At that moment, the Starshatter Meteor crashed into the horde of Corrupted within the Hollow.
A blinding light erupted, followed by a thunderous explosion that shook the very heavens. In an instant, everything—Corrupted creatures, buildings, and even the ground itself—was engulfed by the raging storm of Geo energy.
When the light faded, Sam Li remained standing in the same position, arms folded across his chest. He admired the scene before him as if he were appreciating a masterpiece.
At his feet lay a massive crater, carved out by the meteor's impact.
The Corrupted creature at the very center had been utterly obliterated, reduced to nothing but ashes—not even a trace remained.
Those further away fared no better. The surge of Geo energy had swallowed them whole, transforming them into lifeless stone statues.
"Geo still gives me peace of mind," Sam Li murmured.
As soon as the words left his lips, he summoned Vortex Vanquisher and drove it into the ground. The residual Geo energy in the area erupted in response.
A deep boom echoed through the battlefield.
The stone statues, once Corrupted beings, began to crack. Fine fractures spread across their rigid forms, widening under the force of the Geo energy.
Then—
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
One after another, the statues shattered into rubble, leaving behind nothing but lifeless debris.
Too fast.
The battle had barely begun, and an entire horde of Corrupted had already been wiped out.
Sam Li had expected this result, but witnessing Starshatter's destructive power firsthand still left him in awe.
Hundreds of Corrupted, annihilated in an instant.
Even if they were only low-tier creatures, such overwhelming devastation was nothing short of terrifying.
...
As the dust settled, the system's voice rang out in Sam Li's mind—over and over again:
[Ding! Congratulations, Host! You have successfully slain a Low-Rank Corrupted – Reward: 10 system points.]
[Ding! Congratulations, Host! You have successfully slain a Low-Rank Corrupted – Reward: 10 system points.]
[Ding! Congratulations, Host! You have successfully slain a Mid-Rank Corrupted – Reward: 100 system points.]
[Ding! Congratulations, Host! You have successfully slain a Mid-Rank Corrupted – Reward: 100 system points.]
The notifications kept flooding in as the kill count soared.
On Sam Li's character panel, his system points were rapidly increasing.
[Host]: Sam Li[System]: Ultimate Role-Playing System[System Points]: 11,950[Current World]: Zenless Zone Zero[Current Role]: Geo Archon – Morax (Zhongli)[Acting Progress]: 10%[Abilities]: Spear Technique – Rock Rain[Weapon]: Vortex Vanquisher[Items]: None[Store]: Statue of The Seven, Jade Chamber, Individual Ruin Serpent (Bamboo), Realm Within...
The rewards for eliminating the Corrupted had just been settled.
Sam Li glanced at his system points—his balance had skyrocketed by over 10,000 in an instant.
A quick look at the system store revealed that several high-value items were now available for exchange—including the Statue of The Seven, the Jade Chamber, and even the Celestial Star Experience Card.
Even the Ruin Serpent could be redeemed now…
But before he could explore further, the system chimed in once again.
[System Prompt: 12 minutes remaining until mission failure (Total mission time: 1 hour). Please complete the task as soon as possible.]
With the birdcage's location confirmed and the enemies eliminated, twelve minutes was more than enough to complete the mission.
Raising his gaze toward his objective, Sam Li stowed away Vortex Vanquisher and carefully made his way around the massive crater, heading toward the birdcage.
…
Moments Later…
Not long after Sam Li left, two heavily armed figures arrived in the devastated district.
Hoshimi Miyabi and Soukaku, who had just entered the Hollow.
Hoshimi Miyabi gripped her tachi, scanning the surroundings with a puzzled expression.
But—
After a brief observation, she found no trace of the Corrupted.
Behind her, Soukaku, still carrying her enormous blade, looked around restlessly.
"I'm starving… I just want to find some Corrupted, beat them up, and go eat already…"
Hoshimi Miyabi suddenly spoke.
"Soukaku, have you finished scanning the Aether density?"
Hearing this, Soukaku blinked in realization.
"Oh, right! I almost forgot—"
Like a guilty child, she quickly set down her greatsword and pulled out her scanning equipment.
"I'll check it right now!"
…
The Aether Density scan was complete.
Soukaku immediately reported, "This letter... Oh! I remember now—it's a 'C.' The Aether Density seems to be at level C."
Hoshimi Miyabi halted in her tracks, her expression shifting slightly. "Level C?"
She took the portable scanner from Soukaku's hands and examined the display. The data indeed read C-level—but...
Just before they had entered the Hollow, the recorded Aether Density was B-level. Yet, instead of rising, the readings had inexplicably dropped.
For a newly-formed Hollow, such a change made no sense.
Soukaku frowned and smacked the side of the scanner. "Tch. Don't tell me the equipment's busted? Damn it, the Security Bureau gave us faulty gear again."
Hoshimi Miyabi wasn't sure either. "Let's move forward and check."
...
The area was eerily silent.
Relying on her years of experience, Hoshimi Miyabi quickly assessed that there were no active Corrupted nearby.
Rounding a corner—
Both she and Soukaku froze in place.
It was as if they had turned to stone themselves.
This is…
A meteor crater?
A massive pit stretched across the street, swallowing the buildings on either side and completely blocking their path forward.
Thick smoke still lingered in the air.
Judging by the scene, the crater had formed only moments ago.
In an instant, Hoshimi Miyabi recalled the meteor she had seen outside the Hollow.
Could that strange meteorite really be responsible for this?
But… where were the meteor fragments?
She immediately scanned the crater but found no traces of meteorite debris.
Instead, her gaze swept across the surroundings—and that's when she noticed it.
Piles of broken stones.
Hundreds of them, scattered across the ground.
They were jagged, with sharp crystalline edges, their original structure still somewhat intact.
Soukaku tilted her head in confusion. "These rocks are weird... They kinda have the same presence as the Corrupted."
Hoshimi Miyabi's delicate brows knitted together, her expression changing in an instant.
"These are Corrupted corpses."
From the residual energy on the fragments, she could confirm—these were the remains of ordinary Corrupted.
But that only raised more questions.
This Hollow had just been formed—so how could so many Corrupted have already died here?
And more importantly...
When a Corrupted dies, its body typically disintegrates into crystalline shards, eventually dispersing back into pure energy within the Hollow.
But now—
Instead of dissolving, the remains had solidified into stone.
Some of the fragments even retained vague outlines of their original forms—as if they had been frozen mid-transformation.
It was… unnatural.
Could that meteor have done this?
Hoshimi Miyabi crouched down and picked up a piece of the stone, her sharp gaze scanning its texture.
Then, as if realizing something, her expression shifted once again.
"No… This is strange. Soukaku, hand me the attribute scanner."
Soukaku quickly retrieved a palm-sized device and handed it over.
"This one? Here you go."
...
A few moments later—
The test results appeared on the screen.
Hoshimi Miyabi stared at the data, her delicate face full of shock.
"Geo? An elemental anomaly like this actually exists?"
Soukaku blinked. "Wait… I've never heard of something like this before."