Venti looked curiously out the window.
"Hey, weren't we supposed to go into that black sphere?"
Lycaon explained, "Too many people must've entered the Hollow. It probably caught the authorities' attention, so they tightened the access control."
As he spoke, Lycaon turned the wheel and veered into another street.
"Don't worry. According to the intel, most of the security forces have been deployed to keep order during Sharo Golden Week or to investigate the Golden Bangboo. They can't possibly lock down every entrance to the C41 Hollow…"
And just as Lycaon predicted, after circling the perimeter, they found another entrance into the Hollow.
Lycaon parked the car at the edge of the Hollow. Rina pulled out a portable scanner and ran a quick check. Just like the posts on the forum said, the Ether levels and activity inside were both low—clear signs the Hollow was in decline.
She was about to pack up the device when suddenly the readings flickered.
Rina noticed the fluctuation but didn't pay it much mind. After all, the scanner wasn't very precise—minor changes were totally normal.
"Lord Lycaon, everything looks fine. Let's head in."
"We're going already? Shouldn't we pray to the Geo Archon first? Or at least to the great Anemo Archon—Barbatos?"
Lycaon glanced at Venti, a flicker of confusion in his eyes.
Geo Archon? Anemo Archon Barbatos?
He'd never heard of them. And he sure didn't need to pray to anyone.
The next moment, Lycaon hit the gas and drove straight into the C41 Hollow.
Meanwhile, elsewhere near C41 Hollow...
Nicole had also run into a few security officers who warned her to vacate the area immediately.
Of course, that wasn't going to happen.
Ten minutes later, Nicole, skirting the edge of the Hollow, found the same entrance Victoria Housekeeping had used.
"The Hollow might be in decline, but there are definitely still some Etherals lurking around. Everyone, stay sharp—don't let one catch you off guard. Especially you, Billy…"
"Boss Nicole, please trust me this time."
"Don't worry. Even for the sake of the mackerel, I'll be at 120%."
As the Hare's House SUV rolled into the Hollow, the surroundings shifted dramatically.
Like most Hollows, it was a sprawling wasteland of crumbling ruins. In the distance, you could even see traces of past battles left by the Etherals.
But there was something different about this place.
C41 Hollow had once been the domain of a major old-era conglomerate. Even after all these decades, towering buildings still stood tall within the Hollow—something rarely seen on the city's outskirts.
Nekomata opened the window and stuck her head out.
"Everything's ruins… Nicole, do you know where the supply boxes are?"
Billy laughed loudly.
"Of course! They'll be in the warehouses!"
Nekomata followed up, "And where are the warehouses?"
But just then, Nicole pulled a map out from her coat.
"Relax, I came prepared."
Nekomata was surprised.
"Nicole, where'd you get a map?"
"From Phaethon, of course. Why do you think I stopped by the video shop earlier? It was to grab this map. And hey, Phaethon didn't even charge me any Dennies—pretty generous of him."
Speaking of the Phaethon siblings...
Nekomata asked, puzzled, "Aren't Rin and Zhe coming to look for treasure too?"
Nicole shook her head.
"No idea. They said they wanted to wait and see. But what's there to wait for? At this rate, the raiders are going to clean out all the supply boxes."
As they chatted, Nicole had already located one of the warehouses on the map.
She folded it up, slammed her foot on the gas, and sped off toward the old-era storage facility.
Nekomata yelped, "Nicole, I haven't even buckled up yet—!"
"Buckle up, I'm about to floor it!"
Soldier 11 shook her head.
"You call this fast?"
As the Hare's House team entered the C41 Hollow, several rifts quietly formed within Hollow Zero—one of which just happened to connect directly to C41.
Before long, Etherals discovered the rift and began pouring through it.
Far away, in the depths of another star-filled world...
On the elemental continent, on an island called Inazuma...
Arataki Itto was doing what he always did—looking for his Arataki Gang buddies to hit the streets and have some fun.
But they were all gone—called away by Kuki Shinobu.
So he wandered the streets alone.
After making the rounds, he didn't run into Kujou Sara or even the Kamisato siblings. It was getting boring.
"Traveler, Paimon, when are you two gonna visit Liyue again? Come play kabuto battles with the Great Arataki!"
It had been over half a year since he'd last seen the Traveler and Paimon.
Last he'd heard, they were still in Fontaine and had helped resolve some big crisis there...
They were probably in Natlan by now.
He'd heard Natlan was a nation of warriors, even with wrestling arenas. That sounded like a dream come true!
Just then, a familiar voice called out from behind him.
"Itto, what are you doing here? Where's Shinobu?"
Arataki Itto turned around—it was Yoimiya.
He hadn't even realized he'd walked all the way to the front of the Naganohara Fireworks Shop.
"Shinobu's been super secretive lately—won't tell me anything. She even rounded up all the Arataki Gang boys… Yoimiya, wanna battle kabuto?"
"I don't have time! The summer festival's coming up, and I need to finish making more fireworks to light up the night."
"So boring… If only the Traveler were here…"
Suddenly, a thought popped into Itto's head.
If the Traveler wasn't coming to Inazuma, why not go to Natlan or Fontaine to find him?
Besides, Natlan was all about fighting—Itto's dream destination. Why not take the chance to travel?
"Ahahaha! I'm a genius!"
He didn't have a single Mora on him. No way to afford the trip.
Sitting on the street, he racked his brain.
Eventually, Arataki Itto remembered a not-so-reliable method. He'd seen the Traveler once use the power of the Statues of the Seven to teleport from Inazuma to Liyue...