The paper was wrinkled and stained with gray-black mud in many places. The words on it were blurred and damaged, but after Morris carefully handled it, many of the words on it were restored to a state where they could be barely read.
Brown Scott recorded the strange changes that happened to him in his last lucid phase: "… Around 4 a.m., twelve hours had passed since I locked the door. The increasingly intense tinnitus and paroxysmal vertigo seriously affected my movements. I could only write something when I was in a better state. There seemed to be bleeding under my skin, and I saw inexplicable bruises…
"At half past six, my internal organs seemed to be tumbling, as if the structures in my body had lost order and were moving around in my body with their own ideas. I felt no pain, and even the dizziness was much less... The fear began to subside, and clearer memories appeared in my mind...
"Around seven o'clock, I clearly recalled the details of my death, and became more and more convinced that my real self had already died. My left leg was inexplicably broken - or maybe a section of the bone in the middle suddenly dissolved and disappeared.
.
"At 8:15, the left leg began to dissolve. First, the skin cracked on its own, and then the internal tissue flowed out like some kind of gray-black liquid. The liquid substances that were separated from the body seemed to have their own life, squirming on the floor and even climbing up the wall... I was worried for a while whether the wooden boards I nailed to the windows could block these strange and terrifying substances, but later I found that they soon lost their activity after leaving the body, and even when they remained active, they seemed to consciously avoid the sun... This may be very important information, so I record it here...
“… The heart stopped beating, but consciousness continued. I could feel that this body was no longer functioning according to the physiological mechanism of an abnormal human. I tried to cut a wound, but there was no blood in the wound. Only gray-black viscous substance flowed out quickly... What kind of substance is this body made of at this moment
“My entire upper body began to solidify. It took some effort to fix myself in one position and continue writing these words. I can’t feel any pain now. I’m not breathing. My heartbeat has long stopped. I can hear a buzzing noise, as if the material that makes up myself is resonating... More and more sticky substances are leaving my body, making a mess of the room...
"… I hope Galoni won't be scared when she's cleaning her room… Although when I wrote this name, I could hardly remember what Galoni looked like in my mind.
"At half past ten, the thing I was most worried about happened. My vision was rapidly weakening, and the environment was rapidly getting darker. I had to grope for the edge of the paper to make the handwriting on it as clear as possible...
Of course Morris saw this, but he said nothing, only taking a last look at the table next to him.
"... How do we deal with the situation here?" The old scholar raised his head and looked at the captain, "The traces in the room, the information left by Brown, and... Galoni on the first floor."
"Perhaps we should finally give the cultists here a little 'Lost Homeland Shock,'" he whispered, rubbing his fingers together. A small cluster of green flames fell from his fingertips, silently dropped to the ground, and quickly melted into the air and disappeared.
"...Elements," Duncan raised his head. "The local church in Frost is studying this substance. They believe that the sticky substance left after the collapse of the deep-sea replica is very similar to the 'Elements' mentioned by the Annihilation Cultists."
Duncan didn't speak for a while. After listening to the old scholar's story, Duncan was silent for a few seconds, then raised his head and said, "Gushing out in large quantities... from the deep sea?"
"So, there must be a larger cult stronghold, a hidden place where large-scale ceremonies can be held, which is enough for them to continuously draw on the power of the deep sea to create replicas in the city-state and even invade Dagger Island." Duncan said slowly, while raising his head and looking around the room - the only window in the room was nailed shut with wooden boards, and the roof, walls and ground were covered with lifeless dry "mud". All the traces here seemed to be silently telling a thrilling death and confrontation.
Morris was stunned for a moment, but he was now more or less used to the captain getting new clues from nowhere, so he didn't follow up curiously.
When asked about the source of this information, he only spoke after a brief thought: "... I know the term 'element'. If you want to study the historical origins of cultists, you can't avoid these mysterious things."
It's a bit blurry and jagged over there, the boundary between paper and mud seems to disappear, and even appears to be partially fused.
It is not known whether the recorder's consciousness had finally reached its end, or whether he was unable to write the correct words on paper after losing most of his perception - in the end, all that this dead person left for the world was an abrupt punctuation mark.
"Maybe another hour passed,"
"... Even for a powerful city-state, building a submersible that can travel thousands of meters into the deep sea is not a trivial matter. At the very least, it is not something that a group of cultists can master," Morris said in thought, "but they can use some indirect rituals to guide the power of the deep sea, or communicate with certain beings in the deep sea."
"The cognitive disturbance that Garoni has suffered has obviously not ended. After the replica in this building disappeared, she still showed no signs of regaining consciousness. She even firmly believed that her teacher was resting in the room. This shows that the source of the disturbance is not her teacher, but something that is still active and hiding deep in the city-state. If she doesn't eliminate that source, she will not truly recover."
Morris's expression froze: "You mean..."
Duncan paused.
The text stops here.
Morris noticed Duncan's action: "Did you find anything?"
"And... I'm not sure how many Brown Scotts and Galonis there are outside this city-state.
Duncan did not answer immediately, but moved closer to the solidified "mud" and observed its edges thoughtfully. Then he picked up the last record left by Brown Scott and checked the edges of the paper that had been completely soaked by the mud.
Having said this, she frowned slightly, as if she had thought of more.
That was the last place Brown Scott "worked" - perhaps it was just a short-lived replica, but as this constantly collapsing and disintegrating body bent over its desk writing, it still had a noble soul.
“No, I’ve mourned for him once,” Morris shook his head slightly, “but I didn’t expect to see his academic records again three years later… These materials are very useful, right?”
"I can't confirm the current time, it was probably around 11 or 12 o'clock when I heard a sharp and strange sound. The sound lasted for about two minutes, and then all the discomfort began to subside, and the perception of the remaining parts of the body also weakened rapidly. I could vaguely feel the part below the chest falling down...
He paused, as if he was organizing the information in his mind, and continued after a moment: "Just like the Sun Cultists firmly believe that the real ancient sun will save the world sooner or later, the Annihilation Cultists also have similar 'salvation prophecies'. They preach that one day in the future, the Deep Lord will wake up from his slumber and destroy the current mortal world that has been distorted and deceived by the gods in anger. The Deep Sea, which represents the 'real world', will rise from the depths of the world and become a paradise for mortals to live in peace. After this day comes, there will first be a large outflow of 'elements'. Elements are the cornerstone of the world and the blueprint of all things. They will cover everything and restore the world to its true appearance..."
Morris was silent for a long time. After an unknown amount of time, he spoke softly to himself, "Ah, it is indeed my handwriting."
"We have obtained enough clues. Let's leave the rest to the Frost Man," Duncan said calmly. "Leave the room as it is. Leave this letter in a conspicuous place on the table and prepare a report letter. As for Galoni..."
"Do you need some time alone?"
Duncan looked at the old man calmly, "I can wait for you outside."
And in his perception, the Lost Homeland was sailing towards Dagger Island and Frost Island.
"Rumors are spreading in the city that the dead have returned, but at the same time, completely opposite news has reached Tirian," Duncan glanced at Morris.
, "This city-state has probably been infiltrated by replicas and cognitive interference phenomena like a sieve."
"I am now more and more interested in these Annihilation Cultists, but compared to their so-called 'Salvation Prophecy', I am more curious about how they have established a 'connection' with a thousand meters below the Frost," Duncan shook his head. "The replicas come from the deep sea, as do the Obsidian and the submersible on Dagger Island. But a group of mysterious Annihilation Cultists... How do you think they came into contact with the power a thousand meters below the water?"