Chapter 358: A Novel Experience at the Station
[Genshin Impact · Paimon]: "Six... six million?! And ten million Cores?! Let Paimon calculate this real quick... Oh my god! Do you have any idea how many goodies we can exchange for all that?! Traveler, we're going to be filthy rich!"
[Genshin Impact · Hu Tao]: "Oho? Is the very first order of business for this Hall Master's Wangsheng Funeral Parlor Interdimensional Branch already such a massive deal? How fascinating!"
[Zenless Zone Zero · Belle]: "Bringer and Sarah... they actually escaped into the Hollow!"
The sheer scale of the bounty and the straightforward nature of their objective sent a ripple of shock through the Chat Group. Everyone was practically rubbing their hands together, buzzing with an eager, restless energy to dive straight into the mission.
However, once the initial wave of surprise washed over them, Wise's analytical mind snagged on a glaring anomaly.
'A Heart of the Skeletal Remains?'His brows furrowed in deep thought.'Going by the name alone, that's a material that only drops from an Ethereal.'A sudden, icy dread coiled in his chest.'But Bringer is still entirely human right now. How could a human possibly drop a monster's core upon death? Unless...'
The grim implication hung heavy in his mind—Bringer possessed the potential to mutate into a full-blown Ethereal, or perhaps even a Sacrificial Ghost. But with the clock ticking relentlessly, this was hardly the moment to overanalyze the horrific possibilities of Hollow corruption.
A sharp chime echoed in their minds, signaling the Chat Group's final directive.
[System Notification: "Hollow Evacuation Operation" — The [Epis Port Hollow] map is now officially open. All participants may choose to teleport to the station warehouse via their personal System Terminals to commence the operation.]
"It's starting!" Wise called out to Belle. He immediately focused his consciousness, handling the digital interface of his mind to activate his terminal.
"Understood!" Belle chirped, her eyes sparkling with excitement as she summoned her own connection.
They weren't the only ones. Across different universes, almost simultaneously, the online members of the Chat Group issued their commands. Driven by an intoxicating mix of curiosity, thrill, and the promise of glorious loot, they initiated the multiversal transfer.
Several pillars of soft, luminescent blue light pierced the air. Like ethereal threads descending from the cosmos, they materialized silently within the slightly dilapidated confines of the warehouse situated right next to the Epis Port Lighthouse.
As the azure radiance gently dissipated into the shadows, a gathering of familiar figures stepped forward. These were the multiversal members of the Chat Group, having physically descended into this world through their system avatars.
Blinking away the residual glare of the teleportation, the group exchanged quick, acknowledging nods—a silent, unified greeting among comrades. Yet, this brief moment of camaraderie lasted mere seconds.
As their eyes adjusted to their surroundings, the casual greetings died in their throats. A collective, stunned silence swept through the ranks.
Every single gaze was instantly magnetized by the sheer scale of their so-called "temporary station." Nobody could tear their eyes away.
"This... this is the 'small, three-hundred-square-meter warehouse' that Wise and Belle were talking about?" Paimon rubbed her eyes furiously, her tiny face scrunched up in absolute disbelief. Floating in mid-air, she thrust a trembling finger forward, her voice cracking an octave higher. "Is this really just a warehouse?! I swear this place is even bigger than the Favonius Cathedral back in Mondstadt!"
Hu Tao's plum-blossom pupils dilated into massive, awestruck circles. She threw her hands up, her tone dripping with exaggerated, theatrical astonishment. "Waaah! Are this Hall Master's eyes playing tricks on her?! Such scale! Such grandeur! Do you two siblings have some sort of fundamental misunderstanding of the word 'small'? If this sprawling estate is what you call a tiny warehouse, then my Wangsheng Funeral Parlor wouldn't even qualify as a matchbox!"
Their dramatic reactions were entirely justified.
The structure stretching out before them bore absolutely zero resemblance to a dusty storage unit. Instead, it was a colossal, cavernous indoor facility dripping with advanced, futuristic technology.
A towering dome arched overhead, easily reaching dozens of meters into the air. It was supported by a complex, interwoven network of glowing energy pipelines and reinforced metal frameworks. A soft, sterile white light radiated from these structures, banishing every shadow and illuminating the massive expanse as brightly as the midday sun.
The sheer depth of the facility was staggering. Far off in the distance, advanced holographic projectors simulated the subtle shifts of natural sunlight, creating the stunning illusion of an open sky right indoors.
Yet, the most stunning aspect was the careful layout. The vast floor plan was neatly segregated into highly specialized, clearly defined operational zones.
Directly beneath a gargantuan holographic screen—which rapidly scrolled through real-time data streams and extensive item manifests—sat a bustling Trading Area. A fleet of peculiar, automated devices zipped back and forth, efficiently sorting and transporting heavy crates of supplies without a single collision.
Adjacent to that was a fully equipped Firearms Modification Center. The sharp, rhythmic crackle of welding sparks flashed against the metallic walls, illuminating rows of high-end precision instruments. Several heavy-duty mechanical arms pivoted and whirred autonomously, fine-tuning weaponry with surgical precision.
Further down, a distinct structure practically demanded attention. It was crowned by a massive, slowly rotating emblem of a Gear Coin. This was the Gear Coin Shop. Its sleek display windows projected rotating, three-dimensional phantom images of exotic items, each pulsing with faint, extraordinary energy signatures.
And the list went on. There was a dedicated Equipment Maintenance Area, a glowing Tactical Planning Sandbox mapping out local terrain, and even a sprawling Simulated Training Ground fully equipped with hyper-realistic holographic environments. A quick, sweeping glance suggested that the total square footage of this hidden base easily dwarfed a standard football stadium.
Calling this a "temporary station" was the understatement of the century. This was a fully functional, military-grade Forward Operating Base and Logistics Center.
But the most striking feature of all were the diligent "residents" actively maintaining the base's complex operations. Dozens of adorable, yet incredibly nimble Bangboo scurried across the polished floors.
Unlike the colorful, customized models commonly seen wandering the streets of New Eridu, these specific Bangboo were uniformly painted in a stealthy, matte-black coating. Their movements were terrifyingly synchronized, operating with the disciplined precision of elite sappers. They hauled heavy munitions, calibrated sensitive instruments, and executed routine maintenance in absolute, flawless order. They were a perfect, indistinguishable hive mind of mechanical efficiency.
Wise and Belle stood frozen, utterly dumbfounded by the spectacle. They slowly turned to exchange a bewildered glance, mirroring the exact same deep confusion in each other's eyes.
"Belle..." Wise began, his usually calm voice wavering with uncertainty. He swept his gaze across the intimidatingly vast space. "Are you... absolutely sure you didn't input the wrong coordinates? I distinctly remember the structural blueprints Section Chief Liu forwarded to me. It was supposed to be a completely ordinary, run-of-the-mill storage unit. Less than five meters high. The floor plan was definitely not... this."
Belle was equally lost. She hurriedly summoned the Chat Group's station selection interface, her fingers flying across the holographic projection as she double- and triple-checked the data. "There's no mistake! These are the exact coordinates! Provided directly by H.A.N.D., located right next to the Epis Port Lighthouse. Old Warehouse designation gamma-73... Theoretically, we are standing in the exact right spot!"
But the more she tried to rationalize it, the more absurd it felt. Unable to take the cognitive dissonance anymore, she spun on her heel and sprinted straight toward the entrance. She pushed through the seemingly ordinary—yet entirely incongruous—metal sliding door, stepping out of the colossal facility and into the exterior night.
The cool sea breeze of Epis Port immediately washed over her. Under the dark, starry sky, the wind carried the distinct, briny scent of the ocean, thick with humid, salty moisture.
In the near distance, the towering Lighthouse stood as a silent sentinel. Its massive beam of light swept rhythmically across the pitch-black sea, casting long, swaying bands of illumination over the restless waves.
Belle tilted her head up, her eyes locking onto the iconic structure of the Lighthouse. Just beyond it, the dark silhouettes of cargo ships moored at the docks bobbed gently in time with the rolling tide.
The location was completely, undeniably correct. She squinted through the gloom, easily spotting the faded, rusted lettering of "γ-73" stamped onto the warehouse's exterior plaque.
Yet, the moment she turned around to look at the building she had just stepped out of, a violent wave of cognitive dissonance slammed into her brain.
Bathed in the hazy darkness and the intermittent, sweeping afterglow of the Lighthouse, the so-called "warehouse" maintained its incredibly shabby, low-slung, and entirely unremarkable exterior.
The few small windows dotting the corrugated metal walls were caked in decades of thick, grimy dust, completely obscuring any view of the interior. From the outside, the total footprint of the building looked to be exactly three hundred square meters. It blended in perfectly with the surrounding row of dilapidated storage units—if anything, it was the most inconspicuous building on the block.
"What... what in the world is actually going on here?" Belle muttered to the empty air. She blinked hard, half-expecting the illusion to shatter, genuinely wondering if the Hollow radiation was finally making her hallucinate.
Driven by a burning need for answers, she quickly jogged back to the entrance. The second she crossed the threshold of that rusted metal door, the vast, seemingly boundless, hyper-advanced technological hall exploded back into her vision. The extreme, physics-defying contrast between the dingy exterior and the sci-fi interior made her head spin with a slight bout of vertigo—and ignited an intense, insatiable curiosity within her chest.
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