The fighter jets roared past, unleashing a hailstorm of gunfire like rain. Explosions lit up the sky in a continuous chain of fiery bursts.
One by one, the Ethereals perished and vanished. Among the four Jian 20, one didn't target the smaller Ethereals in the sky but locked directly onto Nineveh.
Two massive shells, each as thick as a thigh and nearly one and a half meters long, dropped from beneath the jet's tail. The moment they fell, crimson flames burst from their rear thrusters, instantly propelling them forward.
The two shells spiraled through the air, weaving like they had minds of their own, dodging incoming Ethereals with uncanny precision. Their sole target: Nineveh.
The jets spiraled upward as tentacles and Ether attacks burst from Nineveh, but the four aircraft deftly avoided them with expert maneuvers.
The jet that fired the missiles climbed sharply, then banked and turned to face Nineveh again. In the pilot's sights, the missiles were just about to hit.
"Haha, eat this—Patriot!"
The explosion consumed Nineveh in an instant. For her, mid-recovery, it was a brutal blow.
But just then, several erratic beams of light burst from the flames, nearly striking the airborne Jian 20. Sensing danger, all four jets quickly scattered.
...
Atop a floating ice crystal in midair, Zane stood still. At that moment, a brilliant pillar of multi-colored light shot straight toward him like a lance meant to pierce.
"What now? A second phase already?"
Zane had been watching the jets, assuming that Nineveh would weaken under another assault—but clearly, that wasn't the case...
Ether crystals quickly formed around his hand, black crystal strands encasing half his arm. With a sharp motion, Zane slapped the incoming beam.
The moment his palm touched it, the beam—composed of concentrated Ether—folded mid-flight and shot sideways, crashing into a nearby building.
As the flames dissipated, Nineveh's form became visible again. Green streaks now covered her body, and several blue blades hovered around her.
On her back, a new core was forming. In a blink, it took shape, radiating faint red light. Unlike her other cores, this one felt distinctly different.
Zane could tell—the energy pulsing from this "core" wasn't hers.
It felt like... another Ethereal entirely.
"Could it be..."
Zane narrowed his eyes. A small black sphere appeared and floated beside him.
It was the Cretan Hollow.
He watched Nineveh twist and dart through the air, suppressing four Jian 20 at once, his mind unnervingly calm.
Her strength had grown dramatically, and the changes in her body were giving her noticeable buffs across the board.
Those blue blades, for instance, were clearly deterring the jets' evasive tactics.
"Since it's come to this, let me test something... and see if I'm right."
Zane spread his arms and nocked an arrow.
A longbow of solid ice formed in his hands, with streaks of electricity connecting both ends to form the bowstring.
As he slowly drew the bow, fire and space energies gathered between his fingers, stretching out into a radiant arrow that formed between the icy limbs.
Flames of crimson and gold flickered wildly—fierce and majestic. The arrow shimmered like the feather of a phoenix... or the body of a golden dragon.
Tiny ice crystals coalesced around it, casting a dazzling gleam.
Zane pulled the bow into a full moon arc, power pulsing violently from the arrow. In the sky, Nineveh immediately sensed the incoming threat.
Overwhelmed by a surge of danger, she abruptly abandoned her strike on the Jian 20 and flew even higher into the sky.
She was running.
Earlier, she hadn't retreated—not when Zane knocked her out cold with a punch, not even after he slashed her with that sword.
But now—now she was afraid.
"Scared, huh... Why now? My arrow isn't even stronger than that last sword swing..."
A faint smile crept onto Zane's lips. His gaze locked onto the new "core" on Nineveh's back.
"Is it because that's the target?"
That core seemed, in Nineveh's instincts, even more precious than her own life...
Suddenly, everything clicked.
"God-making... control..."
Their true aim was to coexist with the Ethereals—sacrificing individuals to control a few immensely powerful ones. Through that, they could gain control over the Hollows, and perhaps even harness this so-called "world affliction," both a curse and a gift.
With it, humanity's growth would accelerate. They could delve into the deepest secrets of the Hollows...
And maybe—just maybe—completely seize control of the disasters that emerged from them.
All for humanity.
Maybe his theory was a bit off—but it couldn't be far from the truth.
Many experiments would fail. Each would come at a steep cost. Like Lamia Hollow. Like the Ethereal swarm today...
"Such overwhelming ambition. Is this humanity's pride...?"
Zane's eyes glinted. He pointed the arrow at Nineveh.
Idealism was beautiful. Reality? Much harder. Their vision faced more than logistical challenges—there were political, ethical, existential ones too.
Zane didn't believe humanity would all support or accept this path.
The thought passed in a flash.
...
In the next instant, Zane released his fingers.
The arrow shot out like a blazing meteor, cutting across the sky in a streak of crimson light.
Nineveh, now slightly higher up, had a moment to react. She crossed her blades in front of her and poured out a torrent of Ether energy, directing it straight at the incoming arrow—desperate to stop it.
The arrow met the cascade of energy like a rock in a rushing river, striking the first blue blade with a crisp ring before punching through.
Then the second. Then the third...
Sensing the danger, Nineveh quickly pulled all scattered Ether into a massive barrier before her, pouring every ounce of power into defense.
Under Zane's watchful eyes, the arrow pierced the blades and slammed into the shield she'd formed with everything she had.
Strangely, though, there was no explosion—no shockwave, no Ether collision. Not even a sound.