Aura vibrated through the air, emitting a low hum, only to be instantly swallowed by a continuous roar of explosions.
Faced with this ferocious Emission assault that surpassed human limits, an unsolvable question arose in Beyond's mind.
He couldn't fathom how Morrow had managed to reach such a level in such a short amount of time.
There's no opening to counterattack.
Facing the overwhelming bombardment of Nen bullets, Beyond could only focus all his strength on defense.
Even so, he still couldn't completely block all the impacts.
The problem wasn't that his ability was weak.
On the contrary, the effect of Nothing External to the Mind was inherently more focused on defense.
The original purpose of this ability was never to pursue ultimate destructive power, but to increase his margin for error and create room for trial and error in the perilous Dark Continent.
Therefore, its defensive performance should have been exceptionally outstanding.
The fundamental reason it was now struggling to perform at its proper level was the disparity in aura output between them.
What was more troublesome... was that it had to be Emission.
This type held a rather special position in the Nen system, bordering Enhancement above and Manipulation below.
This unique placement often led Nen users down two distinctly different paths of development.
Either they pursued the ultimate outpouring of energy, or they focused on a diverse, mechanics-based route.
For this reason, experienced Nen users were always extra wary of older Emission masters.
Such individuals had often accumulated a sufficiently deep reserve of power.
And only with the support of such formidable reserves could Emitters who focused on an offensive path truly display their devastating, suppressive power.
Now, faced with this suppressive force that pushed the characteristics of an Nen type to its absolute limit, Beyond was utterly helpless.
But to break the stalemate, he had to make a choice.
Rather than be suppressed from start to finish, it was better to proactively sacrifice something to create an opportunity to counterattack.
After all, as long as he could make a move, he could use the stealth characteristic of Nothing External to the Mind to turn the tide of battle.
Especially while Morrow was maintaining such a high-intensity attack, the Nen defense on other parts of his body would be very weak.
Under such circumstances, the success rate of a one-hit kill was very high.
However, Morrow still had the spare energy to set up Starlight Convergence, completely erasing any thought of a counterattack from Beyond's mind.
He clearly had the guts to counter, but his opponent simply gave him no chance.
Faced with this outcome, Beyond's only option was...
In an instant, the energy field surrounding Beyond's body changed significantly.
He proactively tore an opening in what was once an omnidirectional defensive barrier.
The price was, the moment his defensive line collapsed, the torrent of energy from the Nen bullets surged straight through, blasting his entire left arm to smithereens.
A bloody mist mixed with bone fragments erupted over the lake's surface, tracing a glaring arc.
His entire arm had been obliterated in an instant.
But it was precisely through this self-destructive choice that Beyond finally had the leeway to retreat from the concentrated range of Morrow's firepower.
He had been so decisive in sacrificing an arm to create an opportunity to counterattack, one that could have even reversed the battle.
Yet in the end, it could only be used to buy a moment's respite.
The tangible gains between the two outcomes were worlds apart.
But regardless... as long as he could escape the suppressive fire, he would have a chance to strike and kill.
Beyond's figure shot backward across the lake's surface, the airflow he generated kicking up a white wake on the water.
He didn't even spare a glance at his empty left shoulder, a hidden glint of bloodlust flashing in his eyes.
There was only one chance.
Completely disregarding the threat from Morrow that could descend upon him at any moment, Beyond secretly mobilized the power of Nothing External to the Mind, silently striking toward Netero by the lakeside.
From beginning to end, his target had never changed.
It was to kill Netero here and remove the Limitation that prevented him from going to the Dark Continent.
Therefore, to achieve his goal... the moment Beyond realized he couldn't defeat Morrow, he resolutely used the opportunity he had bought with his arm to assassinate Netero.
He was willing to do so even if it meant taking a second heavy blow from Morrow.
Netero once believed that Beyond was more of a pure Pro Hunter than he was.
This view was, without a doubt, accurate.
At least in this moment, Beyond perfectly embodied the characteristics of a Pro Hunter.
The energy field, detached from real space, was like a predator lurking beneath the water, silently closing in on Netero's lifeline.
Even though Linne was right beside Netero, the attack trajectory of Nothing External to the Mind was imperceptible, like a saltwater crocodile under the surface, revealing its ferocious and terrifying face only at the instant it lunged for its prey.
The conclusion was, Beyond was confident this strike would succeed, and he was mentally prepared to receive Morrow's next wave of Emission attacks.
But the situation he anticipated did not happen.
Above the lake, Morrow's figure vanished into thin air.
He did not unleash another of his extremely powerful Emission attacks. Instead, he used his Astral Step ability, teleporting directly into Beyond's kill zone.
This also meant he was abandoning the absolute advantage of his Emission attacks at mid-to-long range, opting instead for a close-quarters assault that might give Beyond a sliver of a chance.
This decision was not in Morrow's style.
If he could have suppressed Beyond to death with the absolutely safe method of Emission attacks, he would not have chosen any other course of action.
There was only one reason that prompted him to do so.
He had sensed Beyond's bloodlust.
Although this bloodlust was not directed at him, he was extremely sensitive to it and immediately saw through Beyond's intentions.
With no time to marvel at Beyond's obsession with placing his "goal" above all else, Morrow blinked to close range, thrusting his palm straight at Beyond's vitals.
A lethally powerful mass of Nen gathered in his palm, radiating an extremely strong sense of pressure.
Morrow's sudden close-range pressure was completely beyond Beyond's expectations.
In their previous exchange, he had clearly sensed from the storm of Nen bullets Morrow's intent to use his absolute advantage in aura output to completely suppress him to death.
Could it be that he had instantly detected the covert attack aimed at Netero, and thus made the split-second decision to "besiege Wei to save Zhao"?
Beyond had no way of knowing.
In that instant, as time seemed to stretch, he faced Morrow's fatal blow and once again... had no choice.
Or rather, from the very beginning, Morrow had been using his absolute strength to compress Beyond's room to maneuver in every single moment.
"..."
Beyond's heart sank like iron. On the razor's edge between life and death, he finally aborted his attack on Netero.
He then immediately abandoned that portion of his manifested aura, allowing his aura output to return to its peak state as quickly as possible.
Only then could he withstand Morrow's full-powered strike.
Just as Beyond's aura output returned to its complete state, Morrow's forward-thrusting palm spewed forth a laser-like Nen wave, blasting Beyond at point-blank range.
A blinding light instantly engulfed him.
The next moment, his body was sent flying backward, carried by the Nen wave like a kite with a snapped string.
The force of the impact made him spit out more blood from his mouth and nose.
This was still the result of the difference in their aura output levels.
In past battles, Morrow had always been at a disadvantage in this regard and had to do everything he could to avoid such situations.
Now, he no longer had to worry about it.
Instead, it was his opponent who had to constantly endure the pressure and risk brought by this disparity.
After blasting Beyond away with a single strike, Morrow hovered in mid-air. He did not retract his outstretched arm; instead, like a reloaded cannon, it once again gathered a mass of fluorescent green Nen.
Taking advantage of the opening while Beyond was sent flying, he casually tossed a Deceptive Shooting Star toward the lake's surface below.
Tsh!
The fluorescent green Shooting Star shot straight to the bottom of the lake.
After doing this, Morrow finally gave chase to Beyond, continuing to gather aura in his palm, ready to launch the next wave of attacks at any moment.
Such a powerful offensive made even Linne, an outsider to the fight, feel a sense of suffocation.
After all, from her spectator's perspective, she knew very well that if it weren't for Beyond's ability being more adept at defense... he would likely have been killed in an instant the moment he was enveloped by Morrow's firepower.
Even if he had managed to endure the first round of attacks, it would have only delayed his defeat.
Linne made this judgment, but she didn't think it was because Beyond was weak.
If it were any other top-tier Nen user... setting aside the question of victory, if they were caught off guard by Morrow and subjected to his suppressive fire, their situation would most likely be even worse.
"Beyond's ability... has no possibility of turning the tables."
Linne's eyes widened slightly; she could see the outcome of this duel based on her experience alone.
And there was only one reason she dared to be so certain.
Beyond's ability lacked any mechanism that could create even a sliver of a chance for victory.
His ability, while capable of extremely strong offensive and defensive performance in battle, would fall into the embarrassing predicament of being "unable to do anything" when facing an opponent who was stronger in both "offense" and "defense."
In essence, it was like two Enhancers with unequal hardware fighting.
The weaker party had no way to counter, no matter what.
"But his choice just now..."
If Linne could see the direction of this battle, how could Beyond, who was in the thick of it, not understand?
So when she saw Beyond willing to sacrifice an arm to break free from the suppressive fire, she had initially thought he would use the opportunity to retreat.
After all, continuing to fight would not change the outcome.
But not only did Beyond not retreat, he didn't even immediately create distance. Instead, he revealed a not-so-small opening.
In a top-tier duel with such a low margin for error, such a choice was truly baffling.
Linne then thought of Morrow's sudden move to abandon his mid-to-long-range advantage and abruptly press in for a close-quarters attack, and she suddenly realized something.
Thinking it over, there was likely only one reason that could make Beyond make such a strange move in that situation.
To kill Netero.
And the characteristics of Beyond's ability did indeed give him that capability.
Having thought of this possibility, Linne understood why Morrow had suddenly changed his tactics. It was highly likely that he had immediately sensed Beyond's intention... that had to be the only explanation.
"The younger generation is truly formidable..."
Linne looked at the young figure in the sky above the lake.
She roughly understood that Morrow's strength did not stem entirely from his superior aura output level.
As her thoughts turned, she subconsciously looked at Netero beside her.
Noticing Linne's gaze, which was tinged with a hint of something unusual, Netero turned to meet it and let out a soft sigh.
Thanks to their years of mutual understanding, Linne knew from Netero's reaction that he had also realized what had happened.
She just didn't know what kind of emotions were churning beneath that seemingly calm, aged face.
—--
Above the lake.
Dense Nen bullets once again wove a net of death, enveloping Beyond.
The scene repeated itself.
Faced with Morrow's merciless suppressive fire, Beyond could only struggle to hold on.
He couldn't pose any threat to Morrow, and he had lost his one and only chance to assassinate Netero... only at this moment did the thought of retreat truly surface in his heart.
There was no point in continuing to hold on like this.
As his thoughts turned, Beyond suddenly looked up, his gaze seeming to pierce through the energy field barrier and the fierce clash of numerous light bullets, landing on Morrow's face.
It was so calm and composed, without a trace of the tension that should be present in a fierce battle.
As if he were silently mocking his earlier struggle: Even if you gambled an arm, what's the use?
And Beyond, though he had no right to refute it, did not feel the frustration of being crushed.
His view of "failure" was different from that of ordinary people.
He didn't care about victory or defeat in battle at all.
He couldn't kill Netero today.
There would still be countless opportunities in the future.
"You can protect him today, but what about the countless tomorrows that follow?"
At this moment, Beyond temporarily buried his bloodlust for Netero deep in his heart.
No matter what, I will break this shackle...
While struggling to hold on amidst the storm of Nen bullets, his will remained as unyielding as steel.
All the things in the world, power, wealth, fine wine, women... in his heart, none of them could compare to his fervent desire for the unknown of the Dark Continent.
He would go to lands no one had set foot on, see sights no one had witnessed, obtain things no one had touched, and kiss the earth no one had reached!
Unbound by any rules, untroubled by any person or matter.
To do whatever he wanted!
He wanted absolute freedom!
Beyond struggled to defend himself, yet a grin spread across his face.
As long as one is alive, there are infinite possibilities.
So what if he gave up another arm?
Morrow saw his smile.
He had no reaction, merely flicking a coin with his left hand while continuing to suppress Beyond.
Ting!
The familiar crisp sound rang out.
The smile that had just appeared on Beyond's face immediately vanished.
He remembered this technique, using a coin to guide Emission attacks.
His gaze passed through the surging shockwaves exploding in front of him and fell upon the coin, which was streaking through the air, heading straight for the sky high above his head.
But there were no Nen bullets in the sky?
Splash!
The moment the coin flew over his head, the lake below suddenly exploded.
Under the water?!
Beyond's expression changed.
Immediately after, the Deceptive Shooting Star that shot out from the bottom of the lake became the last straw that broke the camel's back, completely destroying Beyond's defensive line.
His defense instantly collapsed.
The devastating energy of the interwoven Nen bullets surged through the opening, piercing straight toward Beyond's lifeline.
BOOM!
In an instant, a blazing light completely consumed him.