“Nicely done, Nelliel!” Lin Huang looked toward Nelliel, who had effortlessly crushed the Earthworm Hollow’s head with a single strike, and praised her without the slightest reservation.
Although the Earthworm Hollow had also reached the level of a Powerful Hollow, both its spiritual pressure and overall combat ability were vastly inferior to Nelliel’s.
Having survived countless life-and-death battles in Hueco Mundo, Nelliel possessed overwhelming combat experience.
Her spiritual pressure far surpassed that of ordinary Powerful Hollows, so launching a surprise attack and killing it in a single blow was only natural.
Over the past half month, Lin Huang and Nelliel had relied on this exact strategy.
Lin Huang would act as bait, drawing a suitable Powerful Hollow into pursuit, while Nelliel remained hidden until the perfect opportunity presented itself before delivering a fatal strike.
Using this method, they had already hunted nearly twenty Powerful Hollows without suffering a single injury.
Receiving Lin Huang’s praise, Nelliel immediately lifted her slender neck proudly, her goat-like face filled with satisfaction.
“Hmph!
I’m not very hungry today, so the rest is yours.” As she spoke, she walked over to the shattered head of the Earthworm Hollow, picked up one of the larger mask fragments with her mouth, and swallowed it.
After satisfying herself with only a small portion, she quietly stepped aside to digest the reishi.
Everything else, including the remaining mask fragments and the Earthworm Hollow’s corpse, was deliberately left for Lin Huang.
She could already sense that he was standing at the threshold of becoming a Powerful Hollow, so she intentionally left these precious resources to help him complete his evolution.
Lin Huang naturally didn’t refuse.
Opening his mouth, he immediately began devouring the remains.
In only a short while, every remaining mask fragment disappeared into his stomach.
Even nearly one-third of the Earthworm Hollow’s enormous body was consumed.
At that moment, strands of purple spiritual pressure suddenly emerged from his body, continuously swirling around his silver-white scales.
“So soon…
I’m about to evolve into a Powerful Hollow.” Feeling the violent spiritual pressure surging throughout his body, Lin Huang hurriedly swallowed the last mouthful of flesh before turning toward Nelliel, who was vigilantly observing the surroundings.
“I’m counting on you, Nelliel.” “No problem!
Leave everything to me, Little Huang!” Nelliel immediately nodded.
Her own spiritual pressure spread outward, fully entering a combat-ready state.
With her reassurance, Lin Huang no longer hesitated.
He found a flat stretch of sand, stretched out his serpentine body, and completely relaxed.
The purple spiritual pressure rapidly engulfed him.
As more and more reishi gathered around him, the purple radiance gradually condensed into a cocoon over three meters in diameter, completely sealing him inside.
Crack…
Crack…
Sounds resembling bones being reconstructed echoed from within.
His flesh, skeleton, Hollow mask, and even his spiritual core were all undergoing a complete transformation under the baptism of spiritual pressure.
“A Cocoon of Metamorphosis?” Nelliel’s eyes widened in surprise.
Among Hollows, such a phenomenon normally appeared only when an ordinary Hollow evolved into a Menos Grande, or when a Menos itself underwent another evolution.
For Lin Huang to trigger one merely by advancing from a Newborn Hollow to a Powerful Hollow demonstrated astonishing potential.
Throughout her many years wandering Hueco Mundo, Nelliel had witnessed this phenomenon only once before.
The one who had triggered it…
Was herself.
“I never imagined Little Huang’s talent would be this incredible.” She happily spun around twice before stopping.
The stronger Lin Huang became, the farther the two of them could travel together in this merciless world.
Although they had only known each other for a short time, Nelliel had already regarded him as her only true friend.
Unfortunately, that happiness didn’t last long.
Roars suddenly echoed across the endless white desert.
One powerful spiritual pressure after another rapidly approached.
The unique aura released by the Cocoon of Metamorphosis had attracted the attention of nearby Hollows.
Their instincts told them that devouring such an evolving Hollow would provide unimaginable benefits.
Moments later, three Powerful Hollows appeared from three separate directions.
Each possessed noticeably stronger spiritual pressure than the Earthworm Hollow they had just killed.
To the left stood a gigantic Toad Hollow over three meters tall.
Its swollen body was covered in disgusting pus-filled blisters that trembled with every hop.
To the right hovered a pitch-black Mosquito Hollow measuring barely a meter long.
Its long crimson proboscis still dripped with fresh blood, while its spiritual pressure rivaled that of the Toad Hollow.
Directly ahead, something resembling a giant boulder rolled down the sand dune.
Upon closer inspection, it was a spherical Hollow completely protected by an armored shell covered with sharp spikes.
Greed filled the eyes beneath their Hollow masks.
Step by step, they approached the purple cocoon.
“As long as I’m standing here, none of you are getting anywhere near Little Huang!” Nelliel immediately released her spiritual pressure without reservation.
Brilliant pink reishi erupted around her body.
The tremendous pressure instantly caused the three Powerful Hollows to hesitate.
Their instincts warned them that the goat-shaped Hollow before them was extremely dangerous.
Unfortunately…
Greed ultimately defeated caution.
The three Hollows roared simultaneously before charging together.
Nelliel calmly rushed forward to intercept them.
Despite facing three opponents alone, she easily prevented them from advancing within several meters of the cocoon.
The Spherical Hollow attacked first.
After briefly gathering spiritual pressure inside its body, it suddenly fired a compressed air blast directly toward Nelliel’s face.
Nelliel lightly leaped into the air.
The attack missed completely.
Boom!
The compressed blast exploded against the sand dune behind her, leaving behind a crater over three meters wide.
However, while she remained airborne, the Mosquito Hollow suddenly emerged from her blind spot.
Its crimson proboscis shot straight toward her abdomen.
Nelliel reacted instantly.
Her brown goat tail lashed out like a steel whip.
Crack!
The Mosquito Hollow’s proboscis shattered into pieces.
Screaming miserably, it spun through the air before crashing heavily onto the sand.
At that exact moment, the Toad Hollow seized the opportunity.
Every blister covering its back exploded simultaneously.
A dense cloud of dark yellow corrosive mist instantly spread throughout the battlefield.
Using the poisonous fog as cover, it charged directly toward the Cocoon of Metamorphosis.
Nelliel’s expression instantly turned cold.
Her spiritual pressure surged once more, pushing the poisonous mist away while she leaped high into the air.
Her bone-white hooves descended mercilessly.
Thud!
The Toad Hollow’s head exploded beneath the impact.
Dark green blood sprayed across the white sands.
Witnessing Nelliel casually kill another Powerful Hollow, both the Mosquito Hollow and the Spherical Hollow completely lost the courage to continue fighting.
They immediately abandoned the cocoon.
The Mosquito Hollow frantically flapped its wings and fled.
The Spherical Hollow curled into a ball before rapidly rolling away across the desert.
Nelliel didn’t chase them.
Her responsibility was protecting Lin Huang until his evolution was complete.
But just then…
A grayish-brown tentacle covered with countless black suckers silently burst from beneath the sand behind her.
It shot directly toward the purple cocoon.
“Not good!” Nelliel instantly rushed forward.
Her tail collided head-on with the enormous tentacle.
Boom!
Violent shockwaves erupted across the battlefield.
Before she could recover, another massive tentacle whipped toward her from a different direction.
Bang!
The overwhelming force hurled Nelliel across the battlefield.
Half her body became buried beneath the white sand.
Crunch…
Crunch…
A horrifying chewing sound suddenly echoed from high above.
Moments later…
Two mangled corpses fell from the sky.
One belonged to the Mosquito Hollow.
The other was the shattered remains of the Spherical Hollow.
The two Hollows that had escaped moments earlier had been effortlessly devoured by the hidden predator.
Nelliel slowly climbed out of the sand pit.
Her expression had become unusually serious.
Looking toward the sky, she muttered, “Why would something like this appear near a spawning ground?” Suspended high above the battlefield was an Octopus Hollow measuring nearly fifty meters across.
Dozens of gigantic tentacles covered with pitch-black suckers twisted violently through the air.
Whether judging by its overwhelming size or the terrifying spiritual pressure pouring from its body…
Its identity was obvious.
A Giant Hollow.
Whoosh!
Before Nelliel could react, more than ten enormous tentacles descended simultaneously toward both her and the Cocoon of Metamorphosis behind her.
At almost the exact same instant…
A long crack suddenly appeared across the center of the purple cocoon.
A silver-white blade burst outward with blinding speed.
Slash!
More than ten enormous tentacles were cleanly severed before they could even reach their target.
Clatter!
The Cocoon of Metamorphosis shattered into countless fragments.
From within emerged a newly evolved serpentine Hollow.
Two sharp bone-white horns extended from his forehead.
His entire body was covered with perfectly symmetrical silver scales that reflected the pale light of Hueco Mundo.
His body now stretched over seven meters in length.
Most striking of all was the strange reverse scale growing at the tip of his tail.
Unlike the others, this scale resembled the blade of a sword.
It gleamed with a frightening sharpness.