Shooting Star · Essence Siphon could plunder the target's life force after killing them and convert it into healing energy.
The main flaw of this ability lay in its relatively weak offensive power.
Therefore, it often struggled to produce significant effects when facing opponents of the same level or weaker.
However, the Nen system inherently followed the principle that the stronger the Limitation, the more powerful the ability.
Based on this, skilled Nen users could often cleverly overcome the restrictions imposed by harsh Limitations.
They could even make their abilities achieve effects beyond imagination.
During the two days before the Extermination Team launched their full-scale assault, Morrow had already preemptively implanted Star Marks on the Peons in the Chimera Ant Nest, assigning each of them a number.
These Peons had not undergone Nen awakening, so Starlight Convergence could easily implant the Star Marks into them remotely.
They weren't even aware of what had happened.
More importantly, although they hadn't undergone Nen awakening, their life force far exceeded that of ordinary humans.
This meant that even if the offensive power of Shooting Star · Essence Siphon wasn't strong, it was still sufficient to instantly kill them.
The healing energy converted from them was far greater than what could be extracted from ordinary humans.
From any perspective, these Peons were the ideal targets for Shooting Star · Essence Siphon.
Morrow's tactical thinking had never been poor, so he naturally wouldn't overlook such pre-battle preparations.
This was precisely why he dared to withstand damage head-on, using it as the foundation to forcibly ignite an Accretion Charge.
Whoosh.
The departing Shooting Star · Essence Siphon pierced through the bottom of the Chimera Ant Nest, directly striking the first lucky Peon selected by Morrow.
The target was a Chimera Ant fused with crustacean and avian traits. After being hit by Shooting Star · Essence Siphon, it immediately collapsed into a corpse.
Subsequently, glowing specks resembling fireflies drifted out from the corpse, swiftly flying toward Morrow outside the nest.
Youpi observed Morrow firing a single Shooting Star · Essence Siphon.
Based on his assessment of the aura's intensity, he could only say that the threat level of that Shooting Star was extremely low, not even worth his attention.
Moreover, he paid no mind to Morrow's retort of "Is that so?"
At most, one more minute.
He was confident he could end Morrow's life.
By then, he would also resolve the issue of those indigo-blue flames on his body.
Youpi's monstrous body exuded a terrifying presence as he shattered the ground and charged toward Morrow ahead.
While advancing at high speed, his ten tentacle-like arms were already coiled like tightly wound springs, awaiting the moment to claim Morrow's life.
Facing Youpi's charge, Morrow could only temporarily evade, swiftly retreating to delay Youpi's approach as much as possible.
Drip, drip.
As Morrow retreated, he left a trail of bloodstains behind.
One advanced, the other retreated.
Two seconds passed in this intensely urgent chase.
When the third second arrived, Morrow was forced into Youpi's attack range.
But just before Youpi could strike, the Shooting Star · Essence Siphon sent toward the nest finally returned with healing energy.
Glowing particles, shimmering like fireflies, descended from the sky and precisely merged into Morrow's body. As the healing energy rapidly permeated, the numerous wounds beneath the bloodstains completely healed in the blink of an eye. Youpi's numerous compound eyes, formed through proliferation, allowed him to instantly detect the inconspicuous wound healing beneath the blood.
Does this human... also possess regenerative abilities?!
No.
It's those firefly-like specks of light from earlier...
Though Youpi understood the wound healing was related to the weak Nen bullet from before, he couldn't comprehend the underlying principle at all.
Yet his confusion didn't disrupt his intent.
The ten arms already poised to strike continued according to their initial offensive purpose, once again... pouring forth like a torrential downpour, enveloping Morrow.
「Starlight Convergence」
In response, brilliant starlight shattered forth from Morrow's body.
Breathtakingly beautiful, and reassuring as if having found support.
But in Youpi's eyes, the appearance of this starlight meant only one thing.
Morrow would evade the attacks again and again.
And so it was.
Fierce whip shadows crisscrossed through the air, yet Morrow moved like a swimming fish, twisting and dodging between them, always narrowly avoiding fatal threats.
"His movements... have completely recovered."
After just one round of fierce assault, Youpi keenly detected the changes brought about by the healed injuries.
The judgment he made seconds ago, that he could kill Morrow within at most one minute, was now irritably cast from his mind.
"Why, just why..."
"He looks so weak, so why can't I kill him?"
The outcome of Morrow's healing made a restless emotion surge once more in Youpi's heart.
From the initial extreme anxiety about the Chimera Ant Queen's safety, to the pure bloodlust and anger when facing the intruders.
To the constantly accumulating restlessness, irritation, and confusion now...
These emotions rose like tidal waves, subjecting him to tremendous mental pressure.
To change this situation... two more slender arms actually sprouted from Youpi's shoulders.
Knuckle, who had been waiting for an opportunity at the battlefield's edge, saw everything clearly.
Normally, increasing the number of arms meant the offensive would become even more frenzied.
This development was definitely not good news for Morrow.
As a teammate, he should immediately rush into the fray to continue sharing the pressure for Morrow.
But Knuckle made the completely opposite judgment.
"That monster... has been completely provoked by Morrow."
Drawing from his rich combat experience, Knuckle easily read this information from Youpi.
Instead of rushing forward, he turned his gaze to A.P.R. floating beside Youpi.
That cute Nen Beast with wings on its back and a garlic-shaped head displayed a clear number on its forehead.
That was the total amount of potential aura Knuckle had lent after successfully hitting Youpi twice.
Including the interest from the first compounding.
Under Knuckle's watchful eyes, A.P.R. underwent its second interest calculation, the number on its forehead immediately changing from 632 to 695.
Only twenty seconds have passed since activating the ability... but it feels so long to me.
Watching A.P.R. complete its second interest calculation, Knuckle's expression turned grave.
Although Hakoware calculated interest at compound rates like a loan shark, making the "loan amount" exceed Youpi's total potential aura...
Remained as difficult as reaching heaven.
"This monster's total potential aura... 500,000? 700,000? Or even more?"
Knuckle couldn't even imagine how long it would take to force Youpi into bankruptcy and mandatory Zetsu state through compound interest alone.
To accelerate Youpi's bankruptcy, he needed to continue launching effective attacks, constantly lending him more aura amount.
Only then could the compound interest swell at an astonishing rate.
But every attack carried tremendous risk.
With the current 632 aura amount loan... if he accidentally got hit even twice by Youpi's violent tentacles, all debts would likely be instantly repaid.
At that point, A.P.R. would disappear...
Undoubtedly the worst possible outcome.
Knuckle had to do his utmost to avoid this from happening.
Because he had recognized that Youpi was a non-strategic opponent with insufficient understanding of Nen.
With this judgment, A.P.R.'s existence wasn't just about preserving the slim possibility of defeating Youpi.
As long as it remained active and kept accruing interest, it could continuously apply psychological pressure on Youpi.
Knuckle believed that rather than taking risks to increase the loan amount, he should prioritize ensuring A.P.R.'s continuous operation.
This way, even if he couldn't provide substantial support, he could at least rely on the accumulating debt to continue disrupting Youpi's mentality.
So what he should do now was focus on feints and containment, constantly stimulating Youpi's nerves.
Making the already strained mind bear even heavier pressure.
Beyond this assessment, Knuckle needed to confirm one more thing.
He could see that Youpi had been provoked by Morrow.
So adding two more tentacles might not necessarily be a bad thing.
First, the diversion of aura output, the more tentacles, the lower the individual attack power.
And most importantly...
Technique.
Youpi's simultaneous control of ten tentacles for attacks showed no semblance of structure.
Essentially, it was just relying on power and speed for chaotic flailing.
Like a child picking up two sticks by the roadside, wildly swinging at the air with no techniques or skills in mind, only using full strength to smash randomly.
In this situation, if two more tentacles were added, it was predictable that Youpi's offensive would only become more chaotic.
That being said...
With that unreasonable Nen output enhancement, even completely chaotic attacks could "random punches might defeat a master."
So should he trust Morrow?
Trust that exceptional figure standing firm in the storm, still able to withstand Youpi's subsequent attacks.
I can only... believe in you, Morrow.
Knuckle tightly clenched his fists.
Against such monsters, what could be done was too limited.
Frankly speaking, it was insufficient ability.
Knuckle felt unwilling but had to face reality.
He needed calm judgment of the situation while trying to avoid making mistakes.
Only then would there be a chance to defeat this unfathomable monster!
And this meant he could only watch as Morrow bore almost all the risks and pressure.
This was the only way, right...
Harboring these complex emotions, Knuckle cautiously approached Youpi's position.
Being treated as garbage didn't matter.
As long as he continued to apply pressure and disrupted the opponent's rhythm.
Everything was for victory.
Knuckle repeatedly persuades himself with this in mind.
But... though he knew this decision would increase their chances of victory, the indelible sentiment in his nature ultimately made it impossible to bypass his guilt toward Morrow.
He inevitably hesitated.
But in that very moment of hesitation... within the combat zone, Morrow, who should have been suppressed and constantly evading, unexpectedly launched a counterattack.
Knuckle's eyes widened slowly.
He saw that amidst the torrential downpour of whip-like shadows, Morrow, while maintaining the Starlight Convergence state, directly abandoned the aura protecting his upper body and concentrated it entirely into his legs.
The reason for doing so was to completely forsake his already limited margin for error.
Then, with the resolve to face death, he exchanged it for a sliver of strength to counterattack in this dire situation.
With every step of evasion, every landing, Morrow pressed his soles against the ground, channeling Nen into the earth.
Immediately after, using Youpi's footing as the launch point, he unleashed the ability "Insidious Shooting Star"!
A stellar cross instantly materialized beneath Youpi's feet.
As the glow dispersed, a Nen bullet shot out from the starlight, striking the sole of Youpi's foot at point-blank range.
But its power was limited, only making Youpi feel a slight push, like a firecracker firmly stomped underfoot, all noise and no effect.
"You think such a trick can disrupt my balance?"
Youpi hadn't expected Morrow to counterattack in such a predicament.
"Or perhaps…"
He thought of the eerie blue flames burning on his body.
Based on this human's previous actions, maybe this form of counterattack wasn't meant to halt his offense but to ignite more flames on his feet?
This possibility was very high.
Youpi indeed wasn't skilled at thinking or formulating strategies mid-battle.
But he wasn't foolish; he knew that his opponent's insistence on igniting flames all over his body was surely to seek an opportunity to kill him.
So even if he couldn't guess the effect of this bizarre ability, he understood it would undoubtedly be detrimental to him.
Based on this, even if he still believed this human was full of tricks, he had no choice but to be cautious.
Under normal circumstances, that would be the case.
However...
Morrow had currently withdrawn the aura output protecting his upper body.
This meant that if a tentacle could strike Morrow's upper body, even just once, it would most likely end the battle instantly.
But if he started guarding against Morrow's tricks, it would inevitably affect his offensive rhythm and might even make Morrow abandon this strategy.
"Ding dong."
"Time's up, interest accrual begins!"
A.P.R. announced at that moment.
30 seconds, the third interest accrual.
The number on its forehead rose from 695 to 765.
Youpi's multiple eyes glanced at the somewhat annoying A.P.R., and he quickly made a decision.
Rather than guarding against an unknown risk, he preferred to eliminate Morrow as quickly as possible.
Or rather, as a Royal Guard, he could no longer afford to waste time.
Morrow observed Youpi's dismissive reaction to "Insidious Shooting Star."
"As expected… he can't resist the temptation to kill his enemy in one blow."
Morrow thought silently to himself.
While risking instant death from Youpi's tentacles, he used his footwork's momentum to continuously release Insidious Shooting Star toward Youpi's footing.
Igniting Accretion Charge never required breaking through defenses. This meant that as long as Insidious Shooting Star could land a hit, even without causing substantial damage, it could still accumulate Accretion Charges.
Fundamentally, this ability was completely different from Starlight Convergence.
Starlight Convergence required Morrow to continuously evade the opponent's attacks.
Stellar Collapse, however, was about forcing the opponent to avoid his own attacks.
Of course.
Faced with such an ability, the opponent indeed had many choices.
But the effectiveness of Nen often depended on how the Nen user employed it.
At this moment, Morrow presented himself like a piece of tempting meat before Youpi.
This was an open scheme.
If Youpi could resist the temptation and consciously guard against Morrow's Accretion Charge strategy, he would have to shift some focus to defense, which would inevitably reduce the intensity of his offense, making it harder to kill Morrow.
Although Youpi's precautions would greatly increase the difficulty of igniting Accretion Charges, Morrow could pivot to a supporting role.
That is, he would leverage the nature of Stellar Collapse to pressure Youpi, allowing Knuckle to switch from support to offense, placing the odds of defeating Youpi on A.P.R.
Conversely, if Youpi chose to face the temptation head-on, it meant he would not defend against the attacks from Insidious Shooting Star.
While this would give him a chance to kill Morrow in one fell swoop, he would also bear the risk of having Accretion Charges ignited.
Morrow would respond accordingly based on Youpi's decisions.
In a sense, this was another form of power, pushing tactics to the extreme to transcend Limitations.
Morrow used his own body as bait, dancing on the edge of a blade, gradually accumulating the hits needed to ignite the fifth Accretion Charge on Youpi.
Throughout this process, death trailed him like a shadow, encircling him like the wind.
Yet neither Youpi nor Knuckle, who watched with bated breath, detected the slightest trace of fear of death in Morrow.
Knuckle was deeply shaken once again.
He widened his eyes, his gaze fixed intently on Morrow.
Each step Morrow took amidst the flurry of attacks was as precise as pressing down on the black and white keys of a piano.
With every note that seemed to sound, it was as if an invisible spear was being driven into Youpi's body.
Once there was no more space for the spears to pierce, Youpi could be instantly eliminated.
What an incredibly powerful... presence!
Without any exchange of words, Knuckle understood Morrow's intent and strategy, and thus hesitated no more.
That figure, seemingly dancing through the realm of death, trampled his hesitation along with it.
He must not betray Morrow's resolve.
This was the only thought in Knuckle's mind.
He waited for an opportunity nearby, steadfastly executing the tactic of pressuring Youpi.
They could win!
Witnessing Morrow's combat stance that transcended life and death made Knuckle utterly certain of this.
As if in response to his fervent trust, the fifth Accretion Charge suddenly ignited on Youpi's left knee.
Only two more remained.
This battle, fought across a vast disparity in levels, was on the verge of an unbelievable victory.
—--
"Truly astonishing..."
Another who witnessed Morrow's presence was Knov, who was tasked with other duties.
He noticed Morrow's performance in the battle and couldn't help but marvel inwardly.
This was because... the opponent's strength far exceeded his expectations.
Faced with a monster of this caliber, Knov believed he couldn't even manage to "restrain" it.
In fact, when he personally witnessed the terrifying aura of Youpi, he had already begun to worry for Morrow. Yet no one expected Morrow to not only excel at the containment task, but even charge headlong down the path of defeating Youpi.
Knov found it utterly unbelievable.
He believed that within the Extermination Team, only Chairman Netero could kill a Royal Guard.
The mission for everyone else was to create the conditions for Netero to eliminate the Royal Guards one by one.
Seems no help is needed here. Just to be safe, I should set up one more entrance.
Knov silently withdrew his gaze, suppressing the shock Morrow had stirred within him.
Then, he extended his index finger and drew a passage leading to "Hide and Seek" on the ground before him.
After completing the setup, he took one last glance at the battle not far away, then quietly departed.