When Ging gave the hint and revealed his trump card, Pouf saw his own defeat.
But when that moment truly arrived, he couldn't accept it no matter what.
He held such a massive advantage yet lost to this human.
That defeat, having his HP ground down needle by needle by Little Bees, left no room for excuses or reasons.
Moreover, the cost of defeat was losing his Potential Aura. This meant he had lost the weapon to fulfill his duty as a Royal Guard.
Pathetic, utterly pathetic!
Despair shrouded Pouf.
Not only defeat, but also dereliction of duty.
Ging looked at Pouf, wreathed in an atmosphere of despair, and said, "What a thoroughly enjoyable game. So, were you happy?"
Pouf suddenly looked up, revealing a crazed expression, then instantly froze.
The moment he raised his head, he realized his neck had been severed, and Ging was already gone from his sight.
Though he couldn't catch it, perhaps in a flash of insight, he faintly felt Ging was behind him.
But even turning to verify if Ging was behind him had become meaningless.
Right, everything was meaningless.
'I am about to die.'
'To die with regret and self-blame.'
'This is not what I wanted!'
At that moment, Ging's voice, like a spring breeze, entered Pouf's ears.
"I had a great time. A shame there won't be a second match."
After the last syllable, the light in Pouf's eyes faded like a receding tide, ushering in dark, cold death.
His head fell to the ground. Pouf was completely dead.
The cause wasn't merely the lack of Aura Defense and decapitation. When Ging severed the head, he also injected Aura, shattering the brain.
Even with the Chimera Ants' robust vitality, in such a case, retaining consciousness for even a second would be remarkable.
Ging didn't spare another glance at Pouf's corpse, heading towards the previous combat location of Kite and the others.
The game that entered the Nen Space was playful in nature, lacking lethal factors, only requiring enduring neural pain.
But because the penalty for losing was losing Potential Aura, in essence, it was still a life-or-death game.
After all, for a Nen User, losing Potential Aura meant losing their protective barrier. This penalty wasn't chosen by Ging but was randomly selected.
In that scenario, if Ging had lost, he would also have lost any chance for a turnaround, then died by Pouf's hand.
'If possible, I'd really like to play another round with him.'
Ging thought with regret.
An enemy who could truly play with him wasn't easy to find.
Clearly, Pouf absolutely met this requirement.
Pity, pity.
After all, when he could decisively kill the enemy, he couldn't give them a chance.
Holding a negligible amount of regret, Ging found Kite's trio.
Seeing Ging arrive, the trio knew Ging had also eliminated a Royal Guard.
Like Law, he's such incredibly reliable teammates.
Unconsciously, the three could only sigh thus.
Then, Ging learned the situation from Kite, including Law eliminating two Royal Guards and going to find Netero and the King.
Looking south, Ging suddenly said, "You wait here for the medical team. I'll go find them."
Before this battle began, a medical team had been arranged on standby in Peijing.
Knov, severely injured, shouldn't be moved easily. They could only wait for the medical team to treat his injuries on-site before transferring him to a safe location.
Morel looked at Ging, hesitated a moment, then said, "Perhaps, from a human standpoint, we don't need to..."
Before he finished, Ging interrupted.
"I know what you want to say. But some things aren't for Law or me to interfere with. Moreover, in this war between humans and Chimera Ants, we have won."
After speaking, Ging immediately left the spot.
'We've won...?'
Morel was momentarily stunned, then silently watched Ging's departing figure. As a team member, he seemed unable to see as far as Law and Ging.
What he wanted to suggest was for Law and Ging not to be too bound by honor. If they could gang up and eliminate the King, it would be the best outcome.
This suggestion itself also went against his original intentions. But after fighting the three Royal Guards, Morel deeply understood the terror of the Chimera Ants.
Faced with that terror and potential threat, to win this victory, his own feelings mattered little.
Knov and Kite also silently watched Ging leave.
Regardless, with Law, Ging, and Netero, it was enough to reassure them.
Dark clouds covered the sky, churning faster and faster, a storm brewing.
Ging sped across the damp, rocky ground.
He understood Netero's character and style, so he clearly knew Netero wouldn't let him or Law intervene in that fight.
However, he could guess Netero definitely had a contingency plan.
As for what it was, Ging didn't know.
He could only roughly guess it was a plan sufficient to clean up the mess.
Meaning, even if Netero lost, he would definitely drag the King down with him.
'How will it turn out?'
Ging looked into the distance, silently thinking.
...
Battlefield.
The King's relentless assaults still hadn't achieved results. Each charge was repelled by Netero.
Losing his left arm meant the King's offensive capability on the left side wasn't strong, somewhat easing Netero's defensive pressure.
Speaking of defense, Netero was also attacking continuously.
In this intensely fierce offensive-defensive battle, both sides were actually attacking. But upon collision, there was always a clear positioning of offense and defense.
The King's relentless momentum naturally made observers see him as the attacker, while Netero, forced to strike palms, seemed relegated to defense.
Within a minute, it was impossible to count how many moves each had made, only to catch with the naked eye the countless sparks from collisions.
Hundreds? Thousands?
Perhaps not an exaggeration.
In such offense and defense, both sides' strength and spirit continued to rise.
It was an improvement unique to intense combat, a tug-of-war and race with lives at stake, where whoever gained the advantage first had a chance to win.
As the constant attacker, the King endured countless palms every second.
Though the damage was minor, the sheer quantity still accumulated significant harm.
Like grinding an iron rod into a needle, what Netero aimed to achieve was maintaining this offensive until the King was eliminated.
However, a slight tendency in his moves, so small it was hard to detect, not even enough to be called a habit, became Netero's flaw.
Actually, it couldn't really be called a flaw. It was just that Netero was facing the King, causing that negligible flaw to be infinitely magnified.
The King glimpsed that slight flaw, but he wasn't hasty. Like needing to crush the surrounding defenses before taking the general, it was a process of erosion to establish a winning advantage.
Ten moves? A hundred? A thousand?
He couldn't predict how many moves it would take to cut off the enemy's retreat. But the King had a feeling… a unique perception honed over the board. He knew that moment was approaching.
Slish!
A severed arm flew into the air, bright blood spraying.
Netero showed a stunned expression. Just then, his left arm had been severed by the King. This meant the 100-Type Guanyin's offensive had been broken.
"Checkmate."
The King flicked the blood from his right hand.
'Checkmate' meant, on the board, forcing the opponent's general into a dead end. No matter how the opponent struggled, the next move could directly take the general.
The King tearing off Netero's left arm wasn't deliberate mercy… it was all he could achieve, because he lacked a left arm himself.
However, with Netero losing his left arm, it was as if the general was isolated and helpless. So, the King had one hundred percent confidence to eliminate Netero within the next minute.
He had to admit, before the battle, he had underestimated Netero.
Only after clashing did he experience a certain kind of strength constructed from skill.
"Next, I will kill you."
The King pointed at Netero's heart, speaking in a flat tone.
Hearing the King's declaration, Netero's mind went blank.
No time for consideration. He instinctively raised a single palm, holding it horizontally before him.
The 100-Type Guanyin's final form!