"So this is a Hollow?"
Ryuga stood up on the broad back of the giant sparrow.
The 'Old Eridu' before him looked like it had been torn apart and then haphazardly stitched back together.
Buildings were in the sky, with their roofs facing down.
Roads were strangely crisscrossing in mid-air, and the air was filled with gray-purple Ether mist. Chaotic energy permeated every breath.
"Hmph!"
Ryuga snorted lightly, dispersing the surrounding Ether.
"Is this 'Corruption'? It feels somewhat similar to 'Honkai'?"
Sakura murmured softly. Her slightly numb skin felt as if cold insects were crawling on it.
She clenched her fist.
Closing her eyes, she felt the wandering Ether energy seeping into her skin like fine rain.
Her brow furrowed slightly, and then Sakura sent out a wisp of Imaginary Energy to probe outside her body.
The moment the energy unfolded, it completely devoured the invading Ether.
Sakura opened her eyes, a hint of surprise flashing in them.
"You feel this way too?"
Himeko looked over.
"Mhm. Although there is no obvious enhancement, at least I am not afraid of its corrosion."
Sakura nodded.
"That's good. I was really worried about you two being affected."
Yi Xuan let out a small sigh of relief, her tense shoulders relaxing slightly, and a weight lifted from her heart.
She knew Himeko was an Ascended, so she should be fine.
But she didn't know Sakura. Seeing that she was unharmed, she finally felt at ease.
"How is it? Ya, do you recognize anything?"
Ryuga turned to look at her.
"..."
Next to them, Tsukishiro Yanagi and Soukaku's ears twitched instantly, and their gazes darted back and forth between the two, looking very strange.
Such an intimate way to address the Section Chief?
"..."
At this moment, Hoshimi Miyabi was trying hard to identify a yellowed, old map of Old Eridu.
The paper was mottled, and some markings were blurred and difficult to recognize.
Her fingertip rubbed a certain spot, her brow slightly furrowed, as if she was trying to awaken her childhood memories.
Suddenly hearing the address "Ya," her fluffy, soft fox ears trembled almost imperceptibly.
"No, I can't recognize it anymore."
A strange ripple spread in her heart. She pursed her lips and said in a low voice.
Inside the Hollow, the old city was already unrecognizable.
Corroded by Ether energy, destroyed by Ethereal monsters, and coupled with the chaotic space-time within the Hollow, the former streets and buildings had all collapsed.
And at that time, she was just an ignorant child. Her memories had mostly slipped away with the hourglass.
She couldn't recognize this terrible place at all.
"Then you have to find it, or I won't be able to operate."
Ryuga said.
Hollow Zero couldn't stump him.
The main issue is that the space-time inside the Hollow is inherently chaotic and disordered. He needs to perform 'Time Interlacing' with considerable precision.
Otherwise, the entire Hollow Zero might explode, directly destroying New Eridu 817.
"Hmph~"
"At this moment, it's my turn to make an appearance."
A light snort sounded. Eous stood with his hands on his hips, his green-ringed display glasses curving into a smug arc.
Inside the safe house, Belle made the same gesture, squinting and chuckling.
"I prepared everything before we set off."
"I retrieved and modeled the map data of Old Eridu and the location information of the Hoshimi family's residences throughout the generations for analysis." The girl's speech was quick, her pride barely contained.
"Fairy! Get to work!"
With a command, the ringed eyes of the Bangboo Eous instantly changed to the flashing words 'FAIRY'.
"Received! Initiating spatial distribution measurement, scanning for safe Ether anchors, reconstructing the old city's 3D model, and starting to restore terrain fragments."
In an instant, Fairy wove countless data into a net, outlining a broken but clear city silhouette.
And comparing it with the old map.
A moment later, Fairy's voice sounded again.
"The five historical residences of the Hoshimi family within the Old Eridu area have been confirmed, and their coordinates are locked."
"The surrounding passable safe routes have been planned, and the risk level assessment is complete."
Saying this, Belle controlled Eous, quickly snatching the map from Hoshimi Miyabi's hand and circling five red spots on the paper.
Soukaku's eyes lit up: "The Proxy is too reliable!"
Ryuga also smiled and gave a thumbs-up.
"Hmph hmph~"
Inside the safe house, Belle stood with her hands on her hips in front of the screen, her eyes and brows full of unconcealed pride and tsundere attitude.
She finally got to show off in front of the handsome guy.
Next to her, Wise was speechless: Sister, he just hugged you once, and you're already smitten?
...
"Hmm? Detecting a large number of Ethereals approaching rapidly."
Belle suddenly issued a warning.
On the back of the sparrow, everyone quickly gripped their weapons, their eyes all looking towards the distance.
On the fragmented horizon, distorted by Ether, dense green and black dots surged in.
Like a swarm of army ants, the oppressive feeling was suffocating.
At first glance, they looked like a flock of 'monstrous birds' piled up with broken rocks, their heads being 'small black holes' with a green glow around the edges.
In reality, they are 'Ether Activated Bodies' somewhat similar to Honkai Beasts.
"No need. I want to stretch my legs too."
Himeko stretched her body.
Her neck tilted slightly, her spine winding like a dragon's, and her joints popped with crisp cracking sounds.
Then, her aura suddenly surged, and the violent flames distorted the air.
Hoshimi Miyabi and the others' pupils contracted sharply.
They saw Himeko's back 'whoosh' open a pair of dark red dragon wings.
Dragon horns grew from her forehead.
The skin on her arms quickly became keratinized and scaled, and her hands turned into sharp, crimson dragon claws, as if clutching scorching, molten magma.
Then, she flapped her wings, stirring up a roaring gale. In the next moment, Himeko soared into the sky.
The dragon's shadow, like a crimson flame, pounced towards the flock of monstrous birds.
In the blink of an eye, she had flown thousands of meters away.
But in the next instant, the scene before Himeko was distorted. The sky and earth flipped, and everything was upside down.
The traces of the Ethereals disappeared from her sight.
"Damn spatial disorder!"
Himeko cursed under her breath. She glanced around and found that the monstrous bird Ethereals were already flying right above her head.
The rock spears they launched by flapping their wings shot straight down!
"..."
Himeko slammed her wings down, the airflow exploding. Her body spun like a top, soaring into the air, deflecting the dense rock spears in all directions.
Then, her dragon wings flapped, and a violent flame surged straight up.
"Be careful!"
"The Hollow is far beyond the scope of what we originally perceive about the world."
Belle controlled Eous, shouting a warning to Himeko from afar.
"One second you might be falling down, and the next you're sliding on the ground."
"It's hard to tell the direction by sight."
"In the Hollow, you might only move a short distance, but the world in your eyes has already been turned upside down."
"Some places in the Hollow look like there's no path, but you can pass through safely."
"And some places clearly look like a path, but you can't get through."
"Here, we cannot trust our eyes and brains. Please do not use habitual thinking to judge everything before you."
Belle controlled Eous to speak.
"Bang!"
The giant sparrow crashed into an invisible air wall.
"Uh, that's what I was just talking about."
Belle laughed wryly.
There's a path ahead, but you can't pass.
There's a wall ahead, but you can walk through it perfectly fine.
This is the Hollow.
"It's too big. Let's land on the ground. The safe passage is not safe for it."
Yi Xuan frowned.
Soon, the giant sparrow quickly descended.
It folded its wings, shrank its body, and turned back into an ordinary sparrow, perching on Ryuga's shoulder.
At first glance, it looked somewhat similar to a mini Azure Bird.
In the sky, after misjudging the space twice, Himeko quickly adapted to the spatial disorder.
'Manganese-class' Ethereals are as weak as ants.
Her dragon claws swept across, and five crimson claw marks streaked across the sky. Hundreds of Ethereals were torn to shreds before they could even scream.
A blast of fiery dragon breath poured out. Where the flames passed, the Ethereals were all reduced to charcoal.
Hoshimi Miyabi was shocked. They couldn't do it this easily.
'Manganese-class' Ethereals are the fourth level.
It doesn't sound high, but they make up for it in sheer numbers!
Hundreds of them!
"Too easy. If it weren't for the spatial disorder in this cursed place, I wouldn't even need a second."
Himeko slowly descended. Her dragon wings folded, her dragon horns disappeared, and her body returned to human form.
Her clothes were still neat and tidy.
Ryuga had woven her clothes with special nanofiber, which had extreme elasticity and memory-fit function.
It perfectly adapted to every transformation, wrapping around her dragon wings and tail.
There was no worry about her clothes bursting.
The group followed Belle's guidance towards the nearest old Hoshimi family residence.
"Oh, right."
"There are also many Fissures in the Hollow."
As they walked, Yi Xuan suddenly remembered something and reminded them with a solemn expression.
"Fissures?"
Sakura tilted her head, curiosity flashing in her eyes.
"Mhm."
"A Fissure is like a portal. Passing through it will take you to another corner of space. They cannot be observed by conventional means, nor can their time or location of appearance be predicted."
Yi Xuan nodded, explaining.
"If you accidentally enter a Fissure, you don't know where you'll be teleported to."
"And, they appear on their own."
Before her voice faded, an anomaly suddenly occurred.
A ripple appeared under Soukaku's feet. A deep Fissure silently emerged, its edges interwoven with pink and blue light.
"Watch out!"
Yi Xuan reacted extremely quickly. She grabbed the Orange Fuku next to her and leaped away.
At the same time, she kicked Pan Yihu like a ball, sending the 'Panda' flying out of the gravitational range.
"Waaah!"
Soukaku was half a step too late.
The Fissure opened right under her feet. She didn't even have time to run and was sucked into it, without even a chance to struggle.
"Soukaku!"
Hoshimi Miyabi rushed forward and grabbed Soukaku's wrist. But unfortunately, the Fissure's suction suddenly intensified, swallowing Hoshimi Miyabi along with it. The Fissure quickly disappeared.
When they touched the spot again, there was no trace of the Fissure.
"Uh, that's what I was talking about!"
After landing, Yi Xuan rubbed her forehead.
Sakura: "..."
Is she a jinx?
Or a divine mouth?
...
Ten minutes later, guided by Belle, the group finally found Hoshimi Miyabi and Soukaku in a collapsed courtyard.
The ground was crisscrossed with slash marks, and the air was filled with the smell of blood.
More than a dozen corpses lay scattered around.
"What happened?"
Yi Xuan stepped forward to check. Hoshimi Miyabi and Soukaku were not injured.
But when she saw the corpses clearly, her brow instantly furrowed, and her eyes turned cold.
"The Praise Society!?"
Yi Xuan was all too familiar with them.
This organization was like a poisonous snake in a dark ditch, impossible to completely eradicate.
There was already a blood feud between the Hoshimi family and the Praise Society.
The 'Sword Saint', the third-generation head of the Hoshimi family, had killed a Praise Society Bishop with a single sword.
"Mhm, one escaped."
Hoshimi Miyabi said calmly, but the cold light in her eyes was undeniable.
The Praise Society had repeatedly assassinated members of the Hoshimi family.
The two families were already sworn enemies.
"It's all my fault! Boss Ya had to look after me, or that Bishop wouldn't have escaped."
Soukaku clenched her fists, her eyes filled with unwillingness.
There was self-blame and anger.
Hoshimi Miyabi raised her hand and stroked Soukaku's head: "That was a Praise Society Bishop. She wasn't focused on fighting me, and it wouldn't have been easy for me to kill her."
Besides, that Bishop must have had a backup plan.
"Let's go."
"According to the map, we're right outside an old Hoshimi family residence. I hope we're lucky and the first target is the place where Ya lived as a child."
Ryuga looked at the map.
...
Gazing at the old residence that had been reduced to ashes, Hoshimi Miyabi's steps became heavy.
The red-tiled old house lay quietly in the ruins.
The scenes from her memory surfaced in her mind, one by one, and Hoshimi Miyabi's pupils trembled violently.
Crack!
A soft sound came from under her foot.
It was a wooden sword broken into two pieces.
Hoshimi Miyabi trembled as she held it. She recognized it.
It was the wooden sword she grabbed during her Erabitori ceremony. Later, it broke.
Since then, until the night she fought her way out of the old house, she had never touched a sword again.
Every time she entered the armory, her mother would rush ahead and stuff other weapons into her hands, deliberately avoiding swords and blades.
She didn't understand until that night.
Blood stained the corridor, and fire filled the sky. At that moment, she truly understood the weight and destiny of the Demon Blade.
The Demon Blade is not to be taken lightly.
Taking it requires a sacrifice.
Every inch of the old house's ground was resurrected in her mind.
She saw her mother standing in the courtyard, and she heard her mother's familiar humming on the wind.
"Today's training is to finish all the vegetables on your plate."
"When little Ya grows as tall as Mommy, you can wear this dress."
"In a few more years, Mommy will travel with you and visit all of Eridu."
"I wonder what Ya will look like when she grows up?"
"Ya, listen to Mommy, close your eyes."
Tears fell silently.
The crystal clear drops hit the ashes. Hoshimi Miyabi raised her hand to wipe away the tears, but her shoulders couldn't stop trembling.
"It's here."
Hoshimi Miyabi murmured, then suddenly looked at Ryuga, nodding heavily.
"Looks like we're lucky."
"Listen up. I will use 'Time Interlacing' to connect the past and the present."
"Because of the time disorder in the Hollow, I need to control it precisely so the Hollow doesn't blow up New Eridu."
"Sakura, Himeko, you guard the sides."
"As for the rest of you, cooperate with Ya."
"And Ya must take her mother away the moment the Demon Blade pierces her mother's body, activating the Demon Blade's rampage to fight their way out."
"Do you understand?"
Ryuga emphasized repeatedly.
Everyone nodded.
"'Time Interlacing'!"
The moment the past and the present intersected.
Ryuga created a time field.
Everything in the courtyard rapidly rewound until the night Old Eridu fell, and blood and fire filled the small courtyard.
"Go!"
Ryuga shouted loudly.
Hoshimi Miyabi shot forward like lightning, rushing into the burning house.
Everyone followed closely.
Sakura guarded Ryuga's side, while Himeko flew to a high point to keep watch.
In the firelight, a small fox girl's eyes trembled, tears streaming down her face as she looked at her blood-stained mother, her throat choked with sobs.
Dark purple Ethereal crystals had grown on the woman's body, corroding her life inch by inch.
She trembled as she placed the Demon Blade in her daughter's hand, pointing the tip at herself.
"Ya, listen to Mommy, close your eyes."
The woman gently stroked her daughter's cheek with her fingertip for the last time.
The Ethereal crystals on her face were growing more numerous.
"This is our... final training."
"No..."
The little fox girl shook her head desperately.
"Ya, don't be sad, don't be afraid..."
The woman still smiled, but her smile was heartbreakingly beautiful.
She used her last strength to grip her daughter's small hand, pushing the blade tip inch by inch towards her heart.
"Live on..."
Just as the blade was about to pierce her, boom, a figure burst through the burning door like a gust of wind.
It was Hoshimi Miyabi.
Seeing the scene from her memory, she froze, her pupils contracting violently, pinned to the spot, unable to move an inch.
The woman also froze. Illuminated by the firelight, her gaze leaped over her daughter and landed on Hoshimi Miyabi.
A look of trance flashed in her eyes.
"So, my Ya... grew up to be... so beautiful."
The woman smiled contentedly, thinking it was a hallucination caused by the corrosion.
Fate gave her one last gentle illusion.
In the next moment, she fiercely bit her lip, and the last trace of tenderness in her eyes was replaced by determination.
The Demon Blade pierced her heart with a 'puchi' sound.
"No—!"
To be continued…