By the time Airi arrived at Hollow Zero, Zhong Yan had already finished his battle with the Twelve Shields member.
Staring at the vast, newly-flattened wasteland before her, she found it almost impossible to believe such a destructive force could come from a single human.
"No wonder he dares challenge the Exaltists... That was a member of the Twelve Shields," Airi muttered, her lips slightly parted, eyes filled with disbelief.
She had fought tooth and nail to escape the Exaltists, and knew full well what they were capable of—especially the terror that was the Twelve Shields.
Their strength was beyond what ordinary people could withstand. The fact that Uchiha had slain one was proof of how terrifying his power truly was.
Maybe... he really can destroy the Exaltists.
With that thought, Airi made up her mind. No matter what, she had to bring Zhong Yan over to her side.
Only with his help could she stand a chance against the Exaltists. Otherwise, she'd remain nothing more than prey on the run, hunted relentlessly under their kill order.
Elsewhere, within the protective shell of Susanoo, Zhong Yan surveyed the leveled landscape. A realization struck him—he might've acted too rashly.
The Twelve Shields were high-ranking within the Exaltists. Each one held command over numerous subordinates and wielded immense influence.
That meant they likely knew a great deal about the organization. If he could capture one alive, he might be able to extract vital intel—maybe even the location of their main base.
In hindsight, sparing one could have been very profitable.
Still, it wasn't a total loss. There would be another chance. The Exaltists were nothing if not greedy.
Forget Airi—they would surely come after him, too. Someone like Zhong Yan, with such staggering experimental value, would be impossible for them to ignore.
And next time, the ones they send wouldn't die quite so easily.
…
At the same time, outside of New Eridu—
Inside the headquarters of the Exaltists, their leader—the one worshipped as a god—an elderly white-haired man, was calmly adjusting his latest batch of experimental drugs.
Suddenly, the lab door swung open and in stepped a young boy who appeared no older than six or seven.
"The Twelve Shields sent to eliminate Airi is dead," the boy said coldly. "The location was near Hollow Zero. No body was recovered. The area's been severely damaged."
He delivered the report swiftly, but the white-haired elder barely reacted. His expression remained blank, entirely focused on his research as if nothing else mattered.
"You senile old corpse! Are you losing it in your old age? That was a Twelve Shields! One of our proudest test subjects—and they were killed! Don't you have anything to say about it?"
The boy's anger erupted. He stormed forward, knocking over the table of experimental equipment. The crash of shattering glass filled the room.
Even then, the white-haired elder barely flinched. As he bent down to pick up the shards, he calmly replied, "Proud? If she was killed, then she wasn't perfect. Not yet worth my pride."
"No need to panic. No need to lose your temper over something so trivial. You're still young—and it suits you to act like I did at your age. Truthfully, you're the one I'm most proud of."
As Airi had said before, the Exaltist leader had created numerous "Slices"—different versions of himself at various ages. These Slices all carried his memories, but their personalities remained locked in the mindset of their specific age.
The boy before him, prideful and impulsive, was a perfect match for the elder's own personality during that stage of life.
"So, what we're just going to ignore Airi?" the boy snapped. "She's a traitor. A failure. We can't just let her run loose—who knows what she'll leak to New Eridu?"
"You know what New Eridu has. As long as that thing exists, we'll never be able to invade them en-masse. Airi's a ticking time bomb. She needs to be eliminated—immediately!"
His voice rose as frustration overtook him. In contrast, the old man remained serene.
After tidying the broken glass and disposing of it, he carefully returned the remaining samples to the table. Then he calmly wiped his hands and said:
"Clearly, Airi doesn't have that kind of power. She must've had help."
"To kill one of the Twelve Shields… it couldn't have been anyone but a Void Hunter, or someone on that level. I suggest you send him. We may learn something… unexpected."
When he said him, the old man placed particular weight on the word.
The boy's face tensed with surprise. "You want that maniac to investigate? Who knows what kind of chaos he'll cause! If New Eridu finds out—"
Before he could finish, the old man raised a hand to interrupt.
"New Eridu... is nothing to fear. Yes, they possess that object. But it only matters inside New Eridu."
"Until we launch a full-scale invasion, that thing won't pose much of a threat. As for their leadership… they're far more rotten than you realize."
"Mark my words—even if we do nothing, New Eridu will destroy itself. We'll merely accelerate the inevitable. That city… was never meant to exist."
With that, the white-haired elder fell silent once more. And the boy, despite his anger, obeyed—leaving to summon him to begin the investigation.