Morrow decisively ended the fight.
The second match, scheduled for 2 PM, would feature Kastro versus Orion.
The third match would follow at 5 PM.
All three matches would be completed within a single day.
The entire tournament was expected to conclude before the New Year.
After all, that was when the Hunter Exam would begin.
As both the head of the examination department and the final proctor, Netero had to remain on standby throughout the Hunter Exam.
To ensure Netero's attendance at the finals, the Battle Olympia organizers typically adjusted their schedule to accommodate his availability.
Morrow left the venue and returned straight to his room.
Kastro was already in preparation mode, so Morrow and the others avoided disturbing him before the match.
Back in the 244th-floor mansion, Morrow continued his training as usual, making sure not to waste any time.
After a while, a knock came at the door.
It was Menchi.
She was carrying a large bag.
"Poultry Scarlet Knife!"
As soon as she entered, she held out her hand to Morrow.
Morrow glanced curiously at the assortment of items she was carrying before handing over the knife.
Menchi took it and immediately headed to the kitchen.
Within seconds, the sounds of activity echoed from inside.
Morrow peeked in and saw Menchi pulling out an array of cleaning tools and liquids from her bag, meticulously scrubbing the knife with solemn reverence.
"..."
The sight left Morrow speechless.
So she had come specifically to "sanitize" the knife, something only Menchi would do.
Shaking his head slightly, Morrow ignored her peculiar obsessive-compulsive tendencies and returned to the living room to resume his immersive training.
Two or three hours later, Morrow exhaled deeply, removing his weighted gear and peeling off his sweat-soaked shirt.
Just as he was about to head to the shower, he heard faint noises coming from the kitchen again.
"Still at it?"
He quietly approached the kitchen and saw Menchi still cleaning the knife. Her movements were slow but painstakingly precise.
Had she really been doing this for hours?
Morrow's expression grew increasingly odd.
He didn't understand it, but he respected it.
Tiptoeing away, he made sure not to disturb her bizarre ritual.
By 1 PM, Menchi was still scrubbing.
Too exasperated to even say goodbye, Morrow left the room on his own and took the elevator down to the tournament floor.
Ding.
The doors slid open.
As Morrow stepped out, he felt someone's gaze on him.
Following the source, he spotted Kurapika rising from a chair beside a vending machine.
"Waiting here for me?"
Morrow walked over.
Kurapika nodded lightly.
"How long?"
"Since your match ended."
"..."
Morrow fell silent for a moment before shaking his head slightly.
"Take down my Communication Code. If you need anything, just call. If I don't pick up, leave a message."
"Got it!"
Kurapika's eyes lit up as he swiftly pulled out his phone and saved the number Morrow recited.
Morrow then selected the most expensive drink from the vending machine. He was a Floor Master, entitled to free use of all facilities in Heavens Arena, even the vending machines.
Clunk.
The drink dropped to the bottom with a sound.
Morrow retrieved the beverage from the vending machine and handed it to Kurapika, asking, "Are you leaving soon?"
"Yeah. I wanted to come say goodbye before I go. Also... I've earned enough for the Yorknew Auction ticket. Give me your account number, I'll transfer the money right away."
Kurapika gripped the drink firmly, his expression resolute.
Morrow initially wanted to refuse, but seeing the stubborn determination in Kurapika's eyes, he simply recited his account number.
Kurapika immediately took out his phone and swiftly transferred the money, finally letting out a relieved sigh.
Morrow pulled out his own phone, casually waving it as he said, "Got it."
"Yeah."
Kurapika smiled happily.
Morrow looked at him and said softly, "Then I won't see you off. Good luck with the Hunter Exam."
Kurapika nodded firmly.
Morrow chuckled, turning to leave, but then suddenly stopped.
"Want a piece of advice?"
"Yeah."
Kurapika responded quietly.
Still facing away, Morrow spoke seriously, "Whether it's the Hunter Exam or whatever you plan to do in the future, always know your limits. Remember... opportunities may be rare, but on a long journey, they won't come just once."
"I'll remember that."
Kurapika watched Morrow's back, his expression tinged with hesitation.
Morrow raised a hand in farewell before heading toward the arena.
Kurapika watched him go, ultimately unable to voice the thoughts weighing on his mind.
Only when Morrow disappeared into the arena corridor did he tighten the strap of his shoulder bag and step into the elevator.
The Hunter Exam...
He would pass it!
—--
Inside the arena.
There were still thirty minutes until the second match began, but the stands were already packed.
Morrow and Calista sat in the front row, with an empty seat beside them, Menchi's.
"Is Menchi not coming to watch?" Calista glanced at the vacant spot and asked curiously.
Morrow considered it but decided against mentioning how Menchi had spent hours sharpening knives in his house earlier. Instead, he said offhandedly, "Probably busy prepping some time-consuming ingredients."
"Could be."
Calista nodded.
At 2 PM, under the gaze of countless spectators, Kastro and Orion entered the arena from opposite sides, walking toward the central ring almost simultaneously.
As the two appeared, the audience erupted into thunderous cheers.
Morrow's eyes immediately locked onto Orion.
Orion was a martial artist by trade and a longtime veteran of Heavens Arena, his muscles straining against his clothes.
He had a buzz cut, rugged features, and a prominent scar stretching from the corner of his mouth down to his jaw.
The moment he stepped out of the corridor, Orion had already opened his aura nodes, unleashing his aura without restraint, as if he couldn't care less about the pointless pre-battle energy expenditure.
Morrow carefully observed the aura enveloping Orion.
Between Lv.50 and Lv.55.
He roughly estimated the level.
In terms of aura output alone, Orion's strength placed him at the pinnacle of Heavens Arena. Among the Floor Masters Morrow had encountered so far, only Orion's aura output level was significantly higher.
However, aura output level is just one part of overall combat strength.
As long as the gap isn't too wide, the true deciding factor in a battle often comes down to the precision of Nen ability application.
That said... For pure Enhancers, the focus leans more toward aura output level and physical strength.
So under normal circumstances, Enhancers truly hit their stride in the mid-to-late stages of development.
In contrast, other Nen types can leverage the advantage of "skills" earlier on.
Of course.
Pure Emitters are practically no different from pure Enhancers in this regard.
Back then, Morrow knew he didn't have enough time to wait for his power spike, so he decisively shifted his focus to skill advantages and tactical flexibility.
And as it happened, his "personality" leaned more toward Manipulation, allowing him to smoothly progress down this path to where he was now.
Kastro, on the other hand, was a textbook Enhancers.
Given his relatively short training time compared to a seasoned Nen user like Orion, his disadvantage was obvious.
It was only because Kastro's talent was exceptional, allowing him to progress faster than most Nen users, that he even had the right to stand here.
Amidst the roaring cheers, Kastro and Orion stepped onto the arena.
From the very beginning, Orion had been flaunting his aura without restraint.
His behavior subtly pressured the referee.
To Kastro, it felt like outright provocation.
"I'm done listening to your bullshit rules, just start the damn match already!"
Orion shot a glance at the referee and barked impatiently.
Faced with Orion's overwhelming, aggressive aura at close range, the referee broke into a cold sweat and instinctively looked toward Kastro.
If neither fighter wanted to hear the rules, they could be skipped altogether.
Meeting the referee's questioning gaze, Kastro was about to agree, but suddenly, Orion's earlier irritation vanished, replaced by a calm and composed demeanor.
"My apologies for my rudeness earlier. Please begin the match as soon as possible."
"..."
The abrupt shift to courtesy only made the referee feel even more pressured.
Kastro gave Orion a puzzled look.
"Referee, I'm fine with it."
He then agreed to Orion's request to start the match immediately.
Seeing this, the referee promptly took two steps back, raised his hand to signal the start of the match, and quickly retreated from the combat zone, mostly because Orion's aura was weighing heavily on him.
The moment the match began, Kastro, already prepared, channeled Nen throughout his body and launched the first attack.
True Tiger Bite Fist.
A surge of Nen gathered between his hands, shaped like a tiger's maw, before lunging at Orion like a beast pouncing on prey.
This move was a modified version of the Tiger Bite Fist, refined by Morrow.
It sacrificed raw power in exchange for enhanced restraining effects.
Kastro's real intention in opening with this move wasn't to pin Orion down.
Instead, he wanted to use its intimidating presence to quickly close the distance between them.
At the same time, he could adapt based on Orion's reaction.
While controlling the Nen-formed tiger's maw, Kastro charged straight at Orion. Facing the tiger-like aura pouncing through the air, Orion made no move to evade. The composed demeanor he'd shown while apologizing to the referee was visibly fading at a rapid pace.
Not dodging?
Kastro observed Orion's reaction with a slight frown, yet didn't hesitate to control the tiger-shaped aura to clamp down hard on Orion. That's how Enhancement should be.
Then, Kastro exploded forward with his leg strength, charging at maximum speed toward Orion, who was restrained by the tiger aura. Simultaneously, he gathered aura around his eyes to guard against any potential countermeasures from Orion.
The next moment, Kastro reached Orion's position. Judging the timing right, he immediately reduced the aura around his eyes, channeling more into offense and defense.
Instantly, his tiger-strike hands followed the trajectory of the tiger aura, attacking Orion directly.
But at that precise moment, an inexplicable impact force appeared out of nowhere, slamming violently into Kastro's body.
Boom!
A sudden dull thud echoed across the arena.
Caught completely off guard by the heavy blow, Kastro was sent flying horizontally out of the ring, crashing heavily onto the ground outside.
Along the path of his flight, vivid plum blossom-shaped bloodstains marked the floor, Kastro's blood.
Orion looked down at the fallen Kastro, arrogantly rolling his shoulders with a cracking sound while wearing a disdainful smirk.
In the spectator seats.
Morrow couldn't help but sigh softly at the sight.
Calista's reaction mirrored Kastro's, utterly stunned.
"Master, what was that just now...?"
"Use Gyo."
Without taking his eyes off Orion in the ring, Morrow reminded Calista to use Gyo.
Following his instruction, Calista gathered aura around her eyes.
Immediately, she saw another Orion standing beside the original.
"It's a Nen clone..."
Calista's gaze sharpened.
Earlier, Orion had used In to conceal the clone's presence, then struck Kastro with a heavy blow the moment he attacked.
The timing was impeccable, right when Kastro withdrew his Gyo. The real issue lay in Orion's abnormally fast ability activation speed.
Morrow asked, "Can you spot the difference between Orion's real body and the clone?"
Calista strained to focus, scrutinizing Orion and the Nen clone, but still couldn't distinguish them.
"Master, I can't tell."
"It's their personalities and expressions."
Morrow stared intently at the two Orions in the ring, calmly explaining, "The clone that attacked Kastro just now was likely the calmer, more rational one. The current real body is the short-tempered version."
"I can see some differences now."
Guided by Morrow's insight, Calista shifted her attention to their expressions and finally noticed subtle distinctions between the two.
"But Kastro knew about Orion's ability. How could he fall for it so easily?"
Calista glanced worriedly at Kastro lying motionless on the ground.
As a spectator, she wasn't under the pressure of combat and didn't need to maintain high alertness.
But Kastro was different, he should've been more cautious.
Morrow said, "It's because Orion activated his ability too quickly. Calista, in Nen battles, using Gyo to detect an opponent's hidden moves is a fundamental requirement, but timing is crucial."
"I understand."
Calista replied solemnly, "Using Gyo too early can directly affect offensive and defensive strength, while using it too late leaves no time to guard against an opponent's underhanded tactics."
"Exactly."
Morrow lowered his gaze, recalling the moment Orion had activated his clone ability.
"Kastro wasn't careless. If I'm not mistaken... Orion's Nen clone can independently take the initiative in attacks, so its 'movement' speed is extremely fast and more concealed."
That being said, the clone was too stable, and the speed at which it materialized was absurdly fast.
Moreover, there was simply no way to distinguish the original from the clone through things like stains or wrinkles.
In fact, Orion's ability had completely erased the distinction between the original and the Nen clone.
Judging by the phenomenon of seamlessly switching personalities, the original could be the Nen clone, and the Nen clone could be the original.
Was this the advantage of a personality clone?
Having taken this hit, Kastro was as good as defeated.
In Nen battles, one misstep leads to total defeat, such is the cruel and merciless nature of these fights.