"Are you so impatient?"
Oboro increased the strength in his feet and pressed down hard on Beyond's arm, pinning it to the muddy ground.
With the pressure, Beyond raised his arms little by little, gradually resisting the force Oboro exerted. This made Oboro narrow his eyes. The opponent's physical strength seemed to surpass both his and Netero's.
Bang!
Beyond's arm had risen about a foot from the ground when suddenly a stream of aura rushed down through Oboro's legs. The concentrated energy poured into his feet, forcing the old man's hand back down and deep into the mud.
"Oh?" Beyond's eyebrows twitched with interest, clearly intrigued by Oboro's display of power.
Thousand pounds of weight! One of the techniques Oboro had mastered in his early years.
"He is just one of your subordinates. There's no need for you to show up personally," Beyond said with a calculating smile. "You're in such a hurry that you can't hold yourself back?"
Fishing, Oboro thought.
King Nasubi was not a simple man. He was willing to sacrifice a prince to orchestrate this confrontation with the Beyond.
It seemed that they had discovered the pawns that the Fells family had planted within the royal family long ago, including the honeypot operation.
This action could, on the one hand, at least eliminate the hidden threat posed by the Fells family by using Beyond to send them a warning. If he and Beyond fought each other, Nasubi would suffer no casualties other than the death of a son. And he had many sons anyway. Even if one were lost, he could be replaced.
If Beyond won, the Fells would have to think twice about infiltrating the royal family again for the foreseeable future.
If Oboro won, it would mean that Oboro was the better partner compared to Beyond. The Fells also had the ability to force V5 to capitulate and allow the plan to reach the Dark Continent.
Nasubi chose his partners. And Oboro couldn't refuse.
As for Beyond, he simply wanted to use this opportunity to lure Oboro out into the open. Beyond understood the king's thoughts perfectly well, but he didn't care.
His goal was simpler: to force Oboro to join his camp. Or rather, to surrender to him. One could see that he had this confidence.
Otherwise, neither Beyond nor Nasubi would have any reason to interfere in the lords' quarrel. To them, this was a trivial matter.
What Pariston wanted was to change Beyond's mind about recruiting Oboro and to intensify the conflict between the two, so that in the end only one would survive.
When he sensed Beyond's arrival, Oboro, who had been hiding in the darkness, understood immediately. The reason he had positioned himself nearby was precisely to guard against this possibility.
Pop.
Oboro kept his foot on Beyond while he simultaneously lashed out with an aura whip. The air exploded and the nearby eighth prince and the princess at his side were instantly covered in blood and flesh as their bodies were torn to pieces.
"Let's go, there's nothing for you to do here," Oboro said calmly.
Hearing his command, the private soldiers quickly surrounded the eldest lord and retreated from the scene.
Meanwhile, the battle between Oboro and Beyond had caused the ground beneath everyone's feet to crack. Cracks spread outward from the deep pit in the center, resembling a dark spider web growing across the earth. In addition, the aura released by the two of them collided violently, causing the air pressure in the surrounding space to drop to a suffocating level.
Everyone realized that something was terribly wrong. If they stayed any longer, none of them would survive. This was a battle between two monsters that no longer belonged to the human category.
"Now I understand why my old man looks up to you." Although Beyond's posture was awkward, his laughter echoed with genuine joy.
He was deliberately giving Benjamin and his private soldiers time to evacuate. Only when he heard the sound of cars driving away did Beyond suddenly raise his hands. Oboro's stance faltered for a moment and his entire body was thrown into the air, flipping over before hitting the ground.
Beyond slowly rose to his feet, straightened his shoulders, and stared at Oboro, who had put on his sunglasses with a serious expression on his face. "Are you really going through with this?"
Oboros face remained expressionless.
The other party asked if they were really going to have a serious fight.
"Oboro, you are a qualified partner. And I admire you greatly," Beyond extended his hand in invitation. "Join me and explore the Dark Continent with me. The human world can no longer satisfy us, and this land is our true home. Power and status are meaningless compared to this place!"
He thumped his chest with his other hand, his eyes shining with excitement. "I have been to the Dark Continent, and I know how terrible it is. There are some strong individuals in the human world who are qualified to go to the Dark Continent, but they're either too cautious or too stupid, because they've gotten used to a comfortable life. This has only made them complacent, and they've lost all their potential!"
"Just like Netero!"
"I see the same hunger in your eyes as in mine, and there are only a handful of people in the entire human world who have the strength to gain a foothold on this continent. What is V5? What's the Hunters Association? Don't waste your time recruiting these weaklings. Even if you choose a team carefully, they'll be useless there. A partner who can truly support you is precious, so join me!"
Beyond's words were passionate and truly inspiring. His eyes shone with sincerity.
No wonder Beyond would later announce his expedition to the Dark Continent to the entire world.
Oboro had to admit that even though he couldn't stand Beyond, the man had an outstanding charisma.
"You," Oboro finally spoke.
He looked at Beyond with cold indifference. "Are not worthy!"
"Hahahahahahahaha"
Beyond's rough laughter contained no anger. He simply lowered his shoulders and took a fighting stance. "If I win, I won't kill you. From then on, you'll answer to me."
"If you lose?"
"If I lose, I'll give you my life! How about that? It's a good deal, isn't it?" "You seem to be quite sure of yourself."
Oboro murmured softly, and as his words faded, a dense mist rolled in, swallowing his figure and removing him from Beyond's sight.
At the same time, spectral figures swarmed like locusts through the air toward Beyond, emitting piercing wails that assaulted his mind.
The battle had begun!
The restless spirits were meant to affect the target's mental state, but against someone of Beyond's caliber, the ghostly entities controlled by Oboro couldn't shake his resolve at all.
Dense apparitions flew before his eyes, and the drifting mist made it impossible for Beyond to sense Oboro's location. He also found it difficult to extend his Nen through the sea of mist, encountering considerable resistance.
But he remained calm, standing as still as a mountain.
Suddenly, the air was torn apart by several sharp beams of energy that descended upon him.
They struck the aura surrounding his body, causing a violent rupture.
His defense had been broken!
"Hmm?"
Beyond's eyes flashed with surprise.
The power of the Nen contained in the Obscuration Technique exceeded his expectations.
Moreover, no build-up was needed, the attack seemed to cross time and space, ignoring distance as it automatically found its target.
The massive 'Blade Energy' slashed downward, leaving several bleeding marks on Beyond's body.
"A finger technique!"
Beyond identified the source.
The next second, endless rays of sharp light enveloped him like an overwhelming tidal wave.
From a distance, he seemed to be engulfed by a storm.
It was Oboro. In a matter of seconds, he had used his fighting technique hundreds of times. Each movement of his fingers sent invisible blades slashing at Beyond's body.
Oboro's attack range now extended to ten meters!
Each strike was a critical hit, causing devastating damage.
That was why Beyond had underestimated the power of his techniques.
"Hahahahahahahahaha!"
"HA!"
A heavy air pressure surrounded Beyond. He crossed his arms over his chest to protect his head. His muscles flexed and his aura surged chaotically. Even though every part of his body was being savagely torn apart, his clothes instantly exploding and blood spurting in all directions, he smiled.
"You've never been to the Dark Continent, you don't understand that humans have their limits."
"Foreseeable and predictable attacks also have their limits, they are not to be feared."
"What is truly frightening is always the unknown."
Beyond murmured as if in a trance. He slowly opened his arms to receive Oboro's attacks, allowing the finger techniques to slice the skin on his face. As he withstood the onslaught, a massive blade materialized in his open palm.
The shape of the weapon was grotesque and exaggerated, resembling some kind of ancient artifact.
It was a long-handled knife, heavy with a black texture, several meters long.
It resembled a halberd.
The moment the blade appeared, Oboros heart tightened involuntarily.
A feeling he hadn't experienced in many years suddenly gripped him.
The threat of death!