Belobog.
Everwinter Hill.
The location of the Stellaron.
"What's going on?!"
"What is that in the sky?"
"Such a huge energy shield... Could it be the will of Preservation?!"
"But why would the will of Preservation appear at this time?!"
Cocolia stood before the Stellaron, asking in shock. Just moments ago, she had already activated the Stellaron. The new world in her heart seemed about to arrive. However, the giant golden energy shield that appeared in the sky instantly shattered her thoughts. What Cocolia found even harder to accept was that this power, which prevented the new world she desired from arriving, was still the power of Preservation—which she had once sought but had never responded to her.
"A powerful will has appeared."
"He is preventing my power from spreading across the world."
"Cocolia, mother of the new world, you must stop him."
The Stellaron's eerie voice echoed in Cocolia's ears. Originally, the Stellaron's voice was emotionless. But this time, Cocolia inexplicably heard a trace of panic in the Stellaron's voice.
"The obstacle to the new world... Who could it be?!"
"Wait, could it be that outsider who took Bronya?!"
Cocolia exclaimed in surprise. Within Belobog, there was no one capable of stopping the Stellaron's power. To say who could achieve this, Cocolia felt it could probably only be Takagi, the outsider who could take Bronya right under her nose.
"Stellaron, how do I stop that scoundrel!"
Cocolia looked at the Stellaron, clenching her fists as she asked. After guessing that the enemy was Takagi, Cocolia became even more agitated.
"Accept my power, become my envoy."
"I will grant you the power to defeat the external threat."
The Stellaron said.
"Understood. Give me your power now."
Cocolia nodded without hesitation. She reached out to touch the Stellaron in front of her.
Corridor of Fading Echoes.
Natasha, Bronya, and others walked along the path of the Corridor of Fading Echoes. What they saw and heard along the way made everyone present uneasy. Especially with Takagi choosing to remain at the gate at the junction of the Silvermane Guard Restricted Zone and the Corridor of Fading Echoes.
"Should I say it lives up to Takagi's description as the heart of the Fragmentum?"
"Even though Takagi has already used his power to suppress the spread of the Fragmentum, the atmosphere here still makes people very uncomfortable."
Seele walked on the streets of the Corridor of Fading Echoes. Her brows were already tightly furrowed.
"Indeed, even Rivet Town, affected by the Fragmentum, at least still had the scent of people. But here, there isn't a single trace of human scent. This place is like... an ancient battlefield," Jean said.
"In fact, this is indeed an ancient battlefield. Takagi mentioned to me before that this was once the frontline where the first Supreme Guardian resisted the Antimatter Legion. But now, it has long been abandoned, becoming a place with only echoes of the past. Takagi calls this place the Corridor of Fading Echoes," Natasha nodded and said.
"The battlefield where the first Supreme Guardian resisted disaster, huh. She dedicated her entire life to preserving Belobog. I never thought that Cocolia, as the current Supreme Guardian, would choose to give up," Gepard sighed deeply.
Just moments ago, he had already learned the truth from Serval, Pela, Bronya, and others. Although Gepard was unwilling to believe that Cocolia had betrayed Belobog, the events that had just happened in the Restricted Zone and Cocolia's strange behavior before forced him to believe them. Thinking of the Supreme Guardian Cocolia, whom he once deeply respected, turning into this appearance next time, Gepard's heart was extremely complicated.
"Everyone, I see Supreme Guardian Cocolia!" Suddenly, Paimon descended from the air, pointing forward and saying to everyone. Bronya and the others immediately looked in the direction Paimon was pointing, and indeed saw Cocolia's figure.
"Mother!"
Bronya immediately started running towards Cocolia. Everyone quickly followed closely behind.
"Mother, please stop. The Stellaron is not trustworthy. We now have other ways to save Belobog." Bronya stopped one meter away from Cocolia. She raised her hand to her chest and said to her with an anxious expression.
"Wait, Lady Bronya, the Cocolia in front of us seems a bit off," Jean said, frowning.
"Something is indeed off. The current Cocolia... is like an illusory image," Seele said.
Hearing everyone's words, Bronya finally noticed the abnormality of the Cocolia in front of her. Even though she spoke to the "Cocolia" in front of her so urgently, the figure had no reaction, as if it hadn't heard anything.
[Takagi: This is not the real Cocolia, just some energy residue replicated by the Fragmentum.]
"Some Fragmentum residue?" Jean propped her chin with one hand and muttered.
[Takagi: The past Cocolia passed through here, and then the Fragmentum's energy replicated her past experience and left it here. If you approach this remnant, it might show you some of her previous experiences.]
[Nahida: Indeed, some of the Fragmentum's abilities are very similar to some of the Teyvat Ley Line's abilities.]
[Diluc: They are only similar in terms of recording images. Other than that, the Fragmentum only brings danger.]
[Kaeya: The Stellaron is becoming more and more mysterious. Not only can it cause curses similar to the Abyss, it can even record and preserve past events.]
[Alhaitham: If the Stellaron only had the ability to record and preserve past records, it would be a rare treasure.]
[Charlotte: Yes, this ability is infinitely better than a camera. It's a pity that besides this ability, the Stellaron's destructive power is its true nature.]
[Navia: Speaking of which, Takagi has indeed been paying attention to Acting Grand Master Jean and Bronya as well.]
"So that's it!" After getting the hint from Takagi, Jean said with understanding.
"Acting Grand Master Jean, do you know what's going on with Mother in front of us?" Bronya looked at Jean doubtfully.
"Yes, Takagi gave a hint." Jean nodded and explained what Takagi said about the Fragmentum phantom.
"Even if Takagi isn't here, Acting Grand Master Jean can still talk to Takagi!" Gepard said in surprise.
"Yes, this is a special ability of us, Takagi's passengers. More importantly... Lady Bronya, do you want to try activating the Cocolia phantom in front of you?" Jean asked.
"Yes." Bronya walked towards the phantom with determined eyes. "I want to understand Mother more." After speaking, Bronya extended her hand towards the phantom. Just as her hand was about to touch the Cocolia phantom, the originally motionless remnant suddenly made a sound.
Cocolia's Fragmentum phantom: "Bronya, where are you! Could it be that something has happened to you? It's okay, it's okay, as long as the new world promised by the Stellaron becomes reality. Even if something has happened to you, you will appear in the new world in a brand new form."
Hearing this, Seele looked at Bronya: "Your Mother really cares about you, Bronya. It's just looking at her like this, the chance of you successfully persuading her will be very low."
Bronya frowned tightly: "Mother, why do you believe the Stellaron's promise? It was the culprit that summoned the ice and snow and opened the Fragmentum."
Cocolia's Fragmentum phantom seemed to have heard Bronya's body temperature. The voice wrapped in Fragmentum energy sounded again.
"From the moment the invaders from beyond the sky descended upon this world, this world was already destined for destruction. It was the Stellaron that gave this world a glimmer of hope. Rebirth requires a price. Erasing all old things in this world is the price for the Stellaron to create a new world. When the new world is realized, you will no longer have to protect Belobog in increasingly helpless despair like I do. You can witness the new world rising from the ruins of Belobog with your own eyes."
"That's right... as long as this world can be pushed completely towards destruction, no matter where you are now, you will definitely return to my side in a brand new form and witness the rise of the new world with your own eyes. You will return to my side in the form of Fragmentum monsters and witness the new world formed by the giant Fragmentum with your own eyes. Here, no one will feel pain, no one will feel sadness. Here, you will find happiness, Bronya!"
Gepard: "Supreme Guardian!"
Pela: "How could this happen!"
Paimon put one hand on her forehead: "I finally understand what Cocolia's so-called new world is. This is not a new world at all, it's hell!"
Paimon's words made everyone nod in agreement.
Natasha: "This woman is really hard to like."
Acting Grand Master Jean: "She took the wrong path. There will be no happiness in such a new world!"
Lumine: "So, we must stop her!"
"I really want to punch this woman in the face." Seele frowned tightly, looking at Bronya. "She really cares about you, Bronya. It's just that her concern is misguided. What do you plan to do next?"
Bronya took a deep breath and looked ahead with determined eyes: "No matter what, such a new world cannot be allowed to descend. If I cannot persuade Mother, I will use the weapon in my hand to stop her."
Hearing this, and seeing Bronya's expression, Seele finally showed a slight smile.
"Takagi's judgment was indeed correct; you are indeed different from Cocolia. Since Takagi also agrees with you and gives you the opportunity to persuade Cocolia, then I will also do my best to help you," Seele said. As soon as she finished speaking, the others immediately nodded.
"Thank you, everyone," Bronya said solemnly, turning to look straight ahead. "Next, let's speed up." Naturally, no one present had any objections, and they rushed towards Everwinter Hill at the fastest possible speed.
[Grand Sage Azar: So the so-called new world is actually a world completely enveloped by the Fragmentum. How boring, I thought it would be a more interesting world.]
[Dainsleif: Actually, it makes sense. The world that the Stellaron can create will probably only be a world of the Fragmentum. It's just that in such a world, there can be no stability and happiness. This Supreme Guardian Cocolia was completely deceived by the Stellaron.]
[Nilou: Did Cocolia become like this because she cared too much about Bronya? She didn't want Bronya to take over her job and protect Belobog in the increasingly severe situation. So, she planned to use the Stellaron to create a new world all at once, so that Bronya could be spared the responsibility of taking over as Supreme Guardian?]
[Alice: Caring for Bronya is only one of the reasons Cocolia became like this. Her being misled by the Stellaron is also related to her own desire to give up protecting Belobog.]
[Kamisato Ayaka: No matter what, she ultimately made a mistake. From Bronya's perspective, I only hope that Cocolia can be persuaded by her.]
[Cloud Retainer: That Cocolia has fallen into such a state of madness, can she really still be persuaded?]
...
A period of time passed. Bronya and the others finally arrived at the entrance of Everwinter Hill after overcoming countless difficulties. However, the reappearance of "Cocolia" in front of everyone forced them to stop for the time being.
"Another Fragmentum phantom of that woman Cocolia? Anyway, she'll just say some crazy things. Everyone, let's continue on our way." Paimon pointed to the snowy road ahead and said.
"Wait, Paimon, this Fragmentum remnant of Cocolia seems a bit different." Natasha took out her weapon and said with a vigilant expression.
"Huh, different? But isn't it very similar to the previous Fragmentum phantom?" Paimon asked in surprise.
"As a Fragmentum phantom, the energy she possesses is too high." Seele took out her scythe and aimed it forward.
"I feel hostility." Bronya frowned, and the power of Preservation condensed around her.
When Paimon saw Seele, Bronya, and Natasha, who possessed Takagi's light cone, all showing this expression, she finally realized that something was wrong. She quickly flew behind everyone and looked at Cocolia's remnant worriedly.
"Intruders... do not approach!" "Cocolia" turned around and looked at Bronya and the others with a cold expression.
"She's talking to us, right? She must be talking to us, right? It's, it's really different from the previous remnant. Could it be that she can still fight us?" Paimon said in horror.
As if to answer Paimon, "Cocolia" directly summoned her Ice Spear. "Do not approach... Stellaron!"
As "Cocolia" finished speaking, two giant ice peaks fell from the void next to her. Simply by touching the ground, the two ice peaks turned the area within a radius of more than ten meters into ice.
"So scary! Is this Cocolia herself?" Paimon exclaimed.
"Mother?" Bronya looked confused.
However, what responded to Bronya were not caring words, but the frost impact of the two ice peaks. Acting Grand Master Jean and Natasha immediately stepped forward, each releasing Anemo blades and grenade launchers to meet the two frost impacts. However, as soon as their attacks came into contact with the frost impacts, they were instantly frozen.
Even so, residual energy from the frost impacts continued to surge towards Natasha, Jean, Bronya, and the others. Although Natasha and Jean reacted in time and shattered the remaining frost impacts, they were not injured by them. But encountering such a situation right at the start of the fight... they instantly became extremely serious.
[Amber: No... way, Acting Grand Master Jean and Natasha's attacks were so easily defeated? Their attacks can easily repel a Trampler.]
[Kaeya: It's truly surprising. Acting Grand Master Jean's strength is now far greater than before, and Natasha even has a light cone gifted by Takagi. They were actually suppressed by what seemed to be Cocolia's moves... It seems Takagi was right, Cocolia resonating with the Stellaron is indeed not simple.]
[Cloud Retainer: This power is not inferior to that of an Adeptus.]
[Shenhe: So, does Cocolia really possess the power of an Archon?]
[Ganyu: What Takagi said, is it really true?!]