Chapter 21: Hollow Encounter

"Hey? Can you hear me, Nico? You can put Eous in!"

Wise stood beside Ling, wearing a headset.

"OK!" Nico held the phone to her ear, knelt on one knee, and patted Eous on the head twice. She pointed a slender, fair finger toward the entrance of the Hollow not far away. "Okay, little guy, go, go!"

"Alright, your Bangboo has set off."

Nico reported to Wise on the other end of the phone.

"Sister, you can start."

Wise nodded toward Ling.

"Hmm."

Ling responded lightly, then leaned back on the chair and closed her eyes at the same time. Seeing this, Wise reached out and pressed a red button, and a progress bar popped up on the computer screen.

As the progress bar reached 100%, Ling opened her eyes suddenly, and blue light emitted from her pupils.

At the same time, Eous, far away on 14th Street, had its dazed eyes change instantly, and it stepped into the Hollow with a swaggering gait.

Inside the Hollow at this time, three figures were running fast, and soon stopped at a place that was very familiar to the three.

"Hmm?!! How come it's this place again!"

Billy held his head with both hands, not knowing why. Several Ethereals on the high ground nearby had already discovered the three on the ground.

And these mindless monsters only had one thought when they saw humans: tear them apart!!

"Damn it, have to fight again! Ammunition is almost over the limit. If this continues, the bonus will..."

Billy checked his ammunition and complained unhappily. Anbi had already loudly reminded the Ethereals charging over: "They're coming! Get ready to intercept!"

At this moment, several small balls rolled into the center of the battlefield, instantly exploding and creating a large cloud of smoke.

"This wasn't me!"

Billy noticed Anbi's suspicious gaze beside him and waved his hands quickly to explain.

"Hey, you three, come over here!"

Eous poked its head out from behind a train car and waved at the three.

Billy, Anbi, and Ye Qingfeng ran toward Eous's direction quickly.

"You three, thanks for your hard work!"

Eous put its hands on its hips with an expression asking for praise.

Hmm? Bangboo? I remember Bangboo doesn't seem to be this smart?! And did it just speak human language?!!

Ye Qingfeng felt confused looking at this expressive Bangboo that could speak human language.

"A Bangboo wearing a scarf and speaking human language..."

Anbi reminded Billy beside her in a low voice.

"Oh oh oh! Could you be——" Billy pointed at the Bangboo in front of him with excitement. "Phaethon!"

Inside the video store on Sixth Street, Ling supported her chin with one hand and revealed a faint smile.

"Eh? Phaethon? Who is that?"

Ye Qingfeng, who was completely confused, asked.

Far away in the video store, Ling shuddered at these words. Her hand supporting her chin didn't hold steady for a moment, and she almost hit the table with her forehead.

This guy, finally acting cool once, actually undermined me...

Billy pulled Ye Qingfeng and explained it in the simplest way. The general meaning was: this Bangboo is being controlled by the famous Proxy Phaethon, and it's here to save us.

Ye Qingfeng nodded lightly. "Understood!"

"I propose to take a proper rest now. Is that okay? Proxy?"

Anbi looked at Eous expressionlessly and proposed.

"Eous also needs to be debugged, so I'll take a rest first." Ling's playful voice came from Eous.

"Hmm, Proxy, you, Qingfeng, and Billy rest first. I'll be responsible for the alert."

Ye Qingfeng didn't stand on ceremony and sat on the ground. He could see that after a series of escapes and battles, Anbi didn't even pant heavily, and Billy was also at ease.

Looking at it this way, he was somewhat redundant...

If he had known, he should have chosen the combat system...

"That was really thrilling just now. I didn't expect that uncle from the Chiya Gang would be alienated into such a powerful monster." Billy touched his chin. "Thanks to you, Store Manager, for saving the scene in time and taking us away from there."

"As expected of Phaethon! Always trustworthy as always!"

"Hehe! Praise me a few more times, and I might give you a discount on the commission."

Although no change could be seen on Ling's face, she was overjoyed in her heart.

"Really?"

Anbi asked back with excitement.

"Anbi, I think the Proxy is just being polite to us..."

While they were chatting over there, Ye Qingfeng took the opportunity to lean against the train car and close his eyes to rest.

From the time he transmigrated until he entered the Hollow, his thoughts were to muddle through every day, living one day at a time. Now it seems that won't work...

In such a world full of crises, how should an ordinary person like him survive?

He could certainly find a safe job and never take the initiative to approach the Hollow for the rest of his life. However, the Hollow would suddenly erupt. He originally just wanted to catch that little cat, but ended up accidentally entering the Hollow.

So in his view, there is no place in this world that is absolutely safe. Might as well think about how to improve himself to deal with special situations that might happen at any time.

At the very least, he can't be like he is now, relying on Anbi and Billy to get here safely.

Eh... if he had known, he should have chosen the combat system...

Let's not think about that for now. Let's wait until we leave the Hollow safely before talking about it...

Ye Qingfeng stood up, patted the dust off his body, and walked toward the people who were still chatting.

"I wanted to ask since I first cooperated with the Store Manager. That equipment in your store can not only synchronize your perception with the Bangboo, but also communicate in real-time within the Hollow!"

Before he even walked over, he heard Billy shouting loudly over there.

"Such powerful technology, even the Public Security Bureau and the Hollow Investigation Association can't do it!" Billy asked curiously: "With such a trump card, why not join the Investigation Association and eat and drink well?"

"Cooperating with grave robbers like us, no matter how you think about it, the risk is greater than the return...?"

Billy was full of doubts, waiting for Ling on Eous's side to answer his question, when a roar suddenly entered everyone's ears.

"It's the sound of an Ethereal!"

Anbi immediately reminded them.

"So fast?! I was just about to lie down!"

"Must evacuate!" Anbi said very plainly. "Or, Billy, do you want to lie here forever... Next year I will offer the new Star Emblem Knight belt in front of your grave."

"Don't say things like that with your poker face! I don't know if you're serious or joking!"

Ling smiled faintly. "It's nice to hear a talk show every time we cooperate."

"Store Manager! Which way should we run next?"

"Full speed straight!"

"Full speed straight! Understood!" Billy looked at the wall in front of him, full of confusion. "Wait? But there's a wall in front! Do we have to break through it? Even if I'm a robot, this won't work..." ===== CHAPTER 22 =====