CHAPTER 184: ANT KING VS. ANT KING!

Having lived for over a century, this was the first time Netero had ever experienced such a miracle.

’As expected, it possesses an incredibly potent healing ability’ Ging glanced at Blissey, then at Akira, silently marveling to himself.

What Ging and Netero didn’t know was that the effect of ’Soft-Boiled’ was far more terrifying than they imagined.

This was a rule-based ability unique to Pokemon.

Once Netero had fully recovered, the three of them stood side by side, their gazes instinctively locking onto the Ant King across from them.

Under their combined scrutiny, even the Ant King felt a hint of pressure for the first time.

If that old man unleashed that same technique again, while it wouldn’t kill him, it certainly wouldn’t be pleasant.

And now, two more had joined him.

From the faint aura they exuded, these two newcomers were no weaker than the old man!

The Ant King had seen Akira in the palace earlier, but Ging was unfamiliar.

Even now, the Ant King merely found the situation troublesome—not something he couldn’t handle.

"So, old man, how about another round?" Akira glanced at the composed Netero and chuckled.

"Hohohoh, this old man has already had his fill of fighting. I’ll leave the rest to you youngsters." Netero shook his head, his fighting spirit already fully vented.

It was better to give the opportunity to the younger generation.

"In that case, I won’t hold back." With that, Ging prepared to remove his oversized outer robe, eager to face the Ant King head-on.

The earlier battle between the Ant King and Netero had left him itching for action.

"No, this time, it’s my turn." Akira raised a hand to stop Ging, his last words carrying an ambiguous undertone.

"There’ll be plenty of chances for you later. I just hope you won’t lose your nerve when the time comes."

Reluctantly, Ging suppressed his excitement and stayed put, curious to see what Akira would do.

After all, during their fight against the Chimera Ant King, Akira had let him strike first—this was just returning the favor.

But what did Akira mean by that second remark?

Ignoring Ging’s thoughtful expression, Akira turned his attention to the wary Ant King.

"Ant King, I’ve been wondering something." Akira’s lips curled into a playful smirk.

"You believe yourself invincible. But if you were to fight yourself... who would win?"

The moment he finished speaking, a dark green figure materialized beside him.

’That’s... me?!’ The Ant King’s body shuddered as he stared at the figure beside Akira, his pupils contracting sharply.

Standing there was a being nearly identical to the Ant King himself—identical in stature, appearance, and even aura.

The only difference was that this new Ant King was pristine, without any traces of burns from high temperatures.

It was the Ant King, transformed by the shapeshifting Nen beast, Ditto!

"Hohoho, this scene feels so familiar" Netero stroked his newly grown stubble, letting out a mischievous chuckle, curious about how things would unfold.

This sight was all too familiar to him.

Back at Heavens Arena, he had experienced the same thing the Ant King was going through now.

What surprised him, however, was that Akira’s Nen beast wasn’t limited to mimicking just one person.

That opened up far more possibilities.

Ging had the same thought.

He had considered this back when he and the old man were watching the broadcast.

A Nen ability that could perfectly imitate others and even replicate their Nen abilities was terrifying.

If it could mimic the old man, if it could mimic the Ant King... then what about me? Could it imitate me too? And use my abilities?

The more Ging pondered, the more horrifying Akira’s Nen beast seemed—especially since it appeared to have no restrictions.

It could even replicate the Ant King after just a brief encounter.

The [Ant King] strode forward with regal confidence, closing the distance step by step, his cold, imposing expression radiating intimidation.

The real Ant King scrutinized [Ant King] every movement and expression, hoping to expose him as a fake.

But he found nothing.

A sense of bewilderment arose in the Ant King’s heart.

Why was this imposter exactly like him? Was he... not unique?

Before he could dwell on it further, [Ant King] was already upon him!

With a powerful swing of his tail, [Ant King] smashed a crater into the ground.

The sound of shattering earth acted like a signal—[Ant King] body erupted with an overwhelming surge of dark-purple Aura.

The Ant King knew this aura all too well—it was identical to his own.

[Ant King] stomped the ground, vanishing instantly without even leaving an afterimage, as if he had blinked out of existence.

The next moment, [Ant King] abruptly reappeared behind the Ant King, his right fist wreathed in terrifying Aura, aimed straight for the back of the Ant King’s skull.

The moment [Ant King] disappeared, the real Ant King heightened all his senses to the limit, analyzing every disturbance in his surroundings.

When he felt the rush of air from the incoming punch, he abruptly crouched, narrowly evading the strike.

[Ant King]’s fist whistled past the Ant King’s head—a direct hit would have been devastating.

But the crouching Ant King wasn’t just dodging—he also reached out with both hands, attempting to seize [Ant King]’s right arm.

He intended to counterattack!

Yet, as the Ant King focused on the arm, a shadow wrapped in dense Aura lashed toward him.

It was [Ant King]’s tail.

Coiled in deadly Aura, the originally green tail transformed into a thick, dark-purple whip, striking the Ant King’s body with brutal force.

"BAM!"

The impact caved in the left side of the Ant King’s torso, forcing his body to hunch forward.

Netero’s attacks had rarely managed to injure him—but this was a different story.

Under the tremendous impact, the Ant King’s body was violently sent flying to the other side, only stopping after crashing through a pillar.

The transformed Ant King by Ditto had only half the total Aura of the real Ant King, but it possessed something the real one lacked—technique!

The current Ant King still relied on his beastly instincts to fight, having not yet mastered the techniques developed by humans.

The Ant King’s body, being in a humanoid form, was naturally suited to learning human techniques.

Given time to properly study, he would become even more formidable.

During his earlier battle with Netero, the Ant King had already begun to realize this.

Unfortunately, he no longer had the chance to learn.

"BOOM!"

The Ant King casually swiped his hand, shattering the pillar behind him, his sharp eyes turning crimson once more.

Aura erupted from his body, towering several meters high, enveloping it in a sea of purple flames.

Amidst the dark purple Aura, the Ant King’s blood-red eyes stood out starkly, radiating sheer brutality.

Now, the Ant King had finally come to a realization.

He wouldn’t dwell on whether he was unique or not.

As long as he tore this imposter to shreds, he would remain the one and only Ant King!

Even under the Ant King’s soul-piercing gaze, the [Ant King] remained unfazed, crossing its arms and saying.

"There’s no need for you to feel sorrow. After all, you’re just an ant with the mind of a beast—no match for humans."

Akira mimicked the Ant King’s earlier words, having Ditto throw them right back at it!

The Chimera Ants were strong.

But humans were no weaklings either.

"Well said." On the other side, Ging applauded Ditto’s words, expressing his full agreement.

But the enraged Ant King was beyond listening—if anything, the words only fueled his fury further.

"Whoosh!"

In an instant, both figures vanished from their spots, only to reappear in the same location moments later.

"Bang! Bang!..."

The sounds of fists colliding rang out, the sheer force generating sharp cracks through the air.

For a time, the entire underground space echoed with the sounds of their clashes.

’Such terrifying power!’ Ging’s eyes narrowed, his gaze fixed intently on the battle.

Even he couldn’t fully track their movements! Let alone an ordinary person.

A normal human wouldn’t even see their figures—only hear the relentless exchange of blows.

After several exchanges, both sides had taken damage.

Sometimes it was the Ant King sent flying; other times, it was the [Ant King].

The Ant King stared at the imposter before him, chest heaving slightly, his expression darkening.

While this fight wasn’t causing him any real harm, his inability to swiftly defeat the fake left him deeply frustrated.

’What the hell is this thing?’

The Ant King realized he had indeed underestimated humans.

Humans possessed far too many bizarre and unpredictable methods.

After battling Netero and Ditto, the Ant King had finally sustained some injuries and expended a portion of his Aura.

Yet his wounds were healing at a visible rate.

His regenerative abilities were nothing short of astounding.

Seeing the Ant King panting heavily as he recovered, Akira figured it was about time to wrap things up.

With a single thought, the [Ant King] in the Ant King’s vision dissolved into strands of Aura, vanishing into thin air.

’Huh?’ The Ant King’s eyes flashed with a hint of astonishment—how had they suddenly vanished again?

"What do you mean by this?" The Ant King turned to Akira beside him, his expression once again settling into calm, though his low voice carried a faint undercurrent of anger.

He hadn’t even had the chance to tear the impostor apart yet!

"No, no, don’t misunderstand." Akira shrugged, putting on an air of benevolence, though the corners of his lips still curled with amusement.

"I simply saw that you were struggling to defeat your opponent, so I took the liberty of preparing a winning strategy for you."

An enhanced Ant King—just how much experience would that yield?

’What winning strategy?’ The Ant King’s confusion didn’t last long.

Soon, he understood what Akira was referring to.

With a snap of fingers, a spatial rift suddenly appeared in the air.

From the glowing white portal, three objects plummeted straight to the ground.

They were unmistakably the corpses of the three Royal Guards!

"Coincidentally, I happen to know a bit about your abilities—you can strengthen yourself by consuming others, right?" Akira continued.

"These three are my gift to you—your winning strategy! You likely know better than I do who they are. And you should have a rough idea of just how much of a boost you’ll get from devouring them. Once you eat them, you’ll undoubtedly gain an immense power-up! The only question is—are you willing?"

The Ant King silently observed the three corpses on the ground—his once-loyal subordinates.

’Neferpitou, Shaiapouf, Menthuthuyoupi—all killed?’

The Ant King knew his three Royal Guards intimately.

Though their appearances had drastically changed, he could still recognize them.

Even the usually cold and detached Ant King froze for a moment before a wave of acceptance washed over him.

If others could die, there was no reason his guards would be exempt.

This was war.

Casualties were to be expected.

If the Royal Guards had fallen, it simply meant they weren’t strong enough.

Though he didn’t know how this man had learned of his abilities, or why he was doing this—He wasn’t wrong.

If the Ant King wanted to kill the impostor, to slaughter them all, even to conquer the world—Devouring their corpses and using them as fuel to strengthen himself was the best choice!

It would be letting them serve their final purpose.

The Ant King believed that even if they were still alive, they would willingly offer their bodies.

Because the Royal Guards existed solely for the Ant King.

Everything they did was for him.

No matter what, the Ant King would always hold the highest place in their hearts.

Even if he ordered them to die on the spot, they would obey without hesitation.

The resolve in the Ant King’s eyes grew sharper as he strode firmly toward the corpses, sitting cross-legged on the ground, ready to devour them.

All of this—for the sake of fulfilling his mission to conquer the world!

"Hey, hey, Akira... isn’t this a bit too reckless?" Ging’s gaze flickered past the Ant King before settling on Akira.

Surprisingly, Akira wore an expression of anticipation and excitement.

Why was he looking forward to this?

Even Ging, who knew little about the Ant King, could roughly guess—it must be related to the Ant King’s abilities.

But was it really a good idea to let him grow stronger like this?

Just for the sake of facing a tougher opponent? What if things spiraled out of control?

Ging already found the current Ant King formidable enough.

The thought of an enhanced version was almost unimaginable.

Just from the residual aura of these three corpses, Ging could roughly estimate their former strength.

Having devoured three powerful individuals, Ging couldn’t fathom how terrifying the Ant King before him might become!

"Hohoho, Ging, have faith in Akira." Netero chuckled lightly and shook his head, his tone overflowing with trust in Akira.

"The strength he possesses far exceeds your imagination!"

Ging had never witnessed Akira’s hidden power, so Netero could understand his current apprehension.

Facing the already fearsome Ant King and allowing it to grow even stronger was an unwise move.

But all of this was based on the premise of insufficient personal strength.

Having witnessed Marshadow, Netero understood very clearly—Akira could absolutely crush the Ant King!

Even the fully grown Ant King would stand no chance against Akira!

Because he had experienced it up close, Netero was confident in his authority to make such a claim.

If the Ant King’s erupting aura could force him to leap back a great distance, then just a wisp of that unknown Nen beast’s presence had rendered him completely immobile!

The gap between them could be sensed from aura alone!

No matter how much the Ant King consumed, he could never defeat Akira.

"Absolute confidence, huh..." Ging murmured softly, his suspended heart gradually settling.

It seemed the old man must have known details he wasn’t privy to, hence his unwavering certainty that Akira could handle it.

In that case, there was no need for further words.

After all, everyone was here and Akira wasn’t the type to gamble with his own life.

As the group conversed, the Ant King had already begun his evolution.

The Ant King sat cross-legged, casually grabbing the body of Menthuthuyoupi, then bared his ferocious jaws and took a savage bite!

’What is this?!’ His pupils dilated, even the act of chewing froze momentarily as he savored this indescribable flavor.

’Such unparalleled deliciousness—I’ve never experienced anything like it!’

The moment he bit down, the flesh instantly melted in his mouth, transforming into clusters of pure life force.

At this moment, the Ant King felt every cell in his body rejoicing, like parched earth blessed with sweet rain.

He greedily, madly absorbed this life force!

For the Ant King, whose finest meal had only been the burly, squint-eyed man, this was an eye-opening revelation—everything he had eaten before was garbage in comparison!

The Ant King’s eyes once again took on the feral glint of a starving beast.

At this moment, his mind could focus on nothing else—only a single thought remained.

Eat!!

Each bite brought substantial growth, his aura surging higher with every bite!

The dark purple Aura around him deepened, spreading an unnerving chill across the battlefield.

He was evolving!

------------------------------

Read 40 Chapters ahead and support me on patreon.

patreon (.)com/Newbietranslator