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Regarding whether Cocolia was a masochist or not, Bochang didn't dwell on it much; it wasn't particularly important.
"I didn't expect to receive gifts from Cocolia only to immediately assist her afterward. Hmph... Is this deliberate, perhaps?"
It all seemed too coincidental.
It was understandable for Bochang to have such thoughts.
Bailu clutched his shirt, her expression earnest. "I've heard you were once enemies... But her attitude towards you doesn't seem like that of adversaries at all."
"Cough... Bailu, let's not dwell on this matter." Bochang looked helpless; he hadn't even figured it out himself yet...
How could he explain it properly?
Seeing his reaction, the little dragon girl fell silent, pouting slightly as if sulking. She appeared quite adorable in that moment.
Moving forward...
Bochang led Bailu northward towards Belobog's vast snowfields.
The little dragon girl's gaze was quickly captivated by the unique and breathtaking scenery, eliciting occasional gasps of awe. Her behavior suggested she had rarely seen snow before.
Indeed, Bailu seldom ventured outside the forbidden residence, making it difficult for her to experience such scenic beauty firsthand.
This snowy planet, compared to their first visit, now showed significant signs of thawing.
As Bochang scanned the landscape, he spotted several small streams crisscrossing the snowy ground, their clear waters flowing gently. It seemed that it wouldn't be long before Jarilo VI could regain its former vitality.
After flying for several minutes, the unchanging snowscape began to induce a sense of weariness in Bochang. He had initially planned to rest properly but was unexpectedly caught by Cocolia for more work. The position of the History and Culture Museum's director certainly came with its challenges.
Just as Bochang started to lose focus, Bailu, with her keen eyes, pointed into the distance and exclaimed, "It's the Antimatter Legion."
Indeed, Bochang and Bailu encountered soldiers from the Antimatter Legion.
These wandering monsters were slowly advancing towards Belobog.
As commonly known, the intelligence quotient of Antimatter Legion soldiers is typically low. Without leadership, they become mere scattered rogues.
The hundreds of Antimatter Legion soldiers Bochang now faced appeared to be such disorganized stragglers.
"Are these the vanguard mentioned by the Silvermane Guards?"
Bochang, uncertain yet undeterred, decided to eliminate them first without further investigation.
Under his command,
the Cyber Sword hovered motionless in mid-air.
"Hmph... Accept your Trial!"
Bochang released his grip on Bailu, aiming instead at the approaching Antimatter Legion below, ready to unleash Dragon Blast.
The Antimatter Legion also spotted their presence.
Among them, soldiers with flight capabilities immediately charged towards Bochang and Bailu.
Looking down at the feeble Voidrangers, Bochang declared, "Perish."
A massive pillar of flame shot forth.
With a deafening explosion,
a crater nearly a hundred meters wide appeared on the ground.
The forceful blast even stripped away a layer of snow from the surrounding area.
In the ensuing detonation, those hundreds of Antimatter Legion soldiers...
met their demise silently.
The little dragon girl clung tightly to Bochang, wrapping her tail around his thigh as an extra precaution against falling.
"Wow, impressive..." she praised.
Bailu praised Bochang's action.
"It's nothing," Bochang replied. "Besides, Bailu could effortlessly achieve the same feat, right?"
When the little dragon girl transformed,
she became an absolute force to be reckoned with.
Unless confronted by an Emanator, few could easily halt her onslaught.
"That's only possible thanks to Bochang."
Bailu was well aware of the source of her power. Without Bochang's strength, she would never have been able to transform into a colossal dragon on her own.
As they chatted...
Bochang and Bailu continued their journey aboard the Cyber Sword.
Soon, they encountered more of the Antimatter Legion. Apart from various types of Voidrangers, surprisingly, there were also dragon-shaped Doomsday Beasts among them.
Bochang quickly estimated that several tens of thousands of soldiers from the Material Legion had gathered, slowly advancing towards Belobog.
It seemed these creatures temporarily lacked strong offensive intent.
Perhaps they were still recovering from their frozen state or possibly assembling additional Antimatter Legion forces.
Hiding discreetly, Bochang and Bailu observed the scene.
They noticed new Antimatter Legion soldiers joining the ranks periodically.
"Is this the vanguard of the Antimatter Legion? Or perhaps even its main force?" Bochang squinted thoughtfully.
Tens of thousands of Antimatter Legion soldiers posed an overwhelming challenge for present-day Belobog. The entire Silvermane Guard numbered only around a thousand members.
Even with the addition of the Earthfire Group and Svarog's mechanical forces, their total strength would not exceed three thousand.
Facing the massive Antimatter Legion numbering tens of thousands, Belobog had no chance of victory.
Just relying on the three resting Doomsday Beasts alone should be sufficient to annihilate the entire city, let alone with the support of tens of thousands from the Antimatter Legion...
Even Bochang, against such a formidable enemy force, would require considerable time to eliminate them all. Nevertheless, he was confident in his ability to wipe them out, albeit it might demand significant effort.
However...
Bochang did not know if there were more Antimatter Legions lurking behind. Thus, he refrained from immediate action and continued exploring further.
After some time, Bochang discovered that there were indeed no additional Antimatter Legions following.
In other words...
The tens of thousands already present constituted the main force, rather than any vanguard units. Alternatively, perhaps the creatures swiftly dispatched earlier were the actual vanguard.
"It's good I didn't hastily seek General Jing Yuan's assistance for this; these insignificant foes can be handled by me alone."
Still, Bochang remained patient, as the Antimatter Legion showed no immediate signs of attacking Belobog. He decided to wait, allowing more soldiers to gather around the area. This way, when the time came, he could eliminate as many monsters as possible in one go, minimizing future instances where Belobog might need his help.
It would indeed be troublesome.
Not helping felt morally uncomfortable,
But assisting seemed too inconvenient.
Bochang also wasn't certain if he'd consistently have the time available; he had his own life to attend to and couldn't constantly run around for Belobog's minor issues every day.
Meanwhile...
At the northern wall of Belobog, Cocolia, Bronya, Pela, Gepard, Dunn, and others had gathered, standing at full readiness as they gazed towards the north.
One of the Silvermane Guard officers remarked, "Mister Bochang has been gone for two hours now... Is it really alright that he hasn't returned yet?"
"The loud explosion from the northern snowfields earlier was undoubtedly caused by Mister Bochang," Cocolia said confidently, familiar with such detonation sounds. "He is likely eliminating those monsters right now. We just need to wait patiently."
Cocolia understood that some Silvermane Guards might question Bochang, either doubting his abilities or his character. However...
She chose to believe in him.