Ging, amidst left and right strikes, using his golden aura, repelled a large wave of "Little Nautilus."
When he turned around, not only had Shizuku and Morel disappeared, but he also saw the "Dark Crown" hovering above Bisky's head!
"Dammit!" Ging muttered, unsure if he was cursing them or himself. "Didn't they say we need to be mentally firm?"
In the next moment, Bisky was also pulled away by the "Twisted Vortex."
Ging was quickly surrounded by the endlessly coming "Little Nautilus."
He could easily kill them, but he couldn't stop their "pressure assault."
Finally, he felt it. He had crossed the critical point of "pressure."
However, the "silver-white halo" he expected did not appear. Instead, what rested above his head was still the "dark crown."
No exceptions.
It's easy to say, but hard to do, right?
Erupting with a "silver-white halo" is a rare event. This time, we all lost the bet...
A "twisting vortex" appeared beside him. Ging looked up and noticed that above his head, Germain, with his "silver-white halo," was focused on battling the second-phase Otherworldly Demon.
No, there's someone else too.
The struggle with the "small nautilus" gave Germain the time and space needed to fight against the "giant nautilus."
At the last moment, when being engulfed by the "twisting vortex," Ging gathered his golden "Nen," concentrating it into a glowing spear, and threw it with all his might!
Whoosh—
Shing—
The golden spear pierced through the Otherworldly Demon Nautilus, briefly halting its movements.
Seizing the chance, Germain gathered strength for a heavy strike, shattering the nautilus's brain defense with a single blow, crushing its many crimson eyes!
The "Giant Nautilus" cried out in pain, retreating slightly.
Germain turned and looked down at the battlefield. All he saw was an endless darkness. The beams of the headlamps had disappeared.
A large wave of "small nautilus" flew toward him under the glow of his sacred moonlight sword, like repulsive moths drawn to a flame.
Germain couldn't describe his feelings at that moment.
He didn't even know what he did next.
All he knew was that when he came to his senses, the "small nautilus" were all nothing but chunks of shredded flesh, falling into the abyss.
What still floated in front of him was the "Giant Nautilus," which had taken heavy damage again and again.
"Boom—"
Germain raised his sacred moonlight sword high and plunged it into its brain with a sharp stab.
A beam of blue light shot out from the other side, creating a huge hole!
The "Giant Nautilus" lost all its energy, falling down like a meteor.
After the battle, Germain drifted alone in the endless "Dark Space."
The "Hunter Badge" projection showed that he had acquired the "Dark Nautilus' Resentful Memory" and the "Teleportation Lantern," but he remained completely unaware of it.
He didn't know how long he had been in the "Dark Space."
After gathering his thoughts, he tried to find the boundaries of this place.
Maybe there was a boundary, maybe not; Germain wasn't sure, but at least it was a glimmer of hope.
If the "Dark Space" was a shared place for various "Space Nen abilities," then theoretically, it could lead to anything and everything, with countless exits.
If he found the boundary, found an opening, he might be able to leave the "Dark Space" and check on Shizuku and the others' safety.
Germain refused to believe that Shizuku and the others had simply disappeared without a trace.
Due to "tapeworm disease," hunger gnawed at his stomach, so he first used the "Healing Herb Needle" to cure the illness, then took out the "Food Card."
However, the "Food Card" didn't work.
Germain realized that here, any "Space Nen abilities" were rendered useless.
So, he endured the hunger and continued to drift.
The cost of the "Contempt Armor" was that once the battle ended, it couldn't be removed on its own.
The "Silver Halo" would turn into the "Dark Crown," constantly torturing Germain's body and mind.
But at this moment, Germain felt that this torment was actually a good thing. The pain allowed him to numb himself.
However, not long after the "Dark Crown" appeared, a "twisting vortex" appeared in front of Germain.
He stared at it, deep in thought.
I see now.
The purpose of this "Dark Space" pulling them in was, in part, to make them all wear the "Dark Crown" and suffer!
If that's the case, then this vortex must be…
Germain stretched his brows in the familiar mental and physical torment, slightly tilting his head.
He calmly flew toward the "Twisted Whirlpool."
Vroom—
The darkness receded, and light returned to the world.
Germain, as if waking from a deep slumber, opened his eyes between two towering rock formations.
Then, he heard an unknown birdcall from the branches not far away.
He stepped out from between the giant rocks and stood amidst the fallen leaves.
The sky was half-hidden and half-revealed, obscured by the thick branches of towering trees, with mist swirling around.
He looked around but saw no sign of Shizuku or the others. All he could see were trees, stones, weeds, and a distant cloud of mist.
But regardless, this meant his speculation was correct.
The "Dark Space" had intentionally pulled them in, to torment them all, and then return them outside of the "Dark Space."
But where was this place? Was it still the "Steep Mountain Range," or was it somewhere else?
Everyone should have been teleported to different locations.
If it were the same place, they would have stayed to wait for him or at least left a noticeable mark before leaving.
He took out the handheld communicator made by Dwun and List, turned it on, but it wasn't working.
Was it broken?
Germain furrowed his brows, a bad feeling creeping up on him. He then took out his phone, only to find it couldn't turn on and remained stuck on a black screen.
Whether it was the "Dark Space" or something strange about this place, all his electronic devices had stopped functioning.
This meant he couldn't directly contact the others.
So, Germain decided to release his "En" again, hoping to scan the area and try his luck.
But, after all, the "En" wasn't all-powerful.
It scanned the area, picking up countless life forms, making it impossible to distinguish whether Shizuku and the others were among them.
To confirm, he would have to get closer to the suspected human-like life forms.
The closer the distance, the more accurate the detection of the "En" became.
Germain didn't hesitate and began the search.
********
Support me on my patreon and read upto 30 early chapters.
https://www.patreon.com/Unique_Writer