Unimpeded

Belobog's Upper District.

The Guard Restricted Zone.

This was a death barrier between Belobog and the area where the Fragmentum's invasion was most intense.

Only by crossing it could one reach the front lines or the areas on the edge of the Fragmentum.

When Seele asked them to show her the way, Jing Yan and the others neither refused nor agreed. They simply said, "There's no need."

But they didn't stop her from coming along, either.

After that, they arrived at the entrance to the Forbidden Zone.

The guards, just like the Silvermane Guards they'd encountered earlier, moved completely aside, making no attempt to stop them.

Jing Yan's group passed through, and Seele glanced at the Silvermane Guard sentries behind her, her face showing a hint of astonishment.

"It was... that easy?"

Seele still seemed to be processing what had happened.

"Can't they see us?" Seele asked Jing Yan curiously.

"Not exactly. They see us as one of their own."

Jing Yan gave that brief explanation, then said no more.

By now, he had grown extremely skilled at controlling the [Illusion Domain]. He didn't need to make any other gestures at all to affect the senses of anyone he wanted to see the illusion, enveloping them in it.

The others could even be left completely unaware that anything was amiss.

By contrast, when he had saved Seele from the Fragmentum Creatures in the Stagnant Shadow in the Great Mine of the Underworld, he had expanded the [Illusion Domain] to cover the entire Stagnant Shadow, then used it to enhance his [Verbal Domination]. It seemed that was another way to use it.

After all, illusions had a much greater effect on mechanical constructs and humans than they did on Fragmentum Creatures.

The reason was that Fragmentum Creatures came from another dimension, one different from reality. Beings that emerged from the Fragmentum possessed a sensitivity to that strange realm that humans lacked. So the illusions Jing Yan created didn't have much effect on them by themselves. But with the power of the Aeon Eros added in, he could twist and control them.

This was another characteristic of the Fragmentum. Though its radiation was harmful to humans in reality, it was also remarkably easy for it to "imprint" things from reality.

In other words, things from reality could easily affect it, making it like a mirror that reflected "Fragmentum Creatures" corresponding to the objects found in the real world.

This was where the two kinds of Fragmentum Creatures people knew about came from.

One kind was created when the Fragmentum corrupted humans in the real world and twisted them into monsters.

The other kind came from the Fragmentum's existence as a separate dimension outside the real world. It was easily affected by reality, and so it "imprinted" the shadows of beings and objects found in the real world.

Since they were only shadows—like strange little dolls molded from clay to imitate their original forms—they were even easier for divine power to seep into and control, and could even be reshaped again.

That was why Jing Yan was so interested in the Fragmentum.

Through it, he could both fuse some of his power with the Fragmentum and experience the power of Destruction within it.

After all, when all was said and done, the Fragmentum had been brought about by the Stellaron—or, rather, by its influence on and destruction of dimensions.

Jing Yan could now ensure that he could use his divine power to contain the power of Destruction.

Like wrapping it up in a dumpling.

Of course, when he eventually went to the Xianzhou Luofu, he might learn skills like alchemy, which could help him digest the Stellaron.

In any case, when the Silvermane Guards ahead saw Jing Yan's illusion, they all stepped aside.

That included an officer outfitted in splendid, high-quality gear.

His clothing was very different from that of the other Silvermane Guards. While they wore light, sea-blue leather armor and felt hats with metal plates covering their foreheads, this man's chest, shoulders, and upper legs were all clad in gleaming silver armor. Even his tall, barrel-shaped helmet was made of polished metal.

What was more, he held a pale-blue crystal spear, its color like blueberry milk.

At the junction between the spearhead and shaft was a shorter spike shaped like a three-dimensional snowflake or icicle.

The shield in his other hand was like a door—or perhaps a coffin lid—and studded with long, glowing blue spikes shaped like icicles.

He looked both valiant and dangerous.

"Um..."

As Seele followed Jing Yan's group past, she couldn't help glancing at the officer. She turned to Jing Yan and said, "Hey, I know that guy. Maybe..."

Jing Yan smiled at that.

The next moment, he withdrew the illusion affecting the officer.

The man immediately noticed something was wrong.

He grew wary and turned around, ready to make a defensive probe attack toward the place that had caught his eye and seemed suspicious.

But when he spun around and swept his shield out, he hit nothing.

There seemed to be nothing behind him.

He froze, somewhat confused.

He couldn't tell whether he'd just imagined what he saw.

At that moment, Seele was running with the others, following Jing Yan. Her face had gone a little pale, and she stuck out her tongue.

"Wow, did he almost notice us just now?"

Seele asked, clutching her chest.

"I was wondering if Dunn would spot us, but, Mr. Jing Yan, your ability is so powerful! It's like we've turned invisible!"

"Or can they just not see us? Can they still hear the noises we make?"

Seele asked, puzzled.

March 7th heard her and gave an awkward smile. She glanced at Jing Yan, and only after seeing that he wasn't angry did she relax and say, "Oh, you! This is no time to be thinking about greeting your friends."

"Seele, could that officer we just passed be your boyfriend? The armor looks nice. Can't say the same for the guy." March 7th teased.

As she spoke, she winked.

Seele scratched her head awkwardly.

"Boyfriend? You're way off."

"He wasn't my boyfriend. Before I was kicked out of the Architects, he was just pretty attentive to me and liked listening to me play guitar. He was quite honest, too. It's just that... he had body odor, and he wasn't really my type, so..."

Seele trailed off.

Jing Yan smiled faintly at that.

"You're quite interesting."

"By the way."

Seele turned from March 7th to look at Jing Yan.

"Could he have heard us just now and come running after us from behind?" Seele asked.

"No."

Jing Yan smiled.

"My Path's power isn't as simple as just blinding people. If I want to, they won't even be able to hear us."

Jing Yan wasn't just making that claim.