Post-Mortem Birth X Analysis

At the campsite, beside the bonfire.

Jin picked up a branch and drew in the dirt beside him.

"For now, let's distinguish between you before you crossed over and the original you from this world. We'll refer to them as A and B."

As he spoke, he drew two stick figures on the ground. One represented Kevin A before crossing over, while the other represented Kevin B from this world.

"B was killed by me. Death is a gradual process. Bodily functions steadily shut down, the brain may be damaged or deprived of oxygen, and consciousness slowly fades until, at last, the soul disperses. That is the complete process of death." As Jin spoke, he drew a horizontal line beside B to represent that process.

"Wait, do souls really exist?" Kevin could not help asking. He desperately needed more definite information.

But something like the soul was obviously not easy to prove.

Jin looked at him and nodded. "Setting aside your unusual case for the moment, the existence of souls has been proven throughout history.

Nen abilities that steal or seize other people's bodies, capture souls, or trap them do exist. They are simply extremely rare, and confirmed records are rarer still."

That meant the existence of souls was beyond doubt.

Getting back to the point, Jin continued drawing and writing on the ground.

"At that moment, you—A—died. According to you, you were hit by a car." Jin drew a large "X" over A, then drew a curved arrow from above its head toward the horizontal line.

"At the same time, your soul somehow arrived here, just in time for B to reach the final stage of death. I suspect it was at the very moment his soul was about to disperse."

As he spoke, Jin drew a new stick figure at the end of the horizontal line. It had B's outline on the outside and A inside, representing the current Kevin: A's soul occupying B's body.

"A originally could not use Nen abilities, but B could. Nen is the fusion of Aura and intent, so what manifested more strongly here was Aura.

"This body had already opened its Aura Nodes. Because you possessed it in time, the body instinctively used [Ken].

"This peculiar process not only gave rise to [post-mortem Nen], but also triggered an even stranger phenomenon." At this point, Jin pointed at Kevin and asked, "You're exceptionally skilled at controlling Nen Aura, aren't you?"

Kevin nodded and held out a finger. Under his control, Nen Aura changed into all kinds of shapes, like modeling clay that could be molded however he wished.

Jin also held out a finger and made the same motion.

"I can do this too, but only because I spent over a decade studying and mastering Nen Aura techniques, on top of having extraordinary talent.

"I can tell you plainly: there are fewer than ten people in this world with this level of control.

"And yet, when it comes to manipulating Nen Aura, you easily reached a level comparable to mine. That can no longer be explained by talent alone. As long as one is human, talent has its limits."

Kevin deeply agreed with that. He had noticed it long ago. Even Biscuit, a Nen user with decades of experience, had been astonished by how freely he controlled Nen Aura.

"Do you remember? Post-mortem Nen is fundamentally formed from obsession. But B could not possibly have possessed such intense obsession. He must have changed due to an external influence.

"In other words, your arrival came at precisely the right time. Just as B's will and soul were about to completely scatter, your appearance reactivated this body."

Kevin had made all kinds of guesses about how he had crossed over and why he had become like this.

But he could not make such a reasonable deduction as Jin. After all, his knowledge of Nen abilities was far inferior to Jin's.

Jin had only reached this conclusion because he had witnessed Kevin's crossing-over process from beginning to end and possessed a vast store of knowledge.

"The dispersing Aura was stabilized once more, and fragments of will and soul remained behind, giving birth to this special post-mortem Nen.

"This post-mortem Nen not only retained the original Nen ability's effects, but even strengthened them somewhat. Yet its side effects were far less severe than those of true post-mortem Nen.

"You must understand that Nen is the union of Aura and intent. During this process, some soul fragments were absorbed by the Aura, and after your soul entered this body, it fused with them.

"The process of absorbing memories is actually the process of taking in soul fragments left behind in the brain and connecting with the soul fragments within the body's Aura.

"It is as though you fused part of your own will and soul into the Aura. Although the part of the will within the Nen Aura does not entirely belong to you, it is like a part of you. That is what created the current situation."

Jin excitedly laid out his theory, speaking a long stretch without pause as he explained his view in detail.

This was the first time he had encountered such a situation. He had consulted a great deal of information and pondered it carefully for a long time before reaching this conclusion, and even then, it might not have been entirely accurate.

"Every step of this process has similar examples that can be found in other people. Your case is simply unusual, which caused all these phenomena to appear one after another."

Kevin could not be certain whether Jin's theory was correct, since none of it could be practically verified.

Looking at the Aura he could effortlessly manipulate in his palm, the only thing he could confirm was that, to him, this Aura truly was easy to control. His will could be conveyed through it with precision.

Jin seemed to see through his thoughts. "Verifying it is actually not difficult. You can try seeing whether you can make your [En] take on an irregular shape."

An irregularly shaped [En]? Was that really possible?

In Kevin's understanding, wasn't [En] called [En] precisely because it could only spread outward in a circular form?

"Give it a try. Spend a little time and effort, and you'll have your answer."

Kevin nodded. "I'll try."

"And your original Nen ability—you can try adjusting its functions.

"While you're at it, resolve its side effects. Once you truly master Resentment, it will naturally disappear, since you are alive. Your current ability is far more powerful than your original one."

Hearing Jin say that, Kevin shook his head helplessly. "I've tried. Although I can control it, and it is indeed my Nen ability at its core, changing it is almost impossible."

To his surprise, Jin shook his head as well. "I'm a Ruin Hunter. I've seen countless forms of post-mortem Nen and all kinds of ancient Nen Aura. I can tell at a glance whether something is true post-mortem Nen and what kind it is."

In ancient times, sacrifices and bloody massacres were common—far more brutal than anything in modern times.

The post-mortem Nen produced by them, along with the products of all kinds of evil rituals, often appeared in Ruins. Jin had seen plenty of them and understood their many forms.

"Don't try to forcefully control it. Try to merge with it instead. You should already be slowly accepting who you are now. At the very least, you dare to look in the mirror now, don't you?"

Jin had struck a nerve, and Kevin fell into thought.

He had to admit that he had not fully accepted his current self before.

If his face had not gradually begun changing into his original one over time, he truly would have resisted looking in the mirror.

Seeing that unfamiliar face in the mirror make expressions he knew so well felt like a horror story brought to life. Even after all this time, it still sent a chill through him.

"All right. I'll try."