This is a secret sea area that has never appeared on any official nautical chart and is far away from any legal shipping lane. The lights of the civilized world can no longer illuminate this sea covered with thin mist, and any sane ocean captain will not take the initiative to set foot here. The magnificent fog curtain that surrounds the entire world stands ahead, and even if the sun still illuminates the sea, people sailing here will not feel any comfort from that sun.
People gave this chilling place a name - the border.
An almost shattered ship, which should have sunk to the bottom of the sea long ago according to common sense, was slowly moving through the mist, like a silent ghost, heading towards the "wall of fog" in the distance that was like a wall and cliff.
The dark green flames were like silent phantoms, rising and burning all over the broken ship. The translucent spiritual flames "held together" the ship, which should have been torn into pieces. A horrifying hole was torn in half of its hull, and the huge and complex mechanical structure inside was exposed like the internal organs of some giant beast, soaked in the dark green flames. The ghostly spirit fire spread outward from the hull, flowing and diffusing on the nearby sea. Wherever the flames flowed, the thin mist that was all around also slowly dissipated.
A beam of flame rose, and Duncan's figure appeared on the deck - a translucent spirit form.
With the help of the "artificial beacon" left on the ship, he came here, but this time he did not teleport his entire "real body" here like last time, but only cast an illusion here - most of his attention was still on the Lost Homeland.
The ships from all parties have not yet gathered together, so he has to come over here first to take a look at the situation.
The majestic fog finally stood before him.
Duncan walked across the deck, stepped over the cracks and wrinkled metal wreckage torn by the explosion, walked to the bow, and quietly looked at the magnificent "scenery" in the distance.
It was a "wall" that stretched from sky to earth. The thick and boundless fog had almost condensed into a solid entity, connecting the sky and the sea. It stood in his sight like the end of the world. There were also magnificent "cloud streams" like waterfalls that kept collapsing and flowing from the top of the curtain, falling silently on the sea, and turning into a mist that kept spreading and diffusing, filling the entire border sea area.
In front of this magnificent barrier, no matter whether it was the huge ship built by the cultists, the Lost Hometown, or even the church arks, they would all appear as small as dust.
"This is the end of the world..." Duncan stood quietly at the bow, muttering softly as if talking to himself, "I finally saw it with my own eyes."
He recalled the "border collapse" he had experienced shortly after arriving in this world, and the collapsing fog he had suddenly seen in the normal sea area at that time. At that time, he felt that the scene was extremely magnificent, and its awe-inspiring pressure was still clearly imprinted in his heart.
But after actually being here and seeing the boundless curtain of this "border" with his own eyes, he realized how insignificant the "collapse" that occurred inside the "sanctuary" was compared to the real "border".
… But is this boundless, magnificent, real “border” before our eyes also “collapsed”
Duncan had this thought in his mind that would scare everyone if he told it to others. He looked out at the distant scenery for a while, then stretched out his hand and waved it gently in the air.
The flame swirled around his fingertips and drew an oval outline in the air. Inside the outline was a mirror-like scene. The next second, Agatha's figure appeared in the mirror: "I'm here."
"Any changes in the spiritual world here?" Duncan asked casually.
"Wait a moment, I'll go down and take a look." Agatha in the mirror nodded, and then her figure disappeared into the air.
Duncan waited patiently for a while, and Agatha's figure appeared again in the summoned mirror - but her hair looked a little messy.
"The spirit world is darker and more chaotic, with shapeless shadows passing over the sea. Compared to the 'interior of the civilized world', those shadows appear to be more unfriendly," Agatha reported while fixing her hair. She paused and added, "...very unfriendly, simply violent."
"Being beaten?" Duncan frowned, a little worried.
"We beat up all the guys who came over," Agatha moved her arms and smiled happily. After putting down the burden of the "Gatekeeper" memory and staying on the Lost Homeland for a long time, she seemed to have adapted well to the gang... the atmosphere in the team. "They are not difficult to deal with, they are just more weird. In addition..."
"in addition?"
"The spirit world also has a 'curtain'," Agatha raised her hand and pointed to the curtain barrier in the distance that connected to the sky. "Just like the reflection of this curtain, it stands dark in front of us, and looks... even more dangerous and weird. There are many amorphous outlines in that black curtain that are undulating and reorganizing. It doesn't give me a good feeling."
Listening to Agatha's description, Duncan frowned slightly.
"That is to say, the plan of 'diving' directly through the Eternal Curtain from the depths of the spirit world is not feasible," he thought thoughtfully, "This 'border' seems to surround the entire world from all dimensions, and there is no safe 'shortcut'..."
"That's to be expected," Agatha nodded. "After all, if our world is a 'sanctuary', then the 'walls' of this sanctuary must be strong enough to allow us to have a safe living environment in the chaos after the worlds collide."
She thought for a moment and continued, "In the model that Mr. Morris has perfected recently, the 'curtain' structure at the border should not only block the real world and the spirit world at the same time, but may even extend to the deep sea. Moreover, it is not just a blockade in space... In terms of time, there should also be a structure similar to the 'eternal curtain' to ensure the integrity of the entire 'sanctuary'..."
"The 'border' in the time dimension... The gravekeeper mentioned it to me in Vision 004," Duncan said, shaking his head. "I think Morris got the inspiration from it as well."
"Yes, he has been trying to construct a 'world model' that can explain the entire Infinite Ocean, and even the entire Deep Sea Era. The truth we recently found in the depths of the Nameless Man's Dream and the information you just brought out from the 'Tomb of the Nameless King' have allowed him to make great progress recently." Agatha nodded slightly, with a hint of admiration in her tone. "He has begun to try to explain the world we live in from the perspective of time and space... He is the only scholar I know who has come this far."
"Strictly speaking, he is the only scholar who has made it this far and is still alive," Duncan said with emotion, "Recently, his research has been causing more and more... extra noises on the ship, and the same is true when Nina is reading."
"Scholars are always bound to clash with the knowledge they are studying," Agatha said, as if she was used to it. "The situation with Miss Nina has improved a lot. She has recently learned to calmly face the things that pop up from the book... This is probably related to the last time she accidentally burned the design drawings she had drawn for three days and three nights."
Hearing Agatha's words, Duncan's mouth twitched subconsciously.
Although he has lived in this world for such a long time, he still can't help but feel the urge to complain every time he hears such weird things.
But anyway, the noise made by Nina and Morris struggling with knowledge was better than the noise made by the two puppets currently playing the connection game on the boat.
In the captain's room of the Lost Homeland, Duncan, who was exchanging border intelligence with Lucrecia, blinked and raised his head helplessly.
A figure in a black and white maid dress staggered into the captain's room, with a large clockwork key behind her clicking. She saw Duncan in the room and slowly smiled: "Captain... what... what do you want for dinner?"
Duncan held his breath for two seconds, and finally couldn't hold it in: "Alice, why is your head on Luni's body?"
Alice's face suddenly showed a hint of surprise: "Ah, how... did you find out?"
"I'm not blind! And I'm not stupid!" Duncan slapped his forehead, and then he heard the sound of "bang bang bang" coming from the captain's room. He got up from behind the chart table helplessly and walked to the door. He saw Alice, who was holding Lu Ni's head, banging her body against the wall outside the door again and again. While banging Lu Ni's head, she was giving orders: "Bumped, bumped... A little to the left... Hey, the left, it's the other way around! Your side is right! Ah, bumped again... Go to the left again... Old master?"
Duncan looked expressionlessly at Luni (head) who was suddenly stunned by surprise. Then, Lucretia, who also had a blank expression on her face, walked out behind him.
The two of them just stared at this Lunie + Alice combination with stern faces, watching Alice's body continue to move forward and suddenly bump into the door frame.
"Don't go!" Luni (the head) quickly reminded, "The old master and the mistress are out!"
As soon as she gave the reminder, she subconsciously controlled her body in the captain's room and walked out. As a result, a loud "gulp" noise was heard in the room.
Duncan lowered his head and saw a head with long silver hair rolling to his feet. Alice blinked innocently: "Captain...save...save...save..."
At the same time, the combination of Luni and Alice next to them also missed a step and fell down near the hem of Lucrecia's skirt with a plop. Luni's head hit the ground with a thud, and she rolled while frantically calling for help: "Mistress! I fell too!!"
The chaos at the scene was beyond words. Duncan spent a long time thinking about the status of the two dolls. Finally, he couldn't help but said to Lucrecia in unison: "Change them back!"
(End of this chapter)