After locating his target, Sombravida's journey became significantly easier.
By following the Gillian's trail, he encountered almost no obstacles. When hostile Gillians occasionally appeared, Sombravida waited patiently until both sides exhausted themselves before striking.
This approach served two purposes:
First, it conserved spiritual energy.
Second, it allowed him to profit from each encounter and strengthen his own power.
What Sombravida had not expected was that this pursuit would continue for months.
A Journey That Refilled the Vessel
Ironically, Sombravida's original goal — escaping the influence of the Great Hollow Forest — had been completely overturned by this relentless tracking.
Yet the constant replenishment of spiritual particles brought a startling realization:
His spiritual power was nearing absolute saturation.
No matter how tightly he compressed it, he could not force in even the smallest additional amount.
He felt like a bottle filled to the brim.
One more drop—
and it would overflow.
The Gillian's Growth
For months, Sombravida followed the silent giant across Hueco Mundo.
During that time, they encountered two dangerous situations.
Twice, they met sentient Gillians.
Twice, Sombravida defeated them through tactics rather than brute strength.
Within the outer zones of Hueco Mundo, Sombravida's combat intelligence had become a decisive advantage. As long as the power gap wasn't overwhelming, he was nearly unbeatable.
And when victory was impossible—
he simply fled.
However, Sombravida was not the greatest beneficiary of these encounters.
The true beneficiary was the unconscious Gillian he pursued.
Because Sombravida's own spiritual energy had reached its limit, any excess spiritual particles were absorbed entirely by the towering giant.
Over months of travel, Sombravida could feel its spiritual pressure steadily rising.
By the time it reached the Great Hollow Forest, it would possess at least a basic level of self-preservation.
Signs of Approaching the Forest
Six months passed.
Sombravida began encountering Gillians more frequently.
Then, one day, after resting briefly and catching up to his marked target, he discovered two more Gillians walking nearby.
The three giants moved in parallel.
None showed hostility.
Sombravida paused in surprise.
Then he understood.
They were close.
Very close.
Arrival
On the third day, after crossing a high ridge, Sombravida finally saw it.
Beyond the hills stretched an endless forest.
The Great Hollow Forest.
Sombravida stood silently, overwhelmed.
He had imagined this place countless times.
Reality surpassed imagination.
Unlike the dead woodlands he had crossed before, the trees here possessed true branches and dense foliage. Deeeper within, they grew colossal — towering into the dim sky.
A yellow-white mist drifted above the canopy.
It was not fog.
It was spiritual energy made visible.
It concealed the forest's depths completely.
"I wanted to escape this place… and yet…"
Sombravida sighed inwardly.
He had chosen Nel over the safety of advancing elsewhere.
Even now, he could not say whether that choice had been right.
"Oh well."
He exhaled slowly.
"Even if I chose wrong… in a forest this vast, even Yammy — if he truly became Adjuchas — may not be able to kill me immediately."
Reassuring himself, Sombravida stepped forward.
Following the spiritual mark, he entered the Great Hollow Forest.
A Sacred Ground for Gillians
The difference was immediate.
Spiritual particles here were unimaginably dense.
Every breath Sombravida took contained enough energy to equal a low-level Hollow.
And that was for a high-level Hollow like him.
If a Gillian used Soul Absorption here…
Sombravida's heart trembled.
"No wonder this forest summons Gillians…"
"This truly is sacred ground for their evolution."
He moved deeper into the forest.
A Dangerous Limitation
Sombravida could not absorb too much energy now.
Breathing was safe.
But devouring more Gillians would trigger immediate evolution.
Until he confirmed the identity of the giant he pursued, he could not risk losing mobility.
"Who are you…?" he muttered.
"Nel? Yammy? Or neither?"
A Plan to Accelerate Evolution
Now that they had reached the Great Hollow Forest, Sombravida needed to accelerate the giant's growth.
After careful thought, he formed a plan:
He would lure lone Gillians toward his target.
Kill them.
Force-feed the mask.
Then allow the corpse's spiritual emissions to nourish it further.
Dangerous?
Yes.
But necessary.
The True Threats Within
The greatest danger of the Great Hollow Forest was not Gillians.
It was Adjuchas.
Some had failed to evolve further.
Some chose to remain.
All were predators.
Sombravida had no desire to provoke them.
Fortunately, the forest was vast.
As long as he avoided the deep core, encounters were unlikely.
Hunting Within the Forest
Once inside, the Gillian he followed stopped marching in one direction.
It wandered.
This was its destination.
Now its only task was to feed.
Ignoring the giant for now, Sombravida moved elsewhere.
His spiritual perception quickly located another Gillian.
Hunting Gillians was not reserved for conscious ones or Adjuchas.
With sufficient strength, even a high-level Hollow could slay one.
Sombravida proved it.
The Ambush
He climbed a towering tree, concealing his spiritual pressure.
To higher beings, such concealment meant little.
To an unconscious Gillian—
it was enough.
Crouched thirty meters above the ground, Sombravida waited.
When the giant passed beneath him—
his spiritual pressure exploded.
Silver spiritual energy ignited along his claws.
He dropped.
Shattering Slash.
The mask shattered instantly.
The massive body collapsed seconds later.
Sombravida was already gone, clutching the mask.
Feeding the Giant
Following his spiritual mark, Sombravida located his target again.
The energy from the mask attracted it immediately.
The Gillian roared and charged toward him.
Sombravida dropped the mask and fled.
From a nearby tree, he watched as the giant swallowed the mask whole.
It hissed in satisfaction.
Then returned to foraging.
Sombravida shook his head.
"Tsk… I've become prey again."
Sudden Movement
Just as he prepared to follow, the giant stopped.
It roared.
Then surged forward with purpose.
Sombravida froze.
Something was wrong.
Unconscious Gillians rarely attacked each other here.
The forest's call suppressed such conflicts.
They preferred weaker prey.
Which meant this behavior had only three possible explanations:
First: the spiritual emission of a recently slain Gillian or Adjuchas nearby.
Impossible — the corpse Sombravida killed was too far.
Second: an Adjuchas was summoning it.
A common occurrence.
Adjuchas dominate Gillians like rulers over subjects.
Even Sombravida could do nothing if this were true.
Third:
War.
A conflict between factions within the Great Hollow Forest.
Sombravida's eyes narrowed.
If it was the third…
then the heart of the forest was about to become a battlefield.
And he had just stepped into its path.