Chapter 274: Ether Concentrated Shell

【The Hollow will stop expanding immediately for an unlimited time. During this period, nothing will be able to leave or enter the Hollow until the Ether energy within the Hollow returns to calm.

The host will be unable to leave the Hollow during this period, and the excess Ether energy caused by stopping the expansion will transform into Ethereals, whose sole attack target will be locked onto the host.

In addition to this, regardless of how high the host's Ether resistance reaches, it will inevitably decrease by 1%. Upon activation, Ether resistance will be locked; the host will be unable to avoid the risk of Ether erosion.】

Whoever could come up with something like this is no good person!

Ye Qingfeng looked bitter and asked tentatively, "By the way, can I still regret this?"

【No~ A friendly reminder: a large wave of Ethereals is approaching.】

Hearing this, Ye Qingfeng raised his eyes to look.

Sure enough, within his line of sight, there was a pitch-black mass. From their smooth, rounded cores, he could see their ferocity as they sprinted toward him.

At a glance, there was a full variety of them, mostly level 1 to 2 Ethereals. They might be a bit troublesome, but solving them was just a matter of time.

The key was the nearly one hundred level 3 Ethereals in the middle, following unhurriedly behind the low-level ones, with several towering figures standing at the very back.

In the very center stood an even more massive figure, motionless. An ordinary person would likely feel despair just by seeing its form.

A level 5 Ethereal!

Ye Qingfeng could feel a thick sense of oppression from the Ethereal holding the line, and he couldn't help but have a few drops of cold sweat roll down his forehead.

Talk about pressure—!

Ye Qingfeng pretended to be calm. "Right, how many draw chances are left? Let's use them all now!"

He only hoped to draw a few usable abilities—one-time use ones didn't matter—to increase his combat power and deal with the upcoming battle.

【Better not. This system is incompatible with the Hollow. You might end up drawing B-rank Dennies.】

"I'll be damned, ******

Acting against me openly is too much—! This wasn't in the explanation at the beginning!"

Ye Qingfeng was furious and cursed loudly.

【So, are you still drawing? (Aggrieved)】

"At least tell me the reason."

【The active Ether concentration is too high, which will impose certain restrictions on the system. In short—the system's main body is unaffected, but I am, after all, just a high-level AI program and will be strongly affected by the Ether.】

"..." Ye Qingfeng was dumbfounded. What kind of nonsense was this?

【Oh my—Simply put, consider all the system's functions as a human body. As for me~ I'm like a human soul. I can exist without a body, but the body cannot exist without me.

Otherwise, some functions won't be usable. Yep, that's it.】

"Damn! Then can the ability to exchange for weapons still be used?"

The approaching group of Ethereals made Ye Qingfeng's scalp tingle, and he asked with a last glimmer of hope.

【Yes.】

"Exchange for all the high-damage weapons you have!"

【18 Ether Concentrated Shells and one shell launcher have been stored in the host's spatial backpack.】

"Shells? With these, I'm not sleepy anymore!"

Ye Qingfeng took several backflips, found a high vantage point, took out the launcher, loaded a shell, and looked at the group of Ethereals not far away with excitement.

All fear comes from a lack of firepower!

He aimed at the Ethereals and decisively pulled the trigger.

Accompanied by a deafening shriek, the shell trailing a fiery red trajectory tore through the sky. The moment the shell hit the ground, the earth suddenly arched with surging heat waves, the blast wrapping around the debris on the ground.

The Ethereals within a hundred meters were sent flying like broken puppets. Before they could even hit the ground, their bodies dissipated, turning into Ether particles drifting in the air. A mushroom cloud rose in the core area of the explosion, with orange-red flames greedily devouring everything.

So satisfying—! Satisfying!

Ye Qingfeng quickly reloaded, aimed, and pulled the trigger, repeating the process. His expression was somewhat manic and ferocious.

After 18 consecutive explosions, Ye Qingfeng searched his spatial backpack for a long time but couldn't find any more shells, realizing he had used them all up.

A sense of emptiness welled up. He hadn't had enough fun yet...

He twisted his stiff shoulders and casually put away the launcher. His gaze swept through the thick fog; the once dense group of Ethereals now had less than one-tenth remaining.

The low-level Ethereals posed basically no threat to him, and even the level 3 Ethereals had suffered heavy casualties.

"How is it? How much has the Ether concentration dropped?"

Ye Qingfeng raised his eyes to look ahead. Those few towering figures were moving slowly, approaching him step by step, turning a blind eye to the violent bombing just now.

【It had an effect, but not much. The higher the Ether concentration, the more active the Ethereals become, and the Ethereals' activity causes the Ether activity within the Hollow to rise, which in turn leads to the Hollow's expansion.】

【For dealing with ordinary Hollow expansion, this level is enough, but if those few high-level Ethereals aren't eliminated, the Ether concentration won't drop much.】

【Oh, right. Just in case the host still doesn't understand the logic inside, this system will explain it simply.

Ethereals are generally transformed after Ethereals erode living organisms. Because the host was decisive enough in using the Hollow Stabilization Scroll, not many people were drawn in, so there's no need to worry in the short term.

But high-concentration Ether substances will catalyze high-level Ethereals, so if you don't solve those few high-level Ethereals as soon as possible, the host will fall into a protracted war.

The possibility of winning will become increasingly slim.】

"So, now is not the time to conserve stamina; I need to kill those few high-level Ethereals as soon as possible?"

【That's right!】

"Tsk! How troublesome."

Ye Qingfeng took a deep breath, opened his chest, and extended his arms. With a thought, the surrounding Ether continuously moved toward him.

His only advantage now was that his Ether ability was inexhaustible!

The Ether concentration in the area continued to climb. The purple substance around him was visible to the naked eye, and strands of his black hair stood on end, giving people a strong sense of suffocation and oppression.

Meanwhile, outside the Hollow. ===== CHAPTER 275 =====