Chapter 177: Chimera Ants in the Ruins
A massive volume of aura erupted from the man, funneling into the spear in his hand.
In an instant, the weapon glowed with a brilliant, white-hot light. Before the air could even scream from the displacement, the spear was gone.
The sonic boom only reached their ears after the spear had already buried itself in the head of the trapped scorpion.
Enhancement + Emission.
Ronin analyzed the technique. The user used Enhancement to bolster the spear's structural density and the kinetic force of the throw, and Emission to maintain the aura's potency once the weapon left his hand.
This was an Emitter who specialized in Enhancement.
He didn't waste talent on spatial warping or complex rules. He was a seeker of absolute destructive power—the "One-Shot, One-Kill" philosophy.
The spear didn't just pierce the exoskeleton; the aura attached to it triggered a secondary detonation inside the scorpion's skull.
He has some skill in Manipulation too, Ronin noted. To trigger a remote explosion within a target's brain requires precise intent.
This was the hallmark of an Association-trained Hunter. His Hatsu was developed with professional logic—the "Mountain" shape of training: Primary Emission, secondary Enhancement, minor Manipulation support.
Ronin committed the face to memory. If he recalled correctly, the man's name was Colin.
The scorpion was resilient. Even with a shattered brain, its primitive nervous system kept it thrashing violently. However, with the green Nen net pinning it down, its struggle was a pathetic, dying twitch.
The tiger-like predators that had been circling earlier caught the scent of the scorpion's blood and immediately tucked their tails and fled. They were smart enough to recognize a predator that killed their "guardian."
"The beasts that surged out of the ruins were driven by a hive-mind frenzy," Ronin noted. "But these ones understand fear. Does that mean there's a specific monster in here with a 'Command' or 'Persuasion' ability?"
"You mean a Nen user?" Benket asked, his voice filled with skepticism.
If the hive had developed Nen, the danger level of this mission had just jumped from "High" to "Suicide."
"Hard to say. It could just be a natural pheromone or biological trait," Ronin said vaguely.
But in his heart, he leaned toward Nen. Nen is life energy. If humans, Chimera Ants, and Magical Beasts can use it, there was no reason a sufficiently powerful "Ruin Monster" couldn't develop it by instinct.
And if a beast awakened to Nen without human logic or morality, its threat level was limitless.
Benket clearly took Ronin's warning seriously. While he didn't address the squad, the next phase of the advance was noticeably more cautious.
The scorpion died eventually. Its massive carcass was a goldmine of biological data.
However, of the 17 people in the group, only Ronin had the means to pack it up. The others lacked spatial storage.
Ronin wasn't interested in the bug. He didn't want to waste his "active slots" on a dead scorpion. He needed to manage Owl's stamina for the real treasures deeper in.
With the guardian dead, the jungle became eerily peaceful.
The predators stopped attacking. They followed the unit from the shadows of the bioluminescent trees, baring their teeth if a Hunter got too close, but scattering like birds if the group turned to face them.
They were being "shepherded" deeper into the forest.
The jungle was vast. As they pushed forward, the headcount of monsters increased exponentially. Massive scorpions appeared more frequently, alongside five-meter-long centipedes with human-like faces.
Despite the gas mask, Ronin noticed his breathing was becoming unnaturally smooth.
Connecting the dots to the giant insects, Ronin formed a theory: the atmosphere here had a significantly higher oxygen content than the surface.
Probably over thirty percent.
In the short term, hyper-oxygenation was a boost—it accelerated metabolism and improved circulation. But long-term exposure carried the risk of oxygen toxicity.
More importantly, high oxygen and a lack of avian predators were the perfect conditions for prehistoric-scale insect growth.
It also meant the entire jungle was a tinderbox. One spark, and the whole sub-level would become a furnace.
"High oxygen... giant insects... but the 'tigers' are still normal-sized," Ronin whispered to himself. Something was off. "But the tigers have insect traits."
After the giant centipedes, the Ants appeared.
They emerged in columns—organized, disciplined, and massive. They acted like forest rangers. The moment they appeared, a rhythmic thud-thud-thud began to vibrate through the floor.
It was the sound of thousands of mandibles and legs striking the ground in unison. It carried a primal, hypnotic cadence.
The sound drove the following predators into a frenzy. The tigers began to snarl and snap at each other, their agitation reaching a breaking point.
When the rhythm hit its crescendo, the first tiger lunged.
It was the spark that lit the fuse. The jungle exploded into violence.
Dozens of predators abandoned their caution and charged Ronin's group in a mindless wave.
But Ronin's gaze bypassed the brawling beasts. He looked at the Ants.
They weren't joining the fight. They were pacing back and forth in the distance, watching.
And on those ants, Ronin saw the shimmer of Nen.
Ants. Nen. Intelligence. Hybrid biological traits in the other monsters.
A name from the highest classification of the "Permitted Species Isolation Agency" leapt into Ronin's mind.
Chimera Ants.
"It's a Chimera Ant!"
The biological expert in the squad screamed the name at the exact same moment the realization hit Ronin.
The ruins of Mahavi weren't just a grave. They were a nest. And they were staring at a biological apocalypse.
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