A million Death Buds emerged from Meteor City, silently scattering to every corner of the world, quietly awaiting the moment they would all bloom at once.
But Morena, who held the switch, was not yet satisfied.
With the Death God's assistance, she had grasped the precise method to transfer the "Calamity."
Next, she planned to transfer the "Calamity" to the Azian Continent, where Kakin was located, just as the world plunged into turmoil from the simultaneous blooming of the death flowers.
The world would eventually be destroyed, and humanity would eventually perish.
But before that, the first to disappear had to be Kakin.
This was the deepest obsession rooted in the depths of Morena's soul.
Besides transferring the Calamity, she also dispatched a max-level Cyborg Legion, ordering them to use the ancient portals in a hidden ruin to travel to the Dark Continent once more.
She wanted to bring even more calamities down upon the human world.
Because she had come to a complete understanding... acts of slaughter alone were not enough to threaten the foundation of humanity.
Only calamities could indiscriminately erase all life, including the humans who fancied themselves at the top of the six continents' food chain.
"A second attempt will only be in vain."
The Death God floated in mid-air, watching the cyborg expedition team depart alongside Morena.
Morena glanced at him sideways and said flatly, "Reason?"
"Tsk tsk..."
The Death God let out a strange laugh, then explained, "The first batch of modified humans you sent to the Dark Continent had no ability to survive there, let alone explore... The only reason any of them returned was because the 'Gatekeeper' tacitly allowed it."
"However, I also didn't expect the Gatekeeper to make such a 'rash' move. It felt to me as if your human team had unintentionally provoked them."
"But thanks to the Gatekeeper's irrational behavior this time, I and several other calamities were able to take the opportunity to come through. Otherwise, at most two types of calamities would have been able to pass with the Gatekeeper's acquiescence."
"After all, the Gatekeeper's reach doesn't extend to Lake Mobius. They want to give humanity a warning, but they don't wish to see humanity completely annihilated." At this point, the Death God let out another series of strange, crackling laughs.
"Once the Gatekeeper realizes their irrationality might cause this paradise to spiral out of control, they will absolutely not let a second batch of calamities through. They won't even leave any opportunities open. Therefore, I conclude that the location the portal leads to has long been set up as a dead end by the Gatekeeper. Do you understand, Morena?"
"Is that so..."
Morena's expression didn't change. She said faintly, "Since it's just your speculation, it's still worth a try."
"Tsk tsk, that's true. Besides, the death of another batch of loyal subordinates means nothing to you."
The Death God circled Morena, his voice suddenly turning sinister. "Moreover, I've also prepared a gift for the Gatekeeper inside this group of subordinates you're so fond of, tsk tsk."
Morena didn't reprimand the Death God for acting on his own, merely casting a cold glance at him.
The Death God quickly stifled his strange laugh and extended two small hands from his serrated body, making a gesture similar to a human surrender.
"Rest assured, the Gatekeeper cannot interfere with Lake Mobius."
"Death God."
Morena's gaze remained icy as she stated expressionlessly, "You're becoming more and more like a human."
"..."
The Death God didn't seem to mind at all. Instead, he looked at the frosty-faced Morena with great interest.
And you, my friend...
You are becoming less and less human.
—--
The Petrus' Eye of Death Sinkhole was where the entrance to the Unexplored Land was located.
After dealing with Nasubi Hui Guo Rou and Tserriednich on the Black Whale, Morrow didn't return directly to the Kukan'yu Kingdom.
He had Eve track down the person behind the Eye of Truth as quickly as possible, then immediately came to the sinkhole where the Unexplored Land was.
Kurapika and Kalluto had been studying the Divine Script in the Unexplored Land this whole time.
Morrow's return brought a clear look of joy to their faces, and they immediately came forward to ask for guidance on some questions they had about the Divine Script.
Morrow patiently answered them one by one.
In the process, he noticed that Kurapika's talent for learning was truly astonishing; his progress had long since left Kalluto far behind.
Kalluto seemed to be aware of the gap as well, so he buried himself even deeper in his practice.
However, some gaps could not be closed by diligence alone.
"Kalluto."
"Hm?"
"Hasn't your Guardian Spirit Beast appeared?"
After answering their questions, Morrow asked about the Guardian Spirit Beast.
Hearing this, Kalluto revealed a puzzled expression. "What Guardian Spirit Beast?"
"Like this."
Morrow snapped his fingers. A portion of the aura surrounding him instantly split off, coalescing into the form of the Wolf Spirit in a flash.
Seeing this, Kalluto and Kurapika's eyes widened in amazement.
"Morrow, is this your Nen Beast?"
Morrow nodded, and at the same time, confirmed that Kalluto's Guardian Spirit Beast had not manifested.
He roughly understood the reason.
On his way to the Unexplored Land, he had actually received calls from Menchi, Biscuit, and the others, learning that Guardian Spirit Beasts had suddenly appeared by their sides. Kalluto, having been in the Unexplored Land the whole time, was completely unaware of this.
"Everyone who received an ability upgrade from me will have a Guardian Spirit Beast born. Menchi and Biscuit both have one. Kalluto, the reason you don't have one yet... is probably because you haven't reached the max level."
Morrow then briefly explained the matter of the Guardian Spirit Beasts.
From the fact that Kalluto's Guardian Spirit Beast hadn't appeared, it could basically be inferred that only those who reached the max level could unlock its appearance.
"So you're saying..." Kalluto pouted. "I'm the only one without a Guardian Spirit Beast?"
"It's not that you don't have one, it's that you need to reach the max level to unlock it," Morrow corrected.
Kalluto's cheeks remained puffed. "Reaching the max level isn't that easy! Who knows when my Guardian Spirit Beast will come out!"
"That's simple. We'll find some time to get back to our old business, take care of a few more wanted criminals. We can make money and level up at the same time," Morrow suggested with a smile.
The two of them had worked together to hunt wanted criminals before, even registering as Blacklist Hunters for it.
Doing it again now, with Kalluto's tracking ability, those wanted criminals were practically experience packs ready to be harvested at any time.
So as long as they were quick about it, it wouldn't actually be difficult for Kalluto to reach the max level.
If worse came to worst, they could just take a trip to Meteor City. The modified humans who had attacked them before were, in terms of aura output, practically high-level experience packs.
Hearing Morrow's proposal, Kalluto's eyes lit up. He confirmed with a serious expression, "Morrow, you said 'we' just now, right?"
"Mhm."
Morrow nodded with a smile.
"Okay! When do we start? I want to find out what my Guardian Spirit Beast looks like soon!"
Kalluto cheered, then looked at the silently smiling Kurapika and asked, "Do you want to come with us, Kurapika?"
"Can I go too?" Kurapika asked subconsciously.
Kalluto rolled his eyes at the question and said peevishly, "Can you stop asking questions like that in the future? It makes you seem really dumb. But you learn the Divine Script faster than me, so doesn't that just make me look even dumber?"
Kurapika smiled sheepishly and said softly, "If it's possible, I'd also like to 'meet' my Guardian Spirit Beast." As he spoke, his gaze fell upon the Wolf Spirit by Morrow's side.
Morrow looked at Kalluto and Kurapika, the smile on his face deepening.
He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but he felt that Kalluto had become more cheerful and lively than before. It seemed he had moved on from his family's tragedy. This discovery put Morrow's mind at ease.
He had his own pursuits in this world.
But he also cared deeply about the well-being of those around him.
Especially Kalluto.
He hoped that this child, who cared for him with his whole heart, could remain happy forever.
Not to look too far ahead, but at the very least, he should be like the current Killua, able to walk his path in life freely, without any worries.
Kalluto didn't notice Morrow's thoughts at that moment. He just asked curiously, "By the way, what do Biscuit's and the others' Guardian Spirit Beasts look like? Are they similar to this wolf of yours, Morrow?"
"They're quite different."
Morrow recalled Biscuit and the others' brief descriptions of their Guardian Spirit Beasts from their calls and couldn't help but smile. "I'm not too sure what standards determine the appearance of a Guardian Spirit Beast, but Biscuit's... hmm, it has more pronounced human features."
"Huh?"
Kalluto and Kurapika were both stunned for a moment. Then, they both tacitly thought of a certain possibility, their expressions turning to ones of astonishment.
Seeing their reactions, Morrow shook his head helplessly. "That's right, you guessed it. Biscuit's Guardian Spirit Beast, for the most part... is a handsome blond man."
Kalluto and Kurapika were speechless for a moment.
But for this to happen to Biscuit, it somehow didn't seem strange at all.
After all, according to what she once said, she was too young back then and didn't appreciate the virtues of handsome blond men.
Otherwise, when she was developing her Nen ability, she probably would have created Handsome Cookie instead of Miss Cookie.
Afterward, Kalluto and Kurapika temporarily set aside their study of the Divine Script, deciding to focus on leveling up.
The plan for the immediate future was to take the two of them to raise their levels as much as possible before Eve found the mastermind behind the Eye of Truth.
But before that, there was one more thing Morrow had to do.
This was also the reason he hadn't returned to Kukan'yu first, but had come straight to the Unexplored Land.
He was going to try to use the Wolf Spirit's spatial ability to devour this entire top-shaped, floating island Unexplored Land.
Morrow, Kalluto, and Kurapika exited the Unexplored Land, returning to the cave at the bottom of the sinkhole in the real world.
The mural engraved with the features of the Unexplored Land's entrance still flowed with a faint Nen glow, just as it always had.
"Wolf Spirit, devour it."
Morrow gave the command without hesitation.
The Wolf Spirit moved upon hearing the order. The triangular bone mask on its face suddenly expanded, like a gaping maw, and swallowed the entire mural. In the blink of an eye, the mural vanished without a trace, and the Wolf Spirit returned to its original form.
If there was any change, it was only that the color of the stellar cross mark on its forehead had deepened, even taking on a sapphire-like blue luster.
Morrow raised his right hand.
The Wolf Spirit immediately brought its head over.
Morrow pressed his index and middle fingers together and gently tapped the stellar cross on the Wolf Spirit's forehead. His consciousness immediately invaded its internal space.
The top-shaped island Unexplored Land, which had just been directly transferred by the Wolf Spirit, now appeared completely before Morrow's eyes.
As if he had a god's-eye view, he could instantly move his consciousness to any corner of the Nen space.
It really transferred over completely...
Looking at the identical top-shaped island Unexplored Land before him, Morrow couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement.
This ability was simply too astonishing.
If he could find other Unexplored Lands, or even smaller Post-Mortem Nen spaces, the Wolf Spirit could devour them and further expand the scale of this Nen space.
I don't know where the 'upper limit' is, but it's too early to think about that now. On the six continents, let alone Unexplored Lands, even common Post-Mortem Nen spaces are rare. Expanding the Wolf Spirit's Nen space probably won't be that easy.
Morrow quickly calmed down.
His perspective roamed freely within the Nen space. After briefly experiencing this feeling of being a master of the domain, he withdrew his consciousness.
Immediately after, a thought crossed his mind, and he willed his body to be transferred in as well.
The moment the thought arose, his body in the cave vanished into thin air before Kalluto and Kurapika's eyes.
Morrow only felt a flow of light and shadow before his eyes, and in an instant, he was standing on the mountaintop in the center of the top-shaped island.
"Feels good."
Morrow looked up at the waterfall cascading from high above and smiled faintly.
"With this Nen space, the next trip to the Dark Continent will be much more convenient."
With the combination of the Entropy Bird and the Nen space, the risks of exploring the Dark Continent would be greatly reduced.
As for the means of travel, with Chimera's ability, he was confident he could even set foot on every corner of the Dark Continent.
Now that the Nen space issue was resolved, Morrow secretly decided that once he had dealt with the matters at hand, he would find time to make another trip to the Dark Continent and bring back that Herb for All-illnesses.
That way, he would be one step closer to immortality.
Morrow only stayed in the Wolf Spirit's Nen space for a short while before returning to the cave in the real world.
"Kalluto, Kurapika, you two come and try it out."
After returning, he gestured for the two of them to also experience the feeling of entering and exiting the Nen space.
Kalluto and Kurapika did as he said, reaching out to touch the stellar cross on the Wolf Spirit's forehead.
With Morrow having granted them permission, a mere thought was all it took for them to be instantly transferred into the Wolf Spirit's Nen space.
Another thought, and they were back in the real world.
"How was it?" Morrow asked with a smile as he watched them return.
Kurapika thought for a moment and said, "Compared to entering the Unexplored Land through the mural, it feels smoother, and the transfer speed is faster."
"That's right. The Wolf Spirit's ability is, after all, a more standard Nen space mechanism, more mature than an Unexplored Land."
Morrow raised a hand to his chin and said seriously, "So what we should consider now is setting up a fixed portal. If all goes as expected, we should be able to solve this problem using 'Divine Script'."
"Then won't it be much more convenient for us to go to the Dark Continent in the future?" Kalluto chimed in.
Morrow hadn't expected Kalluto to be so enthusiastic about the Dark Continent. He smiled and reached out to ruffle the boy's small head.
Kalluto habitually batted Morrow's hand away and said excitedly, "Morrow, when are we going to the Dark Continent again? With the Nen space, we can bring back even more good stuff."
"I still have some things to take care of, but we should be able to go to the Dark Continent again soon."
Morrow thought of the Eye of Truth situation with Eve, as well as the situation over in Meteor City.
For now, as long as he handled these two matters, he could consider setting out for the Dark Continent again.
—--
Heavens Arena.
Several residents of Meteor City appeared here.
Their expressions were numb, their eyes hollow.
Suddenly, without any warning, with them at the center, all visible humans in the vicinity collapsed in the same instant, losing their lives on the spot.
The same scene played out successively in various parts of the world.
The tide of death had, at this moment, erupted.