Paimon quickly turned her head and jumped in shock at the sight of a massive axe embedded in the ground.
Where did that come from?
They had just walked in a big circle and hadn't seen a single living soul—not even a Slime or a Hilichurl.
Before Paimon could process what was happening, Xiao warned seriously, "Be careful, there's an enemy. Paimon, get back."
Hearing this, Paimon quickly hid behind the Traveler. "Enemy? Where?"
She cautiously scanned her surroundings, but there was no sign of anyone—still not even a single Hilichurl.
Then suddenly, with a thunderous crash, a building ahead of them was struck by something and collapsed.
A huge black figure leapt into the sky and came crashing down toward Paimon, the Traveler, and the others.
Seeing this, Xiao showed no fear and charged forward with his spear.
Keqing drew the sword at her waist. "Traveler, Hu Tao, prepare for battle."
As soon as she said that, she dashed ahead with her sword, fighting alongside the Vigilant Yaksha.
The Traveler and Hu Tao exchanged a glance, pulled out their weapons, and joined the fray.
Paimon shouted, "Hey! This monster's weird—I've never seen anything like it. Be careful!"
There was something about the monster… a dangerous aura that made Paimon uneasy.
Soon, Xiao, Keqing, the Traveler, and Hu Tao were locked in combat with the towering beast.
The monster stood a towering seven or eight meters tall, with a hulking frame and a massive axe. It looked like something straight out of the Archon War—perhaps a demon god or one of their followers.
However, it seemed to rely purely on brute strength, far weaker than the demon gods who once ravaged Liyue. It was no match for Xiao—especially with Keqing, Hu Tao, and the Traveler assisting.
In moments, their combined assault pushed the monster into retreat.
Keqing said seriously, "Xiao, this place is far too dangerous. Finish it quickly so we can get out of here."
On the surface, it looked like a simple ruin, but the area pulsed with strange energy that felt deeply unsettling and was interfering with their combat. Staying too long might even corrode their bodies.
What's more, Keqing didn't know how many more monsters like this might be lurking nearby.
One was manageable.
But if ten or more of these things showed up—or a whole swarm—not even Xiao might be able to handle it.
Xiao replied calmly, "Don't worry. I'll finish it now."
As he spoke, a faint green light glowed from his body. He surged forward like the wind, instantly reaching the monster.
His spear shot out like a dragon, piercing straight through the monster's chest.
Then, channeling a surge of Anemo energy, he detonated a blast from the tip of his spear, blowing a hole through the creature's chest.
The blow was fatal.
The monster's massive body crashed to the ground with a loud thud, shattering into a pile of strange crystalline fragments.
The Traveler cautiously picked up a shard.
Before she could examine it, it dissolved into black smoke and vanished without a trace.
The Traveler was stunned. "What kind of monster is this? It vanished without even leaving a body."
Xiao warned, "Be careful. Those black crystals are filled with strange energy."
Keqing looked around warily. "That battle was loud. If there are more of those things nearby, they'll be drawn here. We need to move."
The Traveler nodded. "Right. Xiao, Hu Tao, let's go."
With that, the group—led by Keqing and the Traveler—quickly left the battleground behind.
As for where they were heading…
Even they didn't know.
They had no sense of direction, no idea how to escape this chaotic space, or even where they were in the first place.
At this point, all they could do was take things one step at a time.
...
Keqing, the Traveler, Xiao, Hu Tao, and the others had just left the battlefield.
Only a few minutes later—
Several swift figures appeared at the site. It was the Hollow Special Operations Unit 6, led by Hoshimi Miyabi.
Just moments ago, they had detected a massive spike in Ether concentration and activity, suggesting that the high-ranking Ethereal they were searching for was right here. They had rushed over immediately.
But they were too late.
Staring at the battle-scarred ground, Hoshimi Miyabi muttered, "Someone got to the high-level Ethereal before us."
Asaba Harumasa looked stunned. "No way. We just picked up the signal, and the fight's already over? Could it have been a false reading? Maybe it wasn't a high-level Ethereal—just a normal one?"
It had only been a few minutes from the Ether spike to their arrival.
If it really was a high-ranking Ethereal, how could the battle have ended so quickly?
Nearby, Tsukishiro Yanagi activated a scanner and checked the Ether readings. "The change in Ether concentration and activity here is dramatic. No doubt—it was a high-ranking Ethereal, and it's definitely been killed…"
But who could take down a high-ranking Ethereal in such a short time?
Could it be those agents from the Hare's House again?
Hoshimi Miyabi muttered, "No. It couldn't be them. There's no way they made it into this Hollow."
Holding her stomach, Soukaku asked, "Section Chief, what now?"
All she wanted was to wrap up this mission, head back to the city, grab some burgers… or a few bowls of spicy ramen.
She was starving.
After a moment of thought, Hoshimi Miyabi said, "Our mission is to deal with the high-ranking Ethereals. Forget about the ones who were here earlier—let's move to the next target."
Tsukishiro Yanagi nodded. "Alright, let me check the next location…"
She pulled out the Hollow map again and quickly pinpointed the next target area. According to the data, it wasn't far.
Yanagi smiled slightly. "The information suggests there are two or three high-ranking Ethereals in this Hollow. They should all be at the next target."
Soukaku said impatiently, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go already."
Time to finish the mission.
Then go home and eat.