Chapter 186: Even More Ruthless Than That Filial Bastard Next Door

After parting with the Eight Kings, Takumi immediately locked onto NEO.

That entirely pitch-black being, much like the notorious "filial son" from the Shinobi world, was instantly subdued by Takumi.

NEO's abilities leaned heavily toward horror-themed powers.

It could create clones that split off like meatballs, each nearly matching its own strength. It possessed an Inner World where time nearly stopped. It could devour anything—matter, energy, whatever—into a space as vast as a universe. It had regeneration, teleportation, breath attacks, luminescence, and energy beams.

Its offensive capabilities were enough to severely injure even the Eight Kings.

Not to mention, it also had spatial powers.

However, no matter how strong it was, it couldn't escape from Takumi.

Space versus space—Takumi's mastery was vastly superior.

So when Takumi found NEO, he captured it instantly.

As for NEO's talents and powers, Takumi had high expectations. Especially the ability to devour everything—wasn't that exactly what he needed?

With this in mind, Takumi planned to study it thoroughly.

He locked NEO inside imaginary space, completely sealing off its consciousness.

Now, it was just a puppet. He could slowly study it later when he returned.

After settling that, Takumi returned to Earth.

With the global map drastically altered, the group chat was now buzzing with activity.

Nakiri Alice: [I'm completely dumbfounded!!] [Guys, who can relate? After the worlds merged, our Nakiri estate is now part of Dragon Country's territory~!!] [And IGO is right next door!!]

Alice was genuinely shocked.

Upon learning her family's new situation, she was at a loss.

What the hell happened?

How did world fusion change their nationality?!

Bronya: [It's honestly a bit ridiculous... I was also confused. After we split up, I ran into a Gourmet Corp robot.] [But I instantly took control of it!] [Now I have an extra minion.] [If Prometheus hadn't given me a new map, I wouldn't have even known where I was.]

Fujiwara Chika: [Enough talk, come pick me up already. Ruiko and I are stuck in some random place.]

Due to the world merger, the group had been scattered.

They were all still disoriented.

Alice was especially frustrated with her family situation.

She and Mobius had only just left the house when the worlds fused.

Although they weren't separated, Mobius informed her that their national boundaries had shifted dramatically.

They were now located in the middle of the ocean.

What kind of nonsense was this?

Who could understand this mess?

Takumi: [What's wrong with being next to IGO?] [Prime real estate!] [IGO is bound to become a global organization.] [This is like owning a huge estate next to LHG headquarters.]

Seeing Takumi suddenly chime in, everyone was shocked.

Zhongli: [You've handled everything over there already?]

After setting up all his arrangements, Takumi had vanished.

Now that he reappeared, it seemed he had been handling matters elsewhere.

Takumi: [Everything on the Gourmet World side is settled.] [I've spoken with the Eight Kings, and I've also captured NEO.] [Once the world fusion completes, there should be no issues.] [The greatest threats have been neutralized.] [Now we just need to prevent large-scale casualties.]

Small-scale casualties were inevitable.

Even Takumi couldn't account for everything.

So he didn't make any grand promises.

Miori Shiba: [No issues on my end.] [Everything is under control.]

Even though many powerful gourmet creatures had appeared, she had stabilized the situation well.

Even when the continent expanded several times, it was fine.

She just had to protect the people she was responsible for.

Thanks to that, no major problems occurred in her area.

Takumi: [Good. Once things stabilize, we can essentially exit this mission.] [IGO members have already started helping.] [Gourmet Corp agents appeared near Kevin earlier, and he wiped them all out...]

As he mentioned this, Takumi's expression turned subtle.

Some people were just unlucky.

Appearing right in front of Kevin?

Once he confirmed they were enemies, Kevin killed them on the spot.

Now the situation was largely under control.

Midora had been handled by Takumi.

NEO was captured.

The Eight Kings were trapped in the Gourmet World.

Now, they just needed to keep the dangerous beasts in check to prevent widespread damage...

At this moment, battles were occurring all over the world.

Kevin, Qianjie, and Cosmos were all fighting at full force.

Especially Qianjie, who directly unleashed his Herrscher powers.

After returning to Earth and scanning the situation, Takumi withdrew his senses.

He chatted in the group for a bit, then vanished, heading straight to Dragon Country.

He handed them a new world map and discussed possible future issues.

Going forward, IGO and Dragon Country should cooperate closely.

Seeing the resources Takumi provided, the officials present were deeply moved.

Takumi looked at them calmly and then spoke:

"In the future, there may be a path leading to my world." "When that time comes, if you wish to learn, you can send some exchange students over." "I don't mind if you study all this." "The new era is here. Gaining more power is a good thing." "You should also prioritize extracting Gourmet Cells." "This is all I can help you with." "What comes next is up to you."

Hearing Takumi's guidance, everyone understood what needed to be done.

They were thrilled.

In recent days, they had been studying the information Takumi gave them.

They had also witnessed his battles.

Honestly, it was more terrifying the more they saw.

Especially the Gourmet World.

They had no confidence facing those creatures.

If Takumi and his group hadn't appeared, this world would probably be doomed.

Takumi didn't say much more.

After offering his advice, he left.

From here on, he just needed to wait for the mission to be completed.

Whatever happened next was no longer his concern.

Takumi returned to the Nakiri estate and began researching NEO.

In the days that followed, the Gourmet World fully merged.

People from both worlds now understood what had happened.

And they had seen the power of the strong in this world.

Though the merge was complete, no one dared to act recklessly anymore.