The phantoms left behind in the Fragmentum were not limited to mere shapes, voices existed as well.
When passing by the phantoms, everyone could hear some of the earlier conversations between Bronya and Cocolia.
It was as if… these two phantoms were actually living, breathing people.
Bronya, "…You still haven't told me what this place really is, Mother."
Cocolia, "Seven hundred years ago, this was once the northern border of Belobog, and the ancient battlefield where Alisa Rand led the first Silvermane Guards to resist the Legion."
"As for now… it is nothing more than an abandoned corridor, echoing everywhere with the remnants of the old world."
"But don't be fooled by this fragmented appearance, Bronya. When the day comes to fulfill the promise… these ruins will become the cradle of a new world."
Bronya, "…Mother, do you truly believe in the promise made by the Stellaron? It summoned the blizzards beyond the walls, opened the gates of the Fragmentum, and destroyed our civilization..."
Cocolia, "...And the mistake our ancestors made was failing to embrace Destruction early enough."
Bronya, "..."
Cocolia, "From the moment the invaders from beyond the sky descended, this world was already sentenced to death. But the Stellaron… it left us with a sliver of hope."
"Rebirth requires a price. Erasing all the decayed traces of the old world, abandoning meaningless, lingering survival… that is the price the Stellaron demands."
"Once its promise is fulfilled, Bronya… we will no longer have to spend our entire lives guarding a wasteland. You and I, we will witness the new world rise from the ruins with our own eyes."
After that, the group continued forward, while Dan Heng was also thinking, analyzing the current situation.
That crystal ball was most likely something Bronya deliberately left behind to guide them. Combined with the Fragmentum phantoms revealing the correct direction, this was indeed good news.
But considering the current circumstances, it was actually unfavorable for them.
Since Cocolia and Bronya had arrived here earlier than they had, it could be preliminarily concluded that Cocolia not only knew of the Stellaron's existence beforehand, but even knew its location.
That was extremely disadvantageous for them.
Their original assumptions had also deviated… they could no longer charge in like a surprise force and win outright. Everything at present might already be within Cocolia's calculations.
From here on, they would need to make thorough preparations to deal with either the ambushes Cocolia had set up, or a direct confrontation with her.
At present, the only remaining unanswered question should be, "What does Cocolia intend to use the Stellaron for?"
As for that, Dan Heng could make a simple inference based on the dialogue between the two, plunging all of Belobog into Fragmentum contamination, then having everyone, after death, continue living within the Fragmentum as phantoms, in the form of monsters.
As for Cocolia herself, it was hard to believe that she, as the Supreme Guardian, harbored such thoughts… Rather than calling her a Supreme Guardian, it would be more accurate to call her an agent of Destruction on this planet.
After analyzing the situation, Dan Heng had his companions prepare themselves and heighten their vigilance, ready to respond at any time to the obstacles that might appear next.
The group pressed on and encountered quite a few Fragmentum creatures along the way, but most of the time it was uneventful, these things were no match for them.
And during the later part of the journey, Teacher Dan Heng also came up with a new way to use Stellaron resonance.
He had Stelle try listening once more, and successfully captured the message the Stellaron sent to Cocolia, gaining the upper hand by anticipating the enemy's moves.
The situation was more or less as Dan Heng had guessed earlier, Cocolia knew they were about to arrive, and had likely made her preparations.
Even so, the group could not retreat at this point, so they advanced while thinking of countermeasures.
Seele even declared that they would rescue Bronya, smash Cocolia to pieces, and chop the Stellaron into powder.
Although Cocolia held the advantage of being able to set up ambushes in advance, they too had two hidden pieces still concealed in the shadows…
Dan Heng took out his phone and looked at the two messages he had received, a faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.
Sampo, "Bro, I've already picked up that Mr. Yang. I asked a few Iron Guard buddies I'm close with, and we're heading toward you guys right now!"
Nero, "Teacher Dan Heng, trust Sampo. I'll be done on my end soon too, remember to make a big commotion so I know where you are!"
If the Stellaron was Cocolia's hidden trump card, then without using that power or requesting support, our side had two killing moves, the suddenly arriving Mr. Welt, and Nero, who had disappeared halfway.
Although the situation on the surface looked unfavorable, the advantage was ours. This round was already decided.
Like a general who had fought through countless battlefields, Dan Heng simulated the entire board in his mind before the great battle even began.
Although there weren't many memories left behind belonging to that person, there were always a few extremely clear silhouettes…
If Jing Yuan were here, this battle might be handled even better.
But given the current situation, this was already enough.
As the group continued to delve deeper, they encountered the phantoms of Cocolia and Bronya multiple times within the Fragmentum.
From these phantoms, they learned some of Belobog's hidden secrets, but even more so, they came to understand just how far gone Cocolia had become.
There was nothing really worth blaming, but in everyone's eyes, the image of this Supreme Guardian was growing ever closer to that of a mentally collapsing shrew.
Once, in a certain open area, the group saw phantoms left behind in the Fragmentum.
But this time, there was something a little different.
"Another shadow of that woman…" Seele frowned. "Bronya isn't by her side this time."
After getting closer, March put her hands on her hips and looked at the phantom in front of them. "It feels like… it's a bit different from the earlier afterimages?"
At that moment, the Cocolia phantom seemed to possess its own consciousness and proactively spoke to them, "Intruders…"
March blinked, somewhat startled. "Eh? She… she spoke?"
"You must… not approach..." The phantom of Cocolia suppressed anger in its voice. "The Stellaron!"
In the next instant, this Fragmentum phantom launched an attack on its own initiative. "Intruders… stop here!"
Fortunately, the group reacted quickly and scattered in time. No one was injured.
"T-This thing… is it really not the real her?" March exclaimed in surprise.
Dan Heng said, "No matter how similar it looks, what the Fragmentum replicates are always imitations. Treat it as advance live-combat training, defeat her."
And so, everyone swarmed in together and beat the Fragmentum phantom of Cocolia mercilessly, until it was completely annihilated.
After that, the group passed the spot where the phantom had been, climbed a long flight of steps, exited the maze, and entered a canyon cleft in the snowy plains.
The moment they stepped inside, a bone-chilling cold pierced straight into their skin. March suddenly regretted not listening to Nero's advice to wear more clothes when getting off the train.
The cold wind howled, and the pretty girl began to shiver. "…S-So cold! Just relying on a little bit of Trailblaze power isn't enough to withstand the low temperatures anymore…"
"That means we're getting closer to the Stellaron, closer to the center of the cold wave," Dan Heng said.
The group continued forward. The road ahead gradually became wider, and soon they saw a large number of ice sculptures again, just like the ones they had seen when they first arrived on Jarilo… ice sculptures of the Antimatter Legion.
Immediately after, traces of human activity once again appeared in the vast white snowfield. Stone stairways and platforms came into view.
Some of the frozen structures here were extremely strange, completely different in style and material from those inside the city. Some even looked like body parts.
For example, one place the group passed through while climbing the steps had an arched canopy that looked just like a gigantic hand cast in steel.
Finally, the group reached the top of the platform and saw Cocolia and Bronya waiting there.