The one who attacked Pariston was none other than Moses's Black Sword.
But this wasn't the same Black Sword as before, as this one had been ignited by Soul Ember, so it's now imbued with humanity.
It was also from that moment that the Black Sword transformed from a Nen Tool into a Nen Beast.
In order to verify Black Sword's current ability, Moses let black sword deal with Pariston by itself.
The offensive method at the beginning was very immature. It just flew straight forward and couldn't create any pressure at all.
But then, perhaps realizing its current approach wasn't working, Black Sword directly mobilized all of his own Aura, and then borrowed the power of the [Nyoi Bo Cornerstone] to expand its blade and cut across the entire floor space in an instant.
This ensured a 100% hit rate.
With a single slash, Pariston was bisected. The Black Sword, which had used up all its Aura, turned into wisps of light smoke and disappeared into the floor.
Squelch.
As the Black Sword disappeared, Pariston's severed body collapsed onto the concrete. His organs spilled out in a viscous mess, quickly forming a pool of blood.
At the same time-
On the rooftop of a distant high-rise-
When Moses sensed the disappearance of the Black Sword, he raised his right hand and mobilized his Aura.
Whoosh-
Like flowing water, his aura rapidly took shape, reforming into the familiar silhouette of the Black Sword.
But the Black Sword at this moment was the same as before, completely black, devoid of the molten-red glow from earlier, and the hilt was not missing.
In fact, the Black Sword infused with Soul Ember has two modes:
One is the Nen Tool Mode, and the other is the Nen Beast Mode.
The former, like before, is a purely conjured weapon, while the latter was the one who attacked Pariston.
In the Nen Beast Mode, Black Sword can change part of its appearance, and can also use the [Nyoi Bo Cornerstone] ability it already possesses.
In addition, the Black Sword in the Nen Beast Mode has the ability to levitate.
Just like humans are born with two feet for walking, Black Sword's [Levitation] ability is its intrinsic movement method.
"Wake up."
Moses glanced at the Black Sword in his hand and spoke softly.
Upon hearing Moses's command, the Black Sword suddenly trembled, and veins emitting red luster quickly appeared on the blade, pulsing like a heartbeat.
The Black Sword in the Nen Beast Mode easily broke free from Moses's grip and hovered directly in front of Moses.
Moses looked at the Black Sword, whose appearance had obviously changed, and asked, "How did it go?"
From where he was, Moses hadn't been able to see the battle inside the building clearly.
He can only roughly understand the situation through the fluctuations of Nen, so he needed the Black Sword to make a post-battle report at this time.
If his shadow is still here, the most basic vision problem can be solved by wrapping his shadow around the Black Sword.
"Hacked to death, fake."
The Black Sword swayed slightly in front of Moses, its voice a metallic clang, like metal hitting metal.
"Fake?"
Moses raised his brows slightly.
The Black Sword suddenly stopped moving, and the crisp sound sounded again: "Fake. Fake!"
While he was not clear about the specific situation, Moses chose to trust Black Sword's judgment.
It had killed Pariston, but it also confirmed that the Pariston who was killed was a fake.
"Rats will be rats. Clever little bastard."
Moses's gaze moved away from the Black Sword and turned to look at the distant building, bathed in moonlight.
It is hard to tell whether Pariston came to such a remote place specifically to conduct shady business or simply to lure him into making a move.
After all, when he was helping Netero get rid of the Nen Curse, he had no intention of hiding his intention at all.
It made sense that Pariston would be wary or even set up precautions.
If he hadn't just obtained the Soul Ember, the one who attacked just now would not be Black Sword, but Moses himself.
'Run all you want. But sooner or later, I'll catch you, you damn rat...'
Moses kept his eyes locked on the building in the distance, with no intention of going to the scene. Instead, he took out his phone and sent a message to Ickshonpe.
Since the Pariston who was hacked to death by the Black Sword was fake, then it was likely a Nen Clone or similar ability.
This is a bit intriguing.
If it weren't for the limitations on 'identity'...
Moses wouldn't have needed to be so cautious. He could've just barged in with his sword and dealt with Pariston directly.
…
In a high-end residential area in the Swardani City.
"Ahhh, that was close, so close. I almost died back there."
In a lavishly decorated living room, Pariston raised his hand and lightly touched his chin with the usual smile on his face.
Not far from him, on a sofa, sat a man dressed in a pristine white chef's uniform, complete with a tall toque blanche. His face was also painted with clown-like makeup.
"You don't look like someone who just narrowly escaped death."
The man clasped his hands between his knees and looked at Pariston with a somewhat helpless look.
In the man's view, Pariston was practically dancing on the edge of a knife, but he remained as carefree as ever. It was the kind of attitude that made people think, 'If he died, it'd be his own fault'.
Pariston tilted his head to look at the man on the sofa and smiled, "I'm just not good at showing my 'inner turmoil.' Before my miraculous escape, I was so scared I could've screamed at any moment."
"That's not my problem."
The chef shook his head and stood up from the sofa.
When he stood up, he was much taller than Pariston and had a burly frame.
"Anyway, I helped you this once, but that's it. From now on, you can do whatever you want. Just don't expect me to help you a second time. You should know that I've been keeping a low profile, and I'm not about to blow my cover because of your recklessness."
The chef stated calmly.
He is one of the team members selected by Beyond to go to the Dark Continent, and he is also a Pro Hunter in the Hunter Association.
It's just that like the rest of the team, he stayed out of the limelight. He usually doesn't show his abilities, and he is even willing to become a Temp Hunter, and is laughed at by most members of the Hunter Association in order to hone his abilities secretly.
Tonight, he'd only stepped in at Pariston's request, using his Conjuration-Type Ability, [The Essence of Cooking], to help Pariston create a flesh clone.
At first, he'd wondered why Pariston would use his Nen Ability to do such a strange thing.
But as it turned out, it was the perfect countermeasure...
He also realized belatedly that Pariston had been dealing with a life-or-death situation.
Still, the chef knew Pariston's capabilities.
If not, why would Pariston suddenly ask him for help?
It was precisely because his Nen Ability could genuinely help Pariston in this scenario that Pariston had called him.
Therefore, the chef wasn't too worried about Pariston's safety. Instead, he was more worried that tonight's action would affect his years of lying low.
After all, he is now a ridiculed Temp Hunter and a nobody in the Hunter Association.
If he suddenly became a well-known expert in the Hunter Association, he'd probably get dragged into all kinds of social activities, and people might ask him for his autograph.
This kind of thing, just thinking about it, is both troublesome and scary!