Soon, the Great Esophagus Lizard burst into a wide, abandoned treatment pool.
And the sight before it made its drool pour like a waterfall.
Everywhere—on the ground, clinging to the walls, wrapped around ruined machinery—were pulsing pink chunks of flesh. Large ones, small ones, quivering grotesquely as if breathing.
"So much… meat… delicious meat!!!"
The Great Esophagus Lizard's mind drowned completely in hunger.
It shot out its massive tongue like a battering ram, lashing toward the nearest chunk of flesh. Its jaws gaped open—wide enough to swallow a truck whole—ready to gulp it down in one satisfying bite.
But the instant its tongue touched the flesh—
All the chunks moved.
Hundreds of them surged at once, engulfing the Demon-Level beast like a tidal wave.
A sickening chewing noise filled the tunnel.
And moments later—
Silence.
"Blood… I need more blood!!!"
The remnants of Monster King Orochi roared within the countless flesh lumps. Following their instinct, they morphed into writhing crimson mycelia, spreading upward like a plague.
Everything they touched—fire, bones, flesh—was devoured without hesitation.
Wolf-level, Tiger-level—none survived more than a few seconds once the tendrils wrapped around them.
Then—
A shrill scream erupted from a nearby storage room.
"Damn it! What IS this thing?!"
The voice belonged to none other than the Demon-level executive, Venom Queen.
Her tight, revealing leather suit accentuated a dangerously alluring figure. Her ability allowed her to convert her bodily fluids into lethal toxins.
A moment ago, she sensed a cluster of pink mycelia creeping toward her. Instinctively, she shot highly corrosive poison from her fingertips, trying to melt it.
But what happened next chilled her blood.
The corroded mycelia did not dissolve.
Instead, they sprouted tentacles—lunging for her.
"Back off, you disgusting trash!"
Furious, the Venom Queen unleashed a surge of flammable toxins from her palms.
If corrosion failed, then burn it to ashes.
Flames erupted with a violent crackle, scorching the nearest mycelia into blackened cinders within seconds.
She exhaled shakily—
Only to freeze again.
Because the surrounding walls… began to move.
Hundreds of pink mycelia burst from every crack and crevice, racing toward her like a ravenous tide.
Worse yet—
on their surfaces, countless distorted human faces appeared.
Faces of the monsters they had eaten—captured in the final seconds before their deaths.
Their mouths opened in silent screams.
"No— don't come any closer!"
The Venom Queen staggered back in terror, accidentally stepping into a puddle of thick, sticky fluid.
She looked down—
And her blood ran cold.
At some point, the entire floor behind her had transformed into a translucent mycelial mat.
Her escape route was gone.
"Help—! No— not there! Yame—"
Her plea was cut off.
Countless mycelia drilled into every orifice of her body.
Her voluptuous form convulsed violently like an overinflated doll—then deflated rapidly, collapsing into a shriveled husk.
The last drop of her nourishment vanished into the hungry network.
---
*Back in the grotto.*
Kaito drew an X in the tic-tac-toe grid with a calm fingertip, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
Through his Transcendent Kenbunshoku Haki, he observed everything happening above as clearly as if watching it from a seat in a theater.
Against the remnants of the Dragon-Peak-level Monster King Orochi, the Demon-level monsters were nothing but doomed prey. Their struggles were meaningless—trivial—even comical.
And the reason he let Monster King Orochi feast on them, instead of personally farming them for Deterrence Points…
It wasn't laziness.
He needed Orochi to evolve.
To grow.
To become a true threat.
After all of his attributes reached the bottleneck of 100, simply pouring Deterrence Points into skills or gaining free stats through leveling made no difference anymore. The wall known as the *Limiter* barred his path.
To break it—
He needed danger.
Real danger.
A battle where death was not only possible but probable.
A confrontation cruel enough to squeeze out every last drop of potential.
So he allowed the "Gu-raising" plan to unfold.
Let Orochi devour.
Let it evolve.
Let it return stronger than ever.
Only an enemy capable of killing him could become the key to breaking that damned Limiter.
"Ah! I lost again! This is impossible!"
Saitama suddenly wailed, shattering Kaito's thoughts.
The bald hero stared at the tic-tac-toe grid with unprecedented intensity, tiny beads of sweat glistening on his shiny forehead.
He had already lost nine consecutive matches, and this one made it an even ten.
Watching Saitama scratch his head in growing despair, Kaito couldn't help offering with a small smile, "How about we switch to Go-Moku?"
"Go-Moku?"
Saitama's eyes lit up immediately—only to narrow again in suspicion.
"You're not trying to fool me with another trick, right?"
Kaito didn't answer. He simply smiled.
But his gaze drifted toward the massive pit not far away.
At the bottom lay the unconscious Great Snake. Around it, the remnants of Monster King Orochi were writhing together, crawling toward the giant serpent's body. Bit by bit, the scattered flesh and mycelia were trying to merge—intent on using the Great Snake as their new host for rebirth.
So greedy, aren't you…
Kaito sneered inwardly, but made no move to interfere.
No matter what form the fusion resulted in—Great Snake, Snake-Orochi hybrid, or something entirely new—it would serve its purpose.
A suitable whetstone.
"Hey, Kaito! You playing or not?" Saitama urged, tapping impatiently on the freshly drawn board.
Kaito drew back his attention and placed a piece casually. "What's the rush? The outcome won't change."
"Hmph! For your information, I've never lost this game in my neighborhood! Just you wait—I'll make you cry."
But despite that proud declaration…
Saitama made a disastrous mistake by his fifth move.
Kaito couldn't help covering his face. "Tell me—aside from you, are there any other living people in your neighborhood?"
"Of course!" Saitama began counting on his fingers with righteous confidence. "There's Old Wang at the convenience store, Old Man Zhang who plays chess in the park, and—"
"Stop, stop, stop."
Kaito quickly cut him off.
"I asked about living people."
Saitama froze.
A faint look of confusion flickered across his dead-fish eyes.
"Uh…"
Before he could continue, the entire underground cavern trembled violently.
Gravel shook loose from the rock walls.
Rumble—!
Both Saitama and Kaito looked up.
From the deep pit, a surge of ink-black energy burst skyward like a geyser, swirling and pulsing with terrifying pressure.
Gurgle… gurgle…
A sickening, wet, squirming noise echoed upward—like countless giant serpents writhing together.
Then—
A massive claw, wrapped in jagged black scales, slammed out of the pit and dug deep into the stone wall.
"Finally… finally complete!"
With a hoarse, monstrous roar, a twisted titan pulled itself slowly out of the darkness below.