Sanbica's professional ability was crucial for the subsequent journey to the Dark Continent.
Ging had originally been worried about whether Morrow could successfully invite Sanbica to join the team. After all, he was well aware of Tessa's influence over Sanbica and understood that Sanbica often let Tessa sway her on critical decisions.
Now, seeing Sanbica's firm attitude, Ging was not only surprised but also certain that Tessa would be unable to sway Sanbica's decision this time.
In her heart, Tessa also knew she could no longer change the decision Sanbica had made after careful consideration. After landing a solid punch on Ging, she couldn't help but let out a soft sigh.
It had to be said, Ging deliberately coming over to take a beating at a time like this had indeed calmed her agitated heart somewhat.
She no longer tried to dissuade Sanbica, nor did she pay any mind to Ging, who was still putting on an act nearby. Instead, she turned her gaze to Morrow.
Meeting Tessa's stare, Morrow immediately understood her meaning and said solemnly, "I can't promise too much, but I can guarantee that whenever we encounter danger, I will always stand in front of Sanbica."
"..."
Tessa's eyes flickered, her gaze sweeping imperceptibly over the aura flowing around Morrow.
If there was anything that could put her slightly at ease, it was the astonishing aura output Morrow had displayed when he flew over just now.
In an environment like the Dark Continent, that level of strength could at least buy the team and its members more room for error.
Tessa sighed softly again, nodded at Morrow, and said, "I hope you keep your word."
In truth, she had another layer of concern.
In the extreme environment of the Dark Continent, what kind of test would human nature be put to?
Anyone could say pretty words, but once placed in a bizarre and terrifying environment, when a person was on the verge of collapse, let alone making sacrifices, even abandoning teammates to save oneself was a perfectly normal reaction.
After all, the Dark Continent was just that irrational.
Despite this, she was still willing to believe Morrow's promise at this moment.
Or rather, she was more willing to trust Sanbica's judgment of character.
Tessa's gaze shifted to Ging.
"Ging."
"Hm?"
Ging stopped his slightly exaggerated performance.
Tessa asked, "Are you going too?"
As soon as she said this, Morrow and Sanbica also looked toward Ging.
Facing their inquiring gazes, Ging raised a hand to scratch the back of his head.
Morrow awaited Ging's answer.
His intention in meeting with both Ging and Sanbica at the same time was self-evident.
The currently confirmed members for the Dark Continent expedition also included Biscuit, Kalluto, Ponzu, Menchi, and the Chimera.
Biscuit's role was similar to Morrow's, primarily responsible for frontline protection, ensuring the safety of teammates and bearing all overt risks.
However, her more important function was to use Miss Cookie's ability, which allowed the team to recover their energy and stamina with just half an hour of sleep.
In a place like the Dark Continent, where truly safe zones might not exist, the importance of this ability was self-evident.
Kalluto's main role in the team was communication and location tracking.
In addition, with the familiar spirit ability she had recently developed using the corpses of the King and the Royal Guard as material, she could also share some of the frontline protection duties.
But her core function remained communication and the ability to locate teammates.
The importance of communication naturally went without saying.
And if the team were to encounter a crisis and get separated on the Dark Continent, the ability to locate teammates would be exceptionally valuable.
Ponzu's duty was reconnaissance.
With her Infinite Hive Window ability, she could greatly expand their alert perimeter and detect potential threats in advance.
Menchi was the chef. Besides being responsible for food, she had also developed an Enhancement Ability called "God's Tongue" using her Etude of Love ability, which could determine if ingredients were edible.
Given their lack of knowledge about the Dark Continent, this ability was also very important, ensuring the team wouldn't have to worry about food later on.
As for the Chimera, there was even less need for explanation.
It was the fundamental guarantee that the team could undertake a long-range expedition across the vast and boundless Dark Continent.
Now, with Sanbica's addition, their medical needs were also covered.
Based on the current team composition, they were still lacking a Beast Hunter skilled in various biological knowledge, as well as an apothecary like Gel.
If conditions permitted, a Pro Hunter skilled in translating ancient script could also provide rather crucial help for the Dark Continent exploration.
And Ging's abilities clearly leaned more toward being all-purpose.
He had dabbled in various fields. In the original story, he had impressed the linguist on Beyond's team just by showing off his language skills.
If Ging joined, Morrow would be even more confident about this trip to the Dark Continent.
"Unfortunately, I can't go."
Ging slowly lowered his hand, a hint of helplessness in his tone.
Hearing his words, Sanbica had little reaction, but Morrow and Tessa were stunned.
They both knew that Ging possessed an incredibly strong desire to challenge the Dark Continent; it could be called his dream.
Ging sighed and said, "I'm not afraid of you laughing at me, but I was too young back then and accidentally got screwed over by Netero..."
"Huh?"
The look in Tessa's eyes as she gazed at Ging suddenly turned strange, as if to say, even a scoundrel like you gets screwed over?
Morrow, on the other hand, looked astonished and asked, "Don't tell me the Chairman placed a Limitation on you, 'forbidden from going to the Dark Continent'?"
"A Limitation?"
Ging looked at Morrow and shook his head. "Not that. I just made a bet with him, and since I lost, I have to abide by an agreement."
"What agreement?" Morrow pressed.
As if recalling some unpleasant memory, Ging's eyes turned dead. He said, "I can only go to the Dark Continent through 'official means of passage.' That's the agreement Chairman Netero made me keep. Sigh, that cunning old man. He himself snuck into the Dark Continent."
"..."
Hearing this, Morrow rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on.
This indeed sounded like something Netero would do.
Ging saw Morrow's reaction and spread his hands. "So if I want to go to the Dark Continent, I have to first get a permit and qualification from the International Permit Agencies, and most importantly, the contract. Unfortunately, I don't have any of those right now. Of course, I'm not in a particular hurry myself."
At this point, he suddenly sighed again, his tone tinged with regret.
"But seeing you so eager to go to the Dark Continent now, it'd be a lie to say I'm not tempted. What a pity... I know you have that magical beast with you, so there's no way you can go through official channels. And I have to honor my agreement with Netero, so I can't catch this 'ride.'"
"A real pity indeed," Morrow sighed in agreement.
Of course he couldn't choose the official channels.
It wasn't because he had the Chimera, but because under the strict control of the V5 and the International Permit Agencies, a true Dark Continent travel permit would never be issued to a private citizen.
The so-called official means were just a facade to placate the outside world.
Netero was clearly aware of the inside story, yet he still demanded Ging abide by this agreement, which was tantamount to completely cutting off any possibility of Ging going to the Dark Continent.
But from Ging's reaction, it was clear he didn't know the truth behind it.
Morrow only knew these hidden details because he was a transmigrator.
Otherwise, to get Ging to join them on the journey to the Dark Continent, Morrow would have tried to obtain the permit and qualifications no matter what.
Ging's expression suddenly turned serious. "Although I can't catch this ride, I can still offer some help. First, about your magical beast. I believe it has the stamina for long-term flight, but you can't completely rely on it to carry you to the Dark Continent."
"What do you mean?" Morrow watched Ging's serious expression.
"Because after crossing the maritime border of the world map, the most dangerous thing isn't the ocean, but the sky," Ging explained. "The climate there is extremely harsh, with either storms or tornadoes. What's more troublesome are the various flying creatures. They will fight each other to the death to compete for airspace."
"I see..." A trace of surprise flashed in Morrow's eyes.
He didn't remember such a detail from the original story.
So, for the humans of the six continents to challenge the Dark Continent, they could usually only choose the sea route?
This also explained why an organization like the International Permit Agencies existed.
Because the air route was simply not viable.
This was most likely a fact verified with countless lives.
If the threat from the air was greater, then the original plan would have to be adjusted.
Morrow suddenly felt that he had been too simplistic about some things.
Ging asked, "Do you remember the 'drift bottle' we discussed before?"
"Yes," Morrow nodded.
The drift bottle was the item that had appeared in the memory fragments he had extracted from the Post-Mortem Nen at the ruins.
That thing seemed to possess the ability of long-distance spatial transfer.
In that ancient memory, it was this kind of bottle that had brought some sort of disaster to the six continents of the past.
"Its real name is the Klein Bottle."
A faint light glinted in Ging's eyes as he explained, "It first appeared in the Kukan'yu Kingdom during the Age of Contention. According to existing documents, several ancient natural disasters that caused mass deaths were actually triggered by the Klein Bottle. To be more precise, they were caused by the 'calamities' it brought from the Dark Continent."
"After in-depth investigation, I found that the descendants of the Kukan'yu royal family likely still possess some Klein Bottles. The origin of these bottles seems to be closely related to Kukan'yu's ancient Divine Script system."
After explaining the origin of the "Klein Bottle," Ging offered a suggestion.
"Considering the functionality of the Klein Bottle, I suggest that before you decide to travel to the Dark Continent by air, you should first gain a deeper understanding of this item. It's worth a try, even as a backup plan. And on this matter, I can help you."
"Wait..."
Tessa, at the side, suddenly noticed something.
Her focus, however, was not on the Klein Bottle. She took out the Insect Flute Ging had just given her, her brow furrowed slightly.
"So this Insect Flute wasn't something you specifically went to Kukan'yu to find for me, but something you picked up along the way while investigating this Klein Bottle?"
"..."
Ging fell silent for a moment, then slowly said, "It did take quite a bit of effort, that's true."
His response was tantamount to an admission.
Tessa took a deep breath, then let out another deep sigh.
When discussing serious matters, Ging directly ignored Tessa's reaction and looked at the pensive Morrow, asking, "What do you think? Are you interested in looking into it?"
"We can check it out first," Morrow nodded.
Although he was more inclined to take the air route directly, with Ging's help regarding the Klein Bottle, it was indeed a viable backup plan.
The Kukan'yu Kingdom...
Thinking of the royal descendants, the image of that silver-haired madwoman couldn't help but surface in Morrow's mind.
—--
Among the many ancient nations, funerary sacrifice was once a common custom.
The ancient Kakin Empire, in particular, had a prevalent special sacrificial system called the "posthumous partner."
The so-called posthumous partners were, in reality, opposite-sex individuals chosen for funerary sacrifice to prevent princes who failed to inherit the throne from becoming vengeful spirits after death and disturbing the king and the nation. They were meant to monitor them in the underworld.
These partners were given respectful titles on the surface, but in reality, they came from a class known as the "Have-Nots."
These were the lowest class of people, whose status and position could never be changed throughout their lives, a practice that could be traced back to the slave system.
Or rather, it was a phenomenon derived from the slave system.
Although the custom of sacrificing posthumous partners has now been abolished, the social status of those born as Have-Nots has not changed to this day.
They are beings equivalent to untouchables.
However, among the many princes, the second prince, Camilla, for political considerations, granted these "Have-Nots" the opportunity to serve as her Personal Guards and specifically established an autonomous zone for them with special privileges and status.
This move not only won Camilla the support of the untouchable class but also allowed her to form a curse unit specifically aimed at the other princes.
But even with the second prince proactively improving the situation of the untouchables for her own selfish desires, in reality, only a portion of the untouchables had their status and identity changed.
Why did Beyond say that Kakin never lacked for sacrifices?
It was precisely because of the existence of this untouchable class.
And the "good luck" characteristic of the regalia, the Sword of Good Omens, was essentially an ability related to willpower and wishes.
By offering a sufficient number of human lives as sacrifices, it could fulfill the wielder's wish in the form of fortune.
Kakin's prosperous national fortune was inextricably linked to this regalia.
At the same time, this was the fundamental reason why the Kakin royal family still secretly continued feudal rituals like Carne Levare and insisted on holding them regularly.
The ostentatious luxury and pleasure were merely a surface disguise.
The true purpose was to offer sacrifices for the nation's fortune through these rituals.
Now, Beyond had borrowed this regalia from Hui Guo Rou.
All that was missing were the sacrifices.
Dark clouds churned in the sky, heralding an approaching storm.
Outside a village, Beyond gripped the Sword of Good Omens, the fierce wind whipping his blood-red cape behind him.
He gazed at the peaceful village in the distance, his eyes devoid of any pity.
To achieve my goal... I need at least ten thousand sacrifices.
Of course, for him, the more sacrifices, the more secure the plan.
So, the same point stood... for a behemoth like the Kakin Empire, the one thing it isn't short of is pariahs to use as sacrifices.
Coincidentally, the great nation of Kukan'yu, which had also endured since the Age of Contention, was highly similar to the Kakin Empire in many ways.
It also possessed a national regalia, retained many feudal systems, and had the existence of "Dust People."
And Kakin had Beyond.
But Kukan'yu also had Morena...