"Check" (王手, Ōte, Tonari: 197) is the 152nd chapter of the One-Punch Man manga series.
Short Summary[]
Black Sperm, Golden Sperm, and Homeless Emperor are confused by King's inaction. Homeless Emperor warns that King can incapacitate monsters without touch and instructs caution despite having hostages. As he prepares to attack, Zombieman intervenes, pinning him down. Meanwhile, Black Sperm merges with Golden Sperm to form Platinum Sperm. Child Emperor alerts King that Genos and Tatsumaki have been rescued, urging him to attack as the final Black Sperm clone watches the fusion.
Long Summary[]
Black Sperm, Golden Sperm, and Homeless Emperor are confused by King's inaction. Black Sperm asks about King's fighting style, and Homeless Emperor explains that King is unique among heroes, possessing an unusual lack of battle data and the ability to incapacitate monsters without physical contact. He cautions the others not to underestimate their situation, even with Tatsumaki and Genos as hostages. As Homeless Emperor prepares to test King with a massive energy sphere, King asks what would happen if he touched it. Homeless Emperor replies that King would be vaporized.
Just as Homeless Emperor is about to strike, King warns him to be careful of the loose rocks beneath his feet to avoid falling. Misinterpreting this as a sign that King could easily dodge and counterattack, Homeless Emperor grows anxious but vows to show his true self. King, frightened, mistakenly believes Homeless Emperor knows he's just an ordinary human and mutters, “just a regular human.” This terrifies Homeless Emperor, who fears King has uncovered his vulnerability. To prevent the others from realizing his weakness, he attempts to kill King.
However, before he can unleash his energy sphere, Zombieman suddenly appears behind him, grabbing his neck and pinning him down. Child Emperor is thrilled to see Zombieman alive, while Homeless Emperor panics and calls for Black Sperm's help. Black Sperm, however, remains focused on King, opting to confront the hero alone. Meanwhile, Child Emperor sends his messenger bugs to alert other heroes of his plan to line up all the monsters in front of King for his Ultimate Hellfire Burst Wave Motion Cannon.
Black Sperm then reveals to King that, including Golden Sperm, he has a total of 54 trillion cells and challenges the hero to defeat them all. After speaking, his clones rush toward Golden Sperm to merge, while a unit of 100 Black Sperm cells detaches for backup. Confronted by Metal Bat, Black Sperm weeps as he witnesses trillions of his cells being erased in their struggle for dominance, yet he feels a sense of joy as they merge into a single entity: Platinum Sperm, marking the true emergence of his being. As Evil Natural Water and the new fusion stand before King, Child Emperor informs him that Genos and Tatsumaki have been rescued by Puri-Puri Prisoner and urges him to unleash his attack.
The last Black Sperm clone, overwhelmed with emotion, watches the birth of Platinum Sperm as Metal Bat prepares to strike him.