Chapter 3 - The Curse

The surroundings were all damaged, trees had fallen, and deep pits and cracks were everywhere on the ground.

The clash finally came to an end

Both monsters already dropped drawing their final breaths.

Hunter on the other hand watched as the awaited energy ball dropped on the ground.

"Thank god, both of them dropped something".

"how am I gonna harvest their poison sacs? their skin is as tough as metal."

As the forest went silent. Only crickets could be heard singing through the night.

Ominous feelings can be felt from the place as if something is watching you from afar.

"I'll retreat first, I'm not feeling good about this".

As Hunter retreats silently into the darkness.

Arriving at his camp, he decided to summon the updated book of Snakes.

'Aura concealment, this is more powerful than I thought of, completely erasing one's presence.'

'This is possible can avoid detection from a haki. That's what I think since there is part In the book about temporarily removing life force from one's body.'

He decided to call it a night and prepare to resume his training tomorrow.

----

The sun is high, blue sky is clear and the ocean breeze is calming.

Along the shore, there is Hunter training, doing push-ups, and having a big boulder behind his back.

This has been his routine since he started training here.

Physical training, followed by his aura concealment training.

Now his steps have no sound, and he can also now run soundless.

'I think I need to practice more my movement technique.'.

After his training, he decided to head back to the forest.

As he arrived at the place. He was shocked to see that both monsters were missing.

What remains are only bits and pieces of meat scattered around the ground.

'I think there is a more menacing monster living in this forest.

"Compass of Desire".

'Point me to something that will make me stronger'.

A couple of weeks back, He noticed that when he tried using the 'Compass of Desire' the bigger desire you ask, the more stamina is consumed from his body.

Feeling the energy from his body being consumed.

'I think half of my energy was gone'.

Going farther inside the forest. Walking through overgrown plants.

He heard howling winds from the distance. When he arrived, what he witnessed in front of his eyes.

A gigantic hole, the size of a city, stone spikes sticking from the walls of the seemingly bottomless pit, only darkness can be seen from below.

'Maybe this compass is trying to kill me'.

Contemplating how to go down in this bottomless pit.

He decided to jump to the sticking spikes from the wall.

It has been hours but he can't seem to reach the ground.

Getting an eerie feeling, wondering why there are no snakes around this place.

After a while of traveling. He seems to have entered the foggy part of the pit.

It seems that it is draining his strength.

'Poison fog, I have to hurry I think what I want is the center of this pit'.

'Soundless Step'

He flickered and disappeared from point to point going to the center.

After hours of running, he seems to be a little sluggish. The fog is affecting already his body.

He already has a poison tolerance he got from eating a lot of snakes.

At the center stands a tall tree with a single fruit hanging. A purplish pointy-shaped fruit with swirls and kinda snake-like skin.

He grabs the fruit and then suddenly the ground shakes.

The sky got darker. He looked up and there he saw a menacing gigantic snake falling from the sky.

Opening its big mouth. Hunter tried running away.

'Soundless Step'.

Swosh!

But all that effort. He was still got swallowed.

----

Opening his eyes, his body ached all over.

Adjusting to the darkness.

' my arm broke and the fruit was gone.'

He wondered if the snake was a devil fruit user now or can he still find the fruit.

'Compass'

'it's still here, I have to hurry'.

.

.

.

Lifting a boulder there he saw the Purple Devil Fruit stuck inside a hollowed stone.

'Finally! I don't know what power it will grant me, but I will trust the compass pointing me here.'

'Even if I don't eat this. I can't escape this place.'

From the metal-like body, poisonous liquid, melting anything in contact.

'This is it'.

Munch!.

The unpalatable taste and smell too.

Hunter felt the power swerving all over his body.

His body swells up, his skin changes to a dark skin scale. Fingers got long becoming a monster claw. His head also had grown two horns that started from his forehead. Eye changed to snake-like eyes and golden irises.

Hunter had transformed into his hybrid form.

Feeling the changes in his body, the increased strength, vitality, reaction, and speed.

He thought he could immediately transform into his full form to fight his way out.

He couldn't as his stamina is still lacking.

'I guess I'll be stuck here for a while now'.

'The good news is, now I'm immune to poisons inside this monster.'

'I can also release poisonous substances. It can be gas or liquid.'

Hunter also got the name of his Devil Fruit.

"Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit - Hebi Hebi no mi - Model: Ouroboros.

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A few days later

A tall man stands and a poisonous gas coming out from his back

'I can't believe I can kill a poisonous snake with my own poison.'

Running around inside this place. He found some gold treasures. Which surprisingly can be converted into the system currency.

'These are the things I figured while trying my newly acquired abilities.

- Body hardness ( I doubt swords or bullets could leave scratches on my body)

- Poison Immunity and Control

- Supersense and infrared vision

- Body size adjustment (I can just adjust my height according to my will).

With the additional knowledge, I got from the books. I'm pretty OP now based on the four seas only.

I am now akin to a real snake.

I decided not to escape this place at the moment and plan to train more.

I had no problem with food a saved a lot in my inventory.

And I plan to kill this monster to get the knowledge that it will drop.

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