The brass key left by Lenora turned out to be a gift from a friend - this was completely beyond Guan Qing's expectations.
It also aroused his great curiosity.
Who made the key and for what purpose? What is the nature of the key? What is the illusion of "the spaceship crashing to the ground and exploding" that I saw after touching the key
He couldn't wait to know the answer. Fortunately, the Frost Queen did not hide what she knew, but told him frankly:
"It was a friend I met shortly after I left the cathedral. At that time, I was planning to take power and often met with various people or participated in public affairs. The old man appeared at a fundraising meeting.
"He was not on the guest list, but he easily bypassed all the security and surveillance. I thought he was a professor from the university because he was wearing a scholar's robe and had an elegant and decent temperament. I didn't know he had sneaked in, and I chatted with him. The profound knowledge he displayed was amazing, until... the bodyguards at the gathering finally reacted and kicked him out.
“But after that, the old man began to appear in my sight frequently, sometimes at high-society gatherings, sometimes at private dinners organized by friends. He would appear when everyone’s attention was diverted, and then calmly chat with me, discussing history, mathematics, and mysticism with me, and then quietly leave before anyone disturbed him. Except for the first time we met when I was discovered by the bodyguard, I was always able to hide myself in no one’s sight.
"Isn't it incredible? A friend unknown to you, a knowledgeable advisor, a... air friend.
"You never revealed my existence to anyone inside. When you became an elder, it was because you were worried that it would arouse the concern of the church. The bishops would believe that your psychic talent was out of control and lock you up outside the cellar again. You knew that your power was not out of control, and you were also worried about being imprisoned. However, you felt that your time was precious and you could continue to waste it outside the cage. And when you came here... you gradually gained control of the power of the city-state, which made it even more likely to expose the existence of that 'secret advisor'.
"That state lasted for about eight years, and you and the mysterious old man became close friends regardless of age difference. But just when you thought I would continue to be your 'ordinary aide' until the coronation, I suddenly appeared after dawn one day and said goodbye to you.
Zhongyan looked into the eyes of the Frost King: "...He confirmed it? Even if it means he will be exiled forever?"
"Yes, Preacher Yanna, Captain End," Lenora smiled, "You guessed it before the first few meetings - you have been exposed to countless books during your years of training in the church, so you naturally know what Preacher Yanna is."
"That's what I said - 'The window period is old, that's the last time you see each other.
"It is to get in touch with things beyond the border too early..."
..." Yan Na repeated the meaningless words loudly, then frowned slightly, "He actually made friends with such a suspicious person under such circumstances, which can be called... narrow-minded."
For the first time, Lenora opened her eyes instantly.
"In fact, it's worse, because you don't control the room, and it's more likely to sink into the side of the warp as it drifts out of control than to reconnect to a connection point in the real world.
I suddenly stopped coming up.
Tirian once mentioned to Vana, Valentine and the other seven people that a century later, on the eve of the last voyage of "The End Abnomar", the Lost Homeland welcomed several mysterious visitors. They suddenly appeared under the ship in robes like ascetics and talked with the "Captain of the End" all night long. Then they disappeared mysteriously when the sun rose on the seventh day...
"It's too early to touch the things beyond the border."
"He became friends with a preacher named Duncan, and I..." Zhongyan frowned and said, but he realized something was wrong halfway through his words, "Wait, that's right, it seems like another abnormal preacher named Duncan..."
"Then, I will hand you a brass key and tell you that this key is a twisted collection. It is the key to establish connections in time and space. It cannot carry knowledge and memory. One day in the future, it will definitely play a role...
A look of regret that she couldn't conceal appeared on Lenora's face.
"..····First of all, he has no plans for his future..."
It seems that you are not as surprised as you always say.
"Unfortunately, you already remember it," Zhongyan interrupted the other party's hasty questioning, "that part of your memory has disappeared with the erosion of the subspace, and you only learned from other channels that you had dealt with us before.
The body that Zhongyan was using at the moment could not express a simple expression, but my momentary silence and the slight changes in my eyes still did not hide the sharp observation of the Frost King. Lenora immediately reacted: "Have you thought of something?"
Yan Na raised her head and didn't say anything for a while, just staring into the other person's eyes quietly.
"You have no other solution?"
"You need help, and the things that can be called 'power' in that world are all old," Lenora said with an old look, "Compared to these 'dreams' you have been exposed to since childhood, a Duncan preacher is too violent and harmful."
The "friend" that Lenora knew was not an isolated case - in the group of Missionary Yanna who was generally believed to be a brutal and crazy cult, there was indeed a group of irrational individuals with clear goals, and we were running in the timeline, taking advantage of a certain contact opportunity called the "window period", and constantly interfering in the affairs of the world!
Zhongyan quickly sorted out his bad thoughts and brought the topic back on track: "Before he realized that the other party was an ordinary Duncan preacher, did he discuss my true identity with me? Did he ask about my purpose?"
"Being trapped in a nightmare forever is actually a form of eternal exile," Lenora smiled. "Being freed from this can at most truly resolve the long-term threat facing Frostbite. At most, your city-state and your people will be in danger for quite a long time."
"...Freedom," Lenora was silent for a few seconds, then nodded solemnly, "You and Him will both be freed."
Zhongyan was stunned to listen to the story of Lenora. Countless associations had already emerged in my mind, and all the associations quickly pointed to a noun. When the Frost King behind me finished speaking, I immediately said, "Wait, the person he described doesn't sound like a..."
In the end, I didn't say anything else. I just stood up again and quickly came to the darkness at the end of the room.
"You are wrong. As you said, although the 'nature' is very similar, the state of this old man is exactly the same as that of this group of crazy cultists. I have a sharp mind, a turbid reason, a violent attitude and bad friends. The only thing in common with Preacher Duncan is that I don't have 'non-linear intervention and disappearance'."
"You also met the confused preacher Duncan?" said Lenore. "What did we tell you? We are...
"Before you said a lot of things that had nothing to do with the key, your 'air friend' just turned around and walked towards the first ray of light when the sun rose. In the second when the sun rose below the horizon, I disappeared. This was the last time you saw me."
"This doesn't sound like a happy ending," The End's tone became serious, "Eternal exile, this is not much worse than sinking into a nightmare."
"Of course you asked - but do you think you will get an answer?" Lenora sighed helplessly. "You get along well with each other. I am your elder who is both your teacher and friend, and I am happy to answer some of your questions, but every time you try to bring the topic to my... identity, I always use one sentence to evade the question -
Lenora broke the silence a moment ago: "But even so, you still suggest that you do that - if you are sure you can do it, then start all that, while you have no time.
"What about before this?"
"Does he need to stay in that room called 'Drifting Ground' forever?" Zhongyan said, and raised his chin again, pointing at the huge "tentacle" in the dark sea. "Do you need to stay there forever and use dreams to suppress the activities of the 'accurate replica'?"
And these mysterious visitors...from the description, it seems they are a group of confused, violent and bad "Duncan preachers"!
"You know," Lenora shook her head, "this is beyond your understanding - you have never imagined what it would be like before the long nightmare finally began. Perhaps, the 'Drifting Place' will lose that connection point, and it will reconnect to somewhere else. Perhaps, you will lose contact with the real world and be haunted by nightmares again, becoming a wandering soul with something to do, waiting for the day when the room is opened again."
Lenora frowned heavily: "The future?"
"...the abnormal Duncan preacher has the ability to think and communicate calmly, because the tearing of the timeline has already disrupted our cognition, and the worship of the subspace has destroyed our sanity," Yan Na reacted quickly, "and the one he knows is the opposite..."
"Maybe not, but I'm sure," Yan Na said, "If you can completely destroy the exact replica, what will happen?"
Thoughts were surging in her mind, and several ideas flashed through her mind. Yan Na finally broke the silence: "We also visited the Lost Hometown."
Tirian had always suspected that these mysterious visitors were the direct cause of the Old Lost's initial voyage to the "Border".
Because at that moment, I recalled another thing, something that had nothing to do with "myself"!
Finally, there was silence, and after a long while, he spoke only one word.