howling sharply.
Like swatting a mosquito, it aimed to crush Ging and Beyond in a single strike!
Their breaths hitched as they stomped hard on the ground, causing spiderweb-like cracks to spread across the sturdy Black Tremor Rock.
Using the rock's counter-shock force, they propelled themselves backward, retreating to the safety of the group and narrowly avoiding the crushing blow.
The rocky palm was immensely powerful and surprisingly swift.
Driven by momentum, it slammed directly onto the ground!
"BOOM!!"
The heavy impact of the palm striking the earth sent two rock surfaces of similar hardness colliding, producing a deafening roar.
When the hand lifted again, it scattered black dust in its wake, leaving behind a shallow but enormous palm print on the ground.
Clearly, the stone giant's palm was far harder.
"It's actually alive?!" Ging's eyes widened as he stared at the massive rocky hand, involuntarily gulping.
He had thought the treants he encountered on the grasslands were bizarre enough, but never imagined creatures like rock giants existed.
In contrast, Beyond—who had experience with the Dark Continent—remained far calmer.
Though initially startled, such reactions were unavoidable, and he quickly regained his composure.
The top priority now is figuring out how to deal with them.
Judging by the aura they emitted, only three people on the field had the capability to confront them head-on!
As for who those three were, naturally it was the trio of powerhouses in the team—Akira, Beyond, and Ging.
And coincidentally, there were exactly three of these enemies.
"Hey hey hey, seriously?! These rocks are actually living creatures?!"
Usamen exclaimed in shock again, his double chin nearly hitting the floor as his aura instinctively surged outward.
When faced with unknown dangers, aura was the common source of security for all Nen Users.
As long as they had enough aura, they could muster at least some confidence in confronting the threat.
At the same time, everyone involuntarily retreated backward, subconsciously wanting to distance themselves from those three monsters.
Then, the three massive boulders slowly rose to their feet like Transformers, revealing their heads, arms, and legs.
Once standing upright, their bodies towered even taller than before, reaching over ten meters in height.
They had previously been crouched on the ground in a curled-up position.
Because their rocky bodies had regular shapes, their arms, legs, and heads fit together seamlessly.
Not a single gap could be seen from the outside.
Their towering figures, standing over ten meters tall, exuded an overwhelming sense of pressure. Though not as tall as the tree-men, they were still impressive.
Their limbs were thick and robust, appearing immensely powerful, with explosive strength hidden beneath the rocky surface.
Their torsos bore unknown patterns, and their heads—unlike their blocky bodies—were semi-circular in shape.
The semi-circular heads had vaguely humanoid facial features, though not very distinct, perhaps due to their black stone texture.
Akira quietly observed these unusual creatures.
The bodies of the Black Rock Giants were entirely composed of Black Tremor Rock.
The Pokedex Ability also indicated that rock giants could acquire the abilities of the rocks they consumed.
So they hadn't originally looked like this—they were just ordinary rock-formed giants that had taken on their current appearance after long-term consumption of Black Tremor Rock.
If that was the case…
If they ate Flame Light Stones, would fire-wielding or high-temperature-capable rock giants emerge?
At this thought, Akira's lips twitched slightly.
He realized the potential of these creatures might not be so simple.
The Dark Continent was teeming with all kinds of ores.
If they could harness their effects and apply them to themselves…
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