Regarding the excavation work of the Akasha underground palace ruins, it was not a major task in itself. In terms of confidentiality, strictly speaking, it could not even be considered classified.
However, this excavation was led by Ging.
Thus, strict confidentiality measures were implemented.
As a result, Hisoka could not track Morrow's whereabouts through conventional intelligence channels.
Under such circumstances, the only way to catch even a trace of Morrow would be if Morrow actively turned on his communication device to contact him, but such a thing was clearly impossible.
In a sense, it was as if Morrow had vanished from the face of the earth.
To find Morrow, Hisoka could only pin his hopes on the upcoming Hunter Exam.
Since the Hunter Exam changed its testing location every year, and the organizers set various traps along the way to the examination venue, merely reaching the venue was already a task that required considerable effort.
Yet Hisoka's desire to find Morrow was so intense that he was willing to endure the tedious journey to the examination venue.
With such determination, on January 7, 1998, Hisoka finally arrived at the first stage examination venue of the 286th Hunter Exam.
This year's first stage venue was an ancient castle built atop a mountain peak.
After being dropped off by his guide, Hisoka walked straight into the castle's main hall.
The hall, typically used for banquets, was exceptionally spacious.
By the time Hisoka entered, hundreds of examinees had already gathered inside.
Among the crowd, several veterans immediately turned their attention to Hisoka.
These veterans included Tonpa, who had participated in over thirty exams, as well as familiar faces like Geretta, the blowdart expert; the Amori Brothers, who consistently achieved excellent results through seamless coordination; and Bourbon, the snake charmer.
They did not recognize Hisoka, but the moment he stepped into the hall, they sensed an indescribable sense of danger emanating from him.
This guy is a first-time participant in the Hunter Exam, but... he radiates an aura of trouble.
A dangerous individual!
A new face... Is he suppressing his bloodlust?
Who is this guy? He feels incredibly dangerous.
The experienced and highly skilled veterans all reached similar conclusions in their minds.
For them, avoiding danger was a routine practice, so after a brief glance at Hisoka, they averted their eyes.
However, no matter how quickly they reacted, they could not escape the notice of the impatient Hisoka.
Could he be here?
Hisoka narrowed his eyes slightly, doing his best to suppress his nearly uncontrollable bloodlust, and followed the trajectory of the earlier gazes, scanning each veteran in the venue one by one.
But after a full round of observation, he found nothing.
His actions, however, set off alarm bells in the minds of the veterans.
Regardless of what the veterans thought, Hisoka paid them no mind and continued to scrutinize every examinee present.
After several rounds of searching, Hisoka still could not find Morrow and slowly lowered his head.
Disappointing... So disappointing...
His unfocused golden pupils fixed intently on the ground, his lips trembling incessantly.
However, Hisoka's voice was extremely soft, so to others, he simply appeared to be lowering his head in silence.
Because Hisoka had been overwhelmingly aggressive upon entering the venue, his current behavior struck the surrounding examinees as somewhat peculiar.
What on earth is this guy trying to do!?
Nearly all the examinees in the vicinity shared the same doubt.
Only the veterans immediately recognized Hisoka's danger and resolved to stay as far away from him as possible during the upcoming tests.
Their instinct to seek advantage and avoid harm would indeed help them evade disaster.
Under the gaze of many eyes, Hisoka suddenly looked up, revealing a slightly deranged expression.
His eyes were wide open, but his golden pupils had contracted to their smallest size.
Then, swaying his body but moving his feet with extreme speed, he abruptly dashed like a ghost behind a nearby examinee.
No.
Hisoka lowered his head, his gaze fixed intently on the examinee's buttocks, using this method to rule out the possibility that the other might be using a disguise.
That's right.
Hisoka was unwilling to give up.
Even though his aura perception showed no abnormalities, he still clung to a last shred of hope, thinking that Morrow might have employed a disguise.
Based on this, Hisoka could only use this method to make a final assessment.
The examinee suddenly targeted by Hisoka felt a chill run through his body, which soon turned stiff.
He didn't even dare to look back.
Fortunately, that sinister gaze lasted less than a second before vanishing into thin air.
As if surviving a calamity, the examinee slowly turned around belatedly and witnessed a scene he would never forget for the rest of his life.
He saw Hisoka moving like a phantom among the surrounding examinees, pausing each time to stare intently at someone's buttocks.
Is this normal...
The examinee stood dumbfounded.
It was his first time participating in the Hunter Exam, and like many newcomers, after easily finding the examination venue through his own abilities, he had been full of confidence.
But now, after witnessing Hisoka's bizarre behavior, an indescribable fear strongly impacted his senses and understanding.
That guy will probably pass the test... Maybe I should come back next year, so I won't have to compete against him.
An inexplicable panic filled his chest, and the novice examinee followed his heart, deciding to retreat from the challenge and try again the following year.
Even if this move would be scorned by others, it didn't matter.
More than that, the novice examinee didn't want to compete against Hisoka.
It was just a matter of waiting one more year.
He would use that year to further enhance his skills and abilities!
With his mind set, the novice examinee moved his slightly stiff legs and quietly headed toward the castle exit.
No one noticed his stealthy departure because Hisoka's perverted behavior had captured the attention of the other examinees.
Hey, where did this pervert come from!!!
Why... is he staring at butts?
Who knows? Damn it, I just feel like this guy is dangerous.
Don't, don't come any closer!
Some examinees, realizing that Hisoka only stared for about a second, quickly calmed down.
But those with weaker mental fortitude suffered a severe psychological impact.
Not to mention the others, even Tonpa, who had participated in over thirty exams, was now breaking out in a cold sweat, his hands instinctively clutching his satchel.
As a veteran with extensive exam experience, what kind of candidate had Tonpa not seen before?
But Hisoka's appearance made him realize just how vast the world truly was.
This newcomer is too terrifying!
Tonpa's lips trembled slightly.
And so, Hisoka unabashedly examined every candidate's backside.
In the end, he reached a deeply disappointing conclusion.
He's not here...
Hisoka's voice was as light as a sigh. His originally tall, straight figure suddenly lost its vigor, slouching slightly as his arms hung limply at his sides, swaying gently with each step.
It was as if all his interest had drained away in an instant, leaving him utterly bored.
However, the bloodlust he had previously suppressed now stirred like a caged beast ready to break free, threatening to replace that sense of boredom.
In the eyes of all the candidates, Hisoka in this state, though lacking his earlier aggressiveness, had become even more dangerous.
In the ancient castle's monitoring room.
The proctor responsible for the first phase of the Hunter Exam observed all the candidates through the surveillance feeds, naturally noticing Hisoka's overwhelming presence.
Where did this madman come from?
The proctor kept wiping the cold sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief.
This job seemed to be more trouble than it was worth!
But it didn't matter anyway. Pass rates were never within the proctor's considerations.
—--
In the Akasha underground palace ruins.
Morrow was preparing to eliminate the last living corpse atop the underground palace.
At this moment, how could he have imagined that Hisoka had actually joined the Hunter Exam just to find him.
And this single action had given all the candidates at the exam venue a shocking lesson in what people called biodiversity.
In truth, Morrow, currently solely focused on collecting Tree Rings energy and refining his Nen ability, had long forgotten the possibility of Hisoka coming to look for him.
Last one.
Standing on the broad stone platform, Morrow looked up at the numerous hanging root-like structures.
Among those root-like structures, only one lonely, withered miniature human body remained.
Clearing out these potential threats had taken Morrow considerable time.
As for collecting Tree Rings energy, it matched his initial estimate, roughly a 10% gain.
Now, his third ring of Tree Rings energy had reached 71%.
"Shooting Star"
Morrow condensed a Nen bullet between his fingers. With just a pointing gesture, the Nen bullet shot through the air, accurately destroying the withered miniature human body.
As the miniature body shattered and crumbled, a wisp of black smoke-like Post-Mortem Nen shot out from the remains, heading straight for Morrow with clear intent.
Morrow deftly raised his right hand, caught the incoming black Post-Mortem Nen, and instantly refined it.
The black Post-Mortem Nen then vanished.
The Tree Rings on the back of his hand finally increased slightly, settling at 72%.
During the process of enduring the impact of the massive memory information flow, Morrow's expression remained normal, as if he had developed immunity.
In reality, it was just that his adaptability had grown stronger.
The negative sensations still occurred as they should.
A few seconds later.
The enormous memory information disappeared into thin air.
Morrow slowly let out a long breath, subtly glancing at the back of his hand.
Only 28% energy remained to reach full capacity, and with the unabsorbed Post-Mortem Will within the palace, further progress was possible.
However, compared to the gains in Tree Rings energy, Morrow now placed greater importance on enhancing the strength of his Starlight Convergence ability.
If it were his current self, he should already be capable of overcoming the weakness of information overload to a certain extent.
If nothing else, his precision in reading information had significantly improved.
This was one of the achievements he had attained during this period.
"Ging, it's done here."
Morrow withdrew his gaze from the underground palace ceiling and turned toward the passage exit.
There, Ging was conversing with several colleagues.
Hearing Morrow's voice, Ging tilted his head to signal his companions to wait, then strode over.
He came to Morrow's side, but his gaze swept past him, landing on the tightly sealed palace ahead.
"Then only the Post-Mortem Will inside the palace remains."
Ging paused, then asked with concern, "Morrow, do you need to rest?"
During this time, Ging had observed Morrow handling the Post-Mortem Will on the ceiling with increasing ease.
But out of caution and concern, if Morrow needed rest, he was willing to wait another day or two.
"No need. Today is just about dealing with the final remnants, it won't have any impact."
Morrow shook his head.
Seeing this, Ging immediately made arrangements. "Alright, Tessa and the others have just arrived. I'll have them come down now."
Tessa was another Exorcism expert in Ging's team and also Sanbica's master.
Because this palace in the underground palace was, for some unknown reason, constructed as a sealed structure.
Considering the potential risks inside the palace, Ging had called for Tessa, though his true intention was actually Tessa's apprentice, Sanbica.
With such a skilled Virus Hunter present, many potential risks could be handled.
So, as the saying goes, professional matters should be left to the experts.
In the Pro Hunter circle, this practice was already commonplace.
About half an hour later.
Tessa and Sanbica emerged from the passage and immediately spotted Ging and Morrow, who had been waiting for some time.
Morrow had already learned from Ging in advance that Sanbica would be coming, so he wasn't surprised.
But Sanbica didn't know Morrow was here, so upon seeing him, she froze for a moment, almost failing to recognize him.
After all, a year had passed since their last meeting. While Morrow's facial features hadn't changed much, his physique had undergone a dramatic transformation. His well-defined muscle lines were faintly visible even through his clothes.
"Morrow?"
Sanbica was surprised by Morrow's presence, her obsidian-like eyes widening slightly, a flicker of delight at their reunion surfacing in their depths.
She had always been a loner, and due to her personality, she could count her friends on one hand. Morrow was one of them.
"Long time no see, Sanbica."
Morrow looked at the girl still wrapped up tightly from head to toe, the corners of his mouth lifting into a smile.
In this world where the strong prey on the weak, he always held considerable fondness for this kind-hearted Virus Hunter.
"Business first."
Tessa suddenly stepped forward, shielding Sanbica like a mother hen protecting her chick.
Beside them, Ging observed Tessa's odd behavior, a strange glint flashing in his eyes.
Tessa seemed to sense it and shot a cold glare at Ging.
Ging was initially curious, but when Tessa inexplicably shot him a glare, he was instantly baffled.
Little did he know that after the Virus Research Lab incident, Tessa had already categorized Morrow and him as the same type, cunning men skilled at manipulating others.
Now, seeing Morrow and Ging together only confirmed Tessa's perception. And since she had to bring Sanbica to Morrow at Ging's request, she had no reason to give him a friendly look.
If Ging had known what Tessa was thinking, he would have cried out in protest.
But those who knew him well wouldn't have considered him wronged.