Joey didn't rush into anything unnecessary, continuing his pace through the forest at his own pace.
Dealing with the Chimera Ants behind him wasn't difficult for Joey; he had already quickly devised several methods while traversing the forest.
Regardless of whether they made the first move, he would eliminate them quickly, because according to the map, he would reach a village in about half an hour.
In the current situation, Joey dared not gamble on whether the village had been invaded by Chimera Ants.
He carefully reviewed the map again, then tucked it back into his pocket and reached into the pack on his back.
After a moment's hesitation, he took out a bamboo tube about the length of his forearm—his water container and the most suitable item in his pack for the current situation.
After walking a short distance, Joey suddenly stopped under a tall tree, carefully observing his surroundings before hiding the bamboo tube among some rocks beneath the tree.
He then checked again to make sure there was nothing nearby before turning and running into the forest.
Less than half a minute after Joey left, a bee-like monster with thin, cicada-like wings, a bee-like head, four segmented arms, two long hind legs, and a bulging abdomen with a sharp, purplish stinger at the end appeared under the tree where Joey had hidden the item.
Its large, dark eyes carefully scanned the area under the tree several times, and only after confirming there were no traps did it focus its gaze on the bamboo tube.
The bee-chimera ant cautiously reached forward and extended an arm to grab the bamboo tube.
The instant its fingertips touched the tube, an explosion erupted!
The bee-chimera ant was instantly torn apart by the explosion.
The Killer Queen's first bomb could turn anything it touched into a bomb, exploding the moment an enemy touched it.
Clearly, the bamboo tube Joey had left behind had been touched and turned into a bomb without his knowledge. If the Chimera Ant, which had been watching him, became curious about the tube and touched it, an explosion would be imminent.
After leaving for about half a minute without receiving feedback from the Killer Queen, Joey suddenly felt a portion of his strength disappear instantly, indicating his mission had succeeded. He hesitated briefly before turning back.
He hadn't gone far, but had to remain vigilant, so his return wasn't particularly fast.
About a minute later, Joey reappeared quite a distance from the tree.
He saw the broken body of the bee-Chimera Ant in the distance, but it didn't seem completely dead; some remnants were still wriggling on the ground. The Killer Queen behind Joey's left hand twitched slightly, and the chariot fell to the ground.
The tracks left two marks on the ground, and arrogant words echoed through the forest. The next second, as it approached the Chimera Ant, the chariot suddenly exploded.
The Chimera Ant's mangled body was thrown into the air again, but this time it landed completely shattered.
The Skull Chariot made a low, guttural sound, made a quick assessment, and then turned and sped back.
Joey pursed his lips, suppressing a urge to vomit. He glanced again at the scattered Chimera Ant corpses and the intact bamboo tube in the distance, but didn't approach to retrieve it. Instead, he turned and disappeared into the forest.
The bamboo tube bomb hadn't killed the enemy, which was somewhat unexpected for Joey.
He had intended to kill the enemy when he had the Assassin Queen touch the bamboo tube, but the explosion had drained his strength and failed to achieve his goal.
The reason is worth pondering.
Is it that the bomb's energy extraction is limited each time? If so, does that mean the bomb's power is also limited?
Or does he subconsciously limit the amount of energy he can deplete in an explosion that would kill the Chimera Ants?
Or perhaps the Chimera Ants took action before the explosion, preventing the explosion from having the intended effect?
There's too little data; Joey can't yet determine why the Chimera Ants didn't die immediately from the explosion.
However, he's not in a hurry. As long as he escapes alive this time, he'll have plenty of time to study his own abilities. He'll figure out Stands, stamina, Nen, and so on.
About half an hour after Joey left, several Chimera Ants appeared at the scene of the Bee Chimera Ants' deaths. One of them, a Chimera Ant with a dog's head, twitched its nose a few times and then pointed in the direction Joey had left. Several other Chimera Ants didn't even glance at the pile of flesh and chased after it.
Although Joey was unaware of the approaching chimera ants, a glance at his phone filled him with urgency.
It was already 3 PM, and the journey to the base would take at least another three or four hours. Time was tight; he hoped nothing went wrong along the way, otherwise, if he couldn't reach the base before dark, it would be dangerous.
Less than half an hour after setting off, Joey passed the village marked on the map.
Looking towards the village from the hillside, he saw no villagers, but many houses were collapsed, clearly indicating a previous chimera ant attack.
Joey's heart sank, and he became even more vigilant.
Continuing to run, Joey gradually experienced the dangers of the deep forest. This area, which adhered to the principles of nature conservation, wasn't only threatened by chimera ants; numerous undocumented wild animals and poisonous insects also roamed the forest.
Even with his limited wilderness survival experience, Joey needed to be extremely cautious in this environment, which significantly slowed his progress.
As the sun began to set, Joey grew increasingly anxious.
But anxiety offered no help in this situation; it only made things more dangerous. If it weren't for the Assassin Queen constantly following him, he might have already been injured and forced to stop in the forest.
After continuing for over an hour, Joey slowed his pace further. His nose was filled with the stench of blood, and numerous human corpses came into view.
These bodies were all dressed in white combat uniforms, and weapons such as firearms were found beside them.
Clearly, these were not ordinary villagers of NGL, but rather personnel belonging to the organization.
They were still about an hour's journey from the organization's base, but signs of Chimera Ants had already appeared.
It seemed the organization was likely under attack or had already been captured.
Overall, the situation ahead was far from optimistic.
Joey looked up at the sky again; it was almost six o'clock. He had been trekking through the forest for nearly three hours.
Even though he had found a stream to replenish his water and food, maintaining the Killer Queen's presence and occasionally using her abilities had left Joey feeling deeply exhausted.
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