Inside the palace, Knuckle and Shoot were locked in a fierce battle with Youpi.
Meanwhile, Gon and Killua moved through the halls with practiced precision.
Morel, on the other hand, had managed to fight Pouf on his own, using his tactical mind to gain the upper hand.
The expedition's plans had changed dramatically after Palm's death. Gon no longer searched for Neferpitou and Dragon, instead focusing his rage on eliminating the remaining Chimera Ants.
Without Meleoron and his Perfect Plan ability, which had been crucial in the original timeline, Knuckle and Shoot found it extremely difficult to contain one of the Royal Guards.
The Chairman had successfully lured the king away, leaving the rest of the team to dispatch as many Chimera Ants as possible.
From within the swirling ghost mist, Oboro sensed and observed every living creature and instantly understood the Hunters' battle strategy.
As the dark miasma enveloped everything, the sudden change shocked everyone present.
Even the Chimera ants were taken by surprise.
"Darkness?" Morel, who had been locked in a battle of wits and endurance with Pouf, grabbed his giant pipe in surprise.
His first thought was that this might be a new ability unleashed by the Royal Guard before him, but he quickly dismissed the idea.
The moment darkness fell, he saw genuine surprise on Pouf's face as well.
"I see."
Morel reached out into the darkness and instantly activated his En, expanding his field of perception.
In this all-consuming darkness, eyes were useless; one could only rely on the second sight of a Nen user, which was En.
However, the black fog proved to be unusually powerful, significantly compressing his En field.
He could only maintain consciousness within three or four meters of his body.
Hiss Who is that? More Chimera ants? No, if other ants had intervened, this one would not have missed such an opportunity. He would have launched a sneak attack and seized the advantage! Morel thought as he moved quickly, swinging his massive pipe preemptively.
He struck forcefully at the spot where Pouf had stood moments ago.
If this wasn't the work of the Chimera Ants, whoever it was could wait. Eliminating the immediate threat was the priority.
His weapon sliced through the air, but judging by the lack of resistance, it had hit nothing substantial.
He dodged it? Morel paused, immediately focusing his attention in all directions.
Both he and his enemy had lost visual contact, making them blind to each other's positions.
This meant that Morel was at an even greater disadvantage.
With his En severely weakened, Pouf could rely on his enhanced Chimera Ant senses, making him far more perceptive than Morel.
The Royal Guard could pick up the slightest movement, scent, temperature change - anything.
"Something's coming!"
Suddenly, Morel tensed as he felt an object come within range of his En.
But the approach was too quick; the moment he detected the presence, a hand had already landed firmly on his shoulder.
The hand that held the weapon hadn't even begun to rise.
"Do not be alarmed. It's me," a soft voice spoke near his ear.
"Oboro?" Morel asked in surprise.
Of course he recognized the voice.
Though they hadn't interacted much in recent years and had only met a few times, their last encounter had been in NGL when he had accompanied Bisky to rescue Oboro.
Morel collected himself, but before he could ask any more questions, he noticed that Oboro had already disappeared from his side.
On the other side of the battlefield, Pouf flapped his wings frantically, trying to escape the black fog.
He realized that beyond the pipe-wielding human, a new and more dangerous threat had emerged.
In this fog, his perception was severely limited, putting him at a disadvantage. Escape was the only logical option.
Being smart, Pouf did not try to fly horizontally. Instead, he shot up, trying to use his height to break free of this ability.
Comparing the width and height of the black mist, the vertical distance was significantly shorter, making it faster to break through in that direction.
As the black mist swirled around him, he realized that this 'dark cloud' had engulfed the entire palace - its horizontal range was truly astonishing.
But its vertical reach seemed much more limited.
Just as a vague light began to pierce the darkness above, his vision began to return.
Without warning, a hideous, terrifying face materialized before Pouf. It roared at him with eyes filled with malice and violence.
It was a fierce spirit!
The spirit lunged at him as if to devour his very essence.
Pouf's airborne form moved with extraordinary agility. As he dodged the attack, he swung his arm like a blade, slicing through the ghost's form.
To his shock, although the entity appeared solid, it was actually disembodied-his arm went right through the ghost.
No physical damage was inflicted.
More worryingly, despite the protective layer of aura surrounding his body, the moment his arm touched the ghost, the apparition seemed to change from transparent to solid. A sticky black gas - some kind of dark energy - clung to his hand.
It filled Pouf with a sense of deep corruption and impurity.
It was unmistakably negative energy.
"What is this?" gasped the Royal Guard.
The phenomenon defied his comprehension.
Before he could analyze it further, a dull pain echoed through his skull, momentarily clouding his thoughts.
Regaining his focus, he examined his hand more closely. The black energy had already entered his body.
At this realization, the Butterfly Man's pupils contracted, and his face was drained of color.
Was his mind being invaded?
Suddenly, Pouf remembered something crucial.
Back at the nest, he had communicated with the division commanders about the humans who had killed Neferpitou.
From the division commanders' accounts, especially Korudo's description, that human's ability seemed significantly different from what he now witnessed.
But the ghostly manifestations were identical.
"It's him!"
"He's here too!"
The realization struck Pouf like lightning.
Focusing his will, he forced his mind to reject the 'negative interference' and regain consciousness.
A chilling sensation spread through his body, and his extremities grew cold.
This was exactly what Korudo had mentioned about the soul being eroded.
Pouf realized that he had not been penetrated by the spirit; rather, he had been contaminated by its "essence"!
He knew he had to avoid their trap at all costs, especially direct contact with these ghosts.
Escape from the black mist remained the priority!
Pouf flapped his magnificent butterfly wings vigorously, preparing to evade another malevolent spirit that was lunging at him.
Then there was a sudden, sharp snap.
To his horror, instead of rising, Pouf found himself falling, unstable and weightless.
Both of his wings had been torn clean off.
Because of the disorienting darkness, I flew straight up, reaching an altitude of at least 200 meters. How could a human reach that distance? I didn't feel anyone approaching, as if the attack had materialized out of thin air.
Confusion overwhelmed Pouf.
As his body plummeted, the air around him turned ice-cold, as if ripped apart by an unstoppable force. Even his formidable Chimera Ant body shattered instantly, exploding into a mist of blood and flesh.
But Pouf's reflexes were extraordinary. The moment his physical form was compromised, it began to disintegrate.
His body turned into countless 'fluorescent particles' that scattered in all directions.
Oboro landed gracefully on the ground after his jump.
Although his attack range was less than two hundred meters, combined with his jump height, it had been enough to hit the Royal Guard.
While Pouf's body would be shattered into microscopic fragments that would be difficult to capture, his flight speed would be greatly reduced, and his bodily functions would be severely affected, making escape impossible.
Moreover, considering the sheer numbers
The spirits summoned within this mist of ghosts were far more numerous.
"I'll leave this to you," Oboro said quietly, putting his hands in his pockets before turning toward the palace.
"HOWL!"
The black mist swirled violently as countless evil spirits surged upward after his departure, racing to claim their prize.