Flames seared the soul.
Excruciating pain pierced his consciousness.
This kind of damage, which directly affected the spiritual plane, was arguably the greatest form of torture for its victim.
But the most torturous part, without a doubt, was the final moments of 'waiting for death.'
That is, the process of the soul being burned to ash by the flames.
The King could withstand the pain that reached the depths of his soul with his formidable willpower, but he ultimately could not accept the outcome of death with detached indifference.
He felt no hatred or anger toward Morrow.
The world itself was a colossal hunting ground, where the law of the jungle was the only underlying logic.
If one became another's prey, the one to hate was not the hunter who struck, but one's own lack of ability.
This clear understanding of the law of the ecological niche was long since carved deep into the King's genes.
Therefore, the King could calmly accept defeat in battle.
The reason he was unwilling to accept death was that 'that game' with Komugi was not yet finished.
"..."
The surroundings were deathly silent.
The King's spiritual body below his chest had already been burned away.
He no longer looked at Morrow, but instead tilted his head up to look at the hole that had been blasted through the ceiling. An image of their game, which had reached the mid-game, flickered before his eyes.
The King...
For the first time, he felt a sense of unwillingness.
This feeling grew stronger as the flames spread to his neck, his chin, his nose.
Even as the flames burned away half of his eye, the King continued to stare fixedly at the portal in the ceiling that led to the surface.
Komugi...
He was thinking.
Was that girl with astonishing Gungi skills sitting alone before the board, waiting for him to fulfill his promise and return?
The ghostly blue flames consumed the last glimmer of light in the King's eyes, then burned his crown to nothing.
As the ashes scattered into nothingness, the aura on the King's body also dissipated, and his eyes grew dim and lifeless.
The King was dead.
Yet his corpse remained standing, silent and still.
Morrow stared at the King, whose head was still tilted upward.
Although the battle was over, he did not relax his guard in the slightest. He didn't even check the status of his Tree Rings' level-up, merely keeping his eyes locked on the motionless husk before him.
Before the third rewind, the King had survived the explosion of the Poor Man's Rose.
This was a fact.
Although Morrow didn't know the specifics of what had happened, the fact that the King could survive such a desperate situation meant that some unknown variable existed.
So even though he had ended the King's life with Stellar Collapse and could clearly feel the increase in his aura output after leveling up, Morrow still did not let his guard down, nor did he choose to leave immediately.
He had to confirm this with his own eyes.
"Starlight Convergence."
Brilliant starlight flowed like water, enveloping the King's corpse.
Morrow quietly awaited the result.
Hm?
Suddenly, Morrow's expression shifted slightly.
The starlight enveloping the King's corpse was actually providing feedback of a life pulse.
This meant that the King, who should have been completely devoid of life, had a new spark of vitality igniting within his body.
Morrow didn't know the reason, but he calmly gathered a large amount of aura in his right hand, preparing to attack.
At this moment.
A mass of flesh wrapped in a tough membrane inside the King's body was pulsating like a heart, as if some foreign object was about to break out of it.
And this mass was precisely the second King that was supposed to have been born.
It was just that during its embryonic development, it had been forcibly absorbed by the more dominant first King.
But because of the will to survive, a primal biological instinct...
The second King, destined from birth to be a natural Nen user, had wrapped itself in a tough membrane when it was being absorbed.
This was a result brought about by Nen.
It could be said that this was also a Conjuration of the will to survive.
In fact, even humans, if their Nen is forcibly awakened in infancy, will quickly master techniques like Ten and Zetsu under the instinct for survival.
Beyond had once used this kind of instinctual power, originating from the very foundation of life, to have his offspring complete their Nen awakening during infancy.
This was the most primitive and purest biological power.
So, after the first King's life was extinguished, this mass of flesh belonging to the second King, which should have been independent but was maintained in a symbiotic relationship as a chimera, proactively broke through the tough membrane that had once preserved its life, driven by a strong will to survive.
Subsequently, the aura belonging to the second King attempted to reawaken the life in the current corpse.
At the same time.
Another unexpected event occurred.
Upon the King's corpse, where life was reviving, a black Nen suddenly seeped out.
It was the King's Post-Mortem Nen.
Two forces, like yin and yang, had appeared simultaneously in a rather bizarre fashion.
But this Post-Mortem Nen from the King was not for revenge or to continue the fight.
He simply wanted to fulfill his promise to Komugi and finish that game of Gungi...
Post-Mortem Nen born from such a reason was inherently tenacious, but it was not intense enough.
And it would usually leave the body directly, heading to its destination as a pure form of Post-Mortem Nen.
However, the second King's instinctual act of trying to reawaken the corpse with its aura forcibly kept the first King's Post-Mortem Nen, which should have left the body to find Komugi, contained within the corpse.
This led to the strange phenomenon of Post-Mortem Nen and life-sustaining Nen coexisting in one body.
Normally, for Post-Mortem Nen to gain control of a corpse, it would typically have to be of the Manipulation type.
But the King's Post-Mortem Nen now met this condition.
He regained control of his body in his spiritual form of Post-Mortem Nen. The double pupils that had dimmed with death merged into one, and wisps of black Nen appeared at the edges of his pupils, drifting upward like threads of smoke.
The King seemed surprised by this change, but he quickly accepted the current situation.
He slowly lowered his head, glanced at his right hand, which was filled with power, and then turned his gaze to the calm-faced Morrow before him.
"You no longer have any chance of victory."
After saying this with a tone of certainty, the King once again looked up at the portal in the ceiling. "But I have no intention of continuing this fight. I'll give you ten minutes. Have Komugi return here, and all of you leave. I will not take your lives."
"..."
Morrow silently dispersed the aura in his right hand. His gaze fell on the black Nen threads continuously dissipating from the edge of the King's pupil, a trace of astonishment flashing in his eyes.
Relying on that unknown power within his body that could inexplicably restart his life, combined with the Post-Mortem Nen left behind because of Komugi...
Was this how the King had survived the Poor Man's Rose explosion?
Morrow had no way of knowing how this dead shell had regained a heartbeat.
But when he saw that the King's Post-Mortem Nen had completely taken control of this revived body, he knew that even though the King had become stronger after death, he still couldn't pose a substantial threat to him.
"It seems you still don't understand the situation."
Morrow slowly raised his right hand.
As he made this gesture, his gaze, directed at the King, happened to see the level character in the center of his Tree Rings.
Lv. 100.
The experience gained from killing the King just now had directly raised his level to the human limit.
This showed just how massive the experience gain was, breaking through the final talent restriction in one go.
But what he should be concerned with now was not his level, but dealing with this King who had been reborn in a bizarre way.
Seeing Morrow's lack of appreciation, the King's expression didn't change. He just said coldly, "I will not repeat myself."
As his voice fell, the distinct black and white aura on his body surged at a visible rate.
Having experienced death, the King had, on the contrary, come to see clearly what he wanted most.
This made him unwilling to continue this battle, nor did he want to pursue the matter of this group of humans' transgression.
He just wanted to continue playing Gungi with Komugi now.
But if Morrow treated his words as hot air, he wouldn't mind going on a killing spree.
The King's thoughts were very clearly integrated into his aura.
Obey me, and you won't have to die here.
Morrow clearly understood this meaning from the King's aura.
He stared at the reborn, yet somehow different, King, his heart filled with surprise.
He had thought that after hearing what he said, the King would attack him without hesitation.
He hadn't expected the King's 'tolerance' to have become so high, as if some mercy had been added to his cruel and cold heart.
But...
This battle had to be decided by life and death.
"Astral Step."
In the next instant, Morrow teleported in front of the King. The hand he had just raised was now abruptly pressed against the King's chest.
This sudden action made the King's eyes turn cold.
In an instant, he retracted the mercy he considered a gift and instead had the thought of killing Morrow.
Hm?
Just as he was about to act, he was shocked to find his body completely unresponsive.
He abruptly looked at Morrow's right hand pressed against his chest and saw the black life energy surging from his body being madly absorbed by that hand, like a torrent.
"What... did you do?!"
The situation had once again spun out of his control. The King's pupils trembled.
Faced with the King's question yet again, Morrow remained silent, his gaze fixed on the Tree Rings on the back of his hand.
As the Post‑Mortem Nen was absorbed into the Tree Rings, the fourth energy ring began to fill, going from the original 96% to 97%, then to 98%, 99%...
Finally, it broke through 100%. After the fourth Tree Ring's energy was filled, the fifth Tree Ring's energy ring appeared in a new color.
The Tree Rings were still madly absorbing the Post-Mortem Nen, taking the King's spiritual consciousness along with it.
When the Post-Mortem Nen on the King's body was completely absorbed by Morrow, the fifth Tree Ring's energy stopped at 21%.
At the same time.
The negative impact from the Post-Mortem Nen instantly dragged Morrow's spirit into his consciousness space.
Spread out before him was still that boundless, pure white space.
But the ground beneath his feet had once again turned into a black water surface. A light touch of his toes sent ripples spreading silently into the distance.
This black water surface was the residual negative spiritual energy from the source of the Post-Mortem Nen, mostly precipitated here in the form of memory fragments or ability materials.
Theoretically, as long as Morrow was willing to bear the corresponding price, he could build new abilities based on this.
But unlike the abilities directly imprinted by the Tree Rings, abilities derived from Post-Mortem Nen often came with harsh costs and could even corrode Morrow's consciousness.
So Morrow usually chose to suppress this spiritual energy deep within his consciousness.
Previously, it seemed that because of Beyond's attack, this accumulated negative spiritual energy had unexpectedly dissipated.
However, having absorbed the Post-Mortem Nen of Neferpitou and Shaiapouf during this period, the water surface of his consciousness space had once again been dyed black.
The reaction is rather mild this time...
Although he had been passively pulled into his consciousness space, the expected phenomenon of a mental assault did not occur.
The King's Post-Mortem Nen clearly did not possess strong offensive properties.
Most importantly, it completely lacked the resentful thoughts and hatred commonly found in human Post-Mortem Nen.
Normally, only when such emotions reached an extreme state would it be easier to form Post-Mortem Nen.
But the fundamental reason the King was able to leave behind Post-Mortem Nen seemed to be simply the pure obsession of wanting to find Komugi and continue their game.
Just as Morrow was speculating, ripples suddenly appeared out of thin air on the black water surface before him.
At the center of the ripples, the King's unique Crown slowly emerged from the water, followed by his complete body, which gradually materialized.
This wasn't the first time Morrow had encountered such a situation. In his consciousness form, he calmly watched the King who had suddenly appeared.
Usually, this kind of situation occurred when the source consciousness of the Post-Mortem Nen wanted to seize some initiative.
It was like this with Orion's Post-Mortem Nen at Heavens Arena, and it was the same with Chrollo's Post-Mortem Nen.
The King now was no different.
The black ripples spread out and vanished.
The King stood on the water's surface. He seemed to have already understood the situation, so he didn't even spare a glance at his surroundings, instead looking at Morrow first.
"Let me finish that game with Komugi."
His tone no longer carried the condescending, commanding air of a king, but instead held a hint of earnest pleading.
Morrow was silent for a moment.
To grant the King's request, the only way was to accept the source of this Post-Mortem Nen and use it as a basis to conjure the King.
But the problem was...
Whether it could be done was one thing; more importantly, would doing so bring any substantial benefits?
Morrow wasn't so kind-hearted as to fulfill this last wish for the King.
The King gazed at Morrow, as if he could see through the considerations behind his silence.
"It doesn't need to be that complicated. In exchange..."
—--
Underground emergency shelter.
Morrow's consciousness returned to reality.
The several minutes of conversation in his consciousness space had been but a blink of an eye in reality.
He had completely absorbed the Post-Mortem Nen left by the King and subsequently withdrew his right hand.
However, the King's body, having lost the support of the Post-Mortem Nen power, was surprisingly still gushing with aura.
As the energy surged, the features of the body's face gradually changed.
First, its eyes slowly widened, and its mouth stretched into a grin, revealing rows of menacing teeth from which saliva dripped incessantly.
This was clearly a manifestation of instinctual hunger, displayed plainly on the face that was gradually losing control.
Puchi!
Morrow suddenly struck, his right palm like a blade piercing through the King's chest, directly crushing the still-beating heart inside.
Blood and flesh splattered. A large amount of blood gushed from the piercing wound, flowing down along its edges.
Morrow calmly withdrew his hand and looked at the King's suddenly frozen face.
As the blood spilled out, the aura on the King's body began to visibly dissipate.
This time, the King's body finally fell to the ground with a dull thud.
Morrow casually flicked his arm, shaking the blood clinging to it onto the floor. At the same time, he could feel his aura output had increased by another small fraction.
He looked at the back of his right hand, which was still stained with a bit of blood. The original Lv. 100 had now become Lv. 101.
Which meant...
By killing this revived body of the King, he had actually gained a level, and it was a level from Lv. 100 to Lv. 101.
From the perspective of Etude of Love's leveling mechanism, even if his subconscious had improved and adjusted it, the general framework would not change.
And Morrow's improvement of Etude of Love through the power of the Tree Rings was essentially linking the difficulty of leveling up with the benefits of the level cap.
Because of this, while greatly increasing the difficulty of leveling, the ability's maximum level of Lv. 100 would also correspond to the limit that a human could reach.
Morrow's own talent was limited, and after mastering this ability, it meant that every level he gained in the later stages was a breakthrough of his own talent.
Up until the moment he killed the King, reaching Lv. 100 also meant he had reached the ceiling for humanity.
But he never expected that the King's Post-Mortem Nen could actually affect the Etude of Love ability imprinted by the Tree Rings, causing the level framework to break through the original Lv. 100.
I really didn't expect this...
Morrow looked at the Lv. 101 level character on the back of his hand with a look of surprise.
Just now in his consciousness space, he had ultimately agreed to the King's request.
According to the King's explanation, to fulfill his obsession of finishing the game with Komugi, there was no need to bear any cost or conjure him.
He only needed to separate his spiritual consciousness and release it from the body, infused with a small portion of aura.
The King would handle the rest himself.
In exchange, the King opened up a possibility for Morrow.
If Morrow was willing to risk accepting his Post-Mortem Nen, he would have the chance to obtain the ability to 'strengthen himself' from it.
In other words, it was a high-reward, low-risk exchange.
At the time, Morrow had considered that the King's Post-Mortem Nen was indeed more stable and gentler than any other he had encountered, and so he finally accepted the proposal.
And the result far exceeded his expectations.
The so-called 'strengthening himself' was actually realized in this way.
It was likely that the King, through the power of his Post-Mortem Nen, had fundamentally branded his pre-death racial trait of continuous evolution through consumption into Morrow's body.
Simply put, he had reshaped Morrow's racial talent as a human.
And this state of breaking through the limits of life was directly reflected in the Etude of Love imprinted in the Tree Rings, causing its level to break through its original ceiling.
Regarding this result, Morrow found it hard to say whether it was due to the King's spiritual power that transcended life and death, or if the system of Post-Mortem Nen itself contained such a heaven-defying possibility.
"..."
Morrow silently glanced at the King's corpse, then used Terpsichora's ability to lift his body up toward the hole above.
Before helping the King fulfill his last wish, he had to take care of Neferpitou first.
And it was a good opportunity to see the effects of breaking the level framework.