Bang!
Bang, bang!
A medium-sized rhino-like beast charged forward, using its five massive, curved horns to duel in a brutal clash.
The thunderous impact echoed through the rainforest.
At first, birds scattered into the sky. But soon, they returned to the branches as if used to it—eyes sharp, waiting for another feast of the dead.
From afar, perched on a tree branch, Germain lowered his binoculars, turned to the others, and said, "Looks like they're fighting among their own kind."
"I don't see any reason for them to be fighting," Ging said, lowering his binoculars too. "It's not over territory or mating rights."
Bisky and Shizuku also scanned the area with their binoculars. They came to the same conclusion as Germain and Ging.
"Then this points us toward the 'Twin-Tailed Serpent – Hellbell' theory," Bisky said, rubbing her chin. "A creature that spreads Homicidal Desire like a disease—that fits what we're seeing, doesn't it?"
"But did any of you see the Twin-Tailed Serpent?" Ging asked.
Germain, Bisky, and Shizuku exchanged glances and all shook their heads.
"Maybe it's hiding," Germain said. "If it spreads Homicidal Desire to cause fights, it might mean the creature itself is weak—just like the 'Human-Keeping Beast Pap' from the steep mountains."
"Did your En sense anything?" Bisky asked.
"Doubt it," Ging answered for him. "Germain and I probably felt the same thing—way too many life signals out there. Some might be the Twin-Tailed Serpent… but most are probably just bugs or snakes or whatever else."
"Then should we get closer and observe directly?" Bisky asked again.
"That might be our only choice," Germain said after thinking for a moment. "If it's really good at hiding its aura, we'll need to watch out for sneak attacks."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Even without Germain's reminder, everyone had already realized this. They weren't rookie Nen users.
They jumped down from the tree branches, hid their own auras, and slowly approached the area where the giant rhinos were fighting.
When they reached the area, they stood on higher ground. Looking down, they could see blood splattering everywhere, and with a loud "bang," another giant rhino fell.
The low ground was a complete mess. Dozens of giant rhinos were still fighting, but they didn't seem to have a fixed target, always attacking the closest rhino to them.
"One, two, three…" Shizuku held up her fingers and counted, "Six have fallen already, and they're still fighting. Don't they get tired?"
"Indeed…" Germain frowned, but his focus was different. "Only six have fallen. That's fewer than I expected."
He had thought that with all the loud fighting sounds, many giant rhinos would be injured or dead, but upon reaching this point, he realized it wasn't the case.
"Blinded by Homicidal Desire?" Bisky placed her hands on her hips and responded to Shizuku, "The 'Homicidal Desire' spreads like an infectious disease, until there's nothing alive here?"
Shizuku adjusted her black-rimmed glasses, slightly puzzled. "But why haven't the beasts hiding around the area been affected by the Homicidal Desire? Why aren't they joining the chaos?"
"It either needs physical contact to spread, or it's only contagious between the same species," Ging speculated, "Or maybe both. The biggest issue now is, where is the 'Two-Tailed Serpent: Hellbell'?"
They were close enough, but still hadn't seen the 'Two-Tailed Serpent: Hellbell' or any creatures that resembled it.
"Maybe we can think of them as 'Manipulation-type Nen users,'" Germain lifted his head from his thoughts and attempted to explain, "Perhaps they don't need to stay nearby. As long as certain conditions are met, they can manipulate everything from a distance."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Germain continued, "Of course, there's another possibility. They might have a way to avoid our detection even at such a close distance."
Bisky suddenly understood. "You mean, they might have a power similar to Meleoron's 'God's Alibi'?"
Germain had previously described the Chimera Ant Extermination War and the aftermath, so it was natural to mention Meleoron, Ikalgo, Welfin, and Palm, who had all defected from the Chimera Ants.
Among them, Meleoron's Nen ability was the most impressive.
His presence once gave both Knuckle and Shoot the chance to fight one of the powerful Royal Guards.
"If it's an ability like 'God's Alibi,' that could be troublesome," Bisky said, "Maybe they're already right beside us, flicking their tongues, preparing to strike."
After speaking, she nervously glanced around, and Shizuku followed suit, turning their heads left and right.
"In fact, aside from abilities like 'God's Alibi,' there's another possibility."
Germain said this while, like Bisky, involuntarily turning his head to glance around, but he saw nothing.
"Maybe they're not here with us right now, but they can move like Knov, instantly..."
Buzz!
Before he could finish, Germain and Ging both jolted, followed by Bisky and Shizuku. They quickly turned their heads toward the same direction.
From behind Ging, a triangular snake head emerged, opening its bloody mouth to reveal a pair of hooked fangs. The snake's body was covered with strange twisted patterns, ending in a black cyst.
The section of the snake from the cyst up to the head was floating in mid-air, while the part below the cyst appeared to have been completely severed, disappearing altogether!
Teleportation!
The same thought flashed through everyone's minds!
The next moment, the venomous snake attacked.
It lunged at the back of Gon's neck, and with this movement, the snake's body beneath the cyst seemed to emerge from a twisted, ripple-like space. Its tail split into two at the middle!
"The Twin-Tailed Snake," without a doubt! The features were too obvious!
The attack came suddenly and swiftly. "The Twin-Tailed Snake" appeared less than half a meter behind Ging, and in the blink of an eye, it struck, not giving anyone time to react.
Even with such a close distance, Ging was quick enough to dodge the snake's venomous fangs, shifting to the side.
However, "The Twin-Tailed Snake" was relentless. With a twist of its head and tail, it glided through the air like a flying squirrel, using its dual tails for both direction and balance.
It lunged at Ging once again, aiming directly at his crotch!
Naturally, Ging wouldn't show mercy to such relentless pursuit.
He raised his fingers, and golden light shot out like bullets, instantly smashing the head of the "Twin-Tailed Serpent."
The "Twin-Tailed Serpent" suddenly died, then dropped with a splash into the muddy ground. It wriggled a couple of times before lying motionless.
Ging furrowed his brows in suspicion. Just as he was about to say something, he suddenly noticed a black cyst on the serpent's body bursting open.
A cloud of black smoke rose, and then, inexplicably, a strange bell-like sound echoed in everyone's ears, as if symbolizing death itself.
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