Risk

Moro's plan was to forcibly awaken the nen of the burly man and then kill him to verify if this method could quickly level him up.

This was why Moro had deliberately spared one of the men.

Forcibly awakening someone's nen was not something Moro had ever tried before. He doubted he could achieve it with a calm, neutral state of mind.

The process, tainted with a degree of malice, would likely subject the burly man to intense mental and physical pain during the forced awakening of his nen pores.

But Moro had no concern for the man's rights or suffering.

He gagged the man with a towel, then extended his hand, channeling nen energy into the man's body.

In an instant, the volatile energy rampaged within the man, violently forcing open his nen pores while inflicting excruciating pain.

"Mmmph…!!"

The man's face twisted in agony, his body convulsing and arching like a shrimp.

Moro watched with a blank expression. When the maximum amount of nen energy began to radiate from the man, Moro calmly reached out and snapped his neck.

The room fell silent.

Moro stood up and immediately looked at the back of his hand to check his level.

Not that he really needed to.

In the moment he killed the man, Moro could already tell that his level hadn't increased.

"So, it doesn't work," he muttered.

Though disappointed, he wasn't overly upset.

If he could level up so easily, it wouldn't have offered much in terms of meaningful growth. This was simply a realistic outcome.

Moro lowered his hand, his eyes reflecting deep thought.

Killing a target who had just awakened their nen wasn't enough to trigger a level-up.

This suggested that only targets with a certain level of nen mastery—or those who had developed actual nen abilities—could fulfill the conditions for leveling up.

If that were the case—

Would killing a more powerful nen user result in gaining multiple levels at once?

Conversely, it was likely that the higher his level became, the stricter the requirements for further advancement would be.

"When the time is right, I'll head to the Heavens Arena," Moro mused, shifting his thoughts away from the current failure.

He glanced at the two corpses in the room.

He had anticipated that his transaction involving Sinra might attract the attention of hunters. What he hadn't expected was how quickly they would arrive—or how brazenly they would act.

On reflection…

Before his rebirth, his swift rise in Yorknew City had been largely due to Morena backing him.

Now, acting solo, he naturally appeared to these hunters as an easy target.

Moro tucked the handgun into his waistband and proceeded to break the limbs of the two corpses, creating a scene that was as gruesome as possible.

Once finished, he called a number and hired two cleaners, paying them to deal with the aftermath.

This was yet another "feature" of Yorknew City: if you had the money, you could hire someone to dispose of bodies.

After making the payment, Moro left the room with Sinra, leaving the cleaners to handle the mess.

He knew they would inevitably spread the word about the scene they'd cleaned up.

The grotesque state of the bodies would, in turn, serve as a deterrent, discouraging small-time troublemakers and saving Moro some unnecessary headaches.

Still, the hunters' direct assault on his room only reinforced Moro's urgency to sell Sinra.

After all, the profit margin was in the billions—a temptation strong enough to blind countless fools to their limitations.

Moro had no interest in constantly dealing with such nuisances, as it would interfere with his training during his free time.

As night fell, Yorknew City's vibrant side came alive.

Skyscrapers stood tall, their lights weaving a tapestry of gold and silver.

The streets were a sea of cars, their headlights resembling a river of stars cascading down.

Avoiding the bright city lights, Moro slipped into the shadows, navigating through a labyrinth of alleys.

The criminal underworld in Yorknew operated differently. Crimes and various gray-market industries were conducted openly and without fear of scrutiny.

Gangsters dressed in suits and ties, unafraid of the spotlight.

This city was their stronghold.

But there were still those who preferred to conduct their dealings in the shadows.

Moro wasn't about to place Sinra in a major auction house, so he sought out an intermediary who specialized in underground trades.

In a dimly lit basement, a middle-aged intermediary smoking a pipe examined Sinra and made an offer.

"12.5 billion Jenny, no problem. I can find a buyer and guarantee no complications, but I'll need a 15% cut."

The intermediary tapped his pipe against the table, watching Moro's reaction closely.

Sinra had once belonged to a prominent wealthy collector. About a month ago, that collector was found dead in his home, along with his elite security team.

Not a single one of his valuable artifacts had been recovered.

It was a textbook case of robbery and murder, with Sinra being one of the stolen items.

How it ended up in Yorknew City, sold by a petty thief to a young outsider, remained a mystery.

Even after confirming the story himself, the intermediary found it absurd.

But business was business, and he wasn't about to let a lucrative deal slip through his fingers.

Moro agreed readily to the intermediary's terms, but with one condition.

"Oh?"

The intermediary raised an eyebrow, surprised by Moro's straightforwardness. "What's your condition?"

"Front me 8 billion Jenny," Moro said, locking eyes with the intermediary.

The intermediary chuckled, thinking Moro was being ridiculous. But the smile quickly faded as Moro elaborated:

"In return, no matter what price you negotiate, I'll only take 2 billion from the final payment."

"…"

The intermediary's smile vanished as his expression turned serious. Meeting Moro's calm and steady gaze, he slowly replied, "You're willing to risk 20 million to make a guaranteed 10 billion? That's quite the gamble."

"You seem well-informed," Moro replied indifferently. "So, what's your answer?"

"I'm a businessman. I won't refuse a deal with bigger profits," the intermediary said, narrowing his eyes.

He knew Moro wasn't as harmless as he seemed on the surface. Otherwise, he would've declined outright.

The intermediary was confident he could sell Sinra for an even higher price, pocketing the excess as profit.

The deal was finalized. Moro walked away with 8 billion Jenny upfront, and he didn't plan on collecting the remaining 2 billion.

The intermediary, accustomed to shady transactions, saw through Moro's intentions. This understanding made him accept the condition so readily.

One Week Later

The intermediary, accompanied by his men, met with a client willing to pay 15 billion Jenny for Sinra.

The buyer was a man with burn scars covering half his face. Before the meeting, he had placed several briefcases on the table.

The intermediary assumed they contained money.

At his signal, one of his men handed Sinra to the buyer.

The man took the blade, but his brows furrowed as soon as he touched it.

The nen energy on the katana—

It was gone.

Meanwhile, the intermediary opened one of the briefcases and looked inside.

It was empty.

"Huh?"

The intermediary's face darkened, and without hesitation, he drew his gun.

Shhhk!

Suddenly, a sharp blade pierced through the intermediary's chest.

"Ugh…"

His body trembled as he looked down at the bloodied blade protruding from his chest. He turned his head with difficulty, trying to see where the weapon had come from.

What he saw was incomprehensible.

Emerging from the shadow behind him was a figure wrapped in a turban and mask.

What was truly horrifying was that only the upper half of the figure's body was visible—the rest seemed fused with the shadow itself.

The katana that had pierced the intermediary was firmly in the figure's grasp.

The intermediary's thoughts raced, recognizing the figure's attire. But before he could make sense of it, his consciousness was swallowed by darkness.

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