History Main / ResurrectiveImmortality

* In ''WesternAnimation/PussInBootsTheLastWish'', Puss has nine lives, eight of which he's carelessly used up already. A near-death experience with a vicious bounty hunter causes him to seek the Wishing Star to have his lives restored.

* In ''LightNovel/IsThisAZombie'', Kyoko has the ability to gain an "extra life" every time she kills somebody, so she became a SerialKiller. Every time she is killed, she uses up a life and immediately gets up fully healed. She is defeated when Ayumu manages to reduce her to her last life, at which point she begs for mercy, pleading that she doesn't want to die.

* The song [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hbt64qwKe9g&ab_channel=TheJollyRogers TheSpiritOfTheOutlaw]] by "The Jolly Rogers" is about a criminal who apparently comes BackFromTheDead every time he's executed, so he can continue committing crimes in a new era. In order, he's been: a {{Pirate}}, a [[TheHighwayman Highwayman]], a [[TheGunslinger Gunslinger]], a Chicago Mobster, and a [[RuthlessModernPirates Ruthless Modern Pirate]]. At the end, he acknowledges it's only a matter of time before he's caught and executed again, but...

* ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet'': Freddy Krueger is killed several times by the heroes, but he returns each time. The dream demons who are the source of his powers promised him that he would indefinitely resurrect no matter what anyone does to him. He even boasts about it.

** ''VideoGame/EldenRing'': The theft of the Gods' Rune of Death has broken the laws of nature, which means ''most'' mortals resurrect after they die. Unfortunately, they have been driven insane from endless starvation and war. Interestingly, ''most'' of the gods have lost their divine resurrective immortality as a result of their sacrilegious war. The Tarnished has achieved this divine connection with the Grace of the Erdtree, and resurrects indefinitely and without consequence.

** The Phoenix Lords, who are sort of like the Eldar equivalent of Primarchs, are ancient Aeldari warriors from the time of the Fall of the Eldar, and the founders of the various Aspect Warrior shrines. Their souls are bound to their suits of armor; when one of them dies, their consciousness will subsume that of whoever puts the armor on next (which can usually be assumed to be an Exarch of their respective shrine anyway) allowing them to be "reborn" after a fashion into a new body.

* Fujin of ''Franchise/MortalKombat'' states this is true of his fellow PhysicalGod [[BigGood Raiden]]; however, for the latter, this means being resurrected as a blank slate devoid of any memories should he be killed. [[spoiler: This never happens due to the fact that the only time we ever see Raiden die canonically are when he goes [[TakingYouWithMe kamikaze on Onaga]] in ''[[VideoGame/MortalKombatDeception Deception]]'' and Onaga's [[CameBackWrong corruption]] helps him retain his memory, and when Shao Kahn kills him in ''[[VideoGame/MortalKombat9 MK9]]'', but only after Raiden sends a message to his past self to [[SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong prevent it all from happening anyway.]]]]

* Due to ''VideoGame/FallenLondon'' being located 'downstream of Hell', its inhabitants all have this, although they can't come back from disease, nor old age, nor are they exempt from the ChunkySalsaRule.

* In ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'', this is the basis of [[MadScientist Szayelaporro]] [[EvilGenius Granz's]] Gabriel technique. By "impregnating" his target with a portion of his body, he can use it if he's injured beyond repair to absorb all the [[LifeDrinker fluids and chemicals]] of the victim's body to redevelop his own, killing the victim and reforming in a matter of seconds from a liquid-like casing coming from the victim's mouth. He actually [[LampshadedTrope lampshades]] the process by comparing it to the phoenix of legend. [[{{Squick}} The scene is NOT]] PlayedForLaughs and could even be considered a MoralEventHorizon if he hadn't already [[IAmAHumanitarian had]] [[ColdBloodedTorture several]] beforehand.

* In the second edition of ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'', this can be gained through multiple high-level classes and specific magical traditions. For instance, the Phoenix bloodline sorcerer can be predictably RebornFromTheAshes. Perhaps most unique is the 20th-level Psychic ability that allows one to become a manifestation of thought itself and combine this with ImmortalityThroughMemory: as long as someone remembers you, once per year you can come back.

* ''Literature/ThatTimeIGotReincarnatedAsASlime'':
** Demons as spiritual lifeforms cannot be permanently killed unless their souls are somehow permanently damaged, as they will regenerate within the underworld, which applies even if they obtain a physical vessel. However, repeated deaths over a short enough period of time without recovery will start to weaken the demon with each resurrection, and it's possible for a demon to devolve in the worst case scenario. It's implied that something similar applies to other spiritual lifeforms like angels and spirits.
** Certain magic-born can survive death and even destruction of their bodies as long as their souls are safe and resurrect. Undead in particular can pull this off, with the ability to "anchor" their souls until they can rebuild their bodies. There are limits to what they can recover from, however, and it can cost more energy to rebuild their bodies than they actually possess. [[spoiler:Demon Lord Kazaream, for example, spent centuries as a formless spirit unable to reform, and had to resort to [[SummonEverymanHero summoning a compatible Otherworlder body]] in order to commit GrandTheftMe and save himself. They ended up SharingABody when the Otherworlder stopped him but was sympathetic to his plight, and even helped him gain a new [[GenderBender (female)]] body.]]
*** [[spoiler:Much like their master Kazaream, Deathmen are also able to do this in the eventuality that their physical body is killed by anchoring their astral body to the ley lines. Laplace was able to resurrect himself without much issue after being disintegrated, but when Clayman threatened to do the same Rimuru put a stop to that by [[YourSoulIsMine consuming his soul]], [[KilledOffForReal killing him permanently.]]]]
** The [[DragonsAreDivine True Dragons]] have the most impressive version, as almost nothing can permanently kill them save ''very'' specific circumstances because they are literally considered by reality to be closer to "forces of nature" than "living beings". At worst, they just lose some memories and get a "reboot" [[spoiler:and that no longer applies to Veldora and Velgrynd after Rimuru established a soul corridor with them and obtained Skills related to them that ensure as long as their connection remains and he's alive, they'll keep their memories if they die]]. That's why [[TheMaker Veldanava's]] apparent permanent death was so earthshaking. [[spoiler:Rimuru himself gets in on this when he becomes a True Dragon.]]

* In ''LightNovel/{{Campione}}'', Godou can come back to life fully healed with the power of The Ram, but he can only do this once a day.

* Vanir from ''LightNovel/KonoSuba'' manages to come back after being killed. The heroes only find this out when they have to break the news to Wiz that they killed him, only to find him working in her shop. It seems that as long as he has a supply of the masks he uses, he can just transfer from one to another.

* ''LightNovel/ThatTimeIGotReincarnatedAsASlime'':

* In ''Literature/AmericanGods'' gods don't age or get sick, and it takes a lot of effort to kill them. And if someone manages to kill them but they have enough [[GodsNeedPrayerBadly prayers/belief]]/[[HumanSacrifice sacrifices]] something like them will materialize eventually. However TheOldGods are running short on belief. [[spoiler: Mr. Wednesday's plan to start a war between the Old Gods and the New involves letting a sniper kill him, rallying the Old Gods to have this big battle with the New Gods that his partner-in-crime Loki would turn into a massive sacrifice to him. Granting him enough power to resurrect and then some.]]
* The Amar Kabal of ''Literature/TheBeyonders'' possess this. When an Amar Kabal dies, their mind and memories are stored in their "seed", a small cyst-like growth on the back of the neck that detaches after death. Planting the seed in the ground will cause the Amar Kabal within to regrow their body within a few months. Destroying a seed kills the Amar Kabal inside it, and will cause every other Amar Kabal to declare war on you. One quirk of this is that the "template" for the regrowth is locked by the Amar Kabal's First Death, so most seed(wo)men deliberately kill themselves around twenty-five or so to insure the best quality of body in future rebirths.
** In the second book a seed man is bitten by a zombie and his seed is excised before the infection kills him, the excision killing him instantly. Later, after the group discovers that some zombies retain their sentience and memories of their old life they run into him, which results in there being two of him once they plant his seed.

* ''Franchise/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': In ''Immortal'', unlike most vampires, Veronique's spirit survives whenever her body is dusted, and her consciousness enters the body of the next human her henchmen turn into a vampire. She spends 120 years trapped without a body due to the machinations of a Slayer and ultimately loses her powers after failing her demonic masters.
* Monsters in ''Literature/TheCampHalfBloodSeries'' are able to show up again and again thanks to this. When they are killed, they go back to [[{{Hell}} Tartarus]] to regenerate their bodies, and eventually come back to fight them again. Percy Jackson points out how horrifying this is in ''[[Literature/TheHeroesOfOlympus The House of Hades]]'', as it effectively means his fellow half-bloods will be fighting the same monsters over and over again - he even notices some of the monsters he foung before waiting in line at the Doors of Death. As a side note, weapons made of Stygian Iron can [[DeaderThanDead bypass this and kill them for good]], but Stygian Iron is both rare and hard to make.
* This is how [[EvilSorcerer Kasreyn's]] immortality works in the ''Second Literature/ChroniclesOfThomasCovenant''. He has [[SquishyWizard no noticeable fighting abilities]], and in one scene a Giant manages to rip the chain that's binding him out of the wall and hit Kasreyn with it, breaking his neck and killing him instantly. Kasreyn is dead for about thirty seconds, then gets back up none the worse for the wear, assuring the Giant that his death [[ToThePain will pass description]]. It's unclear if this power is Kasreyn's own or a side effect of [[spoiler: the DealWithTheDevil he made with a ''croyel'']] but when [[spoiler: the ''croyel'' is killed, Kasreyn dies for real]].

* In ''Literature/HarryPotter'', Voldemort's [[SoulJar Horcruxes]] grant him a form of this type of immortality as they contain pieces of his soul preventing him from passing on. As his soul doesn't leave the mortal world can later reform his body if it is destroyed being resurrected as a result. However unlike other examples the spells and rituals involved require the assistance of another wizard meaning it can take decades to return as was the case after his failed attempt to kill Harry as a baby. Once all of Voldemort's Horcruxes are destroyed - [[spoiler:including the one he inadvertently created in Harry]] - he becomes mortal again.

* The deceased believers in Christ in the Literature/LeftBehind book series gain this ability once they and their still-living counterparts are CaughtUpInTheRapture and AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence. This also applies to those who became believers during the Tribulation and were martyred for their faith.

* In ''Literature/TheNightAngelTrilogy'', the holder of the [[ImmortalityInducer black ka'kari]] has this. They come back to life if killed [[spoiler:at the cost of having someone they care about die soon after.]]

* ''Literature/TolkiensLegendarium'': This is the side effect of Elves being eternally bound to Arda. On top of being immortal, if they die by any means, they will get sent to the Halls of Mandos, where they wait until they are given permission to be reembodied back in Arda, in the same body and the same spirit. Therefore, Elves don't really have the same fear of death as Men do, because they can just come back, [[KilledOffForReal whereas Men are fated to leave Arda as soon as they die]]. That said, the Elves can remain stuck in the Halls and not be reembodied, whether by choice (e.g. Aegnor, who does not want to return to a world without his mortal lover, Andreth) or if they are deemed too sinful (e.g. Fëanor, whose rebellion against the Valar is seen as unforgivable).
** It is strongly implied in certain writings that the original orcs were the result of Elves being tortured to death multiple times. Though Tolkien contradicted himself multiple times on this one.
* This is possessed by Sacred Eclipse in ''LightNovel/UndefeatedBahamutChronicle''. Overlaps with CameBackStrong, as it gains new powers each time it resurrects, ensuring that it will eventually become impossible to defeat.
* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': The Perpetuals in ''Literature/HorusHeresy'', more specifically, Oll Parsson, Vulkan and John Grammaticus. They don't age and they can rebuild FromASingleCell. Unfortunately, every death brings them closer to the brink of insanity. Oll and John deal with it by [[BadassNormal not dying]], but Vulkan goes crazy before he even realizes what's going on.

* The protagonist of the WebSerialNovel ''Literature/TheZombieKnight'' has this as his primary power, thanks entirely to the GrimReaper who revived him. This is used to both [[BodyHorror gruesome]] and [[ComicallyInvincibleHero comical]] effect. He also boasts SuperStrength and the ability to temporarily FeelNoPain. [[spoiler:And growing ExtraOreDinary powers.]]
* This is one of the signature powers of the Venerate in ''Literature/TheLicaniusTrilogy''. Not only are the Venerate unaging and unable to be killed except by [[AchillesHeel a specific method unique to each of them]], but if they ''do'' die they will reincarnate in a random body somewhere. Only the eponymous Licanius can permanently kill them.
* ''LightNovel/ReZero''[='s=] Subaru has this ability, but instead of simply coming back time resets to a certain important point in his past. Although two big drawbacks to using this ability is that he can't go further than the last checkpoint, and he still feels the pain of every death making it an ability he hates to rely on.
* In ''LightNovel/IsThisAZombie'', Kyoko has the ability to gain an "extra life" every time she kills somebody, so she became a SerialKiller. Every time she is killed, she uses up a life and immediately gets up fully healed. She is defeated when Ayumu manages to reduce her to her last life, at which point she begs for mercy, pleading that she doesn't want to die.
* ''LightNovel/TheExecutionerAndHerWayOfLife'':
** Whenever Akari is killed, her Pure Concept of "Time" automatically activates and rewinds her body to the state it was in before she died. Because even her memories are rewound, she herself is unaware of this.
** Whenever Pandaemonium dies, her Pure Concept automatically activates and spawns a new, undamaged copy of her body.
* [[TheOldGods Ryn]], the main character of Literature/TheOneWhoEatsMonsters, looks like a slightly underfed five-foot tall, sixteen-year old girl who weighs "one hundred and three pounds." She's actually the oldest monster in the world, from the [[PlaceBeforeTime Before Time and the Long Ago.]] She's "too old to die," and can heal from literally anything. If someone does enough damage fast enough to "kill" her, her body will simply reform itself from nothingness in a few years.

[[folder: Music]]

* ''WebOriginal/LoomingGaia'': When the Spirit of Gaia grants someone divinity, that person stops aging, but can still be killed by accident. They resurrect an year later after Gaia has made a new body for them. Unless they were killed with the [[ImmortalBreaker Divine Executioner]], of course.

* ''WebOriginal/LoomingGaia'': When the Spirit of Gaia grants someone divinity, that person stops aging, but can still be killed by accident. They resurrect an year later after Gaia has made a new body for them.

* The song [[The Spirit of the Outlaw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hbt64qwKe9g&ab_channel=TheJollyRogers]] by "The Jolly Rogers" is about a criminal who apparently comes BackFromTheDead every time he's executed, so he can continue committing crimes in a new era. In order, he's been: a {{Pirate}}, a [[TheHighwayman Highwayman]], a [[TheGunslinger Gunslinger]], a Chicago Mobster, and a RuthlessModernPirate. At the end, he acknowledges it's only a matter of time before he's caught and executed again, but...

* In ''Fanfic/TheNightUnfurls'', both the Hunter and the Doll cannot be permanently killed, as per ''VideoGame/BloodBorne'' canon.