The raindrops, as large as eggs, fell from the clouds. At first, only a few scattered drops were visible, but in an instant, a heavy downpour began.
The rain intensified, carried by the wind, pulling a dense curtain on all sides, blurring their vision.
The humanoid mountain in the distance remained motionless in the heavy rain. If it weren't for the shallow layer of water quickly accumulating in the footprint pit nearby, one might have mistaken it for just a mountain.
This heavy rain came at just the right time, preventing Law and the others from observing the various bizarre sights in the far distance and thus avoiding being completely overwhelmed.
Netero had once said this place was enormous, and he was absolutely right. In fact, its sheer size was beyond description with words alone. Only by seeing it with their own eyes could they understand just how vast this so-called 'bigness' truly was.
As the rain curtain drew closed, Law, snapping out of his stunned state, caught sight of something in his peripheral vision.
He saw it… the World Tree, rooted in the mountain range, feeding on magma.
He clearly saw the World Tree in the far distance to the left, reaching into the sky with its top unseen.
It was absolutely towering over everything within sight, and nothing could compare to its height. The surrounding land could only provide enough nutrients for one World Tree to grow continuously.
The rain grew heavier, further limiting their vision. Things they could barely make out suddenly became blurred.
In less than a minute, water began flowing around their ankles, streaming toward the funnel-shaped sinkhole behind them.
"We... should find shelter first," Law said, collecting himself and taking a deep breath. He glanced at the blurred surroundings.
This absurdly heavy rain created visibility restrictions akin to thick fog.
The rain was heavy and cold. Even though Law snapped back to reality and immediately deployed his Domain, it was too late. Everyone was already soaked, their body heat being stolen by the relentless rain.
"Where to?" Tonpa asked blankly.
They were no longer on the barren land near the coastline. After spending so much time active in the underground world, they had no idea where their path had taken them. Perhaps this was the heart of the Dark Continent. Thinking that, where could possibly be safe?
"Just follow me."
Seeing the water flowing from the ground increasing, Law didn't allow Tonpa's mind to wander. He exchanged a glance with Biscuit, who was barely maintaining her composure, and chose the direction to the left.
That was where the World Tree stood.
The three of them, braving the heavy rain, moved toward the hazy front.
Their ears were filled with the sound of wind and rain, almost monopolizing every sound they could hear.
As they hurried forward, they could feel the water level rising past their calves. Looking back, they vaguely saw a vortex forming near the funnel-shaped sinkhole.
Boom!
A loud roar suddenly pierced through the sound of wind and rain, but it wasn't thunder.
In the haze, a black shadow ahead fell sideways, shattered the rain curtain, and rolled toward them along the increasingly rapid water flow.
Hearing the noise, they immediately noticed the disturbance.
The three separately dodged, avoiding the rolling black shadow. A hurried glance revealed it was a curled-up pangolin. As it rolled, it parted two water waves several meters high, like a golf ball about to enter the hole, rolling straight into the funnel-shaped sinkhole.
It was unknown whether the pangolin was dead or alive. Rolling down the slope with great momentum, it hit the spider web but failed to break through. Instead, it stuck firmly to it, not making any struggling movements.
Perhaps the pangolin was already dead.
Law couldn't see this scene. They avoided the pangolin and continued forward.
After a moment, the rumbling sound repeated several times, still not thunder. It seemed like the sound of heavy objects suddenly falling.
In the rain, in places unseen, massive creatures were losing their lives and falling to the ground, as if pulled by some mysterious force, rolling along with the water flow into the giant funnel-shaped sinkhole.
No matter how many massive creatures were added to the spider web, it remained unbroken, standing firm above the entrance.
Law and the others couldn't see this, so they didn't know what was happening. They just kept their heads down and moved forward, hoping to find a suitable and safe shelter from the rain.
Gradually, the intervals between the rumbling sounds became shorter and more frequent, adding a layer of eeriness to the heavy rain.
The three didn't dare to spread out too far. Bruna even curled up into her smallest form, clinging tightly to Law's body.
Suddenly, the vertically falling raindrops ahead were shattered in a large area.
Law's pupils constricted sharply. Vaguely, he saw something move in the rain, but in reality, he only saw the rain and the scene of raindrops being shattered.
He instinctively slowed his running speed. Just as he was about to open his mouth to warn Tonpa and Biscuit, time seemed to stand still.
At the moment he slowed down, before his throat could make a sound, Tonpa and Biscuit, who were closely following beside him, were sent flying back without warning, as if hit by an invisible giant hammer.
Bang!
A large number of raindrops shattered into pieces. The actual impact sound drowned out the grunts and screams, instantly filling Law's ears.
'Domain... was broken?'
'No, it wasn't broken.'
Law suddenly stopped. In that extremely brief moment, he saw something… In the rain, being watered by the rain, a cactus-like figure was vaguely outlined.
The raindrops were shattered again in a large area, the resulting mist blowing toward his face.
Law's pupils contracted and then relaxed. He abruptly raised his right hand in front of him, Shin appearing in his palm. At the same time, a jade-white humanoid phantom appeared behind him, mimicking the same action.
Clang!
Though the object itself was unseen, a tremendous force passed through the resistance of his Domain, violently striking the blade. The residual force turned countless raindrops into needle-like projectiles shooting out in all directions.
Law's body shuddered, and he slid back several steps before stopping.
Abruptly, the floating figure in the rain made another extremely brief movement. Only in the moment of movement could one see a blurred outline covered by rainwater.
Another unexpected heavy blow landed on the blade, faster and fiercer than the last.
Law was sent flying backward. As the wind and rain rushed into his ears, he heard Bruna's low cry.
Glancing sideways hurriedly, he saw that half of Bruna's tentacles had been affected, turned into powder and washed away by the rain.
Tonpa and Biscuit's conditions were unknown, while Bruna was injured.
Rage surged in Law's heart. He adjusted his posture in mid-air, did a backflip, and landed, splashing large waves of water.
Boom!
The sound of heavy objects falling came again. It hadn't stopped since the first sound was heard.
Law coldly stared ahead. Turning sideways, he aimed his right arm toward the direction of the invisible thing, put Shin back into Kuro's space, and took out a Chasefire Stone, gripping it in his palm.
'Whatever you are!' He roared inwardly.
He flicked his thumb, and ten specks of fire flew into the rain curtain ahead.
A single spark can start a prairie fire!
A surge of flaming waves arose from nowhere, engulfing the invisible entity and stirring the raindrops into it.
Flames burned amidst the endless rain. Beneath this wonderful sight, large amounts of white steam were produced by the clash of water and fire, instantly enveloping Law.
Law had no intention of waiting for the outcome. As his figure vanished into the steam, he carefully protected the severely injured Bruna and headed toward where Biscuit and Tonpa had landed.
Rushing to their landing spot at top speed, he saw that Tonpa seemed to have lost consciousness, already pushed far away by the knee-high water.
Biscuit wasn't faring well either, as her mouth was covered in blood. Standing in the water like a rootless duckweed, she swayed unsteadily.
Law went to Biscuit first, his face tense with worry.
"I'm fine," Biscuit said, her eyelids drooping, her face full of exhaustion. She pointed in Tonpa's direction.
Though she said she was fine, her body's condition suggested otherwise. That sudden impact had directly caused severe injuries to her unprepared self.
Luo looked at the obvious sunken wound on Biscuit's stomach, Law tightened his grip on the Chasefire Stone in his palm, pulled Kuro out, and said gravely, "Go bring Tonpa back."
He couldn't leave Biscuit here, so he entrusted the task of retrieving Tonpa to Kuro.
Kuro emerged and quickly glanced at the Chasefire Stone barely visible in Law's clenched fist. Without another word, he headed straight toward Tonpa's location.
Once he left the back of Law's hand, Law would not be able to freely access the products in his Nen Space. In other words, until Kuro returned, Law only had the Chasefire Stone in his hand.
Watching Kuro disappear into the rain curtain, Law looked back at the spreading steam not far away, watching as the patches of white mist were shattered by egg-sized raindrops, slowly disappearing.
Even ten specks of fire were no match for the relentless, heavy rain. The disturbance they caused didn't last long before being erased.
En!
A Nen Circle without special effects expanded from his feet, covering an area of several hundred meters in radius.
The entity hidden in the rain, invisible to the eye, was particularly weird. Its attacks could penetrate the resistance of his Domain, avoid Tonpa's precognition, and even deliver fierce assaults without producing the slightest sound of wind.
If it weren't for the rain, if it weren't for the shattered raindrops, they might have been completely unaware of the attack.
Law didn't know how to determine the location of this unknown entity before it attacked, so he didn't use his Domain. Instead, he used En.
The Nen Circle constructed by En was established, and a prickling sensation immediately transmitted to his skin.
Twenty meters straight ahead.
Law's eyes turned cold. He flicked another ten specks of fire toward the front, directly targeting the approaching unknown entity.
He didn't understand why, with so much rain falling, it didn't reveal even the blurred outlines of the unknown thing. If it weren't for the clear feedback from En, he wouldn't believe the unknown thing was only twenty meters away.
The fire specks once again transformed into flaming waves, engulfing the unknown thing.
Sizzle...!
Water and fire merged, colliding once more to produce large amounts of steam.
The flames held firm for a few seconds, keeping the rain at bay, but soon vanished, leaving behind large cloud of steam.
Law didn't want to prolong the fight. He secured the weakened Bruna, then picked up Biscuit, whose consciousness was gradually becoming blurred, and headed in the direction Kuro had gone. He planned for the group to reunite and leave together.
He did not retract his En. According to his perception, the unknown thing seemed to have been halted by the flaming waves.
Ordinary En didn't possess the special effects of his unique Domain, so while maintaining En, he had to let the icy rain pound on his body.
The sense of crisis was like the icy rain falling from the sky, bit by bit seeping into his bones, lingering.
'Should we be grateful for this rain?'
Law pondered silently.
Although the rain didn't constantly reveal the form of the unknown thing, at least at the moment of its attack, they could judge something based on the shattered water mist.
Suddenly, the sensitive touch on the skin of his back transmitted again. The unknown thing had moved, and it was fast.
"It's chasing us?"
Law turned back, his expression darkening. Within the range of his En's perception, the unknown thing seemed to have locked onto him, closely pursuing from behind.
If he didn't retract his En, he couldn't freely use his Nen. But if he retracted his En, he couldn't constantly monitor the other's movements.
Just as he was considering what to do, accompanied by those booming sounds of falling objects, his heart sank to the bottom.
'Not just one. There were actually two more?'
'Left and right, and behind.'
Law's thoughts raced. He immediately retracted his En, allocated part of his Nen to protect Biscuit and Bruna, then stomped the ground, creating large splashes of water, and used [Instant] to dash forward dozens of meters.
One pause, then used it again.
After several consecutive uses of [Instant], he quickly put distance between them.
Relying on his connection with Kuro, he shortened the distance.
At that moment, Law understood one thing.
The invisible thing in the rain are hunting down any life form they saw.
The unceasing booming sounds represented the disappearance of lives one after another.
"We must get away from here as soon as possible."
Law's heart sank. Looking down, he saw that Biscuit had already fallen unconscious.
About twenty seconds later, Law reunited with Kuro.
At this moment, Kuro had transformed into his leopard form, his body as tall and strong as a horse, with the dying Tonpa on his back.
Without a word, Law climbed onto Kuro's back and said, "Take to the sky."
Kuro was taken aback. He wasn't capable of carrying three people into the sky, but he quickly sensed something through their subtle connection.
He didn't ask further. Moving all four limbs, he suddenly felt as if an air stepping was placed under his feet, allowing him to step on air and ascend into the sky.
At the same time, the unknown entity chasing them assumed a pre-attack posture. Its invisible body instantly revealed a blurred outline.
In that instant, Law's cold gaze pierced through. He swung his hand, releasing a blade of air that cut through the rain, directly striking the blurred outline, splitting it in two in the blink of an eye.
Bang!
As if prearranged, the moment the blurred outline was split in two, an ear-splitting roar came from the ground, as if a giant had taken a step.
Law looked down at the ground. The flowing water was all thrown up to a height of two or three meters before falling back down.
If it were water in a basin being thrown up two or three meters, it wouldn't be surprising. But at this moment, the water being thrown up was the enormous water that had been knee-high.
It was uncertain if all the water was thrown up, but at the very least, it was all the flowing water visible on the ground!