Chapter 52: More or Less Like This

A red X.

This was the executioner's sword of the Death Node.

Only by killing Feitan within the time limit would this glaring red character disappear.

All the information Moro knew about the Death Node had been extracted from this red character.

The method of extracting information was simple: one only needed to focus attention on the red character, and the relevant information would be crammed into one's head like a data transfer.

However, before the information was transmitted, one had to experience an overwhelmingly realistic replay of one's own death.

Before pondering over a new ability, and before drawing inspiration from Killua's Godspeed ability, Moro had never entertained the thought of utilizing the "X".

That's right.

Moro realized that perhaps he could use the "Death Replay" to acquire material for an ability.

Thinking about it carefully now, that indescribable, strange sensation he had when dodging the sniper fire previously...

It felt almost like an early warning system for death.

Right now, what Moro had in mind was to replicate that nearly ethereal sensation from back then, and then find a way to amplify its presence.

In this way, the concept of a death warning could serve as the foundation for a new ability.

Moro felt that this hypothesis was somewhat fantastical, yet he believed it was achievable.

Because Nen abilities constituted a system brimming with infinite possibilities.

Such as Kakin's Fourth Prince Tserriednich's "Ten Seconds of Eternity" and Morena's "Love Etude"—these were all miraculous products born within this very system.

Moro focused his attention on the red character on the back of his hand.

In an instant—

His consciousness felt like a small boat swallowed by a whirlpool, experiencing a momentary tremor and blur.

In the span of a single breath, the death replay began, and Feitan's appearance materialized before his eyes once more.

The slightly distorted body accompanied by afterimages, the gloomy and cold eyes capable of freezing everything, and the rapier driven by a furious murderous intent...

Before he could see any clearer, the next second brought the sensation of a blade slicing across his face.

The suffocating feeling of death gripping his throat washed over him once more, multiplied manifold.

Unable to breathe, darkness descended.

The next moment.

Moro's consciousness returned to reality; he subconsciously reached out to press against his face, his eyes trembling uncontrollably.

The death replay brought forth by the "X" was essentially making him "die" all over again.

Thanks to Feitan's blade being fast enough, he didn't actually feel much pain when the slash landed.

It was mainly because the death replay was overly realistic, though this also served as a disguised form of letting Moro touch the aura of death itself.

"Once more..."

Moro calmed the pounding in his chest and once again concentrated his attention on the red character.

His consciousness shifted from spinning to vibrating, from blurred to clear...

Feitan's appearance emerged once more.

A piercing flash of blade light swept past, and endless darkness engulfed him.

Moro's consciousness returned to reality yet again.

Again.

The death replay began once more.

"Rumble—"

Lightning flashed outside the cave, followed shortly by a torrential downpour.

The sound of the rain clashed and mingled, yet it failed to affect Moro in the slightest.

The repeated death replays allowed Moro to gradually recapture that strange sensation from back then.

Conversely, Feitan's face grew increasingly hateful.

If not for his strength still being somewhat lacking, Moro would have genuinely wanted to go out and trouble Feitan directly.

Time flowed on.

When the heavy rain finally stopped and the first ray of morning sunlight shone into the cave, Moro halted the death replay.

He couldn't remember how many times he had gone through it, but effort yielded results.

The ceaseless death replays allowed him to truly touch the essence of death itself in a meaningful way.

Yet relying solely on "warning" was not enough...

This was merely the foundation; much more needed to be filled in.

Even though the Glowing Dandelion could make the birth of an ability simple and easy, what Moro wanted was a Nen ability that could both target Feitan and harmonize with his own personal affinity.

"Warning, evasion, restraint, counterattack... and it must fit my Nen category."

Moro raised a hand to prop up his chin, recalling his experiences since coming to this world.

He had learned observation and discernment in the deceitful antique trade.

During his training in Nen, he had realized the importance of integrating resources.

On the battlegrounds of Heavens Arena, he had experienced the pleasure and sense of accomplishment of brushing past an attack.

In battle after battle, he had perceived the critical importance of "timing" and "effective striking."

"First of all..."

Moro ended his reminiscence, summoned the Glowing Dandelion, and implanted the concept of the death warning into it.

The light of the dandelion flickered once.

Utilizing the form of an early warning to enhance the ability to evade attacks.

Extending from this further, it would serve as the prerequisite condition for restraint.

However, to amplify the effect of the ability itself, before extending the restraint ability, he had to set a restriction that could prove his own resolve.

For example... actively discarding or weakening his defensive power, trading the restriction of walking alongside death as wind for the corresponding Pledge and Limitation benefits.

Once evasion was no longer an issue, the next step was to link it with restraint.

This was equally crucial.

It was not only to counter Feitan's speed, but also to ensure that Feitan could not escape.

Moro had initially considered a Nen space, but quickly dismissed the idea.

Nen spaces belonging to the Emission category were mostly focused on movement, unlike those of the Conjuration category, which could establish targeted mechanisms.

If it were merely a Nen space ability with simple movement and traversal capabilities, it would be of no help in assassinating Feitan.

Unless he were a Specialist, allowing him to combine Manipulation, Emission, Transmutation, and Conjuration attributes on top of developing a Nen space.

If that were the case, he could indeed replicate Obito's ability from Naruto.

Using intangibility of the body to evade attacks, and then tossing the target into the Nen space...

Yet he was an Emitter.

Abandoning the concept of a Nen space, Moro had previously thought about developing a high-speed movement ability imbued with Emission characteristics.

However, if he lacked the matching reflex speed, explosive thinking capacity, and the overall physical coordination to keep up with the flow of aura...

Under such harsh matching conditions, the most likely outcome was that he would barrel straight onto the edge of a blade at high speed.

It could be said that such abilities could certainly be developed with effort.

Just not right now.

Moro's time was limited; what he needed to consider was integrating all his current resources and applying them where they mattered most.

Therefore, the direction of the ability he chose was built upon the framework of "killing Feitan."

Without relying heavily on Nen spaces or high-speed movement abilities, he still needed to suppress Feitan's speed.

Moro's thinking was not rigid; although the directional focus was restraint, it didn't necessarily have to be followed literally.

What was the original purpose of restraint?

To reliably deal effective damage to Feitan!

Thus, Moro naturally thought of directed attacks.

The foundation and framework of the new ability were thus constructed.

Discarding or weakening his own defense in exchange for the ultra-high-speed feedback provided by the warning would manifest as star rings that allowed aura to overflow and radiate outward.

Using high-risk evasion of attacks as a prerequisite condition in exchange for a directed counterattack capability would manifest as star markers that could be planted onto the attacker.

The framework of the ability was roughly as such.

The crucial point was that a Nen ability developed using an upgrade reward would not consume Nen capacity slots.

This meant that even if Moro spent this skill slot on Feitan, he would still have the capacity left in the future to develop other desired abilities.