Chapter 632: The Problem of Energy!
Even though Gaino did not know why Ryuunosuke had summoned him, the sphere of energy in Ryuunosuke's hand instantly stole his attention.
"Can you absorb this?" Ryuunosuke asked, pushing the newly obtained energy toward Gaino.
"This…?"
Gaino stared at it, eyes narrowing.
"Isn't this the energy source of the Infinity Stones?"
"But it feels different from the Infinity Stones I used before. There's something special about it."
"It's like we're getting closer to the origin."
"Closer to the origin?" Ryuunosuke's gaze sharpened. "What you call the origin is the Infinity Heart?"
After all, Gaino had devoured and fused with the Heart of Infinity.
Having the Heart of Infinity was the same as holding a higher level Infinity Stone.
So the origin Gaino was describing had to be related to that.
"Right," Gaino said quickly. "It feels like the Heart of Infinity."
"Actually, this energy already has the rudiments of the Heart of Infinity."
"A prototype?" Ryuunosuke's expression turned heavy.
"So this was prepared for the Heart of Infinity."
"And there should be more than just this one monster on this island."
"If creatures like this exist in large numbers… how many Hearts of Infinity could they create?"
His tone stayed calm, but the seriousness beneath it was obvious.
The Dragon Hunter Pirates were strong.
But when something touched the level of gods, nothing was ever simple.
"Captain, I absorbed it all."
Gaino's voice snapped Ryuunosuke out of his thoughts.
"Hah?" Ryuunosuke blinked.
Only then did he realize the energy sphere in his palm was gone.
It had already been absorbed by Gaino.
Even if Ryuunosuke tried absorbing that energy himself, it would take time.
For Gaino, it was as effortless as drinking water.
"This energy comes from the same source as the Eternal Heart Green," Gaino said, his tone steady.
"I did not need to convert it. It entered my body on its own."
"And the Eternal Heart Green has been strengthened because of it."
"Based on our previous speculation, if this energy is given enough time to grow, it will definitely become a Heart of Eternity."
At that moment, Tatsumi hurried over, clutching the Dragon Hunter Token.
"Captain, similar monsters have appeared in other areas too."
"The squad leaders and their combat teams have already started fighting them."
"The Fourth Division members have begun killing these creatures."
Ryuunosuke's eyes went cold.
"Notify everyone. Leave the forest. Regroup at the beach."
The moment he gave the order, he grabbed Gaino and moved.
Tatsumi relayed the message while retreating toward the sea.
Boom!
Just as they left, the ground behind them split open.
A gigantic mouth burst up from below, snapping at empty air.
If Ryuunosuke and the others had hesitated for even a breath, they would have been swallowed by that abyss.
The attack missed, and the massive mouth vanished again.
The earth smoothed itself out almost instantly, as if nothing had ever happened.
But Ryuunosuke had felt it clearly.
That thing was watching.
Not long after, everyone gathered on the shore.
"Captain, are we really going to keep fighting here…"
Puff!
Before Ban could finish, Ryuunosuke's fist smashed into him.
Half of Ban's body shattered on the spot.
"I just told you not to fight anything you run into," Ryuunosuke said calmly. "Did you forget already?"
A moment later, Ban's body restored itself and returned to normal.
Using Ban as the example was convenient.
You could not kill him.
And Ban did not exactly reject the experience of being violently attacked.
"Captain, you could've just said what you wanted to say. Why hit me?" Ban complained, but his tone was lazy, not angry.
Then he continued, reporting what happened like it was nothing.
"Those monsters are something."
"It's like there's no end to them. They appear way too fast."
"And we can't release mental energy in this area, so we can't find the source at all."
Ryuunosuke glanced at the others.
"What about the other squads?"
"It's basically what Ban said," someone answered.
"These monsters are very strong."
"And there's no way to kill them with ordinary methods."
"They heal insanely fast, and they're resistant to damage."
Escanor, who had been silent the whole time, finally lifted his hand.
A sphere of energy hovered above his palm.
"We killed one," Escanor said. "And this was left behind."
"I thought it might be useful, so I brought it back."
The moment the energy appeared, everyone leaned in.
"Is this what was inside their bodies?" Najenda asked, stepping forward first.
She was familiar with this kind of energy cluster.
After all, she had dealt with Infinity Stones before.
Ryuunosuke nodded.
"This is an energy source evolving into the Heart of Eternity."
"I already tested it with Gaino."
He looked toward the dark island behind them, then continued in a slow, measured voice.
"And this island is strange. It feels alive."
"The recording pointer can't retain its magnetic field at all."
"There are no landmarks."
"Even the sea is different from everywhere else. There's no movement at all."
"It's basically a calm belt."
He had summoned everyone here for this reason.
To share what he knew about the island, and about the monsters.
Ryuunosuke was not arrogant enough to believe he was invincible.
Unknowns could be explored.
But they could not be treated recklessly.
"Captain," Chrollo said, thinking carefully, "if we collect enough of these, can Gaino create a new Heart of Eternity?"
The Heart of Eternity was absurdly powerful.
Before, the crew could not absorb it.
But after Gaino fused with it, the crew gained compatibility with it.
If a new Heart of Eternity could be born, it might push everyone's strength up again.
And something like that was a treasure beyond price.
The temptation was obvious.
"I'm not clear on the full function of these energy sources yet," Ryuunosuke said.
"But one thing is certain. I can absorb this energy."
"Once we absorb enough, we should learn whether a new Heart of Eternity can truly be created."
Gaino nodded along.
"This is the first time I've encountered something like this too."
"Whether it can become a Heart of Eternity is still uncertain."
Escanor looked at Ryuunosuke directly.
"So are we going to hunt them next?"
"It's not easy to hunt monsters like this."
Ryuunosuke understood exactly what Escanor meant.
Escanor had killed one, but it was not as effortless as it looked.
Even Ryuunosuke himself had used a significant amount of power to bring one down.
Against ordinary enemies, Ryuunosuke could win with a finger.
Even against the Guardians, he rarely needed to push himself.
But these creatures were different.
And the island itself was even worse.
.....
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