Sam Li had originally intended to go alone.
But with Belle insisting on following, he agreed, carrying Eous in his arms as they headed toward the target.
Perhaps because the Notoriety Ethereals were about to be born,
Ethereals began gathering around the Abandoned Skyscraper. Not long after they left, a few ordinary Ethereals appeared.
Belle warned, "Fifty meters ahead, there's a cold weapon shop. You can grab a weapon there."
Sam Li shook his head. "No need. I already have one."
As he spoke,
he casually waved his hand, and a golden spear materialized—it was his weapon, the Vortex Vanquisher.
This scene
was clearly seen through Eous's eyes.
Belle, observing through Eous, was stunned. She immediately recalled what happened last time in the Dead End Hollow.
Back then, Sam Li had also carried a spear, but after dealing with the armed men on the train, it had mysteriously vanished.
Now it was the opposite.
Sam Li hadn't carried a weapon initially, yet a spear had appeared out of nowhere.
How had he done that?
Before Belle could figure it out,
Sam Li was already wielding his spear, easily dispatching the ordinary Ethereals.
"Which way next?"
"Ah—keep going straight, then turn left at the next junction..."
Hearing that,
Sam Li, one hand holding Eous and the other gripping the Vortex Vanquisher, dashed forward at incredible speed.
To save time,
he even leapt onto rooftops, cutting through buildings, and jumped down from heights over ten meters.
Belle screamed in panic, "Ah—Sam Li, you're going the wrong way! I didn't tell you to jump!"
Sam Li replied calmly, "It's faster this way."
Belle was speechless. "…"
She had no choice but to close her eyes.
Still,
Belle stayed focused on her task, listening to the incoming information from Fairy and passing it along to Sam Li.
"Left—right—left again. Space is shifting. Turn back..."
Along the way, they encountered several Ethereals.
Sam Li didn't even slow down, slicing through them mid-sprint with his spear.
In just a few minutes,
they reached their destination.
Sam Li and Eous looked up.
Ahead stood a tall structure, resembling a chimney. It looked somewhat like the Hollow Deep Dive Towers surrounding the Zero Hollows but on a much smaller scale—clearly a low-grade imitation used to collect Ether.
Belle said excitedly, "This is the Ether Collection Device Soldier 11 mentioned! Destroy it, and we can stop the Notoriety Ethereals from being born."
Sam Li replied calmly, "Leave it to me."
However,
as he walked under the imitation tower, he suddenly stopped.
Belle asked, confused, "What's wrong?"
"Ethereals are coming," Sam Li answered.
"How many?"
"Just a little trouble. Wait here for a moment—I'll be right back."
He set Eous down, turned around, and surveyed the surroundings.
Sure enough,
dozens upon dozens of Ethereals emerged from the ruins, clearly drawn by the imitation tower. There were easily over a hundred.
But to Sam Li,
they posed no threat.
In the next instant,
Sam Li charged into the horde, spear flashing.
It was like mowing grass.
Where the Vortex Vanquisher swept through, Ethereals fell like weeds, shattering into black crystals and vanishing.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host. Successfully killed Low-Level Ethereal X1. Reward: System Points X10—]
[Ding! Congratulations, Host. Successfully killed Low-Level Ethereal X1. Reward: System Points X10—]
[Ding! Congratulations, Host. Successfully killed Mid-Level Ethereal X1. Reward: System Points X100—]
Nearby,
Belle, seeing everything through Eous's eyes, was stunned into silence.
He was strong.
Unbelievably strong.
It was like a god descending, golden light flashing as he purged the filth of the world.
Not only Belle—
the images were transmitted back to the video store on Sixth Street, displayed on a computer screen.
Wise, watching the footage, showed a rare look of surprise. "Fairy, still no records on Sam Li?"
Fairy's voice sounded. "Master, it's not that Fairy's processing power is lacking—the power supply is insufficient."
Wise sighed. "Alright…"
Since the last commission in the Dead End Hollow,
Wise had been using Fairy to search for any information on Sam Li, but with no success.
No household records, no traces of daily life, no surveillance footage—
it was as if he had appeared out of thin air.
The first trace of his existence began only at Hare's House.
...
After Sam Li finished wiping out the Ethereals,
he turned to destroy the Ether Collection Device.
Meanwhile,
at the Abandoned Skyscraper—
Soldier 11, just like Sam Li, was fiercely attacking another Ether Collection Device with her blade.
Very quickly,
she noticed that although the rebels' device looked somewhat like a Hollow Deep Dive Towers, it was a shoddy construction, vastly inferior.
In just over ten minutes,
she destroyed the surrounding facilities.
With a fierce slash, she unleashed a wave of fire, completely demolishing the structure.
The Ether Collection Device collapsed into rubble.
The catalytic device inside Abandoned Skyscraper, losing its Ether supply, triggered a small explosion.
Boom!
The shockwave shattered all the windows on the fifth floor.
Soldier 11 let out a breath of relief. "It's done."
They had successfully stopped the birth of the Notoriety Ethereals.
Nearby,
Mr. Mole was losing his mind. "Damn it! Damn it! Years of effort and countless Dennies wasted on that Ethereal embryo—and you destroyed it! I'll kill you!"
Mr. Mole scrambled up from the ground,
grabbed a stone, and charged at Soldier 11, looking ready to fight to the death.
He barely reached her—
Soldier 11 kicked him back effortlessly. "If you don't want to face judgment right now, you'd better behave."
Mr. Mole collapsed on the ground in despair,
wearing a face of utter hopelessness.
"You're all so cruel! Why bully a poor little mole? I just wanted to prove myself! I just wanted to defeat the Defense Force! What's wrong with that? Why are you targeting me?"
Hearing him whine,
Nicole, dragging her weakened body over, kicked him without a word. "Shut up. You lost."
Billy chimed in, "Yeah, you lost. Anby, help me turn my head—I want to see that stinking mole's despair."
Anby: "…"
However—
Just as everyone let their guard down, celebrating their victory—
Suddenly,
a loud explosion rocked the fifth floor of the Abandoned Skyscraper once again.
Everyone turned sharply—
On the building's fifth-floor wall,
they witnessed a terrifying scene.
...