But Belle and Wise couldn't do much. Without their identities as "Phaethon," they were just two ordinary, powerless people.
"Hehe, don't worry," Belle chuckled slyly and said to Zane.
"The network channels and information I use for the forum have all been encrypted and hidden by Fairy. They won't be able to trace it."
"Right, Fairy?"
From the HDD system nearby, a voice responded automatically.
"Of course. The master's request isn't difficult. As long as there's enough power to support it, the multi-layered encryption makes it extremely difficult to break through with hacking techniques."
"Even if the protection were compromised, the information obtained would be fake, so Master can rest easy."
Hearing Fairy's words, Belle nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Zane with a mysterious look.
"Zane, do you know where Fairy has hidden my location information?"
"Where?"
Seeing Belle hesitate deliberately, Zane played along and asked.
"The encrypted location is in the Old Capital, inside Hollow Zero!"
Belle found it amusing just thinking about it. She had to admit, Fairy really outdid herself. If someone actually managed to breach the encryption only to see "Hollow Zero" as the location... what kind of face would they make?
Belle quickly shifted into serious mode, writing detailed stories about Zane's experiences. After running a video store for so long and watching countless tapes, she had a natural talent for this sort of thing.
"Oh right, Zane, what should we name our forum?"
"It's already up and running, but I haven't decided on a good name yet."
Belle paused her writing, staring at the glowing white computer screen, then turned to Zane on the sofa.
"Got any ideas?"
Zane was watching the Star Emblem Knight tokusatsu series show on TV with Panta. Hearing her, he glanced over and said,
"How about 'King of the Ethereals'? Sounds powerful and straightforward..."
Since Belle was asking, she clearly already had something in mind. She answered immediately,
"Hehe, the only flaw with that name is... it's too perfect!"
Zane froze for a moment. "King of the Ethereals"? Belle really came up with that?
Sensing Zane's silent rejection, Belle pursed her lips and continued, a little deflated,
"Then how about Hollow Walkers?"
"That's a good one."
Zane paused for a second or two, then gave a slight nod.
"Yeah, not bad."
Definitely better than "King of the Ethereals."
"Great, then it's decided!"
Seeing that Zane agreed, Belle immediately started typing, updating the forum's name to "Hollow Walkers" and continuing with her writing.
Time passed slowly. Belle, fully absorbed in her work, finally let out a deep breath—done.
She reviewed what she had written, smiled in satisfaction, and felt a touch of pride.
Maybe when all this blows over and she no longer needs to be a Proxy, becoming a screenwriter wouldn't be such a bad path.
By now, the forum wasn't so quiet anymore. Word about the Cretan Hollow had somehow leaked, and many were now aware of the event and its connection to a special Ethereal.
Combined with earlier discussions, Zane's Ethereal form was already gaining traction online.
As a result, a forum launched under the banner of "special Ethereal," packed with detailed info, naturally drew a small crowd from the start.
At this moment, on the "Hollow Walkers" forum:
Zuo Wangdao: Hahaha, Dao Master's made it! World-hopping is real!
Zuo Wangdao: Wait, Hollow Walkers? Where the heck am I now?
End Watcher: Who's this nutjob interrupting my read of the forum admin's latest post? Boot him!
Inter-Knot User 1: I have something to say…
End Watcher: You too. Get lost. Inter-Knot Users on this forum? You'll get banned, watch out.
Pope: Oh? Forum elder, huh? Ban king? Well, today I'm here to challenge you again!
Pope: Do you even know where you're posting from? Do you understand the prestige of the Love Pope?
NG250: Hey, should we talk about this new post? Seems pretty interesting to me...
Chizhen Red: Don't mind them. Those two have been butting heads since the forum started. Let's just do our thing.
Roast Chicken (Cheerful and Sunny): Wow, this story's amazing! Feels fictional, but the details really line up!
Bo Changgen: Yeah, I've been to the Mars District. There is a tall tower with an ancient clock there.
Rocky: The perspective of this story is kinda odd. Makes me think the forum admin is that special Ethereal, like they experienced it firsthand...
Chizhen Red: We don't know much about the Cretan Hollow, so is what the forum admin posted legit?
Modern Little: The forum's whole deal is "authentic info," so it should be trustworthy. Just... who is the forum admin?
Powerful Oil Remover 1945: Probably some hidden expert, maybe even military. Where else would they get such detailed intel? I just learned about the Mars District myself.
Yue Jiao Niang: Huh? The forum user count's climbing fast. Looks like the admin's posts really grabbed attention.
Cang Qiong Bai: Obviously! I was the first to spread the word!
Spring and Summer Whizz—Winter: Hey hey hey, I'm here! Let's see what goodies this Hollow Walkers forum has…
Han, Xi: Guys, I've got inside info! The Defense Forces have given the special Ethereals a codename—"Fire Pickers."
mua's Perfect: For real, big shot?
Shark Emperor Ao Dio: "Fire Pickers"? What's that supposed to mean?
...
The forum was buzzing. Belle watched the user discussions for a while, pleased with the response.
After all, even if she had dressed things up a bit, everything she posted was true.
The person involved was right beside her.
"Zane."
"What's up?" he replied, turning around at the sound of Belle's voice.
"Shall we start the interview?"
"That commission... the time's almost up, right?"
Zane had no reason to refuse, so he agreed immediately. Belle couldn't wait to ask her first question.
"Zane, when you turned into an Ethereal, would you say... you were naked?"
"If you count that as..."
As Belle fired off one question after another, several dark lines appeared on Zane's forehead...
Her priorities were really all over the place.
...
Evening fell.
Inside a skyscraper in New Eridu, Captain Xin frowned as she examined the data being uploaded to the system, murmuring softly to herself,
"What the hell is this?"