After the scorching sun seed burned out, the King was practically halfway through death's door.
However, thanks to his racial ability, 'becoming stronger by eating', he was able to recover in an incredibly short amount of time.
He accepted Pouf's offering without reservation, which not only helped him recover from his injuries, but also raised his overall strength to an entirely new level.
Perhaps it was due to the previous experience of devouring Pitou, or perhaps it was because of Pouf's method of directly delivering cells into his body to maximize the absorption speed...
In short, the King's recovery speed this time is even faster than when he swallowed Pitou some time ago.
It can even be said to be ridiculously fast.
And then-
At the exact moment his Aura exploded forth,
The King used the Emission-Type movement ability that he had previously awakened in battle.
But this time, the speed was so great it essentially became instantaneous teleportation.
Moses's pupils shrank sharply, and by the time he reacted, he felt a sharp pain in his right shoulder.
"Hm!?"
The corner of his eye seemed to sense something and followed in one direction.
What he saw is the King with his body tilted slightly, holding a severed arm in his hand.
And that severed arm was obviously Moses's.
The King had torn off Moses' last remaining arm, the one still holding the rose.
"So this… was the trump card you had up your sleeve from the start?"
The King glanced sideways at Moses, who had lost both arms, with his eyes that seemed to be able to see through a man's soul.
In fact,
After devouring nearly all of Pouf's cells, the King had indeed acquired the ability to 'read thoughts'.
Which is why, after his evolution, he didn't kill Moses immediately. Instead, he took the arm holding the rose.
And unlike the previous time when he had sliced off an arm, this time he directly tore it off and held it in his hand. This also shows that his strength has improved.
"Whether it was or not no longer matters. This battle… you've won."
The King looked calmly at Moses and said in a flat voice: "But it is I who shall decide whether you live or die."
If it weren't for the intervention of Youpi and Pouf, he would have died at Moses's hands.
So he acknowledged his defeat.
But that didn't mean he would treat Moses like the victor.
For the current King, the outcome of this battle no longer held meaning.
Earlier, during their fight, the King had referred to himself using the pronoun 'I' instead of the royal 'I'.
That meant, at that moment, he saw Moses as his equal.
But now, he had reverted to using the royal 'I'. (T/N: I don't know which pronoun I should use when using the royal 'I', so I made them the same before. Sorry for the confusion.)
This means that from this moment on, the King considered himself to be above Moses.
That's right, the two sides are no longer on the same level.
And all of this change stemmed from the insights the King gained during his evolution.
He now understood the true value of his innate ability.
Just like now-
When faced with a human being who he couldn't defeat no matter how hard he tried, he can easily reverse the outcome by taking one unit of rare food.
That stark contrast was the root of the King's change in mentality.
From now on, he would use this ability to sweep away all who stood in his way, ascend to the peak of all life, and rule the world.
Compared to this destiny etched into his very genes, the win or loss of a battle that existed in the past is utterly trivial.
Moses couldn't refute what the King said at this moment.
In his current vision, the King, who was almost killed by him a few seconds ago, was now shrouded in a flawless and majestic Aura.
It was hard to imagine what kind of power could possibly stand against him now.
Not to mention that he has now lost both arms and his last trump card, the rose.
What's even more terrifying is...
The Emission-Type movement ability that the King had just used was so fast that Moses could not see the trajectory of his Aura, nor could he capture any of his movements.
This meant that even if the battle restarted from the beginning, the King could kill him in an instant if he so wished.
Their difference in level had become something no conventional means could bridge.
The King looked at the silent Moses, and the shimmering particles in the air conveyed Moses's inner state to him.
He had expected fear, despair, panic…
But reflected in the glow of the particles was not even a shred of fear. Moses remained coldly composed, like a block of ice.
This surprised the King, and made Moses earned his respect.
But unfortunately…
He had no intention of letting Moses, a unique human being, live.
Or rather, he had to consume Moses, whom he now viewed as the pinnacle of humanity.
Crunch!
But the King did not take action immediately. Instead, he bit off a piece of meat from Moses's severed arm, and chewed it quickly with his cheeks puffed up.
"Delicious, as expected."
The King nodded slightly, giving an acknowledgment and commendation.
He had just tasted almost every cell in Pouf's body.
That flavor made the special humans he had consumed over the past few days seem bland by comparison.
And now, the taste of Moses's arm was on par with Pouf's cells, which greatly satisfied his eating expectations.
Just like that, right in front of Moses, the King devoured the whole arm in a few bites, and then began to look forward to the overall benefits of eating Moses.
Moses watched the King devoured his severed arm like a dessert, and took a deep breath slowly.
Even in such a hopeless situation, he remained composed.
'In addition to using the rose from the old man… I still have one final card to play, though it comes with some uncertainty...'
'Whatever happens after that… I'll just have to accept it.'
Moses looked calmly at the King, who had become an 'unbeatable monster'.
Inside the Fourth-Dimensional Apartment.
Those who had just returned watched the scene unfold through Palm's crystal ball.
They saw the scene where Moses almost killed the King, and also saw the scene where Youpi and Pouf protected the King at the critical moment.
And finally, they saw the terrifying strength the King displayed after his evolution.
When the King easily tore off Moses's arm, an indescribable despair quietly took root in everyone's hearts.
'How terrifying…'
Even with the narrow viewing angle of the crystal ball, everyone could clearly feel the power of the King through this transparent barrier.
If it weren't for this evolution, they would surely have been shocked that Moses could defeat the King.
Because...
This was the same monster who had made even Netero fall in such a short time!
But now, through the crystal ball, all they could feel was suffocating despair.
"Knov, send me back."
Netero stared at the image in the crystal ball, then suddenly spoke in a low, heavy tone.
This old man on the edge of death will regret the outcome of this battle that was 'just a little bit short'.
But he would also bear the responsibility for the outcome of this battle.
He absolutely could not let this monster, the Chimera Ant King, live past today!
As long as Knov could send him back to the palace now… he might be able to 'kill' the King on the spot!