🚨 To get the full story and future chapters purchase it from patron shop
Amagiri Kōsuke's eyelids drooped. He squatted low and suddenly charged towards the ten armed personnel in front of him. As he sprinted, his hands tightly gripped his katana, pushing it back. A large amount of white Ki surged out, covering the blade of the katana.
"Amagiri-ryu: Hissatsu (Certain Kill)!"
"Boom!"
Amagiri Kōsuke, who was in the middle of a sprint, felt a sharp pain in his back. A "crack, crack" sound of bones breaking came from his spine.
A tall figure suddenly appeared above Amagiri Kōsuke's head and abruptly stomped on his back.
"Boom!"
With a loud crash, he was forcefully stomped into the ground, creating a circular crater two meters in diameter.
"Cough... splutter!"
Amagiri Kōsuke, lying prone in the crater, coughed lightly, but a large mouthful of fresh blood escaped him.
He felt several of his ribs were broken.
It was too painful, like someone had burned a hole in his lungs with a hot poker. The pain made it impossible for him to breathe.
"Hmm, still alive."
Pride looked down at the immobilized Amagiri Kōsuke, then kicked him over with his foot.
"Hmph... hmph..."
Amagiri Kōsuke lay motionless in the crater, exhaling white mist from his mouth.
It wasn't that he didn't want to move, but that he couldn't.
That kick had fractured his spine; he was paralyzed.
He had failed, miserably.
Although he had considered this possibility, it was only now that he truly understood.
Those previous pursuers were merely the tip of the Umbrella Corporation's iceberg, just like this squad before him.
Each person wore a strange black uniform. The arm patch on their shoulders bore the word "emer".
Their black uniforms had slight bulges on their chests, likely containing special bulletproof layers.
The strangest thing was that they all had a layer of pitch-black mechanical exoskeleton on the outside, and wore triangular mechanical helmets on their heads, with red lights glowing from their eye areas.
And the rifles in their hands were equipped with strange small screens, which he had never seen before.
Amagiri Kōsuke naturally didn't know that this squad was Pride's "emer" (Emergency Medical and Engineering Response) special emergency team. All their weapons and auxiliary equipment were meticulously crafted by Illumi at great cost.
Each set of equipment they wore was valued at over thirty million Jennies in manufacturing costs, belonging to the next century's weapon and equipment products.
Their lightweight nano-fiber bulletproof layer could resist most rifle bullets within ten meters and could also serve as insulation and a life buoy in water.
Their modified rifles, in addition to laser sights, were also equipped with a separate data transmission module, capable of automatically correcting trajectories and maintaining data network connectivity.
They also possessed life-detection capabilities, able to accurately detect life hidden within walls or underground.
Simply put, they integrated a hygrometer, thermometer, wind direction indicator, wind speed meter, coordinate locator, thermal imager, X-ray vision, and other functions into one.
And on the trigger, there was also a pressure-activated fingerprint identification system. Only company personnel whose fingerprints were recognized could unlock the weapon's safety.
As for the Ranger Neuro-Mechanical Helmet on their heads, it needs no further introduction.
Currently, this unit was only in its preliminary construction phase. Yet, these ten individuals alone consumed over three hundred million Jennies in funds, demonstrating how expensive these advanced weapons and equipment were.
And if research and development costs were added, this figure would have to double.
But Illumi didn't care. Although three hundred million Jennies was a large sum anywhere, the Umbrella Corporation was investing trillions of Jennies in its upcoming base construction project.
Three hundred million Jennies was just pocket change.
"Take him away."
Pride commanded. Two team members stepped forward, grabbed Amagiri Kōsuke's shoulders, lifted him, and walked towards the deeper part of the complex.
"Supervisor, where are the other three?"
A team member asked Pride.
"Take them to the biotechnology research institute as well."
"Ugh..."
After an unknown period, Amagiri Kōsuke awoke and looked around.
He first found himself in a room with pure white walls all around, and then he saw his three companions, also bound to operating tables like him.
"Papa!"
"Kristie!"
"Akutagawa!"
Amagiri Kōsuke endured the severe pain in his body and loudly called out their names.
"Where... is this?"
The other three also awoke. They were first blinded by a surge of white light. After adjusting to the light, they looked around in confusion.
"He delivered himself to our doorstep?"
Outside the laboratory, Illumi stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the four who had awakened inside.
"That's right."
"You even let them see the company's documents and files, and allowed them to kill a new Avenger Soldier?"
"I showed them some interesting things, but only some early experimental data that wasn't very useful."
"As for the Avenger, it was just a welcoming gift. But their willpower is quite firm. Even with a companion dying by their hands, it didn't greatly affect their mental state."
Illumi slightly frowned, looked at Pride, and said.
"Stop doing such morbid things. It's a waste of time and resources."
"Hmm, I understand."
Pride nodded in response.
"Austin said Amagiri Kōsuke has some kind of force behind him. Did you find anything?"
After Illumi asked, Pride had one of his subordinates hand him a tablet. With a light tap on the touchscreen, an electronic screen immediately appeared on the laboratory's glass wall.
"I checked the Hunter Association's identity database."
"Amagiri Kōsuke, 26 years old, born in an island nation. The island nation is located in the southern archipelago of Oki Continent and is a neighboring country to the Ozma Federation."
"Amagiri Kōsuke was born into an ancient family in this island nation—the Amagiri family."
On the electronic screen in front of Illumi, all of Amagiri Kōsuke's identity information was displayed.
"Anything else?"
Illumi asked.
"This family is very mysterious. Even the identity database of that island nation has no records of this family."
Pride turned off the tablet in his hand, and the subordinate beside him immediately took it.
"Interesting. Send someone to investigate. If possible, deal with them directly."
"Who should I send?"
Pride asked. Illumi pondered for a moment, and various figures flashed through his mind. He finally settled on a slightly crazed face.
"Send Lust and Gluttony with Andreas and Eric."
Illumi ordered. He couldn't go in person for this matter, as he was about to set off for the Kakin Empire.
And the list of personnel going to the Dark Continent this time, besides King Bradley, Greed, Pride, Sloth, and himself.
There were also thirty Avenger soldiers with no independent thoughts or fear.
As for Envy, he had infiltrated the Kakin Empire's Special Expeditionary Division to investigate how the Special Expeditionary Division communicated with the [Gatekeeper] and summoned the [Guide] to lead them to the Dark Continent.
Julius, Andreas, Ahmed, and others had all applied to go to the Dark Continent upon learning of his impending departure.
But Illumi rejected them, citing insufficient strength.
Moreover, when all of the Seven Deadly Sins Nen Beasts left headquarters, they were needed to guard the company's headquarters base.
The current Umbrella Corporation headquarters was still very important. Until the Abyss Base was built, this place would remain their headquarters.
However, the headquarters base was also divided into three areas: office area, production area, and research and development area.
The research and development area was the company's top priority, with defense levels four times higher than the other two areas.
And this time, sending Andreas out on a mission with Lust was also a way to let him vent.
"Bang, bang..."
While Illumi was deep in thought, a series of collisions echoed in the laboratory.
He looked up and saw that the fat man named Papa was struggling fiercely, trying to break free from the alloy shackles on the operating table.
"Akutagawa, can you open these things?"
Amagiri Kōsuke looked at Akutagawa Heiri, who was lying on the operating table beside him, and asked.
"No, I can't even move..."
Akutagawa Heiri's voice was pained. He was severely injured. Let alone activating his ability, he couldn't even move. Only Papa, that Enhancement-type Nen user, could still struggle with such great strength after being severely wounded.
"Me too."
Amagiri Kōsuke heard this and looked over. Kristie's lips were stained with blood, her lips purple, her face weak, and the wound on her abdomen continuously seeped blood.
"Click~"
At this moment, a mechanical sound came from the operating table beneath them.
Immediately after, a large number of black and red plant tentacles rose from beneath the operating table and inserted into their skin with a "thump, thump" sound.
Special spores were implanted into their bodies, penetrating deep along their blood vessels and rapidly entering their systemic circulation.
"Ugh, ugh..."
For a moment, the four of them convulsed violently. Their skin and muscles all over their bodies rapidly expanded, and their veins and blood vessels twisted like small snakes.
The systemic changes occurring throughout their bodies, the continuous breaking and reforming of DNA chains, and the violent changes in all their blood cells and tissues—the pain within could only be imagined.
Amagiri Kōsuke's eyes were splitting with rage, his brain aching as if it would burst.
Unlike the other three, Amagiri Kōsuke, though his body constantly transformed, gritted his teeth, and fragments of memories from childhood to adulthood continuously cycled through his mind.
As before, Illumi stood outside the laboratory, observing all the changes and movements of the four inside.
"Dr. Baldwin, with this level of physical change, where does the energy come from?"
Illumi looked at the four violently convulsing figures, suddenly curious. DNA molecular recombination, complete bodily transformation—the energy required for this must be immense. What was the reason for this phenomenon, which seemed to defy the conservation of energy?
"I believe it all comes from Ki, that peculiar energy contained within the human body."
Dr. Baldwin pushed up his glasses and chuckled softly.
"Before we knew about the existence of Ki, we couldn't even imagine that the human body contained such a vast amount of energy."
Illumi fell silent. Indeed, if one were to say it was unreasonable, the very existence of Ki as an energy was inherently unreasonable.
Not to mention that in this world, there were so many strange beasts and treasures that defied scientific common sense. This was already a bizarre world.
Ten minutes passed...
"Boss!"
"Look at the lab quickly!"
Dr. Baldwin suddenly shouted excitedly, rousing Illumi from his contemplation. He looked at the laboratory and was momentarily astonished.
Of the four in the lab, only two survived. The female Nen user died, unable to withstand the active phase.
But their focus wasn't on them, but on Amagiri Kōsuke.
"No change in body size, no stop in heartbeat. This is..."
"This is the completed product! The completed product! Boss!"
Unlike Illumi's surprised expression, Dr. Baldwin's face was filled with extreme excitement. He looked at Amagiri Kōsuke in the laboratory as if he were looking at a treasure.
"Boss, please, you must spare this person's life."
Dr. Baldwin requested Illumi. He felt that this human was extraordinary, and he needed to find the differences between him and others.
"Alright."
Illumi agreed. The human potential activation experiment had been ongoing for two years, and finally, the first true completed product had appeared.
"Clang!"
At this moment, Amagiri Kōsuke in the laboratory suddenly opened his eyes. His first action was to break free from his restraints. With a "clang," the shackles binding his hands and feet actually showed tiny cracks.
"Bang!"
The next moment, Amagiri Kōsuke even pulled his hands free from the operating table along with the shackles, then struggled to pull out his legs.
"Bang! Bang!"
With two loud thuds, Amagiri Kōsuke pulled out his legs, but the shackles remained on his hands and feet.
"Oh~?"
"He broke free instantly, and even made cracks appear on the Mana Alloy shackles?"
Illumi's interest greatly increased. From his performance, the completed product's power was overwhelmingly superior to that of the semi-finished product.
At the same time, he also felt that Amagiri Kōsuke's luck was simply too good.
Not only did he survive the 85% mortality rate of the special spore modification process, but he also endured the active phase, becoming a true completed product.
Then, could he himself...
But Illumi only thought for a moment before shaking his head and rejecting this possibility.
After all, the technology was still immature. Amagiri Kōsuke's case was simply blessed by the goddess of luck; it wasn't something anyone could succeed at.
Only when the modification technology was completely mature and the risks minimized would he perhaps try it.
Moreover, his own talent wasn't low. If it weren't absolutely necessary, it would be better not to undertake such an experiment.
"Ahhh~!!!"
While Illumi was deep in thought, Amagiri Kōsuke in the laboratory knelt before Kristie's twisted, swollen, bruised corpse, clutching his head and screaming.
"Roar!"
"Roar!"
At the same time, the newly born Avenger soldiers on the other two operating tables roared at Amagiri Kōsuke.
"Papa, Akutagawa..."
Amagiri Kōsuke, holding Kristie's corpse, looked at his two companions, who had turned into "monsters," and felt even greater grief and indignation.
"Swish!"
He suddenly turned his head, looking in Illumi's direction outside the laboratory, his eyes bloodshot and filled with murderous intent.
"His perception has also improved a lot; he actually sensed our presence."
Illumi looked at Amagiri Kōsuke in the laboratory and said to the researchers behind him.
"Remove the shackles. Let's see the difference between a semi-finished product and a completed product."
🚨 Note : Consider to Support this Story on Patreon.com/Flokixy to access +400 advance Chapters & 2 Chapters Daily and To Support The Daily Update