Hunter: I became stronger even after I died.

Chapter 277 Morrow VS King

The most crucial aspect of this excavation work lies in the thoughts surrounding the deceased.

In particular, the aggressive thoughts of death within the underground palace will undoubtedly pose a direct threat to the personal safety of team members.

In the past, when faced with such a thorny situation, in order to ensure the safety of the excavation work, Tessa would usually use sealing techniques to temporarily suppress the threat of death.

Now that Morona has the ability to exorcise thoughts specifically targeting the thoughts of the dead, and can completely eliminate any potential dangers, the subsequent excavation and research work can proceed smoothly without Kim's presence.

That's why Kim readily agreed.

However, this place is not suitable for sparring.

Morrow and King walked through the passage and came into the spacious cave.

at this time.

Menqi was cooking fish porridge in front of a rock wall.

The white smoke and heat rising from the pot are immediately absorbed by the plants on the rock wall.

But the fragrance lingered, filling the surroundings.

As soon as Jin and Moro stepped out of the cave, a delicious aroma of fish porridge wafted over.

"It's better to arrive at the right time than to arrive early."

Jin sniffed, then unceremoniously moved closer to the pot, sitting down right next to it on the ground. He even picked up an empty bowl and stared intently at the thick fish porridge bubbling in the pot.

"Is it ready to eat yet?"

He felt the time was right and couldn't wait to ask.

"It'll be a little while longer."

Menqi rolled her eyes at him, annoyed, and retorted, "Your identity as one of the Twelve Earthly Branches is truly well-deserved."

"Hey."

Jin could easily tell that she was alluding to his own Earthly Branch name, the Pig, but he didn't care at all and waited for dinner to be served without changing his expression.

Upon seeing this, Moro was about to sit down on the ground next to Jin.

However, as soon as he made a move, Menchi pulled out a small stool from behind him and handed it to him.

"Thanks."

Moro smiled at Menchi and sat down on the small stool.

"???"

Jin held an empty bowl in one hand and chopsticks in the other. He first glanced at Menchi, who seemed unconcerned, and then at the small stool under Moro's bottom. A look of sorrow gradually appeared on his face.

"Sigh, the world is so cold. Young people all have seats, but middle-aged people like me, who are about to be eliminated by society, can only..."

"Shut up, you."

Menqi couldn't stand it anymore and casually tossed a small stool over.

Jin sat down on the bench without a trace of sadness.

"Oh right, I almost forgot to ask you."

Jin, holding an empty bowl, suddenly turned to look at Moro: "When you transferred that thought after death, did you receive any memory fragments?"

"Have."

Moro nodded slightly, and then described in detail what he had seen.

After listening, Jin thought of the history and myths about the Kingdom of Akashar recorded in ancient documents and fell into deep thought.

Seeing his solemn expression, Moro didn't disturb him and also thought about those fragments of memory.

What he was particularly interested in was the strange bottle that brought the roots over, and the palm-sized feather that could cause a strong earthquake.

He even suspected that these might be hallucinations caused by the root-induced hallucinations affecting the memory's owner.

But then I thought about it again, and realized that beyond the world map, there exist dark seas and dark continents.

On that vast, unknown land, things that are both imaginable and completely beyond human comprehension may actually exist.

So it's not impossible that a feather the size of a palm could trigger a powerful earthquake.

There was also the strange herb that could completely absorb the earth's nutrients, which appeared in the memory I received when I absorbed the death thoughts.

If these things drifted from the Dark Continent, then...

Humanity's attempt to seize the resources of the Dark Continent is indeed a path of exploration and destruction.

Thinking of this, Moro shook his head slightly; this matter had nothing to do with him.

Even if the timeline progresses to the point where the giant ship carrying 200,000 passengers and offerings departs from the port, what it ultimately arrives at is nothing more than a fictional continent created by a superpower.

An alternative located in the dark sea, used to deceive the public.

The real source of danger might be Yang De's team.

Even if Yang De's team manages to reach the Dark Continent and potentially bring back a catastrophe capable of shaking the world...

Having grown up, you will also be the safest person in the world.

As Morrow pondered, Mencius handed him a bowl of steaming hot fish porridge.

"Thank you."

Moro smiled and took the fish porridge. He had only taken a few bites when Jin took the bowl and went to find Menqi.

Jin filled a bowl with porridge, sat back on the small stool, and while eating the fish porridge, asked Moro, "Do you think those memories are 'real'?"

"Maybe it is, maybe it's not."

Moro said calmly, "After all, those roots of unknown origin, while dominating humanity, also grant humanity the ability to freely create false memories."

"Yes."

Jin swallowed a mouthful of fish porridge and suddenly asked, "Do you know about the computer world?"

"Ok?"

Moro raised an eyebrow, quickly recalling the two-star hacker hunter who appeared in the election arc of the original work.

Although there weren't many scenes related to the plot, he remembered that there was some brief information about the computer world.

"I know about it, but I don't know much about it."

As he spoke, Moro shoveled the rest of the fish porridge into his mouth.

Jin said earnestly, "For us who live in the real world, the computer world is a virtual world that exists on the internet, but for the residents over there, the world we live in is unreal. If you insist on comparing the two..."

At this point, Jin's tone became slightly wistful.

"In fact, the computer world is much freer. The residents living there are free to build whatever they want. So in my opinion, humans who are dominated by roots are especially like those who are willing to abandon their physical bodies and immigrate to the computer world."

"That sounds... kind of interesting."

Moro glanced at Jin.

Based on his understanding of the so-called computer world, it is nothing more than a network world that allows people all over the world to connect remotely through computers and mobile phones.

However, with the existence of such power as thought, even the online world, which is derived from technology, seems to be more complex than it appears.

"right."

Jin lowered his head and ate his fish porridge, his eyes sparkling with a strong desire to explore.

The existence of thought can bring about many possibilities.

It blurs the line between falsehood and truth.

It will also continuously influence human cognition.

Jin had every reason to believe that the feathers in those memory fragments, such as those capable of causing strong earthquakes, were real.

It is more likely to have come from the Dark Continent.

He wasn't ready for this yet, but it seemed he had already begun to touch upon everything about the Dark Continent.

This actually excited him somewhat.

To process this emotion, he needs to shift his attention elsewhere.

For example, he started by becoming Moro's sparring partner.

--------

When Morrow and King returned to the ground, it was still daylight.

Seeing the two emerge from the water and come ashore, Kurapika came over and helped them remove their diving gear.

During this period, Kurapika was responsible for overall coordination and security on land within the team.

His outstanding work ability was noticed by Jin, who then remembered this young one-star professional hunter.

After changing his clothes, Moro told Kurapika, and then walked out of the Thousand Mirror Lake area with Ging, finding a relatively open flat area.

"Starlight Convergence"

Once both sides were in position, Moro immediately used his abilities.

As the sun sets, countless glittering stars intertwine to form a dazzling curtain of light.

Jin stood with his hands in his pockets, head slightly tilted back, his eyes reflecting the shimmering starlight.

"Although I have experienced it many times, I still find it novel and interesting every time I experience it in person."

Jin slowly pulled his hands out of his pockets, gazed at the starry sky, and continued, "Given the complex structure of your ability, it is actually quite perfect, which is the fundamental reason why you find it difficult to improve it further."

"Well, but I still want to give it a try. Like you said, even if the final result doesn't meet expectations, I can still gain something else in the process."

The starlight was also reflected in Moro's eyes.

The convergence of starlight, from the moment of its development and creation, is already the result of a perfected idea.

The complete structure also means that it is difficult to add new building blocks into it.

Even if he fails, he will definitely learn something else from Kim during this year-long training period.

"let's start."

Moro's expression suddenly became focused, and the gleam in his eyes could not be concealed even by the starlight that had gathered from the stars.

Jin smiled upon hearing this and casually waved his hands.

His every movement was precise and composed, subtly revealing the perfect technique for exerting force, and the flow of his energy was as smooth and rapid as flowing water.

This is one of Jin's sparring duties.

Under the "gathering of starlight," they repeated the standard movements over and over again, like old men doing their morning exercises in the park.

Perhaps in the later stages, Moro will request practical combat exercises... But Jin can almost foresee that for at least six months, he will only be able to mechanically repeat the same actions.

Is it boring?
of course.

Even so, Kim will still fulfill the agreement meticulously.

Amidst the starlight, Morrow was completely absorbed in analyzing the information conveyed by every movement of Jin.

Currently, "Starlight Condensation" can only read the method of force exertion and the trajectory of psychic energy, but in the future, he will try it thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of times...

Even if it takes a million times, he is determined to fully integrate his obsession with evolution into his ability system.

Regardless of whether it can be achieved in the end...

But at least, this kind of training will allow him to improve his control over Nen abilities day by day, and will also allow him to deepen his understanding of the Nen system through his interactions with Ging.

As long as you keep moving forward, you will surely reap the rewards.

Therefore, even if the road ahead is uncertain, Moro will still stride forward without hesitation.

Time passes slowly.

Several months have passed in the blink of an eye.

Morrow's starburst condensation ability mechanism is still in the prototype stage.

However, after countless uses, its accuracy has been steadily increasing.

In addition, significant improvements have been made in terms of muscles and bones.

After all, every few days, Moro could get a free, expensive medicinal meal from Jin.

Furthermore, because Menchi specially prepared a set of nutritious meals for him and Jin to help restore their energy, they were able to have a lot more time each day to practice "absolute" and "body tempering".

It was mid-June 1998.

The excavation of the underground palace ruins of the Kingdom of Aqashar is nearing its end.

Jin's team then released a report on their excavations and research over this period to the world.

Just a few days.

The name of Kim once again resounded throughout the world.

Those working in the field around the world are almost entirely unaware of Kim's appearance or other details, but even just knowing his name is enough for them to idolize him.

Fame came his way, but Kim didn't care at all.

At this moment, he—

Currently fighting Moro.

On the flat ground, the surroundings were filled with dazzling starlight.

Moro stood in the center of the starlight, as if he were in the center of a miniature universe.

Directly in front of him, Kim smiled and raised his right foot, then pushed off the ground.

Exquisite control over Nen, coupled with just the right amount of force.

With this kick, a layer of stone several square meters in size was scraped off the ground and sent flying directly in front of Jin.

Jin Chaoqian waved his hand and slapped it onto the stone layer.

A loud booming sound was heard.

The stone layer shattered into dozens of pieces, each imbued with psychic power, and flew towards Morrow like a flock of geese.

Faced with the dozens of stones hurtling towards him from mid-air, Moro's right hand gripped the hilt of the Crimson Jade Bird Blade. His first reaction was not to dodge, but to change the shape of the condensed starlight, making it resemble a long dragon that incorporated the gold into it.

Then, with a few quick movements, he easily moved between dozens of rocks.

As long as the two conditions of starburst range and attack avoidance are met together, star marks can be implanted on Jin's body in an instant.

However, Jin would not let Moro have his way. He quickly withdrew from the area covered by starlight, thus failing to trigger the ability mechanism of starlight condensation.

And after dodging the long, approaching starlight, he suddenly bent down, placed his right palm on the ground, and rapidly channeled his mental energy.

next moment.

Just as Moro steadied himself after dodging dozens of flying stones, a bright light suddenly appeared beneath his feet.

It was precisely his ability to leapfrog into space that Jin had already stolen.

Clang——!
Moro's reaction was equally swift. As he shifted his position to the side, he suddenly drew the Crimson Jade Bird Blade. Just as the blade left its sheath, he used a single, skillful move to knock the sheath down to his waist, so that the mouth of the sheath touched the spot on the ground where the light was shimmering.

But then a psychic bullet shot out from the light, and was absorbed in an instant by the Abyss Sheath that was stuck diagonally in the ground.

at the same time.

Jin's figure had vanished into thin air and appeared behind Moro.

It's another Emission-type ability.

But this time it was teleportation.

After Jin revealed himself, he immediately reached out and attacked Morrow's back.

Because Moro wanted to change the shape of the condensed starlight, he had just pushed all the starlight behind him to the front.

This tactical adjustment resulted in him not having a star-shaped warning system behind him.

Jin had his eye on this point, which is why he used the Flying Star Jump ability, which focuses on launch speed, to distract Moro.

Both sides reacted and moved extremely fast, so much so that their exchanges happened in the blink of an eye, leaving no room for thought or reaction.

but--

Even without the aid of information gathered from the starlight, Moro could anticipate Jin's movements one step ahead.

the reason is simple.

That is, there was no starlight behind him to provide protection or warning.

Such weaknesses exposed during intense battles will most likely attract direct attacks from the opponent.

of course.

If the intention is too obvious, the opponent will realize that it is a trap.

But Morrow was certain of one thing.

That is, even if Kim realizes that this is a flaw he deliberately revealed, he will still choose to take action.

Because that's the confidence of top-tier experts.

So Moro guessed this correctly the instant Jin Shunshen moved behind him.

"Blitzkrieg"

Moro had no idea what was behind him, and he couldn't even pinpoint Jin's presence, yet he still decisively used his Blitzkrieg ability.

Swish!
His figure vanished into thin air, instantly teleporting to a hundred meters behind him, where he saw dozens of stones already in front of him, and Jin's back standing in front of him.

Jin's outstretched attack naturally missed its mark.

When he saw the starlight, which should have been distributed like a long dragon in front of him, suddenly shift its position and envelop him, he immediately realized something was wrong.

But it was too late.

Far behind him, Morrow, who had teleported there, dodged the dozens of stones that came flying through the air for the second time, almost at the last minute.

This time, the starlight, shaped into a dragon, condensed and, having teleported backward a hundred meters along with Moro, precisely enveloped Jin within it.

Both conditions for capability were met at this moment.

Dozens of evasions turned the starlight into golden chains, binding the gold tightly.

"This ability is too overpowered."

Jin's body was bound by chains. With his eyelids drooping, he turned to look at Moro. Little did he know that Moro would use his blitzkrieg ability to teleport to the trajectory of those dozens of stones.

Then, by dodging the attack of dozens of stones a second time, the conditions for activating the ability to condense starlight were directly met.

If his attack had been even slightly slower, Morrow would never have been able to reach the trajectory of those dozens of stones at the last moment.

That is to say-

The implementation of this tactic was based on the premise that he possessed great strength.

Only in this way can they perfectly complement Moro.

"Ah."

Moro didn't reply, but simply pointed to Jin's side.

In that spot was the Abyss Sheath, which was stuck diagonally into the ground.

Bang!
The psychic energy that had just been absorbed now transformed into energy and surged out from within the scabbard.

Driven by the burst of energy, the slanted scabbard flew straight toward Jin's face.

Jin, however, did not look at the scabbard, but stared at Moro with a slightly strange gaze.

Wow.

The golden chains suddenly shattered.

Freed from the chains, Jin casually reached out and, without even looking, grasped the scabbard that was flying through the air.

Moro wasn't disappointed that the Abyssal Sheath, which he had deliberately left behind, hadn't been able to use on Jin's face.

Or rather, he never expected to get gold with such underhanded tactics.

"If you ask me, it's your Nen ability that's cheating."

Moro looked at Jin and replied earnestly.

In a previous combat exercise, he was once tricked by Jin's abilities, and then he resolutely forbade Jin from using them.

King ignored Morrow's words and threw a scabbard at Morrow.

Outside the battleground.

Menqi's brows furrowed.

"I can't see it at all."

She said with a worried look on her face.

Kurapika remained silent.
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Storyboard 1
Storyboard 2:

Storyboard 3
After some thought, I've decided to move the storyboard images into the chapter.
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(End of this chapter)