The key mechanic here is the (pogoing on purple mushrooms to gain height). While fun, missing a bounce usually means falling into acid or spikes. The enemies are mostly passive (Fungoons spray clouds, but are easy to dodge). The Mantis Village section, however, spikes the difficulty. The Mantis Warriors are incredibly fast melee fighters, and the Mantis Lords boss fight is the first "git gud" moment of the game. Still, the Wastes are fair.
Here’s a complete, detailed text ranking the areas of Hollow Knight by difficulty, based on enemy strength, hazard density, navigation complexity, and boss encounters. hollow knight areas ranked by difficulty
I have literally never seen anyone make an area difficulty tier list, so here it is, reference for newer players and punching bag for veterans The key mechanic here is the (pogoing on