If one were to use a word to describe the Mender, it could be boundary, or order.
The reason Humanoid cannot leave the Dark Continent is precisely because of the existence of the Mender.
Viewing information about the Mender from the perspective of the Masked Man gave Law a rather nauseating feeling.
In the Masked Man's understanding, the Mender was like a herder of livestock.
They built a pen around the outer perimeter of the Dark Continent, preventing the creatures inside the pen from leaving easily, and left behind a group called the Guardians as watchdogs.
Among countless intelligent beings, only a very few had ever seen the Mender with their own eyes.
However, no one knows where the Mender came from, or when it began interfering with the order of the Dark Continent.
Even the Masked Man's own race had a very limited understanding of the Mender.
All they knew was that if they wanted to accomplish anything, they first had to overcome the obstacle of the Mender.
But throughout the long period of their race's development, they dared not lightly touch that boundary.
Because the Mender rarely interfered with the Dark Continent's ecosystem, but when it did act, it was on a grand scale.
The rise of one race, or the complete annihilation of another.
Ultimately, it was just a thought from the Mender.
Therefore, even if one had the idea of challenging that authority, it could only be done when there was a certain level of confidence.
Whether to break the pen, or to cross the pen, or to kill the being who built the pen.
Every choice was still a choice.
The most crucial point was that when the chance of victory was still zero, one absolutely could not be reckless.
Originally, they wanted to learn about the core energy and the so-called humanoids from the Masked Man, but unexpectedly, this led to the existence of something called the Mender.
And furthermore, the Mender was actually connected to the Gatekeeper Clan.
Even this small piece of information was enough for Law to infer many things, including the Gatekeeper Clan's initiative to attack them.
Netero and the others, on the other hand, felt a strong sense of crisis.
Since humanity discovered the existence of the Dark Continent, they had always consciously filtered out the sense of crisis that could destroy the entire world.
To put it bluntly, it was an incurable complacency and overconfidence.
Before the Kakin Empire joined in, the V5, although publicly prohibiting any faction from going to the Dark Continent, had never actually stopped coveting it behind the scenes.
They had even secretly launched many voyages.
This was overconfidence.
Knowing full well that it could bring great disaster, yet still actively opening Pandora's box.
If based on the premise of the five known Calamities, this overconfidence still had some room for argument.
But after obtaining more information from the Masked Man, Netero deeply believed that humanity should no longer have any trace of overconfidence.
The terror of the Dark Continent far surpassed humanity's current imagination.
The information provided by the Masked Man indeed sounded an alarm for everyone present.
Cheadle first glanced at the dejected, wilted-looking Masked Man, then looked at the contemplative Law, thinking to herself that Law had truly, as he said, completely extracted the information value from the Masked Man.
However, after obtaining so much important information, she didn't know if it was a good or bad thing.
Her principles of conduct had always been conservative, so her thoughts were similar to Netero's.
This was indeed not a place humans should set foot in.
Nevertheless, based on her understanding of Law, she didn't believe this information would have any impact on Law's motivation.
Her judgment was correct.
After glimpsing a corner of what lay hidden behind the scenes of the Dark Continent, Law instead developed an even stronger curiosity.
He wanted to know the origin of the Mender.
Everyone present remained silent, internally digesting the information provided by the Masked Man.
The authenticity needed no verification... Bruna was a natural lie detector.
The skeleton looked at the pitiful Masked Man with mixed feelings.
Not because of the impact of the information, but because the Masked Man's painful experience reminded him of when Law had interrogated him for information.
Now thinking back, he didn't know if he should feel fortunate or relieved.
At least, he hadn't been as miserable as the Masked Man back then.
Thinking this, the skeleton man secretly glanced at Law.
He saw a familiar glint in Law's eyes.
After the last bit of the Masked Man's value was extracted, Law did not hesitate to put it out of its misery.
From its initial clamor to its final, near-death silence, it was a lamentable sight.
"Humanoids and the Mender..."
Law murmured to himself.
Two more existences to be wary of in the future.
Things like the black door panel that devoured the Slu Tribe, or the black shadow that scurried about, were both worthy of caution.
He didn't know if they were related to the Mender, but in Law's eyes, their existence was like a vacuum cleaner.
There was just no way to know their motives.
Moreover, there was no point in overthinking it now. He hadn't come to the Dark Continent to uncover their mysteries.
As long as they didn't affect the team's subsequent journey, Law didn't want to actively intervene.
From the Masked Man's perspective, the Mender's existence was like that of a heinous criminal.
But from humanity's perspective, the Mender was the guardian of the Six Continents, setting up an insurmountable boundary that ensured the safety of the Six Continents.
Before, Law had occasionally wondered why those behemoths of the Dark Continent and the Dark Waters had never set foot in humanity's world map.
Why was it that only Magical Beasts within human tolerance were able to go from the Dark Continent to the Six Continents?
So much so, that during his first exploration of the Dark Continent, he often thought that if something like the Mountain Ship were to reach the Six Continents someday, wouldn't it turn everything to scorched earth?
Now, the doubt hidden deep in his heart had been answered.
Everyone presents had different feelings.
Netero silently watched the contemplative Law.
After a long while, Law temporarily stopped thinking about these matters and noticed Netero's gaze.
He roughly guessed the meaning behind that gaze and suddenly asked, "Have you completed your mission?"
The so-called mission was to deal with Beyond's team.
"No," Netero sighed.
"No progress at all?" Law then asked.
Netero didn't explain the reasons in detail, only nodding gravely.
If it hadn't been for the Masked Man's interference, there would have been some progress.
In retrospect, it was bad luck.
Because it was they who encountered the Masked Man, not Beyond's side.
The silver lining in the misfortune was Law and his group's timely arrival.
"Then give it up," Law said bluntly. "Go back to the Six Continents early, before the losses become even more severe. With your current lineup, you don't stand a chance."
Netero couldn't refute that and sighed longingly, "Indeed, you're right."
Just then, Kuro, who was about to dispose of the Masked Man's corpse, suddenly shouted, "Law, watch out!"
Looking towards the sound, they saw a wheat-awn-like streak approaching.
Everyone's expression changed. By the time they reacted, the wheat awn had turned into a black and red, anchor-shaped pattern on Law's face.